It never occurred to me that it was bad. I just thought it was full of nonsense words and the rythem was catchy. My version is COMPLETELY different from all that I have read here. My grandmother who was born in 1918 sang this to me when i was little.

In china once there lived a man.
His name was Chickala Chickala Chan.
His fingers were long and his toes were short.
And this is the way the poor china men talk.

Oh, chickala lee cha lie cha low.
Chikeree romee a win a pah naa tika
Wall ika Wall ika chat ti kee.
Inna pah natika ouch ee oh.