On a hummock by the lake
Stands the home of Doctor Drake,
Poor old doctor, how he works!
Week by week he never shirks—
Pulling teeth for guinea-fowl,
Soothing puppies when they howl,
Whittling out a hickory peg
For a gander’s broken leg,
Giving medicine away
About a hundred times a day,
Linseed oil and elder-bark
To a croaking meadowlark,
Nasty, bitter yarrow-tea
To a tipsy bumble-bee,
A poultice made of plantain leaves
To cure a rabbit with the heaves.
Fever, colic, cramp, or stitch,
Kitten-croup or beaver’s-itch,
Any kind of pain or ache
Is cured by dear, old Doctor Drake.
Leroy F. Jackson
