My Brother’s Will

My brother and I were out hunting
A stray bullet made him its mark
I carried him back to the cabin
His life nothing more than a spark

He whispered to me very softly
"Dear brother, I'm going away
So listen and come to me closely
There's so much that I have to say"

"My sweetheart, her dear name is Sally
Her mother and father have died
She's waiting alone in the valley
When I left her, oh how she cried"

"I promised to bring her my fortune
Return to the valley and wed
But I've had a call from my maker
So I'll have to go there instead"

He gave me the ring he had bought her
And told of the plans they had made
He spoke of how long she had waited
And for his return, how she prayed

He gave me a small piece of paper
The will he had made for this day
I promised to do as he wanted
The Good Lord would show me the way

He gave me his home in the valley
And all of the money he had
He asked me to marry his Sally
And promise she'd never be sad

But once long ago we were rivals
For I loved her too from the start
I'd made up my mind to stay single
For Sally had broken my heart

My dear brother went up to heaven
And I went to our valley home
But Sally had married another
So what's left for me but to roam?

I pray the good Lord up above me
To keep Brother's faith in me still
His Sally was fickle, unfaithful
That's why I broke my brother's will