i m bidding farewell to the land of my youth and the home i love so well and the mountains so grand round my own native land i m bidding them all farewell with an aching heart i ll bid them adieu for tomorrow i ll sail far away o er the raging foam for to seek a home on the shores of amerikay it s not for the want of employment i m going it s not for the love of fame that fortune bright may shine over me and give me a glorious name it s not for the want of employment i m going o er the weary and stormy sea but to seek a home for my own true love on the shores of amerikay and when i am bidding my last farewell the tears like rain will blind to think of my friends in my own native land and the home i m leaving behind but if i m to die in a foreign land and be buried so far far away no fond mother s tears will be she d o er my grave on the shores of amerikay