To the rich man's bright lodges, I ride in this wind   On my good horse, I call you, my shiny Black Bess   To the playhouse of fortune, to take the bright silver   And gold you have taken from somebody else      And as we go riding, in the damp foggy midnight   You snort, my good pony and you give me your best   For you know and I know, good horse 'mongst the rich ones   How oftimes we go there, an unwelcome guest      I never took food from the widows and orphans   And never a hardworking man I oppressed   So take your pace easy, for home soon like lightning   We soon will be riding, my shiny Black Bess      No fat rich man's pony, can ever overtake you   And there's not a rider from the east to the west   Who could hold you a light in this dark mist and midnight   When the potbellied thieves chase the unwelcome guest      I don't know, good horse, as we trot in this dark here   That robbing the rich is for worse or for best   They take it by stealing and lying and gambling   And I take it my way, my shiny Black Bess      I treat horses good and I'm friendly to strangers   I ride and your running makes my guns talk the best   And the rangers and deputies are hired by the rich man   To catch me and hang me, my shining Black Bess      Yes, they'll catch me napping, one day and they'll kill me   And then I'll be gone but that won't be my end   For my guns and my saddle will always be filled   By unwelcome travelers and other brave men      And they'll take the money and spread it out equal   Just like the Bible and the Prophets suggest   But men that go riding, to help these poor workers   The rich will cut down like an unwelcome guest