ABSTRACT
It is extraordinary how the excision o f a few stanzas and a rearrangem ent o f those which rem ain can alter the perspective o f a song. A glance at M r M acD onald’s three verses suggests that a convict from the Isle o f France is being put aboard a little boat by the Coast G uard in order to be sent from Ireland for unruly behaviour. The longer texts tell a different story: A convict arrives, shackled, on the Isle o f France (one o f the Channel Islands?). His story is that he was sentenced to seven years’ transportation for unruly behaviour. He had completed six years and was on his way home on a ship called The Shamrock Green. The hulk, however, is shipwrecked, casting him up on the island, where he is offered sustenance and com fort by the Coast Guard. A speedy letter is sent to the Queen, who grants him his freedom . He blesses the Coast G uard and wishes success to the Isle o f France.
