Farewell! How soon unmeasured distance rolls
Its leaden clouds between our parted souls!
How little to each other now are we,
And once how much I dreamed we two might be!
I, who now stand with eyes undimmed and dry
To say good-bye.

To say good-bye to all sweet memories,
Good-bye to tender questions, soft replies;
Good bye to hope, good-bye to dreaming too,
Good-bye to all things dear, good-bye to you,
Without a kiss, a tear, a prayer, a sigh,
Our last good-bye.

I had no chain to bind you with at all;
No grace to charm, no beauty to enthral;
No power to hold your eyes with mine, and make
Your heart on fire with longing for my sake,
Till all the yearning passed into one cry:
"Love, not good-bye!"

Ah, no, I had no strength like that, you know;
Yet my worst weakness was to love you so!
So much too well, so much too well, or ill,
Yet even that might have been pardoned still,
It would have been had I been you,m you I!
But now, good-bye!

How soon the bitter follows on the sweet!
Could I not chain your fancy's flying feet?
Could I not hold your soul, to make you play
To-morrow in the key of yesterday?
Dear, do you dream that I would stoop to try?
Ah, no, Good-bye!