The Armadillo Jackal

The evening sun was sinkin' down, a chill north wind a-blows The new plowed ground was coolin' fast, the river rolls and flows Beneath the two lane concrete river bridge between my place And town on that hot bed farm to market road they call 1291 I'm sayin' son you'll see me searchin'; sizzlin' down that broad highway Dollar signs in both my eyes, I'm seekin' out my prey I'm prayin', "Jesus, will you send me just another three or four?" They pay two-fifty down in Hallettsville, 3 dollars, maybe more And more than likely they'll be out tonight a-wanderin' from the farms Waddlin' down 1291 to keep their bodies warm I'm talking walkin' belts and neckties and boots for rodeo They don't run too fast, don't waste much gas, I'm makin' lots o'dough The armadillo, the armadillo The armadillo Never sees me when I hit him with my brights His life don't pass before his eyes, he's blinded by my lights And so I hit him with my bumper doin' sixty, sixty-five They take 'em frozen down in Hallettsville, they don't take 'em alive The jackal cried, the jackal cried The jackal cried Look there's two of them a-walkin' down the line I can't believe my luck tonight this here makes twenty-nine And so he rolled the first one runnin', the second was too fast His breaks and laughter squealin' as he stomped down on the gas Good God, his car was sideways flyin' When the bridge wall met his door The impact shook the river bed His foot went through the floor Forevermore, forevermore Forevermore Was his last moment from the bridge wall to the stream From the speckled blood around his smile a-spewin' gasoline And then he screamed his raspy epitaph before he turned to flame They pay two-fifty down in Hallettsville, I ain't the one to blame Ain't it a shame, the jackal cried? The armadillo, the armadillo The armadillo, the armadillo The armadillo