The fairest thing on land or sea
Is the Southern girl, to me.
You should see her when the stars
Come studding all the sky;
And feel her beaming eye
On you when the moon is full -
Fairest of all that's fair is she,
The Southern girl, to me.
You should hear her laugh by night,
In the moonlight clear and bright,
When the zephyrs light and low,
Across the gardens steal,
To play with the Marechal-Neil,
And caress the beautiful girl -
Fairest of all that's fair is she,
The Southern girl, to me.
Beneath the Marechal-Neil by night,
In the hush of the dead twilight,
You should meet the Southern girl;
And hear the angel sing,
The bonny angel sing;
And feast on wit, and joy, and love -
Fairest of all that's fair is she,
The Southern girl, to me.
The vocal enwoven beauty
Of her graces ever cheers me,
As I listen to the cadence
Of her metrical airs,
Whene'er she trills and dares
Some melodious chord to make -
Fairest of all that's fair is she,
The Southern girl, to me.
After the wooing and merry days,
Go with her through her toiling ways,
As mother, and wife, and friend;
Learn the iron will,
The courage and the skill
Of the typical Southern girl -
Fairest of all that's fair is she,
The Southern girl, to me.