The Headless Horseman

On the black road through the wood         As I rode, There the Headless Horseman stood; By the wild pool in the wood,         As I rode. From the shadow of an oak,         As I rode, Demon steed and rider broke; By the thunder-shattered oak,         As I rode. On the waste road through the plain,         As I rode, At my back he whirled like rain; On the tempest-blackened plain,         As I rode. Four fierce hoofs shod red with fire,         As I rode, Woke the wild rocks, dark and dire; Eyes and nostrils streamed with fire,         As I rode. On the deep road through the rocks,         As I rode, I could reach his horse's locks; Through the echo-hurling rocks,         As I rode. And again I looked behind,         As I rode, - Dark as night and swift as wind, Towering, he rode behind,         As I rode. On the steep road down the dell,         As I rode, In the night I heard a bell, In the village in the dell,         As I rode. And my soul called out in prayer,         As I rode, - Lo! the demon went in air, Leaving me alone in prayer,         As I rode.