Q, drop everything and find that Army paper !

At Oxford in 1929, C. S. Lewis was assured, apparently by another don, that "Three German Officers," alias "Skiboo," was sung there as early as 1912. Lewis, a 1914-18 veteran, was much surprised.

I now agree with Malcolm (in spite of James Fuld's contrary opinion) that the "John Anderson" tune was almost certainly the direct inspiration for "WJCMH," either outright or, less probably, through unconsciously directing Gilmore's creativity. As Malcolm says, it's hard to imagine the melodic similarity to be mere coincidence. Gilmore, a professional musician, must have been familiar with "JA," which was celebrated as one of Burns's best songs. We'll never know what, if anything, Gilmore's "source" was humming.

Without documentary or at least first-person evidence, there is no good reason to put any trust in Sparling's early date for "Johnny, I Hardly Knew Ye." He was writing two-and-a-half generations after the supposed event, in an era whose skepticism when it came to claims about folklore was, in emergencies, readily suspended.