now a country boy called shorty
and a city boy named dan
had to prove who could run the fastest
to win miss lucy's hand
now dan had all the money
and he also had the looks
but shorty must have had something, boys
that can't be found in books

well, a-cut across shorty, shorty cut across
that's what miss lucy said
cut across shorty, shorty cut across
it's you i wanna wed

now dan had been in training
a week before the race
he made up his mind
ol' shorty would end in second place
and dan with his long legs a-flyin'
left shorty far behind
and shorty heard him holler out
miss lucy, you'll soon be mine

but shorty wasn't worried
there was a smile upon his face
he knew that he was a-goin' to win
'cause lucy had fixed the race
and just like that old story
about the turtle and the hair
when dan crossed over the finish line
he found shorty waiting there