The port lights glow in the morning mist That rolls from the water's brimAs over the railing we grasped his fist Till the dark tide came betweenWe cheered the captain, cheered the crew And our mate, times out of mindWe cheered the land he was going to And the land he had left behindFor they marry and go, and the world rolls back They marry and vanish and dieBut their spirit shall live on the outside track As long as the years go byWe roared Lang Syne as a last farewell But my heart seemed out of jointI well remember the hush that fell As the steamer cleared the pointWe drifted on home through the public bars We were ten times less by oneWho sailed out under the morning stars And under the rising sunFor they marry and go, and the world rolls back They marry and vanish and dieBut their spirit shall live on the outside track As long as the years go byAnd one by one and two by two They've sailed from the wharf since thenI've said goodbye to the best I knew The last of the careless menAnd I can't but think that the times we had Were the best times after allAs I turn aside with a lonely glass And drink to the barroom wallFor they marry and go, and the world rolls back They marry and vanish and dieBut their spirit shall live on the outside track As long as the years go byOh, their spirit shall live on the outside track As long as the years go by*