Here's my transcription from The Library of Congress American Memory Collection.

WE'LL NEBER HEAR DE BANJO PLAY AGAIN
John T Rutledge, 1882

1. Dat good ole soul, ole Uncle Ned, am layin in his grave.
De banjo now hangs silent by de door.
We miss de songs at ebnen dat we used to fondly crave,
But we'll neber hear him sing dem any more.
He used to play an sing so sweet when daylight went away,
An we neber dreamed ob sorrow or ob pain.
It always made us happy for to hear de banjo play,
But we'll neber hear de banjo play again.

CHORUS: Oh! peaceful may he slumber while de angels watch above,
For he am free from sorrow an from pain.
Oh, gone is all de music an de songs we use to love,
And we'll neber hear de banjo play again.

2. Down in de cotton fields we works de long an lonely hours
While sadness seems to linger ebrywhere.
De birds of song we use to hear no more sing in de flowers,
An waste deir sweetness on de desert air,
Becase dey sung for Uncle Ned an he would sing for dem
Around his little cabin in de lane,
But now he's gone. De rose am dead an fallen from its stem,
An we'll neber hear de banjo play again.