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Lyrics for Poor Ellen Smith by Unknown:
| | | Artist: | Unknown |
| | Album: | Unknown | | Track: | Poor Ellen Smith | | | | Date Added: | 18/10/2007 | | Views: | 209 | | | | Lyrics: | Poor Ellen Smith
(Peter Degraph?)
Come all kind people, my
story to hear,
What happen'd to me in June of last year.
It's of poor Ellen Smith and how
she was found,
A ball in her heart, lyin' cold on the ground.
It's true I'm in jail,
a prisoner now,
But God is here with me and hears every vow.
Before Him I promise the
truth to relate
And tell all I know of poor Ellen's sad fate.
The world of my
story's no longer a part,
But knows I was Ellen's own lovin' sweetheart.
They knew my
intention to make her my wife,
I loved her too dearly to take her sweet life.
I saw
her on Monday, before that sad day
They found her poor body and took her away;
That she
had been killed never entered my mind
Till a ball through her heart they happened to
find.
Oh who was so cruel, so heartless, so base
As to murder poor Ellen in such a
lonesome place?
I saw her that morning so still and so cold
And heerd the wild stories the
witnesses told.
I choked back my tears, for the people all said
That Peter Degraph
had shot Ellen Smith dead!
My love is in her grave with her hand on her breast
The
bloodhound and sheriff won't give me no rest.
They got their Winchesters and hunted me
down,
But I was away in ole Mount Airy town.
I stayed off a year and I prayed all the
time
That the man might be found whut committed the crime.
So I could come back in
my character safe (and my character
save?)
Ere the flowers had faded on poor Ellen's
grave.
So I come back to Winston my trial to stand
To live or to die as the law might
command.
Ellen sleeps calm in the lonely church yard
While I look trough the bars
--- God knows it is hard!
I know they will hang me --- at least, if they can,
But I know I
will die as an innocent man.
My soul will be free when I stand at the bar
Where God
tries his cross, then, there, like a star,
That shines in the night, will an innocent
shine
Oh, I do appeal to the Justice of Time!
From Ethel Park
Richardson's book- American Mountain Songs.
Probably closer to the original than Hobart
Smith/Molly O'Day
version: see also ELLNSMTH
"Peter Degraph really did shoot and kill
Ellen Smith
(according to the verdict) near Mt. Airy, NC. He was executed for
the crime,
and while he waited for them to take him to the chair
he called for a guitar, and this song was
composed and sung by
him. So great was the feeling, for and against Degraph, that it
had
to be declared a misdemeanour for the song to be sung in a
gathering of any size for the reason
that it always fomented a
riot." (IBID) (also sic) RG
@murder
filename[
ELLNSMT2
play.exe ELLNSMT2
RG
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