I hear them whisper near me,
"Old man, why linger here?"
She who loved me dearly,
Wandered with me cheerily,
Is now a phantom merely,
Seen through memory's tear.

Pale ghost, flitting yonder!
With drooping head you wander.
Deep in thought you ponder
Why I stay from thee;
Cease those hands to beckon,
Vain, vain, may you reckon;
Alas! I cannot quicken
Death's desired decree.

Weary, weary wandering,
Life's last moments squandering,
Weary, weary wandering
Through this world of sin,
None can undeceive me,
None but ONE relieve me,
None but ONE receive me,
His peace to enter in.




XXIV.