My beloved beau has been gone for so long;
He was off sailing the sea.
And I couldn't wait until he had returned
To live in the country with me.
I can still hear him say as he stood on the dock,
"Fare thee well until then."
And I cried as he faded into the night;
I can't wait to see him again.
He was sailing on a majestic new ship,
A floating palace, unsinkable too.
He was going to have a grand old time
And be safe, that I knew.
I could still hear him say as he stood on the dock,
"Fare thee well until then."
And I cried as he faded into the night;
I can't wait to see him again.
It had been three days and then three nights;
Soon those three turned into five.
Terrible visions of death had passed through my head;
I started wonderin' if he was alive.
What if the ship had crashed on a reef?
What is he was trapped down below?
Or perhaps they repaired the ship while in port,
And were making their way back home slow?
I could still hear him say as he stood on the dock,
"Fare thee well until then."
And I cried as he faded into the night;
I do hope I'll see him again.
It was that very evening I got the call—
That majestic new ship has sunk.
My poor beloved's body was ne'er to be found,
All they saved was his hat and his trunk.
So I went to the dock and collected his things,
Sorted through what was left of his life.
And I couldn't stop sobbing because I knew
I was never to become his wife.
I closed my eyes and saw him there on the dock,
"Fare thee well until then."
And I cried as I pictured him still in the night;
I'll never see him again.
No, I'll never see him again.