Lyrics of Loyalty Author:Frank Moore Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: 14 THE SOLDJER'S " GOOD-BY." THE SOLDIER'S " GOOD-BY." BY MARY E. NEALY. f OOD-BY, my wife, my child, my friend, 'T is hard to leave you all; But there... more »'s a God in heaven above Will bless and shield you with His love, If I am doomed to fall. You know I could not stay, dear love, When over all the land The shot of Sumter circled round, And lifted, at a single bound, This mighty patriot-band. A thrill that never else had swept Across this soul of mine, Stirred up each tingling drop of blood, Ready to pour a votive flood Upon my country's shrine. O dearest! there 'e a manhood lies, Deep in these slender forms, We know not of, till in our skies Such clouds of danger o'er us rise To fill our land with storms. THE SOLDIER'S " GOOD-BY." 15 Then, like a mountain stream it comes, A stream of power and might; It echoes to the beat of drums, It quails not when the fiery bombs Break fiercely on the sight. This war fe sad; but I thank God For this one blessed taste Of manhood, strong within my blood ; — Of strength unknown, a mighty flood Which else had gone to waste. My arms seem braced with nerves of steel, My soul is firm and strong; And, dearest, even now I feel The power to crush beneath my heel My share of this foul wrong. The man who springs not to his sword In such a time as this, To see his country's fame restored, Is weak as he who slew his Lord With a deceitful kiss. Then ask me not. I cannot stay, My own, my blessed wife; The God that looks on us to-day16 THE SOLDIERS " GOOD-BY." Will listen to you when you pray, And shield your soldier's life. Yet if I come not back again, But fall beside my foe, This blood will not be spilled in vain Though it should fall like crimson rain Where c...« less