Sunset on the Mississippi.

O beautiful hills in the purple light,         That shadow the western sky,     I dream of you oft in the silent night,         As the golden days go by.     The river that flows at my longing feet         Is tinged with a deeper glow;     But the song that it sings is as sad to-day         As it was in the long ago.     The far-off clouds in the far-off sky         Are tinted with gold and red;     But the lesson they tell to the hearts of men         Is a lesson that never is said.     The star-crowned night in her sable plumes         Is veiling the eastern sky,     And she trails her robes in the dying fires         That far in the west do lie.     A single gem from her circlet old         Is lost as she wanders by,     And the beautiful star with its golden light         Shines out in the lonely sky.     O beautiful star in the misty sky,         My soul would take wings with tee;     But you sail away in your golden seas         With never a thought for me.     O sun-crowned hills in the purple light.         I could sit at your feet forever;     But you fade away in the shadowy night         And I'll see you again, ah, never.     Dark river that flows at my longing feet,         I list to your music low;     But the song that you sing brings me thoughts to-night         Of the beautiful long ago;     And my soul grows sad as I think of the day--         That radiant day of light--     When the sun went down in a glory of gold         'Neath the pitiless shadows of night.     Farewell, ye hills in the purple light;         Farewell to your glory forever;     You fade away in the silent night,         And I'll see you again, ah, never!