Mr. Shorty

Nobody knew where he came from they only knew he came in

Slowly he walked to the end of the bar and he ordered up a slug of gin

Well I could see that he wasn’t a large man

I could tell that he wasn’t too tall

I judged him to be bout five foot three

And his voice was a soft Texas drawl

Said he would work through the winter for thirty a month and his board

I started to say where he might land a job

When a fella came in through the door

And I could tell he was a lookin’ for trouble

By the way that he came stompin’ in

He told me to leave Shorty there by himself come down and wait on a man

When the little man spoke there was stillness

He made sure that everyone heard

Slowly he stepped away from the bar and I still remember these words

Oh it’s plain that you’re lookin’ for trouble

Trouble’s what I try to shun

If that’s what you want then that’s what you’ll get

Cause cowboy we’re both packin’ guns

His hand was already positioned his feet wide apart on the floor

I hadn’t noticed but there on his hip was a short barreled Bat 44

It was plain he was ready and waitin’ he leaned a bit forward and said

When you call me Shorty say Mr. my friend maybe you’d rather be dead

In the room was a terrible silence as the big one stepped out on the floor

All drinkin’ stopped and the tick of the clock

Said death would wait ten seconds more

He cursed once or twice in a whisper and he said with a snarl on his lips

Nobody’s Mr. to me little man and he grabbed for the gun on his hip

But the little man’s hand was like lightnin’ the Bat 44 was the same

The 44 spoke and it sent lead and smoke seventeen inches of flame

Oh the big one had never cleared leather beaten before he could start

A little round hole had appeared on his shirt

The bullet went clear through his heart

The little man stood there a moment then holstered the Bat 44

It’s always this way so I never stay slowly he walked out the door

Nobody knew where he came from they won’t forget he came by

They won’t forget how a 44 gun one night made the difference in size

As for me I’ll remember the sadness shown in the eyes of the man

If we meet some day you can bet I would say

That it’s me Mr. Shorty your fri  -e-n   d