In the Dodge City of the Santa Fe Stood a freight made up for the And the engineer with his oil and Was groomin' the great iron While ten cars back in the murky A boxcar door wide And a hobo lifted his pal To start on his long ride
A lantern swung and the pulled out The engine, it speed The engineer pulled the throttle And clucked to his fiery
Ten cars in the empty box The hobo rolled a The flare of the match showed his partner's Stark white and deathly As the train wheels on the couplin' joints A for the rambler's ear The hobo talked to the still form His pal for many a
(Spoken) For a mighty time, we've rambled, Jack With the luck of men that the backdoor steps for a dining room And a boxcar for a We dodged the bulls on the route And the on the Chesapeake We the Leadville narrow gauge In the days of Cripple We drifted down thru Cal On the rails of old S. P. And of all you had, good and bad A half belonged to me You made me promise to you If I lived, and you in To take you back to the old yard And bury you there with kin You to know I would keep my word 'Cause you said that I was Well, I'm my promise to you, pal I'm takin' you home tonight I haven't the to send you there So, I'm you back on the fly It's the way for a 'bo to go to the by and by I that that fever had you, Jack And doctor, he just wouldn't come He was too busy treatin' the wealthy To doctor a bum
As the rolled over its ribbons of steel Straight thru to the East it The in his high cab seat Kept his eye on the ahead ten cars back in the empty box A lonely hobo For the days of old and his pal, so Who was takin' his last ride