YE HO, for a sight of the land that I love,
And her flag floating high on the breeze;
Ye ho, for a sight of her blue skies above,
And the wonderful green of her trees!
For my heart’s beating now with expectancy’s thrill,
And my eyes show the trace of a tear;
I love every river and valley and hill
In the land that I’ve missed for a year.
Then it’s home once again,
Where the dear ones await,
And it’s back in the land of the free;
And it’s back once again
In my own native state,
This country’s the country for me.
The wonders of Egypt, the splendors of Rome,
And Italy’s charms I have seen,
But my heart yearns today for the glories of home,
And the sight of my own native green.
For nowhere are skies e’er as tenderly blue,
Nor dews that so tenderly fall,
As here in the land of the free and the true,
The best land on earth after all.
Then it’s home once again,
Where the dear ones await,
And it’s back in the land of the free;
And it’s back once again
To my own native state,
This country’s the country for me.
O, nowhere on earth are there women so fair,
Or men quite so noble and brave;
O, nowhere are people less burdened with care
As here where the Stars and Stripes wave.
And nowhere do stars seem so brightly to shine,
Or trees seem to grow quite so tall,
As here in this country I hallow as mine,
The best land on earth after all.
Then it’s home once again,
Where the dear ones await,
And it’s back in the land of the free,
And it’s back once again
To my own native state,
This country’s the country for me.
