If I died on the bayou
When the Sun is going down
Would you float me like Moses
So they don't put me in the cold, hard ground
Will you gather the [?]
And make a basket for me
And open my eyes and loosen the ties
And then set me free

If I died on the railroad
The last southbound
Would you ask the conductor
To slow it on down, down, down
Chase that carriage
The girl that you call
Bid farewell, ring that bell
To make it my last stop

If I died on the mountain
Far from my home
Would you carry me down
Take a load of my weary bones
Tell all my family
There's nothing they need to bring
Well I left my life, toil and strife
But I died in peace