"No Lost, But Gone Before" (1872)
Companion to the Author's popular Song,
"THE GATES AJAR."
Words by George Cooper, 1840-1927
Music by John Rogers Thomas, 1830-1896

New York: Charles H. Ditson & Co., 711 Broadway
Boston: Oliver Ditson & Co., 277 Washington Street

1. Loved ones from our homes are fading 
One by one they leave us here; 
Sorrow’s wings are ever shading, 
Gentle hearts so fond and dear. 
Sweet the hope amid our sadness, 
While our dear ones we deplore; 
We shall meet again in gladness, 
They’re “not lost, but gone before.”

CHORUS (ad lib.) [sung after each verse]
Gone before to gladness only: 
Weary hearted, weep no more! 
Tho’ we linger sad and lonely, 
They’re “no lost, but gone before!” 

2. Leaves that wave in summer splendor 
Breathe to us the soft refrain; 
Stars of night, so mild and tender, 
Wake the gentle thought again. 
Birds that sing in dewy meadows, 
Waves that sigh from shore to shore; 
Brooks that hide in leafy shadows, 
Say, “no lost, but gone before.”