The monkey he got drunk

From The Boys of '98 by Dale L. Walker. Recounting activities on the troop ship conveying the Rough Riders to Cuba.

On the Yucatan and every other troopship, card-playing, fishing, swimming and grousing were the round-the-clock pastimes, the ennui broken periodically when the band of the Second Infantry regulars played a tune or two, the favorite, which everyone learned to sing, being

Oh I went to the animal fair,
The birds and beasts were there,
The big baboon by the light of the moon
Was combing his auburn hair . . .

and when the Rough Riders could talk them into it, "There'll be a Hot time in the Old Town Tonight"

Fascinating. I recall the Animal Fair song from my youth and I know we sang it to our children. Just percolating in the cultural background from generation to generation but apparently written circa 1898.

I went to the animal fair,
The birds and the beasts were there,
The old raccoon by the light of the moon
Was combing his auburn hair

The monkey he got drunk
And fell on the elephant's trunk
The elephant sneezed and went down on his knees
And what became of the monk?

I don't know if I have ever known the lyrics to the song There'll be a Hot time in the Old Town Tonight but I have heard it as a tag line all my life. Again, it goes all the way back to 1896.