I was so happy to find this song. My grannie sang this at family get togethers when our family from Canada would come for a visit. I cried when I found the lyrics. We are Scottish but I live in America. I never thought this racist because I felt so sad for the wee boy who had no friends and had to stay in his own backyard. I recently went home to Scotland for a visit and was talking to my niece who is 46 and I am 68 and we remembered her singing this song. I found this at work through Google and I cried for the joyous memory. My grannie had a lovely voice and it brought the song to life. Thank you for all the comments made. K. Wolsey