Lincoln
There is a shadow on the sunny air,
There is a darkness o'er the April day,
We bow our heads beneath this awful cloud
So sudden come, and not to pass away.
O the wild grief that sweeps across our land
From frozen Maine to Californian shore!
A people's tears, an orphaned nation's wail,
For him the good, the great, who is no more.
The noblest brain that ever toiled for man,
The kindest heart that ever thrilled a breast,
The lofty soul unstained by soil of earth,
Sent by a traitor to a martyr's rest.
And his last act (O gentle, kindly heart!)
The noble prompting of unselfish grace.
He would not disappoint the waiting crowd
Who came to gaze upon his honored face.
O God, thy ways are just, and yet we find
This dispensation hard to understand.
Why must our Prophet's weary feet be stay'd
Upon the borders of the Promised Land?
He bore the heat, the burden of the day,
The golden eventide he shall not see;
He shall not see the old flag wave again
Over a land united, saved, and free.
He loved his people, and he ever lent
To all our griefs a sympathizing ear;
Now for the first time in these four sad years
The stricken nation wails—he does not hear.
O never wept a land a nobler Chief!
Kind heart, strong hand, true soul—yet, while we weep
Let us remember, e'en amid our tears,
'Tis God who gives to his beloved sleep.
So sleeps he now, the chosen man of God,
No more shall care or sorrow wring his breast;
The weary one and heavy laden, lies
Hushed by the voice of God to endless rest.
We need no solemn knell, no tolling bells,
No chanted dirge, no vain words sadly said.
The saddest knell that ever stirred the air
Rang in those words, "Our President is dead!"
PUBLIC VAULT, OAK RIDGE CEMETERY, SPRINGFIELD, ILL.,
On the day of Lincoln's funeral
The remains of President Lincoln were deposited in this receiving vault of Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois, on the 4th of May, 1865, where they remained until December 21, 1865, when they were removed to a temporary vault near the site of the public one. On September 19, 1871, the remains were removed to the monument which had been erected and which stands on the top of the hill in that cemetery back of the public vault. The remains of Mrs. Lincoln, Willie and Thomas (Tad), are also resting there.