I found this in a book by U. Utah Phillips, Bill Hoyman

ROCK SALT AND NAILS
By Bruce Phillips

On the banks of the river where the willows hang down,
And the wild birds all warble with a low moaning sound
Down in the holler where the water runs cold
It was there I first listened to the lies that you told

Now I lie on my bed and I see your sweet face
The past I remember, time cannot erase
The letter you wrote me, it was written in shame
And I know that your conscience still echoes my name

The nights are so long and sorrow runs deep
And nothing is worse than a night without sleep
I walk out alone and look at the sky
Too empty to sing, too lonesome to cry

If the ladies was blackbirds and the ladies was thrushes
I'd lie there for hours in the chilly, cold marshes
If the ladies was squirrels with their high bushy tails
I'd load up my shotgun with rock salt and nails