The Dubliners - The Old Alarm Clock lyrics

When first I came to London In the year of thirty nine The city looked so wonderful And the girls were so divine But the coppers got suspicious And they soon gave me the knock I was charged with being the owner Of an old alarm clock Oh next morning down by Barber street I caused no little stir The IRA were busy And the telephones did burr Said the judge "I'm going to charge you With the possession of this machine And I'm also going to charge you With the wearing of the green" Now says I to him "Your honor If you'll give me half a chance I'll show you how me small machine Can make the peelers dance It ticks away politely Till you get an awful shock And it ticks away the gelignite In me old alarm clock" Said the judge "Now listen here, my man And I'll tell you of our plan For you and all your countrymen I do not give a damn The only time you'll take is mine Ten years in Dartmoor dock And you can count it by the ticking Of your old alarm clock Now this lonely Dartmoor prison Would put many in the jigs The cell it isn't pretty And it isn't very big Sure I'd long ago have left the place If I had only got Ah, me couple of sticks of gelignite And me old alarm clock