Beneath the Gallows Tree- Wilburn (AR) 1958 Parler C
[From Ozark Folk Songs online. Collected by Mary C. Parler by In Folklore Class; Reel 362, Item 13. Her notes follow.
R. Matteson 2015]
"This song was given to me by Judy Green, who said that her mother was taught it by her mother when she was a small girl in southern Illinois."
Beneath the Gallows Tree - Sung by Jo Wilburn; May, 1958.
Oh, hangman, hangman, spare thy rope,
For a little while,
I think I see my mother a-coming,
Coming a many a mile.
O Mother, Mother, have you gold,
Gold to set me free,
Or are you come to see me hung
Beneath the gallows tree?
O son, O son, I have no gold,
No gold to set you free,
But I am come to see you hung
Beneath the gallows tree.
(These three stanzas are repeated with father, brother, and sweetheart. The sweetheart's answer is the last stanza:)
O sweetheart, sweet heart, I have gold,
0 gold to set you free,
And I'm not come to see you hung
Beneath the gallows tree.