To John R. Drake, Milwaukee
"Dog and Gun" (1866)
Words by E. B. Dewing, Esq.
Music by Joseph Philbrick Webster, 1819-1875

1.
The summer sun is dropping down
  The hazy southern sky,
The leaves of June are golden brown,
  And swallows homeward fly;
The corn is gathered from the field,
  The reaper's work is done,
O, fragrant season, thou didst yield
  Rare sport for dog and gun.

CHORUS
Let others plod the road to wealth,
  Or toil where laurels may be won;
Give me the precious boon of health,
  My faithful dog and trusty gun.

2.
Sweet, clover scented fields, farewell,
  Ye [heathy?] moors adieu;
Goodbye pinnated grouse and quail,
  Again, when skies are blue,
We'll meet as in those August days,
  Or 'neath September's sun,
When dewdrops sparkled in the rays
  Which smiled on dog and gun.

(CHORUS)

3.
To other scenes, but not less fair,
  We turn these autumn days,
Where flights of wild-foul fill the air
  Along the creeks and bays;
O, what care we for voice of men
  While babbling brooklets run,
Whose rippling music charms the glen
  With songs of dog and gun.

(CHORUS)

4.
In pathless woods, O comrade HANK,
  There is a pleasure true,
And rapture on the winding bank
  Whence "green-heads" meet the view;
With FRANK and RAPP in rain and shine,
  These pleasures we have won;
Let's fill a cup for auld lang syne
  And drink to dog and gun.

(CHORUS)

5.
Or farther, where Lake Lauderdale,
  A "thing of beauty" lies,
A "joy forever" in this vale,
  Where time too quickly flies;
Its bosom fair the sportsman's shrine,
  Reflecting, one be one,
The busy angler's rod and line,
  The [father's?] dog and gun.

(CHORUS)

6.
O, magic [bit?] of inland sea,
  Shut in by husky hills,
Thy ev'ry phase is dear to me --
  My soul thy glory thrills;
Upon thy shore I fain would lie,
  When life's brief [wave?] is run,
With "Mallards" flying harmless by,
  At rest, with dog and gun.

(CHORUS)