I remember this song being sung to me in my infant bath by my aged great aunt ( she was born in 1891 and died in 1977 ) She had a huge store of songs from her childhood ( and, interestingly, from those of her mother and grandmother) including lots of references to the cotton famine caused by the American Civil War - the family was in cotton in Lancashire - and some, referring to slaves in the Old South, that would get one hunted down by the rabid political-correctness nazis if sung now..... Some of the oldest songs spoke a lot of "Boney" and his plans to invade this country, which are appropriately mocked in the lyrics. Strange, how these things lingered in collective memory.
    Thanks for posting this - I have often wondered if anyone still remembered it ( I could only remember the tune and the chorus and odd bits of the verses - but I was only about three at the time!)