[WARNING: racial terms. Original is presented here as a part of music history.]
a 1909 popular song
words by Alex Rogers
music by Bert A. Williams
The sheet music:
Accompaniment:
Lyrics
1. I’m goin to git a good roun’ rock
An’ hide it right in thare
An de nex’ smart man what ‘proaches me
I’ll knock off some o’ his hair
Frum early childhood up ’till now
How ’tis I sho can’t see
Each man on earth wid a gole-brick
Hunts up and den finds me
Chorus
But believe me
I’m gettin’ tired of always bein’ de dub
Deys worked on me so faithfully
‘Til I’se wore most to a nub
You all have heard about dat straw
What broke de camel’s back
Well a bubble added to my load
Would sholy make mine crack
But believe me
Wo be to he or she
That ‘temps to ease me dat bubble
Believe me
2. I caught some lovely mountain trout
Las’ Sunday week ago
A man say, “See dat house up dare
Dey’ll buy um frum you sho”
The house was up da mountain side
At leas fo’ miles or mo’
I clamed up dare an’ showed my fish
De gent’man he said, “No”
Chorus
But believe me
I was sterelized but I des started down
And when I was ’bout two-thirds down
I heard a fur-off sound
I turned, it ’twas de man up dare
A-wavin’ dis here way
Well I clamed on back de man says
“An’ we don’t want none next Sunday”
But believe me
Ef I’d had a gun an’ some bullets
I’d assasinated him sure
Believe me
3. ‘Twas in a side-show of a circus
Where I happened once
I met a man wid great long hair
What done knife throwing stunts
His wife what he throwed knives at
She was sick as she could be
An’ he offered me two dollars
Fer to throw de knives at me
Chorus
But believe me
I almost los’ my breath
But I des lief be stabbed as fer
To have to starve to death
As de fus knife it went whizzin’ by
My eyes got like de moon
Den a child-like voice cried frum de crowd
“Good Lord, he missed de coon”
But believe me
I megidly left the platform
An de vicinity, believe me
Sung here by Fred Feild: