Once there was an English Schoolboy who'd heard many a tale
And dreamed to be a great white hunter out on the ivory trail;
Lived his dream and sailed away to Africa's far shore.
From the Cape to wild Zambezi all the land he did explore.
Alone in heat and cold with raging fever he survived;
Fearless in the face of danger of wild beasts and savage tribes.
All his journeys weren't in vain for many a trail he blazed
For colonies now come and gone where the Union Jack was raised.
Oh good Lord deliver us! he would often have to pray
...He would hear the night jar say.
Saw the awesome beauty of each creature he chanced to spy
From the power of elephant and lion to the fragile butterfly.
His trophies and his specimens were for all the world to see
On walls of institutions of natural history.
In his honour there's so much that bears the name of this great man,
From creatures of the wild to regiments and even tracts of land.
Though he was a ruthless hunter, wished his fellow man no harm
But in wars and rebellion reluctantly he did not want to take up arms.
Oh Good Lord deliver us! do soldiers have to die?
...Called the Night Jar in reply. Ai Ai.
Ice blue eyes and his demeanor won him friendships far and wide.
From presidents of mighty lands to chiefs of the humblest tribe.
He was a wild explorer who loved peace and solitude,
Driven by his quest for freedom and his fortitude.
It was by the rifle bullet that his hunter trade he plied
In his beloved Africa in a lonely grave he lies
Hyenas laugh and jackals call but his spirit never dies.
Oh good Lord deliver us! into your heavenly home
...Now the Night Jar weeps alone, alone.
Who was this English schoolboy with so much to see and do?
Who was this ruthless hunter the spirit of fear he never knew?
Who was this wild explorer with the friendly eyes of blue?
He was Frederick Courtney Selous.
Oh Good Lord deliver us!
Oh good Lord deliver us!
...The Night Jar remembers you
Oh Good Lord deliver us.
Oh Good Lord deliver us
The Night Jar remembers you!
Selous Selous Selous.