Could it come from S.Africa? Baden-Powell got his ideas for the Scout movement from his experience in the Boer war working with local "scouts". Some of the other scout and guide songs have their origins there.
My favourite was;
Never let your braces dangle, dingle dingle dangle,
One old sport he got caught, right in the middle of a mangle.
Right in the middle he went, by gum,
Rolled as flat as linoleum,
Now he's singing in Kingdom come,
"Never let your braces dangle".

Sounds like this one originated somewhere between Australia (old sport) Lancashire (by gum) and Kirkcaldy (linoleum). It puts a date stamp on it too - what's a mangle and what's linoleum??