I put my car into reverse
On a lee and lonely
This will be my babies’ hearse
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
I am a daughter of the Mills
On a lee and lonely
Young I am but doomed to kill
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
I had a love I thought was true
On a lee and lonely
The more he rubbed the redder I grew
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
Left high and dry and all alone
On a lee and lonely
These Babes weigh me down like a stone
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
I see a dark man in my dream
On a lee and lonely
He’ll be the one to take the blame
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
O No! O No! What have I done?
On a lee and lonely
To please a man I’ve killed my sons
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
Naught will cleanse me of this sin
On a lee and lonely
To please myself I’d do it again
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
A Nation’s pity for my plight
On a lee and lonely
I look so innocent and white
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
Black Man, Black Man, I accuse you
On a lee and lonely
On Nationwide you’ll get your due
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
Why can a woman rout her womb
On a lee and lonely
But not close her babies to tomb?
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
My face it cracks at what I say
On a lee and lonely
I’ll spend my life in bitter grey
Far from the green lake side-ee-o
You did as much as dash our brains
On a lee and lonely
Blood on your hands is our refrain
Down by the green lake side-ee-o
My Babes! They speak—The cold black lake
On a lee and lonely
Shoots forth its hand, more souls to take
Down by the green lake side-ee-o