The Murderer
1
John Jones and Fred Pratt had a falling out;
It was all about Nellie Brown;
Nell liked Jones better than she did Pratt,
So of course she turned Pratt down.
2
Says Pratt: " Miss Brown, Jones is a thief,
He served three years on the gang;
He is only a common rousta bout;
Pardon me for such slang.
3
I know for when my father was County
Judge, he sentenced Jones three times;
Once for stealing a box of hams,
Once for stealing a dime
And the third time for stealing a little
girl not past the age of the nine " .
4
Now this was a malicious lie;
Nell unlike most girls could see
So she said " you are a coward Pratt
To speak such words to me " .
5
" Father says that John is a gentleman
And I think he ought to know
For they were in business together
In the Klondike Eleven long years or more
6
" And further more I want to tell you
To save contention and strife
That with a heart filled with love
I have promised to be no other than
John Jone's wife.
7
These words sank deep into Pratt's mean soul,
Thought he, " It shall never be
Before he shall marry the girl I love
I'll send his soul to eternity " .
8
Pratt knew the road that Jones used
When he went to see Miss Brown,
He hid himself behind the trees,
Just outside the town.
9
Jones came walking along slowly,
Thinking " to-morrow Nell will be my bride "
When suddenly Pratt sprang
From the shrubery by his side.
10
He felled Jones with a bludgeon;
Then stabbed him to the heart,
Then dragged his body from the road
To a safe place in the dark.
11
He crept back through the shrubery,
He fled into his home;
But the eyes of God were upon him;
He felt he was not alone.
12
Next day the constable sought him
And confronted him with his crime;
" You were seen " he told the murderer
" By eyes more keen than mine " .
13
The day that they had the trial,
Nell's face was calm but firm;
Neath her searching gaze Pratt faltered;
Like a worm he did squirm.
14
The Judge gave out this sentence,
" You shall hang 'til you are dead "
They marched the prisoner outside,
To the gallows he was led.
15
He knelt in meditation;
" Forgive me God, " he said.
He drove a dirk into his own heart;
At the sheriff's feet he fell dead.
John Jones and Fred Pratt had a falling out;
It was all about Nellie Brown;
Nell liked Jones better than she did Pratt,
So of course she turned Pratt down.
2
Says Pratt: " Miss Brown, Jones is a thief,
He served three years on the gang;
He is only a common rousta bout;
Pardon me for such slang.
3
I know for when my father was County
Judge, he sentenced Jones three times;
Once for stealing a box of hams,
Once for stealing a dime
And the third time for stealing a little
girl not past the age of the nine " .
4
Now this was a malicious lie;
Nell unlike most girls could see
So she said " you are a coward Pratt
To speak such words to me " .
5
" Father says that John is a gentleman
And I think he ought to know
For they were in business together
In the Klondike Eleven long years or more
6
" And further more I want to tell you
To save contention and strife
That with a heart filled with love
I have promised to be no other than
John Jone's wife.
7
These words sank deep into Pratt's mean soul,
Thought he, " It shall never be
Before he shall marry the girl I love
I'll send his soul to eternity " .
8
Pratt knew the road that Jones used
When he went to see Miss Brown,
He hid himself behind the trees,
Just outside the town.
9
Jones came walking along slowly,
Thinking " to-morrow Nell will be my bride "
When suddenly Pratt sprang
From the shrubery by his side.
10
He felled Jones with a bludgeon;
Then stabbed him to the heart,
Then dragged his body from the road
To a safe place in the dark.
11
He crept back through the shrubery,
He fled into his home;
But the eyes of God were upon him;
He felt he was not alone.
12
Next day the constable sought him
And confronted him with his crime;
" You were seen " he told the murderer
" By eyes more keen than mine " .
13
The day that they had the trial,
Nell's face was calm but firm;
Neath her searching gaze Pratt faltered;
Like a worm he did squirm.
14
The Judge gave out this sentence,
" You shall hang 'til you are dead "
They marched the prisoner outside,
To the gallows he was led.
15
He knelt in meditation;
" Forgive me God, " he said.
He drove a dirk into his own heart;
At the sheriff's feet he fell dead.
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