"By-and-bye," the maiden sighed--"by-and-bye He will claim me for his bride, Hope is strong and time is fleet;Youth is fair, and love is sweet, Clouds will pass that fleck my sky, He will come back by-and-bye--by-and-bye.""By-and-bye," the soldier said--"by-and-bye, After I have fought and bled, I shall go home from the wars, Crowned with glory, seamed with scars.
Joy will flash from some one's eye When she greets me by-and-bye--by-and-bye.""By-and-bye," the mother cried--"by-and-bye, Strong and sturdy at my side, Like a staff supporting me, Will my bonnie baby be.
Break my rest, then, wail and cry -
Thou'lt repay me by-and-bye--by-and-bye."Fleeting years of time have sped--hurried by -Still the maiden is unwed:
All unknown the soldier lies, Buried under alien skies;And the son, with blood-shot eye, Saw his mother starve and die.
God in Heaven! dost Thou on high, Keep the promised "by-and-bye"--by-and-bye?