English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians

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	The Wife of Usher's Well
	6 She fixed them a bed all in the back side room And on it she put three sheets, And one of the three were a golden sheet, Under it that the youngest might sleep. 7 Take it off, take it off, dear mother, they said, For we haven't got long to stay, For yonder stands our Saviour dear, Where we must surely be. 8 Dear mother, dear mother, it's the fruit of your poor pride heart That caused us to lie in the clay. Cold clods at their heads, green grass at their feet, We are wrapped in our winding-sheet.

	2 They hadn't been gone but a very short time, Scarcely three weeks and a day, Till death came along through them dark woods And swept them all away. 3 There is a King in the Heavens all bright, He used to wear a crown. I hope he'll send me my three babes to-night Or in the morning soon. 4 The beds was fixed in the back wall room, Spread over with clean sheets, And on the top was a golden cloth That they might rest and sleep. 75