It's about a tasmanian convict. The key phrase is "huon pine", the convicts used to be forced to harvest these trees under horrifying conditions. The convict is saying that living his life harvesting huon pine is not for him, nor is the ankle iron of captivity. The convict would prefer to be dead ("Arresting in the rope will do me fine"). The first paragraph is, I believe, a kind of suicide pact between him and this other convict. One person would kill the other (with an axe since that is what they used for the trees), and then they would be hung for this crime (the song says he was sent to Bellerive to be executed). That way, both get to die.
It is a really sad song. The death of the 16 year old, the fact that he was thrust into this horrifying existence from petty theft, and wanting to remind his sister of the day they drank wine (most likely the only experience of luxury for this man, since he was of no account). Glenn has also added a unique quality to his voice that adds to the sentiment of this song tremendously.
It's about a tasmanian convict. The key phrase is "huon pine", the convicts used to be forced to harvest these trees under horrifying conditions. The convict is saying that living his life harvesting huon pine is not for him, nor is the ankle iron of captivity. The convict would prefer to be dead ("Arresting in the rope will do me fine"). The first paragraph is, I believe, a kind of suicide pact between him and this other convict. One person would kill the other (with an axe since that is what they used for the trees), and then they would be hung for this crime (the song says he was sent to Bellerive to be executed). That way, both get to die.
It is a really sad song. The death of the 16 year old, the fact that he was thrust into this horrifying existence from petty theft, and wanting to remind his sister of the day they drank wine (most likely the only experience of luxury for this man, since he was of no account). Glenn has also added a unique quality to his voice that adds to the sentiment of this song tremendously.