Folk and Traditional Song Lyrics:
Ballade of the Skunk

The Ballade of the Skunk

The Ballade of the Skunk

I hont de bear, I hont de moose
An' sometimes hont de rat.
Last night I take my axe and go
To hont do pole-cat.

My fren, Bill, says. 'Very fine fur
An' sometimes good to eat."
I tell my wife I get fur coat--
Sometime I got some meat.

I walk abont two, three, five, six, miles
An' then I feel strong smell,
Tink maybe dat dam skonk he die
An' fur coat go to hell.

By'mby I see dat skonk
Close up by one big tree.
I sneak up ver' close behind
An' tink he no see me.

Sacre blue! I tink I blind
Jess Crise! I cannot see.
I run roun' an' roun' an' roun'
Till bump in a goddam tree.

By'mby I drop my axe
An' light out for de shack.
I tink 'bout ten million skonk
He climb up my back.

My wife, she meet me at de door;
She sick on me de dog.
She say, "You no sleep here tonight;
Go out and sleep with hog."

I try to get in dat hog-pen,
Jess Crise! Now wat you tink?
Dat goddam hog no stand for dat
On account of awful stink.

I no more will hont de skonk
To get his fur and meat.
For if his pees he smell so bad,
Jess Crise! What if he sheet?
Mellinger E. Henry, collected by RW Gordon c1925,
in Library of Congress, American Folklife Center
2471

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