Three California Writers:

The Klamath Girl
by Alfred C. Gillis

Edited by: Cindy Beck

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• Three California Writers Introduction
• Three California Writers Table of Contents

THE KLAMATH GIRL

Far to the west where the Klamath rolls,
In my sunny youth I chanced to stroll;
A maiden fair, with flowing hair
And wondrous eyes beyond compare,
Stood by that river rolling free
And cast a loving glance on me.

Softly the wavelets kissed the strand
As it silently washed its golden sand,
While near and far the bird of love
Sang sweet and low, the turtle dove.
O, wondrous was that night in June,
We loved beneath the summer moon.

Sweet were the promises we made,
Like dreams of youth too soon to fade.
Too soon!  Too soon!  Our ways did part,
And O, the anguish of the heart.
Tho years have sped I can’t forget
That sweet girl face, I see it yet.

Those days are gone, yea, turned to years
And broken now my heart with tears,
I still look back across the way,
That long gone youthful summer day.
Too soon!  Too soon!  Our youth is fled,
O, what is life when love is dead?

1. The Klamath River is the largest of the North Coast rivers of California stretching over 200 miles from its mouth to the Oregon border. Its mouth is located 60 miles north of Eureka and 20 miles south of Crescent City.

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