A poor old man came riding by
And we say so, and we know so
O, a poor old man came riding by
O, poor old man

Says I: Old man, your horse will die
And we say so, and we know so
And if he dies, we'll tan his hide
O, poor old man

And if he don't, I'll ride him again
And we say so, and we know so
And I'll ride him 'til the Lord knows when
O, poor old man

He's dead as a nail in the lamp room door
And we say so, and we know so
And he won't come, worrying us no more
O, poor old man

We'll use the hair of his tail to sew our sails
And we say so, and we know so
And the iron of his shoes
To make deck nails
O, poor old man

Drop him down with a long long rope
And we say so, and we hope so
Where the sharks have his body
And the devil takes his soul!
O, poor old man