A song which became very popular before the first contingent sailed from Australia in October 1914 was ‘Australia Will be There’. Used in countless recruiting rallies it was popular amongst the ‘folk back home’. Written by ‘Skipper ” Francis, it was a rousing call to all and with the sound of a brass band behind it, it certainly set a great patriotic tone. Needless to say as the war progressed, it was not loved by the soldier’s themselves. “There has been a lot of argument going on they say, As to whether Dear Old England should have gone into the fray, But right thinking people all wanted her to fight; For when there’s shady business, Britannia puts it right. Rally round the banner of your country, Take the field with brothers o’er the foam; On land or sea, wherever you be, Keep your eye on Germany. But England home and beauty have no cause to fear, Should Auld acquaintance be forgot, No! No! No! No! No! Australia will be there, Australia will be there.” The author, Mr. W M Francis explains how the song came about, “ The song came into my brain in King Street, Sydney, on Saturday August 8th , 1914 and I sang it in public for the first time on Saturday 15th, in the Gaiety Theatre, Melbourne…. I sang the first week from a manuscript copy, and then got a cheap copy edition printed because of an immediate demand. As soon as the ‘Sydney Emden’ scrap was cabled, I substituted the words in place of politician’s names which were put in the earlier editions… It did duty over many thousands of miles in camps, recruiting platforms, hospitals and fairs.” (Mr Francis was rejected for Miltary Service on the basis of a deformed foot).
