“Goodbye: It Is God’s Way”

“Goodbye,” he said, “It is God’s way;
     His will be done, not ours.”
A nation weeps, its great heart torn,
     And Death’s dark angel towers
Above Columbia’s pride and hope,
     And shouts to Life’s wild sea:
“True words were his, and he is safe,
     ‘Nearer, O God, to Thee.’” [224][225]

“Nearer, My God, to Thee,” he said;
     “Goodbye, it is God’s way;
His will be done, not ours,” his words,
     And went to Heaven’s day.
And now we sing the threnody,
     A nation’s wailing cry;
A song of sorrow echoes him;
     The great man’s last “Goodbye.”

The nation mourns her hero son,
     Whose strong and tender hand
Wrought faith, and hope, and blessed peace,
     And shaped the golden band
That bound her people once again,
     In helpful, hearty love,
And may his lofty soul live on,
     With God in joy above.