Give this to Mother
Language: English
Take I pray thee this small locket, Brother soldier ere I die; Life is flick'ring in its socket, And my spirit soon will fly; I am dying, comrade dying, Far from home and her I love; Death with life is strongly vying, And I soon will be above. Refrain Take this locket, soldier, brother, Don't forget, give this to mother. Comrade, hear those angels singing, See beyond the brilliant light; Hear you: joybells sweetly ringing; Shade my vision from God's sigh; Death had come, my eyes grow dimmer, Let me comrade touch your hand, Ere the stars of ev'ning glimmer, I will find a fairer land.
Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Stephen Collins Foster (1826 - 1864), "Give this to Mother", published 1864. [voice and piano] [text verified 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Laura Prichard [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2015-12-25
Line count: 19
Word count: 106