Proper title is (I think) "Bridgework, or, The Dyin' Cowboy. Not a folk song, I don't think - a novelty song from the 30s. I don't need the song itself - I have the words, I have the tune, the chords are easy - in fact, I sang it a couple of weeks ago at Toronto's Sentimental Song Contest and won first prize.
What I want to know is: who wrote it? (Google yielded nothing.)