American Old Time Song Lyrics: 28 Sam Bass

Theater, Music-Hall, Nostalgic, Irish & Historic Old Songs, Volume 28

SAM BASS.
(This song was sent to us by Kelson Forsyth
(Showman), Sion, Walker Co., Texas.)

Sam Bass was born in Indiana, it was his native home;
At the age of seventeen young Sam began to roam;
He first came out to Texas a cowboy for to be,
A kinder-hearted fellow you hardly ever see.

Sam once dealt in race stock, once called the Denton mare-
He matched her at scrub races and carried her to the fair;
Sam used to coin the money and spend it very free;
He always drank good whiskey wherever he might be

Sam left the Collins' Ranch in the merry month of May
With a herd of Texas cattle the black hills for to sit;
Sold out in Custer City And then got on a spree-
A harder set of cowboys you hardly ever see.

On their way bark to Texas they robbed the U. P. train;
They split up in couples And started out again;
Joe Collins and his partner were overtaken soon-
With all their hard cash money they had to meet their doom.

Sam met his fate at Round Rock July the 21st;
They pierced poor Sam with rifle-balls and emptied out his purse;
Now poor Sam's a corpse and Piper's in the quay,
And Jackson's in the bushes a-trying to get away.

Jim Murphy borrowed Sam's good gold and did not want to pay;
The only way he saw to win was to give poor Sam away;
He sold out Bass and Barnes And left their friends to mourn;
Oh, what a scorching Jim will get when Gabriel blows his horn.