Ballad of Donald White lyrics

My name is Donald White, you see,

I stand before you all,

I was judged by you a murderer,

The hangman's knot must fall,

I will die upon the Gallow's pole

When the moon is bright and clear

And these are my final words

That you will ever hear

If I had an education

To give me a decent start,

I might have been a doctor,

Or a master in the arts

But I used my hands for stealing

When I was very young,

And they locked me down in jailhouse cells,

That's how my life begun

Oh, the inmates, and the prisoners,

I found they were my kind

It was there, inside the bars,

I found my peace of mind

But the jails, they were too crowded;

Institutions overflowed,

So they set me loose to walk upon

Life's weary, tangled road

And there's danger on the ocean

Where the salt-sea waves split high,

And there's danger on the battlefield

Where the shells of bullets fly,

And there's danger in this open world,

Where men fight to be free,

And for me, the greatest danger

Was in society

So I asked them to send me back

To the institution home,

But they said they were too crowded,

For me, they had no room

I got down on my knees and begged,

"Oh, please put me away!"

But they would not listen to my plea

Or nothing I would say

And so it was on Christmas Eve

And the year of 59

It was on that night I killed a man,

I did not try to hide

The jury found me guilty,

And I don't disagree

For I knew that it would happen

If I wasn't put away

But I'm glad I've had no parents

To care for me and cry

For now they will never know

The horrible death that I die

And I'm also glad I've had no friends

To see me in disgrace

For they'll never see that hangman's hood

Wrap around my face

So farewell to the old North woods

Of which I used to roam

Farewell to the crowded bars,

Of which had been my home,

Farewell to all you people,

That think the worst of me,

I guess you'll feel much better

When I'm on that hanging tree

But there's just one more question,

Before they kill me dead

I'm wondering just how much

To you I really said

Concerning all the boys that walk

A road just like me,

Are they enemies, or victims,

Of your society?