Oh, the Devil in Hell they say he was chained,

voiceReel 31 Fayetteville, Ark. J u l y 10, 1950 Hell in Texas Oh, the Devil in Hell they say he was chained, There for a thousand years to remain, He never complained, not even a groan, But decided he'd start up a Hell of his own. Where he could torment the sons of man, Without being locked in a prison pen, So, he asked the Lord if He had any sand Left over from making this great land. The Lord said, Yes, I have plenty on hand, But i t ' s a way down South along the Rio Grande, But to t e l l you the truth, the s t u f f is so pore, I doubt i t will do for a Hell any more. The Devil went down and looked over the truck, He said if i t came as a g i f t he was stuck, For since he'd examined i t careful and well, He decided the place was too dry for a Hell. But the Lord, just to get the s t u f f off of His hand, He promised the Devil He'd water the land, For He had some old water that wasn't no use, A regular bog hole and stunk like -the deuce. The Devil went down and looked over the truck, He said i f i t came as a g i f t he was stuck, For since he'd examined i t careful and well, He decided the place was too dry for a Hell. The grant i t was made and the deed i t was given, And the Lord went back to His place up in Heaven, The Devil soon seen he had everything -needed To s t a r t up a Hell, and then, he perceeded.. He scattered tarantulas over the road, Thorns on the cactus and horns on the toad, He mixed up the sands with millions of ants, So the man that sat down needs soles on his pants. He lengthened the horn of the Texas steer, He added an inch to the jack-rabbit's ears, He put water puppies in a l l of the lakes, And under the rocks he put rattlesnakes. Collected by Merlin Mitchell Transcribed by Kyle Perrin (more) Hell in Texas(Cont.) He hung brambles and thorns in a l l of the trees, He mixed up the sand with chiggers and f l e a s, The rattlesnakes bite you, the scorpions sting, The musquito delights you by the buzz of his wings. The heat goes up to a hunderd and ten, Too hot for the Devil end too hot for men, For a l l who COULD live in that country soon bore Scratches and bites and b l i s t e r s a-glore. He quickened the buck of the bronco steed, He poisoned the feet of the centerpeed, The wild boar roams o'er the black chaperell, I t ' s a hell of a place we have here for Hell. He planted red peppers beside the brocks, The Mexicans used them in a l l that they cook, J u s t dine with the greaser and then you will shout I ' v e Hell on the inside as same as the out.Funding for digitization provided by the Arkansas Humanities Council and the Happy Hollow Foundation