There was a man in our town,

voiceCollected by Billy Whitfield and Steve Butler For M. C. Parler Sung by Mr. Otis Williams Wesley, Arkansas December 27, 1959 Reel 328, Item 11 Kicking Mule There was a man in our town, His name was Simon Slick He owned a mule, a kicking mule, Oh how that mule could kick. He'd shut one eye, shake his tail And greet you with a smile, Then gently telegraph his leg And kick you half a mile. His hair was very short, He had a narrow jaw, He's the very thing to have around To tame that mother-in-law. His hair was very parch, His hoofs were hard as lead, He could raise you like a feather And stand you on your head. He kicked the feathers from a goose, He broke an elephant's back, He stopped a Texas railway train And kicked it from the track. He bit a thomas cat into, And pulverized a hog, He excited seven Chinamen And killed a yellow dog. He stood mosquitoes on their head A gasping for their breath, Then poked his hind foot down his throat And kicked himself to death.Funding for digitization provided by the Arkansas Humanities Council and the Happy Hollow Foundation