"I'll Be a Soldier" (1861)
by Stephen Collins Foster, 1826-1864

1.
I'll be a soldier and march to the drum,
And lie in my tent when the night shadows come;
I'll be a soldier with knapsack and gun,
And stand to my post 'till the din of battle's done.

CHORUS
Farewell! my own loved Jenny dear,
Still will I dream of thee wherever I may stray;
Farewell! before the coming year,
I'll be a soldier far, far away.

2.
I'll be a soldier and join in the fray,
With black shinning belt and a jacket of grey;
I'll face up the battle as bold as a hawk,
As gay as a lark and as steady as a rock.

(CHORUS)

3.
I'll be a soldier, "my country"'s the cry,
I'll fly to defend her and conquer or die;
The land of my childhood, my love and my tears,
The land of my birth and early sunny years.

(CHORUS)

4.
I'll be a soldier, and when we have won,
I'll come back to thee with my knapsack and gun,
I'll come with a true heart and kiss off each tear,
And linger beside thee forever, Jenny dear.

(CHORUS)