"Better Luck To-Morrow" (1875)
Ballad/Song
Words by George Cooper, 1838-1927
Music by John Rogers Thomas, 1830-1896

New York: J. L. Peters
Cincinnati: Dobmeyer & Newhall
Quebec: Robert Morgan
San Francisco & Portland: Mathias Gray
Detroit: C. J. Whitney & Co.
Toronto: A. & S. Nordheimer
Plate No. 10,657-3
[Source: @NYPL]

1. When the gloomy shadows fall,
As they must o'er one and all,
Nerve your bosom for the storm, and bear it proudly;
If you falter, you but add
To the many ills you had,
Soon the gale will sleep that now is roaring loudly.
Earth a desert would appear,
If 'twere sunshine all the year;
Happy days we love the more when taught by sorrow.
Ever bravely do your part,
With a willing hand and heart!
Look aloft, and hope for Better Luck To-morrow,
Better Luck To-morrow,
Look aloft, and hope for Better Luck To-morrow,

2. If the darling plans you reared
Lie before you dim and scared,
Bid them cheerfully farewell,-- to mourn is madness!
Tho' your golden visions fail,
Where's the use to idly rail?
You will never bring them back with pining sadness.
O, the star of Hope will shine
Till the shades of life decline,
Try a little good philosophy to borrow,--
When the weary soul is bowed,
See the border of the cloud,--
Do your best, and wait for Better Luck To-morrow,
Better Luck To-morrow,
Do your best, and wait for Better Luck To-morrow.