Miss Fogarty's Christmas Cake

I found an old family song that I can remember my Dad, Grandfather and Great Uncles singing around Christmas time. The websites I found it on claimes it's an Irish song but my great grandparents were Swedish and Norweigen (Johnson and Ebbisen) and I though it had come from them. Going through it there are a lot of Irish names so I guess it really did come from Ireland. I remember it slightly different from the way it is here but it's been 30 years since I've heard it so I can't realy make any corrections.



Here it is...



Miss Fogarty's Christmas Cake



As I sat in my window last evening

The letterman brought it to me

A little gilt-edged invitation sayin'

"Gilhooley come over to tea"

I knew that the Fogarties sent it.

So I went just for old friendships sake.

The first thing they gave me to tackle

Was a slice of Miss Fogarty's cake.



Chorus: There were plums and prunes and cherries,

There were citrons and raisins and cinnamon, too

There was nutmeg, cloves and berries

And a crust that was nailed on with glue

There were caraway seeds in abundance

Such that work up a fine stomach ache

That could kill a man twice after eating a slice

Of Miss Fogarty's Christmas cake.



Miss Mulligan wanted to try it,

But really it wasn't no use

For we worked in it over an hour

And we couldn't get none of it loose

Till Murphy came in with a hatchet

And Kelly came in with a saw

That cake was enough be the powers above

For to paralyze any man's jaws



Miss Fogarty proud as a peacock,

Kept smiling and blinking away

Till she flipped over Flanagans brogans

And she spilt the homebrew in her tea

Aye Gilhooley she says you're not eatin,

Try a little bit more for me sake

And no Miss Fogarty says I,

For I've had quite enough of your cake



Maloney was took with the colic,

O'Donald's a pain in his head

Mc'Naughton lay down on the sofa,

And he swore that he wished he was dead

Miss Bailey went into hysterics

And there she did wriggle and shake

And everyone swore they were poisoned

Just from eating Miss Fogarty's cake