In yonder old cathedral
Two lonely coffins lie;
In one the head of the state lies dead,
And a singer sleeps hard by.
Once had that king great power,
And proudly he ruled the land—
His crown e'en now is on his brow
And his sword is in his hand!
How sweetly sleeps the singer
With calmly folded eyes,
And on the breast of the bard at rest
The harp that he sounded lies.
The castle walls are falling
And war distracts the land,
But the sword leaps not from that mildewed spot—
There in that dead king's hand!
But with every grace of nature
There seems to float along—
To cheer the hearts of men—
The singer's deathless song!