Into a ward of the whitewashed halls,
Where the dead and dying lay,
Wounded by bayonets, shells and balls,
Somebody's darling was borne one day.
Somebody's darling, so young and so brave,
Wearing yet on his pale, sweet face,
Soon to be hid by the dust of the grave,
The lingering light of his boyhood's grace.
Matted and damp are the curls of gold
Kissing the snow of his fair young brow;
Pale are the lips of delicate mold,
Somebody's darling is dying now.
Back from his beautiful blue-veined brow,
Brush all the wandering waves of gold,
Cross his hands on his bosom now-
Somebody's darling is stiff and cold.
Kiss him once for somebody's sake,
Murmur a prayer soft and low;
One bright curl from his fair mates take—
They were somebody's pride, you know.
Somebody's hand has rested there:
Was it mother's, soft and white?
Or had the lips of a sister fair
Been baptized in their waves of light?
God knows best! He has somebody's love,