Bill Mason (Article originally published: Inside Bluegrass, January 2008)

Roy Harvey (?-1958), a member of the North Carolina Ramblers, probably learned it when he worked as a railroad engineer before he started a musical career. He recorded it in 1927. This version, from 1929, was also recorded by the NC Ramblers, this time with Charlie Poole (1892-1931) singing.

Complete Lyrics: [Spoken introduction: (whistle)
Roy Harvey: Mmm – that man sure does blow a wicked whistle, don’t he? Sounds like that old feller that used to run on the Southern, between Monroe and Spencer. Pulled that Crescent Limited. What was his name, Charlie?
Charlie Poole: Oh, you thinking about Bill Mason.
R: O, yeah. Whatever become of him?
C: Well, he got married here awhile back.
R: O, married! I thought he was sick, that’s what’s the matter with him, I thought.
C: Murdered near ‘bout it, but then he got married here awhile back and we made up a song on him.
R: Let’s play it then.
C: Alright.]

1. Bill Mason was an engineer, he’d been on the road all his life;
I’ll never forget the morning he married him a chunk of a wife;
Bill hadn’t been married more’n an hour, ‘til up came a message from Kress,
And ordered Bill to come down and bring out the night express.

2. While Maggie set by the window, a-waiting for the night express,
And if she hadn’t-a done so, she’d-a been a widow, I guess;
There were some drunken rascals that came down by the ridge,
They came down by the railroad and tore off a rail from the bridge.

3. Well, Maggie heard them working, “I guess there’s something wrong.”
In less than fifteen minutes, Bill’s train would be along.
She couldn’t come near to tell him ¾ a mile, it wouldn’t have done;
She just grabbed up the lantern and made for the bridge alone.

4. By Jove, Bill saw the signal, and stopped the night express.
He found his Maggie crying on the track in her wedding dress;
A-crying and laughing with joy, still holding onto the light.
He come ‘round the curve a-flying, Bill Mason’s on time tonight.