Every day we leave the light
For the world below
The way our fathers' fathers did
A hundred years ago
With blackened hands and tired eyes
Accustomed to the dark
We swing the cold-forged picks
'Til the walls begin to spark
Now and forever
Our number it is nine
We live or die together
In a Pennsylvania coal mine
What is that I hear?
A warning shout
"Water's coming in
Get out! Get out! Get out!"
There's no escape for us
This dungeon is too deep
We think of those we love
Our courage we must keep
But the cry, "The water's rising!"
Sent a shiver down my spine
We live or die together
In a Pennsylvania coal mine
Two hundred feet above us
The battle has begun
We make a resolution
To live or die as one
Hard-hearted limestone
Will not let them through
Still the water's rising
And there's nothing we can do
Now and forever
Our number it is nine
All tied together
In a Pennsylvania coal mine
What is that, oh Lord?
Is it an angel's face I see?
No, wait, these are the arms of men
I feel lifting me
Then I'll see my darling
To her the tales I'll tell
Of all the silent prayers
And letters of farewell
I won't sleep tonight
I won't close my eyes
'Til I see the morning light
The sweet sun rise
And when someday I die
And they lay me in the ground
My soul shall rise and it will be
The second time around