Oh! give me the place where
I roamed when a child,
Where beauty and nature
Enchantingly smiled;
Where at twilight we heard
The sweet whippoorwill,
In the green shady woods
On the slope of the hill.
’Twas there in my childhood
I rambled with glee;
’Twas there in my youth that
I longed so to be;
The place that I loved, with
A hearty good will,
Was the green shady woods
On the slope of the hill.
I’d go in the morning,
So happy and free,
And linger till twilight
Approaching I’d see;
With brothers, and sisters,
I played with a will,
In the green shady woods
On the slope of the hill.
Where the songs of the birds
Re-echo and die;
Where the cool, fresh breezes
So playfully sigh;
Where we listened with joy,
To the rippling rill,
In the green shady woods
On the slope of the hill.
And there to that clear, cool,
Crystal spring we’d go,
And down on our knees to
Its fountain bow low,
Like the waters of life
Our souls it would thrill,
In the green shady woods
On the slope of the hill.
I’ve roamed over landscapes,
Through country and town,
I’ve wandered through cities
The streets up and down;
But no place do I find,
Though quiet and still,
Like the green shady woods
On the slope of the hill.
Oh! give me the place where
I wantonly strayed;
Where in hot summer days
My weary head laid;
Oh! give me the place where
All’s quiet and still,
In the green shady woods
On the slope of the hill.
And this be my wish,
In my last fleeting breath,
When this mortal body
Is stricken in death:—
Oh! lay me ’neath the turf,
All quiet and still,
In the green shady woods
On the slope of the hill.
And there though my body
Lies wrapped in green sod,
My spirit will go
To the keeping of God;
Till Gabriel’s last trumpet
Shall blow loud and shrill,
May I sleep ’neath the woods
On the slope of the hill.