Moonlight falls distant and dry,
Frosting the snowfields in lustre;
Trees shudder darkly and sigh,
And, to win warmth, seem to cluster
Where the dog howls to the sky.
Life has locked and barred her portals
On the death-skis of immortals.

Moonlight falls distant and dry,
Silvering the homesteads to sadness;
Trees shudder darkly and sigh;
Cares of the world and its madness
Rise with the howls to the sky.
Life has locked and barred her portals
On the death-skis of immortals.

Moonlight falls distant and dry;
Ice-blinded window-panes glisten;
Trees shudder darkly and sigh.
Why do you strain so to listen
When the dog howls to the sky?
Life has locked and barred her portals
On the death-skis of immortals.