Southern Lore

There's an old, old legend that's whispered by Southern folks,

About the lacy Spanish moss that garlands the great oaks -

A lovely princess and her love, upon their wedding day,

Were struck down by a savage foe amidst a bitter fray;

United in death they were buried, so the legends go,

'Neath an oak's strong, friendly arms, protected from their foe;

There, as was the custom, they cut the bride's long hair with love,

And hung its shining blackness on the spreading oak above;

Untouched, undisturbed, it hung there, for all the world to see.

With the years the locks turned gray, and spread from tree to tree