Elijah Owen Johnson rode with Jackson in the war
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He served his time in Caroline up the east Virginia shore
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He¡¯d seen enough of that rebel blood to drive any man insane
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Somebody mentioned Yankee, he¡¯d just spit and cuss the name
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They called him old Elijah from the day that he was born
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And he worked the wheel at the grinding mill sacking Carolina corn
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And his woman died with a stillborn child and left him there to raise
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His only livin¡¯ daughter with a sweet angelic face
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And he swore he would love her, and he swore that he would kill
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Any man who threatened danger to his angel, Sara Jill
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One night as he lay sleepin¡¯ he heard footsteps in the rain
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And he saw a shadow movin¡¯ in the dim light of a flame
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And he swore it was the uniform of a union man he dread
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So he fired out in his anger from his window as he said
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Your union killed my brothers when they took their rebel stand
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Now I¡¯m gonna spill your Yankee blood here on my southern land
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And When the gun laid silent and when all the words were said
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He ran to hide his daughter, but he found an empty bed
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And he swore that he would love her, and he swore that he would kill
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Any man that threatened danger to his angel, Sara Jill
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He ran up toward the mill side where he¡¯d seen the shadow go
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And he found the lamp still burning in there in the ember glow
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Lay a bloody woolen overcoat and a petticoat of lace
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and a lifeless little body with a sweet angelic face
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The preacher and the family sadly bowed their heads to pray
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And with solomn words they sought the Lord Beside a double grave
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Cause they found Elijah lying by her body in the dawn
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His finger on the trigger of the pistol he had drawn
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Cause he swore that he would love her, and he swore that he would kill
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Any man that threatened danger to his angel, Sara Jill
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Old Elijah
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Iron Horse |