Laura writes that Pa sang this song multiple times in the books, twice in Little House in the Big Woods and in Little House on the Prairie, however, she did not include the specific lyrics as Pa sang them. Here is the traditional version of the song that was popularized during the era.
The Arkansas Traveler Lyrics
Far and far away down in Arkansas,
There lived a squatter with a stubborn jaw.
His nose was ruby red and his whiskers gray.
And he would sit and fiddle all the night and all the day.
Came a traveler down the valley, asked if he could find a bed.
Yes, try the road, the kindly squatter said.
Then, could you point me out the way to find a tavern or an Inn?
Quite a little piece I reckon, tho I’ve never been!
And, when the rain came down on the cabin floor,
The squatter only fiddled all the more.
Why don’t you mend your roof, said the traveler bold.
How can I mend my cabin when the rain is wet and cold?
Squatter pick a sunny morning when the air is dry and nice,
Patch up your cabin, that is my advice.
The squatter shook his hoary head, and answered with a stubborn air,
Cabin never leaks a drop when days are bright and fair!
From Little House in the Big Woods and Little House on the Prairie
