A friend of mine picked up a song called "Bill Johnson, the Monkey, and the Dago" from an old timer at a party in North Carolina in the early 60s. I've continued to sing it, in spite of it's politically incorrect title, from time to time but I've always been curious about its origins. It's all about a big fight that develops after a guy named Johnson tries to retrieve a "five and gold" that he had mistakenly dropped in an organ grinder's hat, thinking it was a quarter. It's a riot. Literally.

Chorus: They had it in and out, Lordy, up and down, In the alley and on the ground, I swear I never seen such carryin' on before. I do not know that monkey's name, But he got there just the same. Bill Johnson, the monkey and the dago.