It was early, early one morning
When i heard my bulldog bark
T'was staggolee and billy delyon
Squabbling in the dark
Staggolee told billy delyon
"what do you think of that?
You win all my money, lord!
You spit in my stetson hat"
Staggolee were walking
In the red hot brawling sun
Says: "bring me my six-shooter
Lord i wants my fourty-one"
Staggolee were walking
Through the mud and through the sand
Says: "i feel mistreated this morning
I could k** most any man"
Billy delyons told staggolee:
"please don't take my life
I got three helpless children
One poor, beautiful wife"
"i don't care nothing 'bout your children
And nothing about your wife
You done mistreated me, billy
And i'm bound to take your life"
He shot him three times in the shoulder, lord
He shot him three times in the side
Well, the last time he shot him
Caused billy lyons to die
Staggolee told mrs. billy:
"you don't believe your man is dead?
Come on into the barroom
See the hole i shot in his head!"
The high-sheriff told the deputies:
"get your pistols and come with me!
We got to go'n arrest the bad man
Known as staggolee"
The deputies took their pistols
They laid them on the shelf
"if you want that bad man staggolee
You have to arrest him yourself!"
The high-sheriff asked the bartender
"who can that bad man be?"
"speak softly!?, said the bartender
"that bad man's staggolee"
He touched old stag on the shoulder
"say, stag, why do you run?"
"i don't run, white folk
When i got my fourty-one"
The hangman put the mask on
Tied his hands behind his back
Sprung the trap on staggolee
But his neck refused to crack
The hangman, he got frightened
Said: "chief, you see how it be
I can't hang this man, lord
You better set him free"
Three-hundred dollar funeral
Thousand dollar hearse
Satisfaction! "undertaker
Put stag on down in the earth!"
Staggolee told the devil:
"say, come on and have some fun!
You stick me with your pitchfork
And i'll shoot you with my fourty-one"
Staggolee took the pitchfork
And he laid it on a shelf
He says: "stand back, tom devil, lord
I'm gonna rule hell by myself."