Historical Sketches of Hymns, Their Writers, and Their Influence

This is a digital copy of a book that was preserved for generations on library shelves before it was carefully scanned by Google as part of a project
to make the world's books discoverable online.

It has survived long enough for the copyright to expire and the book to enter the public domain. A public domain book is one that was never subject
to copyright or whose legal copyright term has expired. Whether a book is in the public domain may vary country to country. Public domain books
are our gateways to the past, representing a wealth of history, culture and knowledge that's often difficult to discover.

Marks, notations and other marginalia present in the original volume will appear in this file - a reminder of this book's long journey from the
publisher to a library and finally to you.

Usage guidelines

Google is proud to partner with libraries to digitize public domain materials and make them widely accessible. Public domain books belong to the
public and we are merely their custodians. Nevertheless, this work is expensive, so in order to keep providing this resource, we have taken steps to
prevent abuse by commercial parties, including placing technical restrictions on automated querying.

We also ask that you:

+ Make non-commercial use of the files We designed Google Book Search for use by individuals, and we request that you use these files for
personal, non-commercial purposes.

+ Refrain from automated querying Do not send automated queries of any sort to Google's system: If you are conducting research on machine
translation, optical character recognition or other areas where access to a large amount of text is helpful, please contact us. We encourage the
use of public domain materials for these purposes and may be able to help.

+ Maintain attribution The Google "watermark" you see on each file is essential for informing people about this project and helping them find
additional materials through Google Book Search. Please do not remove it.

+ Keep it legal Whatever your use, remember that you are responsible for ensuring that what you are doing is legal. Do not assume that just
because we believe a book is in the public domain for users in the United States, that the work is also in the public domain for users in other
countries. Whether a book is still in copyright varies from country to country, and we can't offer guidance on whether any specific use of
any specific book is allowed. Please do not assume that a book's appearance in Google Book Search means it can be used in any manner
anywhere in the world. Copyright infringement liability can be quite severe.

About Google Book Search

Google's mission is to organize the world's information and to make it universally accessible and useful. Google Book Search helps readers
discover the world's books while helping authors and publishers reach new audiences. You can search through the full text of this book on the web

at |http : //books . google . com/

ftWOQVElf «A»VilRD LlSM^y

f I II trill lllllltl

AH IWY T

HARVARD DEPOSITORY
BRITTLE BOOK

nf

■ y i>

-s^ -V

^^rt'

■«^.|li';!'f -d

'p

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google,

i

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES

HYMNS,

THEIE WEITEES, AND THEIE INFLUENCE.

JOSEPH BELCHER, D.D.

AUTHOB or <<WILUAM CARET: A BIOGKAPHT;'' ^'QKOBaK WHITETIKLD: A BIOOEAPHT;"
<<B£LiaiOUJ DBN01UNATI0N8 OF THE UNITED STATES/' ETC. ETC.

PHILADELPHIA:

LINDSAY & BLAKISTOlf.

NEW YOKE: SHELDON A COMPANY.

1869.

Digitized by

Google

kA \-',

7-

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1850, by

LINDSAY k BLAKISTON,

in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the Eastern

District of Pennsylvania.

STEREOTYPED BT L. JOHNSON h CO.

PHILADELPHIA.

COUilNS, PRINTER.

Digitized by

Google

PREFACE.

That the subject of this volume is of great interest
no reader will deny. That more than one writer
has published important matters relating to it is
well known ; but assuredly comparatively little truly
interesting to the mass of Christian readers has yet
been collected. No one is more aware of the diffi-
culties of the task than the author of the present
small work, for which he has been collecting mate-
rials for many years. Importunity of friends may
truly be pleaded in this instance; and he has at least
the confidence that he has done what he could, and
will rejoice if his work shall provoke a wiser man
to produce a better.

To the casual reader it may appear that a small
degree of labor, given now and then in moments of
leisure, would soon produce a volume like that now
in his hand. It would, however, convince such a
one of his mistake were he to attempt the task. He
would soon find that the most attractive volume
must often be laid aside, that "iVb" must be given

1* 6

Digitized by

Google

PREFACE.

to the kindest invitation to the tempting social
party, and that even the meetings of the most de-
lightful revival of religion recorded in history must
be sacrificed, to complete what years and disease tell
him may not otherwise be accomplished before death
summons him from earth.* To verify a fact, to con-
firm a date, or to answer what some might consider
an unimportant query, has often demanded hours
which inclination or the gratification of friendship
would have otherwise claimed.

The author feels a pleasing confidence that his
labors will tend to increase an interest in the great
duty and privilege of praise^ and do somewhat to
advance a spirit of union with those, not a few of
whom are now in a better world, who have so greatly
aided our worship on earth. As such, he commends
his feeble effort to the favor of his adorable Master
and to the kindness of his readers.

J.B.

Phix^adelphia, July, 1859.

* The Rev. Dr. Belcher seems to have anticipated a result which
has since taken place. He departed this life on Sunday morning,
July 10th, 1859, not many hours after his labors had ceased on
this Yolume.

Digitized by

Google

CONTENTS.

HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

PAM

Definition of a Hymn — Character and Influence, by Henry
• Ward Beecher — Musical Establishment of David — ^Extract
from Dr. Lyman Coleman — Singing of the Early Chris-
tian Church — Hymns of the Early Fathers — Chrysostom
— Augustine— Singing and Death of William the Con-
queror — ^Latin Singing now practised in Winchester Col-
lege — The Gospel perpetuated by Old Hymns — Singing in
the Dark Ages^-Revised at the Reformation — Congrega-
tional Singing in England — Divisions in Churches on
the Subject — Influence of Calvin — Luther — Royalists and
Roundheads at York Minster — Mace — Baxter — Pilgrim
Fathers — Symmes — Coiton Mather — Decline in Singing —
Its Revival — Curious Facts — Singing in the Revival of
1735 — ^Early Printing of Hymns and Music — ^Remarkable
Poetical Compositions — Dr. Lowell Mason — Amusing
Facts — Singing in the Methodist Church — ^Wesley —
Whitefield — True Use of Music — ^Instruments in Churches
— Singing in Brazil — Alterations in Hymns — ^Real Im-
provements — ^Importance of Chanting — Length of Church

Services — Hints on Good Singing 19

7

Digitized by

Google

CONTENTS.

AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

PAOI

Sarah F. Adams 73

Joseph Addison 73

Christopher Angelus 74

Rev. James Allen 75

Mrs. G. W. Anderson 76

Rev. Leonard Bacon, D.D 76

Rev. John Bakewell 77

Rev. Thomas Baldwin, D.D 78

Mrs. Anna L. Barbaald 79

Bernard Barton 79

Rev. Christopher Batty 81

Rev. Richard Baxter 82

Rev. Benjamin Beddome 83

Rev. Charles Beecher 86

Bernard 86

Rev. John Berridge 87

Rev. G. W. Bethune, D.D 90

Rev. Thomas Blacklock, D.D 91

Rev. James Boden 92

Rev. Horatius Bonar, D.D 93

Rev. T. E. Bond, M.D 94

John Bowdler 95

John Bowring, LL.D 95

Frederika Bremer 95

Rev. Jehoiada Brewer 96

Rev. John N. Brown, D.D 97

Phoebe H. Brown 97

Rev. Simon Browne 98

Elizabeth Barrett Browning 100

John H. Bryant 101

William CuUen Bryant 102

William Budden 102

Rev. W. M. Bunting 103

Rev. John Bunvan 104

Digitized by

Google

GONTENTS. 9

PAOI

Rev. George Burder 104

Bishop Burgess, D.D 105

Key. Kichard Bumham 106

Robert Bums ,.^ 106

Thomas Campbell 107

Rev. John Cawood 108

Rev. Richard Cecil 108

Thomas Von Celano 109

Rev. John Cennick Ill

Rev. E. H. Chapin, D.D 112

Charlemagne «... 113

Rev. Ingram Cobbin 114

Rev. W. B. CoDyer, D.D., LL.D 115

Josiah Conder 116

Rev. Thomas Cotterill 116

Nathanael Cotton, M.D 117

William Cowper 118

Rev. A. C. Coxe, B.D 126

Rev. W. Croswell, D.D 126

Robert Cruttenden. 127

Rev. J. W. Cunningham 128

Rev. S. S. Cutting 129

Rev. Thomas Dale 129

Rev. President Davies 130

Rev. Eliel Davis 130

Rev. David Denham 131

Rev. David Dickson 132

Bishop Doane 134

Rev. Philip Doddridge, D.D 134

JohnDryden 141

Rev. George Duffield, Jr 142

Rev. Timothy Dwight, D.D 143

Rev. Sidney Dyer , 144

Rev. J. W. Eastbume 144

Charlotte Elliott 144

Rev. R. Elliott 145

James Edmeston 146

Digitized by

Google

10 CONTENTS.

PAOB

Rev. William Enfield, LL.D 146

Rev. Jonathan Evans 146

Rev. John Fawcett, D.D 147

John Fellows 150

Eliza Lee FoUen 151

Rev. Benjamin Francis 151

Rev. Richard Furman, D.D 153

Rev. W. H. Fumess, D.D 153

Thomas H. Gallandet, LL.D 154

Rev. John Gambold 154

Rev. Panl Gerhard 156

Rev. Thomas Gibbons, D.D 157

Ann Gilbert 157

Rev. Thomas Gisborne 158

LordGlenelg 158

John Mason Good, M.D 159

Hannah F. Gonld 159

James Grant 160

Thomas Greene 161

Rev. Joseph Grigg 161

Madame Gnion 161

Rev. William Hammond 163

Rev. Joseph Hart 164

Rev. Thomas Haweis, LL.B. and M,D 165

Bishop Heber 167

Rev. George Herbert 168

Rev. James Hervey 171

Rev. Rowland Hill 172

Bishop Home 173

Rev. Joseph Humphries 174

Rev. G. B. Ide, D.D 174

Rev. William Jay 175

Rev. Edmund Jones 175

Rev. Adoniram Judson, D.D 176

Rev. Thomas Kelly 177

Bishop Ken 179

John Kent 182

Digitized by

Google

CONTENTS. 11

Francis S. Key > 183

Rev. William Kingsbury 184

Rev. Andrew Kippis, D.D.. 185

Rev. Mr. Kirkham 186

Rev. John Langford * 186

Rev. John Leland 187

Rev. John Logan 187

Henry W. Longfellow 188

Ann Lutton 189

Rev. Henry Francis Lyte 190

Mrs. Mackay 190

Rev. MartM Madan 191

Rev. Basil Manly, Jr 193

Rev. John Mason 193

Rev. Samuel Medley 194

Rev. Henry H. Milman 195

John Milton 196

James Montgomery » 197

Thomas Moore 203

Rev. Thomas Morell 204

Rev. William A. Muhlenberg, D.D 204

Rev. John Needham 205

Rev. James Newton 206

Rev. John Newton 206

Hon. and Rev. Baptist Noel 210

Andrews Norton 211

Rev. John F. Oberlin 211

Rev. Samson Occum 213

Rev. Thomas Olivers 214

Krishna Pal 215

Mrs. Palmer 216

Rev. Ray Palmer, D.D 217

Rev. A. P. Peabody, D.D 217

Rev. Samuel Pearce 218

Rev. Edward Perronet 219

Alexander Pope 225

Rev. Thomas Raffles, D.D., LL.D 226

Digitized by

Google

12 CONTENTS.

TAffM

Rev. Andrew Reed, D.D » 228

Rev. Robert Robinson 229

Rev. John Ryland, D.D 231

Hon. and Rev. Walter Shirley 234

Lydia Huntley Sigoumey 235

Rev. S. F. Smith, D.D 236

Anne Steele 237

Rev. Samuel Stennett, D.D 239

Rev. Amos Sutton, D.D 240

Stemhold and Hopkins ^ 241

Rev. Joseph Swaine 243

William B. Tappan 244

Tate and Brady 245

G. Tersteegan 246

Rev. Augustus M. Toplady 247

Miss Tuck 249

Rev. Daniel Turner 250

Rev. Bei^jamin Wallin 251

Rev. W. Ward 252

Rev. Ralph Wardlaw, D.D 253

Rev. Henry Ware, D.D 253

H. S. Washburn 254

Rev. Isaac Watts, D.D 254

TheWesleys 268

Henry Kirke White 291

John G. Whittier 292

Rev. William Williams 293

Nathanael P. Willis 294

William Wordsworth 295

Francis Xavier < 297

Digitized by

Google

CONTENTS. 13

ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON
PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS.

INDIVIDUAL PERSONS.

PAGK

A University Student 301

An English Actress 302

An Irish Persecutor 304

A Young Man 305

An Unhappy Mother 308

An English Nobleman 309

An Irish Sunday-Scholar 312

Governor Hill 315

Campbell, the Poet 315

A Taunting Lover 316

A Dying Jewess 317

A Chimney-Sweeper 319

A Suflfering Mother 319

Robert Hall 320

A Vermont Clergyman 321

A Sick Child 322

An Aged Lady 322

A Young Man in Virginia...., 323

A Dying Pastor 324

A Military Officer 326

The Blind Psalmist 326

, THE DOMESTIO CIRCLE.

Two Sisters in New York State 328

The Young Captive and her Mother 329

A Family in Louisiana 332

The Brothers and Sister 333

2

Digitized by

Google

14 CONTENTS.

PAOB

Two Young Women 334

Quarrelsome Neighbors 335

Klopstock and his Wife 336

MINISTERS AND CONGREGATIONS.

Rev. Samuel Bradburn 337

Rev. Dr. E. P. Griffin 338

Rev. Robert Hall 339

Rev. Dr. Stillman 339

Rev. Dr. Broaddus 340

Thoughtless Clergymen 340

A Tory Minister 342

Br. Mason 343

Mr. Dawson 345

Fault Found 345

A Clergyman in Georgia 346

A Deacon in a Difficulty 347

Regulations of Singing 348

Importance of Right Feelings 349

An Old Parody 351

Singular Music 351

Hymns of the Old Style 352

Singing at Bangor 353

Redstone Presbytery 356

Boston Congregations 357

Coincidence 358

China 358

Rev. Dr. Emmons 360

English Clerks 361

Facts about Anthems 364

Congregational Singing 370

Sacramental Singing 373

Collegiate Dinner at Andover 373

Singing on board the North Carolina 373

Churches in Scotland 374

An Impressive Scene 375

Digitized by

Google

CONTENTS. 15

PAOK

A Real Amendment 376

Miscellaneous Facts 378

QENEBAL SOCIETY.

A Private Circle 379

A Vast Crowd 380

Anniversary at Andover 381

The Missionary's Landing. 383

Officers of the British Navy 385

New York Merchants 386

Miscellaneous 388

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES

CHURCH MUSIC AND CHOIRS.

2»

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

JIisTORicAL Sketches.

Befobe entering on the principal design of this vo-
lume, it may be proper very briefly to glance at the
character of hymns, and the opinions entertained of
them by Christians in successive ages.

A writer in the " Presbyterian Quarterly Review" not
long ago, says of a good hymn, " It forms words that
thrill thousands of all classes and characters, and thrill
them all at once. Words that will do this must be at
the same time simple and dramatic, understood in a
moment, and yet carrying profound feelings — ^those uni-
versal things that are ' borne inward unto souls afar.' "

As to the character and influence of hyinns on the
hearts of Christians, our views are so well delineated by
the graphic pen of Henry Ward Beecher, that we shall
borrow his language, as far more conducive to the benefit
of the reader than our own : — " Hymns are the expo-
nents of the inmost piety of the Church. They are the
crystalline tears, or blossoms of joy, or holy prayers, or
incarnated raptures. They fCre the jewels which the
Church has worn, — ^the pearls, the diamonds, and precious
stones, formed into amulets more potent against sorrow
and sadness than the most famous charms of wizard or

19

Digitized by

Google

20 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

magician. And he who knows the way that hymns
flowed, knows where the blood of piety ran, and can
trace its veins and arteries to the very heart.

" No other composition is like an experimental hymn.
It is not a mere poetic impulse. It is not a thought, a
fancy, a feeling threaded upon words. It is the voice
of experience speaking from the soul a few words that
condense and often represent a whole life. It is the life,
too, not of the natural feelings, growing wild, but of
regenerated feeling, inspired by God to a heavenly des-
tiny, and making its way through troubles and hin-
derances, through joys and victories, dark or light, sad
or serene, yet always struggling forward. Forty years
the heart may have been in battle, and one verse shall
express the fruit of the whole. One great hope may
come to fruit only at the end of many years, and as the
ripening of many experiences. As there be flowers
that drink up the dews of spring and summer, and feed
upon all the rains, and only just before winter burst
forth into bloom, so is it with some of the noblest blos-
soms of the soul. The bolt that prostrated Saul gave
him the exceeding brightness of Christ; and so some
hymns could never have been written, but for a heart-
stroke that wellnigh crushed out the life. It is cleft in
two by bereavement, and out of the rift comes forth, as
by resurrection, the form and voice that shall never die
out of the world. Angels sat at the grave's mouth ; and
so hymns are the angels that rise up out of our griefs,
and darkness, and dismay.

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 21

" Thus born, a hymn is one of those silent ministers
which God sends to those who are to be heirs of salva-
tion. It enters into the tender imagination of childhood,
and casts down upon the chambers of its thought a holy
radiance which shall never quite depart. It goes with
the Christian, singing to him all the way, as if it were
the airy voice of some guardian spirit. When darkness
of trouble, settling fast, is shutting out every star, a
hymn bursts through and brings light like a torch. It
abides by our side in sickness. It goes forth with joy to
syllable that joy.

" And thus, after a time, we clothe a hymn with the
memories and associations of our own life. It is gar-
landed with flowers which grew in our hearts. Bom of
the experience of one mind, it becomes the unconscious
record of many minds. We sang it, perhaps, the morn-
ing that our child died. We sang this one on that Sab-
bath evening when, after ten years, the family were once
more all together. There be hymns that were sung while
the mother lay a-dying; that were sung when the child,
just converted, was filling the family with the joy of
Christ new-bom, and laid, not now in a manger, but in
a heart. And thus, sprung from a wondrous life, they
lead a life yet more wonderful. When they first come
to us, they are like the single strokes of a bell ringing
down to us from above ; but at length a sin^e hymn be-
comes a whole chime of bells, mingling and discoursing
to us the harmonies of a life's Christian experience."

Mr. Beecher elsewhere says, with great truth, that

Digitized by

Google

22 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

" when the Church is cold and dead, these hymns which
were written by God's saints in moments of rapture
seem extravagant, and we walk over them on dainty
footst^s of taste ; but let God's Spirit come down upon
our hearts, and they are as sweetness to our tongues ;
nay, all too poor and meagre for our emotions ; for feel-
ing is always tropical, and seeks the most intense and
fervid expression."

In glancing at the history of praise and its various
modes of expression, we may remark that nothing in
the whole records of history can be found to compare
with the splendid musical establishments of David, at
once th^ king of Israel and the psalmist of the Lord.
From the narrative given us in the twenty-third chapter
of the First Book of the Chronicles, we must infer that
both music and poetry were then in a highly-flourishing
state. No less than four thousand singers or musicians
were appointed from among the Levites, under two hun-
dred and eighty-eight principal singers or leaders of the
band, and distributed into twenty-four companies, who
officiated weekly by rotation in the temple, and whose
whole business it was to perform the; sacred hymns
One portiqn of them chanted or sung, and the other
played on different instruments. The chief of thesQ
were Asaph, Eeman, and Jeduthun, who were also com-
posers of hymns. Milton himself must have admitted
that the choir was worthy in its amplitude of those fre-
quent songs throughout the law and the prophets which
h0^eld ''incomparable/' not in ''their divine argument

Digitized by

Google

HISTORIOAL SKETCHES. 23

alone, but in the very critical art of composition, over
all the kinds of lyric poetry."

Dr. Lyman Coleman, in his " Apostolical and Primitive
Church," very properly tells us that the singing of songs
constituted a great part of the religious worship of all
ancient nations. In all their religious festivals, and in
their temples, the pagan nations sung to the praise of
their idol gods. The worship of the Jews, alike in the
temple, their synagogues, and their private dwellings,
was celebrated with sacred hymns to Grod. Christ him-
self, in his final interview with his disciples before his
crucifixion, sung with them the customary paschal songs
at the institution of the Supper, and by his example
sanctified the use of sacred songs in the Christian Church.
In the opinion of the most eminent writers, the gift of
the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost was accom-
panied by poetic inspiration, to which the disciples gave
utterance in spiritual songs. Paul and Silas, lacerated
by the cruel scourging which they had received, and in
close confinement in "the inner prison," prayed and
sang praises to God at midnight. The use of " psalms,
and hymns, and spiritual songs" was enjoined upon the
churches at Colosse and Bphesus. Many evidences are
furnished us, too, that in private, as well as in public,
the first Christians were warmly attached to singing
the praises of God.

Indeed, it appears that this practice of uniting to
sing the high praises of Christ was one of the charges
brought against the first Christians by their enemies.

Digitized by

Google

24 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

Hence Pliny wrote in the commencement of the second
century to Trajan, the Eoman emperor, that they were
accustomed to meet before day, to offer praise to Christ
as a God; and Justin Martyr mentions the songs and
hymns of the Ephesian Christians : — " We manifest our
gratitude to him by worshipping him in spiritual songs
and hymns, praising him for our birth, for our health,
for the vicissitudes of the seasons, and for the hopes of
immortality." Not very long after this, we have a clear
intimation of the existence of a hymn-book.

The great topic of the ancient psalms and hymns was
Christ, the only-begotten jof the Father. The doctrine
was set forth of his being the incarnate Word of God,
God and man. His mediatorial character was the joy
of the primitive churches, and this sacred theme in-
spired their earliest anthems. The manner of th^r sing-
ing must have been very simple, consisting of a few
easy airs, which could be readily learned and by fre-
quent repetition become familiar to all. Ambrose says
that the injunction of the apostle, forbidding women
to speak in public, relates not to singing, " for this is
delightful in every age and suited to every sex f and
Chrysostom says, " It was the ancient custom, as it still
is with us, for all to come together and unitedly to join
in singing. The young and the old, nch and poor, male
and female, bond and free, all join in one song. . . . All
worldly distractions here cease, and the whole congre-
gation form one general chorus."

We may add a few lines more on this interesting topic.

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SBJBTCHK8. 25

fieveral oi ihe Fathers sought to edify their flocks by
supplying them with devotional poetry ; and. instances
are referred to by Eusebius in his ^^ Ecdmagtical History''
of private individuals composing hymns. Speaking of
the mode of administering the Lord's Supper^ Tertullian
remarks^ in his *^Ajp6U>gy,*^ ^' After the water is brought
for the hands, and lights, we are invited to sing to Grod,
according as each one can propose a . dulig'ect from the
Holy Scriptures or of his own composing/' Hilary of
Poictiers, in the fourth century, presented his church
with a collection of hymns j and the Milanese Christians,
about the same period, were accustomed to assemble at
night, to chant those composed by Ambrose, their bishop.
This practice began in Milan about the time the empe*
ror persecuted Ambrose. The pious people watched in
the church, prepared to die with the pastor. Augustine
says, ^l There my mother sustained an eminent part in
watching and praying. Then hymns and psalms, after
the manner of the East, were sung, with the view of
preserving the people from weariness ; and thence the
custom has spread through Christian churches.'^ When
Chrysostom occupied the episcopal throne of Constan-
tinople, the Arians were accustomed to parade the
streets of the city, singing hymns strongly tinctured
with the peculiarities of their creed; on which the
bishop, fearing the propagation of the heresy, furnished
his choristers with some of his own compositions in
accordance with the opinions of the orthodox.
Assuredly this holy duty of sin^ng was not confined

Digitized by

Google

26 HISTORICAL BKBTCHES.

to their public assemblies. Jerome says^ " Go where
you will, the ploughman at his plough sings his joyftil
hallelujahs, the busy mower regales himself with his
psalms, and the vine-dresser is singing one of the songs
of David." Fearless of reproach, of persecution, and
of death, they continued, in the face of their enemies, to
sing their sacred songs in the streets and market-places,
and at the martyr's stake. Eusebius declares himself
an eye-witness to the fact that, under their persecutions
in Thebais, ^Hhey continued to their latest breath to
sing psalms and hymns, and thanksgivings to the God
of heaven." Speaking of the earliest hymns of the
Latin Church, Herder asks, " Who can deny their power
and influence over the soul ? They go with the solitary
into his cell, and attend the afflicted in distress, in want,
and to the grave. While singing these, one forgets his
toil, and his fainting, sorrowful spirit soars in hea-
venly joys to another world. Back to earth he, comes
to labor, to toil, to suffer in silence, and to conquer.
How rich the boon, how great the power, of these
hymns V

!Nor ought we to forget here the account which Au-
gustine gives us of the power of this holy music over
his heart on occasion of his baptism. He says, " Oh,
how freely was I made to weep by these hymns and
spiritual songs, transported by the voices of the congre-
gation sweetly singing! The melody of their voices
filled my ear, and divine truth was poured into my
heart. Then burned the sacred flame of devotion in

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 27

my soul, and gushing tears flowed from my eyes,-
well they might."

We may remark, here, that as early as the fourth
century the appointment of singers as a distinct class
crept into the Church, and other evils also, which soon
tended to impair the purity and lessen the enjoyments
of Christian worshippers.

Time has been, even in England, when singing the
high praises of God was deemed a fit employment in a
palace. As long ago as 1087, William the Conqueror
lay on his death-bed. His closing hours formed a night
of half sleep, half stupor, the struggling expiring body
taking a dull,. painM, unrestful rest before its last long
earthly repose; but as the sun was just rising above
the horizon, shedding brightness on the walls of the
apartment, William was i^roused by the tolling of the
great cathedral bell, and inquired what the sound meant.
<< It is the hour of praise,'^ was the answer of his attend-
ants. Then were the priesthood in full choir welcoming
with voices of gladness the renewed gift of another day,
in the words common to all the Western liturgies, begin-
ning,—

''Jam lucis orto Sidere/'

a translation of the whole of which will be acceptable
to our readers : —

** Now thai the sun is gleaming bright,
Implore we, bending low,
That He, the uncreated Light,
May guide us as we go.

Digitized by

Google

28 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

*< No sinftil word, or deed of wrong,
Nor thoughts that idly rove,
But simple truth, be on our tongue.
And in our hearts be love.

** And while the hours in order flow,
Christ, securely fence
Our gates beleaguered by the foe.
The gate of every sense,

'* And grant that to thine honor, Lord,
Our daily toil may tend ;
That we begin it at thy word.
And in thy favor end."

Bnt the day of labor and struggle, sin and repent-
ance^ was already past; and before the close of the
hymn William lifted up his hands in prayer and ex«
pired.

In one congregation alone in England is this beau-
tiftd liatin hymn now snng. When the scholars of Win-
chester College annually separate for the Whitsun vaca-
tion, they sing it in the original Latin. Surely it ought,
at least in the translation, to be far better known ; and,
so thinking, we have ventured so far to. depart from the
general plan of our volume as to extend its knowledge
as far as we can.

As we are speaking of the customs of England in '
reference to tiie old Latin hymns, we may here say that
to the present day the choristers and lay clerks of Mag-
dalene College, Oxford, annually ascend the outside of
the top of the tower of the building at five o'clock in
the morning of the first of May, where they sing the
Te Deum before a vast crowd of spectators.

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SK£TCHS8. 29

* It has been well said that in many eases the aneient
hymns were the only conservatives of gospel truth when

, heterodoxy grew and flourished beneath papal influence.
They were themselves too pure to be defiled by Eomish
contaminations; and although hymn after hymn was
added to swell the aggregate by those whose faith suc-
cumbed to their superstition^ yet these have come down
to us in all their first purity. So far from rejecting
them, we ought rather to love them the more, because
they flowed with clear and living stream through the
barren wastes of error, until at length popery gathered

I up her strength in a useless effort to taint them. As the
Eomish Church added dogma after dogma to her creed,
the lustre faded from her hymnal, until at last all that
her votaries could produce were fulsome laudations of
the saints and idolatrous invocations of Mary. But the
two classes of hymns must ever be kept distinct : it is
easy at once to perceive the difference between the ut-
terance of a Christian soul and the panegyrics of false

^ dogmas and imagined demigods.

We are told that Augustine was sorely perplexed
by his love of music, fearing to indulge in ornamental
psalmody for its own sake, yet conscious that his devo-
tional feelings had often been powerfully excited by the
influence of religious song. He says, "When I re-
member the tears I shed at the psalmody of the Church,
in the beginning of my recovered faith, and how at this
time I am moved, not with the singing, but with the
things sung, when they are sung with a clear voice and

3*

Digitized by

Google

38 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

modulation most suitable, I acknowledge the great use
of this institution. Thus I fluctuate between peril of
pleasure and approved wholesomeness, — ^inclined the ra-
ther, though not as pronouncing an irrevocable opinion,
to approve of the use of singing in the church, that so
by the delight Of the ears the weaker minds may rise to
the feelings of devotion."

Ihiring the disastrous period emphatically termed "the
dark ages," when ignorance and superstition almost
universally prevailed in the west of Europe, singing the
praises of God was a part of divine worship from which
the people were debarred. Not only were the words
sung in a language unknown to the great body of the
people, but the music was so complex that none could
bear a part in it unless they had studied it scientifically.

But when the Eeformation dawned, it was no difficult
task to induce the people of England to prefer plain
psalmody, in which they could easily join, to the intri-
cate music which was too refined and scientific for their
comprehension; and congregational singing gradually
found its way into the parish churches, in pursuance of
a statute of Edward VI., " to use openly any psalm or
prayer taken out of the Bible, at any due time, not let-
ting or omitting thereby the service, or any part thereof."
It is certain that gradually full permission or connivance
introduced metrical psalmody into the Church of Eng-
land ; for Strype states that in the month of September,
1559, " began the new morning prayer at St. Antholin's,
London, the bell beginning to ring at five, when a psalm

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKSTCHES. 31

was sung after the Greneva fashion, all the eongregationy
men, toomen, and boys, singing together J'

The late Josiah Conder, in his admirable " View of aU
Sdigions/' testifies to the great influence of congrega^
tional singing in England at an early period of the Be-
formation. Bishop Jewel says, '^ A change now appears
visible among the people, which nothing promotes more
than inviting them to sing psalms. This was begun in
one church in London, and did quickly spread itself, not
only through the city, but in neighboring places. Some-
times at Paul's Cross there will be six thousand singing
together." By the Act of Uniformity, passed in 1548,
the practice of using any psalm openly '< in churches,
chapels, oratorios, and other places'' was authorized.
At length, after being popular for a while in France and
Germany, among both Eoman Catholics and Protestants,
as psalmody came to be discountenanced by the former
as an open declaration of Lutheranism, so in England
psalm-singing was soon abandoned to the Puritans, and
became almost a peculiarity of Nonconformity.

In the reign of Henry VIII., the Common Prayer
Book, and the singing of psalms as found in the Bible,
were generally used as a test for all to sing who loved
the Beformation; and in the Confession of the Puritans,
published in 1571, they say, « We allow the people to
join in one voice in a psalm-tune, but not in tossing the
psalm from one side to the other, with intermingling of
organs."

We cannot forbear to remark here that some of the

Digitized by

Google

82 HISTOBICAL SKETCHES.

best hymns were composed in " the dark ages/' They
were, as Professor Edwards says, " sombre and monoto-
nous, but simple and sublime, and never to fade till that
last day which they so often celebrate." As he else-
where says, " The study of centuries only corroborates
the uniyersal voice. The reason of this is perfectly
obvious. The road is not beaten. There is a dewy
freshness on them, such as Adam saw in Eden. The
artist can work unrestrained by artificial rules."

It is remarkable that the Baptists, after the Eeforma-
tion, were very generally opposed to singing in their
congregations. They had seen so many evils encou-
raged by those who practised it, that they persuaded
themselves it was but a human ordinance. The Eev.
Benjamin Keach, in 1691, published " T?ie Breach Be-
paired in God's Worship; or^ Psalms and Hymns proved to
he a Holy Ordinance of Jesus Christ." He first labored
earnestly, with great prudence, to prevail on his people
to sing at the close of the Lord's Supper; he then, six
years afterward, persuaded them to sing on thanks-
giving-days, and, at the end of fourteen years, to sing in
each service at the close of the last prayer, that so those
who objected to it might retire. In all this he was
strenuously opposed by Mr. Isaac Marlowe, who desig-
nated the practice as " error, apostasy, human tradition,
pre-limited forms, mischievous error, and carnal wor-
ship." In 1692 the General Assembly urged both parties
to cease from their disputes, and their recommendation
tended to peace. Still, however, there was difliculty;

Digitized by

Google

mSTOBICAL SKSTCBES. 83

and ultimately a division took place, and the seceders
organized ii new chttrcli in Maze Pond^ Sonthwark^
" where it was twenty years longer before' singing the
praises of God could be endured." At length, the con-
gregations, being 1^ to their own calm reflection, gra-
doally introduced psalmody into their worship.

While popery never fiprored congregational singing,
and among themselves Jesuits were never heard to chant
Ihe praise of Immanuel, the Eeformers at once saw its
inflnence on the great work before them. Calvin in*
trodnced into his congregation at Geneva the elegant
version of the Psalms into French rhyme which had
been made by Clement Marot, valet of the bedchamber
to Francis I. This man, having happily become tired of
the vanities of profMie poetry, and anxious to raise the
tone of public taste and leeling, aided by Theodore Beza
and encouraged by the Professor of Hebrew in the Uni-
versity of Paris, published the Psalms in metre ; and, as
the translation did not aim at any innovation in public
worship, it received the sanction of the Sorbonne. This
version soon eclipsed the madrigals and sonnets of its
author; and suddenly, in the festive and splendid court
of Francis I., nothing was heard but the psalms of
Clement liarot^ the royal &mily and xurincipal nobility
choosing and adapting them to popular bfdlad-tunes.

Under the direction of Calvin, these compositions were
adapted to plain and easy melodies, and became a char
racteristic of the newly-established worship. Grermany
next caught the sacred ardor, and the choral mode of

Digitized by

Google

84 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

service yielded to the attractive and popular character
of a devotional melody in which all might join without
distinction of rank or character.

Especially was the practice of congregational singing
greatly revived, and became almost universal, in Ger-
many, where, emphatically, the people are all singers.
From that time to the present it has been rarely the
fact that any one is found in a German church who does
not sing. They abound in hymn and tune books ; and
even to this hour, as we learn from Br. Lyman Coleman,
an eye-witness, one-half of the time occupied in public
worship is taken up in singing.

Martin Luther well understood this method of propa-
gating truth and refuting error, and employed it with a
skilful hand. His own poetical talents and love of music
, were very great. He learned the science with the first
rudiments of his native language ; and when, as a wan-
dering minstrel, he earned his daily bread by exercising
his musical powers in singing before the doors of the
rich in the streets of Magdeburg and Eisenach, he was
as truly preparing for the future reformer as when, a
retired monk in the cloister of Erfurt, he was storing
his mind with the truths of revelation, with which to
refute the errors of popery. One of his earliest efforts
at reform was the publication of a psalm-book, in 1524,
composed and set to music chiefly by himself. One of
his earliest hymns was consecrated to the memory of the
martyrs of Brussels ; and the whole Beformed Church
felt the mighty influence of his song. A few sentences

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETOHE0. 35

which Luther wrote when he versified some of the
Psalms and appended them to a collection of hymns
which he pnhlished in 1524^ all of which were set to
music in four parts, cannot be nnacceptable. He tells
us this had been done '^ for no other reason than because
of my desire that the young, who ought to be educated
in music as well as in other good arts, might have some-
thing to take the place of worldly and amorous songs,
and so learn something useful and practise something
virtuous, as becometh the young. I would be glad to
see all arts, and especially music, employed in the ser-
vice of Him who created them."

In the preparation of this music, Walther, a distin-
guished musician of that day, lent his assistance. He
says, ^<I have spent many a happy hour in singing
with him, and have often seen the dear man so happy
and joyful in spirit while singing that he could neither
tire nor be satisfied. He conversed splendidly upon
music. He also composed music or tunes for the
Epistles and Gospels, particularly for the words of
Christ at the institution of the Supper, and sung them
to me and asked my opinion of them. He kept me
three weeks writing the notes for a few Grospels and
Epistles, till the first Grerman mass was sung in the
parish church, and I was obliged to stay and hear it
and take a copy of it to Torgua."

In the writings of this distinguished Beformer we
find several good paragraphs on music and singing,
with which the reader will be happy to renew his ac-

Digitized by

Google

86 HISTORICAL BKETCHS8.

qaaintance. He says^ ^'iCusic is one of the fairest and
most glorious gifts of God, to which Satan is a bitter
enemj; for it removes from the heart the weight of
sorrows and the fiucination of evil thoughts. Music is
a kind and gentle sort of discipline; it refines the pas-
sions and improves the understanding. Even the disso-
nance of unskilful fiddlers serves to set off the charms
of true melody,— as white is made more conspicuous by
the opposition of black. ^ Those who love mui»c are
gentle and honest in their temper. I always loved
music, and would not, for a great matter, be without
the little skill which I possess in the art.

<^ Music is one of the best arts : the notes give life to
the text : It expels melancholy, as we see in king Saul.
Eings and princes ought to maintain music, fbr great
potentates and rulers should protect good and liberal
arts and laws : though private people have desire there-
unto and love it, yet their ability is not adequate. We
read in the Bible that the good and godly kings main-
tained and paid singers. Music is the best solace for the
sad and sorrowful mind : by it the heart is r^reshed and
settled again in peace. We must teach music in sdiools :
a schoolmaster ought to have skill in music, or I would
not regard him. Neither should we ordain young men
as preachers unless they be well exercised in music.
Singers are merry and free from sorrows and cares."

None of our readers will be displeased with a glance at
the public singing in England in the year 1644. At that
time, when the Boyalists and the Eoundheads were in

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKSTCHSS. 87

inceBBant collision^ both as to political and religious mat-
ters, and when no small contest was carried on between
choirs and organs on the one hand and plain congregap
tional singing on the other. Master MacCi in his '^ Music's
Monument" describes, in the rapturous language we now
transcribe, the singular compromise between the parties
at York Minster: — ^^'The psalm-singing was the most
excellent that has been known or remembered any-
where in these latter days. Most certain I am that to
myself it was the very best harmonical music that ever
I heard, — yea, excelling all other, either private or public,
cathedral music, and infinitely beyond all verbal expres-
sion or conceiving. Now, here you must take notice
that they had there a custom in that church which I
hear not of in any other cathedral, which was this :
always before sermon the whole congregation sung a
psalm together with the choir and the organ. You must
also know that there was then there a most excellent,
large, plump, lusty, full-speaking organ, which cost, as I
am credibly informed, a thousand pounds. This organ,
I say, when the psalm was set, before the sermon, being
let out unto all its fulness of stops, together with the
choir, began the psalm. Now, when the vast concord
and unity of the whole congregational choir came, as I
may say, thundering on, even so as to make the very
ground shake under us, — ah ! the unutterable ravishing
soul's delight I — ^I was so transported and rapt up with
high contemplation, that there was no room left in my
body and spirit for any thing below divine and heavenly

Digitized by

Google

38 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

raptures. The abtmdanee of people of all ranks, beside
the soldiers, crowded the church. Oh, how unutterably
ravishing, soul-delighting !"

Delightfully are we reminded, by this description, of
the animated language of the holy Baxter : — "Methinks,
when we are singing or speaking God's praise in the
great assemblies, with joyful and fervent souls, I have
the liveliest foretaste of heaven on earth. I could almost
wish that our voices were loud enough to reach through
all the world, and unto heaven itself; nor could I ever
be oflfended, as many are, at the organs and other con-
venient music, soberly and seasonably used, which ex-
cite and help to tune my soul in so holy a work, in
which no true assistance is to be despised."

W© joyfully come now to our own happy land ; and
though it was long before our fathers made much pro-
gress in the science either of singing or of hymn-writing,
we are glad to see them cultivating the spirit of praise.
As Gould says, ^' Here let us pause for a moment and
imagine ourselves spectators of the scene when our fore-
fathers mounted the Plymouth Eock, and listening to
the first song of praise to Almighty God proceeding
from strong lungs and pure hearts. There they stood,
and, with the women and children, burst forth, and with
united voices rehearsed some tune and words that they
perhaps had before prepared and had been anxiously
waiting and longing for an appropriate time to sing.
That time had come; and think you there would not
have been a difference between the effect of their sing-

Digitized by

Google

BISTOBICAL. SKETCHES. 39

ing and that which we so often hear^ ' where not the
heart is found' ? "

As we have already seen, before the Pilgrim Fathers
came to this country there had been in England, espe-
cially among the Baptists, much controversy on the sub-
ject of singing, and not a few churches divided on the
subject of its introduction. We believe, however, that,
whatever differences existed in this country on the
matters of singing by notes, '< lining out the hymns,"
or instrumental music, all approved of singing itself,
and pretty generally acted on the exhortation of Wil-
liam Billing : —

'* Oh, praise the Lord with one consent.
And in this grand design
Let-Britain and the Colonies
Unanimously join."

The Eev. Mr. Symmes, speaking of the first settlers
of New England, tells us that from the first founding
of the first college singing was a regular study, and
adds, "There are many persons of credit now living,
children and grandchildren of the first settlers, who
can very well remember that their ancestors sung by
note, and they learned so to sing of them." Dr. Cotton
Mather, in his " Church DisdpUne" tells us that, before
1720, "The former and larger prayer of the pastor
being finished, a psalm usually succeeds. In some
[places], the assembly being furnished with psalm-
books, they sing without the stop of reading between
every line. But ordinarily the psalm is read line after

Digitized by

Google

40 HISTORICAL SK£TCH£B.

line by him whom the pastor desires to do that service ;
and the people generally sing in sach grave tunes as
are most usual in the churches of our nation."

After a while, as every one knows, the Colonies began
to be disturbed by contention and party strife ; religious
errors also crept in; and the few music-books which
had been imported were rapidly decreasing : so that at
the commencement of the eighteenth century scarcely
any of the congregations could sing more than three or
four tanes. The knowledge and use of notes had be-
come neglected, until no two persons sung them alike.
Every melody was " tortured and twisted as every un-
skilful throat saw fit." The Eev. Mr. Walker says of
their singing, that it sounded "like five hundred dif-
ferent tunes roared out at the same time, so hideously
and disorderly as is bad beyond expression. I myself
have twice in one note paused to take breath." Mr.
Symmes further testifies, "It is with great difficulty
that this part of worship is performed, and with great
indecency in some congregations, for want of skill. It
is to be feared singing must be wholly omitted in some
places, for want of skill, if this art is not revived."

Eeform, however, was on the way, though attended
in the outset with no small confusion. September 16,
1723, the " New England Couranf* contained this para-
graph : — '^ Last week a council of churches was held at
the south part of Brain tree, to regulate the disorders
occasioned by regular singing in that place, — Mr. Niles,
the minister, having suspended seven or eight of the

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 41

chnrch for persisting in their singing by rule, contrary,
as he apprehended, to the result of a former council ;
but the suspended brethren are restored to communion,
their suspension declared unjust, and the congregation
ordered to sing by note and by rule, alternately, for the
satisfaction of both parties.'^

December 9, 1723. — " We have advice from the south
part of Braintree, that on Sunday, the first instant, Mr.
Niles, the minister of that place, performed the duties
of the day at his dwelling-house, among those of the
congregation who are opposers of regular singing. The
regular singers met together at the meeting-house, and
sent for Mr. Niles, who refused to come unless they
would first promise not to sing regularly; whereupon
they concluded to edify themselves by the assistance of
one of the deacons, who, at their desire, prayed with
them, read a sermon, etc."

About 1720, singing by note was introduced into Bos-
ton, in Dr. Coleman's meeting-house, and singing-schools
were introduced, both there and in other parts of New
England. The most influential of the clergy encouraged
the cultivation of music ; and the study of it, during the
controversy, revived in the college. In 1745, the first
organ was built in this country, by Edward Bromfield,
Jr., of Boston ; and though this instrument was greatly
opposed, it soon made its way. Choirs soon followed,
and the " Records of the Church at Topsfidd" the " Mis-
tory of Ipswich/* and other documents, i^how: the ani-
mated character of this controversy. Two short para*

Digitized by

Google

42 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

graphs from the ^^ History of Worcester^* will give the
reader a fair specimen of the proceedings of those
days : —

" The final blow was struck to the old system by the
resolution of the town, August 6th, 1779 : — ^ Voted, that
the singers sit in the front seats of the front gallery, and
that those gentlemen who have hitherto sat in the front
seats of said gallery have a right to sit in the front and
second seat below, and that said singers have said seats
appropriated to said use. Voted, that said singers be
requested to take said seats, and carry on the singing in
public worship.' The Sabbath succeeding the adoption
of these votes, after the hymn had been read by the
minister, the aged and venerable Deacon Chamberlain,
unwilling to desert the custom of his fathers, rose and
read the first line, according to the usual practice. The
singers, prepared to carry the alteration into effect, pro-
ceeded without pausing at the conclusion. The white-
haired officer of the church, with the full power of his
voice, read on, until the louder notes of the collected
body overpowered the attempt to resist the progress of
improvement, and the deacon, deeply mortified at the
triumph of musical reformation, took his hat and retired
from the meeting-house in tears. His conduct was cen-
sured by the church, and he was for a time deprived of
its communion, for absenting himself from the public
s^ryfc^B of tbP Sabbath."

This was by no i|^eans the only instance in which an
offended deacon showed his displeasure. Another Mas-

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 48

sachnsetts brother in office, determined to take revenge
on a choir who had led off the singing without giving
him time to read, patiently waited till they had con-
eluded, and then, gravely putting on his spectacles,
opened his book and said, " Now let the people of God
sing f and, from respect and pity for the good old man,
they joined with him in his psalm. Nay, even ministers
did not formerly restrain their feelings on the subject.
When Dr. Joseph Bellamy once heard his choir sing in
sad style, he read another psalm, and said, " You must
try again; for it is impossible to preach after such
singing."

Some of our young readers will be pleased to have
before them a few lines more as to the manner and
trouble of forming choirs, and the way of choosing a
leading singer. We give, therefore, a few extracts from
the " History of Eowley :" —

1762. — ^^'The parish voted that those who had learned
the art of singing may have liberty to sit in the front
gallery. They did not take the liberty;" probably be-
cause they would not sing after the clerk's reading.

1780. — ^' The parish requested Jonathan Chaplin, Jr.,
and Lieutenant Spafford to assist Deacon Daniel Spaf-
ford in raising the tune in the meeting-house."

1785: — ^^ The parish desire the singers, both male and
female, to sit in the gallery, and will allow them to sing
once on each Lord's day without reading by the deacon."

About 1790, the lining out the psalm or hymn by the
deacons was wholly discontinued.

Digitized by

Google

44 HISTOaiCAL SKETCHES.

A few lines from the " Topsfidd Church Becords" will
confirm the general views of the subject : —

"1764, June 5. — ^Voted that the pastor be desired,
Sabbath preceding the next lecture, in the name of th^
church, to desire the congregation, after the lecture
is over, to tany and consult with the church about
choosing somd person or persons to set the psalm
when Captain Averill is absent/'

" 1764, March 13. — ^Mr. Moses Perkins and Mr. Jacob
Kimball were, by the brethren of the church, and also
by the congregation, chosen to set the psalm.

" Yoted that the said Perkins and Kimball sit in the
elders' seat."

In the year 1756, the congregation of the first church
in Kittery, Mass., who had the Eev. Benjamin Stevens
for their pastor, "voted that the petitioners for a sing-
ing-pew have liberty to sit in the hind seat but one, and
to move the hind seat three inches, at their own cost.''
This was probably an incipient step to the formation of
a choir. The next year the church "voted that Tate
and Brady's version of the Psalms, with the addition of
Scriptural Hymns, collected from Dr. Watts, etc., be sung
in this church."

It seems that human nature makes similar manifesta-
tions of pride in all ages. Dr. Sprague, in his admirable
^^ Annals of the American Pulpit/* tells us that on one
occasion the Rev. Samuel Moody, a well-known, eccen-
tric minister in Maine in the first half of the last cen-
tury, had a lecture in a private house, and there was no

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 45

one present competent to condnct the singing except
his own hired man. So Mr. Moody called on John to
tune the psalm while the line was given out in detail.
'Tohn obeyed; and after they had got through, Mr.
Moody said to him, "John, you never shall set the
psalm again ; for you are ready to burst with pride.'*

It is pleasant to turn from these facts to observe the
influence of singing in the great revival which took
place in our land, under Edwards, Whitefield, and
others, from 1735 and onwards. Jonathan Edwards
will not be accused of rashness or of overeoloring the
facts of the case ; and he says, " Our public praises were
then greatly enlivened. God was then served in our
psalmody, in some measure, in the beauty of holiness.
It has been observable that there has been scarce any
part of divine worship wherein good men among us
have had grace so drawn forth and their hearts so lifted
up in the ways of God, as in singing his praises. Our
congregation excelled all that I ever knew before in the
external part of the duty, — the men generally carrying
well and regularly three parts of the music, and the
women a part by themselves j but now they were evi-
dently wont to sing with unusual elevation of heart and
voice, which made the duty pleasant indeed."

To an American Christian it is pleasant to know that
the very first book printed here was a portion of the in-
spired volume " done into metre." The first press was
" put up" at Cambridge, in 1639, by Stephen Day. His
first book was " The Psalms in Metre, faithfully translated,

Digitized by

Google

46 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

for the use; edification, and comfort of the saints, in
public and private, especially in New England, printed at
Cambridge in 1640." The version was made by Thomas
Welde, of Koxbury, Eichard Mather, of Dorchester, and
John Eliot, the Apostle of the Indians. Speaking of
their work, they say, " We have respected rather* a plain
translation, than to smoothe our verses with the sweet-
ness of any paraphrase, and so have attended to con-
science rather than elegance, and fidelity rather than
poetry, in translating Hebrew words into English lan-
guage, and David's poetry into English metre." Bless-
ings on the Pilgrim Fathers, that we find on their re-
cords, *^ Stephen Day, being the first that set up print-
ing, is granted three hundred acres of land, where it
may be convenient without prejudice to any town."

We are told that when Eliot translated the Bible into
the now entirely-forgotten Nipmuck language, which
was printed at Cambridge in 1663, the whole of the
type being set up by an Indian, the Psalms were " done"
into tbat form of verse which in our hymn-books is
called "common metre;" and nothing could be more
clumsy and uncouth than the structure of the rhymes.
Even Stemhold and Hopkins may be read with ex-
quisite pleasure after looking over a few stanzas like
the following from the nineteenth Psalm : —

'* 1. Kesuk kukootumushteaumoo
God wussohsumoonk
Mamahehekesuk wumahtuhkon
Wutanakausnonk.

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 47

«2. Eohsekoeh kesukodlash
Kuttoo waantamonk
Eah hodsekoe nukonash
Keketokon wahteauonk."

A somewhat remarkable book was issued in 1718, by
Dr. Cotton Mather, called ^^Fsalterium Aniericanum : the
Book of Psalms in a translation exactly conformed unto
the original, but all in blank verse, fitted unto the tunes
commonly used in our churches. Which pure oflfering is
accompanied with illustrations of digging for hidden
treasures in it, and rules to employ according to the
glorious and various intentions of it. Whereunto are
added some portions of the Sacred Scriptures, to enrich
the Cantional. Boston, in N..E."

In this singular production, which is a close transla-
tion from the Hebrew, Dr. Mather has not only disre-
garded the modern practice of breaking the lines, whe-
ther rhymed or not, but he has "run out," to use a
printer's phrase, the whole matter; so that, while each
psalm looks exactly like prose, and may be read as such,
it is in fact modulated so that it may be sung as lyric
vers^. In an "Admonition concerning the Tunes" Dr.
Mather states that " The director of the psalmody need
only say, * Sing with the black letter,' or, ' Sing without
the black letter,' and the tune will be sufficiently di-
rected." The following extract from the twenty-third
Psalm will give the reader some idea of this extraor-
dinary translation : —

Digitized by

Google

48 HIBTOBIGAL SKETCHES.

"PSALM XXIII.
"^ Ptalm of David,
*< 1. My Shepherd is th' stesnal God, || I shall
not be in [ffits] want :

<* 2. In pastures of a tender grass || He [t^et] makes

me to lie down : || To waters of tranquillities || He
gently carries me [aljonj;]*

" 8. ^j feeble and my wandering soul || He [WnWj]

does fetch back again ; || In the plain paths of
righteousness || He does lead [anlr %vXtii\ me
along : || Because of the regard he has \thti]
unto His glorious Name." ||

We hope to be forgiven if we occupy another page or
two with matter relating to books of hymns and tunes.

The first book containing music printed in America,
as we learn from the ^^ American Musical Almanac'* for
1852, was issued in 1690. It was a versification of the
Psalms, with a collection of tunes, in two parts only, at
the end. In 1712, another work was issued, entitled " A
very plain and easy Introduction to the Art of Singing Psalm
Tunes; with the Cantas or Trebles of Twenty-Eight Fsalm
Tunes, contrived in such a manner as that the learner may
attain the skill of singing them with the greatest ease ima-
ginable. By the Eev. Mr. John Tufts. Price, 6d. 55.
the doz." In 1761, a work called " Urania, or a Choice
Collection of Psalm Tunes, Anthems, and Hymns, by James
Lyons, A.M.," price, 155., was published at Philadelphia.
Tradition says that it ruined its publisher, — ^which we
can imagine to be very probable. In 1770, Mr. William
Billings published his ^^New England Psalm-Singer, or
American Chorister/' containing one hundred and twenty

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 40

tunes. In the introduction to this work its author boldly
declared his independence of all the rules of harmony^ —
a declaration which he fully acted out in this and all his
future works. We may add here that, in 1754, a book-
seller in Philadelphia advertised, as just published, " The
Youth's Entertaining Amusement; or, a Plain Ghiide to
Fsalmody : being a choice Collection of Tunes sung in the
English Protestant Congregation in Philadelphia; with
Rules for Learning, By William Dawson." This title,
probably unintentionally, expresses with great simpli-
city a fact, — ^that young persons, and many of their
friends too, often resort to the practice of psalmody
— ^which should be a holy exercise — ^for mere amuse-
ment.

Let not the young author who is conscious of the
possession of talent be discouraged by difS^culties at the
outset of hifl career, but go on till he achieves success.
This, no doubt, would be the counsel of the eminent
singer. Dr. Lowell Mason : at all events, this was his
own early conduct.

In early life, while engaged in conducting the choir
of a church in Savannah, Georgia, he felt the want
of a collection of church-music even tolerably adapted
to the wants of choirs, and was thus led to compile
such a work himself, more with a view of preparing
a book for his own choir than with any expectation
of producing a work which should be generally used.

Having finished his manuscript, our young author Qb-

tained leave of absence from the bank in which \kt "Wbm

5

Digitized by

Google

50 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

then a clerk, and directed his steps northward in search
of a publisher. Arriving at Philadelphia, he offered to
give the copyright to any house which would publish
the work and give him a few copies for his own use ; but
in the estimation of the booksellers and music-mer-
chants it was too hazardous an enterprise for wise men
to engage in. Failing in Philadelphia, he went to Boston,
and made the same offer to the publishers of that city.
But the shrewd Yankee publishers laughed at him, and
intimated that their forecast and prudence were not to
be so easily thrown off their balance.

Finding that every one looked at his book so coldly,
our young author put his manuscript crotchets and qua-
vers into his pocket, and was about returning to Savan-
nah, when he accidentally met a gentleman of consi-
derable knowledge of music, who wished to examine the
volume. Having done this, he expressed his satisfaction,
and asked Mason what he intended to do with it. " Take
it home with me," was the reply. The gentleman pro-
posed to show it to the Handel and Haydn Society, who
at once published the book, giving its author a share in
the copyright. His remarkable success as a teacher
is well known.

One or two amusing matters may here be added, which
may at least provoke a harmless smile.

One of our most popular monthly periodicals for 186^
tells us that, not long since, the chorister of a choir in
Vermont wrote to a publisher in Boston for a copy of
that popular singing-book, " ITie Ancient Jjyre" His

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 51

communication ran, "Please send me the Ancient Liar,
well bound'* The publisher replied, "My dear Sir: — I
do not doubt that the devil has been and still is in
Boston; but it will be difficult to comply with your
request, for the reason that Boston influence is so strong
in his favor, it will be impossible to hind him."

A Boston astrologer long ago predicted that an extra-
ordinary literary work would be produced in New Eng-
land about the middle of the nineteenth century. Ac-
cording to " Gleason's Pictorial Drawing-Room Compa-
nion" the prediction was fulfilled in 1853, to the letter.
A Boston publishing-house "got up" a Quaker hymn-
book, having heard that no work of the kind existed.
At first it appeared to be " a pretty good opening f but
one unlucky circumstance was soon discovered : the
Quakers never sing.

The " Bay-State Collection of Sacred Music'* includes a
tune called " California^* with the words, —

. " My soul lies cleaving to the dust."

A correspondent of the ^Newark (N.J.) Advertiser"
writing from Bramfield, Connecticut, says, " By the way,
a good story may be told of our chorister's attempt at
improving the psalmody as well as the music of our
church. He set some music of his own to the ninety-
second Psalm of Watts, in which occur the lines, —

* Oh, may my heart in tune be found.
Like David's harp of solemn sound!'

" Calling on his pastor, he asked his approbation of a

Digitized by

Google

52 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

new version of these lines, which would render them
more readily adapted to the music he had composed.
He suggested that they should read, —

* Ohf may my heart be tuned within,
Like Dayid'a sacred violin !'

" The good pastor had somewhat of an inclination to
laugh in the singing-man's face; but, maintaining his
gravity as he best could, he thought he could suggest a
further improvement of the version, admirable as it was.
The highly-delighted chorister begged him to do so;
and the minister wrote before his parishioner, —

< Oh, may my heart go diddle, diddle.
Like Uncle David's sacred fiddle !'

"The poor man, after a vain attempt to justify his
own parody, retired to sing the psalm as it stands."

It sometimes happens that preachers and choristers
are not entirely united in their views, even in the church
itself. Some years since, a Millerite preacher in Vermont
declared, during the delivery of a sermon, that he did not
expect to die, but anticipated being alive when Christ
came, and hoped to dwell with him on this earth for-
ever. The chorister took quite a different view of the
matter, and selected, as the closing piece for the choir, —

** I would not live alway ; I ask not to stay
Where storm after storm rises dark o'er the way."

A minister can reprove as readily as a chorister can.
At a church in New England, a stranger was called to
officiate in the absence of the pastor, and, not being

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 58

familiar with some rules of the choir, so much offended
them that they would not sing. After several efforts,
the preacher determined not to be discomfited, and read
the verse, —

« Let those refuse to sing

Who never knew our God ;
But children of the heavenly King
May speak their joys abroad."

This roused the whole choir and congregation, who at
once joined in with the minister, and the service passed
off very pleasantly.

Not many years since, a minister in New Hampshire

fell, as will sometimes happen, into a difficulty with his

choir, which for some time prevented their accustomed

services. At length the choir relented, and appeared, as

heretofore, at the usual time of service. The minister

most unexpectedly saw them in their places, and in

due time, looking very significantly, rose and read the

hymn,—

" And are ye wretches yet alive,
And do ye yet rebel ?"

All parties were pleased when the affair was ended.

The Methodist body, founded by the Eev. John Wesley,
have always been a singing community. The two brothers
Wesley published, during their lives, not less than forty-
eight books and tracts of hymns, for the use of their
people. " Some of these," says John Wesley, *' had such
a sale as I never thought of" Nothing, indeed, has con-
tributed more to their extension than the almost uni-

5*

Digitized by

Google

54 HISTORICAL 8K£TCn£B.

yersal disoharge of this important part of worship ; and
especially was this true before the modem introdaction
of choirs. As early as 1762, Mr. Wesley published a
collection of tunes for the use of his followers ; and in
1761 he published ^^ Select Mymns, vnth Tunes annexed,
designed chiefly for the %Lse of the People called Method-
ists" — ^in the preface to which he says, "I want the
people called Methodists to sing true the tunes which
are in common use among them. At the sama time, I
want them to have in one volume the beet hymns we
have printed, and that in a small and portable volume,
and one of an easy price. I have been en deavoring for
more than twenty years to procure such a book as this,
but in vain. Masters of music were above following
any direction but their own; and I was determined
whoever compiled this should follow my direction, —
not mending our tunes, but setting them down neither
better nor worse than they were. At length I have
prevailed."

So intent was John Wesley on this part of his work
that, in travelling through England, he often stood in
the pulpit familiarly directing this part of worship,
calling in turn on the men and the women to take theii
parts in the holy song. One of the happy effects of
Methodist singing, which is observed alike in the great
congregation, the social prayer-meeting, and the family
circle, is that we have known more than one congrega-
tion, where there has been very unacceptable preaching,
kept together by animated singing.

Digitized by

Google

HI6T0BICAL BKETCHSS. 65

The Bev. G. W. Hervey, in a recent interesting article
in the " Christian BevieWy" tells us that this eminent man
was fully persuaded of the necessity of a musical re-
vival, which should give utterance to the new expe-
riences of his converts. Happening one day to hear a
sailor singing in the street, it struck him that the melody
he was pouring forth would, ahove all others, suit the
words of some of his hymns, and greatly delight and
edify the people. Knowing how to write music, he
wrote down the notes on the spot, introduced them into
his meetings, and always declared that it was the most
solemn and appropriate of all the tunes which were
sung hy his followers.

Nor was the eminent George Whitefield less interested
in lively, simple congregational singing. He was most
decidedly averse to the cathedral-music of his day, and to
" the linked sweetness long drawn out" of the parochial
psalmody of England. He would not suffer a bar of it to
he warbled in his houses of worship. He also thought
that the lively ballad-airs of secular origin were more
suitable to the joy and gladness of the new-born soul.
He declared that it was shameful to praise God in the
drawling strains of the Church, and downright sacrilege
to allow the devil the monopoly of all the jubilant music.

Every one, too, knows that the great awakening in
the days of our own Jonathan Edwards was attended by
general song. He defended the practice in a masterly
manner, and showed that to complain of it was to re-
semble the Pharisees, who were disgusted with the raul-

Digitized by

Google

56 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

titude of the disciples when with loud voices they praised
God and shouted "Hosanna" as Christ entered Jeru-
salem.

The Eev. Charles Wesley has a heautifal hymn on
" The True Use of Musk;' founded on 1 Cor. xiv. 16, «I
will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the under-
standing also." Well does he say of this charming
science, —

<' Listed into the cause of sin.
Why should a good be eyil ?
Music, alas ! too long has been
Pressed to obey the devil."

In the hymn now before us he says, —

*^ Still let us on our guard be found,
And watch against the power of sound

With sacred jealousy :
Lest, haply, sense should damp our zeal,
And music's charms bewitch and steal

Our hearts away from thee."

The venerable John Wesley, who was both a poet and
a warm lover of music, when asked his opinion of the pro-
priety of the introduction of instrumental music into the
worship of the Methodists, said, in his own terse manner,
" I have no objection to instruments of music in our cha-
pels, provided they are neither heard noe seen."

The late Dr. Adam Clarke wrote, " Music, as a science,
I love and admire; but instruments of music in the
house of God I abominate and abhor. This is the abuse
of music; and I here register my protest against all

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. . 57

such corruptions in the worship of the Author of Chris-
tianity."

Certain it is that this <' delight of the ears'' has done
very much; in modern times^ to increase attendance on
public worship. One denomination among us, at least,
has done as much by its singing as by its preacjiing to
attract vast crowds. Nor is this peculiar to Protestants.
Southey tells us, in his History of Brazil, that, finding the
Tupis passionately fond of music, the Jesuit suited him-
self to their taste, until he began to hope that the fable
of Orpheus was a type of his mission, and that by songs
he was to convert the Brazilian pagans. He usually
took with him four or five choristers on his preach-
ing expeditions. When they approached an inhabited
place, one carried the crucifix before them, and the rest
began singing the litany. The savages, like snakes,
were won by the voice of the charmer, and everywhere
received him joyfully.

We are tempted, in this place, to make a few remarks
on the almost intolerable evil of making alterations in
good old-fashioned psalms and hymns, which is generally
done by persons of great aflfectation or great conceit, or
for the sake of a closer conformity to their " new and
superior music." For some of our hints we own our-
selves indebted to the " Presbyterian.*'

We have elsewhere referred to a most popular and
useful hymn by Gregg. He wrote the first verse, —

<< Jesus ! and shall it eyer be ?
A mortal man ashamed of thee !

Digitized by

Google

68 HISTOKICAL SKETCHES.

Ashamed of thee, whom angels praise,
Whose glory shines through endless days I"

See how miserably the last two lines are converted
into bathos in a popular hymn-book : —

** Jesus ! and shall it ever be ?
A mortal man ashamed of thee !
Scorned be the thought by rich and poor;
Ohf may I scorn it more and more /"

Perhaps the same thinker and would-be "improver''
substituted for the following line of Watts, —

"When God, the mighty Maker, died,"

the softened language, —

" When Christ, the mighty Sayiour, died.'*

'We cannot doubt that both these alterations were in*
tended to modify the ascriptions of Deity to the Lord
Jesus, and are therefore unpardonable, at least with
those who love the old scriptural doctrine conveyed in
language which long since became endeared to their
hearts.

Here is another exquisite verse from the same au-
thor : —

" My willing soul would stay
In such a frame as this.
And sit and sing herself away
To everlasting bliss."

There is both beauty and poetry in the idea of the
soul " singing herself away ;" but the " improvers" make
it read, —

Digitized by

Google

HI8T0BICAL SKETCHES. 59

" Till called to rise and soar away
To eyerlasting bliss."

Can any one give us the reason for the change of a
single word in the last verse of Watts' s seventeenth
Psalm?—

** Then burst the chains with tweet surprise."
Why must it be so altered as to read —

** Then burst the chains with fflad surprise?" —

which assuredly destroys the author's idea.
The poet Cowper wrote in one of his hymnS; —

<*What peaceful hours I once enjoyed!
How sweet their memory still !
But they have left an aching Toid
The world can never fiU."

Could words be chosen more precise and expressive?
What then must be the effect of such an "improve-
ment" in the third line ? —

" But now I feel an aching Toid,'' —

as though the victim had a sudden sense of goneness, or
an attack of the colic.

Another of Cowper's most precious hymns has suf-
fered even more cruelly than this^ the alteration being
at once barbarous and unpoetical^ though made to render
it more readily adapted to the music : —

" Then, in a nobler, sweeter song,
I*U sing thy power to save,
When this poor lisping, stammering tongue
Lies silent in the grave."

Digitized by

Google

60 HISTORICAL BKETCHEB.

The last two lineS; slightly altered, have heen placed
first, and the whole verse is thus presented : —

** When this poor lisping, faltering tongue
Lies silent in the graye,
Then, in a nobler, sweeter song
rU sing thy power to save."

We cannot he surprised that Dr. Bethune, himself a
poet of no mean order, should have once indignantly
said from the pulpit, ^^ I should like to know who has
had the presumption to alter Cowper's poetry.''

A recent number of the " Presbt/terian Quarterly Beview/'
when speaking of Charles Wesley's admirable hymn, —

" Thou God of glorious majesty !"

says, with great propriety, "Our menders of sacred
lyrics have violated all decency in their transformation
of the original, ^nd have really altered, not the phrase-
ology merely, but the sense :" —

<< Lo ! on a narrow neck of land,
Twixt two unbounded seas I stand.
Secure, insensible!"

The poet represents, in this triplet, a half-awakened
sinner, not wholly alive to his position, just beginning
to discern, but not fully to apprehend, his danger, — " se-
cure, insensible," until clearer light falls from the Spirit
of God upon his soul : then, indeed, he sees the yawning
gulf beneath him, on either side, and cries out, —

** A point of time — a moment's space—
Remores me to that heavenly place,
Or shuts me up in hell!"

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 61

•

How miserably tame and meaningless; compared with
the original; is the " improved" rendering ! —

** Yet how insensible !'*

If we needed additional proof that our compilers
failed to appreciate the living, burning thought of the
poet, we have it in the next stanza, —

" God, my inmost soul convert,
And deeply on my thottffhUess heart."

The poet wrote ^^thougUfvl heart:" his genius had
called into being a sinner who had been insensible, — ^who
had imagined himself secure on the narrow promontory
of probationary life, but whose eyes are now open to
his danger. He begins to think. No longer thought-
lessly secure, he is now thought-/wZ, and beseeches God
that eternal things may be impressed more deeply on
his mind.

But, as though this amount of alteration were not
sufficient to satisfy us, the author is made to say, —

<< GiTe me to feel their solemn weight,
And saye me ere it be too late."(!)

We suppose that if God saves at all, it will be " ere
it be too late."

Who can forgive this literary theft of one of the finest
and boldest lines ever penned by poet ? —

^*And tremble on the brink of fate,"

This is true poetry; and the strong expression at the end
of the line, which our compilers seem to have shunned, so

Digitized by

Google

62 HISTORICAL BKBTCH18.

for from being unwarrantably bold^ is appropriate and
effective^ and its use is sustained by numerous scriptural
examples.

While we are on this subject of " emendation" of
hymns, and especially of the "improved" versions of
those composed by the Wesleys, we cannot forbear to
quote the words of John Wesley^ in which he "sharply"
rebukes some of the trespassers on his domain, in
language like this : — " Many gentlemen have done my
brother and me, though without naming us, the honor
to reprint many of our hymns. Now, they are perfectly
welcome so to do, provided they print them just as they
are. But I desire they would not attempt to mend
them j for they really are not able. Kone of them is
able to mend either the sense or the verse. Therefore
I must beg of them one of these two fiivors : either to
let them stand just as they are, — to take them for better
or for worse,— or to add the true meaning at the bottom
of the page, that we may be no longer accountable for
the nonsense or for the doggerel of other men."

After all, however, alterations are sometimes needful,
and occasionally are great improvements: as, for in-
stance, John Wesley's own "improvement" of Watts'
hundredth Psalm. The author wrote its first two lines, —

*< Nations, attend before his throne,
With solemn fear, with sacred joy."

Wesley changed it to, —

"Before Jehovah's ai?ful throne,
Ye nations, bow with sacred joy."

Digitized by

Google

HISTOBIOAL 6KBTGHES. 63

"Another distinguiehed hymn of Watts," says the
unknown author from whom we are quoting, "wag
altered by the same band, in its first stanza, and the
change has become classic. Ko one would propose to
print the following verse as Watts wrote it : —

* He dies ! ,the heayenlj Lotof diesl

The tidings Btrike a doleful sound
On mj poor heart-strings. Deep he lies
In the cold caTems of the ground/

Wesley's transformed stanza is almost infinitely pre-
ferable : —

* He dies ! the Friend of sinners dies I
Lo 1 Salem's daughters weep around ;
A solemn darkness veils the skies,
A sudden trembling shakes the ground/ **

Nor can it be denied that our more recent editors do,
occasionally, give us an emendation ; but we trust that
in their future acts of this character they will remember
their vast responsibility, and further, that, of every hun-
dred of the changes they make, at least ninety and nine
are for the worse.

It has long been to us a matter of surprise that our
congregations do not acquire a habit of chanting, — ^a
practice at once both easy and delightful. To use the cor-
rect language of Br. Whitaker, in his " Life of St, Neotf^
" The chant not merely assists the voice and gives it a
larger volume of sound for an extensive church, but,
what is of much more consequence, augments its de-
voutness by the modulation of its tones, — by the rapid
flow at one time, by the solemn slowness at another, —

Digitized by

Google

64 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

by the rise, the fall, and the swell, mach more strongly
marked than any of these can be in reading, — much
more ea:rpressive of devoutness in the officiating clergy-
man, and much more mpressive of devoutness upon the
attending congregation. A chanted prayer is thus the
poetry of devotion, while a prayer read is merely the
prose- of it. So, at least, thought the wisest and the best
of our ancestors, — ^men peculiarly qualified to judge, be-
cause their intellects were exalted and their spirits de-
vout, — ^who therefore carried the chanted prayer from
our churches into their closets."

]^y we be allowed here to touch on a subject of some
delicacy ? We refer to the complaint often made as to
the congregational services in our churches being too
long, and as to the part to be abbreviated. We are not
aware of any cases in which a Christian would abridge
the duty of adoration and prayer: so that the real
question is, which shall be shortened, the singing or the
preaching ? Our answer may be given in a few words.
If the hymn selected be one containing little that is de-
votional, and only intended to gratify the intellect, or
if it be chiefly employed to call out the taste and the
science of the choir and to claim the admiration of the
unconverted listeners, by all means abbreviate the sing-
ing ,• but if the psalmody be strictly what it professes
to be,— devotional and heavenly, — ^if many hearts of the
truly devout are engaged in it, and if it produces a
soul-subduing influence, raising the heart to God and
heaven, by no means shorten that portion of the wor-

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 65

ship. There can he no difficulty on the part of the
preacher, with proper labor and thought, condensing
the matter of his sermon so as to make it five minutes
shorter; and it will often prove beneficial to the
preacher's intellect and heart that his performances
should pass through such an ordeal. In such matters,
after all, " wisdom is profitable to direct."

At the risk of being charged with prolixity in these
miscellaneous introductorypages, we will refer, in closing,
to a few general facts, which we hope will not be with-
out their use to at least some of our friends.

Bishop Home, in his admirable sermon on Church-
Music, quotes from Collier, the ecclesiastical historian,
as saying, "Eeligious harmony must be moving, but
noble withal, grave, solemn, and seraphic, fit for a mar-
tyr to play and an angel to hear." Sad havoc has been
committed, in modem times, by the introduction into
many of our churches of vulgar and light productions,
devoid of the slightest pretensions to taste, and full of
the grossest offences against the laws of musical com-
position. Solos, and every attempt at fugue, and the
like, should be most rigidly excluded. We are quite
aware that a very great number of persons prefer vul-
gar and trashy compositions to sound classical music,
and argue that because a melody happens to please
them, it must necessarily be good. This is just as absurd
as though an educated man were to maintain that some
vulgar ballad, full of offences against syntax and pro-

6*

Digitized by

Google

66 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

sody, was superior poetry. Mnsic has its grammar as
well as language.

We have noticed, of late, an increasing love of old con-
gregational tunes ; and perhaps few persons are aware of
the antiquity of some of these. One called " ForA" has
heen ascribed to no less a personage than Milton the
poet; but it was really composed by his father. The his-
tory of " Old Hundred'* is the subject of a volume re-
cently published by an English clergyman. Martin
Luther was long considered to be its author; but it
has now been discovered that it was originated in the
sixteenth century, by William Franc, a German, though
it has been considerably changed from the original, — ^in
part, probably, by Luther himself.

To advance the favorable reception of the old tunes,
it should be remembered that they were formerly sung
much faster than we sing them, and by a far larger
number of voices. Our forefathers in the Church were
cheeriul Christians, and a psalm of twelve verses was
but short to them. Old Hundred is sung as a dirge
now ; but then it was a joyous canticle : —

'* All people that on earth do dwell,
Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice,"

York, too, now often placed among the dull and obsolete,
was originally the most lively and popular of tunes.

Whatever may be the quality of our hymns and tunes,
we are assuredly far beyond all former years in the
quantity we use. Many years ago it was announced that

Digitized by

Google

HISTOBIOAL 8KET0HI8. 67

more than sixty thousand copies of the *^ Methodist Hymn-
Bool^' were sold annuaUy in London ; and in the United
States the number must be much larger. And; as we
write, an advertisement tells us that *^ Hallelujah " a
Yolume of devotional tunes published in London, con-
tains compositions in one hundred and thirty-six dif-
ferent metres.

A few lines, written some years since by Dr. Joshua
Leavitt, may be here introduced with advantage. He
says, <' In revivals of religion a species of music is sought
entirely different from that which is ordinarily used. The
state of feeling is such then that it swells beyond the
shackles of musical authority, and the music ifi sought
for and employed which is known to produce effects. A
class of tunes which has long been under the sentence
of banishment from our music-books and singing-schools
is then sought for. The squeamish affectation of not
using, in the service of God, music of known power to
move because it has been already proved in the service
of the world or of Satan is abandoned. Singing assumes
a new character, and the rejoicing people of (Jod are
amazed at its powers. I wish the musicians should ex-
plain, especially those of them who love revivals. And
I desire that ministers should ask how they can excuse
themselves if they thus allow a powerful means of grace
to be neutralised by submitting all their music to the
control of a scientific theory.

" It is not unfrequently found that persons who have
not what is called a musical ear are yet keenly suscepti-

Digitized by

Google

68 HISTORICAL SKETCHES.

ble to the practical inflaence of musical sounds. Those
who are awakened or enlightened by the singing that
takes place in a revival will not; by any means^ be eon-
fined to the singers. Many Christians have seen this,
and have felt the want of a reform in oar musical sys-
tem. A great deal of that which is found useful in re-
vivals is passed along by tradition and learned by rote.
Many congregations where revivals are known are desti-
tute of such music; but, where they have a knowledge
of it, the denunciations of the music-master and the
organist are disregarded. People wiU sing music that
means something and that meets their feelings more
than ordinary psalm-tunes. It is astonishing to learn
the rich variety of such music which is thus preserved
by tradition, and preserved thus because it is excluded
from books. All musical writers denounce these tunes
and proscribe them from their pages, and yet they are
preserved. There are tunes now sung in prayer-meet-
ings which have, in this way, outlived whole generations
of what is called scientific music. Is it not time that
we should act a little from facts and experience, and
leave musical theories to their proper sphere, — ^in the
speculations of writers whose professed object is some-
thing aside from the salvation of souls V

In entire accordance with these remarks are some
thus expressed by the venerated theologian, Andrew
Fuller : — " The criterion of a good tune is not its pleasing
a scientific ear, but its being quickly caught by a congre-
gation. It is, I think, by singing as it is by preaching :

Digitized by

Google

HISTORICAL SKETCHES. 69

a fine judge of composition will admire a sermon which
yet makes no manner of impression upon the public
mind^ and therefore cannot be a good one. That is the
best sermon which is adapted to produce the best ef-
fects ; and the same may be said of a tune. If it cor-
responds with the feelings of a pious heart and aids him
in realizing the sentiments; it will be quickly learnt, and
be sung with avidity. Where this effect is not produced,
were I a composer, I would throw away my performance
and try again.''

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

AUTHORS

ORIGIN OF HYMNS,

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

Authors and Origin of Hymns.

SARAH F. ADAMS.

The admirable hymns published with this signature
w^ere written by a lady eminent for her musical talents.
She wrote, besides hymns and criticisms, several works
collected under the title of " Adoration, Aspiration, and
Belief:' She died in 1848.

JOSEPH ADDISON.

Addison, who flourished in the latter part of the
seventeenth and the early portion of the eighteenth
centuries, commands the respect of all who value re-
ligion and morals. Though in the early part of his life
he devoted himself to political affairs, he soon abandoned
them, as also an earlier design of taking orders in the
English Church, and gave his days and nights to litera-
ture, in which, contrary to the majority of writers, he
was successful. Especially did he adva^ce literature
and fine taste by the publication of the " Spectator,** the

happy results of which are still felt in literary circles in

7 73

Digitized by

Google

74 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

England. His hymns, originally printed in the " Spec-
tator,*' are still increasingly admired, and are extending
in their usefulness. In 1716 he was married to the
Countess Dowag^ of Warwick, whose son, it will be re-
membered, he sent for on his death-bed, in 1729, to see
in what peace a Christian could die. It has been very
truly said that he has divested vice of its meretricious
ornaments, and painted religion and virtue in the modest
and graceful attire which charms and elevates the heart.
In addition to his hymns, he wrote a part of a version
of the Psalms, which was never completed.

CHRISTOPHER ANGBLUS.

This eminent person, who died in the seventeenth
century, was the author of the beautiful hymn, recently
introduced into one or two of our books, —

** Loving Shepherd, kind and true."

His origin was Greek ) and, being driven from Pelopon-
nesus by the Turks, he went to England, and studied
at the Cambridge University, under the patronage of the
Bishop of Korwich. He afterward studied at Baliol
College, Oxford, where he proved very useful in in-
structing the students in Greek. His most valuable
work was an account of his sufferings, printed in 1716,
in Greek and English. The hymn to which we have
referred is beautiful alike for its simplicity and its evan-
gelical unction.

Digitized by

Google

a£V. JAMES ALLEN. 75

REV. JAMES ALLEN.

** Sinners, will you scorn the message ?'*

was written by James Allen, who was born in York-
shire, England, in 1734, and died in his native village,
in 1804. His father, intending him for the ministry in
the Established Church, placed him under the care of a
clergyman, whose immoral conduct, and that of his fol-
lowers, so disgusted yoilng Allen that he at once dis-
sented from a Church that could tolerate such men.
Converted under the ministry of Mr. Ingham, the leader
of a small sect of the Methodists, Allen joined his con-
nection, among whom he was a popular minister for
nine years. He then built a house of worship for him-
self, in which he successfully labored till his death.

Before Mr. Allen fully entered on his ministry, he
spent a few months in the University of Cambridge,
where he became acquainted with a gentleman named
Ashton, who settled in Westmoreland. Mr. Allen, many
years afterward, was preaching near Kendal, where a
mob was raised and the preacher made a prisoner. It
providentially happened that Mr. Ashton was present :
he rushed through the crowd, took the dissenting minis-
ter by the hand, expressed his great pleasure at seeing,
him, reminded him of the happy days they had spent
together at college, and arm in arm walked with him to
the village. The mob were vexed when they found the
preacher to be a friend of their squire, and the clergy-

Digitized by

Google

76 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

man regretted that so worthy a man had left the Esta-
blished Church.

MRS. G. W. ANDERSON.

This estimable lady, the author of the truly beautiful
hymn,—

**Our country's voice is pleading,"

is, we believe, of English birth, though she came to this
country in very early life, and has for some years been
the wife of Professor G. W. Anderson, for some time
engaged in the University at Lewisburg, Pa. We be-
lieve that Mrs. A. has written nothing but a few hymns,
with a small volume or two for children, and some arti-
cles in newspapers and magazines, which have afforded
much interest and profit to children. We hope she may
yet contribute largely to our hymnology.

REV. LEONARD BACON, D.D.

The hymns of this gentleman, while they aid our devo-
tion, also command our esteem for their sound judgment,
correct imagery, and scriptural theology. He was the son
of a missionary to the Indians, and was bom at Detroit
in 1802, entered Yale College in his sixteenth year, gra-
duated in 1820, studied theology at Andover, and was
ordained pastor of the First Congregational Church at

Digitized by

Google

REV. JOHN BAKEWELL. 77

New Haven, in 1825, when he was twenty-three years
of age. Pulpit labors and literature have well occupied
his days and nights. His love of controversy is well
known ; but generally he has been found on the side of
scriptural truth. Some years ago he travelled in Eu-
rope and Asia, and escaped death at the hands of the
Koords, in Nestoria, in a very extraoi'dinary manner,
by the influence of woman, — the Agha's wife. His na-
tural resolution and steadiness of purpose were, under
God, of no small value in the dangerous circumstances
in which he was placed.

REV. JOHN BAKEWELL.

In reference to the authorship of the beautiful hymn, —

** Hail ! thou once despised Jesus !"

or, as in some books, —

'< Paschal Lamb, by God appointed,"

there has been some difference of opinion. It has been
said by some to have been written by Madan ; and cer-
tainly he published it in a collection as early as 1760.
But preponderating evidence will show it to have been
the production of John Bakewell, of Greenwich, Eng-
land, who was bom in 1721. He was one of the earliest
Methodist local preachers under the Wesleys, having
commenced his ministry i^ji 1749. He wrote many
hymns, and in his own family circle this was regarded

Digitized by

Google

78 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OP HYMlfS.

as one of the number. It is a fine production, and is
very properly introduced into most of our collections.

Mr. Bakewell died in 1819, aged ninety-eight years,
and was interred in the City-Eoad burying-ground, Lon-
don. He had been a preacher more than seventy years.

REV. THOMAS BALDWIN, D.D.

With what delightful and tearful interest have we
stood, at the close of a meeting of days, surrounded by
a group of Christians, and sung what is called " tJie union
hymn/' —

" From whence does this union arise V*

Its author was bom in Bozrah, Conn., in 1753, and in
very early life, though amidst many discouragements,
his original thinking powers were greatly improved by
reading. He married while yet young, and before he
was thirty was sent as a representative to the Legislature
of his native State. In 1780 he became a decided Chris-
tian, and shortly afterward was baptized. He had enter-
tained thoughts of the law, but was gradually led into the
office of the ministry, to which he was ordained in 1783.
In 1790 he became the pastor of the Second Baptist
Church in Boston, a position which he occupied with
ever-growing success till his sudden decease when on
a journey from home in 1825. He was very amiable in
his spirit and deportment, and greatlj^ beloved by a
very large circle of friends.

Digitized by

Google

ANNA LETITIA BARBAULD. 79

ANNA LETITIA BARBAULD.

Of this lady, the author of several of our hymns, in-
cluding, —

<* When, as returns this solemn day,"

we have but little to write. She was one of the most dis-
tinguished female writers of her day within the British
dominions. Theologically she belonged to the more evan-
gelical class of English Unitarians, often in her views
approaching what are considered the orthodox body of
Christians. She was the daughter of the Eev. John
Aikin, and at 1774, at the age of thirty-one, was mar-
ried to the Eev. K. Barbauld, after which she wrote her
" Early Lessons,'* ^^ Hymns for Children/* and many other
works. She died in 1825, in her eighty-second year, her
husband having died three years before her. It is said
that, in her early years, Mrs. Barbauld was favored with
many of the instructions of Dr. Doddridge, and that
her later years were given to the instruction of young
ladies.

BERNARD BARTON.

This " Quaker poet," as he is usually called, from the
fact that both his parents and himself lived and died
among that people, was born in London, in 1784, and
spent the far larger portion of his years as clerk in a
bank in Suffolk, having in very early life buried his

Digitized by

Google

80 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

young and only wife. His literary character has been
well described by his daughter, who was also his bio-
grapher : — ^' He was not learned, — ^in language, science,
or philosophy. Kor did he care for the loftiest kind of
poetry, ' the heroics,' as he called it. His favorite au-
thors were those who dealt most in humor, good sense,
domestic feeling, and pastoral feeling." The hymn, —

" The waters of Bethesda's pool,"

was originally written for a friend greatly oppressed
with sorrow.

"We are tempted here to quote from one of Barton's
own letters a scene which occurred at the funeral of a
young lady which he attended in 1841. "When the
usual service was ended, the clergyman stated that it
was the wish of the deceased, or rather of her relatives,
that a little hymn which had ever been a great favor-
ite of hers should be sung on this occasion, and he had
much pleasure in complying with the request. Afl.er a
few minutes, way was made for the children of the
village school, which this estimable girl had almost
made and managed, to come up to the grave-side, —
about twenty or twenty-five little things, with eyes
and cheeks red with crying. I thought they could
never have found tongues, poor things! but, once set
oif, they sung like a little band of cherubs. What
added to the effect of it, to me, was that it was a little
almost-forgotten hymn of my own, written years ago,
which no one present, but mypelf, was at all aware of"

Digitized by

Google

REV. CHRISTOPHER BATTY. 81

Mr. Barton died in 1849. One of the English peri-
odicals has said; "Mr. Barton's style is well suited to
devotional poetry. It has great sweetness and pathos,
accompanied with no small degree of power, whicli well
qualify it for the expression of the higher and purer
feelings of the heart."

REV. CHRISTOPHER BATTY.

^* Sweet the moments, rich in blessing,"

was written by the Kev. Christopher Batty, a minister
among the Inghamites, a small sect of the early Method-
ists. He was a zealous, laborious, and disinterested
Christian, and was so much esteemed by a family
named Green, in the city of York, England, that Mr.
Green told him 'that, as he had, under God, led his
daughter to Christ, and as she had been removed from
earth, he intended to leave him the whole of his pro-
perty } but Mr. Batty positively refused to accept of it.
While an itinerating minister, Mr. Batty, his two bro-
thers, — who were also ministers, — and their friends were
exposed to much persecution. At Gisburn, in Yorkshire,
they were interrupted in their religious meeting by the
curate of the parish, heading a large mob, entering the
place where they were assembled for worship; but,
amidst all opposition, there and elsewhere the word of
the Lord had free course and was glorified. Dr. Stevens
tells us that Mr. Batty often accompanied the Weslej-s

Digitized by

Google

82 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OP HYMNS.

in their tours for preaching, and stood with them like
" a good soldier of Jesus Christ."

REV. RICHARD BAXTER.

Of this eminent minister of Christ we need not say
much, as the man must indeed he ignorant who knows
not the author of " The Saififs Best/* and his other
works, which could not he printed in less than sixty
octavo volumes. He made no pretensions to poetical
talent; but we should pity the want of taste on the
part of the reader who did not highly appreciate the
hymn, in the Rev. Henry Ward Beeoher's " Plymouth
Collection" —

" Christ leads me through no darker rooms/'

and several others to be found scattered through his pon-
derous and invaluable volumes. He was born in 1615,
was ejected from the Church of England by the Act of*
Uniformity, in 1662, and, after enduring great persecu-
tion, died "in great peace and joy" in 1691. When Dr.
Samuel Johnson was asked by Boswell which of Bax-
ter's works he should read, he wisely replied, "Read
them all : they are all good."

Montgomery gives us a somewhat glowing descrip-
tion of Baxter's hymns and poetry, and tells us that he
also left, fully prepared for the press, an entire poetical
version of the Psalms of David, with other hymns,
which were published in 1692 by his friend Matthew

Digitized by

Google

REV. BENJAMIN BEDDOME. 83

Sylvester. His poetical works have been most cherished
by those who have read them with most attention.

REV. BENJAMIN BEDDOME.

Most of our hymn-books contain a large number of
compositions by the Eev. Benjamin Beddome, a man
of considerable talents and high attainments, but who
spent the far greater portion of a long life in the seclu-
sion of a small country village. He was the son of a
Baptist minister^ was called by divine grace at the age
of twenty, and baptized by the Eev. Samuel Wilson, of
London, about two years afterward. He visited Bour-
ton-on-the-Water in 1743, and was prevailed on to ac-
cept a call to the pastorate, three years afterward. In
1749 he suffered a very severe illness, and on his re-
covery wrote a hymn which he afterward replaced by
one commencing, —

" If I must die, oh, let me die
Trusting in Jesus' blood,-
That blood which hath atonement made
And reconciles to God.''

Not long after his recovery he was earnestly entreated
to succeed Mr. Wilson, his pastor in London. So deter-
mined were this church to obtain him that, after sending
call after call in vain, they deputed one of their number
to urge the matter with him. This was discovered by
a poor man, a member of his church, to whom the care
of the gentleman's horse had been intrusted; and hav-

Digitized by

Google

84 AUTHORS JIND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

ing, with exdted feelings, brought the horse to Mr. Bed-
dome's door, the poor man said to the Londoner, " Eob-
bers of churches are the worst of robbers/' and at once
set the horse free to take his own course. Mr. Bed-
dome's final reply was, " I would rather honor God in
a station even much inferior to that in which he has
placed me, than intrude myself into a higher without
his direction," and remained in his pastorate at Bourton
till his death.

-That Mr. Beddome's attachment to Bourton was early
as well as deep, may be seen from some lines he wrote
about 1742, entitled " The Wish :—

** Lord, in my soul implant thy fear :
Let faith, and hope, and love be there.
Preserve me from prevailing vice
When Satan tempts or lusts entice.
Of friendship's sweets may I partake,
Nor be forsaken, or forsake.
Let moderate plenty crown my board.
And God for all be still adored.
Let the companion of my youth
Be one of innocence and truth :
Let modest charms adorn her face,
And give her thy superior grace :
By heavenly art first make her thine.
Then make her willing to be mine.
My dwelling-place let Bourton be,
And let me live, and Uve to thee."

It was not, hoyever, till 1749 that he entered the
marriage-state, which was to an excellent young lady,
daughter of one of his deacons, who was for thirty-four
years his beloved companion.

Digitized by

Google

BEY. BENJAMIN BBDDOME. 85

Mr. Beddome's ministrations retained to the very last
all their liveliness and attractions^ Improved by the in-
creased solemnity and wisdom of age. His earnest
desire that he might not be long laid aside from his
beloved employment was fully gratified; for, having du-
ring his infirmities been carried to the house of Grod, he
preached sitting, and was only confined to his house
one Lord's day. Only an hour before his death he was
found composing a hymn, of which he wrote, —

" God of my life and of my choice,
Shall I no longer hear thy Yoice ?
Oh, let the Source of joy divine
With rapture fill thig heart of mine.

" Thou openedfit Jonah's prison-doors,—
Be pleased, Lord, to open ours :
Then will we to the world proclaim
The yariouB honors of thy name."

This excellent man fell asleep in Jesus, September 3,
1795, in the seventy-ninth year of his age, having labored
at Bourton fifty-two years. In the year 1818 a volume
of his hymns was published, with a short but beautiful
preface by the late eloquent Eobert Hall, who says,
" The man of taste will be gratified with the beautiful
and original thoughts which many of them exhibit,
while the experimental Christian will often perceive the
most sweet movements of his soul strikingly delineated,
and sentiments portrayed which will find their echo in
every heart."

Digitized by

Google

86 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

REV. CHARLES BEECHER.

This gentleman is one of. the thirteen children of the
venerable Dr. Lyman Beecher, and-'ife also the brother
of Dr. Edward and Henry Ward Beeeher, and of Mrs.
Beeeher Stowe. No member of that family can be with-
out talent. We believe that Mr. Beeeher ranks with the
Congregationalists ; but his publications would indicate
that he is a very bold and independent thinker.

BERNARD.

This name is usually printed with the prefix St, as
having been given him by the Komish Church. He
lived in the tenth century, and was the author of a
Latin hymn consisting of nearly two hundred lines.
Parts of it have been translated and form at least
three hymns in our books. One of these begins, —

"Jesus, the very thought of thee."
The late Dr. Byrom, of Manchester, translated another
portion ; and it has been said that John Newton's beauti-
ful hymn, —

" How sweet the name of Jesus sounds!"

was also founded on that of Bernard. 'Nor can it scarcely
be doubted that, before Dr. Doddridge wrote,—

"Jesus, I love thy charming name,"

he had read the composition of Bernard.

Digitized by

Google

BEY. JOHN BERRIDOE. 87

One of the most beautiibl hymns of Gerhard was
clearly suggested also by Bernard's " Hymn to Christ on
the Cross" a translation of which may be found in a
recent English publication, " The Voice of Christian Life
' in Song" We refer to the hymn translated by Wesley
and found in the old Methodist hymn-books as well as
the one published by the Moravian Brethren : —

"0 head so full of bruises."

REV. JOHN BERRIDGE.

There are few old Christians who are unacquainted
with the name of the Eev. John Berridge, one of the
most successful preachers connected with the revival of
religion commenced by the Eev. Messrs. Whitefield and
Wesley, and author of several hymns in our books in-
tended for the service of the sanctuary. He was a man
of great learning and wit, but still more eminent as an
earnest and successful minister of Christ. Some of the
most important events of his history may be learned
from his epitaph, written, with the exception of the last
date, by himself: — " Here lie the remains of John Ber-
ridge, the Yicar of Everton, and an itinerant servant of
Jesus Christ, who loved his Master and his work ; and,
after running on his errands for many years, was caught
up to wait on him above. Eeader, art thou bom again ?
No salvation without a new birth. I was born in sin
February, 1716, remained ignorant of my fallen state

Digitized by

Google

88 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OP HYMNS.

till 1730, lived proudly on faith and works for salvation
till 1754, was admitted to Everton vicarage 1755, fled to
Jesus for refuge 1755, fell asleep in Jesus January 22,
1793."

When this eminent clergyman had become fully ac-'
quainted with the value of immortal souls and with the
importance of salvation by the work of the Lord Jesus,
he felt the vast import of his ordination-charge, "Go
and seek Christ's sheep wherever thou canst find them /'
and, taking a circuit of five or six counties, he preached
upon an average ten or twelve sermons and frequently
rode a hundred miles a week. In this course he per-
severed for more than twenty years. Many extraor-
dinary anecdotes are told of his success, which was
very great. A very large man once went to hear him,
and placed himself immediately before the pulpit with
the full design of interrupting him, and for that purpose
made various strange gesticulations and used many
contemptuous expressions. Not at all intimidated, the
preacher addressed him personally in so powerful a
manner that he fell down in the pew in a most violent
perspiration. After the service had closed, he said, " I
came to confuse this good man ; but he has convinced me
that I am indeed a lost sinner." This man lived an or-
nament to the gospel and died happy in Jesus. At
another time, while he was standing upon a table and
preaching in the open air to a great multitude, two men
got under the table with the design of overturning it ;
but the word of God so powerftiUy impressed their

Digitized by

Google

BEY. JOHN BEBBIBQS. 89

hearts that they could not accomplish their purpose;
and, after his sermon was ended, they confessed, with
strong feelings of shame, what they had intended to
do. Yery many facts might be told of the same general
character.

Other anecdotes, of an essentially different kind, are
also related concerning him. Soon after he had com-
menced his annual visits to London, a lady travelled from
that city to Everton to solicit his hand in marriage, as-
suring him that the Lord had revealed it to her that she
was to become his wife. He was not a little surprised at
her application and for such a purpose. He paused for
a few moments, and then replied, " Madam, if the Lord
had revealed it to you that you are to be my wife, surely
he would also have revealed it to me that I was designed
to be your husband ; but, as no such revelation has been
made to me, I cannot comply with your wishes." Of
course the wealthy lady went away greatly disappointed.
Berridge never married.

The following lines were written by this worthy man
and posted on his clock : —

*< Here my master bids me stand
And mark the time with faithful hand :
What is his will is my delight, —
To tell the hours by day and night.
Master, be wise, and learn of me
To serve thy God as I serve thee."

When age and its infirmities came on, he met them
with unabated cheerfulness. He wrote, "My ears are

8*

Digitized by

Google

90 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OP HYMNS.

now SO dull they are not fit for conversation, and my
eyes are so weak I can read but little and write less.
Old Adam, who is the devil's darling, sometimes whis-
pers in my ears, ' What will you do if you become deaf
and blind ?' I tell him I must think the more and pray
the more, yea, and thank the Lord for eyes and ears-
enjoyed till I was seventy, and for the prospect of a
better pair of eyes and ears when these are gone." In
his seventy-sixth year he was seen to be near his end,
and his curate said to him, " Jesus will soon call you up
higher." His reply was, "Ay, ay, ay; higher, higher,
higher !" His hymn-book " Zion's Songs'' was published
in the year 1785.

. REV. G. W. BETHUNE, D.D.

A HYMN contained in the " Parish Psalms and PTymns/'
and which we think is destined to be much more widely
known than it is at present, had a pleasant origin. It
begins, —

" Oh, for the happy hour,"

and its subject is that of prayer for a revival of religion.
Its author, the Eev. Dr. Bethune, of New York, went
to his church a few minutes before the time of a devo-
tional meeting, and while waiting for the arrival of his
people, with a heart full of his subject, he took his
pencil and on a loose scrap of paper poured out feel-
ings which must meet a response in every Christian
heart, and which will doubtless guide the prayers and

Digitized by

Google

IIEV. THOMAS BLACKLOCK, D.D. 91

praises of very many long after their writer has joined
the worship of the Jerusalem above.

To this gentleman the Baptists are indebted for one
of the very best of their denominational hymns, —

** We come to the fountain, we stand by the wave,"

which was written at the special request of the Rev. J.
S. Holme, editor of the ^^ Baptist Hymn and' Tune Book*'
We may add here that Dr. Bethune was born in 1806,
and that his ministry seems to have received its cha-
racter from the dying words of his father, addressed to
him and his brother-in-law, also in the ministry, " My
sons, preach the gospel. Tell dying sinners of a Sa-
viour. All the rest is but folly/'

REV. THOMAS BLACKLDCK, D.D.

This remarkable man, author of the well-known and
truly grand hymn, —

«* Come, my soul, in sacred lays,'*

was the child of English parents, but born at Annan, in
Scotland, in 1721. When only six months old, he lost
his sight by smallpox, and suffered total blindness
during his life of seventy years, dying in 1791. Not-
withstanding this deprivation, he acquired a respectable
knowledge of Greek, Latin, French, Italian, and theo-
logy, and became a considerable author. He was li-
censed to preach in the Church of Scotland, and created

Digitized by

Google

92 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

D.D. by the University of Aberdeen in 1756. In 1762
he married a lady admirably adapted to promote his
happiness. One of his friends says, '^ I have known him
to dictate from thirty to forty verses as fast as I coald
write them ; but, the moment he was at a loss for verse
or a rhyme to his liking, he stopped altogether, and
could very seldom be induced to finish what he had
begun with so much ardor." The Kev. Joseph Spence,
Professor of Poetry at the University of Oxford, says,
"He never could dictate till he stood up; and, as his
blindness made walking about without assistance incon-
venient or dangerous to him, he fell insensibly into a
vibratory sort of motion with his body, which increased
as he warmed with his subject and was pleased with the
conception of his mind." And Burke says, in his " Sub-
lime and Beautiful/' "Few men blessed with the most
perfect sight can describe visual objects with more spirit
and justness than this blind man."

REV. JAMES BODEN.

This excellent Congregational minister, the author of
the well-known hymn, —

** Ye dying sons of men,"

was bom in the city of Chester, England, in 1757, in
the very house in which the eminent commentator Mat-
thew Henry once resided. In the garden in which James

Digitized by

Google

RSV. HORATIUS BONAR, D.D. 93

Boden first engaged in childish sports was an alcove or
summer-house, in which it is said a large part of Henry's
beautiful Commentary was written ; and it was thought
by his fHends that the association had no small influence
on the mind of young Boden, who at the age of sixteen
professed faith in Christ. Having pursued the usual
preparatory studies for the ministry at Homerton Col-
lege, in 1796, after laboring elsewhere, he settled in the
populous town of Sheffield, where he preached three
times on every Sabbath till nearly seventy years of age.
In 1839 he resigned his charge, and in 1841 was removed
from earth, in his eighty-fifth year, having been sixty-
nine years a member of the Church on earth.

The state of his mind in his last illness was that of
sweet serenity and peace. A friend remarking that the
sun shone very beautifully, he replied, with delightful
emphasis, —

<< He is my Sun, though he forbear to shine :
I dwell foreyer on his heart, foreyer he on mine."

REV. HORATIUS BONAR, D.D.

. Of this gentleman, several of whose beautiful compo-
sitions are gradually coming into our books, we do not
know very much. He is a native of Scotland, and was
born about the year 181Q. He is a prominent clergy-
man of the Free Church of his native land, and has
already published several beautiful theological volumes,

Digitized by

Google

94 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

which are increasing in their usefulness and popularity.
We hope that many years of success await him.

We believe that the wife of Dr. Bonar is sister to the
late very excellent Mary Lundie Duncan.

REV. T. E. BOND, M.D.

The beautiful hymn of two verses, —

"Father of spirits, hear our prayer,"

was written by Dr. Thomas E. Bond, an excellent
Methodist Episcopal clergyman of our own country.
The hymn is simply an extract from a long poem pre-
pared by its author some years ago for a periodical
published in Baltimore.

This worthy man, having passed the age of three-score
and ten, died in March, 1856. Many of his latter years
were devoted to the service of his denomination by the
agency of the press, being an editor of one of their news-
papers. An intimate friend says of him, "A warmer
heart we never knew, nor one more finely tuned to sym-
pathy, — more abounding in that charity which never
faileth. With calm composure, when his work was
done and the time of his departure was at hand, he
awaited his call, and has left us the satisfactory as-
surance that, although we have one Jess with whom to
take sweet counsel on earth, we have one more friend in
heaven."

Digitized by

Google

FBEDERIKA BBEMEK. 95

JOHN BOWDLER.

The hymn, —

"Children of God, who, faint and slow,**

and one or two others nsed in our churches, were writ-
ten by a young English barrister, who published two
octavo volumes in prose and verse, in 1818, and died in
early life, leaving behind him a fragrant reputation. In
many respects he bore a resemblance to the amiable
Henry Kirke White.

JOHN BOWRING, LL.D.

This gentleman, most remarkably distinguished for
the acquirement of languages, is an Englishman, born in
1792. He has been eminent as a philologist, as a politi-
cal writer, for the occupancy of various political offices,
and as a poet. He is a member of the Unitarian body,
— ^though this would not be inferred from some of his
hymns, especially the one, —

"In the croBB of Christ I glory.'*

FREDERIKA BREMER.

Miss Bremer, as is well known, is a foreigner, and has
never produced any work in the English language. Her

Digitized by

Google

96 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

productions are chiefly novels and tales, — ^though she has
written a very readable narrative of her visit to this
country. Her hymns are few in number, but pleasing
in their character.

REV. JEHOIADA BREWER.

We have, in several of our books, a hymn, —

"Hail! soYereign love, :prliicli first began,"

which is a favorite in many of our prayer-meetings. It
was almost the only hymn written by the late Eev.
Jehoiada Brewer, who was born in Wales in 1752,
and died as a Congregational minister in Birmingham
in 1817. He was a profound theologian, a popular
preacher, and an earnest man. He expressed an ardent
wish, in his dying hours, that no memoir of him should
be published: but this wish was not regarded; for in
the following year the editors of a new London period-
ical met a general demand by printing a very able ar-
ticle concerning him. The original of the hymn to
which we have referred contains nine verses. We re-
member his person and character with great interest,
and can never forget the impressive manner in which
he read hymns from the pulpit, or the tone and manner
in which he would quote the remark of Dr. John Owen,
" A man is before God what he is in the closet, and no
more !"

Digitized by

Google

PfltEBE H. BROWN. 97

REV. JOHN NEWTON BROWN, D.D.

A VERY few of the hymns written by this gentleman
are to be found in our books. He is attached to the
Baptist body, was born in New London, Conn., in 1803,
and graduated at Madison Univerwty, at the age of
twenty years. He has had charge of two or three
churches ; but ill health has long since compelled him to
give up the pastorate. Dr. Brown has for many years
past been devoted to Christian literature, editing, among
other valuable works, << The Encyclopedia cf BeUgiou^
Knowledge**

PHCEBE H, BROWN.

The writer of the beautiful hymn in most of our re-
cent collections beginning, —

" I loTe to steal a while away,"

wi^s a Christian female obliged to struggle hard to sup-
port a large fiimily. She was in the habit, after the toUs
of the day were over, of retiring to a quiet and shady-
retreat, —

** Where none but. God was near,"

for prayer. Her regular visits to this spot drew the
attention of a neighboring lady of wealth and influence,
who, in the presence of others, censured her, intimating
that, instead of rambling out in the evening, she had
better be at home with her children. Grieved that her

Digitized by

Google

98 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

hour's communion with God after the exhausting labors
of the day should be construed into the neglect of her
family, she sat down that evening with a babe in her
arms, and wrote her '^ Apclogyfor her Midnight Rambles.^*
When Dr. Kettleton was preparing his collection of
hymns^ a friend, looking oyer her manuscripts; found
this gem, and obtained its insertion.

We believe that the Bev. S. B. Brown, the first Ameri-
can missionary to Japan, is iw son of the lady of whom
we have been writing. He is connected with the Dutch
Beformed Church, and has already spent some years in
missionary labors.

REV. SIMON BROWNE.

Thj well-known hymn, —

" Come, gracious Spirit, heavenly Dore,"

was written by the Bev. Simon Browne, who was bonl in
1680, began to preach before he was twenty, was soon
after settled over a large congregation in Portsmouth,
and in 1716 removed to the Independent Church in the
Old Jewry, London.

When Mr. Brown had been in London about seven
years, he was attacked by a very singular malady, which
never left him through life. He imagined that God,
by a singular instance of his power, had, in a gradual
manner, annihilated his thinking powers, and utterly
divested hitn of consciousness. Nothing grieved him

Digitized by

Google

REV. SIMON B&OWNB. 99

more than that he could not persaade others to think
of him as he thought of himself. Several causes have
been assigned as the origin of his disease^ — one of which
was, that once, when on a journey with a friend, they
were attacked by a highwayman with loaded pistols.
Mr. Browne, being a strong man, disarmed him, seized
him by the collar, and they both fell to the ground. Mr.
Browne was uppermost, and kept the man down while
his friend ran for assistance. When that assistance ar-
rived, the man was dead. From that sad hour Mr.
Browne became a prey to the awful imagination which
ever after haunted him. At the beginning of the disease
he had frequent propensities to destroy himself; but
later in life he became more calm. Even while in this
state of mind he wrote an able Defence of Christianity,
and several other books, yet still maintained that he had
no power to tMnk. ^He died, very greatly respected, at
the close of 1732.

We may add to this sketch the fact that the Dedica-
tion to Browne's " Defence of Christianity'' is to be found,
as a most remarkable curiosity, under his name, in '^ The
Encyclopedia Britannica" In some respects his mental
delusion was more extraordinary than that of Cowper ;
yet, singular as the fact may seem, in none of his pro-
ductions can there be found any thing exceptionable;
so that Toplady very properly said of him that, " In-
stead of having no soul, he wrote, and reasoned, and
prayed as if he had two"

Since writing the above, we have read Mr. Milner's

Digitized by

Google

100 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OP HTMNS.

very able volume of " The Life, Times, and Correspond-
ence of Dr. Watts" from which we learn that, in a paper
yet existing in the handwriting of that eminent man, it
is stated that, after Browne became thus lamentably
diseased, he not only wrote the production to which we
have already referred, in opposition to Collins and Wool-
ston, but also published a work on the Trinity, compiled
a Dictionary, and pi-epared the Exposition on the First
Epistle to the Corinthians in the continuation of Mat-
thew Henry's great work.

ELIZABETH BARRETT BROWNING.

This lady, who has several hymns in our books, de-
servedly occupies a high place in English poetical litera-^
ture. Her first publication was isstted in her maiden
name of Barrett, in 1838, being " The Seraphim, and other
Poems" Several other English works have since pro-
ceeded from her pen, as well as one or two classical
translations. What Dr. €r. W. Bethune says of her
poetry in general appears to us to apply especially to
her hymns: — ^^'Mrs. Browning is singularly bold and
adventurous. Her wing carries her, without faltering
at their obscurity, into the cloud and the mist, where
not seldom we fail to follow her, but are tempted, while
we admire the honesty of her enthusiasm, to believe that
she utters what she herself has but dimly perceived. Much
of this, however, arises fh)m her disdain of carefulness."

Digitized by

Google

JOHN H. BRTANT. 101

In early life Miss Barrett was afflicted with the rup-
ture of a blood-vessel on the lungs, and the consequences
for several years were threatening. Partially recover-
ing her health, in 1847 she was married to Mr. Brown-
ing, and still pursues the study and translation of Greek
works and the production of beautiful poetry.

JOHN H. BRYANT.

This gentleman, a native of Cummington, Mass., and
brother of William C. Bryant, was born in 1807. At
nineteen he wrote a poem, " My Native Village^' which
was published in the " United States Review and Literary
Gazette" of which his brother was then one of the
editors. He removed, some years since, to cultivate the
soil of Illinois. His poetical productions from time to
time continue to grace our periodicals. We are not
aware of the existence of many of his hymns ; but one
or two on Liberty as a Birthright of Man are to be
found in some of our books. The late Dr. Eufus W.
Griswold says of him, "He is a lover of nature, and
describes minutely and effectively. To him the wind and
the streams are ever musical, and the forests and the
prairies clothed with beauty. His versification is easy
and correct ; and his writings show him to be a man of
refined taste and kindly feelings, and tQ b^ve f^ nciind
stored with the best learning."

9*

Digitized by

Google

102 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN Oi* HYMNS.

WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT.

This gentleman has furnished several hymns to some
of our books ; nor can this be matter of surprise, as he
is one of the most eminent of our poets, though in our
Judgment he does not excel in lyrical composition. He
was bom at Cummington, Mass., in 1797, graduated at
Williams College in 1812, and engaged in the profession
of the law. In 1827 he entered on his duties as editor
of the New York Evening Post, — ^an office he has ever
since filled.

Several years ago a beautiful sketch of his genius ap-
peared in one of our periodicals ; and, though we fear
the coloring of its religious character is too high, we will
copy a short extract : — " No other living poet has half
his imagination or half his compressed energy of con-
ception and execution. And over all and through all
his poetry, its life and soul, glows and lives a spirit of
meditation and reflection, the very incarnation of truth
and goodness. Eeligion, pure and undefiled, is the ele-
ment of his genius and the life of his poetry."

WII.HAM BUDDEN.

Thb hymn,-r-

*f Come, Jet pvir yoices join,"

was written by Mr. Williapi Budden, and was first
published, with the signature of W. B., in the London

Digitized by

Google

REV. W. M. BUNTING. 108

'^Evangelical Magazine'' for 1795, entitled "A Hymn
composed for the Use of the Congregation and Sunday-
School Children belonging to the Rev. Mr. Ashhumefs
Meeting, Poole, Dorset"

REV. W. M. BUNTING.

This gentleman, the author of the hymn, —

** My Sabbath suns may all have get,''

and several others, is the eldest son of the late eminent
Dr. Jabez Banting, one of the most distinguished of the
Wesleyan Methodist preachers in England. The son Is
quite as remarkable as his father for independence of
mind, for a clear exhibition of scriptural truth, and for
a benevolent expenditure of the ample wealth which
God has placed in his hands. He is tall and thin, of
delicate, almost sickly appearance, and far from having
a robust constitution. He has a fine, benevolent coun-
tenance, a noble, commanding forehead, bare of hair
to a considerable elevation, and is apparently quite unable
to endure the fatigues of his calling. He is, moreover,
a man of fine catholic spirit, and, as we know from ex-
perience, warm in his friendships. He has not written
much beside hymns, — and many of these have been pub-
lished anonymously ; but nearly all of them are perfect
gems, and are entirely free from the spirit of secta-
rianiifm.

Digitized by

Google

104 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF JITMNS.

REV. JOHN BUNYAN.

'^ Glorious John/' it must be confessed^ had few talents
of an eminent hymn-writer, though we suspect he had
more than he has usually received credit for. His com-
positions of this order, we admit, are not to be found
" in the books." There is, however, a short composition
in the second part of his immortal " Progress** which has
very long been used in some of the Baptist churches in
England at the admission of members, sometimes with
very happy effect. K the reader has not the volume at
hand, he will be pleased to see it transcribed : —

«Let the Most Blessed be my guide,
If it's his blessed will,
Up to his gate, into his fold,
Up to his holy hill.

''And let him neyer suffer me
To swerve or turn aside
From his free grace and holy ways,
Whatever shall me betide.

'' And let him gather those of mine
That I have left behind :
Lord, make them pray they may be thine.
With all their heart and mind.'*

REV. GEORGE BURDER.

The well-known hymn, —

*' Lord, dismiss us with thy blessing,"

was written by the Rev. George Burder, who was born
in London in 1752, and died pastor of a Congregational

Digitized by

Google

BISHOP BURGESS. 105

Church in that city in 1832. He was apprenticed to
an engraver, but, having a literary taste, he learned
short-hand, and so reported the last sermons' delivered
in London by the Bev. Greorge Whitefield. He was or-
dained at twenty-five, and was pastor successively in
Lancaster, Coventry, and London. He was among the
founders of the Eeligious Tract Society and the London
Missionary Society, to the latter of which he was for
many years the gratuitous secretary. He was also for
many years the editor of the " Evangelical Magazine/' as
well as the pastor of a church. The hymn to which we
have referred was first issued in a supplement to Dr.
Watts's Psalms and Hymns, which Mr. Burder published
about the commencement of this century.

BISHOP BURGESS.

This eminent scholar, the author of several of our
most evangelical hymns, was born at Providence, E.I.,
in 1809, and graduated at Brown University; and, after
being some time a tutor in that university, he went to
Europe, and studied at Gottingen, Bonn, and Berlin.
After holding the rectorship of Christ Church, Hartford,
Conn., for thirteen Jrears, he was in 1847 conse<Jrated
Bishop of Maine, and Eector of Gardiner, in that State.
Among his principal works are " The Book of Psalms in
BngUsh Verscy^ and ^^ Pages from the Ecclesiastical His-
tory Of New England"

Digitized by

Google

106 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OV HYMNS.

REV. RICHARD BURNHAM.

This gentleman, the author of a hymn used in many
of oup conference and prayer meetings, —

<* JesuB, thou art the sinner's friend,"

was born in 1T49, and in 1780 he became pastor of a
Baptist church in London, and ultimately settled with
another church, of the same denomination, in Grafton
Street in that city, where, after about thirty years' labor,
he died in 1810. His life was a checkered scene of popu-
larity and trials ; but his biographer tells us he '^ died in
peace."

In the preface to his hymn-book, Mr. Burnham says
to the members of his church, " Your pastor is willing
to own that he is the unworthiest of the unworthy;
yet, unworthy as he is, he humbly trusts, through rich
grace, he has in some measure found that the dear
bosom of the atoning Lamb is the abiding-place of his
immortal soul."

ROBERT BURNS.

Wk have a very few hymns from the pen of this gifted
man in some of our books; and but very few did he write
suitable for the holy purpose of praising God. We have
no disposition to depreciate his extraordinary talents^
but he never even laid claim to a single moral qualifica-
tion for a poet of God's sanctuary. We most love the.

Digitized by

Google

THOMAS CAMPBELL. 107

hymns with the spirits of whose authors we can hold
fellowship as we sing the overflowings of their souls.

Chamhers, in his " Life of Burns,'' says, " It is a re-
markable fact that the mass of the poetry which has
given this extraordinary man his principal fame burst
from him in a comparatively small space of time, — cer-
tainly not exceeding fifteen months. It began to flow
of a sudden, and it ran in one impetuous, brilliant stream,
till it seemed to have become, comparatively speaking,
exhausted.''

Alas that of this man his first biographer and most
charitable friend was compelled to write, " Only a few
months from his death he would proceed from a sick-
room to dine at a tavern, return home about three
o'clock in a very cold morning, benumbed and intoxi-
cated, and by that process he hastened or developed the
disease which laid him in his grave." He knew only the
poetry of religion.

THOMAS CAMPBELL,

The author of two or three hymns, including, —

<' Wlien Jordan hxiBhed hig waters still,''

was the son of a merchant in Glasgow, where he was
bom in 1777. In 1798 he published his " Pleasures of
Hope,* for the copyright of which he received twenty
pounds; but when the work acquired popularity his
publisher generously paid him fifty pounds on each edi-

Digitized by

Google

108 AUTHO&S AND O^OIN OF HYMNS.

tion. Has " Gertrude of Wyoming/' ^^ Specimens of British
Poets,** and several prose works, followed each other
in due course, and commanded high respect for their
correctness and beauty. "Mx. Campbell was often called
on by visitors from the United States, who admired his
exact and beautiful description of .our own Wyoming
Yalley. He died at Boulogne in 1844. Mr. Campbell
did not, we believe, profess evangelical religion.

REV. JOHN CAWOOD.

This evangelical clergyman of the Church of England
was educated at St. John's HalJ, in the University of Ox-
ford, after which he became Perpetual Curate at Bewdley.
Besides his hymns, he has published " On the Dissenting
Controversy" and three volumes of sermons, which Bick-
ersteth describes as "forcible, impressive, and evan-
gelical."

REV. RICHARD CECIL.

Wb have in some of our books a short hymn begin-
ning, —

** Cease here longer to detain me/'

which was written by the Eev. Eichard Cecil, once cu-
rate to the Eev. John Newton, of Londou, and after-
ward the predecessor of Dr. Wilson, the late Bishop of

Digitized by

Google

THOMAS VON OSLANO. 109

Calcutta, as-minister of St. John'e Chapol, Bedford Eow,
also in London. The whole hymn, extending to seven
or eight verses, was written on the death of an in&nt at
the dawn of the day, the motto being the language of
the angel wrestling with Jacob, "Let me go, for the day
breaketh/^

Mr. Cecil was born in London in 1748, and died in
1810. He was a highly-respectable author, but shone
most brightly in the pulpit. His style of preaching
partook largely of originality and pious feeling. His
ideas, like the rays of the sun, carried their own light
with them. Images and illustrations were at his com-
mtand, and rendered his discourses not only instructive
but £Eiscinating. They were living pictures.

THOMAS VON CELANO.

The celebrated Latin hymn " Dies Iroe^' was written
in the thirteenth century by Thomas Von Celano, a
Minorite. It has very often been translated into the
English language, first by the old poet Crashaw soon
after his secession from the Protestant Church, and since
then by not less than seventy others, some of whose
versions are noticed at great length by Dr. W. R. Wil-
liams in his valuable volume of *' Mtscellanies" We are
not aware, however, of any version of this hymn in
our commonly-used hymn-books except the greatly-con-
densed one by Sir Walter Scott, —

10

Digitized by

Google

110 AUTHORS AND OAIQIN OF HYMNS.

« That day of wrath, that dreadAil day," etc.,

which his son-in-law and biographer, Mr. Lockhart, says
was often on his lips (luring his last sickness.

Tholnck, the distingnished German preacher, had once
preached in the University church on the repentance
and pardon of the thief on the cross; and of that oc-
casion, in a note to his printed sermon, the preacher
says, <' This is the second time that this hymn of the
University church-service has been sung to the very
excellent tune composed by the music-director, Mr. Kaue.
The impression, especially that which was made by the
last words as sung by the University choir alone, will
be forgotten by no one." Lord Eoscommon, it is said,
died while repeating with great energy and devotion
two lines of his own translation of this remarkable

hymn,—

'' My God, my Father and my Friend,
Do not forsake me in my end."

And Dr. Park, of Andover, tells us of a clergyman of
our own country who could not hear it sung in his own
church without tears.

Sir Walter Scott, writing to a brother poet, Crabbe,
says of this majestic hymn, "To my Gothic ear, the
Stabat Mater, the Dies IroB, and some other of the hymns
of the Catholic Church, are more solemn and affecting
than the fine, classical poetry of Buchanan. The one
has the gloomy dignity of the Gothic Church, and re-
minds us constantly of the worship to which it is dedi-
cated ; the other is more like a pagan temple, recalling

Digitized by

Google

BBY. JOHN CENNIOK. Ill

to our memory the classical and fabulous deities." It is
said that Dr. Samuel Johnson could never; on account of
Kis tears, repeat this composition in the original. And
we scarcely need to add that upon the Dies Irce Mozart
founded his celebrated Eequiem, — ^in the composition of
which his excitement became so great as to hasten his
death. Idany of the most eminent musical celebrities
have " sought to marry its poetry to immortal melody.''

It is said that the original draft of the Dies Irce was
found in a box belonging to Celano after his death. He
died in 1253.

Since writing the preceding paragraphs, we have ob-
served in one or two of our hymn-books a very greatly-
condensed translation of the IHes Irce, in four verses, by
an anonymous hand. It begins, —

" On that great, that awful day.**

It is beautifully and effectively executed.

REV. JOHN CENNICK.

<< Jbsitb, thy blood and righteousnesB,*'

has long been a favorite hymn among all classes of
evangelical Christians ; and probably this is one reason
why its authorship has been disputed. In many of our
books it is attributed to Charles Wesley. Mr. Creamer
contends that it is a translation from a German hymn
of twenty verses^ written by Count Zinzendorf, and

Digitized by

Google

112 AUTHORS AND OBIOIN OF HTMNS.

trfiJiBlated by John Weflley; but it haa been more com-
monly regarded as the compoaitioii of John Cennick, by
turns a follower of Wesley, then of Whitefield, and finally
dying in the fellowship and ministry of the Moravians.
It has been very much abridged.

This hymn was a great favorite with the late £ev.
Sowland Hill; and perhaps the history of the Church
presents few scenes of deeper interest than the fact that,
when the corpse of that extraordinary clergyman was
being lowered into its final resting-place, under his own
pulpit, in the presence of assembled thousands bathed
in tears, the second verse of this hymn was sung, in slow
and solemn tones : —

<* When from the dust of death I rise
To claim my mansion in the skies,
E'en then shall this be all my plea, —
Jesus hath lived and died for me."

Cennick wrote also the hymns, —

<* Jesus, my all, to heaven is gone,"
" Children of the heavenly King,"

and several others.

REV. E, H. CHAPIN, D.D.

This well-known writer of several popular hymns is
a celebrated XJniversalist clergyman. He was born in
the State of New York in 1814, and, after having studied
for the law, entered the ministry, and has officiated

Digitized by

Google

GHARLEMAaNE. 113

as pastor of Universalist societies at Eiohmond; Ya.,
Charlestown, Mass., Boston, and New York. In addi-
tion to a collection of hymns, he has published several
volumes in prose, and is well known as a distinguished
and popular lecturer.

CHARLEMAGNE.

This great man is usually supposed to be the author
of the " Veni Creator," the translation of which, —

"Creator Spirit, by whose aid,"
can scarcely be unknown to the reader. The fact of
Charlemagne being its author has, however, been doubted
by Mohnike, who says the emperor could not have had
sufficient acquaintance with the Latin tongue to write
so classical a composition. But he who was the patron
of Latin letters and the friend of Alcuin, and who par-
doned Paulus Diaconus for his conspiracy to murder
him because he would not cut off one who wrote so ele-
gantly, may fairly be supposed capable of dictating a
Latin hymn, — though he was probably indebted to some
better scribe than himself to write it down.

While we thus write, it is but justice to say that Moh-
nike's opinion is never to be treated with lightness. He
believes the hymn to have been written by Gregory the
Great, Bishop of Eome, a.ix. 590, who is described by
Neander as the last of the classical doctors of the
Church. Ho was a man of great piety and learning.

Digitized by

Google

114 AUTHORS AMD ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

though of course led away by some of the errors which
had already flooded the Church.

REV. INGRAM COBBIN.

Our hymn-books contain a very few of the composi-
tions of our old personal friend, to whose memory the
pen of biography is largely indebted. He was born of
humble and pious parentage in the city of London in
1777, and in early life was attracted by the charms both
of religion and of learning. Some verses which he then
composed gained the attention of the Rev. Matthew
Wilks, who introduced him to the Congregational Col-
lege then at Hoxton. In 1802 he was ordained to the
ministry, and, though in feeble health, he laboriously and
usefully exerted himself as a pastor. After some years,
however, he relinquished permanently, as was supposed,
the ministry, through the failure of his health; but
after a time hope of usefulness in this department of
holy labor returned, and he accepted a call from a church
at Crediton, where he was installed, but - could not
deliver a single sermon after that apparently joyous
event. Relinquishing his fond labors, he became the
founder and for many years the secretary of the [Lon-
don] Home Missionary Society ; but sickness compelled
him to relinquish this also in 1828. His mental energies
being yet unimpaired, he devoted himself to the com-
pilation of a number of invaluable biblical works, in-

Digitized by

Google

BEY. W. B. COLLYER^ D.D., LL.D. 115

duding his " Domestic Bible/' well known and esteemed
among us. He died in his seventy-fourth year; in 1851.

REV. W. B. COLLYER, D.D., LL.D.

The hymn,

" Return, wanderer, return,"

and many others in our hymn-books, are the compo-
sitions of the Eev. W. B. Collyer, D.D., LL.D., who died
in 1854, and who for more than half a century was by
far the most popular Nonconformist minister in Eng-
land. He was almost the only dissenting minister heard
by royalty, — ^to whom, as to all others, he preached in
the most faithful manner the doctrines of the cross, in a
style combining simple elegance, fervent feeling, and an
indomitable adherence to " the truth as in Jesus."

Among the many volumes which in the early and
middle stages of his life proceeded from Dr. Collyer's
pen, was a volume of hymns selected and arranged for
public worship, containing not a few of great beauty
written by himself In addition to these, he wrote very
many which were never printed. Nearly to the close
of his ministry, after his Sunday morning sermons, in
imitation of the excellent Dr. Doddridge, he always
read a hymn written during the preceding week founded
on his text, which was sung by his congregation, and by
many of them copied as he read two lines at a time to
enable them to sing. Not a few of these he gave at

Digitized by

Google

116 AUTHORS AND ORTQIN OF HYMNS.

different times^ from feelings of warm friendship, to the
writer of this volume, which in various periodicals were
given to the puhlic. May peace rest on his happy
memory I

JOSIAH CONDER.

This excellent writer of hymns and editor of the Eng-
lish Congregational Hymn-Book was a memher of the
Congregational hody, and was distinguished through a
long life for sound learning, fine taste, earnest piety, and
untiring industry. He was born in 1790, and died in
London in 1855. For many years he was the editor of
the ''JSclecHc Beview" and was thus associated with
Eobert Hall, John Foster, Ealph Wardlaw, and other
distinguished men of that day. Over the grave of
this worthy man we drop a grateful tear, remembering
him as a good occasional preacher, a sweet poet, and
a cordial friend. The Christian and literary friends of
Mr. Conder have recently erected a monument to his
memory, at an expense of more than five hundred dollars.

REV. THOMAS COTTERILL,

The author of the well-known missionary hymn, —

"O'er the realms of pagan darkness,"
and of one or two others used among us, was an excel-

Digitized by

Google

NATHANIEL COTTON, M.D. 117

lent minister of the Episcopal Chnrcli, settled in Shef-
field, where also resided his intimate personal friend,
James Montgomery, who says of him, " Good Mr. Cot-
terill and I bestowed a great deal of care and labor in
the compilation of ^ The Sheffield Symn-Book,* clipping,
interlining, and remodelling hymns of all sorts as we
thought we conld correct the sentiment or improve the
expression. We so altered some of Cowper's that the
poet would hardly know them.'' Every one knows that
Montgomery Hved to complain sadly of this conduct in
reference to some of his own hymns, calling it 'Hhe
cross by whidi every author of a hymn may expect to
be tested, at the pleasure of any Christian brother, how-
ever incompetent."

NATHANIEL COTTON, M.D.

This gentleman is supposed to be the antiior of the
truly experimental hymn,*—

'< Afflietion is a Biormy deep."

He was an English physician, bom in 1707, and died
in 1788. He was remarkably successftil in the treatment
of insanity, keeping a private asylum for such patients
at St. Alban's, having, among many others, the amia-
ble poet Cowper, who says of him, " He is truly a phi-
losopher, according to my judgment of the character,
every tittle of his knowledge in natural subjects being
connected in his mind with the firm belief in an omni-

Digitized by

Google

118 AUTHOKS AND OBIQIN OP HYMNS.

potent agent/' His works in prose and verse were
printed in two duodecimo volumes in 1791.

WILLIAM COWPER.

The facts of Cowper's history are too well known to
render it necessary that we should here detail them.
He was the son of an English clergyman, who was a
chaplain to George the Second and rector of Berkhamp-
stead, where William was bom in 1731. He grew
up so timid and nervous that he was never able to en-
gage in any profession, became deranged, and was con-
fined in an asylum for many months. He was an ex-
quisite poet ; and poetry became his almost constant oc-
cupation till his death in 1800.

The favorite residences of the poet at Olney and
Weston, the houses in which his chief labors were per-
formed, are still objects of interest, not only to English-
men, but to Americans visiting that land. The one at
Olney still stands in the same ruinous state in which he
so humorously described it; and the parlor is now occu-
pied by a girls' school. The summer-house in the garden,
in which he used to sit conning his verses, also remains,
the walls being covered with the names of visitors. His
residence in the neighboring village of Weston has been
much altered, but is still beautiful, with a profusion of
roses around it.

Digitized by

Google

WILLIAM GOWPSR. 119

Where is the Christian who has not read and song
with holy profit and delight Cowper's hymn, —

" God moyes in a mysterious way" ?

Its original title — ^^ Light Shining out of Darkness" —
had reference to its remarkable origin. When under
the inflaence of the fits of mental derangement to which
he was subject, he most unhappily but firmly believed
that the divine will was that he should drown himself
in a particular part of the river Ouse, some two or three
miles from his residence at Olney. He one evening
called for a post-chaise from one of the hotels in the
town, and ordered the driver to take him to that spot,
which he readily undertook to do, ^s he well knew it.
On this occasion, however, several hours were consumed
in seeking it, and utterly in vain. The man was at
length most reluctantly compelled to admit that he
had entirely lost his road. The snare was thus broken :
Cowper escaped the temptation: he returned to his
home, and immediately sat down and wrote a hymn
which has ministered comfort to thousands, and will
probably yet afford consolation to thousands of others,
even for generations to come.

Mr. Montgomery says of this hymn that it "is a
lyric of high tone and character, and rendered awfully
interesting by the circumstances under which it was
written, — ^in the twilight of departing reason."

Every one knows that the admirable hymn, —

"Oh for ft closer walk with God,"

Digitized by

Google

120 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

was also written by the amiable Cowper^ when nnder
much darkness of soul, in one of the intervals between
his seasons of deep melancholy. Every Christian who
has made even but little progress in the divine life can
testify to the correctness of its experimental theology;
and we wonld hope that few persons are disposed to
imitate Dr. Sonthey, who intimates that the composition
of the " Olney Hymns/' in connection with his friend the
Rev. John Newton, tended to bring back the renewal of
his insanity in ms. Nay, after blaming Newton for
what he regarded as his iigudlcious conduct in having en-
gaged Cowper in such a deeply-interesting employment,
he quotes' two verses of this hymn as a proof of his
supposed dknger of a return to insanity r—

** Where is the blesBedness I knew
When first I saw the Lord?
Where is |he soul-refreshing yiew
Of Jesus and his word ?

<< What peaceful Jiours I once eigoyedl
How sweet their memory still !
But they have left an aching Toid
The world can nerer fill."

Truly has the apostle said, " The natural man receiveth
not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolish-
ness unto him; neither can he know them, because they
are [only] spiritually discerned."

The beautiful hymn of Cowper,-^

'< How blest thy creature is, God I*'
is said by his biographers to have been the very first he

Digitized by

Google

WILLIAM 0OWP£R. 121

wrote on his recovery at St. Alban's from his second at-
tack of insanity. He entitled it the ^^ Sappy Change;"
and no one can read it, with its origin in view, without
being struck with its beauty.

But the second strain in which he poured forth the
grateM feelings of his heart, —

" Far from the world, Lord, I flee,"

is perhaps sweeter still. Indeed, as Dr. Cheever remarks,
<^ it is beyond comparieon more perfect, — ^it is exquisitely,
sacredly, devoutly beautiM."

Br. Cheever throws additional beauty on this compo-
sition by describing to us the location in which it was
written. He had gone from St. Alban^s to Hunting-
don, passing his whole time on the way in silent com-
munion with God. He says, "It is impossible to tell
with how delightful a sense of his protection and fer
therly care of me it pleased the Almighty to favor me
during the whole of my journey." Left alone by hia
brother for the first time among strangers, bis heart
began to sink within him, and he wandered forth into
the fields, melancholy and desponding, at the close of
the day, but, like Isaac at eventide, found his heart so
powerfiilly drawn to God that, having found a secluded
spot beneath a bank of shrubbery and verdure, he
kneeled down and poured forth his whole soul in prayer
and praise. It pleased the Saviour to hear him, and to
grant him at once a renewed sense of his presence, de-
liverance from his fears, and a sweet ^urance that,

11

Digitized by

Google

122 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

wherever his lot might be cast, the God of all consola-
tion would still be with him.

The next day was the Sabbath, and he attended
church for the first time since his recovery, — ^that is, for
nearly two years, — ^and found the house of God to be the
very gate to heaven. He could scarcely restrain his
emotions during the service, so fully did he see the
beauty of the glory of the Lord. A person with whom
he afterward became acquainted sat near him, devoutly
engaged in worship ; and Cowper loved him for the ear-
nestness of his manner. He says, " While he was sing-
ing the psalms I looked at him ; and, observing him intent
upon his holy employment, I could not help saying in
my heart, with much emotion, * The Lord bless you for
praising Him whom my soul loveth !' "

After church he immediately hastened to the solitary
place where he had found such sacred enjoyment in
prayer the day before. " How," he exclaims, " shall I
express what the Lord did for me, except by saying that
he made all his goodness to pass before me ? I seemed
to speak to him face to face, as a man converseth with
his friend, except that my speech was only in tears of
joy, and groanings which cannot be uttered. I could
say indeed, with Jacob, not how dreadful, but how lovely
is this place I — ^this is none other than the house of God."

There, in this sacred spot and in the deep bliss of such
experience, is the very locality and atmosphere of that
perfectly beautiful hymn. There was the " calm retreat,"
there the unwitnessed praise, there the holy comma-

Digitized by

Google

WILLIAM OOWPEK. 123

nion with the Saviour by which he prepared his servant
to pour forth the gratitude of a redeemed spirit in strains
which will be sung by the Church on earth till the whole
Church sing in heaven.

We may add here that probably the happiest period
of Cowper's whole life was from 1765, the time of his
first recovery from insanity, till 1773, the time of its
recurrence. During this period he composed his portion
of the " Olney Hymns" Dr. Cheever well says, " If
Cowper had never given to the Church on earth but a
single score of those exquisite breathings of a pious
heart and creations of his own genius, it had been a
bequest worth a life of suffering to accomplish. The
dates, or nearly such, of some of those pieces, were
preserved, so that we are enabled to trace them to the
frames and circumstances of the writer's mind and heart,
and to see in them an exact reflection of his own expe-
rience."

We have, in many of our collections, hymns by Cow-
per beginning, —

** Oh, most delightful hour by man,''
" He lives who lives to God alone,"

and Others which had their origin in a way alike com-
plimentary to Cowper and useful to many. The power
and charm of his good sense and simplicity, as well as
the tenderness of his poetry, were acknowledged when
John Cox, the clerk of All Saints' parish in Northamp-
ton, a few miles from Weston, came to him with a
second application for some mortuary verses to be

Digitized by

Google

124 AUTHORS AND OBIGIN OF HYMNS.

printed with his annnal Christmas " bill of mortality.'^
Cowpertold him there must be plenty of po«ts at North-
ampton, and referred him particularly to his namesake,
Mr. Cox, the statuary, as a successful wooer of the muse.
The clerk made answer that all this was very true, and
he had already borrowed help from him, adding, " But
alas, sir, Mr. Cox is a gentleman of much reading, and
the people of our town do not well understand him. He
has written for me, but nine in ten of us were stone-
blind to his meaning." Cowper felt all the force of this
equivocal compliment : his mortified vanity came near re-
fusing, if the merit of his own verses was considered by
the smallness of his reading ; but, finding that the poor
clerk had walked over to Weston on purpose to implore
his assistance, and was in considerable distress, he good-
naturedly consented, and supplied the clerk's mortality-
bill with his beautiful verses for several years.
Perhaps the beautiful composition by Cowper, —
" No longer I follow a sound,"
is to be found in more of the English hymn-books
than our own. Its origin shows how the amiable poet
loved, even in his hours of social amusement, to dwell
on tender devotion and pathetic solemnity. His cousin.
Lady Austen, was fond of playing on the harpsichord;
and, to suit several of her favorite airs, he wrote Chris-
tian hymns. The air ^' My fond shepherds of late" was
in our own early days a special favorite in many parties,
and Cowper's lines were considered remarkably well
adapted to it.

Digitized by

Google

WILLIAM OOWPEB. 125

Cowper's own account, in a letter to his friend Joseph
Hill, Esq., in 1789, of the origin of his beautiful Sunday-
school hymn, —

** Hear, Lord, the song of praise and prayer,"

will be read with pleasure : — " My friend the vicar of the
next parish [Olney] engaged me, the day before yester-
day, to furnish Him by next Sunday with a hymn to be
sung on occasion of his preaching to the children of the
Sunday-school,— of which hymn Ihav^ not yet produced
a syllable."
The well-known and much-admired hymn of Cowper, —

** To Jesus, the crown of my hope,"

is not to be found in the " Olney HyranSy* as it was not
written till after the early editions of that work had
been published. There can be no doubt of its being the
production of his pen, or that it was the last hymn he
ever wrote.

To very many of our readers it will be pleasant to
read a line or two relating to Cowper from the pen of
the world-renowned theologian, Andrew Fuller:— "At
Olney he continued for a number of years in the enjoy-
ment of religious pleasures to a degree seldom known ;
uniting in social prayer-meetings with Mr. Newton and
his friends, to the wonder and admiration of all that
heard him. I knew a person who heard him pray fre-
quently at these meetings, and have heard him say, ^ Of
all the men that I ever heard pray, no one equalled Mr.
Cowper.' "

11*

Digitized by

Google

126 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

The reader who remembers that the " Oln^ Bpnns"
the joint compositions of Newton and Cowper, were
written for these very prayer-meetings, will see the con-
nection of thJs extract with the design of our volume.

REV. A. C. COXE, D.D.

This gentlemaa, who has favored us with several
original hymns, besides others translated from the Ger-
man, was bom in Mendham, New Jersey, 1818, and gra-
duated at the University of New York. He has acquired
great reputation for classical and poetical talents, and
has already published many valuable woiks^ especially
of a poetical character. Dr. Coxe is connected with the
!Bpiscopal Church.

REV. W. CROSSViTELL, D.D.

Several beautifiil hymns have been given us from the
pen of this excellent clergyman of the Episcopal Church.
He was born in 1804, and was rector of Christ's Church,
Boston, St. Peter's Church, Auburn, in the State of New
Tork, and afterward became rector of the Church of the
Advent in Bpstpn, where he died in 1851. He wasascholar,
and possessed a fine taste in literature. Among his poems
fire several of remarkable gracefulness and sweetness.

The death of Dr. Crosswell wafij solemn and affecting.

Digitized by

Google

ROBERT CRUTTENDBN. 127

While engaged in the public Sabbath-afternoon service,
at the conclusion of the last collect, instead of rising
from his knees, he sank upon the floor, whence he was
removed to his own house, where he soon after ceased
to breathe. His memoir and Remains were published,
after his decease, in New York.

Among the compositions of Dr. Orosswell was the
beautiM hymn,—

" Lord, lead the way the Saviour went,"
which was written for an anniversary of the Howard
Benevolent Society in the city of Boston.

ROBERT CRUTTENDEN,

The author of the hymn, —

« Let others boast their ancient line,''

and several others in our older books, was a correspond-
ent and friend of the Eev. Dr. Doddridge, the Rev.
James Hervey, and Lady Huntingdon. He resided in
London, and his great intelligence and generous hospi-
tality rendered his house the frequent resort of many
of the literati of that day. One of his grandsons was,
a few years since. Archdeacon of London.

Though Mr. Cruttenden was educated for the minis-
try, and often in early life preached for his uncle, the
Eev. Robert Bragge, of Lime St., London, he renounced
that profession, conscious of his entire destitution of

Digitized by

Google

128 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OP HYMNS.

genuiiie piety. Indeed, the happy event of his conver-
sion did not take place till his fifty-second year, under
the powerful ministry of the distinguished John Cen-
niek, — the account of which he afterward published,
with a preface by Whjjefield. He died in 1763, aged
seventy-three. When writing to Mr. Keen, Whitefield
says, " Mr. Cruttenden, I find, is gone. God be praised
that he went off so comfortably! May our expiring
hour be like his !"

REV. J. W. CUNNINGHAM.

This truly venerable clergyman of the Church of Eng-
land was the author of the hymn, —

<< Dear is the hallowed morn to me,"

which has elevated the devotion of thousands on the
Lord's day morning. Like the rest of his hymns, it is
highly evangelical. We remember, some forty years ago,
when he did not cherish the scripturally affectionate feel-
ings toward his dissenting brethren which now glow in
his soul, but when controversial publications indicated his
displeasure that they forsook his church and cherished
" the religion of barns." Nearness to Christ has brought
him nearer to his brethren ; and often since that period
has he co-operated in the common cause of Christ with
all who love Him. For many years Mr. Cunningham
was engaged as Head Master of Harrow School, in pre-
paring young men for college ; and, when he shall be

Digitized by

Google

REY. THOMAS DALE. 129

trailed away from earthy hundreds of these shall imite in
shedding a tear of grateftil love over his dnst, with not
a few who have communed with his spirit as they have
sung his hymns.

REV. S. S. CUTTING.

This gentleman, now a professor in the University of
Eochester, has long been a marked man as a preacher,
an author, and a journalist among the Baptists. His
hymns, which are not numerous, are good, and lead us
to wish that we had more of them. As Professor Cut-
ting has not yet advanced beyond the meridian of life,
we may cherish the hope of our wish being gratified.

REV. THOMAS DALE.

Our books contain a very few hymns from the pen
of this clergyman of the Church of England, the son
of a respectable bookseller in London, who removed with
the other members of his family to this country, leaving
Thomas under the care of his maternal uncles. He
received a fine education in Christ's Hospital, London,
and went to the University at Cambridge in 1818,
taking his bachelor's degree in 1823. Here he devoted
himself to general literature, and published his first
poem, " The Widow of Nam," in 1819. His intellect is

Digitized by

Google

130 AUTHOBS AND OBIQIN OF HYMNS.

of a bigli order, his theology entirely evangelical, and
his pastoral assiduity beyond all praise.

The poetry of Mr. Dale is elegant. While it has no
majestic flow, it resembles a beautiful rivulet in a delight-
ful landscape : it runs smooth, is always clear, and some-
times sparkles in the sunlight. We never think of Mr.
Dale or his compositions without pleasure.

REV. PRESIDENT DAVIES.

The well-known admirable preacher, Samuel Davies,
a native of Kewcastle, Delaware, who succeeded Presi-
dent Edwards at Princeton in 1759, wrote several excel-
lent hymns, one of which, —

" Great God of wonders, all thy ways,"

was long extensively used both in this country and in
Europe. It is true that he was more remarkable as a
preacher than a poet ; but we cannot forbear an expres-
sion of regret that this truly evangelical hymn has given
place to some very far inferior. He ended a life of great
usefulness in 1761, at the early age of thirty-six years.

REV. ELIEL DAVIS.

About the year 1824 we became acquainted with this
young man, the son of a gentleman who held in the

Digitized by

Google

REV. DAVID DENHAM. 131

chnrch we served the office of deacon^ and who was also
the schoolmaster of John B. Gongh, the popular lecturer
on temperance. Soon after that period we commenced^
for the young people of our congregation, a monthly
magazine in manuscript; prepared chiefly by the young
people themselves. While studying for the ministry,
Eliel Davis often wrote for the " Mutual Instructor," and
among other papers was the hymn, —

« From eyery earthly pleasure."

The editor of a popular London magazine paying us a
visit; we showed it to him, and he was so well pleased
with it that he copied it for his own periodical; and,
having thus attracted' the attention of hymn-collectors,
a part of the composition has appeared in hymn-books
both in Europe and America. Certainly neither its
writer nor first editor imagined the honor to which it
was destined. We are sorry to say that in early life our
talented friend was suddenly called from his labors to
his eternal rest, — ^not, however, without several years'
successful labor in the ministry of Divine truth.

REV. DAVID DENHAM.

The well-known hymn called " Sweet Mame/' and be-
ginning,—

** Mid toenes of conftision and creature oomplaints,"

was written by the Eev. David Denham, an English

Digitized by

Google

132 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

Baptist minister, who died a very few years ago. He
was originally connected with the congregation of the
Eev. Dr. Hawker, and, having become a Baptist, entered
the ministry, and labored in Margate, London, and Chel-
tenham. He edited a hymn-book bearing his own name,
but wrote most of his poetry, like " Sweet Home," for
some pi the religions magazines of England.

REV. DAVID DICKSON.

Often has the question been asked, Who wrote the
well-known quaint but beautiful hymn, —

*? Jerusalem, my happy home,"

which James Montgomery has spoken of as one of the
finest in our language ? It is a great favorite, and de-
servedly so, for it is really a very beautiful composition.
It probably appeared for the first time in a collection
of hymns published by Montgomery himself; and, in
spite of all that he says to the contrary, we have* heard
it strenuously though strangely maintained that he
was its author. It appears, with remarkable varia-
tions, in a voliime published in 1693, by Burkitt, the
Expositor of the New Testament; but the fact that
David Dickson, of Edinburgh, who died in 1662, had long
before printed it, as containing 248 lines, makes it im-
possible that it should be Burkitt's, and much less Mont^
gomery's. A manuscript of about half of it, with con-

Digitized by

Google

REV. DAVID DICKSON. 138

Biderable variations, as, "J. Song made hy F. B. P., —
to the Tune Diana" proves that it did not originate
with Dickson. The flEtct is.that, like several other ad-
mirable hymns^ it may be traced to some of the Latin
compositions of the middle or earlier ages, — ^thns show-
ing how even the darkest times may contribute to the
worship of the Church in all future ages.

It is worthy of remark, after all this, that our modem
hymns, though like the old ones in spirit, feeling, and
manner, have scarcely a line in common with them.

We are reminded here of the fact that in Scotland
this hymn, in the version of Dickson, is known in nearly
every house and sung in almost every family; nor is
this without good results. A few years ago, a Presby-
terian minister in New Orleans was sent for to attend
the death-bed of a young man. On his arrival, he found
that the dying man was a native of North Britain, as
well as himself; but he endeavored to introduce religious
conversation with him without success ; and, the more
he endeavored to accomplish his object, the more deter-
mined appeared the dying man not to converse with
him. After many attempts, the clergyman, almost in
despair, left the bedside, walked toward the window,
and half unconsciously began to sing, —

''Jerusalem, my happy home.^'

This effectually attracted the attention of the dying
youth, who at once called out, " My dear mother used
to sing that hymn," and, bursting into tears, acknow-

12

Digitized by

Google

134 AUTHOBS ANB ORIOIN OV HTMNS.

ledged his fiinflilnesB) tad inquired the way of salvation,
— ^whieh it was hoped he indeed fonnd. Some years had
passed away since he heard that hymn sung; but its
words recalled all Uie scenes and feelings of home, and
produced results which, it is probable, that mother had
never thought of.

BISHOP DOANE,

This gentleman, the Protestant Bishop of Kew Jer-
sey, who has contributed, —

< Thou art the Way, to thee alone,''

and two or three other hymns for the use of Christian
worshippers, was bom in Trenton, New Jersey, in 1799.
He graduated at Union College, Schenectady, when
nineteen years old, and immediately afterward com-
menced the study of theology. He was consecrated
Bishop of his native State in 1882, founded St. Mary's
Hall in 1827, and Burlington College in 1846. He
published a volume of poems entitled ^^ Songs by the
Way/' and many sermons and tracts. He died in 1859.

REV. PHILIP DODDRIDGE, D.D.

"Who has not been charmed with the devotional hymns
of this excellent Protestant Dissenting minister, so many

Digitized by

Google

asy. PHiup ooDPBiDOs^ d.d. 135

of which are found in our best books ? Br. Stoughton
has well described them as '^relics choicely transparent
and truly rich." These valued productions were not
published by himself, but edited, with notes explaining
what were then considered " hard words," by the Eev.
Job Orton, who was also one of his students and his ear-
liest biographer. To this gentleman the amiable widow
of Doddridge wrote, on May 4th, 1756, "I have the
pleasure to find, so far as this book has yet been known,
it has met with pretty general acceptance. Many of my
best friends consider it as a valuable supplement to Dr.
Watts's, and, as such, are solicitous to introduce it into
their respective congregations along with his. I think
I can truly say I more wish this may be generally done
from the hope I have they may do something to revive
religion in the world than from any personal advantage."
The preparation of his hymna furnished a fine illustra-
tion of Doddridge's versatility of powers. When he had
finished the preparation of a discourse, and while hie^
heart was still warm with the subject, it was his custom
to throw the leading thoughts into a few simple stan-
zas. These were sung at the, close of the sermon, and
supplied his hearers with a compend of his instructions,
which might greatly aid their memories and their devo-
tion. Thus, a sermon on " the rest which remains for
the people of God*' was followed by the hymn, —

*^ Lord of the Sabbath, hear our yowb."
In like manner a sermon on 1 Pet. ii. 7 was condensed
into the poetical epitome, —

Digitized by

Google

136 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

<* Jesufl, I love thy oharming name."

The Eev. Br. James Hamilton, in the ^^ North British
Beview" speaking of these and his other hymns, beauti-
fully says, " K amber is the gum of fossil trees, fetched
up and floated off by the ocean, hymns like these are a
spiritual amber. Most of the sermons to which they
originally pertained have disappeared forever; but, at
once beautiful and buoyant, these sacred strains are
destined to carry the devout emotions of Doddridge to
every shore where his Master is loved and where his
mother-tongue is spoken."

The well-known hymn, —

" God of Jacob, by whose hand,"

often attributed to Logan, proceeded from the pen of
Doddridge years before Logan was bom.

In 1836 a very interesting manuscript volume was in
the hands of the Eev. W. Eooker, of Tavistock, Devon-
shire, England, which belonged to Dr. Doddridge. It
contained one hundred hymns in the handwriting of
that excellent man, numbered in Soman figures : to
each was prefixed a text of Scripture, and at the close
of many of them were added the dates, and sometimes
the places, of their composition. A few facts from this
volume may not be without interest to our readers.
The greater part of these compositions were afterward
printed, under the direction of the Eev. Job Orton ; and
to these only do the facts we now give relate.

The hymn « On the death of a minister,"—

Digitized by

Google

BSy. PHUJP DODDUDOEj P.D. 187

** Now l«t Qur monnuog hearU reyiTe/' etc.,

he tells us was << composed at Kettering^ Auj^ust 22^

1736/^

« Let Zion's iratclunen all awake,"

was written from home^ — ^but the name of the place can-
not be deciphered;— -on the occasion of an ordination^
October 21, 1786.
The hymn, —

'* My Ood, thy sernce well demands/'

bearing for its title, in Orton's volume, ^^On recovery
from sickness, during which much of the divine favor
had been experienced," has, in the manuscript, this
note : — '" Particularly intended for the use of a friend,
Miss Kancy Bliss, who had been in the extremest danger
by the bursting of an artery in her stomach, November
14, 1787."
The second verse, as printed by Orton, stands, —

** Thine arms of eyerlasting loye
Did this weak frame SKstain
"When life was hovering o'er the grave
And nature sunk with pain."

The closing couplet of this verse in the original is far
more poetical, and has a distinct reference to the painful
accident which led to its composition : —

** When life in purple torrents flowed
From every sinking veiii."

'< Shepherd of Israel, bend thine ear,"

was composed " at a meeting of ministers at Bed worth,

during their long vacancy [recess], April 10, 1735."

12*

Digitized by

Google

138 • AUTHORS AND ORiaiN OP HYMNS.

''And will the great eternal God," etc.,

" On opening a new place of worship," was headed, "On
the opening of a new meetmg-place at Oakham, from
Psalm Ixxxvii. 4.'^ ^o date is given.

'* Great God of heayen and nature, rise," etc.,

is entitled, in the manuscript, "A hymn for the First-
day, January 9, 1739-40."

A few additional lines relating to Dr. Doddridge will
be pardoned. He possessed a very remarkable talent for
satire, which he could condense into a short epigram.
One of his pupils, a weak young man, thought he had
invented a machine on which he could fly to the moon.
The doctor wrote, —

"And will Volatio leave this world so soon,
To fly to his own native seat, the moon ?
'Twill stand, however, in some little stead
That he sets out with such an empty head.*'

One of his lovely daughters — the same who said she
was loved by every one, because she loved everybody —
wounded her foot by running a thorn into it; where-
upon her father addressed to her the lines, —

** Oft I have heard the ancient sages say
The path of virtue was a thorny way :
If so, dear Celia, we may know
Which path it is you tread, which way it is you go."

Well as it is known, we will ask permission to add his
epigram on his family motto, which Dr. Samuel Johnson,
who has himself been called " the old king of critics,"

Digitized by

Google

REV. PHILIP DODDBIDGB, D.D. . 139

has warmly eulogized as one of the finest in the English
language : —

<* Live while you Utc, the epicure would say,
And seize the pleasures of the present day :
Liye while you liye, the sacred preacher cries,
And giye to God each moment as it flies.
Lord, in my life let both united be :
I liye in pleasure while I liye to thee."

The beautiful hymn, though less known than it should

be, —

" Awake, my soul, to meet the day,"

was written by Dr. Doddridge, who rose every morn-
ing throughout the year at five o'clock. It originally
consisted of seven verses, and was constantly used by
him as an act of devotion, on which account he en-
titled it "A Morning Hymn, to be sung at awaking
and rising." We are told that, as the beginning of the
sixth verse — " As rising now" — ^was yet on his lips, he
sprang out of bed. The reader will remember that to
this habit of early rising we owe his admirable " Family
Expositor of the New Testament."

In every view of the subject, it would be improper not
to refer, in this connection, to " Doddridge's Principles of
the Christian Bdigion, in Plain and Easy Verse" Very
few productions, for many years, did more to diffuse
evangelical religion among the young people of England,
from the palace to the cottage, than did this unpretend-
ing little work. Writing to his wife, who was then dis-
tant from him, he thus speaks : — " I have been amusing
myself with making some little verses for the children.

Digitized by

Google

. . \

140 ATJTQ0E9 AND ORIGIN OF H^MNS.

It is a work Mj. Clark, of St. Alban's, proj^sed to me, —
that I should draw up a little summary of .religion in
verse for the use of little children, pretty much in sense
the same with Dr. Watts'e Second Catechism, which is
the best short compendium I ever saw for matter and
method. I have insensibly crept on for about a third
part of the whole, and hope to end in a fortnight more."
In a later letter to the same lady, he says, " I am not
ashamed of these little services ; for I had rather feed
the lambs of Christ than rule a kingdom."

Those of our readers who have read the life of this
excellent man will remember the details of a remarkable
dream which he had after spending an evening with Dr.
Samuel Clark, conversi^g with him on the happiness of
Christians when separated from the body. Eetiring to
sleep, he imagined himself leaving earth and conducted
by an angelic being to a part of heaven resembling a
palace, where he was favored with an interview with his
glorified Lord and Master, who expressed His approval
of his labors and promised the eternal reward of His
favor. After this he saw in the room where he had been
placed, in pictures, a representation of the principal
scenes of his life. This remarkable dream gave rise to
the beautiful hymn, —

** While on the verge of life I stand.**

Digitized by

Google

aOHN DBTDBN. 141

JOHN DRYDEN,

Scarcely any hymn in our langoage is better known

than^ —

** Creator Spirit, by whose aid,"

which is a paraphrase by the poet Dryden of the Latin
hymn " Veni Creator Spiritu^' of Ambrose, Bishop of
Milan in the fourth century. The Bev. J. Chandler,
of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, England, who trans-
lated and published, in 1837, a collection of "Sifmns of
the Primitive Church/' says that, in the pfimitive times,
each day, or twenty-four hours, was "parcelled out" into
eight services, — there being a service at the end of every
three hours. At nine o'clock every morning a hymn
was sung to the Holy Spirit, — ^that being the hour in
which, on the day of Pentecost, he descended on the
apostles. This seems to have been observed from very
early times; so that Mr. Chandler adds, "Most likely
the Veni Creator of St. Ambrose was merely a new
hymn written by him on a subject already femiliar to
the Church from the apostles downward."

By a reference to the article Charlemagne, in this
volume, the reader will see that other claims have been
set up for the authorship of this fine hymn.

Dryden wrote also a paraphrase of " Te Deum Lau-

damns f but it is far inferior to the one by Charles

Wesley : —

« Infinite God, to thee we raise," etc.

Digitized by

Google

142 AUTHORS ANB ^UQIN OF HYMNS.

REV. GEORGE DUFFIELD, JR.

The ^* Sabbath Mymn-Book"- containa two hymns fpom
the pen of this gentleman which are not anonymoaS;
and other books have some others which are. All of
them show that he ppssesses several very important
qualifications of a good hymn-writer. One of the two
hymns to which we have referred, —

** Blessed Saviour, thee I love,"

was written at Bloomfield, If few Jersey, when the church
of which its author was then pastor was in the midst of
ft very pleasant revival} and the other,^ —
<« Stand up I aUad up fQr «r«#iufi I"

was composed to be sung after a sermon delivered by
its writer the Sabbath Allowing the moumfVilly sudden
death of the Eev. Dudley A. Tyng, who was called from
earth in 1858, and whose dying counsel to his brethren
in the ministry was, " Stand up for Jesus.''

Mr. DuffieW, a son of the Rev. Dr. Duffield, a Presby-
terian clergyman of Detroit, was born at Carlisle, in
Pennsylvania, in 1818, graduated at Yale College in 1837,
was ordained in 1840, and removed to Philadelphia in
1852. His ministerial career has been marked by much
Christian activity and success ; and he has already given
several proofs, besides his hymns, of his talents for au-
thorship.

Digitized by

Google

ESy. TIMOTHY DWIQflT, B.D. 143

REV. TIMOTHY DWIGHT, D.D,

We never read Dr. Dwight's beautiful hymn, —
"I love thy Church, God,"

without an earnest wish that he had written many
more Mke it. And yet, when we remember how much
labor he performed, notwithstanding the defect of his
sight, we are surprised that he accomplished so much.
It is well known that tho excellent doctor was re-
quested by the Congregationalist ministers of Connec-
ticut to revise Br. Watts's version of the Psalms, and
" to versify the Psalms omitted by Watts," which had
been previously done, but very imperfectly, by Joel
Barlow. He accomplished his task to the satisfaction
of the parties by whom he was employed, adding up-
ward of twenty compositions to the volume ; but Very
few of them are now used.

Pew men ever employed an amanuensis to so great an
extent as this worthy President of Yale College. His
" Travels;' ^^ System of Theology;' and probably his "iSkr-
mons;* were all written in this way. Thxis by the aid
of his students — ^for the work was generally done by
them, and gratuitously — ^his name and influence will be
perpetuated through many generations.

Br. B wight was bom in Northampton, Mass., in 1752,
and died in 1817. In 1785, he published his first poem,
" The Conquest of Canaan;' in 12mo, a copy of which
we saw sold in England for more than five dollars.

Digitized by

Google

144 AUTHORS AND OBIQIN OF HYMNS.

REV. SIDNEY DYER.

The hymn, —

" Go, preach the blest salvation,"

was the production of this zealous and useful Baptist
minister, who is also the author of several volumes of
religious poetry. He was formerly a missionary laborer
among the Indians, and has been many years a laborious
servant of Christ in the Great West. He was bom in
the State of New York, in the year 1814.

REV. J. W. EASTBURNE.

Wb have, in one or more of our hymn-books, a remark-
able composition for its evangelical and poetical spirit,
beginning, —

"0 holy, holy, holy Lord!"

written by this excellent young man, who died in New
York, the city of his birth, in the year 1819, at the age
of twenty-two years. He was associated in literary en-
gagements with Robert C. Sands.

CHARLOTTE ELLIOTT.

Onb of the most popular hymns we have commences, —
<< Just as I am, without one plea."
It has be«i thought by many persons not unlikely to

Digitized by

Google

EEV. R. ELLIOTT. 145

know, that scarcely any other hymn in our language
has been so useful alike to the unconverted and to the
Christian. Its author, Miss Elliott, is a somewhat elderly
lady of fortune residing at Torquay, in Devonshire, Eng-
land, a neighborhood which has been favored with her
beneficence for many years. Some years since, she
spent many months in the vicinityof Geneva, where she
formed warm friendships with Drs. Malan, Merle d'Au-
bigne, and other gentlemen of the same evangelical
school. She is said to have published several small vo-
lumes of devotional poetry, and seldom, even now, ap*
pears at the breakfast-table without more or less of
Christian poetical composition in manuscript.

REV. R. ELLIOTT.

The hymn now becoming pretty well known among

lis, —

** Prepare us, gracious God,"

usually ascribed to Toplady, who first published it, and
that in an altered form, in 1766, was written by Elliott
in 1761. Its author was bom at Kingsbridge, Devon-
shire, was admitted to Cambridge University in 1746,
for a while associated with the Methodists, and ulti-
mately settled as a Dissenting minister in London. He
wrote several theological works, including "Sm De-
stroyed and the Sinner Saved; oVy Justification by Imputed
Bighteousness a Doctrine Superior to all Others for Pro-'
moting Holiness in Life'* He died in 1788.

13

Digitized by

Google

146 AUTHORS AND ORIQIN OF HTMN8.

JAMES EDMESTON.

This gentleman, who has contributed several accept-
able hymns to our collections, was a layman, connected
with a Congregational church in London. He published
several small volumes of devotional poetry, one called
*' The Cottage Minstrel/' hymns for village prayer-meet-
ings, and a large number of hymns in various magazines.
He died, at an advanced age, a few years ago.

REV. WILLIAM ENFIELD, LL.D.

This gentleman, the author of, —

« Behold where, in a mortal form,"

was for many years an Arian minister, first at Liverpool
and afterward in Norwich, both in England, and died in
the latter city, 1797, at the age of fifty nsix. For several
years he was a professor of belles-lettres at the Unitarian
Academy at Warrington, and was the author of several
popular volumes. His life was published, in connection
with three volumes of his sermons, by Dr. Aikin.

REV. JONATHAN EVANS.

The well-known favorite hymn, —

« Hark I the yoioe of tfre and mercj.

Digitized by

Google

REV. JOHN FAWCBTT, D.D. 147

much longer than it is now generally printed, was the
composition of the Eev. Jonathan Evans, of Foleshill,
England. He wrote a volume of similar compositions,
the manuscript of which is said yet to be in existence.
Though originally in a very different profession, and
unblest by the privileges 6f a collegiate education, Mr.
Evans was, for about thirty years, a plain, earnest, and
successful preacher of the gospel, chiefly in the villages
of Warwickshire and among a congregation raised by
his own labors at Foleshill. He was a man of sense,
piety, activity, and fortitude, — a firm and generous
friend, and a kind benefactor to the poor, both by ren-
dering medical assistance and in ministerial labors. He
died in Ajigust, 1809, aged sixty years.

REV. JOHN FAWCETT, D.D.

Tradition in England gives a very pleasing account
of the origin of the well-known hymn, —

<< Blest be the tie that binds."

It was written by the late dignified and gentlemanly
Eev. John Fawcett,D.D., who died in 1817, in the seventy-
seventh year of his age, nearly sixty years of which
were devoted to the Christian ministry. As early as
1782 he published a small volume of hymns for public
and private worship, — a new edition of which was issued
in the year of his deatl^^

After he had been a row years in the ministry, his

Digitized by

Google

148 AUTHORS AND OBTQIN OF HYMNS.

family increasing far more rapidly than his income, he
thought it was his duty to accept a call to settle as
pastor of a Baptist church in London, to succeed the
celebrated Dr. Gill, which he did. He preached his faro-
well sermon to his church in Yorkshire, and loaded six
or seven wagons with his furniture, books, ^tc, to be
carried to his new residence. All this time the members
of his poor church were almost broken-hearted: fer-
vently did they pray that even now he might not leave
them ; and, as the time for his departure arrived, men,
women, and children clung around him and his family
in perfect agony of soul. The last wagon was being
loaded, when the good man and his wife sat down on
one of the packing-cases to weep. Looking into his
tearful face, while tears like rain fell down her own
cheeks, his devoted wife said, " Oh, John, John, I cannot
bear this ! I know not how to go !" " Nor I, either,"
said the good man; "nor will we go. Unload the
wagons and put ©very thing in the place where it was
before." The people cried for joy. A letter was sent
to the church in London to tell them that his coming to
them was impossible; and the good man buckled on his
armor for renewed labors on a salary of less than two
hundred dollai'S a year.

It is said that the hymn to which we have already
referred was written to commemorate his continuance
with his people. It was not only useful then, but has
been sung by tens of thousands since, and no doubt will
be for generations yet to comlP

Digitized by

Google

REV. JOHN FAWCBTT, D.D. 149

Dr. Fawcett was the author of several other works be
sides his hymn-book. One of these — ^^ An Essay on Anger'*
— ^was a favorite book with George HI., who offered its au-
thor any benefit he could confer. The good man substan-
tially replied that he lived among his own people, — that he
enjoyed their love, — ^that God blessed his labors among
them, — and that he needed nothing which even a king
could bestow. Some time afterward, however, a young
man, the son of a dear friend, was sentenced to death
for the crime of forgery. Fawcett interposed in his
favor, and, after much labor, obtained from his sovereign
a pardon. The young man afterward became an emi-
nent Christian, and on the Sabbaths of many years read
the hymns in a church in Liverpool.

Fawcett was exceedingly fond of psalmody, and often
said, " K the Lord has given to man the ability to raise
such melodious sounds and voices on earth, what de-
lightful harmony will there be in heaven V*

Let us take our last look at this excellent minister of
Jesus Christ. He has ascended the pulpit at an Associa-
tion in Yorkshire. A thousand eyes are fixed on him
in love and admiration, and all present express their con-
viction, by nods and smiles, that a spiritual feast has been
provided for them. As a good soldier of Christ, he has
endured hardness for far more than half a century.
His praise has been in all the churches; his ministry
has been greatly prized through the whole of that popu-
lous district; and his usefulness has been honored at
home and abroad, in thMbttage and in the palace itself.

13*

Digitized by

Google

150 AUTHORS AND OKIGIN OP HYMNS.

He has now come to bear his dying testimony to the
doctrines of the cross, and to bid farewell to the minis-
ters and friends with whom he has been so long asso-
ciated. Many of them have a strong presentiment that
they shall see his face no more, and are prepared to re-
ceive his message as from the lips of a man who has
finished his course and now stands at the entrance of
heaven. As he rises in the pulpit, a death-like silence
overspreads the crowded congregation, and all ears are
opened to catch the words of inspiration. With a tre-
mulous voice, and with deep emotion, he reads the text,
" I am this day going the way of all the earth," Josh,
xxiii. 14 ; and, long before he finishes his discourse, the
place becomes a JBoc^m,— the house of God, — the gate
of heaven. The sermon, which was committed to the
press by the agency of its hearers, yet exists as a monu-
ment to his love of truth, his holy affection, and his zeal
for the extension of the doctrines of sovereign mercy.

JOHN FELLOWS.

Seveeai^ hymns on baptism, which appear in some
of our books, were written by John Fellows, a poor
shoemaker of that denomination, of Birmingham, Eng-
land, in the latter part of the last century. He wrote
several works of a poetical character, including " Tht
History of the Bible" He was conteiriporary with -Gill
and Tqplady, on whose decea^he wrotp elegies. The

Digitized by

,qppg^.

REV. BENJAMIN FRANCIS. 151

fourth edition of his hymns was published in 1777. Al-
libone^ in his very able " Critical Dictionary of English
Jjiteraturey" improperly speaks of him as a Methodist.

ELIZA LEE FOLLEN.

We have met, in our books, with two or three very
pleasing hymns from the pen of this lady, who is, we
believe, connected with the Unitarian body. She has
published several volumes of prose, which have been
well received by the public, especially in New England,
to the manners of which portion of our land she appears
to be very warmly attached.

This lady, formerly Miss Cabot, a native of Boston,
was married in 1828 to Professor Charles Follen, who
perished in the conflagration of the steamboat Lexing-
ton, in 1840. She has since published the life of her
husband.

REV. BENJAMIN FRANCIS.

The Eev. Benjamin Francis, whose hymn

" My gracious Redeemer I love"

is an ornament to many of our books, was a native of
Wales, and was bom in 1734. At fifteen he united with
a Baptist church, and began to preach at nineteen, when
he was sent to Bristol College, where he remained for

Digitized by

Google

152 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

three years. When he went to college he did not know
enough of the English language to ask in it a blessing
on his food ; but in a short time he became an excellent
English scholar. At twenty-four he was ordained, at
Shortwood, in Gloucestershire, where he remained till
his death in 1799. During his ministry the house of
worship was three times enlarged, and a new edifice
was erected three ^iles from it for evening services. One
of his hymns, —

"Great King of glory, come,'*

was written for the re-dedication of his church-edifice
after one of its enlargements. He was strongly invited
to settle with a church in London ; but, though he had a
large and afflicted family, and a small income, he posi-
tively refused. He is said to have enjoyed through life a
very heavenly state of mind, and, though frequently in
great trouble, was generally happy. As he approached
the end of his life, he would often weep over the remem-
brance of his early friends, nearly all of whom had been
removed by death. He had used to speak of heaven as
the residence of the larger number of his companions.
He died happy in Christ, saying, a few days before his
death, " KI could mention nothing of former experiences,
I can, I can, at this moment go to Jesus, as a poor sinner,
longing for salvation in his own sovereign way."

The late eminent preacher, the Eev. Thomas Flint,
was the son-in-law and successor of this excellent man.

Digitized by

Google

REV. W. H. FURNESS, D.D. 158

REV. RICHARD FURMAN, D.D.

The name of this truly-excellent man is not unknown
to our hymn-books, though it is readily conceded that
poetry was by no means the leading characteristic of his
mind. Few ministers of the Baptist body, in this or any
other land, have been more distinguished for sound judg-
ment, correct theology, eminent spirituality, or success-
ful labor than was Dr. Furman ; and whatever tends to
perpetuate his memory will be valued by all who knew
him. He was born in the State of New York in 1755,
commenced the work of the ministry at about eighteen
years of age, and settled at Charleston, S.C, in 1787,
where he labored with great success till his decease in
in 1825. He filled in his own denomination many of
its most important offices; and the influence he ex-
erted is still powerful for good.

REV. W, H. FURNESS, D.D.

This gentleman, author of several very fine hymns in
our collections, has since 1823 been the Unitarian clergy-
man of Philadelphia. He graduated at Harvard Col-
lege in 1820, and then pursued his theological studies till
his ordination. He is the author of several religious
works, is a poet of fine taste, and has published many
hymns, translations, and fugitive pieces. He has lately
devoted himself to the reform-movements of the day, such

Digitized by

Google

154 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

as anti-slavery, temperance, and, we believe, woman's
rights. He is also very warmly attached to the fine arts.
Dr. Fnmess was born at Boston in 1802.

. THOMAS H. GALLAUDET, LL.D.

We know of very few hymns written by this truly
distinguished man ; but if he had written no other than, —

<* Jesus, in sickness and in pain,'*

he would be flilly entitled to a place in our volume. He
was bom in Philadelphia in 1807, and died at Hartford,
Connecticut, in 1851. He graduated at Yale College in
1806, being then but eighteen years of age, after which
he suffered for several years from ill health. In 1814 he
was licensed to preach, but soon after devoted himself to
the deaf and dumb institution in Hartford, in which
great work he was the pioneer and most distinguished
of all teachers. He was also the most eminent and
popular writer of juvenile literature of his day. The
continued buoyancy and vigor of his mind, and the
amount of his achievements, were truly wonderful ; and
his memory will ever remain fragrant in the land which
he served and adorned.

REV. JOHN GAMBOLD.

We have yet, in some of our books, a fine old hymn
beginning, —

Digitized by

Google

BEy. JOHN GAMBOLD. 155

<< Oh, tell me no more of this world's Tain store.''

It was written by the Kev. John Gambold, a native of
Haverfordwest, who took his degree of M.A. at Oxford
University in 1734. After being, on the presentation of
Archbishop Seeker, vicar of Stanton Harcourt, in Ox-
fordshire, till 1748, he joined the United Brethren, among
whom he was ordained bishop in 1754. He established
a congregation at Coothill, in Ireland, and died in his
native town in 1771. He published several works, be-
sides a poem on the martyrdom of Ignatius, and was
universally esteemed for his extensive learning and inof-
fensive manners.

The hymn to which we have referred was a great fa-
vorite with the eminent Eowland Hill, who published it
in his own hymn-book, and during many of the last
years of his life probably repeated some of its lines
thousands of times, feeling intense interest in them even
when he was beyond the power of uttering a single
word : —

"And when I'm to die, receive me, I'll cry,
For Jesus hath loved me, I cannot tell why ;
But this I do find, — we two are so joined.
He'll not live in glory and leave me behind."

It has been well said that it is impossible to read
Gambold's works without being convinced that he en-
joyed much communion with God and was greatly con-
versant with heavenly things, and that hence he had
imbibed much of the spirit and caught much of the tone
of the glorified Church above. The late Judge Story^

Digitized by

Google

166 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

writing to the Eev. John Brazer, says, " The specimens
you have presented of his writings give me a high opi-
nion of his genius, and there are occasional flashes in his
poetry of great brilliancy and power. The ' Mystery of
lAfe' contains some exquisite touches, and cannot but
recall to every man, who has indulged in musings beyond
this sublunary scene, some of those thoughts which have
passed before him in an unearthly form as he has com-
muned with his own soul/'

REV. PAUL GERHARD.

This German divine, sometimes called Gerhardt, was
born in 1606 and died in 1676. His hymns, or rather
translations of them, are becoming increasingly popular,
and very deservedly so, for we know of none more scrip-
tural in sentiment or devotional in spirit. He was the
author of the hymn first translated by the Eev. John

Wesley, —

" Give to the winds thy fears,"

which in some English hymn-books has been erroneously
ascribed to Martin Luther. Our more modem books
are giving us others of his truly excellent productions;
so that he may become in this country what he has long
been in Grermany, — ^the fevorite poet among orthodox
Christians.

Digitized by

Google

NN GILBERT. 167

REV. THOMAS GIBBONS, D.D.

Our books contain a hymn, —

" When Jesus dwelt in mortal clay,"

and one or two others, written by Dr. Gibbons, an Inde-
pendent or Congregational minister, first in Silver Street
and afterward in Haberdashers' Hall, both in the city
of London. He was the intimate friend of Whitefield,
who tells an amusing anecdote of his once suffering sea-
sickness for an hour and thus having his sympathy for
sailors greatly increased. He was also intimate with
Dr. Watts, whose life he wrote. He published *^ Memoirs
of Eminent Women/' ^^ Bhetoric," etc. In 1785, when
sixty-five years of age, he was taken suddenly in a fit,
and remained speechless for five days, at the««end of
which he died. He was held in very high esteem.

Dr. Cotton Mather, when speaking of Dr. Gibbons's
volume " The Christian Minister/' says, " Here you have
a thousand hints respecting the reading of the best au-
thors, the composing of sermons, etc."

ANN GILBERT.

Two or three hymns to be found in some of our books
were written by this lady, who was one of the Taylor
family of Ongar, and who felt a special interest in hymns
for the young, and for Sabbath-schools.* She was one of

14

Digitized by

Google

168 AUTHORS AND ORIOIN OP HYMNS.

the authors of ^^ Hymns for Infant JHfinds" Her father^
as is well known, was the Eev. Isaac Taylor, an excellent
Congregational minister of England, and her husband
was for some years a professor of classics in a Dissenting
college, and for many years a Congregational minister
at Nottingham.

REV. THOMAS GISBORNE.

This gentleman, whose hymns, we believe, are not
numerous, was born in England in 1758, and died in
1846. In 1826 he was appointed as the Prebendary of
Durham, an office which he filled till his death. He
published five volumes of sermons, and many other
works, which were well received : some of them were
highly commended by the distinguished Robert Hall.

LORD GLENELG.

This British nobleman was the author of the well-
known hymn, —

<* When gathering clouds around I view.''

His original name and style was Sir Robert Grant,
by which name and title he was well known as a faith-
ful servant of his sovereign in a high office in India,
where also he was a warm friend of evangelical mission-

Digitized by

Google

HANNAH F. QOULD. 159

aries of every name. On his return from the East he
was elevated to the peerage^ which he has eminently
adorned.

JOHN MASON GOOD, M.D.

An elegantly-written hymn, —

<* Not irorlcU on worlds in phalanx deep!"

and a very few others, were written by this eminent
philosopher and physician, a native of Epping, in Eng-
land, in 1764. In addition to several highly-important
medical works, and editing, in connection with Dr. Olin-
thus Gregory and Kewton Bosworth, Esq., a valuable
Cyclopedia called " The Pantalogia/' he published a new
translation of Solomon's Song and Job, as well as other
works written in Oriental languages. Dr. Good was the
son of a Dissenting minister, and, in early life, advocated
TJnitarianism in its lowest form. In his later years he
became zealously attached to evangelical truth, in the
triumphs of which he died, January 2d, 1827. Mr. AUi-
bone truly says, " There are few names that cast greater
lustre upon the archives of British medical science and
philological learning than that of John Mason Good.''

HANNAH F. GOULD.

This lady, the author of two or three hymnid in our
popular collections, is an extensive miscellaneous writer

Digitized by

Google

160 AUTHORS AND ORiaiN OF HYMNS.

of our own land. She is a native of Lancaster^ Yt.^
but removed in early life to Newburyport, in Massacha-
setts. Mrs. Hale, in her " Woman's Record}* says, " In
truth, the great power of her poetry is its moral appli-
cation. This hallows dvery object she looks upon and
ennobles every incident she celebrates. She takes lowly
and humble themes, but she turns them to the light of
heaven, and they are beautiful, and refined, and ele-
vated."

JAMES GRANT.

The well-known hymn, —

<< Zion ! ai&icted irith wave upon wave,*'

was written by James Grant, a magistrate at Edinburgh,
in Scotland. He was highly esteemed for his piety and
his love of Christians. Having an ear for music, he was
much pleased with the old Scottish melodies, but dis-
liked the words to which many of them were sung. He
therefore wrote some plaintive experimental hymns
adapted to them, most of which are now forgotten ; but
the one to which we have referred will be popular, in
Europe at least, for generations to come. It was written
to the air of the " Yellow-Haired Laddie;'* but modern
"improvements" have prepared other tunes for it. Mr.
Grant first published his hymns in 1784, with the title,
" Original Hymns and Poems, Written by a Private Chris-
tian for his Own Use.**

Digitized by

Google

MADAMS aUION, 161

THOMAS GREENE.

This gentleman was the anthor of the hymn,—

<< It is the Lord enthroned in light.*'

He resided at Ware, in Hertfordshire, England, and
published a small volmne of hymns in 1780. He was not
a minister.

REV. JOSEPH GRIGG.

About half a century ago, we saw a small pamphlet
containing nineteen hymns, written by a young man
named Grigg, when he was a laboring mechanic. Among
the rest were the well-known

<* Jesus, and shaU it eyer be ?"
and,

« Behold a stranger at the door."

He afterward entered the ministry, preached in Silver
Street, London, married a widow lady of considerable
property, and died at Walthamstow, near London, in
1768.

MADAME GUION.

An extract from a letter written in 1782 by the esti-
mable Cowper to the Rev. William XJnwin, in reference
to this eminent woman, will be far more accepta^
the reader than any thing we could ourselves wi

14*

Digitized by

Google

162 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

<'Mr. Bull; a Dissenting [Congregational] minister of
Newport [Pagnell,] a learned, ingenious, good-natured,
pious friend of ours, who sometimes visits us, and whom
we visited last week, put into my hands three volumes
of French poetry, composed by Madame Guion. ^A
quietist,' say you, ' and a fanatic : I will have nothing to
do with her !' It is very well : you are welcome to have
nothing to do with her ; but, in the mean time^ her verse is
the only French verse I ever read that I found agreeable :
there is a neatness in it equal to that which we applaud,
with so much reason, in the compositions of Prior. I
have translated several of them, and shall proceed in my
translations till I have filled a liliputian paper-book I
happen to have by me, which, when filled, I shall pre-
sent to ^ILr. Bull. He is her passionate admirer, — ^rode
twenty miles to see her picture in the house of a stranger,
which stranger politely insisted on his acceptance of it,
and it now hangs over his chimney. It is a striking
portrait, — ^too characteristic not to be a strong resem-
blance, and, were it encompassed with a glory instead
of being dressed in a nun's hood, might pass for the face
of an angel."

Many of Madame's religious views were so erroneous
as to lead one of her most devoted admirers, the dis-
tinguished John Wesley, to say, " nay, such as are dan-
gerously false.'' And yet the same writer says, "I
believe she was not only a good woman, but good in
an eminent degree,— deeply devoted to God, and often
favored with uncommon communications of his Spirit.''

Digitized by

Google

REV. WILLIAM HAMMONP. 163

After being vehemently opposed by the leading men
of the Eomish Choreh; Madame Guion spent ten years
in prison, daring which time she composed many hymns
and poems on sacred subjects, filling five octavo volumes.
Speaking of her imprisonment at Yincennes, she says,
" I passed my time in great peace, content to spend the
rest of my life there, if such were the will of God. I
sang songs of joy, which the maid who served me learned
by heart as fast as I made them ; and we sang together
thy praises, O my God ! The stones of my prison looked
in my eyes like rubies. I esteemed them more than all
the gaudy brilliants of a vain world."

After her long imprisonment, Madame Guion lived a
retired life for more than seven years at Blois, where she
died, June, 1717, in the seventieth year of her age. It
has been truly said that she sang her sweetest hymns in
the Bastille.

REV. WILLIAM HAMMOND.

The well-known, animating hymns, —

" Lord, we come before thee now,**

"Would you win a soul to God?"
and

"Awake, and sing the song,"

with a few others, were written by the Eev. William
Hammond, "late of St. John's College, Cambridge," by
whom was published, in 1745, a volume of original
'^ Psalms, SymnSy and Spiritual Songs" in which these

Digitized by

Google

164 AUTHORS AND ORIQIN OF HTMNS.

compositions first appeared before the world. Long as
they have served the churoheS; we can easily believe
they have comparatively but just entered on their career
of usefulness.

Mr. Hammond was one of the early Calvinistic
Methodist preachers. He afterward, with his friend
Cennick, joined the Moravian Brethren, and was interred
in their burying-ground at Chelsea, London, 1783. Be-
sides his hymns, he wrote a volume entitled " The Mar-
row of the Go^elj" and left in manuscript an autobio-
graphy written in Greek.

REV. JOSEPH HART.

Every reader will remember that many hymns in
almost every book bear the name of this excellent man.
He was born about the year 1712, and in early life re-
ceived an excellent education, which prepared him for a
classical teacher, a profession he adorned for many years,
not entering' on the ministry till about forty-eight years
of age. He settled in 1760 as pastor of the Independent
Church in Jewin Street, London, where his ministry was
abundantly blessed to a very large church and congrega-
tion. Here, while suffering great afflictions, he labored
till his death, May 24th, 1768, aged fifty-six years. His
brother-in-law, the Eev. Mr. Hughes, addressing the
church in his funeral sermon, said, "He was like the
laborious ox that dies with the yoke on his neck : so

Digitized by

Google

REV. THOMAS HAWEIS; LL.B.^ M.D. 165

died he with the yoke of Christ on his neck; neither
would he suffer it to be taken off; for ye are his wit-
nesses that he preached Christ to you with the arrows
of death sticking in him/' He was buried in Bunhill
Fields, London, where his tombstone may yet be seen.
It was said that his foneral was more largely attended
than that of any other person, there being more than
twenty thousand spectators present. It may be remarked
here that Dr. Samuel Johnson records a characteristic
fact : — " I went to church, — ^I gave a shilling ; and, seeing
a poor girl at the sacrament in a bed-gown, I gave her
privately half a crown, [sixty cents,] though I saw Hart's
hymns in her hand."

REV. THOMAS HAWEIS, LL.B., M.D.

This gentleman, bom about 1732, was educated in the
University of Oxford, England, but was expelled, because
he professed to be a Calvinist, and irregularly preached
to large congregations. The chapel at Broadway, West-
minster, was presented to him; but the Dean of West-
minster refused him a license, because he had been ex-
pelled fi:x)m Oxford. Some time afterward, he became
rector of Aldwinkle, in Northamptonshire, which post he
held for fifty-six years. Lady Huntingdon appointed
him one of her chaplains, and for many years he itine-
rated throughout her connection. For several years he
resided at Bath, where he died in 1820, being then the
oldest " evangelical" clergyman in the Church of Eng-

Digitized by

Google

166 AUTHORS AND ORIQIN OF HYMNS.

land. He was the author of the well-known heautifol

hymn,—

"0 thou from whom all goodness flows,"

as also of the ^^ Life of Momaine/' a " Church Mistory"
and " A View of the Present State of Evangelical lieligion
throughout the World" Dr. Haweis was one of the
founders of the London Missionary Society; and by his
influence the missions to the South-Sea islands were
first entered upon.

The excellent Eev. John Newton says of this good
man, " The preaching of Dr. Haweis, which had, like
the report of a cannon, sounded through the country,
attracted vast congregations to Aldwinkle." Some of
the most profligate persons in the neighborhood were
brought to repentance and "the acknowledgment of the
truth" under his heart-searching addresses. Among his
converts was an old tavern-keeper, who, having been a
good customer to his own beer-barrel, had carbuncled
his nose into the sign of his calling. He was from na-
ture and interest averse to evangelical truth, and could
not see what all the world had to run after at Aldwinkle
Church. Being fond of music, however, and hearing the
singing highly praised, he contrived to go six miles, avoid
a drinking-party, and squeeze himself into a pew some-
what too narrow for his portly person, where he listened
with delight to the hymns, but stopped his ears to the
prayers. Heated and fatigued, he closed his eyes also,
till, a fly stinging his nose, he took one of his hands
from the side of his head to drive away the intruder.

y Google

Digitized by VjUU^ 1^ i

I

BISHOP HEBEB. 167

Just at that moment, the preacher, in a voice that
sounded like thunder, read his text: — ^^He that hath
ears to hear, let him hear V* The impression was irre-
sistible : his hands no longer covered his ears : a new
sense was awakened within: it was the beginning of
days to him. No more swearing, no more drunkenness,
but prayer and hearing the word of God occupied his
time ; and, after walking with God for eighteen years,
he died rejoicing in hope and blessing God for the minis-
ter of his conversion.

BISHOP HEBER.

Who among our readers can be ignorant of Bishop
Heber's missionary hymn, —

"From Greenland's icy mountains"?

Its amiable author was born in England in 1788, and
was educated at the University of Oxford, where he
took his degree of M.A. in 1808, and was soon after
presented to the family living at Hodnet, in Shropshire.
Here he discharged his parochial duties till he was offered
the bishopric of Calcutta, as successor to Bishop Middle-
ton, to which see he went in June, 1823. In 1826 he
travelled in the discharge of his duties, and, while
bathing, was seized with apoplexy, and suddenly died.

The hymn which may be regarded as his best monu-
ment was written at Hodnet, to bo sung in connection
with a sermon which, appealed to the people of his

Digitized by

Google

168 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

charge, in 1820, on behalf of missioDs. He had Dot the
slightest idea that what was written only for a small vil-
lage congregation woold become popular, as it has done^
in at least three-quarters of the globe.

The original manuscript of this admirable hymn is
yet, with a thousand others of like character, in the pos-
session of the Eev. Dr. Eai&es, of Liverpool; and from
this it is seen that the line

*' The heathen in his blindness*'

was first written, —

** The pagan in his blindness."

REV. GEORGE HERBERT.

DBVOTioNAti feeling and good taste have transferred a
« rery^ few of the fine hymns of this good old poet to our
books. From the pen of a grandson of the venerated
Andrew Fuller, we chiefly transcribe a very few lines of
this scholar, poet, and saint, who died of consumption in
the tiying times of the seventeenth century.

In the ye&r 1630, George Herbert went, according to
a custom in those days, to toll the church-bell at the
quiet village of Bemerton, about one mile from the city
of Salisbury, on his introduction to the living. He
stayed much longer than usual after the bell had ceased
to toll; and one of his friends, alarmed at hia absence,
looked in at the wii^dow and found him prostrate at the

Digitized by >

B£V. GEORGE HERBERT. 169

altar in prayer. On this same night, according to his
biographer, Izaak Walton, he declared that "the virtaouB
life of a clergyman was the most powerful eloquence to
persuade all that see it to reverence and love, and at
least to live like him; and this will I do, because I know
we live in an age that hath more need of good examples
than precepts."

Well indeed did Herbert work out his holy resolu-
tions. For two or three years the village of Bemerton
was blessed with a ministry so self-denying, and with
an example so pure and gentle in its manifestation of
the Christian graces, that the memory of it "is as oint-
ment poured forth." Twice every day, he, with his wife
and child, led the villagers to prayer, and every Sabbath
afternoon questioned them on the verities of the Christian
flsbith. There was not a cottage in the village or neigh-
borhood, where want and sorrow had found a home, that
was not cheered by the visits of this holy man. He was
passionately fond of music; and even when at college
this was his chief recreation. Twice every w^k he was
accustomed to walk from Bemerton to Salisbury for the
sole purpose of hearing the organ, and on his return Ms
soul seemed thrilled with ecstasy. He once met an old
man, who, with his horse, had &llen on the road aad
were unable to get on their feet again. Taking off his
coat, Herbert set manftilly to woik and soon pat th^n
all right. He was, however, plastered with mud, and
arrived in Salisbury with a most uncanonical appearance.
On tits friends noticing his plight and asking fer aa ex*'

15

X

Digitized by

Google

170 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

planation, lie told them the story, adding that the thought
of what he had done would prove " music to him at mid-
night."

"No one can regret that George Herbert was called
away in the very midst of his holy life, before the time
of those terrible strifes in which he would have been so
ill at ease. His death was truly calm and beautiful.
The Sabbath preceding it, he took his well-tuned lute
and proceeded to play and sing, —

" My God, my God,
My music shall find thee,
And eyery string
Shall have his attribute and sing.''

On the day of his death he declared, "I am sorry I
have nothing to present to God but sin and misery; but
the first is pardoned, and a few hours shall put a period
to the second." How beautifully does old Izaak Walton
say, " I wish, if Grod be so pleased, I may die like him" !

Perhaps no poet has ever put more strong stuff into a
single verse, or sometimes line or half a line, than George
Herbert. It is not the music of the rhythm, or the even
flow of the words, that generally charms, but that each
sentence seems like a sharp thrust, which pierces the
inmost recesses of the moral and spiritual life; and very
often the gleam on the weapon is most golden. Our
readers may rest assured that whenever they turn to
'< Herbert's Temple* they will find, if not hymns for
the *' heart and voice/' yet always hymns for the ?g^art.

C5igitized by

Google

REV. JAMEB HEBVEY. 171

REV. JAMES HERVEY.

This eminently pious clergyman, and, for the day in
which he lived, elegant writer, is not generally known
as a writer of hymns ; but one composition of his being
inserted in several of our books claims that his name be
included in our volume. We refer to the hymn begin-
ning,—

** Since all the yarying scenes of time/'

Mr. Hervey was born in 1714, was educated at the
University of Oxford, ordained in the Church of England,
and died of consumption at forty-four, in 1768. He was
a fine scholar and eminently pious and benevolent. His
heart was so set on the relief of the poor that, in con-
formity with his. wish to die " even with the world," his
income, and the profits derived from his popular and use-
ful works, were all devoted to them. He wrote several
works, which long had an extensive circulation, such as
^'Meditations among fhe Tombs/* ''Reflections in a Flower^
Garden/* and it doctrinal work called "TAcron and A^-
pasio" These were all published, in seven octavo volumes,
in 1796.

Hervey was an ardent friend of Dr. Doddridge and a
fervent admirer of George Whitefield. He was a tall and
spectral-looking man, and for several years before his
decease was dying daily. He had a very graceful elo-
cution, and was listened to every Sabbath by crowded
congregations.

It is pleasant occasionally to meet with a man who

Digitized by

Google

1*72 AUTHORS AND OEIQIN OF HYMNS.

can form a correct estimate of his own talents ; and this
was the case with Hervey. Speaking of himself to his
biographer, the senior John Jtyland, he said, "My friend,
I have not a strong mind j I have not powers fitted for
ardent researches; but I think I have a power of writing
in somewhat of a striking manner, so far as to please
mankind and recommend my dear Eedeemer."

REV. ROWLAND HILL.

This distingaished minister of Christ had but a small
portion of poetical talent: he was, however, fond of
writing hymns. Some of our older collections contain
the truly pious composition, —

** Dear Friend of friendless sinners, hear,"

which he wrote for the members of his church when on
a sick-bed, and which, it is said, was profitably used by
many of them in their dying hours. Multitudes have
passed away from singing of "the promised rest" on
earth to its enjoyment in heaven. His best biographer
says, "No one acquainted with Mr. Hill can read
this hymn without seeing before him the image of the
writer in his happiest moments, when his mind was
sweetly and graciously subdued by the power of the
Divine Spirit. If I were asked for a description of Mr.
Hill when 'it was well with him,' I should just read
this short composition. It possesses the pathos of the

Digitized by

Google

BISHOP HOENE. 173

excellent man when he left the footstool of mercy and
immediately ascended the sacred desk."

But Mr. Hiirs greatest pleasure of this kind was in
connection with his large Sunday-schools. He always
had an annual assemblage of the children and their
teachers on Easter Monday and Tuesday, when he com-
posed a hymn to be sung, which he printed and gratui-
tously distributed. These little compositions were much
valued by the young people, who were addressed from
the text of Scripture printed at the head of the hymn.
Mr. Weight tells us, in his funeral service for the vene-
rable man, that, on the Easter Tuesday only two days
preceding his death, he deeply regretted his inability to
engage in his usual services. "He stood at his drawing-
room window and saw the dear little children thronging
the chapel-yard, and spoke with much delight of by-gone
days, when he had met them and preached to them the
Lord Jesus Christ."

Mr. Hill, in 1798, — ^two years before the death of
Cowper, — ^published a small volume of ^^ Divine JELymnsfor
Children" which the poet kindly revised, and concerning
which a letter distinguished by his characteristic humor
is still in existence.

BISHOP HORNE.

This valued prelate, who died in 1792, aged sixty-two
years, wrote a very few good hymns, one of which,
greatly abridged- from the original, begins, —

15*

Digitized by

Google

174 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

"See the leayes around us falling.'^

It has, however, been properly said that the purity of
hiB taste was somewhat warped by the age in which he
liyed. The bishop shines most eminently in his work
on the Psalms, in writing which he took his highest
pleasure, and said that, if it pleased God, he would rejoice
to die in meditating on this portion of his word.

REV. JOSEPH HUMPHRIES

WAS one of the early Calvinistic Methodist preachers of
the last century. He wrote the hymn, —

" Blessed are the sons of God,"

and a few others, which were published at the end of
Cennick's hymns in 1743. He died in^London, and was
buried in the Moravian cemetery at Chelsea.

REV. G. B. IDE, D.D.

This popular Baptist minister, author of several hymns
bearing his name, most of which are printed in " The
baptist Sarp" a selection of hymns edited by himself, is
a native of Vermont, and has labored in the ministry for
many years at Albany, Boston, Philadelphia, and Spring-
field in Masstirchusetts, in which places he has been
favore^ with much success.

Digitized by

Google

BEV. XDHITND JONES. 175

REV. WILLIAM JAY.

"Comb, thou soul-transforming Spirit,"

is one of about twenty similar compositions from the pen
of this late eminent preacher, who was bom of very
humble parents in 1770, and died at Bath, in England,
after a ministry in one edifice of sixty-three years, in
1854, aged eighty-four years. Few men were more dis-
tinguished for a catholic spirit and constant pulpit-labor.
He never forgot, when he ascended his "throne," — ^as he
regarded it, — ^that he had men, women, and children hang-
ing upon his lips; and, instead of discoursing before them,
he addressed himself to them. Whatever might be his
theme, he intermixed statements and illustrations which
at once explained the subject, touched the springs of
human sympathy, and conveyed important suggestions
for the conduct of life.

REV. EDMUND JONES.

Sevebal of our hymn-books contain a universal
favorite, beginning, as published by its author, —

''Come, humble sinner, in whose breast.'*

This hymn was written, with one or two others of like
character, by the Bev. Edmund Jones, a highly-popular
Welsh Baptist preacher of the last century. He was
eminent for his piety and a remarkably amiable temper;

Digitized by

Google

176 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

and his death, though at a veiy advanced age, was a
source of very extensive grief. "We believe that the only
productions of his pen, in addition to the hymns to which
we have referred, were contained in a pamphlet of ninety
pages, a copy of which may be found in the library of
the American Baptist Publication Society in Philadel-
phia, the whole title of which we will transcribe: —
" SavfisorCs Hair, an Eminent Bepresentation of the Church
of God, In two parts. To which is [are] added Two Ser-
mons : First, showing the Evil Nature and Surtful Effects
of Unbelief; Second, On God's Subduing and Keeping
under the Strong Corruptions of his People, and Healing
Them. By Edmund Jones, Minister of the Gospel. — Trevecka:
printed in the year MDCCLXXYII."

The two sermons on Samson's hair were preceded by
warm recommendations from the pens of two very re-
spectable ministers, as well as a preface from the author,
enforcing the importance of his subject. The sermons
furnish fair specimens of the spiritualizing tendency of
that age, and suggest the. propriety of combining the
piety of the past with the intellectual strength of the
present.

REV. ADONIRAM JUDSON, D.D.

Though we have two hymns written by this excellent
Christian missionary, both of them on baptism, we can
scarcely claim for him the honors of a poet. His glory

Digitized by

Google

REV. THOMAS KELLT. 177

waB of a far higher character. He waB the son of an
excellent Congregational minister in Massachusetts^ and
graduated at Brown University, intending to pursue the
profession of the law. Converted by the grace of God,
he changed his design, and went to study theology at
Andover. While here, the missionary spirit was excited,
and several of the students ofPered themselves for labor
in foreign lands; and the Board of Commissioners for
Foreign Missions sent Judson and several others to India.
On their way, Mr. Judson, Mr. Eice, and their wives be-
came Baptists. His life was devoted to preaching in
Burmah, and the translation of the Scriptures, in which
he spent nearly forty years. He had in his composition
all the elements of a hero; and he who would look for a
rare specimen of a life consecrated to noble aims, in-
spired with an elevated self-devotion, and exercising an
energy seldom witnessed among men, must contemplate
the lion-hearted missionary of Burmah. Br. Judson died
at sea, when bound to the island of Bourbon for his
health, in 1850.

REV. THOMAS KELLY.

This gentleman, one of the most prolific and popular
hymn-writers of the last and present generations, was
the son of Judge Kelly, of Ireland. Prom a very early
age he had powerful impressions of eternal realities, and
was regarded as a very religious young man. His father

Digitized by

Google

178 AUTHORS AND OEIGIN OP HYMNS.

had intended him for the bar^ but his own heart was
fixed on the pulpit. Having, in 1793, been ordained in
the Established Church, he commenced preaching in
Dublin, and met with great opposition from his femily
for preaching the doctrine of justification by faith 3 so
that he often said that to have gone to the stake would
have been a less trial to him than to have set himself
against those he dearly loved.

Crowds of persons from Sabbath to Sabbath listened
to the fervent appeals which Mr. Kelly made to their
consciences; but before long he was much opposed by
his superiors in the Church, and compelled to leave the
Establishment, though he never dissented from its doc-
trines. He continued to labor in Dublin for more than
sixty years, during which time it was testified by many
that he never seemed to waste an hour. His talents
were of a high order, and his attainments very consider-
able. Music was with him not merely a recreation, but,
like his other talents, was consecrated to the glory of
God. A volume of airs which he composed to some of
his hymns were remarkable for much simplicity and
sweetness. As a Christian he was distinguished for his
humility y and used to rejoice that the Israelites who
stood the farthest from the brazen serpent might look
at it with the same benefit as those who were near. He
lived almost constantly in prayer.

While preaching to his own congregation, in October,
1854, Mr. Kelly was seized with a slight stroke of para-
lysis, which gradually lessened his strength till he died,

Digitized by

Google

BISHOP KEN. 179

May 14, 1855, aged eighty-six years. On his death-hed
he was sweetly composed ; and, when the words of the
Psalmist were repeated to him, " The Lord is my Shep-
herd ; I shall not want," he replied, " The Lord is my
every thing"

It is said of Mr. Kelly that he allowed no opportunity
for doing good to pass unimproved, hut even when it
would have heen inexpedient to attempt more he would
drop a gentle hint. He had an admirable tact in adapt-
ing his mode of address to the parties he incidentally
spoke to. Lord Plunket, so well known for his puns,
was a schoolfellow with Mr. Kelly, and their occasional
recognition of each other continued through life. His
lordship, once meeting Mr. Kelly, told him he thought
he would live to a great ago. He replied, " I am confi-
dent I shall, as I expect never to die." The nobleman
said, " Oh, I see what you mean."

Mr. JK^elly's hymns are well known, and so much es-
teemed that no reader would wish to lose them.

BISHOP KEN.

The poet Montgomery has very properly remarked
that what is usually called the long metre doxology, —

"Praise God, from whom all blessings flow," etc.,

has probably been more used than any other composition
in the world, the Lord's prayer excepted. It was written
by Bishop Ken, a very high Churchman — ^frequently ae-

Digitized by

Google

180 AUTHORS AND OBIOIN OF HYMNS.

eused of Eomanism — of the seventeenth century. The
bishop wrote three hymns of the same metre for mom-
mgy evening, and midnight, each of which was closed
with the doxology. The hymns are seldom read j but
the doxology, which has appeared to the most rigid
critics almost perfect in its character^ will probably be
used till the end of time.

Bishop Ken was bom in 1687 and died in 1710. About
1769 he was appointed chaplain to the Princess of
Orange, and went to Holland, where she then resided.
Here Ken compelled a favorite courtier to fulfil a con-
tract of marriage with a young lady of her train whom
he had seduced. His zeal in this matter gave such
offence to the prince, afterward William III., that he
threatened to turn him out of the service,— on which
Ken begged the princess to allow him to resign ; nor
would he consent to return till entreated by the prince
to do so. ,

In 1684 Ken was appointed chaplain to King Charles
II., and on the removal of the court to Winchester to
pass the summer. Ken's house was fixed upon as the
residence of the celebrated Nell Gwynne, Charles's mis-
tress ; but the inflexible clergyman positively refused her
admittance; this, instead of offending that profligate
monarch, led him, soon after, to appoint him Bishop of
Bath and Wells.

In 1685 James II. ascended the throne, and Ken be-
came his chaplain also. One day the king was absent,
and the enemies of the bishop complained to the king

Digitized by

Google

BISHOP KBN. 1^1

of his sermon. The prelate remarked that ^^ if his ma-
jesty had not neglected his own duty of being present;
his enemies would have missed this opportunity of ac-
cusing himf^' When the king ordered the well-known
Declaration of Indulgence to be read. Ken and six other
bishops refused to comply, and were sent to the Tower;
but on trial the jury acquitted them. When James abdi-
cated the throne and the Prince of Orange went to Eng-
land as William III.; Ken vacated his bishopric rather
than swear allegiance to his new sovereign, as he did
not believe that he could free himself from the alle-
giance he had sworn to James while he was yet Kving.
He lived in comparative retirement till his death.

The volume which contained the hymns to which the
doxology was appended was entitled "-4. Manual of
Prayer for the Use of the Scholars of Winchester College^' —
of which Whitefield speaks as having been very useful
to him in the early period of his college life.

Some of our readers at least will thank us for giving
at length Montgomery's remarks on « The Doxology y' of
which he says, it '^ is a masterpiece at once of amplifica-
tion and compression. Of amplification, on the burden
'Praise &od/ repeated in each line; compression, exhibit-
ing Grod as the object of praise in every view in which
we can imagine praise due to him, — ^for all his blessings,
yea, for all blessings, none coming from any other source :
praise by every creature, specifically invoked here below
and in heaven ' above :* praise to him in each of the cha-
racters wherein he has revealed himself in his word, —

16

Digitized by

Google

182 AUTHORS AND O&IQIN OF HTMNS.

' Father, Son, arid Hcly Ghost' Yet this oomprdiensive
verse is sufficiently simple that, by it^ ^ out of the mouths
of babes and sucklings/ God may 'perfect praise/ and
it appears so easy that one is tempted to- think hun-
dreds of the sort might be made without trouble. The
reader has only to try, and he will be quickly unde-
ceived : the longer he tries, the more^ difficult he will
find the task to be/'

It has been said that Bishop Ken was accustomed to
remark that it would enhance his joy in heaven to listen
to his morning and evening hymns as sung by the faith-
iVil on earth.

JOHN KENT.

The author of the hymn, —

<< Where two or three together meet,

was an humble man, of very humble origin. He was
born in Bideford, England, 1766, and died in 1843. He
never aspired to a pulpit, and only occupied a position
as a shipwright. His life was marked by much afflic-
tion, and at sixty he became blind. He published a
hymn-book in 1803, in which he proved that the great
mystery of redeeming love through the atoning sacrifice
of the Lord Jesus was the joy of his soul. In his last
hour he extended his hand, cold with death, and ex-
claimed, "I rejoice in hope ! — ^I am accepted, — accepted T'
gathered up his feet, and fell asleep in Jesus, at the age
of seventy-seven years.

Digitized by

Google

VBAN0I8 8. KIT. 188

FRANCIS S. KEY.

In one or two of the Protestant Bpiscopal collections
of hymns may be found one beginnings —

" If life's pleasures charm thee,
Giye them iiot thy heart,
Lest the gift ensnare thee
From thy God to part.
His fayor seek,
His praises speak.
Fix here thy hope's foundation ;
Serve Him, and He
Will ever be
The Bock of thy salvation."

It came from the pen of the author of the well-known
^^ Star^Spangled Banner;*^ and, if the last-named compo-
sition shows the graceful patriot^ the hymn certainly
displays the spirit of the Christian. This was still ftir-
ther manifested in a scene about the year 1835, as thus
described by the clergyman officially engaged. He
says, ^'I stood within the railing, at the side of the com-
munion-table, and had administered the sacred elements
to all, it seemed, who desired to partake of them. Just
then, however, as though previously restrained by pro-
found humility, a stranger approached the altar, knelt
all alone, and so received the holy memorials of our Sa-
viour's suffering and death. I trust the service was one
of true faith, and that the result was one of great peace
and comfort. That last communicMit was the same
person, — the distinguished poet, the accomplished lawyer
and 6rator, the modest Christian, Francis S. Key.'^

Digitized by

Google

184 AUTHORS AND OWOIN OF HYMNS.

REV. WILLIAM KINGSBURY.

The beautiful character of the hymns, —

"Let VLB awake our joys,'*
and

"Great God of all thy churches, hear,'*

make us deeply regret that we have no others from the
pen of their excellent author. We believe we are cor-
rect in speaking of them as from the Kev. William Kings-
bury, for forty-five years the pastor of the church at
Southampton, to which the distinguished Dr. Watts and
his honored parents had formerly belonged. Mr. Kings-
bury was bom in London in 1744, entered on his studies
for the ministry at Homerton College before he was truly
a Christian, was brought to the cross of Christ by most
remarkably being led to read the works of John Bunyan,
was ordained at the age of twenty-one years, and died
in 1818, at the age of seventy-four, having spent the
whole forty-five years of his pastwal life in one pulpit.
Mr. Kingsbury had the honor of being one of the found-
ers of the London Missionary Society in 1796, being chair-
man of its first meeting. His biographer tells us that '^ he
was confined to his bed for one day only before his dis-
solution. He suffered no acute pain. On the Sunday
before he died, wh^n one of his sons said, ' How do you
do, sir?' he replied, 'Well; for I have peace with God.'
He expressed an earnest wish to obtain his dismission,
and frequently was heard to say, ' When will he come V
One of his attendants, supposing him to inquire after

Digitized by

Google

BSV. AND&EW KIPPI8, D.D. 185

one of his sons who was hourly expected from London,
said, ' We look for him every minute/ He shook his
head, saying, * Ko, no : when will my Beloyzd comb ?' "
His senses remained to the last moment of life. He
kissed the hand of his affectionate and only remaining
daughter, and made a sign that his son Walter should
offer prayer. While this was being done, the happy
man, his hands and eyes lifted up in the attitude of de-
votion, drew a long breath, and, without a groan or con-
vulsion, expired.

REV. ANDREW KIPPIS, D.D.

The hymn, —

<* Great God, in Tain man's narrow view,'*

and one or two others used in our evangelical churches,
were from the pen of this gentleman. He was bom at
Nottingham, England, in 1725, and studied for the
minidtry under I>r. Doddridge. In 1753 he was ordained
over an Arian congregation in Westminster, which he
relinquished for scholastic duties ten years after. He
wrote many miscellaneous books, «id the Kves of Dod-
dridge, Lardner, Pringle, and Cook, and conducted the
five volumes which were published of the " Biographia
Britannica," Though the writer of a few respectable
hymns, he was no poet.

16*

Digitized by

Google

186 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

REV. MR. KIRKHAM.

Of this gentleman we know nothing more than that
he was the author of the hymn, —

* How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,"

which was first printed in ^^BipporCs Selection^' in 1787.

Though we have no certain evidence of the fact, we
believe that Mr. Kirkham was a fellow-student with the
Messrs. John and Charles Wesley, George Whitefield, and
Mr- Morgan, and one of the first of " the people called
Methodists."

REV. JOHN LANGFORD.

The authorship of the favorite hymn, —

" Now begin the heavenly theme,"

has been usually claimed for this writer, though we have
more than once found it attributed to Madan. Langford
was connected with the early Methodists, but afterward
united with the Baptist Church in Eagle (now Kings-
gate) Street, London, under the pastorate of Dr. Andrew
Gifford. He was for many years pastor of several
churches in London, and died about 1790. He preadxed
and printed a sermon on the death of Whitefield. He
was long remembered as a man of great spirituality and
Christian meekness.

Digitized by

Google

BEY. JOHN LOaAK. 187

REV. JOHN LELAND.

Those of our readers who are acquainted with Baptist
history have read of the Eev. John Leland, an eminent
minister of that body, who labored successfully for
many years, and died in the year 1841. On a tour
among the churches of the South in 1779, he had occa-
sion to baptize a number of disciples. It was winter,
and a liquid grave had to b© cut in the ice. A brother
in the ministry preached for him. During the sermon,
Leland wrote the first three verses of a hymn, that was
afterward extended to six, still well known among
some of the Baptist churches. Approaching the water
at the head of a number of candidates, Leland read his
hymn, beginning, —

** Christians, if your hearts are warm,
Ice and snow can do no harm:
If by Jesus you are prized,
Now arise and be baptized," etc.

He struck up a familiar tune, and, as the good old
people used to say, "lined out the hymn ;" and it was sung
then, as it has often been since, with no small degree of
earnestness.

REV. JOHN LOGAN,

The author of the hymn, —

"Where high the heaT«nly temple stands,*'

Digitized by

Google

188 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

and several others, was a native of Mid-Lothian^ in Scot-
land, was edttcated at Edinburgh, became minister at
South Leith in 1770, and died in 1788, aged about forty
years. He was distinguished as a general writer, and
was a respectable poet. He was also the author of two
volumes of sermons, still held in reputation.

HENRY W. LONGFELLOW.

" The Psalm of Life' of this author,—

<< Tell me not, in mournfnl numbers,"

and some other productions of his elegant pen, are
to be found in several of our books, and on many ac-
counts greatly please us, — though we think that, like the
rest of his Unitarian brethren, he is sadly lacking in the
noble, generous, high spirit of evangelical truth. The
son of the Hon. Stephen Longfellow, of Portland, Maine,
Henry was bom in that city in 1807. Of very high edu-
cation himself, his life in various ways has been devoted
to the advancement of that great cause. His poetical
works have been numerous and beautiful; and of them
the editor of the "Jtfen of the Time*' tndy says, "Long-
fellow's poems have, together with great picturesque and
dramatic beauty, a simplicity and truth to nature which
commend them alike to the rudest and to the most cxd-
tivated. The tenderness and melancholy pleasure with
which, in many of his works, he dwells upon a poetical

Digitized by

Google

ANN LUTTON. 189

aspiration or an hiBtorical incident, have; however,
proved a stumbling-block to many of his countrymen,
who demand more freshness, and an onward direction
of the poet's eye."

ANN LUTTON.

We confess to feeling something of a personal interest
in the beautiftd and popular hymn, —

'* When torn is the Ibosom by sorrow or care."

For ten years — 1832 to 1841 — ^we had the pleasure of
conducting in London a small monthly magazine called
^^The EevivalisV In 1834, at the request of several
honored friends, we began to give a number of new
hymns adapted to popular — ^but, as they were generally
employed, useless — airs. In this we were aided by several
of our correspondents, among whom was a new one,
whom to this day we have never seen, — ^Miss Ann Lutton,
of Ireland. She wrote for us the beautiM hymn on
prayer to which we have referred, adapted to the air
of " Sweet Some."

There is something impressive in the thought that,
when we commit to paper what we may consider a mere
trifle, we know not the extent of its diffusion or its ef-
fects. Who shall calculate the usefulness of the hun-
dreds of thousands of copies of this hymn now before
the public, to say nothing of millions yet to be pub-
lished?

Digitized by

Google

190 AUTHORS AND OBKHN OF HTMNS

REV. HENRY FRANCIS LVTE.

We have just turned to three separate hymn-books in
reference to the hymn, —

" Jesus, I my cross have taken,"

and find it attributed respectively to Montgomery, to
the Hon. Miss Grant, and to her brother, Lord Glenelg.
In each of these cases the reference is wrong. It was
published by its author, already named, in 1833, in a vo-
lume of " Poems, Chiefly ReligiouSj' at much greater length
than it is usually given. Its author was a young man of
feeble health, but of high promise. He was bom at Kelso,
in Scotland, in 1793, and in 1812 entered Trinity Col<
lege, Dublin. Having been ordained in the Established
Ghurch, he settled as curate in Devonshire, but was com-
pelled to spend the larger portion of his future life in
travelling for his health. He died in 1847, and was
buried in the English Cemetery at !Nice. He published
a metrical version of the Psalms, and a number of beau-
tiful hymns.

MRS. MACKAY.

The sweet and consolatory hymn, —

'< Asleep in Jesus ! blessed sleep !''

is from the pen of Mrs. Mackay, a Christian lady of
Scotland, authoress of several very pleasing volumes of

Digitized by

Google

BEY. MABTIN MADAN. 191

a religioufi character. It originated in a visit to a bory-
ing-ground in the west of England; an account of which
the reader will be pleased to see from the authoress's
own pen : —

" ' SliEEPINQ IN JSSUS.'

" This simple inscription is carved on a tombstone in
the retired rural bnrying-gronnd of Pennycross Chapel,
in Devonshire. Distant only a few miles from a bustling
and crowded seaport town, reached through a succession
of those lovely green lanes for which Devonshire is so
remarkable, the quiet aspect of Pennycross comes sooth-
ingly over the mind. ' Sleeping in Jesus^ seems in keep-
ing with all around.

" Here was no elaborate ornament, no unsightly decay.
The trim gravel walk led to the house of prayer, itself
boasting of no architectural embellishment to distinguish
it; and a few trees were planted irregularly to mark
some favored spots.''

REV. MARTIN MADAN.

This gentleman, who was born in 1726, was eminent
in his day both as a preacher and a writer of hymns.
Like many other Christians, his conversion took place
in a remarkable manner. The preaching of the first
Methodists, as is well known, excited almost universal
attention. Madan was then a gay young man ; and,
being in company one evening, in a cofPee-house, with

Digitized by

Google

192 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

some of bis companions, he was requested to go and
hear Mr. John Wesley preach, that he might exhibit his
sermon and manner for their amusement. He went
with that intention; but just as he entered the place Mr.
Wesley read as his text the words, "Prepare to meet
thy God," with a solemnity which greatly struck him
and inspired a seriousness which increased as the ser-
mon proceeded. He returned to his companions; and
when they asked him, "Have you taken the old Method-
ist off?" his reply was, " No, gentlemen ; but he has taken
me off." He immediately withdrew from their society,
and associated only with the followers of Christ.

Mr. Madan was a gentleman of independent fortune,
and soon resolved to enter the ministry in connection with
the Established Church. His brother was at that time
the Bishop of Peterborough ; but Madan would accept of
no honors in the Church. Owing to his decided evan-
gelical doctrines, he found some difficulty in obtaining
ordination, but at length succeeded through the influence
of the Countess of Huntingdon. He was soon after ap-
pointed chaplain of the Lock Hospital, near Hyde Park
Corner, in London, an institution for the restoration of
unhappy females ; and before the erection of a church
edifice he preached to its inmates from a desk in the
parlor, where he was frequently assisted by Mr. Bomaine
and Br. Haweis.

Mr. Madan, in the peculiar situation he occupied, saw
so much of the evils of prostitution that he was unhap-
pily led to write a volume in favor of polygamy, and

Digitized by

Google

REV. JOHN MASON. 193

from that time lie lost his friends ; so that we afterward
hear but little of him. He died in 1790. We yet sing
several of his hymns.

REV. BASIL MANLY, JR.

This gentleman, in connection with his excellent fa-
ther, is editor of " The Baptist Fsalmod^," an admirable
selection of hymns recently published by the Southern
Baptist Publication Society in Charleston, S.C., and
already introduced into many of the Baptist churches in
that region. Some of the hymns in the volume are
from the pen of the junior editor, and are distinguished
for sound doctrine, earnestness, and devotion. In addi-
tion to the services which Mr. Manly has thus rendered
to the churches, he has most laboriously devoted himself
to the pulpit and to the cause of Christian education.

REV. JOHN MASON,

Of whose good old hymns we are yet favored with a
few, including, —

" Come, dearest Lord, and feed thy sheep,"
and

** Now, from the altar of our hearts,"

was for twenty years rector of Water-Stratford, Bng^
land, where he died in 1694. Not a few of the lines of

17

Digitized by

Google

194 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

Dr. Watts were borrowed from him. He himself pub-
lished a hymn-book in 1686, entitled " Spiritual Song^"
The well-known verse, —

** Mercy, good Lord, mercy I ask,"

usually sung in England years ago at the execution of
criminals, and equally appropriate for sinners of every
class, proceeded from his pen.

REV. SAMUEL MEDLEY.

We have in most of our books two hymns beginning

with, —

** Mortals, awake ! with angels join,"
and

"Awake, my soul, in joyful lays,

and one or two others, written by the Eev. Samuel Med-
ley, twenty-seven years pastor of the First Baptist
Church at Liverpool, England, and during about the
same period a regular annual supply at Whitefield's
Tabernacle and Tottenham Court Eoad Chapel, in Lon-
don. In early life Mr. Medley was very gay and pro-
fane. He was engaged in the British navy, where he was
severely wounded in one of the several actions in which
he fought. Eeturning to his pious grandfather's house
for the sake of surgical attendance, he was brought
under the preaching of the excellent Whitefield and Dr.
Gifford, and was soon led to the Saviour whose name he
had so often blasphemed. He died, after a very success-

Digitized by

Google

RSY. HSNBY H. MILMAN. 195

fal ministry, in 1799, aged sixty-one years. In the year
following his death, a volume of original hymns from
his pen was issued, very few of which are now valued.
He also published two or three sermons, and several
humorous papers. He was eccentric in his manners,
but had a pious soul and a noble heart.

A deceased critic once remarked to us that were the
hymn we have first referred to deprived of its title,
'^ The Incarnation of Christ/* a stranger might be ready
to inquire, " To what subject does it relate V*

REV. HENRY H. MILMAN.

That the Dean of St. PauFs, London, is a poet, none of
his readers will doubt. A clergyman of the English Esta-
blished Church, a dramatist, historian. Professor of Poetry
in the University of Oxford, and holding several other
important preferments, his reputation is high, and in
some departments will no doubt be enduring. What a
writer in the " Quarterly Beview" says of one of his
works will probably apply to all: — "Every page ex-
hibits some beautiful expression, some pathetic turn,
some original thought, or some striking image." We
confess, however, that his hymns want more simplicity,
more of penitence and faith, and more of devotion, to
accord with our taste. We respefcrt the venerable gentle-
man, bom in London in 1791, and should be happy to see,
before he is called from earth, a few hymns from his pen

Digitized by

Google

196 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

•which would go down to posterity with those of Watts
and Doddridge, Cowper and Montgomery.

JOHN MILTON.

Were there more love of real poetry in the churches

of Christ than we have at present, we should hear more

of Milton's hymns sung. We are truly glad to meet

with his

" They pass refreshed the thirsty vale,"

and hope that those who fashionably praise his ^^ Para-
dise Lost'^ will study and sing his hymns, which we are
gratified to know are remembered in our land, though
they are forgotten in his own. But be it remembered
that the said ^^ Paradise Lost* usually accompanied the
Bible into the log houses of the early settlements of our
country, and these commonly had, too, the minor poetry
of the same author.

It has been said that, from the seventeenth year of
Milton's age to the thirty-fourth, Milton's chief exercises
were in poetry, that during the next twenty years he
wrote scarcely any thing in verse except a few sonnets,
but that in old age he renewed his allegiance to the
muse, writing his great works ^^ Paradise Lost" ^^ Para-
dise Regainedy" and ^^ Samson Agonistes'' after he was old
and blind, and that he intended these productions to
be more especially his bequests to the literature of
England.

Digitized by

Google

JAMES MONTOOMEBT. 197

"We Bhall gratify our readers hy adding a short para-
graph as to " his manner of life/' which has been thus
given ns: — " He rises early; has a chapter in the Hebrew
Bible read to him ; then meditates till seven ; till twelve
he listens to reading, in which he employs his daughters;
then takes exercise^ and sometimes swings in his little
garden. After a frugal dinner^ he enjoys some musical
recreation ; at six he welcomes friends ; takes supper at
eight; and then, having smoked a pipe and drank a
glass of water, he retires to repose. That repose is some-
times broken by poetic musings, and he rouses up his
daughter that he may dictate to her some lines before
they are lost."

JAMES MONTGOMERY.

SoABCELT any man who has but recently left our world
has done more for the psalmody of^the Church than this
excellent layman. He was bom in 1771, and was the
son of an excellent Moravian minister, in whose commu-
nion he died, though for some years he held fellowship
with the Wesleyan Methodists. The facts of his long
and useful life are too well known to make it necessary
that we should repeat them here. More than half a
century of his years were spent in Sheffield, England,
where he devoted his labors to the Christian press, by
which he made a mark on the age that can never be
erased. No man ever secured greater influence on

17*

Digitized by

Google

198 AUTHORS AND OIUOIN 01* HYMNS.

society, or employed it more entirely for the honor of
Christ. He died in 1854.

By a singular mistake of one of his friends, Mr. Mont-
gomery's death was reported in this country a year or
two before it really took place, and several of our
periodicals paid cordial tributes to his memory. When
these papers fell under his eye, he smiled at the blunder,
but wept tears of grateful joy that brethren at so great
a distance should pay him what he considered tokens
of regard beyond all he had deserved.

We think we shall be more than forgiven if we add a
few lines descriptive of a scene which took place at the
Wesleyan Methodist Conference at Shefl3eld about two
years before Mr. Montgomery's death. The Eev. Dr.
Hannah, the president of the Conference, introduced the
venerable poet in full session of the body, and, after
alluding to the services which he had rendered to the
cause of religious truth and moral purity, and to the de-
light which his poetry had ministered to so many, said,
" We feel under great obligation to yourself and to the
religious body to which you belong, and beg to assure
you of the kindest affection of the Conference."

The aged poet's reply was beautifully characteristic: —
" My Christian friends, father, and brethren in the Lord,
I dare not waste one moment of your time, and I have
very little to say ; but that little will be of the greatest
import. It is this:— 'The Lord bless you and keep
you I The Ijord make his face to shine upon you, and
be gracious unto you ! Thp Lord lift up his countenance

Digitized by

Google

JAMES MONTOOMEBT. 199

upon you, and give you peace V in the name of Jobub.
Amen."

A series of short but interesting speeches followed in
the same spirit. What a contrast between the latter
years of Montgomery and those of Byron and Moore !

A brief narrative connected with one class of Mont-
gomery's hymns may be added to this article with ad-
vantage. It has long been customary in Sheffield, the
town of Montgomery's residence, on every Whit-Monday,
for the different Sunday-schools to meet at eight o'clock
in the morning at their respective churches, and thence
proceed, under the escort of their teachers, to some public
square, there to exchange fraternal greetings, and engage
in a united service, previously arranged, of which sing-
ing the hymns previously written and set to music
for the occasion forms a considerable part. Our poet
for very many years was a regular contributor to these
jubilant occasions, and for him was always reserved the
first hymn on the list. We are not aware that any col-
lection of them has been made; but such a volume would
be a truly noble one.

On the occasion of the Sunday-school jubilee, Sep-
tember 14, 1831, there must have been collected in
one place, in the poet's town, not less than twenty thou-
sand Sabbath-scholars ; and throughout the kingdom, in
like proportion, the various Sunday-schools met in their
own towns and villages, to celebrate that joyful day.
What a chaplet of undying green did those congregated
hosts of " little children" wreathe for the brow of Mont-

Digitized by

Google

200 AUTHORS AND ORIOIN OF HTMNS.

gqmery, as with free and gladsome voice they sang one
of his jubilee hymns ! —

" The^owers of fifty summers gone,
The leaves that then were green,
Have nothing left to look upon,
To tell that they have been."

It has been said that Mr. Montgomery's last composi-
tion was a hymn for a Sunday-school Union, the last
verse of which is both characteristic and truly sublime, —

« Learn we now that wondrous strain,

In our schools, our homes, our hearts,
* Worthy is the Lamb once slain V

In all languages, all parts ;
Then the countless chorus swell,

Round his throne, with glad accord,
Never more to say * Farewell !*

But, * Forever with the Lord I* "

The beautiful hymn, —

** Spirit, leave thy house of clay,"

was written by Montgomery during his political perse-
cution in York Castle. It originally contained seven
eight-line verses, and was occasioned by the death of
one of his fellow-prisoners, Joseph Browne, a Quaker,
who, with seven others of the same religious community,
had suffered the loss of all his worldly goods for con-
science' sake.

As one object of our volume is to give facts as to the
habits of our hymn-writers, it will give no offence to our
readers to refer to one or two mentioned by Mr. Everett,
one of the intimate friends of Montgomery. Mr. Everett

Digitized by

Google

JAMES MONTGOMERY. 201

one day remarked to his companion that the beautiful
village of Matlock would be a fine situation for the per-
manent residence of a poet, as the beauty of the scenery,
according to the current opinion, would induce sublime
thoughts. He partly objected to the notion, observing
that he should have to lament for his own situation if it
were so. " From the room in which I sit to write," said
Montgomery, " and where some of my happiest pieces
have been produced, — those, I mean, which are most
popular, — all the prospect I have is a confined yard,
where there are some miserable old walls, and the back
of houses, which present to the eye neither beauty,
variety, nor any thing else calculated to inspire a single
thought except concerning the rough surface of the
bricks, the comers of which have either been chopped
off by violence or fretted away by the weather. No :
as a general rule, whatever of poetry is to be derived
from scenery must be secured before we sit down to
compose: the impressions must be made already, and
the mind must be abstracted from surrounding objects.
It will not do to be expatiating abroad in observations
when we should be at home in concentration of thought.''
We may add here that the beautiful hymn, —

" Servant of God, well done !'*

which in the original extended to forty-eight lines, was
written by Montgomery on the occasion of the decease
of the Eev. Thomas Taylor, a venerable and beloved
Christian minister, an adherent of the Messrs. Wesley.

Digitized by

Google

202 AUTHOES AND OBIQJN OF HTMNS.

He labored under many trials and discouragements^ but
ultimately met with great success at Glasgow. He had
to perform all the singing at public worship himself, but
first spent nearly the whole of what he had in hiring a
man, at eight cents a service, to be his precentor, after
the Kirk custom, and to " lead the psalms." Necessity
compelled him to dismiss both his precentor and the
Scotch psalms, and to use the Methodist melodies, ^^ the
people," he says, " liking them right well." For fifty-
five years he labored with the Wesleyans, though he was
offered a very handsome salary to settle with a new
church in Glasgow. He was nearly eighty years old
when he died, honored and beloved as a noble veteran
by all who knew him. In a sermon a short time before
his decease he raised his venerable form in the pulpit
and said, with great emphasis, " I should like to die like
an old soldier, sword in hand." He was soon after
found dead in his chamber:

The beautiful hymn by this writer, —

" Go to the grave in all thy glorious prime,"

was written to commemorate the decease of the Eev.
John Owen, one of the first secretaries of the British
and Foreign Bible Society, a gentleman distinguished
for learning and holy eloquence. The hymn originally
consisted of six verses.

Digitized by

Google

THOMAS MOORE. 203

THOMAS MOOllE.

We never think of the author of the composition, —

"Come, ye disconsolate, where'er ye languish,"

or half a dozen other hymns from the pen of Moore
which are to be found in our books, without thinking
also of the exclamation, " Is Saul also among the pro-
phets?" Would to God Thomas Moore had been a
Christian I for no man of his day possessed in a higher
degree the qualities which constitute the lyric poet, —
qualities which captivate the ear as well as the mind by
the harmony of sound married with immortal verse. As
a writer of songs, no man of his day equalled Mr. Moore.
Alas that thousands are now mourning over the delu-
sions thrown by his early productions over the ways of
sin, — delusions which have fascinated multitudes to their
eternal ruin ! In the review of Moore and his influence
over the public mind, we have again and again ex-
claimed, " Oh, the solemn responsibilities of authorship !"
Moore was of humble origin : he was bom in Dublin,
Ireland, in the year 1790, was educated at Trinity
College, in that city, and then went to London to study
law; but, mingling with the great and fascinating there,
he gave himself to poetry and singing, married an actress,
devoted his days and nights to vanity, and lived a man
of the world. He died in 1852. His memoirs and let-
ters were edited by Lord John Eussell.

Digitized by

Google

204 AUTHORS AND OBIGIN 07 HYMNS.

REV. THOMAS MORELL.

Fbom the pen of this able and amiable minister of Jesus
Christ we have several valuable hymns, including, —
'< Go, and the Sayiour's grace proclaim !'*

Their writer was an English Congregational minister,
dying, before old age overtook him, but a few years ago.
Eor many years he discharged the duties of a successful
pastorate, after which he became the President of Cow-
ard College, once under the control of the excellent Dr.
Doddridge, but which has since merged in the new col-
lege of St. John's Wood, London.

REV. WM. A. MUHLENBERG, D.D.

The well-known hymn generally beginning in our

books, —

" I would not live aliray, — I ask not to stay,"

has a history worth telling. In the year 1824 appeared,
in the ^^ Episcopal Recorder,** of Philadelphia, an ad-
mirable composition of forty-eight lines, of which the
hymn now so commonly used forms a part. It was
written by the Eev. Dr. Muhlenberg, without the most
remote idea of any portion of it being used in the devo-
tions of public worship. A committee of the General
Convention of the Episcopal Church was appointed to
prepare a new hymn-book ; and the Right Rev. Bishop

Digitized by

Google

BEV. JOHN NEEDHAM. 205

Onderdonk, the rector of St. Ann's Church, Brooklyn,
offered the verses, selected from the whole article, as a
part of the book. The said hymn was at first rejected
by the committee, of which the unknown author was a
member; and, when a satirical criticism was offered
upon it, he earnestly voted against its adoption. Dr.
Onderdonk importunately urged its admission ; and after
a while the secret oozed out that Dr. Muhlenberg, one
of their own number, was its author. Many years af-
terward, when he was the editor of the ^^Evangelical
Catholic" Dr. M. explained the whole matter.

REV. JOHN NEEDHAM.

Of this gentleman, the author of the hymn, —
" Holy and reverend is the name,"

and several others, we have been able to obtain but very
little information. He was for some years pastor of
the Baptist church at Hitchin, Hertfordshire, England,
whence he removed to become co-pastor with the Eev.
John Beddome, of Bristol, about the year 1747. Five
years afterward he transferred his labors to another
church in that city, where he died about 1768, in which
year the volume of his hymns was printed.

18

Digitized by

Google

206 AUTHOBS AND ORIGIN OV HYMNS.

REV. JAMES NEWTON.

This author of a well-known hymn on baptism was
for twenty years during the last century classical pro-
fessor in the Baptist College at Bristol, England, and a
colleague in the ministry with the Eev. John Tommas
of the same city. The duties of both these stations he
filled with high reputation to himself and distinguished
advantage to others. He died in 1790, in the fifty-
seventh year of his age. Mr. Newton left in manuscript
a volume of original hymns, which the writer of this
work deposited in the library of the institution now
called the Begent's Park College, in London.

REV. JOHN NEWTON.

Of this excellent preacher and experimental hymn-
writer, whose history is so well known, our readers will
not expect us to speak in detail. All of them know
that, though the son of a pious mother, he ran in his
early life " to great excess of riot ;" went to sea, engaged
in the slave-trade, and, but that God placed restraints
upon him, he must again and again have died. " Pre-
served in Christ Jesus," he was "called" by the grace
of God, "counted faithful, and put iuto the ministry,"
first at Warwick, whence he removed to Olney, where
he became associated with the amiable Cowper in

Digitized by

Google

EBV. JOHN NEWTON. 207

writing and publishing the volume of " Olney Hymns"
and ultimately to the rectory of St. Mary Woolnoth, and
St. Mary Wool-Church Haw, in the English metropolis,
where we will, as somewhat aided by a writer in the
'^ North British Beview," briefly sketch his sayings and
doings.

Sixty years ago he might have been seen in the pulpit
of St. Mary Woolnoth, within a stone's throw of the
mansion-house of the lord mayor, surrounded by a
congregation both numerous and wealthy. His sermon
is to a great degree trite and commonplace, and you
begin to wonder why he attracts so much attention,
when he most unexpectedly utters some bright fancy or
expresses some earnest feeling, while a somewhat stiff
animation overruns his seamy countenance, and you
wonder that a man of seventy-three can show you such
kind and beaming eyes. The ardent affection with
which he is earnestly looked at by his hearers proves to
you that the preacher himself is invested with interest
as well as his sermon.

If you will go to tea at his house, No. 8 in Coleman
Street Buildings, some two or three hundred yards from
his church, on next Friday evening, in a dusky parlor
with some twenty of his choicest friends, the mystery
will be, at least in part, explained. He has doffed the
cassock, and in a sailor's blue jacket, on a three-legged
stool, the preacher sits at ease at his own little table.
The frugal meal is finished, the ever-present pipe is
smoked, and the Bible is placed where the tea-tray

Digitized by

Google

208 AUTHORS AND OEIGIN OF HYMNS.

stood some half an hour ago. The guests draw nearer
to their venerable friend, and the feast of wisdom and
the flow of soul begin. He inquires if any one has a
question to ask ; for these re-unions are for business as
well as for friendship. Two or three are come fully
prepared for this call. A retired old lady asks " how
far a Christian may lawfully conform to the world."
And the old sailor says many good things to guide her
scrupulous conscience, — unless, indeed, she made the
inquiry for the sake of the young gentleman with the
blue coat and frilled wristbands across the table. " When
a Christian goes into the world because he sees it is his
call, yet while he feels it also his cross, it will not hurt
him." Then, guiding his discourse toward some of his
city friends, he says, "A Christian in the world is like
a man transacting business in the rain: he will not
suddenly leave his client because it rains, but the mo-
ment the business is done he is gone, — as it is said
in the Acts, ^ Being let go, they went to their own com-
pany.' " This brings up Hannah More and her book on
" The Manners of the Great;" and the minister expresses
his high opinion of her. Some of the party do not
know who she is ; and he tells them that she is a gifted
lady who used to be the intimate friend of Johnson,
Horace Walpole, and Sir Joshua Eeynolds, the idol of
the West-End grandees, and a writer of plays for Drury-
Lane Theatre. He repeats his admiration and his hope
for the accomplished authoress.
Having answered the inquiries which have been made,

Digitized by

Google

EEV. JOHN NEWTON. 209

Newton opens his Bible^ and, afber singing one of the
" Olney Hymns" he reads the eighteenth chapter of the
Acts. "You see that ApoUos met with two candid peo-
ple in the Chnrch : they neither ran away because he
was Ugaly nor were carried away because he was do-
quenV And, after a short but fervent prayer,— catholic,
comprehensive, and experimental, and turning into devo-
tion the substance of their colloquy, — ^it is as late as nine
o'clock, and the little party begins to separate. In leave-
taking, the host has a kind word for every one, and has
a great deal to say to one who is but a visitor. " I was
a wild beast on the coast of Africa ; but the Lord caught
me and tamed me, and now you come to see me as
people go to look at the lions in the Tower." And
never was transformation more complete. Except the
blue jacket at the fireside, and a few sea-faring habits, —
except the lion's hide, nothing survived of the African
lion. The Puritans would have said that the lion was
slain and that honey was found in its carcass.

All about Newton's writings is truly delightful and
perfectly natural. His hymns are sweet ) but his " Let-
ters'^ make him eminent. Our theology supplies nothing
like them. They are all " cardiphonia, — tJie utterance
of the heart** Except his own friend Cowper, who was
not a professed divine, no letters of that stiff century
read so free, and none have so well preserved their
writer's heart.

Newton was born in 1725, and died in 1807.

We have already referred to the " Olney Hymns f* and

18*

Digitized by

Google

210 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

it is a fact worthy of remark that these compositions
were a few years ago translated into the Sherbro lan-
guage by a colored man named Caulker, and are now
sung in the very regions whose inhabitants JSTewton
once assisted to carry men and women from liberty to
slavery.

HON. AND REV. BAPTIST NOEL.

This gentleman, who has contributed to our hymn-
books several beautiful compositions, including, —

"If human kindness meets return,"

is a branch of a noble family in England and a brother
of the Earl of Gainsborough. Mr. Noel was born at
Leithmont, near Leith, in the year 1799, and, after at-
taining a high reputation in various departments of
learning, was ordaii^ed in the Church of England, and
was appointed by her naajesty Queen Victoria one of
her chaplains. A few years ago, changing his opinion
as to the propriety of a union between Church and State,
and embracing the views of truth generally held by the
Baptists, Mr. Noel left the Episcopal Church and united
with that body, among whom he labors with much suc-
cess, near his old church edifice, in the English metro-
polis, enjoying the full confidence and love of his church
and congregation.

Digitized by

Google

JOHN r. OBSBUN. 211

ANDREWS NORTON.

This gentleman, the author of several beautiful hymns,
including, —

<* My God, I thank thee ! may no thought,"

was an eminent scholar and professor connected with
the Unitarians. He was born at Hingham, Mass., in
1786, and graduated at Harvard College when but
eighteen years of age. He never settled as a pastor,
but occupied several important professorships, including
that of Sacred Literature at Harvard. He died in 1863,
aged sixty-seven years.

JOHN F. OBERLIN.

We are sorry for the man who is ignorant of the beau-
tiful hymn, —

" Lord, thy heavenly grace impart,"

or of its lovely author, the Rev. John F. Oberlin, the
eminently distinguished pastor of Waldbach, in the Ban
de la Roche. He was born at Strasbourg in 1740, of
truly remarkable parents, who were soon rewarded
by the extraordinary indications of piety and talents
given in his earliest years. Especially was his mother
distinguished for her Christian excellencies. She was
in the habit of assembling her children together every
evening, and of reading aloud from some instructive book.

Digitized by

Google

212 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

while they sat around the table copying pictures which
their father had drawn for them ; and scarcely a night
passed but, when on the point of separating, there was
a general request for "one beautiful hymn from dear
mamma/' — with which she always complied. The hymn
was followed by a prayer; and thus their infant steps
were conducted to Him who has said, "Suffer little
children to come unto me."

In very early life John Frederick became a Christian.
He .says, "During my infancy and youth God often
vouchsafed to touch my heart and to draw me to him-
self He bore with me in my repeated backslidings,
with a kindness and indulgence hardly to be expressed.*'
He entered the ministry, and in due time settled in one
of the most difficult parishes in the woild, where he
accomplished what may be almost regarded as miracles of
usefulness. Gladly would we dwell on scenes which can
scarcely be thought of without rapture. His self-denial,
his labors, his piety, and his success were alike admirable
and animating.

This extraordinary man, who died in 1826, in the
eighty-sixth year of his age, does not appear to have
been remarkable for poetic^ talents. The hymn to
a translation of which we have referred is the one best
known, — ^which it well deserves to be. For it we are in-
debted to the Diary of the excellent Dr. Steinkopff, who
heard it sung under the direction of its aathor on a very
interesting occasion.

Digitized by

Google

EEV. SAMSON OCCUM. 213

REV. SAMSON OCCUM.

Our readers have all heard of Samson Occum, a re-
markable Indian preacher in this country, who died in
1T92. He was converted about 1740, under the labors of
Whitefield, Gilbert Tennent, and their companions. In
1766 he visited England, in company with the Eev. Mr.
Whitaker, to advocate the cause of Dr. Wheeler's Indian
school, which was afterward merged in Dartmouth
College. He there preached from three to four hundred
sermons; and, as no North American Indian had ever
been seen in an English pulpit before, his ministry was
popular, and his pecuniary success so great, that he re-
turned to this countiy with more than forty-five thou-
sand dollars.

Occum was one of the many writers who produced
one good hymn : it begins, —

"Awaked by Sinai's awful sound," etc.

It originally contained seven verses; a portion of the
whole is to be found in many of our books, and is still
eminently useful. In 1809 it became generally known
in England, and in 1814 was translated into Welsh by
the late Eev. Thomas Thomas, of Peckham, London.
In the Welsh revivals of religion it is still very commonly
sung; and no doubt can be entertained of its having led
many hundred siuners to the cross of Christ.

Digitized by

Google

214 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

REV. THOMAS OLIVERS.

Almost every one knows the beautiful hymn, —

" The God of Abraham praise," etc.,

which was some years ago pronounced, in ^^Blackwood's
Magazine/' "one of the noblest odes in the English
language." We suspect, however, that the eulogist did
not know that its author was originally a shoemaker
and one of the earliest Methodist preachers. This ad-
mirable hymn, the whole of which has been seldom
printed, was written to a celebrated air sung by Leoni
in the Jews' Synagogue. This hymn and tune reached
the thirtieth edition as early as 1779. He also wrote
the hymn beginning, —

** Lo, he comes, with clouds descending/' etc.,

and prepared the music to which it was long sung, and
which also reached its twentieth edition in the year just
named. The Eev. John Wesley printed both hymns and
tune in his ^^ Sacred Harmony." Olivers was born in
Wales in 1726, and died suddenly in London in 1799.

Mr. Olivers was distinguished in early life for great
immorality of conduct. His attention to religion was
arrested by the preaching of George Whitefield, and his
subsequent life was marked by a very energetic and
successful ministry. The Eev. John Fletcher said
of him, "This author was, twenty-five years ago, a
mechanic, and, like Peter, a fisherman, and Saul, or Paul,

Digitized by

Google

KRISHNA PAL. 215

a tent-maker^ has had the honor of being promoted to
the dignity of a preacher of the gospel; and his talents
as a writer, a logician, a poet, and a composer of sacred
music are known to those who have looked into his
publications/' The Conference, also, after his death,
said, '^ In his younger days he was a zealous, able, and
useful travelling preacher. His talents were very con-
siderable."

John Wesley, speaking of his compeers, thus refers to
Olivers: —

" Fve Thonuu Olivers the cobbler,
(No stall in England holds a nobler,)
A wight of talent universal,
Whereof I'll give a brief rehearsal :
He with one brandish of his quill
Will knock down Toplady and Hill."

The celebrated Mrs. Carter heard Clivers's hymn, —

" Lo, he comes, with clouds descending,''

-sung at St. Paul's Cathedral in London, as an advent-
anthem, in 1763, and gives it at full length in her Letters.

KRISHNA PAL.

On one of the closing days of the last century, was
baptized in the river Ganges, before the gate of the
missionary premises at Serampore, Krishna Pal, the
first Hindoo who trampled on the caste for. Christ's

Digitized by

Google

216 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

sake and joined the standard of the cross. This man —
then at the prime of life, being thirty-five years of age— -
became an eminent Christian, engaged in the ministry,
which* he pursued for many years, baptized many hun-
dreds of converted idolaters, and then died triumphant
in the Lord Jesus. Joyfully did he bear testimony that
the service of Christ " was the work of love," and that
in it "he got nothing but joy and comfort." He wrote
two or three hymns, one of which continues to be sung
in India in the Bengalee language, in which it was
composed; and a part of it, translated into English, is
printed in most of our books : —

" thou, my soul, forget no more."

We think no one can read this hymn, remembering
its author as a converted idolater and that he died
carrying out its almost prediction, without having his
interest in the composition greatly increased : —

•'* Ah, no I till life itself depart.
His name shall cheer and warm my heart;
And, lisping this, firom earth Vl\ rise.
And join the chorus of the skies."

MRS. PALMER.

The hymn,—

« To thee, thou high and lofty One,"
was written by Mrs. Palmer, and sung at the dedication
of the Methodist church in Mulberry Street, New York.

Wgitized by

Google

REV. A. P. PEABODY, D.D. 217

REV. RAY PALMER, D.D.

Though we believe Dr. Palmer, an eminent Congre-
gational minister of this country, has written many-
hymns, he has published very few. We have one, how-
ever, which can never be worn out, beginning, —

" My faith looks up to Thee."

This hymn, we are told, had in connection with its first
publication an interesting incident. Dr. Lowell Mason,
a musical composer, who was a personal friend of Dr. P.,
one day asked him to furnish him with a hymn which
he might set to music. The excellent doctor told him
he thought he had in his vest-pocket a worn-out, coarse
piece of paper, on which, some weeks before, he had
written a few lines which might suit his purpose, and,
after some little trouble, found the almost illegible manu-
script, the words and music of which were shortly after
published, and which now minister to the edification of
very many devout worshippers.

REV. A. P. PEABODY, D.D.

The well-known funeral hymn,^—

*< Behold the western eyening light,"

and several others, were written by Dr. Peabody, a
learned Unitarian preacher, and professor in the Cam^

19

Digitized by

Google

218

AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

bridge University. He has also published a great va-
riety of sermons and other works, and produces one
or more articles for almost every number of " The North
American Beview" Dr. P. was born at Beverly, Mass.,
in 1811, graduated at Harvard College in 1826, and was
ordained at Portsmouth, N.H., in 1833.

REV. SAMUEL PEARCE.

Perhaps the later editions of " Bippon^s Selection of
Mymns*' may be the latest volume of hymns which eon-
tains two sweet compositions, —

<*In the floods of tribulation,"
and

" The fabric of nattire is fair."

The last was written when its author was confined by

sickness to his chamber, where he died of consumption, a

few weeks after writing it, in 1799, aged thirty-seven

years. It contains fifteen verses, every one of them

breathing the feelings of his " seraphic" soul. We make

no small sacrifice in omitting the whole hymn. The

reader will thank us for the closing lines : —

** There myriads and myriads shall meet,
In our Saviour's high praises to join ;
While transported we fall at his feet
And extol his redemption diyine.

*<£noughy then: my heart shall no more
Of its present bereayements complain ;
Since ere long I to heayen shall soar
And ceaseless enjoyments obtain."

Digitized by

Google

REV. EDWARD PERRONET. 219

Often have we looked on the beautiful autograph of
this hymn with the pleasing thought that the hand which
so beautifully wrote it, though now dust, shall, never-
theless, eternally be employed in its Saviour's service.

REV. EDWARD PERRONET.

For many years past most of our hymn-books have
attributed the hymn,-^

** All hail the power of Jesus* name!'*

to the pen of Duncan, who, however, has no other claim
to it than what may arise from some of the alterations
which have been made in it. It first appeared, without
a signature, in the " Gospel Magazine^* issued in London
in 1780, and in 1785 was published by Perronet himself
in a volume of " Occasional Verses, Moral and Sacred/'
of which, though issued anonymously, a copy yet in ex-
istence was given by Perronet to a friend as his own, cer-
tified by his autograph. In 1787 Dr. Rippon published
the first edition of his selection of hymns, in which it
also appeared anonymously. It is only comparatively
of late that it has been claimed for Duncan.

Edward Perronet was the son of an excellent clergy-
man of the Established Church of Englaud, and the
brother of Charles Perronet, who, as well as himself,
was for a short time associated in the ministry with the
excellent Messrs. Wesley. Edward, however, becoming
Calvinistic in his theological views, was employed by

Digitized by

Google

220 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

the well-known Countess of Huntingdon, and labored at
Canterbury, Norwich, and other places, with consider-
able success. Though the son of one of its clergymen,
he is said to have been very decidedly opposed to the
Church of England and to have sometimes employed
his pen in satirizing it. He was the author of an anony-
mous poem called " The Mitre/^ which is generally sup-
posed to have been one of the keenest satires on the
national Establishment ever written. It was printed -,
but the publication of it was suppressed, by the influence
and request, it is said, of John Wesley. His opposition
to the Episcopal Church so grieved Lady Huntingdon
that he left her connection and preached to a small con-
gregation of Dissenters till his death.

About the year 1808 the hymn " All hail," etc., was
printed at Canterbury, on a card, for the use of a Sun-
day-school, to which is appended the following notice
of the author : — " The Eev. Edward Perronet died at
Canterbury, January 2, 1792. His dying words were,
* Glory to God in the height of his divinity ! Glory-
to God in the depth of his humanity! Glory to God in
his all-sufficiency! and into his hands I commend my
spirit.' " *

The well-known tune which has been for more than
half a century identified with the hymn of which we
are writing was composed by a Mr. Shrubsole, an inti-
mate personal friend of Perronet, who was organist at
Spa-Fields Chapel, London, from 1784 till his death in
1806.

Digitized by

Google

REV. EDWABB P£REON£T. 221

We are tempted, before dismisBing this article, so far
to depart from the plan of our work as to transcribe
from Perronet's volume of 1785 the original and unal-
tered favorite hymn, leaving the reader to form his own
opinion as to the character of the alterations since

made : —

" AU hail the power of Jeeus' name I
Let angels prostrate fall ;
Bring fortk the rojal diadem,
To crown him Lord of all I

** Let high-bom seraphs tune the Ijre,
And, as they tune it, fall
Before his face who tunes their choir,
And crown him Lord of all.!

'* Crown him, ye morning stars of light.
Who fixed this floating ball ;
Now hail the Strength of Israel's might,
And crown him Lord of all!

" Crown him, ye martyrs of your God,
Who from his altar call ;
Extol the stem of Jesse's rod,
And crown him Lord of all !

"Ye seed of Israel's chosen race.
Ye ransomed of the fall,
Hail him who sayee you by his grace,
And crown him Lord of alll

" Hail him, ye heirs of Dayid's line,

Whom Dayid Lord did call,

The God incarnate, man diyine ;

And crown him Lord of all !

** Sinners, whose loye can ne'er forget
The wormwood and the gall,
Go, spread your trophies at his feet,
And crown him Loi-d of all !
19*

Digitized by

Google

222 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

**Let erery tribe and every tongue
That bound creation's call
Now shout, in uniyersal song,
The obowned Lobd of all."

An anecdote connected with this hymn cannot be
unacceptable. The late "William Dawson, a very plain
man, but a highly popular local preacher among the
Wesleyan Methodists of England, was, some years since,
preaching in London on the offices of Christ. After
presenting him as the great Teacher and Priest, who
made himself an offering for sin, the preacher intro-
duced him as the King of saints. Having shown that
he was king in his own right, he proceeded to the coro-
nation. Borrowing his ideas from scenes familiar to his
audience, he marshalled the immense procession moving
toward the grand temple to place the insignia of royalty
upon the King of the universe.

So vividly did the preacher describe the scene, that
his hearers almost thought they were gazing upon that
long line of patriarchs and kings, prophets and apostles,
martyrs and confessors, of every age and clime, until at
length the great temple was filled, and the solemn and
imposing ceremony of coronation was about to take
place. The audience by this time were wrought up to
the highest pitch of excitement; and, while momentarily
expecting to hear the anthem peal out from the vast
assemblage, the preacher commenced singing, —

"All hail the power of Jesus' name!
Let angels prostrate fall," etc.

Digitized by

Google

REV. EDWABD PERRONET. 223

The effect was electrical. The audience started to their
feet and sang the hymn with such spirit and feeling as
perhaps it was never sung before or since. Eight loyally
did that great congregation pay homage to the Saviour
as their Sovereign that Sabbath morning.

We add here another anecdote ; and, though it does
not directly bear on Perronet's hymn, it does on his
character, as on that of the eminent preacher to whom
it likewise relates.

Mr. Wesley had long been desirous of hearing Edward
Perronet preach; and Mr. Perronet, aware of it, was as
resolutely determined he should not, and therefore stu-
died to avoid every occasion that would lead to it. Mr.
Wesley was preaching in London one evening, and, see-
ing Mr. Perronet in the chapel, published, without asking
his consent, that he would preach there the next morn-
ing at ^ve o'clock. Mr. Perronet had too much respect
for the congregation to disturb their peace by a public
remonstrance, and too much regard for Mr. Wesley en-
tirely to resist his bidding. The night passed over. Mr.
Perronet ascended the pulpit under the impression that
Mr, Wesley would be secreted in some comer of the
chapel, if he did not show himself publicly, and, after
singing and prayer, informed the congregation that he
appeared before them contrary to his own wish 3 that
he had never been once asked, much less his consent
gained, to preach; that he had done violence to his
feelings to show his respect for Mr. Wesley; and, now
that he had been compelled to occupy the place in which

Digitized by

Google

224 AUTHORS AND OaiGIN OF HYMNS.

he stood; weak and inadequate as he was for the work
assigned him^ he woald pledge himself to furnish them
with the best sermon that ever had been delivered.
Opening the Bible, he proceeded to read our Lord's Ser-
mon on the Mount; which he concluded without a single
word of his own by way of note or comment. He closed
the service with singing and prayer. 'No imitator has
been able to produce equal effect.

Another fact does bear on the hymn. In 1796 the late
Eev. Dr. Bogue preached one of the first sermons before
the London Missionary Society. One of Eowland Hill's
biographers tells us, " Mr. Bogue, in the course of his
sermon, said, ' We are called this evening to the funeral
of Bigotry ; and I hope it will be buried so deep as never
to rise again.' The whole vast body of people mani-
fested their concurrence, and could scarcely refrain from
one general shout of joy. Such a scene perhaps was
never beheld in our world, and afforded a glorious ear-
nest of that nobler assembly where we shall meet all
the redeemed, and before the throne of the Lamb shall
sing, as in the last hymn of the service, —

* Crown him, crown him, crown him Lord of all !* "

Mr. Jones adds, " There is reason to fear that there
has been a resurrection of this enemy of the Church ;
but till the close of life Mr. Hill often repeated the re-
mark of a favorite author: — ^<Mr. Bigotry fell down
and broke his leg. Would that he had broken his neck!' "

Digitized by

Google

ALEXANDER POPE. 225

ALEXANDER POPE.

This siDgular and erratic genius, who was born in
London in 1688 and died in 1744, was the author of a
well-known ode, formerly exceedingly popular with our
village choirs, and still retained in some of our books : —

** Vital spark of heayenly flame."

It was written at the request of Steele, to whom Pope
says, " You have it, as Cowley calls it, just warm from
the brain. It came to me the first moment I waked
this morning: yet you'll see it was not absolutely in-
spiration, but that I had in my head, not only the verses
of Hadrian, but the fine fragment of Sappho." Warton
says he had in his head also the verses of Thomas
Flatman, an obscure rhymer of Charles the Second's
day:—

** When on my sick-bed I languish,
Full of sorrow, full of anguish,
Fainting, gasping, trembling, crying.
Panting, groaning, spiritless, dying,
Methinks I hear some gentle spirit say,
*Be not fearful, come away,* " —

which certainly bear a strong resemblance to some of
the lines of Pope.

The excellent John Wesley, in giving an account of
a visit he made to Bolton, in Lancashire, in the summer
of 1787, tells us that, in the evening of a Sabbath on
which he had addressed eight hundred Sabbath-school

Digitized by

Google

226 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

children, he desired forty or fifty of them to sing Pope's

ode, —

" Vital spark of heavenly flame ;"

and he adds, " Although some of them were silent, not
being able, to sing for tears, yet the harmony was such
as I believe could not be equalled in the King's Chapel."

REV. THOMAS RAFFLES, D.D., LL.D.

Perhaps no man in England who has never been in
the United States has been so frequently seen by
Americans in the pulpit as Dr. Eaffles. He is a native
of London, born about 1788, and was first-cousin to the
late Sir Stamford Baffles, Governor of Ceylon. Con-
verted in early life, he became a student for the ministry
at Homerton College, and was ordained pastor of the
Congregational Church at Hammersmith, near London,
in 1809. We have already spoken of Dr. Collyer; and a
short passage contained in the charge given by him to
Dr. Eaffles at his ordination, when Dr. C. was himself
but twenty-seven years of age, will show the intimacy
between these two eminent men when yet in their
youth : — " The circumstances under which I am address-
ing you, my brother and friend, are not without interest.
"We have long known and loved each other; we have
shared our pleasures and anxieties mutually and for
some years; we have formed as clear conceptions and
obtained as perfect a knowledge of each other's character

Digitized by

Google

REV. THOMAS RAFFLES^ D.D., LL.D. 227

as it is possible to possess in the present state. In what-
ever points this charge may be deficient, I am sure it
will not be in affection."

In Angnst^ 1811, an event occnrred at Liverpool which
spread consternation through what has been called the
religious world. The Rev. Thomas Spencer, — ^who, long
before he had reached the age of twenty years, had at-
tained popularity as a preacher to which none at so early
an age had ever risen, excepting perhaps the late Rev.
William Jay, of Bath, — ^while a new large church edifice
was being built for him in Liverpool, was drowned while
bathing in the river Mersey; and the pulpit he would
have occupied a mysterious Providence thus reserved
for Dr. Raffles; and, as the pastor of this church, now
worshipping in a still larger edifice, he has ever since
most efficiently labored.

Dr. Raffles out of the pulpit is one of the most affable,
unaffected, and delightful of companions : good nature
sparkles in his clear, large blue eye, plays about his
mouth, and is imprinted in every line of his countenance.
But in the pulpit, solemnity banishes every other feel-
ing, and he is evidently impressed with a consciousness
of his momentous mission as the servant of God. When
he enters the sacred desk, he evidently leaves behind
him all that is earthly, and stands only as the minister
of mercy between a holy God and sinful man.

'No man can hear Dr. Rafiles even read a hymn with-
out seeing and feeling him to be a poet ; and the few
hymns of his which we have in our books will most cer-

Digitized by

Google

228 AUTHOES AND OEIGIN OF HYMNS.

tainly confirm the impression. As, for instance, the

Qne, —

"Blest hour, when mortal man retires,*'

attracts us sweetly from earth and brings us into de-
lightful communion with Deity. In using his hymns,
there is nothing to lessen our confidence in the piety and
eminent usefulness of their author, but every thing to
increase the Christian love and sympathy we must de-
sire to cherish.

For a long series of years Dr. Baffles has prepared
and circulated among his people, on every 1st of Janu-
ary, a pastoral hymn adapted to that special season,
which, regularly as it is published, appears in the
columns of the ^^New York Observer'* Cordially do we
unite in saying, with the editors of that paper, in giving
the hymn ^^No Night in Heaven^* (Kev. xxii. 5,) " For the
Early Prayer-Meeting y New Yeafs morning, 1858," " We
trust the venerable and accomplished pastor may be
spared to furnish many another spiritual song for his
hearers and our readers."

REV. ANDREW REED, D.D.

Several popular and excellent hymns are to be found
in our books from the pen of this now venerable Con-
gregational clergyman, who for a very long series of
years has been eminently successful in London. In
1834-35, Dr. Eeed, in company with the late Eev. Dr.

Digitized by

Google

BEY. ROBERT BOBINSON. 229

Matheson, visited this country as a deputation to its
churches from the Congregational Union of England and
Wales: they were received with much cordiality, and
their ministerial labors were highly acceptable. Dr.
Eeed has published a number of useful works, including
"2%e Hymn-Book,'^ consisting of original and selected
compositions, used by many of the churches of his order
in Great Britain.

REV. ROBERT ROBINSON.

EoBERT EoBiNSON, the author of two hymns in our
collections, —

"Come, thou Fount of eyery blessing,"
and

" Mighty God, while angels bless thee,"

was in his day a very extraordinary man. While a
very poor lad, and an apprentice to a barber in Norwich,
England, he was brought under deep religious feeling
by the preaching of the distinguished Greorge White-
field, and soon after began to preach at the Tabernacle
in Whitefield's connection in that city. At twenty-five
he was called to the pastorate of the Baptist Church at
Cambridge, where — ^and indeed wherever he was known —
he attained great popularity. He was eccentric both in
his religious views and his social habits. A few words
in reference to each of the hymns we have spoken of
may not be without their use. ^

20

Digitized by

Google

230 AUTHOBS AND OBIGIN 07 HYMNS.

The former one, —

« Come, tbou Fount of eyery blessing,"

wiw written in early life, and was first published, in a some-
what different form from what we have it at present,
in the collections of Mr. Whitefield and the Eev. Dr. C-
Evans. From a descendant of one of the parties referred
to in the narrative, we received, some twenty years since,
the affecting statement we now make. In the latter part
of his life, when Mr. Eobinson seemed to have lost much
of his devotional feeling, and when he indulged in habits
of levity, he was travelling in a stage-coach with a lady,
who soon perceived that he was well acquainted with
religion. She had just before been reading the hymn of
which we are writing, and asked his opinion of it, — as
she might properly do, since neither of them knew who
the other was. He waived the subject, and turned her
attention to some other topic ; but, after a short period,
she contrived to return to it, and described the benefits
she had often derived from the hymn, and her strong
admiration of its sentiments. She observed that the
gentleman was strongly agitated, but, as he was dressed
in colored clothes, did not suspect the cause. This garb
Bobinson was compelled to assume in travelling, as
wherever he was known he was pressed to stay to
preach. At length, entirely overcome by the power of
his feelings, he burst into tears, and said, <^ Madam, I am
the poor, unhappy man who composed that hymn many
years ago ; and I would give a thousand worlds, if I had
them, to enjoy the feelings I then had." An anecdote

Digitized by

Google

EKY. JOHN BTLAND; D.D. 231

similar to this was often told by the late Eev. Thomas
Morgan, of Birmingham, of almost the same language
being used by Mr. Eobinson to one of the most eminent
ministers of his own denomination.

The other hymn to which we have referred, —

^ "Mighty God, while angels bless thee,"

the second line of which was written by Mr. Robinson

" May an infant lisp thy name,"

was composed for the use of the late excellent Benjamin
Williams, Esq., for many years senior deacon of the
First Baptist Church at Beading, England, — ^a man of
great influence and usefulness. When a little boy, Ben-
jamin sat on Eobinson's knee while he wrote this hymn,
who, after having read it to him, placed it in his hand.
Well do we remember the deep feeling with which the
venerable man described to us the scene as we sat
with him at his own fireside.

REV. JOHN RYLAND, D.D.

Very few Baptists, probably, can be found who have
not heard the name of Eyland, borne by two eminent
ministers of that body in England. The younger one,
Dr. John Eyland, is the hymn-writer of whom we now
speak. He was born in 1753, and even in childhood
began to write hymns, some of which were printed in

Digitized by

Google

232 AUTHORS AKD ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

the old magazines of that day, with the signature of J. R,
Junr. Before he had attained the age of five years, he
was able to read the Twenty-Third Psalm in Hebrew, and
at nine years could read the entire New Testament in
Greek. At fourteen he was baptized by his father, and
at eighteen preached his first sermon. After assisting
his father for several years, he became his successor in
1786. In 1792, Brown University, in Ehode Island, con-
ferred on him the degree of D.D, ; and in the year follow-
ing he became the President of the Baptist College in
Bristol, — a position he occupied, in connection with the
pastorate of a large church, till his decease, in 1825. He
was one of the founders of the English Baptist Missionary
Society, and after the death of the Rev. Andrew Fuller,
in 1816, was elected one of its secretaries, — ^an office he
filled for two or three years. He was regarded by the
excellent Dr. John Pye Smith as the most eminent
theologian of his day, as he certainly was among the
most distinguished Hebrew scholars. Robert Hall
preached his funeral sermon, and became his successor
as the pastor of Broadmead Church in Bristol.
Most of our hymn-books contain the hymn, —

"In aU my Lord's appointed ways ;**

but probably it is not generally known that it is really
but the smaller portion of a hymn written in the latter
part of the last century by Dr. Eyland, then of North-
ampton, — ^the whole of which has never, we believe, been
printed, except in Dr. Bippon's Selection of Hymns for

Digitized by

Google

REY. JOHN RTLAND, D.D. &55

Baptist churches, formerly extensively used in this
country. Its origin was rather singular. Several stage-
coaches daily passed through the town; and, as the good
pastor lived at no great distance from the inn where
they exchanged horses, he generally contrived to meet
every evangelical minister who travelled through the
town, and not unfrequently almost compelled them to
stay a day on the road, that they might give his people
a sermon in the evening. On one occasion he had thus
treated a brother in the ministry, who most reluctantly
yielded and appeared in the pulpit with the text,
" Hinder me not," (Gen. xxiv. 56.) Dr. Eyland, as is still
customary in England, sat in the desk below the pulpit
to read the hymns; and, as his brother proceeded, every
^^head of discourse" was "turned into poetry," which at
the end of the sermon was duly read and a portion of it
sung. It begins, in the original hymn, —

"When Abraham's servant, to procure
A wife for Isaac, went."

The whole consisted of nine verses, of which the last
four only are now used.

Many of our collections, especially those intended for
young people, contain a hymn beginning, —

" Lord, teach a little child to pray ;
Thy grace betimes impart;"

which had an interestiug origin. The late Kev. and ex-
cellent Andrew Fuller, of Kettering, England, lost a
daughter in 1786, who died very young, but not without

20*

Digitized by

Google

234 AUTHORS AND OBIGIN OF HYMNS.

first giving good evidence of possessing experimental
piety. While she lay sick, — which she did for some
. months, — ^Dr. Eyland, of Bristol, at the request of her
fkther, wrote this little hymn for her special use. Speak-
ing of her and the hymn, Mr. Fuller says, ^^ She had some
verses composed-for her by our dear friend Mr. Eyland.
These, when we rode out for the air, she often requested
me to say over to her. She several times requested me
to pray with her. I asked her again if she tried to pray
herself: I found by her answer that she did, and was
accustomed to pray over the hymn composed for her."

After the death of little Sarah, Mr. Fuller printed a
large number of copies of the hymn on small slips of
paper, and distributed them among the shop-keepers of
the town, requesting them to wrap up the thread used
by very many children in that neighborhood for making
the lace then only wrought on pillows ; so that when a
little girl purchased a pennyworth or two of thread she
obtained also a hymn. By this means thousands were
circulated oyer the land, and soon got into several
books, by which we trust its usefulness will long be per-
petuated.

Digitized by

Google

HON. AND REV. WALTER SHIRLEY. 236

HON. AND REV. WALTER SHIRLEY.

Some of our collections contain hymns beginning, — .
** From heayen the loud, the angelic song began,"
" Hark I in the wildemesB a cry,"
** Flow fast my tears, thy cause is great,"
" Sweet ilB the shepherd's tuneful reed,"
** Source of light and power divine,"

and a few others which were written in the last century
by the Honorable and Eeverend Walter Shirley, the
friend of Whitefield and Wesley and the personal friend
but doctrinal opponent of the well-known Eev. John
Fletcher : he was also a relative and valued friend of the
excellent Countess of Huntingdon, the pulpits of whose
chapels he frequently supplied. He was eminently suc-
cessful as an Episcopal minister at Loughrea, in Ireland,
to the inhabitants of which place he dedicated a volume
of excellent sermons. Mr. Shiriey composed some very
animated lines on the departure in 1772, two years after
the death of Whitefield, of several missionaries from
Lady Huntingdon's college to this country. He died in
his sixty-first year, in 1786, of a very painful disease; but
such was the extent of his holy zeal that, though for
some time before his death he was unable to lie down in
bed, he sat in his chair and frequently preached to great
numbers, who crowded the drawing-rooms, the lobbies, and
the staircase as &r as his voice could be heard; and the
testimony of God to his ministry was truly remarkable.

Digitized by

Google

23$ AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

LYDIA HUNTLEY SIGOURNEY.

. Whsre is the modem American hymn-book which
does not rejoice in some of the compositions of Mrs.
Sigourney ? and whose hymns are more beautiful, more
evangelical, or more generally acceptable ? She was a
native of Norwich, Connecticut, and at three years of
age might be seen reading her Bible. Her early genius
was happily fostered, and at the age of eight years she
knew how to express her thoughts in writing with ease
and beauty.

In 1819 Miss Huntley was married to Charles Sigourney,
Esq., of Hartford, from whom a year or two since she
was separated by the hand of death; but she is still blest
with an amiable daughter. Her life has been distinguished
by almost incessant activity in the duties of female edu-
cation, and in writing an ample variety of volumes and
essays both in prose and verse, all of which are beautiful
and useful; nor will she, as we believe, regret on a dying
pillow the production of any one of them. Many years
ago we published in England a selection of her poetry,
collected by ourselves, under the title of ^^Lays from the
West;*' and most of her productions since that time have
been republished in that land. It has been well said
that " her position as first in purity and talent among
the lady writers of America has never been disputed by
a person worthy the name of critic."

Digitized by

Google

ANNE STEELE. 237

REV. S. F. SMITH, D.D.

This excellent Baptist minister of New England
is well known as a gentleman of literary taste, and
the author of many highly acceptable hymns, in-
cluding, —

" Softly fades the twilight ray,"
and

*' Tea, my natiye land, I loTe thee."

He was also one of the editors of the hymn-book used
by his own denomination, called "TAd PsalmisV^ He
needs no further praise, nor need his character be more
fully described.

ANNE STEELE.

This lady, usually in England called Mrs, Steele,
having become advanced in years, unmarried, was the
writer of many of our favorite hymns. She was the
eldest daughter of the Kev. William Steele, pastor of
the Baptist church at Broughton, in Hampshire, Eng-

land, and was bom in 1716.

Very tittle is known of her.

even though Dr. Caleb Evans, of Bristol, published a
memoir of one whom he highly esteemed, living, and
whose three volumes of poetry, under the name of " Thea-
dosia" he greatly assisted to publish.^i^^t fourteen she
was baptized and united with the church under the pas-
torate of her father, sustaining that connection till her

Digitized by

Google

238 AUTHORS AND OEIGHN OP HYMNS.

death in 1778, in the sixty-second year of her age. Even
in early life she was exceedingly fond of poetry, but
"was always unwUling that what she wrote should be
made public ; and, though she at length yielded to the
importunities of her friends, she always withheld her
name. In early life, she consented to give her hand to
a worthy young man named Elscourt, and the day for
the wedding was fixed -, but a few hours before the in-
tended event he went into the river to bathe, incau-
tiously passed beyond his depth, and was drowned.
Never again did her heart warm with human love.

The remaining part of Miss Steele's life was spent
in retirement, manifesting, as Dr. Evans says, "unaf-
fected humility, warm benevolence, sincere friendship,
and genuine devotion." Her capacious mind was clothed
with a weak and languid body} and the death of her
father, to whom she was most ardently attached, gave
such a shock to her frame that, though she survived him
for some years, she never recovered from it. Though
from the period of her father's decease she was confined
to her chamber, she looked with sweet resignation to
the time of her removal from earth ; and, when it hap-
pily arrived, she was, amidst great pain, full of peace
and joy. She took the most affectionate leave of her
friends who stood weeping around her, uttered the tri-
umphant words, "I know that iny Eedeemer liveth,"
closed her eyes, and fell asleep in Jesus. A very appro-
priate inscription, written by one of her nieces, was
inscribed on her tombstone : —

Digitized by

Google

EEV. SAMUBL STENN|:TT, D.D.

*< Silent the lyre, and dumb the tuneful tongue.

That sung on earth her great Eedeemer's praise ;
But now in heaven she joins the angelic song
In more exalted, more harmonious lays.'*

Mrs. Steele's hymns, as the reader well knows, are
highly esteemed in all our churches: they are the
hreathings of a living soul, and have alike drawn forth
the sympathizing tear, the rapturous song, and the pre-
vailing prayer. Long will she continue to sing on earth
and to educate saints for heaven.

REV. SAMUEL STENNETT, D.D.

Ths family of the Stennetts tonished successive
ministers to the Baptist denomination for more than a
century, when the name became entirely extinct. The
most eminent of the family was Samuel, the son of Jo-
seph Stennett, pastor of the Baptist church at Exeter,
England. Samuel was bom in 1727 and died in 17Qd.
His fiither moved to Little Wild Street, London, in 1737,
and in early life his son became first his assistant and
afterward his successor. He was an eminent scholar,
and was honored with a degree of D.D. by the King's
College at Aberdeen, and was a personal friend of his
sovereign, George III., for whom it was said he read
books, criticisms on which the king used to retail as
his own. His literary style had all the elegant sim-
plicity of Addison combined with more strength than

Digitized by

Google

240 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

that eminent writer. So particular was Dr. Stennett in
his extempore delivery, that he often made long pauses
in the pulpit to select the best word he could find to ex-
press his ideas. He was offered high preferment in the
Church of England, but his answer was, " I dwell among
mine own people,'' and he resolutely declined. His
hymns are extensively known and are highly valued.

As Dr. Stennett approached old age, the death of
his wife greatly afflicted him, but was sanctified so as
to raise him above "this present evil world," and he
gave full evidence that he had no desire to remain longer
on earth. When almost confined to his bed, he prayed
earnestly in his family " that God would give him an
easy passage out of life ;" " and God granted him that
which he requested." Some vinegar combined with
other ingredients being given him as a gargle for his
throat, he said, with great emotion, " ' And in his thirst
they gave him vinegar to drink.' Oh, when I reflect
upon, the sufferings of Christ, I am ready to ask. What
have I been thinking of all my life ? What he did and
suffered are now my only support." Eeferring to the
tenets of TJnitarianism, he said, " What should I do now
if I had only such opinions to support me?"

Digitized by

Google

REV. AMOS SUTTON, D.D. 241

REV. AMOS SUTTON, D.D.

The well-known hymn, —

<<Hail, sweetest, dearest tie that binds I"

was written by the truly excellent and learned Dr. Sut-
ton, who died after many years of suecessM missionary
labor at Orissa, India. He was of very humble origin,
and in early life was distinguished for ignoranoe and
pro&nity. Changed by the grace of Grod, he attached
himself to a General Baptist Church in London^ and,
after due preparation, engaged in missionary labors.
He more than once visited this country, and deeply in-
terested the Free-Will Baptists in the cause to which he
had devoted his life. For his second wife he married an
American lady. However beautiful the hymn to which
we have alluded, its Aill excellence could only be realized
by those who heard it read and sung by its author, who
not unfirequently closed the public meetings he attended
by leading in its use. At one of these meetings, at the
dose of an ordination in which we were engaged with
him, in 1884, in the English metropolis, we heard it
for the first time; nor do we expect, if by sovereign
mercy we reach the heavenly world, to lose the still
cherished feelings which it then excited.

Digitized by

Google

242 AUTHO&S AND OBIQIN Of HTMNS.

STERNHOLD AND HOPKINS.

These gentlemen, with H. Wisdome and others, who
assisted them in what is called " The Version of the
Psalms" claim a niche in our volume, were it only, as
old Thomas Fuller says, that they were " men whose
piety was better than their poetry, and they had drank
more of Jordan than of Helicon." Of the design of
their work he says, " It was to make them more portable
in people's memories, verses being twice as light as the
selfsame bulk in prose;" and he adds that although
^' many have since refined these translations, yet their
labors therein were never generally received in the
Church, principally because un-book-leamed people have
conned by heart many psalms of the one translation,
which would be wholly disinherited of their patrimony if
a new edition were set forth."

Sternhold was indeed a singular man. He was groom
of th« bedchamber to Henry YIII. and to Edward YL,
and impropriator of the buildings and lands of the priory
of Bodmin, as well as versifier of the book of Psalms.
Bishops Beveridge and Horsley strenuously defended
the faithfulness of the old version as a just, accurate,
and dignified rendering of the Psalms; while Collier
calls this " old version" a popular innovation during the
first years of the Eeformation.

It is said of the celebrated Scaliger that he was so

Digitized by

Google

8TERNH0LD AND HOPKINS. 248

delighted with the famons stanza of Sternhold and Hop-
kins in the eighteenth Psalm, —

*' On cherub and on cherubim
Full royally he rode,
And on the wings of mighty winds
Came flying all abroad/'

that he used to. profess that he had rather be the anthor
of it than to have governed the kingdom of Aragon.
The well-known psalm, —

"All people that on earth do dwell,'*

was the old favorite version of the one-hundredth Psalm,
and was the first English composition to which the tune
of the " Old Hundredth" was applied by our English fore-
fathers. It has, therefore, great historical value and a
special adaptation to one of the noblest tunes in the
" service of song."

" It is amusing," as the Eev. Henry Fish has remarked,
'^ to look back and contemplate the strong feeling which
existed at one period among a certain class of clergy-
men, and some of those enlightened ones, against any
innovations upon Sternhold and Hopkins." Even the
celebrated Eomaine, on one occasion at least, argued as
if the words of Sternhold and Hopkins, which were sung
in the churches, were the words of the Holy Ghost.

Digitized by

Google

244 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNB.

REV. JOSEPH SWAINE.

<<CoMB, ye BQuls by sin afSicted/'

and several other sweetly melting hymns by this writer
to be found in our collections, were derived from a
small volume which he himself published. Mr. Swaine
was of the humblest origin, and was bom at Birming-
ham, England, in 1761. In early life he devoted him-
self to sinful gayety ; but, becoming partially enlightened
as to the truths of the gospel, and while struggling for
clearer views of Christianity, he began to write hymns.
He was one day overheard by a neighbor singing one
of them, who, hearing it was his own, invited him to
go to a house of worship with him; and he said to his
friend, " I am sure what the preacher said is true; for he
has described my feelipgs better than I can myself." In
1791 he began to preach at Walworth, London, and
organized a Baptist church, where he labored with great
success for five years, the house within that period being
three times enlarged. But at the age of thirty-five he
was removed by death, leaving behind him a reputation
still fragrant and precious.

Mr. Swaine always regarded the seraphic Samuel
Pearce, of Birmingham, as his spiritual father; and to him
he inscribed a long poem, in which he gave a highly-in-
teresting narrative of his conversion.

Digitized by

Google

WILLIAM B. TAPPAN. 245

WILLIAM B. TAPPAN.

Though this gentleman, who suddenly died in N'ew

England in 1849, was not possessed of the very highest

order of talent, — ^nor did he ever do justice to himself, for

want of care and pains, — ^he wrote several hymns for

which he will long be remembered- If his heart had

not been a well-spring of poetry, he could not have

written,-^

" *Tis midnight, — and on Olive's brow
The star is dimmed that lately shone/'

or,

** Holy be this as was the place
To him of Padan-aram known ;"

nor can Christians cease to love him when, assembled to
pray for the coming of Christ's kingdom, they raise the
triumphant anthem, —

"Wake, isles of the South! yo^r redemption is near,"

or when, in the midst of storms and trials, they seize the
lay of comfort and hope, —

« There is an hour of hallowed peace,"

or rise exultingly toward that world

" Where purity with love appears,
And bliss without alloy.
And they who oft have sown in tears
Shall reap again in joy."

Mr. Tappan was especially interested in the cause of

21*

Digitized by

Google

2S46 AUTHOi^ AND ORIQIN OF HYMNS.

Sunday-schools, and not nnfrequently acceptably occu-
pied the pulpits of his brethren, — which he did on almost
the last day of his life.

TATE AND BRADY.

We have classed these authors together because they
were associated in the publication, in the early part of
the eighteenth century, of the "iVeu? Version of the Psalms"
for use in the Church of England, — now, however, rapidly
disappearing from our midst. A few — and but few — of
them are truly valuable, and will continue to be used for
years to come. Nahum Tate was born in Dublin in the
year 1652 and died in 1716; and Nicholas Brady, a
clergyman of the Church of England, who published
many sermons, was born at Brandon, in Ireland, in 1659,
and died in 1726. It has been remarked as a curious
circumstance that both of the writers of the new version
of the Psalms intended for the special use of Englishmen
were natives of the Emerald Isle.

It is somewhat singular that neither the Old Version
nor the New ever possessed the direct authority of Con-
vocation, though the former so laid hold of the popular
mind that not even the translation of King James I.
could disturb it. The New Yersion only rests upon an
allowance "by the Court at Kensington," in 1696, "for
such congregations as shall think fit to receive it."

Digitized by

Google

G. TER8TEEGAN. 247

G. TERSTEEGAN.

Translations of several of the hymns of this excellent
German appear in our books. Perhaps the best-known
of them is the one, —

<< Thou hidden love of God, vhose height,"

and another, —

« Though all the world my choioe deride.''

He lived, in the beginning of the eighteenth century, a
life of deep, still communion with God, choosing the
occupation of a ribbon-weaver because of its tranquillity;
and from his humble home he shed a blessed influence
over large numbers who sought his counsel. His light
seems to have shone and to have been diffused not so
much by direct effort as because he himself dwelt so
much in the light. His piety was the fountain of his
poetry; and the beauty of his heavenly thoughts glows
through the rudeness of the earthen vessel which holds
them. He died at Miiilheim, on the Euhr, in the year
1769, at the age of seventy-six.

Digitized by

Google

248 AUTHORS AND ORIGIK Or HYMNS.

REV. AUGUSTUS M. TOPLADY.

This eminent man was the son of a military officer,
who died soon after his hirth. When about the age of
sixteen, he was brought to the knowledge of Christ by
the preaching of a layman in a barn in Ireland. Top-
lady was even then a scholar, and the preacher could
scarcely spell his own name. In 1762 he was ordained
in the ministry of the Church of England, and was
at length settled at Broad Hembury, in Devonshire,
where, and in London, he remained till his death in
1778, occasioned by consumption. The well-known beau-
tiful hymn, —

" Rock of ages, cleft for me,"

together with several others, proceeded from his pen,
and will long minister to the edification of the Church
of Christ. As a preacher, he united many qualifications
which captivated his hearers. He was remarkably dig-
nified and serious, yet pleasing, in his appearance, had a
melodious voice, graceful action, and much fluency of
speech. Nor did he fail to impress the hearts of many,
whose tears frequently flowed with his own. His un-
flinching fidelity may be seen from the fact that, when
once solicited to preach for a public charity, he saw
present a noble lord accustomed to the sports of the field,
and introduced a paragraph from a newspaper in which
he was described as beating his opponent by "jostling"

Digitized by

Google

REV. AUGUSTUS M. TOPLADY. 249

his horse into a ditch, and publicly cautioned his lordship
lest he shonld be "jostled" into hell. Seeing some of his
congregation smile, he solemnly exclaimed, "It is no
laughing-matter, gentlemen, to be jostled into hell V*

The death of Toplady was indeed that of the Chris-
tian. A short time before his decease, at his own re-
quest, his physician felt his pulse, and was asked what
he thought of it. His reply was that " the heart and
arteries beat weaker and weaker;" the reply of the
dying saint, as the sweetest of smiles sat on his counte-
nance, was, " Why, that is a good sign that my death is
fast approaching ; and, blessed be God, I can add that my
heart beats every day stronger and stronger for glory."
Still nearer to his end he said, " Oh, my dear sir, it is im-
possible to describe how good Grod is to me! Since I
have been sitting in this chair this afternoon — glory be
to his name! — I have enjoyed such a season, such sweet
communion with God, and such delightful manifestations
of his presence and love to my soul, that it is impossible
for any language to express them. I have had peace
and joy unutterable; and I fear not that God's consola-
tions and support will continue." But, immediately
recollecting himself, he continued, " What have I said ?
God may, to-be-sure, as a Sovereign, hide his face and
his smiles from me. However, I believe he will not ;
and if he should, yet still will I trust in him. I know I
am safe; for his love and his covenant are everlasting."
Within an hour of his death he said, "It will not be
long before God takes me; for no mortal man can

Digitized by

Google

250 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

live" — bursting, while he said it, into tears of joy — "after
the glories which God has manifested to, my soul."

Before we lay down our pen, we are disposed to refer
to a fact related by Dr. Pomeroy, in connection with a
visit he made a few years ago to an Armenian church
at Constantinople. He says that he was greatly pleased
with their singing, though he could not understand the
words. They all sung the same part, and while singing
the hymn their eyes were closed, and, as they sung, the
tears trickled down many cheeks. On inquiiy what the
hymn was, one of the missionaries told him it w_as, —

" Kock of ages, cleft for me."

The good doctor observes, with somewhat of deserved
severity, that " most members of our American churches
take precious good care that the singing shall have no
such effect on them."

MISS TUCK.

A BEAUTIFUL hymn on heaven, beginning, —

" There is a region lovelier far,"

and one or two others of a similarly sweet spirit, adorn
some of our books. They were written by a Baptist
lady at Frome, Somersetshire, England, whose pen has
long furnished articles for some of the English maga-
zines.

Digitized by

Google

EEV. DANIEL TUBNEB. 251

REV. DANIEL TURNER.

Most of our hymn-books contain a hymn beginning,—

"Beyond the glittering, starry sky;"

and we have seen some three or four names attached to
it as its author. The hymn, which may be seen at full
length in the " Baptist MemoriaV for 1849, and which
contains twenty-eight verses, was the joint production
of two English Baptist ministers of the last century.
This question is forever set at rest in a note addressed
by the Eev. Daniel Turner, of Abingdon, to the Eev.
Dr. Rippon, of London, who published it in the " Bap-
tist Register,'* of which he was the editor. The note,
dated February 22, 1791, ran thus: — "As to your in-
quiry concerning the hymn, ^ Jesus seen of AngelSj it is
true, as you were told by our good brother Medley,
that one part of it was made by my dear friend the
Eev. James Fanch, of Rumsey, and the other part by
me/'

Mr. Turner wrote also the hymn, —

"Jesus, full of all compassion,"

and one or two others in common use.

He was bom in 1710 and died in 1798. He was ori-
ginally a schoolmaster, but in 1748 became pastor of the
Baptist Church at Abingdon, Berkshire, England, — ^an
office he filled for fifty years. He published a work on

Digitized by

Google

202 AUTH0B8 AND OIUQIN OF HYMNS.

the sabject of full ChriBtian communion among the
churches of his own denomination, and an excellent
volume entitled " A Compendium of Social Beligion"

REV. BENJAMIN WALLIN.

This gentleman, the author of the hymn,—

" Hail, mighty Jesus I how divine
Is thy yictorious sword!"

was the son of the Rev. Edward Wallin, pastor of the
Baptist Church, Maze Pond, London, where he was born
in 1711. Though educated by his father, Benjamin says,
^' Under his judicious and affectionate instructions, both
as a parent and a minister, I continued a long time a
melancholy instance of the insufficiency of the best of
means without a special blessing; but, I trust, before
his removal it pleased God, who is rich in mercy, to
open the eyes of my understanding and to change what
was before only the form to the power of godliness."
He was educated under the Rev. John Keedham and
the Rev. Dr. Stennett ; but, having no thoughts of the
ministry, he entered into business ; and several attempts
were made to induce him to preach before he consented.
Three times did the church at Maze Pond invite his ser-
vices in this way, and he replied, " When I consider the
design of such a call to be employed more or less in
preaching the gospel, the very thought strikes me with

Digitized by

Google

REV. W. WARD. 253

terror. It is a work of an awful nature." In July,
1740, he consented to preach for the first time ; and in
October, 1741, he was ordained as successor to his father.
He occupied this position more than forty years, dying
in February, 1782.

REV. W. WARD.

The well-known missionary hynm, —

<< Grreat God, th« nations of the earth,"

was written by the Rev. "William Ward on his voyage to
Bengal, in company with the late Rev. Dr. Marshman,
to join the immortal Carey in the great work of evan-
gelizing the heathen, in which labor they all spent their
lives, with results that will extend throughout eternity.
The manner in which Dr. Ward — ^for such he really
became, though his modesty led him to disown the title
— became connected with the mission should not be for-
gotten. A short time before Carey went to India, he was
walking in one of the streets of Hull, and was introduced
to a youth who had just made a profession of religion
and was then working with a printer in that town.
" We shall, by-and-by," said Carey, " want some one to
print our translations of the Scriptures : hold yourself
in readiness by the time you are needed." The circum-
stance deeply affected Ward's mind; and a few years
afterward he went out to do that very work, as well as
to be a pastor and an itinerant.

22

Digitized by

Google

254 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

Mr. Ward was bom at Derby, in England, in 1769,
and died in India in 1821. He paid two short visits to
this country, where, as in his voyage to England, he did
much to extend the spirit of missions, and collected con-
siderable sums to advance the college at Serampore,
which had been originated by himself and his brethren.

REV. RALPH WARDLAW, D.D.,

The author of several beautiful hymns, including the
sacramental one, —

** Remember thee ! Remember Christ I"

was one of the earliest Congregational ministers in Scot-
land, where he very successfhlly labored in the ministry
for fifty years. He was bom in 1779, sent to the Uni-
versity of Glasgow before he was twelve years of age,
and ordained in that city in 1803. He published, besides
his hymn-book, a very large number of admirable works,
and left others in manuscript. He died in 1853, aged
seventy-four years. Few men of his day rendered more
service to Christ and his Church.

REV. HENRY WARE, D.D.

This gentleman, whose talents and learning were very
eminent, was a member of a family devoted to the minis-
try among the Unitarians, while both his father and

Digitized by

Google

REV. ISAAO WATTS, D.D. 255

himself were professors in Harvard University. He
was bom in Massachusetts in 1794, graduated at Har-
vard in 1812, and ordained in Boston in 1817. He was
eminently devoted to his duties, and, as the result of
excessive labors, suffered greatly for several years in
health. He died in 1843. His hymns, few in number,
are lovely in their spirit, but seem to us defective as to
the great doctrines of evangelical religion.

H. S. WASHBURN.

This gentleman, the author of several hymns, in-
cluding a patriotic one in several of our books, —

" Let every heart rejoice and sing,"
is a Christian merchant, connected with a Baptist church
in New England. He has rendered important literary
and other services to the cause of our common Chris-
tianity, the happy results of which we hope he may
long live to witness.

REV. ISAAC WATTS, D.D.

It has been well remarked, by the anonymous author
of " The Voice of Christian Life in Song" that with the
eighteenth century the history of English hymn-books be-
gins. The two earliest names on the long list of that cen-
tury link the story of the faith iii England, in an interest-

Digitized by

Google

256 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNB.

ing way, with that of th^ persecuted Protestants on the
Continent. Dr. Watts, born in 1674, was desc^ided,
through his mother, from a Huguenot family driven
from France by the persecutions in the early part of
Queen Elizabeth's reign. And Dr. Doddridge doubtless,
in his childhood, when his mother had finished the Bible-
lesson from the pictured Dutch tiles, would often ask for
the story of her father Dr. John Baumann's flight from
Bohemia, with his little store of money bound up in his
girdle, and Luther's German Bible, for all his heritage.
Traditions of other ancestral wrongs and faithfulness
deepened the early piety of the two great Nonconformist
hymn-writers, — the pathetic stories of those patient suf-
ferings for conscience' sake which, next to the martyr-
doms of Mary's time, form the most thrilling chapter in
the history of English Protestantism, — stories not then
condensed into national history, but which the sufferers
yet lived to tell; for Dr. Watts's mother also had her
tales of her son's own infancy, when his father lay in
prison for his convictions and she had sat on the stones
of his prison-door with her first-born in her arms.

It has been well said that Isaac Watts was bom a poet.
His father was a deacon of the Independent or Congre-
gational Church at Southampton, where Isaac was born
in 1674. His ancestors had been musical: his father
was not only a man of taste and intelligence, but was
given to "versing;" and his mother used to offer in
their boarding-school prizes of farthings for the best poet-
ical effusions. When Isaac was some seven years old.

Digitized by

Google

REV. ISAAC WATTS, D.D. 267

his mother's copper medal was gained by a somewhat
saucy couplet produced by her sou : —

" I "write not for your farthing, but to try
Holf I your farthing- writers can outvie."

Three years did Watts pursue his studies for the Dis-
senting ministry, under the superintendence of the Eev.
Mr. Eowe, at Newington, now absorbed in London, and
at little more than eighteen returned to his father's house
to devote himself to more private reading and study in
preparation for the sacred office. With the church in
which his father held office he worshipped. At that
period there were congregations which eschewed all
psalmody, and in whose worship there was to be heard
as little of the voice of melody as in a meeting-house of
*^ Friends." But this was not the case in the congrega-
tion of the Eev. Nathaniel Robinson. They sang ; and
some have said it was from Stemhold and Hopkins, or
from Barton's books; but, unless our memory greatly
deceives us, we saw some half-century ago a volume of
hymns published by one Brown, then sung at South-
ampton. Some of these were mere doggerel ; but, if we
remember rightly, some of Watts's own book only pre-
sented a revised form of what were written by his prede-
cessor. At all events, Isaac, at about eighteen, greatly
complained of the entire want of taste in the hymns
generally used, and in return was challenged to produce
something better. Conscious of his powers, he under-
took to do 80, and very shortly afterward the service of

Digitized by

Google

258 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

the day wag closed by the beautiful compoBition which
begins his first book : —

** Behold the glories of the Lamb."

This attempt was an innovation^ and the poet was a
prophet of their own country ; but to the devotional in-
stincts of the worshippers so welcome was this "new
song*' that they entreated the author to repeat the ser-
vice, till, the series extending Sunday after Sunday, a
sufficient number had been contributed to form the basis
of a book. Such was the commencement of a work
which has aided millions in their devotions, and which
will, probably, be useful to the Church of Christ till the
end of time.

This volume, however, was not published till the year
1707, when he issued the " Hymns and Spiritual Songs.*'
For the copyright, Mr. Lawrence, the . publisher, gave
him ten pounds ; and in less than ten years six editions
had been sold. Twelve years afterward he published
what he regarded his greatest work, " The Psalms of
David imitated in the Language of the New Testament.'^
In reference to this latter work, the American reader
will assuredly examine with interest a letter written by
its author to the Eev. Dr. Cotton Mather. Its date was
London, March 17, 1717-18.

" To my honored and dear friend,

Dr. Cotton Mather of New England.
" Eev. and Dear Sir : — I may persuade myself of a
hearty acceptance of this little present I make you.

Digitized by

Google

REV. ISAAC WATTS, D.D. 259

They are the fruits of some easy hoars this last year,
wherein I have not sought poetical flourish, hut simpli-
city of style and verse for the use of vulgar [common]
Christians.

" 'Tis not a translation of David that I pretend, hut
an imitation of him so nearly in Christian hymns that
the Jewish psalmist may plainly appear yet leave Juda-
ism hehind. My little essay that attends this manu-
script will render some of my reasons for this way of
introducing the ancient Psalms in the worship of the
New Testament.

" The notes I have frequently inserted at the end are
chiefly to render the world a reason for the particular
liberties I assumed in each Psalm.

" If I may he so happy as to have your free censure
and judgment of 'em, it will help me in correcting others
by them. I entreat you, sir, that none of them may
steal out into public. If God allow me one year more,
even under my present weakness, I hope he will enable
me to finish my design. To him be all the glory.
Amen. Tour most affectionate lover and obliged friend,

" I. Watts."

Mr. Montgomery — and few men were more capable
of forming a correct judgment — says that "Br. Watts
may almost be called the inventor of hymns in our lan-
guage ; for he so far departed from all precedent that
few of his compositions resemble those of his forerun-
ners; while he so far established a precedent to all his
successors, that none have departed from it, otherwise

Digitized by

Google

260 AUTHORS AND OBIQIN OF HYMNS.

than as according to the peculiar turn of mind in the
writer and the style of expressing Christian truths em-
ployed by the denomination to which he belonged."

Equally true and beautiM are the same author's re-
marks on Watts's ^^ Divine Songs for Children." He says,
" These form so small a portion of his multiform labors,
that were they expunged the eye could scarcely perceive
the bulk of one of the volumes diminished. Yet who
can calculate the innocent pleasure and the abiding profit
which those few leaves have afforded to myriads of
minds through the lapse of a century? And, much
morC) who can estimate the treasure of instruction and
delight which would thereby be lost to millions hereafter
through ages untold V

It has been well said, by another writer, " It may ap-
pear at the last day that this little work was the most
useful of all his publications. He has done very much
by it to Christianize more than one-quarter of the world."

"We think it is Cecil who says that nothing about Dr.
Watts surprised him so much as that he should have de-
scended from writing his " Logic" to compose his beauti-
ful " Divine Songs for Children.'* To this we are disposed
to reply that his severer exercises of mind most ad-
mirably prepared Jiini for the clear and simple compo-
sitions in which he afterward engaged. These beau-
tiful " Songs'' carry about them evident indications of
fine mental training and sweet condescension of spirit
and manners, which will be admired in many of these
compositions till the end of time.

Digitized by

Google

EEV. ISAAC WATTS, B.D. 261

We may mention here a tradition still prevalent in
the county of Essex. Castle Hedingham, in that county,
was situated not very far from London, where the doctor
then resided. At the castle, from which the village
took its name, lived an excellent family, named Ashhurst,
who were frequently ^visited hy Dr. Watts and other
London ministers. In the beautiful and secluded grounds
of that lovely spot, tradition tells us, the pious poet com-
posed many of his " Divine Songs.*' We can easily be-
lieve the statement, as also that the delightful scenery
suggested some of the finest thoughts.

The remark often made that the interest we take in a
hymn is greatly augmented when we know its history,
has seldom been more strikingly illustrated than in the
composition of Watts beginning, —

** How yain are all things here below !''

It is well known that the worthy doctor lived and
died a bachelor. The cause of this seems to have been
that in early life he met with a severe disappointment.
Attracted alike by the personal, the intellectual, and the
spiritual loveliness of Miss Elizabeth Singer, afterward
the well-known Mrs. Kowe, Isaac Watts tendered to her
his heart and his hand, and was unhappily repulsed, —
the lady telling him that, though she loved the jewel,
she could not admire the casket which contained it.
Thus was poor Watts treated, as were others, by this
excellent but surely somewhat capricious lady, whom

Digitized by

Google

262 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OP HYMNS.

Mrs. Barbauld in some degree taunted when she said to

her, in the language of high compliment, —

" Thynne, Cartaret, Blackmore, Orrery approTed,
And Prior praised, and noble Hertford loTed :
Seraphic Ken and tuneful Waits were thine,
And Virtue's noblest champions filled the line."

Though disappointed and griev^, the pious poet sub-
mitted to what he considered an arrangement qf Divine
Providence, and then wrote the hymn to which we have
referred, the beauty of which both the Christian and
the poet will admire. Happy the man who could at
such a time pray,

" Dear Sayiour, let thy beauties be
I My sours etjernal food,

\ And grace command my heart away

From all created good !"

It was some time since observed, by a writer in the
^^Presbyterian Quarterly Eeview," that in the hymn of
"Watts beginning, "There is a land of pure delight,"
"every image is scriptural, every suggestion appro-
priate, every association holy;" and he adds, "we doubt
whether any uninspired production has oftener softened
the heart or moistened the eyelids."

We learn from an American writer, who obtained his
information on the spot, that its author wrote this hymn
at Southampton, his native town, while sitting at the
window of a parlor which overlooked the river Itchen,
and in full view of the Isle of Wight, "the swelling
flood" celebrated in it, " beyond" which is seen "the land
of pure delight,"

Digitized by

Google

EEV. ISAAC WATTS, D.D. 263

*' Where eyer lasting spring abides
And neyer- withering flowers.'*

So, at least, it might seem. It is indeed a fair and beau-
tiful type of that paradise of which the poet sung. It
rises from the margin of the flood and swells into bound-
less prospect, all mantled in the richest verdure of sum-
mer, checkered with forest-growth, and fruitful fields
under the highest cultivation, and gardens, and villas,
and every adornment which the hand of man, in a series
of ages, could create on such susceptible grounds. As
the poet looked upon the waters then before him, he
thought of the final passage of the Christian : —

" Death, like a narrow sea, diyides
This heayenly land from ours.'*

The hymn written by Dr. Watts, —

" Am I a soldier of the cross ?"

was first published by its author at the end of his thirty-
first sermon, entitled " Moly Fortitude, or Remedies against
Fearf the text, 1 Cor. xvi. 13:— "Stand fast in the
faith ; quit you like men ; be strong." The hymn itself is
a fine apostrophe for the use of the Christian soldier,
who is represented in a review of his character and du-
ties, and with an earnest desire to engage in the conflict
in which he is sure of victory by faith in Him who
has already conquered all his foes. It breathes the true
spirit of a soldier of the cross of Christ. He would
wear no laurel that he does not gain under the banner
of the Great Captain of his salvation. He disdains to be

Digitized by

Google

264 AUTH0B8 AND ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

** carried to the skies
On flowery beds of ease,
While others fought to win the prize
And sailed through bloody seas,"

and boldly asks for the foes he has to face. After ex-
pressing his resolve to fight his way to heaven, and an-
ticipating the bliss he shall enjoy, he ascribes all the
glory to Him who hath purchased it with his blood.
Let every Christian soldier enter the warfare and con-
tinue in it with the spirit of this hymn.

"We have elsewhere spoken of the cordial friendship
which existed between Dr. Doddridge and Dr. Watts;
and certainly the reader will be gratified by a short ex-
tract ftom. a letter of the former excellent man to the
latter, relative to that exquisitely beautiful hymn, —

" Give me the wings of faith, to rise."

Dr. Doddridge thus affectionately speaks to his friend : —
"On Wednesday last I was preaching in a bam to a
pretty large assembly of plain country-people in a village
a few miles off. After a sermon from Heb. vi. 12, we
sung one of your hymns, (which, if I remember right,
was the one hundred and fortieth of the second book ;)
and in that part of the worship I had the satisfaction to
observe tears in the eyes of several of the auditory; and,
after the service was over, some of them told me that
they were not able to sing, so deeply were their minds
affected with it; and the clerk, in particular, told me he
could hardly utter the words of it. These were most of
them poor people, who work for their living."

Digitized by

Google

RBV. ISAAC WATTS, D.D. 266

While writing this article, we learn from the English
newspapers that in the new park just formed in South-
ampton, the town in which Dr. Watts was born, arrange-
ments are in progress for the erection of a statue to his
memory, to be paid for by penny subscriptions of Sunday-
school children.

We know not that we can better close this article
than by a short extract from Mrs. S. C. Kail's " Residence
of Dr, Isaac Watts,^^ now, alas! "among the things that
Were." She says, "We followed our conductor to the
top of the house, where, in a turret upon the roof, many
of Dr.Watts's literary and religious works were composed.
We sat upon the seamed bench, rough and worn, the
very bench upon which he sat by daylight and moon-
light, — poet, logician, and Christian teacher. We were
in some degree elevated above the dense and heavy fog,
for the heavens were clear and blue; but all beneath us
was shrouded in a sea of mist, that would sometimes
clear away and then press its yellow folds more closely
round every object of interest. This was very provoking,
as we desired to see what he had seen ; but we remem-
bered how out of this good man's naturally irritable
temperament he had become gentle, modest, and patient.
We could almost fancy the measured tones of his sweet,
eloquent voice reproving our unthankfulness for what
we had already enjoyed. . . . The chamber upon whose
walls hung the parting breath of this benevolent man
might well be an object of the deepest interest to all
who follow, however humbly, the faith of Jesus* We

23

Digitized by

Google

266 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

were told of a little child who, knowing every hymn he
had written, was taken into his room, having some vague
hat happy idea that she should meet him there. Learn-
ing, as she eagerly looked round, that the author of
* Watts's Hymns* was dead, she hurst into bitter tears,
which did not cease while she remained in the house."

Perhaps, however, the most striking commendation of
these compositions was from the pen of the energetic and
accomplished William Wilberforce. With special refer-
ence to the beautiful " Summer Evening'* of its author, —

** How fine has the day been! how bright was the sun!"

he says, " It is not for children in years alone, but for
the children of God and the heirs of glory. And when
we compare it, either in point of good sense or imagina-
tion, or its sterling value in sustaining hope, with the
considerations and objects which feed the fancy or exer-
cise the understanding or affections of the most celebrated
men who have engaged the attention or called forth the
eulogiums of the literati of the last century, we are
irresistibly forced to exclaim, ' Oh, happy hymnist 1 Oh,
unhappy bards V "

Before we close this article, we may refer to two or
three compliments paid to the poetical writings of
Watts, very different in character, but equally illus-
trative of their influence. A copy of his Psalms and
Hymns was taken into Central Africa by Mr. Anderson,
the brother-in-law and fellow traveller of the celebrated
but unfortunate Mungo Park, which the Landers, many

Digitized by

Google

REV. ISAAC WATTS, D.D. 267

years afterward, found hung up in the residence of a
chieftain as Sifetishe, to be worshipped as sacred.

Another is presented in a letter from the Eev. Dr.
Colman, of Boston, under date of August 20, 1739: —
" This last year, at my motion, two of our booksellers
reprinted your ^ Songs for Children,' — an edition of two
or three thousand, I think ; and your Hymns are just
now out of the press, and your Treatise of Prayer in it.
I know not whether you reckon our editions here any
thing; but we do."

We may add yet another fact of interest, — that the
Hymns of Dr. Watts were first published in this country,
by Dr. Franklin, in 1741, and his Psalms the same year
in Boston ; but neither the Psalms nor the Hymns were
generally used in worship by our fathers till after the
Eevolution.

Our readers will be gratified if we give the opinion writ-
ten by our countryman William Wirt, Attorney-General of
the United States. " I bought the other day," he says, in a
letter to his wife, "a copy of Watts's Psalms and Hymns.
Do you know that I never think of this man without
such emotions as no other human being ever inspires
me with ? There is a loftiness in his devotion, and an
indifierence, approaching to contempt, for the praise or
censure of the beings of this nether world, which is
heroic and sublime. It is so awfully great that even old,
surly, growling Johnson, with all his High-Church pride
and arrogance, felt its influence, and scarcely dai'ed to
whisper a criticism in his life of Dr. Watts, — which is a

Digitized by

Google

268 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

curiosity in this particular. What a soul of celestial fire,
and, at the same time, of dissolving tenderness, was that!
How truly did he devote all the faculties of that soul to
the contemplation of the glory of God and of the Saviour!
He was, indeed, 'ever journeying home to God,' and
seems to have stopped half-way between earth and
heaven to compose this excellent book. His was a rapt
soul; and I never feel my own worthlessness so forcibly
as when I read his compositions and compare my spirit
with his.''

It has sometimes occurred to us that the cultivation of
the art of poetry has a very happy influence on the temper.
So it seems to have been with Dr. Watts; for we are
told that he was of so extremely mild a disposition that,
when a friend once blamed him for not having severely
repnmanded a man who had done him a serious injury,
he replied, " I wish, my dear sir, you would do it for me."

THE WESLEYS.

In the early years of the eighteenth century, while
Br. Doddridge, daring his solitary childhood, was learn-
ing from his mother's lips, in their house in London, how
the God who led Israel through the wilderness rescued
his exiled grandfather from Bohemia, — while the first
edition of Dr. Watts' s hymn-book was being eagerly
bought up in a single year, — ^John and Charles Wesley
were spending their childhood in the country parsonage

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLETS. 269

at Epworth, in Lincolnshire^ John having heen born in
1703, and Charles in 1709. The old Puritan blood ran
in their veins : their father's grandfather and father had
both been ejected from the Established Church in 1662,
and the younger of these had often been in prison for his
Nonconformity. Their mother's father, the Eev. Dr.
Annesley, was also one of the early Nonconformists, — ^a
man of whom his daughter said that for forty years his
deep sense of peace with God through Christ had never
been broken, and who died whispering, " When I awake
up in thy likeness, I shall be satisfied, — satisfied",^

Nond of our readers need to be told that amidst perse-
cution and contumely John and Charles Wesley preached
the gospel of Christ throughout their long lives^: the
hearts of thousands were awakened, and the morning
hymn of rejoicing multitudes went up to that Sun of
Bighteousness which had arisen with healing in his
wings. In one place, where an enraged crowd had
rushed into the house where John Wesley was resting,
he addressed them with such affectionate faithfulness,
appealing to the " thirst*' which lay deep in their hearts
below their opposition, that the disorderly mob became
a peaceable congregation and tears of penitence streamed
down the faces of the ringleaders. At another time the
magistrate who came to prevent Charles Wesley from
preaching was himself arrested by the preacher's words,
listened to the end, and went away with a softened and
humbled heart. In almost every place where they were
thus assailed, societies of true converts sprang up out of

23*

Digitized by

Google

270 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

the very ranks of the persecutors. It was out of lives
such as these that the Wesleyan hymns were distilled.
As the reader has already seen, one hymn was composed
after a wonderful escape from an infuriated mob, another
after deliverance from a storm at sea, and all in the in-
tervals of a life of almost incessant toil. The pressure
of trial and the power of faith drew many a vigorous
hymn from John Wesley; but it was Charles Wesley
who — in his prime, on his preaching-tours, by the road-
side, amidst hostile mobs or devout congregations, and
in his old age, in his quiet journey ings from friend to
friend — ^poured forth the great mass of the Wesleyan
hymns. Those hymns are now sung in collieries and
copper-mines, in our dense forests and on the battle-fields
of other lands, in the cradle and on the death-bed. How
many has their heavenly music strengthened in the hour
of sorrow, and given courage to strong men and patience
to suffering women ! They have been a liturgy engraved
on the hearts of thousands of the poor, and have aided
in bearing the name of Jesus far and wide, writing it
deep on countless hearts. Truly has it been said that
the service he rendered to Methodism — and, we will add,
to evangelical religion — ^by his hymns did as much as
John Wesley's rules to bind together the rough material
of early Methodism. They express even now every
Sabbath the religious emotions of tens of thousands of
worshippers; and during their whole history they have
comforted the souls and fluttered on the dying lips of
myriads now before the throne.

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLETS. 271

There is something so remarkably interesting in Mr.
Moore's description of. Charles Wesley when nearly
eighty years old, that we are sure our readers will thank
us for transcribing it: — "He rode every day — clothed
for winter even in summer — a, little horse, gray with
age. When he mounted, if a subject struck him, he
proceeded if) expand and put it in order. He would
write a hymn, thus given him, on a card kept for that
purpose, with his pencil, in short-hand. Not unfre-
quently he has come to the house in the City Road,
and, having left the pony in the garden in front, he
would enter, crying out, ^Pen and ink! pen and ink I'
These being supplied, he wrote the hymn he had been
composing. When this was done, he would look round
on those present and salute them with much kindness,
and thus put all in mind of eternity. He was fond on
these occasions of the lines, —

< There all the ship's company meet

Who sailed with the Saviour beneath ;
With shouting each other they greet.

And triumph o'er sorrow and death.
The voyage of life's at an end,

The mortal affliction is past ;
The age that in heaven they spend

For ever and ever shall last.' "

The hymn, —

** Come, Desire of nations, come,"

was written by the Eev. Charles Wesley, and formed
part of a tract consisting of nineteen "Hymns Occa-
sioned by the Earthquake, March 8, 1750." This tract

Digitized by

Google

272 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HTMNS.

was intended to give a right direction to the extraordi-
nary consternation and excitement which prevailed in
London and its neighborhood, occasioned by shocks
which moved the earth, about London and Westminster,
westward, then to the east, and then westward again,
attended with a rambling noise like that of thunder.
Many houses were shaken and several chimneys thrown
down; but it was believed that no lives were lost.
Thousands left their houses and encamped for some
days in the fields. A soldier added to the alarm by pre-
tending that he had a ^^ revelation" that on a certain
midnight a great part of London would be swallowed
up. Not a few really supposed that the day of judg-
ment was about to commence; many churches were
thrown open, and Bomaine and others preached to the
crowds there, while Whitefield and Wesley preached in
Hyde Park and elsewhere, at midnight, to many thou-
sands. Forms of prayer were appointed " by authority"
to be read in the churches, prayers were composed for
the use of families, sermons and letters were printed
on the subject, and the results of the whole matter were
very great. Nor was the tract to which we have re-
ferred without its use. Its publication was a happy
thought. In addition to the hymn we have mentioned
as thus called forth, was also another which yet lives
among us, —

<* How weak the thoughts and vain,'' etc.

In 1780, the Eev. Charles Wesley published, in pamph-

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLEYS. 273

let form, " Hymns Written in the Times of the Tumults,
June, 1780." These awful mob riots, so celebrated in
the annals of England^ took place in London as the
result of the imprudent anti-popish violence of an infatu-
ated peer, Lord George Gordon, a man clearly insane,
who collected many thousands of persons to destroy the
chapels and the persons of the Eoman Catholics. The
cowardly fears of the London magistrates and the malice
of the mob were severely lashed in a satirical poem from
the pen of Charles Wesley, in which he speaks thus of the
charge that the Methodists had aided the Eoman Ca-
tholics : —

" Old Wesley, too, to papists kind,

Who wrote against them for a blind.

Himself a papist still in heart,

He and his followers shall smart ;

Not one of his fraternity

We here beneath our standard see."

In 1782, Charles Wesley also issued a tract of forty-
seven pages, entitled " Hymns for the Nation,* having a spe-
cial reference to the fact that England was at war with
her " rebellious'' transatlantic colonies. One verse from
these hymn^, which still remains in most of thcMethodist
hymn-books, will be read by our friends with a smile : —

" Saviour, whom our hearts adore,
To bless our earth again,
Now assume thy rdyal power
And o'er the nations reign."

The exquisitely-beautiful hymn, —

" Come, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,
To whom we for our children cry,"

Digitized by

Google

274 AUTHORS AND OEIQIN OF HTMNS.

was written by Charles Wesley, and snng " at the open-
ing of a school at Kingswood'' for preachers' sons. Mr.
Creamer says, *^ It has been brought as a charge, in effect,
against Mr. John Wesley, that he preferred genuine
piety, even when associated with ignorance, to irre-
ligioD, though adorned with learning and the adventi-
tious importance which wealth alone too often confers.
To assert this, however, is only saying that he had, in
spirit, sat at the Saviour's feet, heard his word, and
learned of him. But he saw no necessity for either;
and therefore he prayed himself, and, by putting the
words into his hymn-book, instructed his societies and
followers to pray,—

* Unite the pair 00 long disjoined, —

Knowledge and vital piety :
Learning and holiness combined.

And truth and love, let all men see
In those whom up to thee we give, —
Thine, wholly thine, to die and live.' "

We are glad of an opportunity of saying somewhat
of the truly-grand hymn written by Charles Wesley, —

" Thou God of glorious majesty."

It contains, as our readers all know, a truly-sublime
verse : —

" Lo ! on a narrow neck of land,
'Twixt two unbounded seas I stand.

Secure, insensible!
A point of time — a moment's space —
Removes me to that heavenly place
Or shuts me up in hell !'*

This fine composition was written on the promontory

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLEYS. 275

*known in England as "Land's End," on the coast of
Cornwall. It is really " a narrow neck of land*' jutting
out into the Atlantic. To pass over this neck for the
purpose of reaching the outmost point of English land
is somewhat dangerous. With scarcely foot-room be-
neath you, you have on either side a precipice, with the
sea washing its base; and, whether you turn to the
right hand or the left, your eye meets a vast expanse of
ocean.

Mr. Montgomery, in his " Christian Psalmist," says of
this hymn, " It is a sublime contemplation, — solemn, col-
lected, unimpassioned thought, but thought occupied with
that which is of everlasting import to a dying man
standing on the lapse of a moment between two eter-
nities."

We shall add to these remarks an extract from
Dr. Adam Clarke, under date of October 11, 1819: —
"I write this on the last projecting point of rock of
the Land's End, upward of two hundred feet perpen-.
dicular above the sea, which is raging and roaring tre-
mendously, threatening destruction to myself and the
narrow point of rock on which I am sitting. On my
right hand is the Bristol Channel, and before me the
vast Atlantic Ocean. There is not one inch of land
from the place on which my feet rest to the American
continent. This is the place where Charles Wesley
composed those fine lines, —

*Lol on a narrow neck of land,
'Twixt two unbounded seas I stand.'

Digitized by

Google

2'r6 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OP HYMNS.

Charies Wesley's hymn, —

" Stand, the omnipotent decree,"

was written and published in 1756, with special reference
to the earthquake which destroyed the city of Lisbon in
that year. Montgomery says, " The hymn on the day
of judgment, — 'Stand, the omnipotent decree,' — begins
with a note, abrupt and awakening, like the sound of
the last trumpet. This is altogether one of the most
daring and victorious flights of our author."

"Give me the enlarged desire"

was written by Charles Wesley, and was a favorite hymn
with the seraphic John Fletcher of Madely, of whom
Southey speaks as " a man of rare talents and rarer vir-
tue. No age or country has ever produced a man of more
fervent piety or more perfect charity; no church has
ever possessed a more apostolic minister." Mr. Fletcher
was^ as is well known, at one time the President, and
Mr. Benson, his intimate friend, the Head-Master, of
Lady Huntingdon's college at Trevecca for the education
of young ministers. Speaking of Mr. Fletcher's devo-
tional habits, Mr. Benson says, "My heart kindles
while I write. Here it was that I saw, — shall I say
an angel in human flesh ? I should not far exceed the
truth if I said so. . . . After speaking a while in the
school-room, he used frequently to say, ' As many of you
as are athirst for this fulness of the Spirit, follow me
into my room.' On this, many of us have instantly fol-
lowed him, and there continued for two or three hours.

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLBY8. 277

wrestling like Jacob for the blessing, praying one after
another till we could bear to kneel no longer. This was
not done once or twice, but many times. And I have
sometimes seen him on these occasions, once in par-
ticular, so filled with the love of God that he could con-
tain no more, but cried out, ^ O my God, withhold thy
hand, or the vessel will burst.' But he afterward told
me he was afraid he had grieved the Spirit of God, and
that he ought rather to have prayed that the Lord would
have enlarged the vessel, or have suffered it to break,
that the soul might have had no further bar or interrup-
tion to the enjoyment of the Supreme God. For, as
Mr. Wesley has observed, the proper prayer on such an
occasion would have been, —

Give me the enlarged desire,

And open, Lord, my soul,
Thy own fulness to require

And comprehend the whole :
Stretch my faith's capacity

Wider and yet wider still ;
Then with all that is in thee

My ravished spirit fill.' "

The well-known hymns, —

" Woe to the men on earth who dwell,**
and

"By faith we find the place above,"

were written by Charles Wesley, and were first printed
by him in a tract about 1756. They were parts of a long
hymn he wrote on the then recent destruction of Lisbon;
and, read with this fact in view, their interest is greatly

24

Digitized by

Google

278 AUTHOES AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

increased. He wrote about that period many hymns
much adapted, alike by their sentiments and beauty, to
impress the public mind from the passing events of that
important period.

The very excellent and graphic hymn, —

* Glory to God, whose sorereign grace,"

was written by Charles Wesley "for the Kingswood
colliers ;" but we are sorry to see that Wesley's last two
verses have been omitted from our modern books : —

** Suffice that for the season past

Hell's horrid language filled our tongues,
We all thy words behind us cast,
And lewdly sang the dmnkard's songs.

But— oh, the power of grace divine ! —
In hymns we now our voices raise.

Loudly in strange hosannas join,
And blasphemies are turned to praise."

These verses, as well as such words as "senseless
stories," "reprobates," and "outcasts," will be better
understood when it is remembered that the tract of
country called Kingswood, consisting of from three to
four thousand acres, formerly a royal chase, and lying
near Bristol, England, supplies to that city the greater
part of its fuel. It was in the days of the Wesleys and
Whitefield inhabited by a far more brutal and lawless
race than any of their fathers, in the persons of the
colliers, diflfering as much from the people of the sur-
rounding country in dialect as in appearance. Of these
people many of the Christians of Bristol said to George

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLEY&. 279

Whitefield, when he was preparing to embark for
Georgia to preach to the Indians, " What need of going
abroad for this? Have we not Indians enough at home ?
If you have a mind to convert Indians, tJiere are colliers
enough in, Kingswood" Here, under an old sycamore-
tree on Hanham Mount, that great man preached his
first sermon in the open air to about a hundred colliers.
This nuqiber rapidly increased, till they sometimes
amounted to nearly twenty thousand persons. He says,
" The first discovery of their being affected was in the
white gutters made by their tears, which plentifully fell
down their black cheeks, as they came up out of their
coal-pits. Hundreds and hundreds of them were soon
brought under deep convictions, which happily ended in
sound and thorough conversion."

Compelled to embark for America, Whitefield pre-
vailed on John Wesley to succeed him in this interesting
charge; and we scarcely need to remark that Kingswood
has ever since been regarded as a sacred spot in eccle-
siastical history. Here houses of prayer for Wesleyan
Methodists and Independents were soon erected, and in
them thousands have been converted to God. Here was
placed the first school for the sons of Methodist preachers;
and on Hanham Mount, besides the voice of Whitefield,
have been heard those of the Wesleys, Coke, and Mather;
and here Pawson and Benson and Bradbum accom-
plished some of the mightiest effects which followed
their powerful preadiing.

Digitized by

Google

280 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

It has been supposed that the two hymns of Charles

Wesley, —

** Oft have we passed the guilty night,"
and

'* Hearken to the solemn voice,"

were the first two hymns composed by this author for
watch-night services. Dr. Southey terms these watch-
nights " another of Wesley's objectionable institutions ;"
and yet they had a very lovely origin. They began
among the converted colliers of Kjngswood, who, having
in the days of their folly given their Saturday nights to
drinking in the ale-house, after their hearts had been
changed gave these same hours to worship God In the
school-house, continuing their hymns and prayers late
into the Sabbath morning. These services contributed
greatly to their spiritual advantage; and John Wesley
determined to introduce them into all his societies. In
1742 — ^the date of the first publication of these two
hymns — ^he appointed a monthly watch-night during the
full moon : this service is still continued at the close of
every year, and has in later years been imitated by many
congregations of other denominations

"Worship, and thanks, and blessing,"

was a "blast," as Mr. Creamer says, written by Charles
Wesley " after deliverance in a tumult," and was often
sounded on similar occasions. We have no certain in-
formation as to its precise date. One account of "a mob
at Devizes," written by the author, as occurring in 1747,
and copied from Jackson's Life of Charles Wesley, closes

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLEYS. 281

in BO interesting a manner that the reader will be glad
to refresh his memory with it : —

"After riding two or three hundred yards, I looked
back and saw Mr. Merton on the ground; in the midst
of the mob, and two bull-dogs upon him. One was first
let loose, which leaped at the horse's nose; but the
horse with his foot beat him down. The other fastened
on his nose and hung there, till Mr. Merton, with the
butt-end of his whip, felled him to the ground. Then
the first dog, recovering, flew at the horse's breast and
festened there. The beast reared up, and Mr. Merton
slid gently off. The dog kept his hold till the flesh tore
off. Then some of the men took off the dogs -, others
cried, ^ Let them alone.' But neither beast nor man had
any further commission to hurt. I stopped the horse
and delivered him to my friend. He remounted with
great composure, and we rode on leisurely, as before,
till out of sight. Then we mended our pace, and in an
hour came to Seend, having rode three miles about, and
by seven to Wraxall. The news of our danger was got
there before us ; but we brought the welcome tidings of
our deliverance. Now we saw the hand of Providence
in suffering them to turn out our horses; that is, to
send them to us against [by the time] we wanted them.
Again, how plainly were we overruled to send our horses
down the town, — ^which blinded the rioters without our
designing it, and drew off their engines and them, leaving
us a free passage at the other end of the town I We joined
in hearty praises to our Deliverer, singing the hymn, —

24*

Digitized by

Google

282 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

* Worship^ and thanks, and blessing.' "

Men who could thus suffer and sing would, under
similar circumstances, be as ready as Daniel to be cast
into the lions' den, or to enter, like the three Hebrew
children, the fiery furnace, even though it were heated
seven times hotter than usual.

The hymn,—

** Oh for a thousand tongues, to sing/*

is said to have been written by Charles Wesley on the
first anniversary of the conversion of himself and his
brother John. It originally contained eighteen verses,
and was entitled "JPbr the Anniversary of One's Conver-
sion." It was first published in the year 1739.
The hymn, —

" Come, thou all-victorious Lord,"

was also written by Charles Wesley " before preaching
at Portland," a peninsular parish of England, opposite
Weymouth, in the county of Dorset. It is remarkable
for its stone-quarries, from which an abundant supply is
sent to different parts of England and elsewhere and
where very many of its inhabitants are engaged in this
kind of labor. These facts probably suggested two
lines in the first verse: —

" Strike with the hammer of thy word,
/ And break these hearts of ttone,**

The well-known animated and emphatic hymn, —
<<See how great a flame aspires,"

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLET8. 283

was composed by Charles Wesley " after preaching to
the Newcastle colliers" on the joyful occasion of its
author's ministerial success, and that of his fellow-
laborers, among that rough and hardy people. Mr.
Jackson, Mr. Wesley's biographer, says, « Perhaps the
imagery was suggested by the large fires, which illumi-
nate the whole part of that country in the darkest
nights."

The hymn, —

'< Jesas, from thy heayenlj place,"

was written by Charles, and in the English Methodist
hymn-book has the line, —

*' Our king*t peculiar treasure prove."

Dr. Floy, in the " Methodist Episcopal Quarterly Review'*
for 1844, says, "Father Hitt, to suit it to republican
America, altered the word ; and we now pray that ' piety
sincere' may prove the peculiar treasure of our land, and
that it may be inspired with humble love.' "
The hymn written by Charles Wesley, —

«Long have I seemed to serre thee, Lord,"

was written under peculiar drcumstances. In the year
1740, considerable disputes originated in some of the
Methodist societies and rent some of them in pieces.
They were occasioned by a man named Molther, who
had been a Moravian, and who introduced what was
called the doctrine of stillness, denying that divine grace
or the influence of the Holy Spirit is transmitted in the
use of means, especially through the ordinance of the

Digitized by

Google

284 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

Lord's Supper. Mr. Jackson^ the biographer of Wesley,
well says, '^This fine h3min guards against extremes,
both on the right hand and on the left, and embodies
those just views on the subject which the brothers
steadily maintained to the end of their lives. Charles
Wesley used to call on the right-minded people in his
congregation at the Foundery, London, to unite with
him in singing it ; and it is difficult to conceive how any
enlightened Christian could refuse to join in the holy
exercise. Its effect at the time must have been very
powerful." The whole hymn contained twenty-three
verses.
Every one knows that the beautiful hymn, —

'' Come, let us join our friends aboye,"

was written by Charles Wesley. Some years after his
death, and not long before his own decease, the Eev.
John Wesley, being in London, officiated in his own
chapel in City Eoad. After the morning prayers had
been read, he ascended the pulpit; but, instead of im-
mediately announcing the hymn to be sung, to the great
surprise of the congregation, he stood silent, with his
eyes closed for, it has been said, at least ten minutes,
wrapt in intense thought. Having done this, with a
feeling which at once told where his spirit had been
communing, he solemnly read this hymn. We can easily
imagine the effect this produced on the minds of those
persons who well knew both the men.

We may add here that the Rev. Thomas Spencer, a

Digitized by

Google

THB WESLKTS. 285

very popular Congregationalist minister, who died, while
bathing, in his twenty-first year, at Liverpool, England,
in 1811, had this hymn almost constantly on his mind
for several weeks before his lamentable decease. He
was often heard privately to sing it, and more than once
conversed on its subject with his friends, — ^little thinking,
however, how soon he should join his friends who had
" crossed the flood."
In speaking of the hymn, —

*' God is in this and eyery place,"

Mr. Creamer, in his " Methodist Hymnohgy,^* says on the
lines, —

<< And haye I measured half my days,
And half my journey run ?**

"It is a coincidence worthy of notice in this connection,
that when Mr. Charles Wesley composed this hymn he
was about forty years old : he died aged eighty 3 hence he
had just, in his own beautiful language,— «

< measured half his days.
And half A« journey run.' "

Charles Wesley's hymn, — .

« The great archangel's trump shall sound,"

was written "after a deliverance from death by the fall
of a horse." It originally consisted of twelve verses :
two of those now omitted referred thus to the accident : —

'* How blessed whom Jesus calls his own !
How quiet and secure firom harms !

Digitized by

Google

286 AUTHORS AWD OEIGIN OF HYMNS.

The adversary cast us down, —
The Saviour caught us in his arms.

<< 'Twas Jesus checked his straitened chain

And curbed the malice of our foe :
Allowed to touch our flesh with pain,
No farther could the murderer go."

The beautiful funeral hymn, —

** Shrinking firom the cold hand of death,"

was from the pen of Charles Wesley, of whose personal
habits in old age we have already spoken ; and connected
with the third verse of this hymn Mr. Moore records a
pleasing anecdote of John Wesley : — " When his increasing
infirmities were perhaps more apparent to others than
himself, he would omit none of his religious duties or
labors. Herein he would listen to no advice. His almost
continual prayer was, ' Lord, let me not live to be use-
less I' At every place, after giving to the society what
he desired them to consider as his last advice, — ^ To love
as brethren, fear Grod, and honor the king,' — ^he invariably
concluded with the verse, —

* Oh that without a lingering groan

I may the welcome word receive,
My body with my charge lay down.

And cease at once to work and live !' "

Another of Charles Wesley's funeral hymns begins, —

" Again we lift our voice.**

It was composed " On the death of Samuel Hitchens,"
one of Mr. Wesley's first preachers, who died in the

Digitized by

Google

THE WESLBTB. 287

year 1747, after itinerating two years. From the fifth
verse we learn that he was very young : —

" Thou, in thy youthful prime,
Hast leaped the bounds of time ;
Suddenly from earth released,

Lo 1 we now rejoice for thee,
Taken to an early rest,

Caught into eternity."

The beautifiil hymn by Charles Wesley, —
<* Infinite God! to thee we raise,"

is an elegant paraphrase of the " Te Deum Lwvdamus,"
Mr. Beqjamin Love, in his " Records of Wedeyan LifCy*
says, " It is questionable whether there is any produc-
tion merely human worthy of being considered a rival
to the Te Deum ; and that person must be dead Indeed
to every spiritual feeling and emotion who can utter
with his lips its touching sentences and remain in heart
unaffected and unimpressed. Who can repeat the solemn
truth, ' We believe that thou shalt come to be our Judge/
and not be unmoved?" Or who can sing, in the strain
of the Methodist poet, —

<<And thou, with judgment olad, shalt ceme^
To seal our everlasting doom,"

without a fervent prayer to find mercy in that day ?

" Thou hidden loye of God, whose height,"

is a translation by the pen of John Wesley from the
Qerman of Gerhard Tersteegan. In his <' Plain Account

Digitized by

Google

288 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

of PerfecH(m'' Mr. Wesley tells us he wrote this hymn
at Savannah; Georgia, in 1736, and q^uotes the following
lines to show what his religious feelings then were : —

'< Is there a thing beneath the sun

That striyes with thee my heart to share ?
Ah, tear it thence, and reign alone,
The Lord of eyery motion there !"

Dr. Southey, in his Life of Wesley, connects these lines
with the love-affair with which Mr. Wesley was con-
nected in this country, and which ended in disappoint-
ment, and thinks they were written on that occasion ;
nor are we aware of any objection to this theory of the
matter.

The hymn, —

** How happy is the pilgrim's lot 1**

was the production of Mr. John Wesley, and, as Mr.
Creamer has very justly said, has attracted as much
attention as any other in the Methodist hymn-book.
We cannot speak of this hymn better than in the words
of the gentleman to whom we have referred: — "This
hymn has been admired by thousands not known by the
name of Methodists, with whom it has always been a
great favorite, as well on account of the remarkable
character of its sentiments as the elegant simplicity of
its diction. Throughout the composition the author has
made personal reference to himself. His opinions upon
the subject of matrimony at one time of life are well
known to all acquainted with his history ) and this hymn

Digitized by

Google

TitE WS6LEYS. 269

^ was published about five years before his unbappy union
with bis wife, at ^period when be bad probably no in-
tention of ever entering the marriage-state, and breatbes
only tbe language of one wbo bad devoted to God, as
be bad done, bis ease, bis time, bis life, bis reputation.
Tbere are traits about it wbicb eannot be mistaken;
see, for instance, verses four, five, and six : but tbere is
anotber verse, wbicb has been omitted from our [tbe
Metbodist] hymn-book, that is still more characteristic
of tbe author's sentiments at the time of life when it
was written. It runs thus : —

' I have no sharer of my heart.
To rob my Saviour of a part

And desecrate the whole :
Only betrothed to Christ am I,
And wait his coming from the sky,

To wed my happy soul.' "

" Some of tbe expressions in this stanza," Mr. Creamer
adds, "are very similar to many found in Moravian
hymns, and may have resulted from his intimate
intercourse with those people in tbe early part of his
ministry."

<' Behold the Saviour of mankind"

was written by the Eev. Samuel Wesley, the father of
the Eev. Messrs. John and Charles Wesley, and is said
to have been preserved in a very singular manner when
its author's parsonage was consumed by fire, the second
time, August 24, 1709, when John, bis son, was saved
from death almost by miracle. "Among other mementos

Digitized by

Google

290 AUTHORS AND ORIQIN OF HYMNS.

of this calamity," says the editor of " Dr. Adam Clarke's
Wesley Family y* "four leaves of mOjuc may be noticed,
the edges of which bear the marksw the fire and may
be handed down to posterity as a curiosity. Charles
Wesley, Jr., has written on one of the leaves, 'The
words by my grandfather, the Eev. Samuel Wesley.
Probably the music was adapted by Henry Purcell, or
Dr. Blow.' " These remarks are followed by "A Hymn
on the Passion: the words by the Eev. Mr. Samuel
Wesley, Eector of Epworth, in the diocese of Lincoln."

That hymn, however, contains two verses which are now
generally omitted. They were the second and sixth : —

<* Though far unequal our low praise

To thy vast sufferings prove,

Lamb of God, thus all our days.

Thus will we grieve and love !

" Thy loss our ruin did repair;
Death by thy death is slain :
Thou wilt at length exalt us where
Thou dost in glory reign."

Samuel Wesley, Jr., was the elder brother of John
and Charles Wesley: he manifested a poetical taste
even in childhood, and produced a few of the finest
hymns in Methodist psalmody, including, —

** The Lord of Sabaoth let us praise,"

"Hail, Father, whose creating call,"

"Hail, God the Son, in glory crowned,"
and

" The morning flowers display their sweets."

The last-named hymn was written on the death of a

Digitized by

Google

HENRY KIRKE WHITE. 291

young lady, and is founded on Isaiah xl. 6, 8. : — ^^^ All flesh
is grass, and all t]^|oodliness thereof as the flower of
the field. . . . Th^^assSntJiereth, the flower fadeth ;
but the word of our Grod endureth forever." Mr.
Creamer very truly says, " The author has completed his
task in a most interesting and pleasing manner. The
imagery is touching; and, although the subject is of a
melancholy character, he has thrown light among the
shadows and intermingled beauty with the gloom. The
hymn cannot be read without emotion." '

HENRY KIRKE WHITE.

This lovely youth, who died of excessive study at the
age of twenty-one, has furnished several compositions to
our hymnology, including the beautiftil hymn, —

« When marshalled on the nightly plain."

He was the son of a butcher, and was bom at Notting-
ham, England, in 1786. On account of the delicacy of
his constitution, he was taught the trade of a stocking-
weaver; but his attachment to learning became so well
known that he was soon taken into the office of an
attorney, where his marvellous love of Latin and Greek,
in connection with his piety and his ambition for the
clerical office, induced Messrs. Wilberforce and Simeon
to send him to the University at Cambridge. At eighteen
he published a poem; and after his death his "jPo^ttw/'

Digitized by

Google

292 AUTHORS AND OEIGIN 01* HYMNS.

^^ Letters and lYagments'* were edited by Dr. Southey in
two octavo volumes. He lived |A|tly beloved and
died much lamented. H^was bVKl in the chancel
of All-Saints' Church, Cambridge, where a few years
afterward an American gentleman named Boott erected
a handsome tablet to his memory, executed in bas-
relief by Chantrey, on which are engraved the follow-
ing beautiful lines from the pen of Professor Smyth; —

'* Warm with ^ond hope and learning's sacred flame,
To Granta's bowers .the youthful poet came :
Unconquered powers the immortal mind displayed,
But, worn with anxious thought, the frame decayed.
Pale o'er his lamp, and in his cell retired,
The martyr-student faded and expired.
Oh, genius, taste, and piety sincere,
Too early lost 'midst studies too severe !
Foremost to mourn was generous Southey seen :
He told the tale, and showed what White had been,
Nor told in vain ; for o'er the Atlantic wave
A wanderer came, and sought the poet's graye;
On yon low stone he saw his lonely name,
And raised this fond memorial to his fame."

JOHN G. WHITTIER.

How this Quaker poet— *nay, even this hymn^writer —
would have fared among his own people some two
centuries ago, it is now difficult to say; for assuredly
they would have utterly opposed such doings, and would
probably have " put him out of meeting." We, however,
eordially thank him for the pleasure which his hymns

Digitized by

Google

REV. WILLIAM WILLIAMS. 293

have afforded us. Mr. Whittier was bom in 1808^ and
has devoted the gather portion of his life to literature.

And yet, after Ml, while we think Mr. Whittier a
poet, — ^the poet of humanity, — the Ebenezer Elliott of the
United StateB,^-we have no expectation that any of the
hymns he has written wiU be sung in the worshipping
assemblies of coming generations. They want the glow-
ing ardor and the evangelical unction which only can
make hymns popular with Christian masses. We should
delight to see the honest Quaker possessing the piety of
our old Friend Joseph John Gurney: he might then
write hymns on "Christ and his Cross" which might
live till the death of time.

REV. WILLIAM WILLIAMS.

This distinguished Welsh poet was bom in 1717, in
Caermarthenshire, and was originally educated for the
medical profession. His biographer tells us that "his
religious feelings were at first painful. His convictions
of sin were deep and alarming, but his subsequent joy
proportionably high." He was ordained a curate in the
English Church, but, after thus laboring for three years,
was encouraged by Whitefield and the Countess of
Huntingdon to become an itinerant minister amopg the
Calvinistic Methodists. His labors were incessant and
greatly blessed. He is said to have travelled on ah

25*

Digitized by

Google

294 AUTHOES AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

average two tbonsand two hundred and thirty miles a
year for forty-three years^ when them were no railroads
and bat few stage-coaches. His last illness was occa-
sioned by intense study in writing a book called "J.
View of the Kingdom of Christy* and in his last hours his
speech failed him; but he was evidently very happy.
He died in 1791. He published several hymn-books in
his own language^ which are still much used, such as
"TAe Sea of Glass/* ^^Hosanna to the Son of David/* etc.
His hymns, —

" O'er the gloomy hills of darkness,"
*' Guide me, thou Great Jehovah,"

and several others, are equally known and esteemed.
His Memoir was published by a brother Welshman a
few years ago.

NATHANIEL P. WILLIS.

The beautiM hymn so often sung at the dedication
of churches, and which has already appeared in several
of our hymn-books, was written by its author for the
dedication of a Unitarian house of worship in the city
ofNew York in 1845.

Mr. Willis was bom at Portland, in Maine, in 1807,
and at fifteen entered Yale College. His first work, we
\>eUeve, wa^ ^^ Scripture Sketches" which drew him into
the literary circle, since which he has written little of a

Digitized by

Google

WILLIAM WORDSWORTH. 295

religions character. He has heen the poet of society,
but BOt of the sai|g|j|^ary. His writings are distingnished
for finish and melody. Wonld that they were fine gold
which wonld pass current with heaven !

Perhaps the sweetest thought which Mr. Willis ever
penned grew out of a reverence of his pious mother's
prayers for him. Tossed by the waves in a vessel which
was bearing him homeward, he wrote, —

" Sleep safe, wave-worn mariner,
Nor fear to-night nor storm nor sea :
The ear of Heaven bends low to her :
He comes to shore who sails with me."

WILLIAM WORDSWORTH.

The late poet-laureate of England has contributed one
or two hymns to the scarce of the Christian sanctuary,
and therefore we contribute a few lines to him. He
was bom in 1770, and educated for the Church of England
at the University of Cambridge. Throughout life he
employed his leisure hours in writing poetry, — ^though he
never rose very high in the estimation of the public till
he attained gray hairs, when, on the death of Southey,
he was appointed poet-laureate. He died in 1850, in
his eighty-first year. None of his hymns will be valued
by posterity.

The following extract of a letter written by Words-
worth to one of his correspondents in this country will

Digitized by

Google

296 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OW HTMNS.

be read with interest by at least Bome of our firiends : —
" I took the jonmej to London solelji^ pay my respects
to the queen on my appointment to the lanreateship
on the decease of my friend Mr. Sonthey. The weather
was very cold, and I caaght an inflammation in one of my
eyeSy which rendered my stay in the South very uncom-
fortable. I nevertheless did, in rei^>ect to the object of
my journey, all that was required. The reception given
me by the queen at her ball was most gracious. Mrs.
Everett, the wife of your minister, among many others,
was a witness to it, without knowing who I was. It
moved her to the shedding of tears. This effect was in
part produced, I suppose, by American habits of feeling,
as pertaining to a republican government. To see a
gray-haired man of seventy-five years of age kneeling
down in a large assembly to kiss the hand of a young
woman, is a sight for which institutions essentially
democratic do not prepare a spectator of either sex, and
must naturally place the opinions upon which a republic
is founded, and the sentiments which support it, in strong
contrast with a government based and upheld as ours is.
I am not, therefore, surprised that Mrs. Everett was
moved, as she herself described to persons of my ae-
quaintance, — ^among others, to Mr. Bogers the poet."

Digitized by

Google

FRANCIS XATISR. 297

FRANCIS XAVIER.

OnS; at leasts of our popular hymn-books contains
the hymn of this e:(traordinary Eoman Catholic mis-
sionary, —

** Thou, my Jesus, thou didst me
Upon the Cross embrace."

This " apostle of the Indies" was born at Navarre in
1506, and died, when about to land in China, in 1552.
Of this distinguished missionary it has been well said
that, weak and frail as he was, from the days of Paul of
Tarsus to our own, the annals of mankind exhibit no
other example of a soul borne upward so triumphantly
through distress and danger in all their most appalling
aspects. He battled with hunger, and thirst, and naked-
ness, and assassination, and pursued his message of love
with ever-increasing ardor amidst the wildest war of the
contending elements. When, on one occasion, reminded
of the perils to which he was about to expose himself by
a mission to the barbarous islands of the Eastern Archi-
pelago, he replied, " If these lands had scented woods
and mines of gold. Christians would find courage to go
there; nor would all the perils of the world prevent them.
They are dastardly and alarmed because there is nothing
to be gained but the souls of men ; and shall love be
less hardy and less generous than avarice? They will
destroy me, you say, by poison. It is an honor to which
such a sinner as I am may not aspire; but this I dare

Digitized by

Google

208 AUTHORS AND ORIGIN OF HYMNS.

to say that, whatever form of torture or of death awaits
me, I am ready to suffer it ten thousand times for the
salvation of a single soul." Well has John Angell James
said, "This is a sublime heroism. Wondrous Xavier!
whatever were thy errors, it would be the dregs of
bigotry not to admire thy martyr-zeal."

Digitized by

Google

ILLUSTRATIONS

INFLUENCE OF HYMNS

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS.

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

INFLUENCE OP HYMNS

ON

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS.

A Univeesitt Student. — ^A highly-intelligent yonng
man standing at hia father's door was offered by a gen-
tleman a slip of paper on which was printed the hymn
written by John Newton, —

<*Stop, poor sinner, stop and think.''

This hymn he read, was much affected by it, and care-
fully committed it to memory. Five years afterward,
while studying at Brown University, a spirit of unusual
attention to religion was awakened in that institution, and
this same young man entered a meeting for devotional
exercises just as they were commencing the hymn, —

" Stop, poor sinner, stop and think."

His early impressions were instantly revived: he saw
himself ruined by sin, that eternal woe was before him,
and that peace of conscience and with God could only
be obtained by the blood of the cross of Christ. The
Holy Spirit enabled him to rest his soul on the atoning

26 301

Digitized by

Google

302 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

sacrifice of Christ ; and this young man became an emi-
nently pious and active physician.

An English Actress. — The fact we are about to
relate has been told in several ways; but we are inclined
to think that the version given in the " Sunday-School
Journal** is the correct one. The hymn referred to was
from the pen of Charles Wesley.

An actress in one of the English provincial or country
theatres was one day passing through the streets of the
town in which she resided, when her attention was
attracted by the sound of voices in a poor cottage
before her. Curiosity prompted her to look in ai
the open door, — when she saw a few poor people sit-
ting together, one of whom, at the moment of her ob-
servation, was giving out the hymn, which the others
joined in singing : —

" Depth of mercy ! can there be
Mercy still reseryed for me ?"

The tune was sweet and simple; but she heeded it not.
The words had riveted her attention, and she stood
motionless, until she was invited to enter by the woman
of the house, who had observed her standing at the door.
She remained during a prayer which was offered up by
one of the little company ; and, uncouth as the expres-
sions sounded, perhaps, to her ears, they carried with
them a conviction of sincerity on the part of the person
engaged. She quitted the cottage; but the words

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 303

of the hymn followed her, and at last she resolved to
procure the book which contained it. She did so; and
the more she read it, the more decided her serions im-
pressions became. She attended the ministry of the
gospel, read her hitherto neglected and despised Bible,
and bowed herself in humility and contrition of heart
before Him whose mercy she now felt she needed, whose
sacrifices are those of a broken heart and a contrite
spirit, and who has declared that with such sacrifices
he is well pleased.

Her profession she determined at once to renounce,
and for some time excused herself from appearing on
the stage, without, however, making known her resolu-
tion finally to leave it.

The manager of the theatre called upon her one
morning and requested her to sustain the principal
character in a new play which was to be performed the
next week. She had frequently performed this character
to general admiration ; but she now, however, told him
her resolution never to appear as an actress again, at the
same time giving her reasons. At first he attempted to
overcome her scruples by ridicule; but this was unavail-
ing : he then represented the loss he would incur by her
refusal, and concluded by promising that if, to oblige
him, she would act on this occasion, it would be the last
request of the kind he would ever make. Unable to
resist his solicitations, she promised to appear, and on
the appointed evening went to the theatre. The character
which she assumed required her, on her first entrance,

Digitized by

Google

304 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

to sing a song; and, when the cartain drew up, the
orchestra immediately began the accompaniment. But
she stood as if lost in thought, and as one forgetting all
around her and her own situation. The music ceased,
but she did not sing; and, supposing her to be over-
come by embarrassment, the band again commenced.
A second time they paused for her to begin; and still
she did not open her lips. A third time the air was
played; and then, with clasped hands and eyes suffused
with tears, she sang, — ^not the words of the song, but, —

" Depth of mercy I can there be
Mercy still reseryed for me V*

It is almost needless to add that the performance
was suddenly ended. Many ridiculed, though some were
induced from that memorable night to ^^ consider their
ways," and to reflect on the wonderftQ power of the
religion which could influence the heart and change the
life of one hitherto so vain and so evidently pursuing
the road which leadeth to destruction.

It will be satisfactory to the reader to know that the

change in Miss was as permanent as it was singular:

she walked consistently with her profession of religion
for many years, and at length becamo the wife of a
minister of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

An Ieish Persecutor. — The singing of the Wesleyan
Methodists has often been shown to possess great influ-
ence especially in the early history of that body. Charles

Digitized by

Google

EBSONAL AND SOOIAL HAPPINESS. 305

Wesley's hymns, with simple but effective tunes, spread
everywhere among the societies; and hundreds of hearers
who cared not for the preaching were attracted to
their assemblies by the singing. Especially among the
Irish did it secure them much success. At "Wexford the
society was persecuted by the Catholics, and met there-
fore in a closed bam. One violent opposer agreed to
conceal himself in the barn before the worship began,
that at a suitable time he might open the door to his
comrades; and for that purpose he crept into a sack near
the door. When the singing commenced, the Hibernian
was so impressed with the music that he thought he would
hear it through before he began the disturbance. The
singing so much gratified him that he thought he would
also hear the prayer; and such was the effect of the
prayer that he was seized with remorse and trembling,
so that he roared with fright, — ^which led the people to
remove the sack, whereupon the Irishman was disclosed,
praying with all his might as a penitent. Southey says,
<< This is the most comical case of instantaneous conver-
sion that ever was recorded ; and yet the man is said to
have been thoroughly converted."

A YoxjNG Man. — The narrative we now give is from
the pen of the Eev. J. Parker.

In the village of was a boarding-house kept by

Mrs. F , at whose house I was a lodger. Of the fifteen

or twenty guests about the table was a young gentleman
of about twenty-four years of age. He was full of ani

26*

Digitized by

Google

/ . / / // / / . /'

' / / /

/

/ / /

/

''

f ' /

• '

/' /' / ' /

/

/

/ / '

/ / ' /'

/

/

^

" ,. /

'//

/ ' '

' '

r ' / ' V

'

/' ,

/ .' #

'

/

' /

' /

/ /' . • /

/

/

. //

' /

" ' ' /

/

/ ^

' /

/ /

/

/

*' , , ,

/

' /

/

/

// '

/

' ■

/'

/

y ////

/

/ ^ 't // /// /

Digitized by

Google

nmm^

, , , / . ' *. ^'V

/

/ ' / ' ^ '

/ /

/ / / /

/

, "^ ■ ' y ,.
' '/ ' " / ' ' ,

I II ll I I ))| t) ll>' lIlJUl .-Mli f|.MMl'

I ' I li' II I I I I I' I IjM I III . 111). hImiIh

I I I ), I III I 1 >ll<l M I'lll III I

I llj III I ' • ll". Ill I
• I III •'MlP

^ 1 Ml I I ■ ', •»" i llu III ) \

Digitized by

Google

\

306 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

matioiij and his vivacity created the impression that,
whoever else might be affected by the solemnities of the
time, he was not

On a Sunday morning the late Bev. Dr. Perrine
preached a pecnliarly effective sermon on the conse-
quences of a life of sin. There was a singular unction
and tenderness in the discourse, and its vivid pictures
of hell's torments produced a most solemn and subduing
effect. !

As w« were sitting at the dinner-table, and remarks \

were passing freely in regard to the morning service, the . ;

young man above mentioned expressed in strong terms
his disapprobation of the sermon, and added, ^'Such
preaching only hardens me and makes me worse.'' I
replied, <<It is possible that you think it makes you
worse, when it only makes you conscious of sin that was
before slumbering in your heart." "No," said he: "it
hardens me. I am at this moment less susceptible to any
thing like conviction for hearing that discourse. I feel
more inclined to resist every thing like good impressions
than usual." "Yet," I rejoined, ^^good impressions are
those which are best adapted to secure the desired end ;
and I am greatly mistaken if an increase of the effect
which you feel would not be greatly useful to you. If,
for instance, you should read now Watts's version of the
Fifty-First Psalm, beginning, —

*Show pity, Lord; Lord, forgive,*

it would take a deep hold on your heart."

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 307

"Not the least," said he: "I could read it without
moving a muscle. I wish I had the book : I would read
it to you."

" We have one/' said Mrs. P , who was fully aware

of the excitement under which he was laboring; and the
book was handed him, opened at the place. He com-
menced to read; with compressed lips and a firm voice : —

" Show pity, Lord ; Lord, forgive ;
Let a repenting sinner live:
Are not thy mercies large and free ?
May not a sinner trust in thee ?"

Toward the last part of the stanza a little tremulous-

ness of voice was plainly discernible. He rallied again,

however, and commenced the second verse with more

firmness:—

"Oh, wash my soul from every sin,
And make my g^ty eonseience clean :
Here on my heart the burden lies.
And past offences pain mine eyes.''

At the last part of this stanza his voice faltered more
manifestly. Se commenced upon the third with great
energy, and read in a loud, sonorous voice, — ^the whole
company looking on in breathless silence : —

** My lips with shame my sins confess."

As he read the second line, —

"Against thy law, against thy grace,"

his lips quivered, and his utterance became difficult. He

Digitized by

Google

BOS INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

paased a little^ and entered upon the third line with an
apparently new determination : —

"Lord, should thy judgment grow severe.'*

Yet before he came to the end his voice was almost
totally choked; and when he began upon the fourth
line, —

** I am condemned, but thou art clear/'

an aspect of utter discouragement marked his counte-
nance, and he could only bring out, in broken sobs, " I
am condemned,'' — when his utterance changed to such a
heart-broken cry of grief, rising at the same time and
rushing from the room, as I had never witnessed in a
convicted sinner.

The dinner was interrupted; but that was the begin-
ning of a change, leading on to a new life, in Mr. H. ; and
probably every person in that room retained the im-
pression that a view of the awful justice of God, in con-
nection with the grace that saves from it, is often effective
in subduing those who say, " Prophesy unto us smooth
things,'' and that sinners are not always good judges
in respect to what produces the best effect upon them-
selves-

An Unhappy Mot^ee. — ^We have known very many
instances of good resulting from the knowledge of
hymns in early youth. They fasten themselves on the
memory and remain there through life. A poor,

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL ANH SOCIAL HAPPINESSw 809

wretched female, religiously edacated, but aftcirward
abandoned to sin and misery, was struck with horror at
hearing her own child repeat, as soon as she could well
speak, some of the profane language which she had
learned from herself. She trembled at the thought that
she was not only herself travelling to eternal perdition,
but was also leading her child there. She instantly re-
solved that with the first sixpence she could procure
she would obtain a copy of Dr. Watts's *^ Divine Songs
far Children/^ of which she had some recollection from
the days when she visited the Sunday-school, and would
teach them to her in&nt daughter. She soon bought
them; and on opening the book her eye caught the
striking verse, —

** Just as the tree cut down, that feU
To north or southward, there it lies,
So man departs to heayen or heU,
Fixed in the state wherein he lies."

She read on: the Spirit of God impressed the words
on her heart; the event led to her entire conversion,
and she lived and died a consistent professor of the re-
ligion of Christ.

An English Noblbm an. — One of the most interesting
anecdotes illustrating the power of hymns in the family-
circle we have ever met with was related in a social
circle in England a few years ago by a clergyman well
acquainted with the facts.

Lord •— ^, a nobleman of great wealth, was a man

Digitized by

Google

310 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

of the world : his pleasures were drawn from his riches,
his honors, and his friends. His daughter was the idol
of his heart. Much had been expended in her educa-
tion ; and well did she repay, in her intellectual endow-
ments, the solicitude of her parents. She was highly-
accomplished, amiable in her disposition, and winning
in her manners; but, alas! the whole family were
strangers to God. By a series of remarkable circum-
stances, the Hon. Miss. was led within the walls

of a Methodist church in London and converted to the
Lord Jesus. Henceforth she delighted in the service
of the sanctuary and in social religious meetings. To
her the charms of Christianity were overpowering, and
the society of those who loved Jesus Christ a heaven
upon earth.

The change was seen by her devoted father with deep
solicitude. To see his lovely daughter thus infatuated
was to him the occasion of intense grief j and he resolved
to correct her erroneous views on the real pleasures and
pursuits of life. He placed at her disposal large sums
of money, hoping she would be induced to pursue the
fashions and extravagance of others in her own rank of
life, and to forsake the Methodist meetings; but she
maintained her integrity. He took her on frequent and
long journeys, hoping thus to divert her mind from re-
ligion ; but she still delighted in the Saviour. After failing
in all his other projects, he determined to introduce her
into company under circumstances that would compel her
to join in the amusements of the party or give high of-

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 311

fence. It was arranged that on a festive occasion several
joung ladies should each accompany a performance on
the piano-forte with a song. The hour arrived; the
party assembled; several had delighted all with their
performances ; and all were in high spirits. The Hon.

Miss was called on for her song; and many hearts

beat high in hope of victory. The crisis was come.
Should she decline^ she would be disgraced as insulting
her friends; and should she comply, their triumph would
be complete. With entire self-possession, she took her
seat at the instrumidnt, ran her fingers over its keys, and
commenced playing, singing in a sweet air the words of
Charles Wesley, —

" No room for mirth or trifling here,
For worldly hope or worldly fear,

If life so soon is gone, —
If now the Judge is at the door,
And all mankind must stand before

The inexorable throne.

** No matter which my thoughts employ,
A moment's misery or joy ;

But, oh ! when both shaU end,
Where shall I find my destined place?
Shall I my everlasting days

With fiends or angels spend ?"

She rose from her seat. The whole party were sub-
dued. Not a word was spoken. Her father wept aloud.

One by one the visitors left the house. Lord never

rested till he became a Christian. He lived and died
consistently with his profession as a servant of Christ,

Digitized by

Google

312 INFLUENCE OF HTMNS ON

having, daring his union with the people of God, con-
tributed to the canse of benevolence half a million of
dollars.

Since writing the above, we have met with a very
similar narrative of facts in connection with a young
lady of this country, converted in the early days of
Methodism, under the labors of the excellent Bishop
Asbury.

An Irish Sunday-Scholae. — We * have not unfre-
quently heard singers eminent for *' science," "taste,"
and words of similar import, ridicule a certain class
of hymns and tunes, altogether forgetting that these
very compositions may exert on other minds a holy
and happy influence. Let us illustrate what we mean
by a condensed narrative from the pen of a living
clergyman. He says, "One day, as I was busily en-
gaged in my study, a man about half drunk very un-
ceremoniously entered and handed me a note from
the teacher of the infant class of our Sabbath-school,
informing me that the bearer was the father of one of
her scholars, that the child had met with an accident,
and that they lived in such a place : she could not visit
them, and she wished me to see to it.

" I looked at the man : he was Irish) very repulsive
in his appearance, and he answered my questions with
a rough brogue.
" ' What is your name, sir, and where do you live V
" 'My name is Pater M : I live on an ould canal-

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 313

boat at the fut of Harrison Street. I wint there whin
I was burnt out ; and nobody at all at all has driv me
out of it.'

" ' And what is the matter with your child ?'

*< ' Och ! and is it Kitty, my own little darling Kitty, the
only child I've lift of the six that has been born til me ?
Och ! Kitty I she was playing about on a ship where I
was til wark, and she fell down the hatchway and broke
her leg, (saving your prisence,) and poor Kitty's leg is
not set right, your riverence, for I have no money til
pay a docther. Och I poor Kitty I and I've nothing to
give her to ate, your, riverence.'

" ' Well, Peter, I will come down and see your Kitty,
and see what can be done for you.'

" I did so, and found a wretched state of things. The
poor little suffering child was overjoyed to see me. I re-
membered her countenance, — a sweet, mild little girl, not
yet five years of age. She lay upon the ' locker' or side-
seat of an old canal-boat which had been laid up for the
winter. There was no fire, though it was a bitter-cold
day, — no chair, no bed, no food, scarcely an article of ftir-
niture or any comfort whatever. I did what I could to
relieve the wants of the little sufferer. N'othing could
be done for the parents : they were both confirmed in-
ebriates; and I found they had both been drunk the night
previous, and in a quarrel had unintentionally knocked
the child off the seat and broken the limb again after it
had been set. I obtained the services of a surgeon and
had the limb set again, and then sat down on the locker

27

Digitized by

Google

814 INFLITENCE OF HTMNB ON

to talk to little Kitty, and fed her with some nourishing
food which I had hmught. I asked her if she could
read. No, she could not read a word ; ' but I can sing,'
said she. ' What can you sing ?' ' Something I learned
at Sabbath-school.' 'Well, what is it you can sing,
Kitty ?' In a moment her sweet little voice broke out, —

* There is a happy land,

Far, far away.
Where saints in glory stand,
Bright, bright as day.'

r

" ' Well, Kitty, that is sweet. Where do you think the
land of Canaan is, Kitty V ^ Oh, I suppose it is up in
the sky, where God lives and where the angels live.'
* Do you think you will ever go there, Kitty V ^ If I'm
good and love God, I think I shall.'

" ' Now, Kitty, is there any thing els^ you can sing for
me before I go ?' ' Oh, yes, sir : I can sing a little piece
of another.' < Well, what is that ?'

* All who love the Lord below
When they die, to heaven will go.
And sing with saints above.
Oh! that will be joyful!
Joyful, joyful!
Oh ! that will be joyful.
When we meet to part no more !'

" Poor Kitty could not read, nor could either of her
parents read. She knew nothing about heaven and
divine things except what she had been taught at the
Sabbath-school J and most of what she remembered was
associated with such despised words and sentiments as

Digitized by

y Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 815

we have quoted. Eternity alone will unfold the power
of such simple truth, and simple yet sweet tunes, upon
infant minds."

GovEENOB Hill. — ^We confess to a love of hymn-sing-
ing under almost all circumstances. The family, the
social circle, nay, in many instances the sick-bed itself,
may profit by it. But we have a beautiful illustration
now before us of the advantages of singing in apparent
solitude. In Governor Hill's account of his stage-ride
over the Alleghany Mountains, in a dark night, shut up
with strangers, he tells us that, to get rid of the fear
of robbers, he began to sing one of Dr. Watts's hymns,
certainly supposing that as a Christian he was alone.
To his great delight, however, another pious New Eng-
lander responded iti another hymn ; and he was followed
by another, who broke out in a popular camp-meeting
air. The Governor was delighted to ascertain that three
of the travellers out of the six proved to be New Eng-
land Puritans. He threw his fears to the winds, and the
morning found them safe beyond the dreaded haunts of
the highway-robbers.

Campbell the Poet. — The influence which devotional
singing sometimes produc^es on others may be inferred
from a reminiscence of James Grahame, author of " The
Sabbath/' written by the poet Thomas Campbell, with
whom he was intimate when both a»young men resided in
Edinburgh : — " One of the most endearing circumstancies

Digitized by

Google

316 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

which I remember of Grahame was his singing. I shall
never forget one summer evening that we agreed to sit
up all night and go together to Arthur's Seat to see the
sun rise. We sat accordingly all night in his delightful
parlor, — the seat of so many happy remembrances. We
then went and saw a beautiful sunrise. I returned
home with him, for I was living in his house at the time.
He was unreserved in all his devoutest feelings before me;
and, from the beauty of the morning scenery and the re-
cent death of his sister, our conversation took a serious
turn on the proofs of infinite benevolence in the creation
and the goodness of God. As I retired to my own bed,
I overheard his devotions, — not his prayer, but a hymn
which he sung, and with a power and inspiration beyond
himself and beyond any thing else. At that time he
was a strong-voiced and commanding-looking man. The
remembrance of his large, expressive features when ho
climbed the hill, and of his organ-like voice in praising
God, is yet fresh and ever pleasing in my mind."

A Taunting Lover. — ^A young gentleman, tenderly
attached to a young lady, was obliged to take a journey.
During his absence she became a follower of Jesus. He
heard of the change, and wrote her a letter full of
invectives against religion and its gloomy professors.
Having a good voice, and playing well on the piano-
forte, she had been accustomed to entertain him with
her music, especially in performing one song, of which he
was very fond, the burden of which was, " Ah, never ! ah,

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 317

no !" At their first interview after his return, he taunt-
ingly said, " I suppose you cannot sing me a song now V*
" Oh, yes," was her reply, " but I will •/' and, proceeding
to her piano, she sung a hymn she had composed to his
favorite tune : —

" As I glad bid adieu to the world's fancied pleasure,
You pity my weakness : alas ! did you know
The joys of religion, that best hidden treasure,
Would you bid me resign them ? Ah, never I ah, no !

** You will surely rejoice when I say I've received
The only true pleasure attained below.
I know by experience in whom I've believed:
Shall I give up this treasure ? Ah, never ! ah, no !

** In the gay scenes of life I was happiness wooing ;
But ah ! in her stead I encountered a woe.
And found I was only a phantom pursuing :
Never once did I find her. Ah, never ! ah, no !

" But in these bright paths which you call melancholy

I've found those delights which the world does not know.
Oh, did you partake them, you'd then see your folly,
Nor again bid me fly them ! Ah, never ! ah, no !"

It pleased God that by hearing these lines sung his
prejudices were shaken, and within a short time he em-
braced the Christian principles he had hitherto so
strongly opposed, and they became, as the reader has
perhaps anticipated, a truly-happy pair.

A Dying Jewess. — A colporteur employed not long
since by a Bible Society in London was offering Bibles
for sale in that metropolis, when he was told that if any
of the Jews should purchase his books, and become

27*

Digitized by

Google

318 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

Christians; they would certainly return to their former
belief, "for/' said the woman, "they must die in the
faith of Abraham/'

To this he replied, " It certainly is not always so ; for I
myself have seen a Jewess die who did not forsake her
faith in the Redeemer. I was at that time a city mis-
sionary, and was desired to call upon her by those who
well knew her previous history. This visit happened to
take place on the day of her death.

" She had been brought from affluence to abject poverty
for the faith of Christ. She had at one time kept her
own carriage. One day she cast her eye on the leaf of
a hymn-book which had come into the house covering
some butter, and she read upon it these words : —

* Not all the blood of beasts

On Jewish altars slain
Could giye the guilty conscience peace
Or wash away the stain.'

"The verse haunted her. She could not dismiss it
nor forget it ; and after a time she went to a box where
she remembered she had a Bible, and, induced by that
verse, began to read, and read on till she found Christ
Jesus, * the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.'

" She became openly a convert to Christianity. This
caused her husband to divorce her. He went to India,
where he married again and died. She lived in much
poverty with two of her nation, Jewish sisters, who
had also become Christians, All this I knew ; and it is
now four years since I stood by the side of that death-

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 319

bed. She did not renounce her faith in the crucified
Lord, but died triumphing in him as her Eock, her
Shield, and her exceeding great Eeward, quoting and
applying to him the Psalms of David, and passing with
him, without a fear, through the dark valley, numbered
among the Jews who, as we are told by the Apostle
John, ' went away, and believed on Jesus/ "

A Chimney-Sweep. — The late Eev. Joseph Slatterie,
of Chatham, in England, whom we knew many years
ago, was once walking in that town, when his attention
was arrested by a youthM voice singing, —

" The sorrows of the mind

Be banished from this place :
Religion never was designed
To make our pleasures less."

Pleased alike with the sweetness of the voice and
the cheerful tones in which the verse was sung, our
iriend looked around to see whence the singing pro-
ceeded; but for some time he looked in vain. At
length he saw a little sweep with his head popping out
of a chimney and waving with a sort of triumph his
brush over his head. " Oh," said the venerable minister
to us, " it made me weep in gratitude to think how sing-
ing the praises of God contributes to make even a poor
chimney-sweep happy.''

A SuppiiRiNa Mother. — ^Hymns have often adminis-
tered comfort in the severest trials. A lady who was
called to endure much anxious suflfering became greatly

Digitized by

Google

320 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

perplexed as to the duty which devolved upon her, and
retired to her room to consider the matters which caused
her agitation. Being sorely grieved in spirit, she laid
her head on the table and wept bitterly. So intense
was her grief that she scarcely perceived her little
daughter, who quietly sat in a corner of the room. Un-
able longer to bear the sight of her mother's distress, this
sweet girl stole softly to her side, and, taking her hand
in both of her own, she said, " Mamma, you once taught
me a pretty hymn : —

* If e'er you meet with trials

Or troubles on the way,
Then cast your care on Jesus,
And don*t forget to pray.' "

The counsel of the little monitor was taken, and relief
came. The mother was repaid for rightly training her
child by receiving from her in happy season the lesson
she had herself given.

EoBEBT Hall. — The distinguished Eobert Hall, who
was remarkable for his attachment to congregational
singing, gives us an anecdote which the reader will be
glad to see in his own words : — " I once heard a blunder-
ing, roaring preacher at Margate, who had all the rough-
ness of the wind without any of its power; and, after
being tortured for a whole hour, I was fully compen-
sated by the delight I enjoyed at the cloSe of the ser-
mon. An old man, whose gray locks were hanging
profusely on his shoulders, and whose countenance ex-

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 321

pressed much simplicity and piety, gave out with great
feeling, in the recitative style, —

' Let the old heathen tune their song

Of great Diana and of Jove ;
But the sweet theme that moves my song
Is my Redeemer and his love.*

" This so charmed me that I could at any time endure
to hear such a preacher if I were sure it would be fol-
lowed with such a delightful after-pieee."

A Yeemont Clergyman. — ^Mr. Gould mentions the
influence of singing on the mind of a minister in Ver-
mont. He was a stranger called to officiate for a Sabbath
in a cold and dreary church. When he entered it, the
wind howled, and loose clapboards and windows clat-
tered. The pulpit stood high above the first floor : there
was no stove, but a few persons in the church, and
those few beating their hands and feet to keep them
from freezing. He asked himself, " Can I preach ? Of
what use can it be ? What shall I do ? Can these two or
three singers in the gallery sing the words if I read a
hymn ? I concluded to make a trial, and read, —

* Jesus, lover of my soul.'

"They commenced; and the sound of a single female
voice has followed me with an indescribable pleasing
sensation ever since, and probably will while I live. The
voice, intonation, articulation, and expression seemed to
me perfect. I was warmed inside and out, and for the time

Digitized by

Google

INFLUXNG£ OF HTMNS ON

was lost in rapture. I bad heard of the individaal and
voice before; bat hearing it in this dreary situation
made it doubly grateful. Never did I preach with more
satisfaction to myself. And from this incident I learned
a lesson, — ^never to be discouraged from unfavorable ap-
pearances, but, where duty calls, go to work cheerfully,
without wavering."

A Sick Child. — ^Why cannot the whole of our families
imitate the members of the Moravian Church, who all
sing? We are sure that when religion flourishes as it
should do this will be the case. Nor have we any special
objection that singing, especially in the social circle,
should be accompanied with an instrument. "We have
long thought that a sufficient knowledge of music for
family devotion should form a part of every child's edu-
cation, — whether boy or girl. Half the time' and labor
often spent in teaching a girl to play a number of tunes
with only tolerable skill on the piano would teach her
to perform a smaller number exceedingly well on the
melodeon, and add much refinement and delight to her
family and friends. All this will at once appear evident
to a mind disposed to reflect on the subject.

We have before us an interesting account of a little
girl, seven years old, who was recovering from sick-
ness; and as her strength increased she inquired,
"Father, won't you attend family worship up here?"
The request could not be denied. " Won't you sing, —
* Yes, my native land, I love thee '? "

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND BOCIAL HAPPINESS. 323

It was indeed beautiful to see the feeble child, as she
sat in her bed supported by pillows, with her little
hymn-book before her, exerting her almost exhausted
powers in singing all the verses of a hymn which im-
plies entire consecration to the missionary work.

An Aged Lady. — ^An old lady of nearly fourscore
years writes in reference to "Dr. Watts's Divine and
Moral Songs for Children" as follows; and we can endorse
almost every word of her testimony from our own ex-
perience : —

" Now, when arrived to the age of seventy-nine years,
I may with truth say that I would not relinquish for
any pecuniary consideration the usefulness and comfort
of my recollection of * Watts^s Divine Songs.' When I
cannot sleep in the night, I often repeat all I can recol-
lect at the time, — not orally, but in my thoughts. If
every mother in our land would teach her children these
beautiful hymns, we should see a train of blessings on
the Church and our country. My excellent mother
taught them to me when a child ; and I taught them to
my children. And I have the comfort of seeing my
children teaching them to their children.^'

A Young Man in Virginia. — ^A fine, intelligent Vir-
ginian young man, while residing in the West, became
an infidel and a blasphemer of the name of God. From
this state he was delivered by reading the work of
Soame Jenyns; but, while he acquiesced in the truth of

Digitized by

Google

824 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

revelation, he yet did not feel its power. He was
attacked by a lingering and fatal disease, which led
him to reflection and prayer but often made it difficult
for him to converse. Three Christian friends sometimes
visited him, to beguile the tedious hours by singing.
They one day entered his room, and, almost without any
previous remarks, began the hymn, —

" There is a fountain, filled with blood,"
and then, —

« The Toice of free grace cries, Escape to the mountain."

He then said to them, " There is nothing I so much de-
light to hear as the first hymn you ever sung to me : —

* Jesus, lover of my soul.' "

•

We began to sing it to the tune Martyn, and found the
solemnity which had reigned in the little circle while
singing the two former hymns began to be changed to
weeping. We struck the touching strains of the second
stanza, and the weeping became loud : the heart of him
who had reviled Christ broke; and we feared that to
sing the remaining stanza would be more than he could
bear. When singing in his room a few days after this,
he said, "I don't think I shall ever hear 'Jesus, lover
of my soul' sung again : it so excites me that my poor
body cannot bear it."

A Dying Pastor. — ^How delightfully useful very often
are hymns on a dying bed ! Once, visiting a dying pastor.

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 325

he said to us, "I have often wondered why when I
visited many of my people in their last hours I found
them so constantly using hymns as expressing their
feelings, and sometimes half smiled that so many of
them used the very same hymns ; but I understand it
all now. The people of Jesus think and feel alike as
they get near to his throne; and the smoothness of a
hymn conveys the idea they need without the effort of
thinking. How sweet to me now is the ten-thousandth-
time-repeated verse, —

'Jesus can make a dying bed /

Feel soft as downy pillows are,
While on his breast I lean my head

And breathe my life out sweetly there' !"

Mr. Pearson has very truly said that as the mental
powers grow feeble there would seem to be a soothing
and consoling influence in devotional poetry which
speaks peace to the soul of the departing Christian.
How often do we find the learned scholar, the profound
theologian, or the keen controversialist, seeking spiritual
comforts in his last hours from simple hymns! Such
was Prudentius, the advocate, soldier, and courtier
of the fourth century, who, as Izaak Walton relates,
"not many days before his death charged his soul to
present to his God each morning and evening a new and
spiritual song." Such were the accomplished Walter
Ealeigh, the scholar and diplomatist Wootton, Dr. Donne,
George Herbert, and the erratic but pious Edward

28

Digitized by

Google

826 INFLUENCE Of HYMNS ON

Irving, wlio died while singing the Hebrew of the
Twenty-Third Psalm. Southey has truly said of the
hymns of the Wesleys, "Perhaps no poems have ever
been so devoutly committed to memory, or quoted so
often on a death-bed/'

A MiiiiTABY Officer. — ^A few years ago an interesting
incident occurred at the funeral of a pious military
officer at Montreal. Several officers and other Christian
friends were sitting round a fire singing to an old minor
tune the hymn, —

" Not all the blood of beasts,"

when Captain L said to his friend Captain Hammond,

" I have a curious fancy concerning that hynm. I should
like it sung by six young men as they lower me into the

grave." But a short time elapsed before Captain L

was removed from earth; and his request was carried
into execution. We can scarcely imagine any thing more
impressive than such a scene in the presence of his
military friends at such a time and under such circum-
stances. A short time afterwards Captain Hammond
followed his friend to the world of spirits.

The Blind Psalmist. — ^We do not dread giving offence
to our readers by here quoting some beautiful lines from
the pen of Mrs. E. C. Kinney, written on hearing a blind
clergyman, aged eighty-six, sing hymns, accompanying
himself on the bass-viol : —

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 327

« He sang the airs of olden times
In soft, low tones, to sacred rhymes,

DoYotional but quaint ;
His fingers touched the yiol's strings,
And, at their gentle yibratings,
The glory of an angel's wings
Hung o'er that aged saint.

<< His thin, white locks, like silyer threads
On which the sun its radiance sheds, —

Or like the moonlit snow, —

Seemed with a lustre half diyine

Around his saintly brow to shine,

Till every scar or time-worn line

Was gilded with its glow.

** His sightless eyes to heaven upraised.
As through the spirit's lens he gazed

On things invisible.
Reflecting some celestial light,
Were like a tranquil lake at night
On which two mirrored planets bright
The concave's glory tell.

" Thus, while the patriarchal saint
Devoutly sang to music quaint,

I saw old HoMBB rise,
With buried centuries, from the dead,
The laurel green upon his head.
As when the choir of bards he led

With rapt, but blinded, eyes.

'* And Scio's isle again looked green
As when the poet there was seen
And Greece was in her prime ;
While Poesy with epic fire
Did once again the bard inspire,
t' As when he swept his mighty lyre

To vibrate through all time.

<< The vision changed to Albion's shore :
I saw a sightless bard once more

Digitized by

Google

328 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

From dust of ages rise :
I heard the harp and deathless song
Of glorious Milton float along.
Like warblings from the birds that throng

His muse's paradise.

"And is it thus when blindness brings
A yeil before all outer things.

That visual spirits see
A world within, than this more bright,
Peopled with living forms of light,
And strewed with gems, as stars of night

Strew diamonds o'er the sea ?

" Then, reverend saint, though old and blind,
Thou with the quenchless orbs of mind

Canst natural sight o'erreach, —
Upborne on Faith's triumphant wings.
Canst see unutterable things.
Which only through thy viol's strings

And in thy songs find speech."

Two Sisters in New York State. — To the compara-
tively few persons among our readers who knew the
truly-excellent Eev. Dr. Nettleton, it will be pleasant to
be reminded of him. During one of his tours which
were so remarkably blessed to the salvation of men, he
stopped at a house in the region of the Catskill Mount-
ains. While conversing with the older members of the
famiiy, he heard two young, sweet, and clear voices in a
room above warbling the exquisitely-beautiful air of
" Bonnie Doon/' " Ask them," said he to their parents,
" to come down and sing it to me ; for I am ardently de-
voted to music." The request was complied with, and
he listened with delighted attention till the close of the

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOOIAL HAPPINESS. 829

soDg, when, kindly turning to the young ladies, he said,
" I think I can teach you some far better words to that
tiine/' and then sang to them that almost matchless
hymn,—

** When marshalled on the mighty plain,"

and proceeded so touchingly and tenderly to call their
attention to the beauty of its sentiments, that tears soon
flowed from their eyes ; and these two young girls were
among the first subjects of a revival which was the
blessed fruit of his labors.

The Young Captive and her Mother. — The following
narrative of facts, which will show how a hymn may be
useful in a very unexpected manner, was written by
Pastor Eone, formerly of Elsinore : —

Many years ago, several German families came over
and settled in this country, among whom was a man
from Wurtemberg, who with his wife and a large family
established himself in Pennsylvania. There were no
churches or schools in the neighborhood, and he was
compelled to keep the Sabbath at home with his family,
instructing them himself to read the Bible, and praying
to God. He used very often to read the Scriptures to
them, and always used first to say, " Now, my children,
be still, and listen to what I am going to read ; for it is
God who speaks to us in this book."

In the year 1754 a dreadful war broke out in Canada
between the French and the English. The Indians took

28*

Digitized by

Google

330 INFLUENCE OF HTMNS ON

part witli the French^ and made excursions as far as
Pennsylvania, where they plundered and burned the
houses they came to* and murdered the people. In
1755 they reached the dwelling of the poor family from
TVurtemberg, while the wife and one of the sons were
gone to a mill four miles distant to get some corn
ground. The husband, eldest son, and two little girls,
named Barbara and Kegina, were at home. The father
and his son were instantly killed by the savages; but
they carried the two little girls away into captivity,
with a great many other children who had been taken in
the same manner. They were led many miles through
woods and thorny bushes, that nobody might follow
them. In this condition they were brought to the habi-
tations of the Indians, who divided among themselves
all the children whom they had taken captive.

Barbara was at this time ten years old and Eegina
nine. It was never known what became of Barbara;
but Eegina and a Uttle girl two years old, whom she
had never seen before, were given to an old widow, who
treated them very cruelly. Her only son lived with
her and maintained her; but he was sometimes from
home for weeks together, and then these poor children
were forced to go into the forest to gather roots and
other provisions for the old woman ; and when they did
not bring her enough to eat she would beat them in so
cruel a manner that they were nearly killed. The little
girl always kept close to Begina ; and, when she knelt
down under a tree and repeated the prayers to the Lord

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAIi HAPPINESS. 331

Jesus and the hymns which her father had taught her,
the little girl prayed with her and learned the hymns
and prayers hy heart. In this melancholy state these
children remained nine long years, till Regina reached
the age of nineteen and her little companion was eleven
years old. While captives, their hearts seem to have been
drawn toward what was good. Regina continually re-
peated the verses from the Bible and the hymns which
she had learned at home, and taught them to the
little girl. They often cheered each other with one
hymn from the hymn-book used at Halle, in Ger-
many : —

<* Alone, yet not alone, am I,

Though in this solitude so drear."

They constantly hoped that the Lord Jesus would
some time bring them back to their Christian friends.

In 1764 the hope of these children was realized. The
merciful providence of God brought the English Colonel
Boquet to the place where they were in captivity. He
conquered the Indians and forced them to ask for peace.
The first condition he made was that they should restore
all the prisoners they had taken. Thus the two poor
girls were released. More than four hundred captives
were brought to Colonel Boquet. It was an affecting
sight to see so many young people wretched and dis-
tressed. The colonel and his soldiers gave them food
and clothing, took them to Carlisle, and published in the
newspapers that all parents who had lost their children,
might come and seek them, and they should be restored.

Digitized by

Google

332 INFLUENCE OF HTMNS ON

Among other bereaved parents, poor Eegina's mother
came; but, alas I her child had become a stranger to
^ler. Eegina had acquired the appearance and manners
of the natives, and by no means could the mother dis-
cover her daughter. Seeing her weep in bitter disap-
pointment, the colonel asked her if she could recollect
nothing by which her poor girl could be known. She
at length thought of, and began to sing, the hymn, —

'< Alone, yet not alone, am I,

Though in this solitude so drear :
I feel my Sayiour always nigh, —

He comes the weary hours to cheer.
I am with him, and he with me ;
Even here alone I cannot be."

Scarcely had the mother sung tw(T lines of it when
Eegina rushed from the crowd, began to sing it also,
and threw herself into her mother's arms. They both
wept for joy; and with her young companion, whose
friends had not sought her, she went to her mother's
house. Happily for herself, though Eegina had not seen
a book for nine years, she at once remembered how to
read the Bible.

A Family in Louisiana. — ^The late Eev. James Haxley,
about the year 1806, was sent by a Methodist Conference
to itinerate as a missionary in Louisiana, then chiefly
inhabited by French Catholics. Jimmy, as he was
familiarly called, had small expectation of comfort with-
out payment; and he seldom possessed any money. He

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 333

was one evening reduced to the very verge of starvation :
he had spent the preceding night in a swamp, and had
taken no food for thirty-six hours, — ^when he reached a
plantation. He entered the house and asked for food
and lodging. The mistress of the house, a widow, with
several daughters, and several negro children playing
about, recognised his calling, and insultingly refused his
request. He obtained, however, permission to warm
himself for a few minutes before the fire. As he sat
thus, he felt the demands of hunger and sleep, and
looked forward to another night in the swamp. Feel-
ing this might prove his last night on earth, he thought
sweetly of the celestial city to which he felt he was
travelling; his heart swelled with gladness, and he
cheerfully sung one of his favorite hymns : —

*< Peace, my soul! thou needst not fear:
The Great ProYider still is near."

He sang the whole hymn ; and when he looked around
him the mother, daughters, and negroes were all in tears.
"Here, Sally,'' said the mother; "get the preacher a
good supper. Peter, put up his horse : he shall stay a
week, if he pleases.'' Has hymn-singing no influence ?

The Brothers and Sister. — More than thirty years
ago, a pious young lady in ill health was resting on her
couch, and by her side sat a beloved brother, himself
scarcely well, and utterly without a feeling of love to
God His sister, as descriptive of the emotions of her

Digitized by

Google

334 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

soul; repeated to him; with remarkahle emphasiS; the

lines, —

** Oh, what hath Jesus bought for me !
Before my rayished eyes
Kiyers of life divine I see
And trees of paradise I
I see a world of spirits bright,

Who taste the pleasures there :
They are all robed in spotless whit«,
And conquering palms they bear/'

Scarcely had she uttered these words before he began to
think seriously on the state of his soul, and asked him-
self, " Has he bought nothing for me ?" His dear sister
had soon the happiness of having him as a companion
in her Christian course; and both brother and sister,
with another brother, not long after departed for mis-
sionary fields in the island of Ceylon.

Two Young Women. — When the late Eev. Sylvester
Hutchinson was stationed on Salem Circuit, New Jersey,
his first station, and while he was yet a boy, he was
sitting in his temporary boarding-house waiting for the
hour of preaching, when two young women came in to
have some sport with the boy-preacher. They began to
ridicule his size and his insignificant appearance, when,
suddenly lifting up his head from a reclining posture, he
repeated, in slow and solemn tones, —

" My thoughts on awful subjects roll, —
Damnation and the dead.
What horrors seize the guilty soul
ITpbn a dying bed 1"

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 335

His voice, his countenance, his manner, were all
adapted to make them feel that

" *Tis not the whole of life to live,
Nor all of death to die.''

The words of the preacher were " like nails fastened
in a sure place by the Master of assemblies." Tears
rolled down their cheeks : they left the room, and rested
not till they found a refuge in the Son of God. Kot
long after, they each said to the Church, *^ Thy people
shall be my people, and thy God my God."

Quarrelsome Neighbors. — Three men became hope-
fully pious about the same time. They were neighbors,
heads of families, and singers. For a season they lived
in love and exhibited in their lives the graces of the
Holy Spirit. During this period they often united in
sweetly singing the praises of God. But, as one of them
was once passing the house of another, he heard loud
words and found his friends in angry dispute. He went
into the house, and began by saying, " Come, neighbors,
let us sing one of our favorite hymns : —

*How pleasant 'tis to see
Kindred and friends agree !* "

They became silent, looked first at him and then at
each other, and then one joined the singing. The other
very soon followed his example, and the three neighbors
sang harmoniously together as usual, till all their angry
passions were lulled to sleep. They parted in peace,

Digitized by

Google

886 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

and ever afterward lived in harmony. In this instance,
at least, a hymn was better than an exhortation.

Klopstock and his Wife. — ^Frederick Klopstock, who
died at the age of eighty, at Hamburg, in 1803, in the
presence of fifty thousand people, and who is still re-
membered as "the Milton of Germany," was a poet
before he had ever seen a verse written, and commenced
his " Messiah** knowing nothing of his subject or of the
style in which it was written but what he learned from
a large collection of Bibles in his father's library, but
which contained " not a single production of any muse."
Beautifully did he write, " How happy shall I be if by
the completion of the 'Messiah* I may contribute some-
what to the glory of our great and divine religion!
How sweet and transporting is this idea to my mind !
That is my great reward."

In early life Klopstock knew a lady worthy of himself.
They loved and breathed poetry together. At the end
of four years she wrote concerning him, " If you knew
his poem, I could describe him very briefly in saying he
is in all respects what he is as a poet." But, alas ! soon
after this he wrote thus to a friend, seven days after
her removal from earth : — " I supported first myself, and
then her, by repeating that without our Father's will
not a hair in her head could fall ; and more than once I
repeated to her the following lines from my last Ode.
Once I was so much aflfected as to be compelled to stop
at every line : —

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 337

* Though unseen by human eye.
My Bedeemer's hand is nigh :
He has poured salyation's light
Far within the Tale of night ;
There will God my steps control,
There his presence bless my souL
Lord, whate'er my sorrows be,
Teach me to look up to thee.' "

This truly-great man was buried under a weeping-
willow; with a single line on his tomb : —

" Seed sown by God to ripen for harvest."

Eev. Samuel Bradburn. — Few things are of more
importance than a good enunciation of hymns; yet
perhaps in nothing more than in this do our clergymen
fiail. Let us illustrate its importance.

William Dawson, — ^a late very eminent local preacher
in England, — ^before he began to preach, having heard of
the fame of the £ev. Samuel Bradburn as an orator,
went to Leeds, in the year 1793, to hear him in the Eev.
Edward Parsons's church. His commanding figure,
powdered hair, and advanced age fixed Dawson's eye
and attracted his admiration. The subject of his sermon
was the kingly office of Christ : it was a masterly per-
formance; and Dawson was filled with admiratioiQ.

On reading the last hymn^ Mr. Bradburn inclined his
person over the front of the pulpit, and, looking to the
precentor, or clerk, as though somewhat displeased with
him,— or rather preferring, like his Methodist i>rethren in

29

Digitized by

Google

838 INFLUENCE OF HTMNS ON

general; to read the hymns to be sung, — he said, " I will
give out the last two verses myselif :" —

" The goyemment of earth and seas
Upon his shoulders shall be laid.
His wide dominion shall increase,
And honors to his name be paid.

<* Jesus, the holy child, shall sit

High on his father David's throne,
Shall crush his foes beneath his feet,
And reign to ages yet unknown.'*

Mr. Dawson had never heard these words before; but
Bradbum's manner of repeating them was such that he
ever after remembered them.

Eev. Dr. E. D. Griffin.— Of the late Eev. Dr. E.
Griffin it has been said that, while in reading th^ Scrip-
tures he seemed to evolve a meaning and richness never
thought of before, in reading hymns he gave more force
of expression, and often more impressiveness to their
sentiments, than could be given by the singing of even
a good choir. Indeed, the great masters of sacred music
are not more careful to bring the force of their art to
bear on each note than was the excellent doctor to
bring the resources of eloquence to bear upon every
syllable of the hymn which he read. He read slowly,
and gave himself time to throw the right and full ex-
pression and inflection on each word. Moreover, he
infused his whole pathos into the reading, as much as if
the lines were a fresh and original utterance of his own

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 8S9

feelings. It has been often said that by the simple
reading of the hymn, —

" Mighty God, while angels bless thee,
May au infant bless thy name,"

he would produce as much impression upon an audience
as would ordinarily be eifected by an eloquent sermon.

The late extraordinary man, Eobert Hall, of England,
eminently excelled in reading hymns. No one who ever
heard him at his social prayer-meeting can forget the
intense dignity and feeling with which he would enun-
ciate the words of Dr. Doddridge, —

** The splendid crowh which Moses sought
Still beams around his brow,
Though soon great Pharaoh's sceptred pride
Was taught by death to bow."

Eev. Dr. Stillman. — Few men could read a hymn

with more effect than the Eev. Dr. Samuel Stillman, of

Boston, who died in 1807. None who ever heard him

will forget the verse of Watts, as it was enunciated by

him from the pulpit : —

"Well, the Redeemer's gone,
To appear before our God, —
To sprinkle o'er the flaming throne
With his atoning blood."

Some cold-blooded critic, who probably never read
Numbers xxv. 2, has censured this verse; but I think
he would have been disarmed had* he heard Dr. Still-
man read it. His voice had a beautiful circumflex to it ;

Digitized by

Google

340 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

he threw his emphasis on the word " well/' then a paase,
— and the rest of the verse was pronounced in that cheer-
fal and animating tone which seemed to rend the veil and
transport the hearer into the nnseen world. The most
skilful actor never made a more sndden and happy
transition. There was no apparent art in his style or
delivery. It was all earnest simplicity.

Rev. Dr. Broaddus. — ^The Rev. Dr. J. L. Dagg gives
an interesting account of the manner in which the late
Bev. Br. A. Broaddns^ a Southern Baptist minister^ con-
ducted puhlic worship. The manner in which he read
his hymns may furnish an important hint to ministers.

Dr. D says, " He read the hymn of Dr. Watts, which

hegins, —

*Lord, we are blind, we mortals blind;
We can't behold thy bright abode :
Oh, 'tis beyond a creature mind

To glance a thought half-way to God.'

His manner of reading was to me new and attractive ;
and before he had finished this first stanza my attention
was riveted. He read through the hymn ; and the im-
pression produced on my mind forty years have not
erased. From that time I have regarded this hymn —
perhaps on account of the impression then made — ^as one
of the most beautiful that Dr. Watts ever composed.''

Thoughtless Clergymen. — ^We really do wish that
our ministers were always careful in the selection ot

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 841

their hymns, that they may be appropriate and season-
able. We have heard a hymn written to describe winter
and to draw from it appropriate lessons read to be sung
in the sultry heats of July or August; and some time
ago a somewhat aged minister, in a large, intelligent, and
pious congregation, announced, on a bright Sabbath
morning, the beautiful evening hymn written by
Edmeston, —

" Saviour, breathe an evening blessing,
Ere repose our spirits seal."

What a lamentable indication of bad taste !

A still more ludicrous scene, arising from a similar
cause, has been described to us by a Methodist clergy-
man, in one of the papers of that body of Christians.
He says : —

" I had preached my last sermon at a favorite appoint-
ment on my first circuit. The people had been kind
and generous, and I loved them dearly. The house was
full ; it was my final appeal to the flock beloved ; and,
though almost overcome with emotion, I had got through,
somehow, with the ' farewell sermon,' — my first and last.
I knew that, either from sympathy or sorrow, the con-
gregation was sharing largely in my feelings, — ^that I
was not alone 'in the melting mood.' As I sat down,
overwhelmed with grief at the sore parting, a local
preacher, whom I had invited to close the service, rose,
and, opening the book at random, read, in solen^l tones,
the hymn commencing, —

29*

Digitized by

Google

342 INFLUENCE OF HTMNS ON

* Jesus, we lift our souls to thee:
Thy Holy Spirit breathe,
And let this little infant be
Baptized into thy death,'

The effect of this malapropos selection you may possibly
imagine^ but I cannot describe/'

Another illustration of inappropriate hymns arises
from the custom, allowed by some ministers, of permit-
ting the choirs to sing voluntaries at all times and
under all circumstances. We have heard a doctrinal
sermon directly opposed by the " voluntary" sung after
it; and we have just read of the choir of a very large
congregation in Massachusetts, who sang at the funeral
of a man of distinction, with great unction, —

" Belieying we rejoice

To see the curse remove."

A Tory Minister. — ^It is of no small importance that
the clergy should be acquainted with hymns and psalms
before they read them with a view to their being sung
by congregations. Some years ago, a somewhat idle
Tory Congregational minister in England announced
Dr. Watts's version of the Seventy-Fifth Psalm, " To
thee, most holy and most high,'' etc. When he had
reached the second verse, " Britain was doomed to be a
slave," etc., he became alarmed, and fled to the sixth
verse, which, to his sad amazement, flatly denied the
divine right of kings : —

Digitized by

Google

peSsonal and social happiness. 843

** No vain pretence to royal birth
Shall fix a tyrant on the throne :
God, the great Sovereign of the earth,
Will rise and make his justice known."

His confusion became apparent; but, happily for
him, the people supposed he mighi*'have a reference to
the King of Hanover, then very unpopular among the
British people, but who, on the first accession of Queen
Victoria, and before she had a family, was heir-pre-
sumptive to the throne.

Doctor Mason. — ^Doctor Lowell Mason has given us
a very striking narrative illustrating the importance ot
carefully examining a hymn before even abridging it.
Some years ago, when that gentleman was organist and
the conductor of the singing at the Bowdoin Street
Church, Boston, a visiting clergyman conducted the
service. Dr. Mason says, " The whole hymn was first
read by the minister, and then, just before the singing-
exercise commenced, the direction was given, ' Omit the
second stanza.' The following are the first three stanzas,
and the connection between the first and third stanzas
will be seen at a glance : —

* When thou, my righteous Judge, shalt come
To take thy ransomed people home.

Shall I among them stand ?
Shall such a worthless worm as I,
Who sometimes am afraid to die,

Be found at thy right hand ?

* I love to meet thy people now,
Before thy feet with them to bow.

Digitized by

Google

844 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

Though yilest of them all ;
But — can I bear the piercing thought—
What if my name should be left out

When thou for them shalt call ?

* Lord, prevent it by thy grace :
Be thou ^ only hiding-place

In thi^inie accepted day ;
Thy pardoning voice, oh, let me hear,
To still my unbelieving fear,
Nor let me fftll, I pray.*

" The organist did not pdirceive the fearful connection
between the first and third stanzas until a moment be-
fore it was time to commence the latter, when, startled
and terrified, he cried out, ' Sing the second stanza !' just
in time to avoid the utterance of the frifhtful petition."

Dr. Mason properly adds, " It is unquestionably the
duty of the choir to follow implicitly the directions of
the minister in all that appertains to the singing in
public worship; and the habit which prevails in some
places of inattention to the directions given from the
pulpit in relation to the abridgment of the hymn is
wholly unjustifiable; but there seem to be exceptions
to almost all rules, and here was an occasion when dis-
obedience to the oral rubric seemed to be positively re-
quired : indeed, it was a case of life or death, and it
was impossible to follow it. Warm were the thanks
expressed by members of the congregation after the
service for their deliverance from the terrible moral col-
lision with which they were threatened.''

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 345

Mr. Dawson. — We have sometimes, when conducting
the worship of God, felt strongly disposed to interrupt
the choir for the sake of a striking remark on what is
too often thoughtlessly sung. We -have before us an
instance in which the monotony was broken with good
effect. Mr. Dawson, an eminent English Wesleyan local
preacher, had once preached a very impressive sermon,
and at its close read Charles Wesley's beautiful hymn, —

"0 love divine, how sweet thou art!"

When the choir were singing the third verse, —

** Cfod only knows the love of God,"

he stopped them and said, " Stop, friends ! If angels,
the first-born sons of light, cannot understand the height,
the breadth, the depth, the length, of the love of God,
how can we expect to fathom it while here below ?" He
then repeated, with profound feeling, thrilling his large
auditory, —

" * God only knows the love of God.'

Let us sing it again, friends ; for we shall have to sing
it in heaven : —

*God only knows the love of God.* "

Fault Found. — It is usually true that the members
of every denomination praise their poets and their
hymns; but we have^before us a remarkable feet of an
opposite character. The Eev. Samuel Bradbum, a man
of fine talents, and of wit as well as piety, and an emi-

Digitized by

Google

346 INFLUENCE OF HTMNS ON

nent preacher among the English Wesleyan Methodists,
was once engaged to preach, and read the hymn written
by Charles Wesley contains this verse : —

"Ah, lovely appearance of death!
What sight upon earth is so fair ?
Not all the gay pageants that-l)reathe
Can with a dead body compare."

He broke out : — ^^ What business has this hymn, in our
book, containing as it does a sentiment so false, — ' Ah,
lovely appearance of death !' — when there is nothing
lovely about it. Why did Abraham's beloved and beau-
tiful Sarah, when she died, become so unlovely that he
expressed his wish, ' Bury my dead out of my sight' ? "
It is right to say that the Methodists of this country
have omitted this hymn from their book.

A Clergtman in Georgia. — A few years ago, an aged
minister was officiating for the first time in a Methodist
church in Georgia, where they keep up the old custom
of having the hymns " lined/' that the whole congre-
gation may, according to the wise discipline of that
Church, join in the singing, whether they have hymn-
books or not. The venerable man could not see dis-
tinctly, and intended to omit singing during that service.
To announce his purpose, he arose and said, —

" My eyes are dim ; I ca^f^t see"

and immediately the chorister commenced singing it to
the tune of " Old Hundred,'* Surprise and mortification

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 347

made the clergyman almost speechless ; but he stammered
out, —

"I meant but an apology."

This line was immediately sung by the congregation,
and the minister, now quite excited, exclaimed, —

"Forbear, I pray: my sight is dim"

but the singing proceeded, and the couplet was finished
by his troubled and beseeching explanation, —

" I do not mean to read a hymn."

Strange as it may seem, this was also sung with much
energy, while the worthy old gentleman sat down in
actual despair of accomplishing his purpose to do without
singing.

A Deacon in a Difficulty. — ^Deacons, as well as
ministers, have sometimes been piaced in an awkward
predicament. On one occasion, in "Sew England, a gen-
tleman of this order had been called on to deacon the
hymns, — that is, to read them line by line. He looked at
his book for some time, endeavoring to spell out the
words ; but, having unfortunately left his spectacles at
home, he was compelled to make known his difficulty,
and said, —

"My eyes, indeed, are very blind."

The choir, who had been impatiently waiting for a line,
supposing this to be the first of a common-metre hymn,

Digitized by

Google

848 INFLUENCE 0¥ HYMNS ON

immediately satig it. The good deacon exclaimed^ with
emphasis, —

« I canixot see at alL"

This, of course, they also sung, when the astonished
pillar of the church cried out, —

"I really think you are bewitched !" *

which the choir at once repeated in full tone; and the
deacon added, —

** The mischiefs in you all;"

when the choir finished the verse hy echoing the last line,
and the deacon sat down in despair.

Eegulations op Singing. — The History of the Pres-
byterian Church at Kockaway, New Jersey, tells us,
" That part of divine service pertaining to the singing
of psalms, and what version of psalms should be used
in worship, having ijiade great uneasiness and inquietude,
in April, 1780, it was voted to appoint four choristers to
set the tunes; that Benjamin Jackson, Francis M'Carty,
and Jacob Lyon be appointed choristers ; that they sing
in the afternoon without reading the psalm line by line;
and David Beeman to sing the forepart of the day, un-
less otherwise agreed on by Mr. Beeman and the other
choristers ; and that they sing any tunes that are sung
by the neighboring churches, as they shall judge proper,"
. . . April, 1789, some further difficulty having arisen
respecting th« singing in the church, " It was voted at a

Digitized

?y Google

PERSONAL AND 800IAL HAPPINESS. 349

parish meeting to have the psalms read line by line, or
by two lines, in singing, in futnre, except on particular
occasions/' ... At a parish meeting May 14, 1792,
"The mode of singing was again adjusted by the ap-
pointment of Benjamin Johnson^ Bussel Davis, and
Daniel Hnrd as choristers, and that they act discretion-
ary when to sing without reading the lines"

Importance op Eight Feelings. — ^In ^'Hood's Sistory
of Music in New England," it is said that when, in 1646,
the nnhappy Charles I. fled from Oxford, he threw him-
self upon the army of his countrymen, then encamped
before Kewark. Here, instead of being befriended, he
was reproached and insulted to his face. Upon one
occasion during public service, one of the chaplains, after
having used harsh language, directed the Fifty-Second
Psalm to be sung, beginning, —

"Why dost thou, tyrant, boast thyself
Thy wicked deeds to praise ?"

As soon as they had sung it, the king rose and re-
quested the soldiers to sing the Psalm, —

<< Have mercy on me, Lord, I pray ;
For men would me deTour."

This was accordingly sung in compassion for his dis-
tress, which saw no relief till he reached the scaffold
ordered by the High Court of Justice.

The history of our country relates a not dissimilar
anecdote of the visit in 1686 of Sir Edmund Andross to

30

Digitized by

Google-

850 INFLUENCE OF HTMN6 ON

New Haven in search of Goffe, one of the regicides, who
really was present at the church when Sir Edmund was
there. The clerk felt it his duty to select a psalm not in-
capable of a double application, and which accordingly
hit Sir Edmund in a tender part : —

" Why dost thou, tyrant, boast thyself,
Thy wicked deeds to praise ?"

All his attempts to discover " his man" utterly failed.

A complete history of hymns would develop facts both
pleasing and painful as to the state of religion in di£<
ferent places and at different periods. The Eev. John
Adams, of Durham, New Hampshire, graduated at
Harvard College in 1746, and was ordained in 1748.
After thirty years' residence at Durham, difficulties arose
with his people, and he was dismissed. We fear that
Christian feeling did not abound even in his heart; for at
the close of his farewell sermon he requested his people
to " sing to the praise and glory of God, and to their
own edification," the first three verses of the One Hun-
dredth and Twentieth Psalm of Dr. Watts, —

" Thou God of love, thou ever blest.
Pity my suffering state :
When wilt thou set my soul at rest
From lips which love deceit ?

** Hard lot of mine I my days are oast
Among the sons of strife,
Whose never-ceasing brawlings waste
My golden hours of life.

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 851

** Oh, might I fly to change my plaoe,
How would I choose to dwell
In some wild, lonesome wilderness,
And leave these gates of hell I"

An Old Paeodt. —

"Come, thou Almighty King,'*

is a parody on the old English national anthem, << God
save the King** and first appeared in that country some
nineteen years after " God save the King" had been first
printed in the " Gentleman's Magazine," which was in
1745, where it was simply called "-4. song for two voices"
It is now common among us under the disguise of
^'America" The first appearance of the hymn was in
1764, in a collection of Psalms and Hymns, extracted
from various authors, by the Rev. Spencer Madan.
From this fact it is often attributed to Madan's own
pen; but of this there is no evidence: all believe the real
author to be as much unknown as that of which it is a
parody. It has ever since retained its place in most of
our collections, with remarkable integrity and freedom
from "emendations," and will probably do so till the
Church loses its militant character.

Singular Music. — One of the most singular curiosities
of musical literature with which we are acquainted
relates to a fugue tune to which is sung a version of the
One Hundred and Thirty-Third Psalm, in the prodigious
effort of the performance of which the ear-splitting corn-

Digitized by

Google

852 INfLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

bination of the Beveral voices scarcely bears a resemblance
to that oily current poured on Aaron's head, which

<< Ban down his beard and o'er his head —

Ran down his beard

'• his robes

And o'er his robes

Ran down his beard ran down his

o'er his robes

His robes, his robes, ran down his beard

Ran down his

o'er his robes

Ran down his beard

h-i-s b-e-ard

Its costly moist

Ran down his beard

ure — beard — his — beard — his — shed

— ran down his beard — his — down

his robes — its costly moist — his beard

ure shed — his — cost — his robes — robes — ure shed

I-t-s c-o-s-t-l-ie moist — ^ure s-h-e-d."

Bishop Seabury, on one of his visitations, was asked
his opinion of this composition; and his reply was that
he had paid no attention to the music, but that hia
sympathies were so much excited for poor Aaron that
he was afraid he would not have a hair left.

Hymns op the Old Style. — ^Itmay beof some interest
to the reader to have before him two or three verses of
the hymns in use before the days of Dr. Watts, which
gradually gave way, as the taste for harmony and beauty
increased in our churches, to the hymns now in use. To

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 353

understand the true character of these verses, they should
be "deaconed off/' and sung one line at a time.

** 'Tis like the precious ointment
Down Aaron's beard did go ;
Down Aaron's beard it downward went,
His garment-skirts unto."

Here is another specimen; and though our readers
may smile at it, their fathers did not : —

** Ye monsters of the bubbling deep,
Tour Maker's praises spout ;
Up from the sands, ye codlings, peep»
And wag your tails about."

The following specimen, and our last, contains truth,
whatever may be said of its poetry : —

" The race is not forever got
By him who fastest runs ;
Nor the battle by those people
Who shoot the longest guns."

Singing at Bangor. — ^It is both interesting and pro-
fitable to understand the manner in which our fathers
conducted their worship. A concert by the Billings and
Holden Society of Bangor, Maine, composed of elderly
ladies and gentlemen, was held in that city in 1848.
They were " singers of the olden time,'* veritable anti-
quarian musicians, worshippers of the majestic melodies
of Luther, Pleyel, Tansur, Holyoke, and the rich fugues
of Billings, Holden, Edson, and Bead, of by-gone days.
The enraptured writer of the description of this meeting

30*

Digitized by

Google

854 INFLUENCE OF HTMN8 ON

exclaime, '^ Oh, could you have been there ! It was «
glorious sight as well as sound. Those old gehtlemeii
took us back again to thirty or forty years ago ! But
let me give you a description of them.

" The number of singers, I should judge, was nearly a
hundred : at any rate, they filled the singing-gallery and
part of the side galleries of the First Baptist Church.
Among them were at least four deacons, four colonels,
several captains, judges, doctors, lawyers, esquires of the
old school, ^d, last, though not least, the chief members
of the Bangor Antiquarian Society. All classes were
represented. An ancient colonel led off the singing,
with a white wand and blue ribbon. He is a stout man,
between fifty aad sixty years of age, with gray hair, of
considerable vigor, with a voice commanding and pre-
cisely adapted to the music sung that evening. On his
right was an elderly tenor deacon, who at times was
evidently as near heaven as he could be and still be on
earth. He is a tall man -, and not unfrequently, during
the performance of some unique passage, you might
have heard the whisper, ' See him go up V as, while beat-
ing time, he would draw up his tall form to its full height
and elevate his face toward the ceiling. On the left of
the leader was an ancient tenor judge, who prides him-
self on being able to sing all the ^ old tunes' without
looking at a note. He stood erect, looking straight for-
ward, preserving an astonishing equanimity during the
whole evening, although he beat time — as did all the
other singers — quite emphatically. At the extreme right

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 356

of the choir were the ladies, — ^matronly personages in
oaps^ with strong voices and peculiar intonations. In-
deed, the style of singing was quite different ftx)m that
of the present day throughout ; and I was happy to find
that the rich nasal sound of forty years ago is not yet
forgotten, and that the practice of beating time with the
h^id still exists.

" The number of tunes sung was about thirty. Some
were repeated. Among the tunes were Bridgewater,
Element, Tilden, Bristol, Portland, Buckingham, Lynn-
field, Montague, Eainbow, Sherborne, Victory, Ode on
Science, Heavenly Vision, Calvary, Invitation, etc. Invi-
tation was encored. It was sung in magnificent style.
When the part beginning

* Fly like a youthful hart or roe'

was repeated, one could hardly help imagining himself
among a flock of young deer, scampering

< Over the hills where spices grow,'

SO swiftly did the chorister lead off and the singers
follow.

"The singing commenced at seven, and continued with-
out cessation, except daring a recess of a few minutes to
get breath, until nine o'clock. The audience were de-
lighted not only with the music, but with the high enjoy-
ment manifested by the venerable musicians."

Digitized by

Google

356 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

Bedstone Prebbttert. — In the latter part of the
eighteenth century considerable discussion took place
in the Old Bedstone Presbytery in reference to the in-
troduction of Dr. Watts's Psalms and Hymns, most of
the older people being in favor of the older version. In
some places a compromise was adopted. They would
begin with an old psalm and conclude with a psalm
or hymn from Watts. Though Dr. Power used Watts
in his own family, he yielded to the preferences of his
people in the use of Bouse in public worship. The lines
were " given out'' by a precentor, or clerk, as he was
called. Dr. Power's clerk used to give out one line at a
time, and always, in doing so, sounded the last syllable
on a dead level with the first note of that part of the
tune, prolonging the sound a little, so as to slide grace-
ftilly and imperceptibly into the singing. To a stranger
the effect was rather ludicrous ; but he was considered a
great master of his business, especially by the older
people.

At Buffalo and Cross Creek, Watts's Psalms and Hymns
were used at the prayer-meeting, though Mr. Porter
scarcely approved of it. On one occasion, however, his
people sang with great animation the lines, —

** Let those refuse to sing

Who never knew our God,"

when the old gentleman was constrained to join in the
service, saying afterward, " If my conscience won't let
me sing, I'll wring its neck."

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 357

Boston Congrkqations. — ^A beaatiftil fact in connec-
tion with singing is told of the excellent George White-
field. Daring the delivery of a sermon in Boston on
the wonders of creation, providence, and redemptioni
a violent tempest of thunder and lightning came od^
which so alarmed the congregation that they sat in
breathless awe. The preacher closed his note-book, and,
stepping into one of the wings of the desk, fell on his
knees, and, with much feeling and fine taste, repeated
from Dr. Watts,—

'* Hark I ths JStbknal rends the sky !
A mighty voice before him goes, —
A voice of miwio to his friends.

But threatening thunder to his foes.

" Come, children, to your Father's arms I
Hide in the chambers of my grace
Till the fierce storm be overblown
And my revenging fury cease!'*

" Let us devoutly sing to the praise and glory of God
this hymn : — Old Hundred."

The whole congregation instantly rose and poured
forth the sacred song. By the time the hymn was
finished, the storm was hushed, and the sun, bursting
forth, showed the magnificent arch of peace. Eesuming
the desk, the preacher quoted, with admirable tact,
''Look upon the rainbow: praise Him that made it.
Very beautiful is it in the brightness thereof! It com-
passeth the heaven about with a glorious circle; and
the hands of the Most High have bended it.'^ The epi-
sode added intense interest to the service.

Digitized by

Googfe

358 INFLUENCE OF HTMNS ON

Coincidence. — One of the Boston papers^ a few years
agO; related a very beautifal coincidence. Daring the
morning service at Christ's Church, Salem Street, an
incident occurred which would have been interpreted by
some of the ancients as a signal of divine approbation.
The Eev. Mr. Marcus, of Nantucket, the officiating
minister, read, in order to be sung, the Eighty-Fourth
Psalm, in which may be found the verse, —

" The birds, more happier far than X,
Around thy temple throng :
Securely there they build, and there
Securely hatch their young.**

While he was reading this psalm, a dove flew in at one
of the windows and alighted on the capital of one of
the pilasters near the altar, and almost over the head
of the reader. A note of the psalm and hymn to be
sung had been previously given, as is customary, to the
choir, or it might have been supposed that there was
design in the selection; for the second hymn com-
menced, —

" Come, Holy Spirit, Heavenly Doye,

With all thy quickening powers I
Kindle a flame of sacred lore

In these cold hearts of ours !'*

The preacher was unconscious of the presence of the
bird until the close of the services, when the innocent
visitor was suffered to depart in peace.

" China." — Say what we will, and whatever may be
the taste of different persons as to tunes ancient and

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 359

modem, it is certain that we all enjoy the occasional
treat of an old tune. A congregation in Boston, a few
years ago, who seldom heard old-fashioned music, were
one day surprised and delighted when the choir sung
the tune of " China/* as set to the well-known words of
Dr. Watts,—

'*Why do we mourn departing friends,
Or shake at death's alarms ?"

The incident led one of the hearers to express his
feelings in some lines which may gratify the reader ; —

** The preacher had bis sermon preached,

And prayer befitting marked its course,
When, lingering yet where prayer was made.

The preacher and the people rose.
They sung a hymn : the hymn was old.

The lines were like familiar things ;
But, bursting as from harps of gold.

The music swept a thousand strings.
While, with a low and reverend air,
The people bowed and worshipped there.

" The young man paused, and wondered why

He had not heard such strains before ;
The old man wept, and seemed again

To live his very childhood o'er.
As quickly from the treasured past

Came visions of the olden time,
When his dear father worshipped God

While swaying to the music's charm,
And by his side they sat who shared

The sunshine of his early days :
What other could he do than weep

To hear once more those good old lays t

<' Oh, art may charm, and newer strains
May better please the youthful breast;

Digitized by

Google

860 INFLUXNOfi OF HTMNS ON

But unto him whose looks sro gray

Tho oldest music is the best.
And so methought, as died away

Those stmins within that place of prayer,
That heaven to some wHl sweeter be

If << China** is remembered there/'

Ebv. De. Emmons. — The late distinguished Dr. Em-
mons was a great lover of sweet sonnds, — ^that is, the
sound of the human voice, — and religiously excluded
from his meeting-house all instrumental music except a
little mahogany-colored wooden pitch-pipe, about five
inches by three. A member of his choir had learned to
play the bass-viol, and, anxious to exhibit his skill,
early one Sunday morning most unadvisedly introduced
his big fiddle into the singing-gallery. After the first
prayer was ended and the doctor began to handle his
" Watts,'* the " bass-violer" lifted up his profanation,
and, trying his strings, instantly attracted the doctor's
attention. He paused, laid down his hymn-book, took
his sermon from the cushion, and proceeded with his
discourse as if singing was no part of public worship,
and finally dismissed the congregation "without note
or comment." The whole choir were indignant. They
stayed after '^ meeting," and all the girls and young men
resolved not to go into "the singing-seats" at all in the
afternoon; and the elders who did go there bore the
visages of men " whose minds were made up."

Services in the afternoon began as usual. The doctor
took his psalm-book in his hand, looked over his spec-
tacles at the gallery, and saw only a few there, but,

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 361

nothing daunted, read a psalm and sat down. Ko sonnd
followed; no one stirred; and the "leader" looked up
in utter unconsciousness. After a long and most uneasy
silence, the good man, his face somewhat over-flushed,
his manner rather stern, read the psalm again, paused,
then re-read the first verse, and, pushing up his spec-
tacles, looked * interrogatively into the gallery. The
leader could bear it no longer, and, half rising, said,
decidedly, " There won't be any singing here this after-
noon."

Quick as thought the doctor replied, " Then there
won't be any preaching;" and, taking his cocked hat
from its peg, he marched down the pulpit-stairs, through
the broad aisle, and out of the house, leaving his congre-
gation utterly astounded. We need not inform our
readers that "the big fiddle" did not appear in "the
singing-seats" afterward.

English Clerks. — It is well known tlfkt in most of
the congregations of England the hymns are "given
out" by a clerk, who occupies a seat below the pulpit.
These gentlemen are not always remarkable either for
their intelligence or their humility; and if the minister
leaves the choice of the hymns to them they will some-
times select such as may reprove him or some other per-
sons for what they may consider errors or faults; or
sometimes they will make alterations of even a ludicrous
character in the hymns or psalms. We remember once
to have heard an occasional sermon, which was a some-

31

Digitized by

Google

862 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

what singular one, from a singular man. Hia text was,
"Every man that hath this hope in him purifieth him-
self, even as he is pure," (1 John iii. 3,) — the common
understanding of which is that the Christian aims to
imitate the purity of Christ ; but worthy Pastor Eenals
treated the text so as to make the Christian the source
of his own purity. In this view of the matter, Brother
Beal, as we think, properly differed from him, — though
no one expected a public reproof administered by him to
the minister. No one who was present will ever forget
how the said clerk rose, with majestic niien and power-
ful voice, to " give out" the hymn Dr. Watts founded on
the text, or with what emphasis he read the last two
lines of the verse, —

"A hope 80 much divine
May trials well endure, —
May purge our 9ouU from tense and tin.
As Christ the Lord is pure"

The clerk ef^dently exulted, the congregation smiled ;
but the poor preacher looked unutterable things, and,
the hymn having been sung, he omitted the last prayer
and pronounced the benediction. He could never be pre-
vailed on to preach in that pulpit again.

In the days of our youth we remember to have
preached a sermon which gave offence to one of these
gentlemen, — he having, contrary to our own view of the
matter, an insurmountable objection to unregenerated sin-
ners being exhorted to pray or to do any other spiritual

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 863

act. At the close of the sermon he led us to sing, with
what of good feeling we might, the lines of Watts, —

" The men who fear thy word
Grow wiser than their teaehert are
And better know the Lord.^*

In a note in the fourth volume of his "History of
the Baptists'' Mr. Ivimey tells us that he one evening
stepped into a meeting-house in London, where one of
these hyper-Calvinistic gentlemen was ** the clerk/' and
heard him perpetrate a somewhat remarkable change
in some lines of Watts. The good doctor, speaking of
the kindness of God to his people, wrote, —

** And fixed my standing more secure
Than 'twas before I fell."

The very sound clerk, however, changed it to, —

*< And fixed my standing most secure
In Christ before I fell'*

Possibly some of the congregation regarded this change
as an improvement; but Mr. Ivimey asks, with some-
thing like common sense, <' If the good man was made
so secure before he fell, how came he to fall at all?*'

The late eminent Eobert Hall used to tell an amusing
anecdote of a clerk of his church in Leicester. It appears
that an unpleasant feeling had for some time existed
between the said clerk and the choir. The dispute was

Digitized by

Google

364 INFLUENCE 0¥ HYMNS ON

refen-ed to Mr. Hall, and the clerk was dismissed. Such,
however, was the grief of the worthy official on the loss
of his dignity that he was soon after reinstated in office.
On the following Sabbath morning the honest precentor
extorted an almost general smile by commencing the
service with Dr. Watts's version of the Twenty-Seventh
Psalm, reading with much emphasis the lines, —

'* Now shall my head be lifted high
Above my foes around.
And songs of joy and victory
Within thy temple sound.'*

Facts about Anthems. — While speaking of hymns, a
few interesting facts relating to anthems will be perhaps

acceptable. In the last century, the noble Count S ,

of Hungary, had lost, under the most distressing circum-
stances, his only child, a beautiful girl, who was on the
eve of marriage. Although two years had elapsed since
this bereavement, the unhappy father remained in the
most melancholy condition. From the hour when he
had taken his last look at the dead body of his child, he
had remained in the same room, shedding no tears
and uttering no complaints, but remaining in a speech-
less state of despair. The most celebrated physicians
had been consulted, and every means which could be
thought of used to rouse the count from his lethargy of
grief; but all in vain, and his physician became hope-
less of his recovery.

Under these circumstances, a member of his family

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. S65

remembered to have heard the distinguished Elizabeth
Mara, for ten years the first singer at the Prussian court,
sing some exquisitely beautiful sacred pieces, and became
impressed with the thoughts that, if any sound on earth
could reach the heart which was already buried in his
daughter's grave, her voice, which seemed to be that of
^n angel rather than of a human being, would have that
power. Arrangements were at length made for the trial ;
and, to give every possible effect to the powers of the
singer, an ante-room, opening into that where the
count sat, was prepared. Mara stood alone in the fore-
ground, yet in such a position that she could Eot be seen
in the next room, which was hung with black, and a
faint, shadowy twilight only admitted, except a few
golden rays from a small lamp which burned in a niche
before a beautiful Madonna. Suddenly upon the soli-
tude and silence of that sick-room there broke a won-
derful harmony. Elizabeth had chosen Handel's ^'Mes-
siah/' and took her place, deeply moved by the singular
circumstances under which she was called to exert her
talents.

At first the music and that heavenly voice all seemed
to be unheeded; but by degrees the desolate parent
raised himself on his couch and glanced with earnes<j
longing toward the spot whence those souj-mpving
sounds proceeded. At length, when Mara sung th^
words, "Look and see if there be any sorrow like to
my sorrow," she appeared inspired by the sympathy she

felt; and the relatives of the count, who listened with

ai*

Digitized by

Google

866 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

beating hearts, could not restrain their tears. Nor did
these alone bear witness to the singer's power : heavy-
sighs e89aped from the sufferer; large tears stood in
those eyes which the very extremity of grief itself bad
long forbidden to weep. Crossing the room with feeble
steps, he prostrated himself before the image of that
Heavenly One who " bore all our griefs f and, when the
full choir joined in the Hallelujah Chorus, his voice of
praise and thanksgiving mingled with those strains.
The recovery was complete and lasting, and was the
marvel of all Germany.

A lady had been in deep despondency for many months.
Her sins appeared so numerous and aggravated that she
dared not trust in the promises of the gospel. These
promises seemed very precious for others, but could not
avail for her. Conversations with her minister, and with
Christian friends added to her gloom, instead of dis-
sipating it. She attended with great eagerness the
means of grace, read her Bible almost incessantly at
home, and withdrew herself from all gay companions,
and even from the most innocent social enjoyments.
Her health began to suffer from extreme depression of
spirits, and her friends were apprehensive of an early
death.

When she heard that Jenny Lind was to visit the city
near which she resided, her curiosity was excited to hear
her. She consulted her minipter; and he advised her to

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 367

go on the evening when *^ The Messiah" was to be sung.
The rendering of those sublime passages, " I know that
my Eedeemer liveth/' and " Come unto me, all ye that
labor and are heavy laden/' by the Swedish songstress,
quite overwhelmed her. She was spell-bound. The
words seemed clothed with a fulness of meaning she
had never before discovered. The fitness of Jesus to
save sinners, and his infinite condescension and pity,
melted her heart. She wondered that she had ever dis-
trusted him, and with a childlike faith threw herself on
the promises, knowing that in her case they would not
fail of fulfilment. From that hour her gloom vanished,
and she went forward in the path of Christian duty with
a joyous and obedient heart.

We transcribe another fact from a letter of Dr. Beattie
to Dr. Laing, in 1780: — " When-HandeFs * Messiah' was
first performed, the audience were exceedingly struck
and affected by the music in general; but when the
chorus struck up, 'For the Lord God omnipotent
reigneth,' they were so transported that they all, to-
gether with the king, [George III.,] who happened to be
present, started up, and remained standing till the chorus
ended ; and hence it became the fashion in England for
the audience to stand up while that part of the music is
performing. Some days after the first exhibition of the
same divine oratorio, Mr. Handel came to pay his re-
spects to Lord Kinnoul, with whom he was particularly
acquainted. His lordship, as was natural, paid him some
compliments on the noble entertainment which he had

Digitized by

Google

368 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

lately given the town. 'My lord/ said Handel, 'I
should be sorry if I only entertained them : I wished to
make them better/ "

It is a somewhat curious fact that on the first p«r>
formance of " The Messiah" in London, in 1741, it
excited a very small degree of attention, but soon after-
ward in Dublin it called forth every proof of the highest
admiration. This fact led to a powerful and pathetic
passage in "Pope's Dunciad'*

This will not be considered an inappropriate place
to add a few lines on the feelings and habits of this,
one of the greatest of human composers. Being once
inquired of as to his ^deas and emotions when writing
the ^^ Hallelujah Chorus,'* he replied, in the best English
he could command, '^I did think I did see heaven all
before me, and the great God himself" It is said that a
friend called upon him when he was setting to music the
pathetic words, "He was despised and rejected of men,"
and found him actually sobbing. And Shield tells us
that when Handel's servant used to bring him in his
chocolate in the morning he often stood in silent astonish-
ment to see his master's tears mingling with his ink as
he wrote his masterly works. Indeed, it appears to
have been usually the case that during his compositions
his face would be bathed in tears.

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 369

Another statement has been given, which may properly
suggest the importance of cultivating right feelings alike
in the composition and the performance of sacred music.
Handel was once asked by a friend why his church-music
was always so cheerful. His admirable reply was, "I
cannot make it otherwise: I write according to the
thoughts I feel. When I think on God, my heart is so
full of joy that the notes dance and leap, as it were,
from my pen ; and, since God has given me a cheerful
heart, it will be pardoned me that I serve him with a
cheerful and devout spirit."

Handel's habit of composition was exceedingly rapid ;
but still the motion of his pen could not keep up with
the rapidity of his conceptions. The mechanical power
of his hand was not sufficient for the volcanic torrent of
the brain. Novello, his learned publisher, who seems
to have well studied the manuscripts at the Fitzwilliam
Museum, in London, seeing a page on which the sand is
still upon the ink at the top as well as at the bottom of
the page, left in the book the remark, "Observe the
speed with which Handel wrote. The whole of this
page is spotted with sand, and, consequently, must have
been all wet at the same time."

Another fact or two on this subject will be permitted.
A pious old deacon, who died at Bradford, in 'New Hamp-
shire, in 1825, some years before his decease attended a
meeting of the Musical Society of that State. A very
large company were assembled to rehearse the anthem
" O Lord Grod of Israel" when he entered the hall. The

Digitized by

Google

370 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

sudden opening of the door and the burst of sound that
met his ear nearly paralyzed his whole frame; his
whole man trembled, his limbs refused to act, and he
appeared almost intoxicated. A gentleman, who had
witnessed the powerful effect of good singing upon him
many years before, obtained him a seat; and, when the
venerable saint collected power to speak, he broke
silence with the remark, "If I canuot bear the com-
bined voices of a hundred singers here on earth, am I
prepared, and can I bear the sound of an innumerable
multitude of voices in heaven, where I soon hope to be ?"
One fact more, and we will close. The late Rev.
Roger Harrison, who died in Connecticut, in 1853, at
the age of eighty-four, once spent a night at the house
of the Rev. Dr. Cooley, of Granville, and at family- wor-
ship sang the Judgment Anthem with such thrilling
effect that one of the doctor's students sprang from his
chair, rushed at the singer, and was entirely bewildered
for several hours.

Congregational Singing. — It would be almost an act
of injustice were we to omit a reference to the general
excellence of the African ear for singing, which is so com-
monly shown in many of the ordinary occurrences of
life as to be a frequent subject of remark in every part
of our country. Indeed, it has been stated, apparently
on sufficient grounds, that much of our popular music
can be traced to negro origin.

But most of all do- we love to hear the hymn-singing

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 371

of the African race, and entirely sympathize with the
Kev. Mr. Kirkland, who writes, "You know how sweetly
a congregation of plantation-negroes can sing the songs
of Zion. Tell me not of city choirs. I would rather
hear ' I am passing away,' or ^ Give me Jesus,' sung as
we sometimes hear them, out of full hearts, by hundreds
of these poor people, than their best performances. It
is spirit-stirring : there are life and soul in it."

Lady Mary W. Montague, in a letter to Dr. Beattie,
thus gives her opinion of the influence of plain congre-
gational singing on a worshipping assembly : — " I think
psalms written with great and noble simplicity, and sung
in the same manner, friendly to devotion; and it is
almost an offence to call in the aid of insensible and in-
animate things to praise the Giver of life and reason.
A psalm decently sung by the congregation always ex-
cites my devotion more than the organ. I would em>
ploy musical instruments in a pagan temple, but only
the voice of man in a Christian church."

We can easily imagine the scene presented at the
Music Hall in Surrey Gardens, London, at one of the
assemblies of from eight to ten thousand people wor-
shipping under the guidance of the popular Charles H.
Spurgeon, as described by one of our countrymen : —

" The prayer concluded, Mr. Spurgeon announced the
well-known Psalm beginning, —

< Before Jehoyah's awful throne.'
He read it through, having first announced that the

Digitized by

Google

872 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

tune would be the * Old Hundredth,* and then read each
verse separately before it was sung. It is scarcely pos-
sible to give any idea of the sublime effect" produced by
those ten thousand voices as they swelled the massive
harmonies of that grand tune with a fulness of sound
rarely heard. After singing the second verse, Mr. Spur-
geon said, ' I will read the third verse, and you will sing
the fourth; and let the uplifting of your voices be as
the sound of many waters.' His auditory responded to
his wish. The words were, —

* We'll crowd thy gates with thankful songs,

High as the heavens our Toices raise,
And earth, with her ten thousand tongues,
Shall fill thy courts with sounding praise.'

Most magnificent was the shout of praise that now went
up. Not a voice was mute, save where occasionally
some one's nerves were overpowered by the massive
rolling chorus that rose on every side. Never did we
before so realize what congregational singing might be-
come. It was an uplifting of voice and heart such as
one can hope to hear only a few times in the course of a
life. Much of this grand effect was no doubt owing to
the majesty of the tune itself, — ^much to the fact that all
the congregation knew it, — ^and perhaps not a little to
the practice of reading each verse before it was sung,
a . practice we have always thought a very reasonable
one, and commonly adopted in England, especially among
the poor and those who cannot read."
Though this is a striking instance of the grandeur of con-

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 373

gregational siaging, it was by no means singular. Gould
very properly asks, "Who has ever attended a meet-
ing of several churches, or some religious anniversary,
where there were a multitude of professors of religion,
a great proportion of whom are always found able to join
in singing, when they rise and sing a hymn at the cele-
bration of the Lord's Supper, and has not felt the power
of sacred music sxmg with both the spirit and understand-
ing ? How many who have been spectators only at the
time have felt its power and been led to decide that it was
something to them who were passing by, and from that
time realized that unless they repented they never oould
join the angelic host, either on earth or in heaven I''

Even on occasions less solemn than these have vast
effects been produced by singing. Was it not an im-
pressive scene when, at the collegiate dinner-table at
Andover, in 1858, upon an unexpected communication
being made of the successful laying of the telegraphic
cable, a thousand gentlemen spontaneously rose and, in
the majestic sounds of " Old Hundred,*' sang the fine
words of Bishop Ken ? —

<< Praise God, from whom all blessings flow!"

And, on a smaller scale, intense must have been the
feeling among a number of converted sailors on board
the North Carolina in the revival of 1858-69. Th«y were
speaking of the different countries in which they were
born ; and it was found that they represented ten dii^
ferent nations, the last man having said that he was

32

Digitized by

Google

374 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

born in Greenland. Unable to contain tbemselves longer,
one commenced, and the others followed, in the hymn, —

** From Greenland's ioy mountains,"

which was sung with delightful earnestness.

Churches in Scotland. — ^We have met with some
beautiful incidents of singing in the Scottish churches.
They use a metrical version of " The Psalms of David/'
adopted in 1650, and " The Paraphrases/' which are free
renderings of various parts of Scripture, adopted in the
present form in 1781. The tunes in use are nearly all
the old and familiar ones sung by the Eeformers and the
persecuted Covenanters, and associated in the Scottish
mind with so much that is tender and solemn in the
past. " So averse," says Dr. Jameson, " are the people
generally to innovations in these melodies, that when,
early in the present century, a few tunes were intrp-
duced in which one and another of the lines in a stanza
were sung twice over, numbers of the old people refused
to join in the praise, left the place of worship."

The Scottish children are taught to commit to memory
many of the psalms and paraphrases. Every one can
sing the Twenty-Third Psalm. On a dark Sabbath after-
noon, more than twenty years ago, the service in the
Eev. Dr. Gordon's church, in Edinburgh, was drawing
to a close at near four o'clock, and the gas had been
lighted ; but, by some accident, the light had become very
feeble. The minister could not see to read the hymn

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 375

with which he had intended to close and simply said/^Let
us sing the Twenty-Third Psalm." The whole congrega-
tion, old and young, a thousand voices, united, amid the
flickering lights, in that beautiful composition.

• An Impressive Scene. — It will scarcely be believed in
coming generations that many Christians in the United
States, in the middle of the nineteenth century, trans-
ferred much of the public singing of the praises of God
in their houses of worship to choirs, while the members
of churches sat quietly in their pews, or, as a good old
man in Boston expressed it, thanking God that they
could hear singing, though public opinion prohibited
their joining in it. Some few congregations in large
cities went even beyond this, and, at an expense which
exceeded the combined average salary of four pastors,
employed/our persons in their singing-gallery — generally
performers at the opera-houses — to praise God for them.
We attended, in 1855, the dedication of a house of
worship in one of our largest cities, when one of these
" Quartet^' entered on their so-called duties. A pro-
gramme had been published, and the first hymn was
duly "performed in fine style;" but, most unfortunately,
the excellent preacher required that the second hymn
should be laid aside and that an old favorite of his
should be substituted, beginning, —

*< There is a fountain filled with blood."
The " Quartet'* got through the first verse very grace-
fully ; but, when the second was begun, —

Digitized by

Google

376 INFLUENCE OF HTMNS ON

" The dying thief rejoiced to see
That fountain in his day,"

a voice was heard here and there in the congregation
" spoiling the music" hy joining in the singing ; and,
when the third line commenced^ all bounds were broken,
and, in a voice " like many waters," the vast mass of
people, rising from their seats, burst forth, —

*< Oh, may I there, though yile as he,
Wash all my sins away !''

Ko language can describe the scene or the feelings which
it inspired. Some scientific gentlemen spoke of it as the
grandest thing they had ever witnessed.

A Eeal Amendment. — The scene was a small prayer-
meeting of a rural village church. Very few were pre-
sent; for it was a time of much coldness and great
apparent decline. But a few Christian hearts even there
had deep feeling. Their strong emotions and prayers
were unconfessed to each other, but the'object of their
worship had observed them all. The prayer-meeting was
going on as usual, though the pastor was absent and
his place was occupied by one of the deacons. This
worthy man was plain in his manners, a true son of the
soil, with a bronzed countenance, hard hands, and wear-
ing his working-dress. But with all the earnestness of
his soul he had for months past been mourning in secret
over the desolation of the church. The hymn he se-
lected with which to commence the service was the one
often sung by our fathers : —

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 377

** Hear, gracious SoToreign, from thy throne,
And send thy yarious blessings down."

Two or three verses were sung to an old tune, till the
good deacon came to the last, which thus reads. The
reader will observe especially the last two lines : —

** In answer to our fervent cries,
Give us to see thy church arise ;
^' Or, if that blessing seem too great,
Give us to mourn its low estate."

While reading this verse, the good man paused : it evi-
dently did not exactly accord with the feelings of his
soul : it was not the expression of his prayer. He in-
dulged a moment's thought, — swift and excellent: an
alteration suggested itself, — ^his eye sparkled with joy, —
and out it came : —

** In answer to our fervent cries,
Give us to see thy church arise :
That hleasingy Lord, is not too great,
Though now we mourn its low estate.**

Every heart was arrested, and sudden emotion so over-
powered all in the little assembly that they could scarcely
sing the words ; but each in silence gave to the sentiment
his own earnest amen. They happily proved it to be
true. From that evening a revival began : the church
arose from its slumber to new faith and works; and
very soon the windows of heaven were opened and a
plenitude of blessings was showered down, which con-
tinued for several years.

32*

Digitized by

Google

378 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

Miscellaneous Facts. — ^An aged clergyman in Massar-
chusetts was, some years since, preaching from the text,
" I speak as to wise men : judge ye what I say/' (1 Cor.
X. 15,) when, having advanced as far as " thirdly," he
observed that many of his hearers, overcome by the
heat of the day, had fallen asleep. Stopping in his dis-
course and wiping the perspiration from his forehead,
he exclaimed, " My friends, as the day is oppressively
hot, I will stop a while and request the choir to sing the
tune ' Coronation' to the words, —

"My drowsy powers, why sleep ye bo ?' "

The effect was electrical, bringing the audience to their
feet. They sang the hymn : sleep was entirely driven
away, and the preacher resumed his discourse at
"thirdly."

A VERY trivial affair led to the dismission of a clergy-
man. At one of the meetings of the congregation the
pastor read the hymn, —

"I loYe to steal a while away,"

and the chorister commenced singing, but, forgetting
the tune, could proceed no further than " I love to steal,"
which he did several times, — when the clergyman, some-
what smilingly, relieved him from the xlilemma by say-
ing, "It is very much to be regretted," aqd adding,
" Let us pray."

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 379

It is said that in 1785 the vestry of Christ Church,
Philadelphia, gravely determined "that the clerks be
required to sing such tunes only as are plain and familiar
to the congregation, and that the singing of other tunes,
and the frequent changing of tunes, are deemed dis-
agreeable and inconvenient."

It may at least excite a harmless smile to be told
that a good old lady, a member of Dr. John Gill's church
in London, once waited on her venerable pastor to
complain about "the new-fangled notions" which had
got among the congregation about singing. The good
doctor was anxious, if possible, to calm her agitated
spirit, — which he found was no easy matter. At length
he asked her what tunes she would wish to have sung,
and the venerable lady replied, with avidity, " I want Da-
vid's tunes sung, sir." " So do I," said the worthy pastor,
"but most unfortunately they have been lost; but I will
give you my promise that, as soon as they can be found
again, we will sing David's tunes and no others." The
good lady, it is said, went away considerably relieved by
her pastor's promise.

A Private Circle. — Charles Butler, in his very in-
teresting letter on ancient and modern music, introduces
the following anecdote, relating to Mara, an Italian
vocalist : —

" Once, in a private society, in consequence of some-
thing that fell in conversation, she sang, without any
accompaniment, the simple air, in Marcello's Psalms, 'In

Digitized by

Google

380 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

my distress I called upon Jehovah, and he did hear me,'
with Bach exquisite taste and pathos that she entranced
©very hearer. To our infinite gratification, she repeated
it half a dozen times, and every time more beautifully and
impressively than before. A person, observing that there
was a violoncello in the room, requested that she would
permit the late Mr. Paxton, who was present, to accom-
pany her. This was done. It was fine, — ^very fine ; but the
charm was lost. This little circumstance," says Butler,
"may be thought to strengthen Eousseau's hypothesis, —
Uhat harmony is unnatural, and rather weakens than in-
creases the effect of simple melody.' Mara was particulaiiy
distinguished by the manner in which she sung, ' I know
that my Eedeemer liveth.' It was beyond singing : it
was eloquence. She opened it with great solemnity;
hope was discernible, — ^but it was only the dawn of hope.
As she proceeded, it brightened and expanded; but
when she came to the last repetition of the sentence, the
firm and animated confidence with which she uttered
the words ' I know,' and the jubilation of soul with which
she pronounced the words 'and in my flesh I shall see
God,' no language can adequately tell. The audience
thought not of the air, or of the band, or even of the
singer : they only felt the sentiment; and they felt it in
all its sublimity."

A Yast Crowd. — ^Few events in English history will
ever be invested with a more touching interest than the
fact that at the inauguration of a beautiful park and

Digitized by

Google

-J

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 381

public hall secured for the use of the working-classes of
Birmingham, in the year 1Sk>S, forty-seven thousand Sunday-
school children sang a hymn in the presence of her majesty
Queen Yictoria. The account given by a public reporter
maybe read with more than common pleasure. We give a
short extract : — " Each section had its musical conductor,
armed with a long white wand by way of baton, and
assisted by a drummer and two comets, — the first to give
the little singers the signal to begin, and the latter to
play over the simple music of this wonderful child-con-
cert. As her majesty passed, they sang, in a low, gentle
manner, — almost seraphic, — a hymn, which moved the
royal lady and thousands of others even to tears.''

Anniversary at Andover. — ^Perhaps one of the most
interesting and touching incidents connected with the
history of singing occurred, at the separation from each
other of thirty students, at the Andover Theological
Seminary in 1832. A question was proposed by a single
finely-toned voice from the orchestra, and a response
was made from the stage on which the graduated class
stood, — ^first by the Foreign Missionaries, then by the
Domestic Missionaries, and finally by the Home Preachers:
then followed the chorus from the whole. The reader
will be gratified to have the whole hymn before him : —

Question. — " And I heard the voice of the Lord, say-
ing. Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" —
Isa. vi. 8.

Digitized by

Google

INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

Foreign Missionabies.

From dear New England's happy shore,

Where all our kindred dwell,
We go, — on pagans light to pour :
. Our native land, farewell !

QuestiofL — "And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying,
Whom shall I send, and who will go for ub ?"

Domestic Missionaries.

We go where seldom on the ear

Salration's tidings swell : ^

We go to dry the mourner's tear :
Our pleHant home, farewell.

Question, — "And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying.
Whom shall I send, and who will go for us ?"

Home Preachers.

Where all our earthly friendships blend,

Of Jesus' lore we'll tell,
And in the work our liyes will spend :

Brethren, a short farewell.

Chonu,
From all these cherished scenes we go, —

The home of praise and prayer, —
To meet earth's gladness or earth's woe,

And many a toil to bear.

Farewell, ye friends who shared our joy,

Te in whose hearts we dwell :
A noble work shall now employ

Our energies. Farewell 1

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 383

Brethren, we press the parting hand :

Our songs of parting tell :
Then, till we reach heaven's holy land,

A sweet but brief farewell!

The whole presented an extraordinary scene.

The audience felt that it was not a mere show, — not
an exhibition of musical skill. The tones in which the
hymn was sung were those of deep emotion ; and many
hearts were melted as these young servants of Christ
poured forth their impassioned farewell, — some of them
to the scene of their sacred studies, others to the pleasant
hills and valleys and churches of New England, and
others to all the endearments of their native land.

The Missionary's Landing. — ^Deeply do we sympa-
thize with an honored missionary who writes a narra-
tive now before us of his first arrival, with fifteen other
missionaries and 'their wives, on a foreign shore, where
the best years of his life were devoted to labors for the
conversion of the heathen; and most heartily do we pity
the reader who can suppose that singing such a hymn
under such circumstances produced no happy or lasting
effect, or who can even read the fact without emotion.
Our friend says, —

" To prepare for landing was all our care. Soon we
were delighted to see some of the ' Mission Family,' as
we found the whole of the Baptist missionary brother-
hood wore termed. But our first tidings were sad. One
dear brother had just been laid in his grave. To some

Digitized by

Google

884 INFLUENCE Of HYMNS ON

of US how appropriate a memento was this I In little
more than half a year two of our affectionate party were
also in their graves.

" We landed, singing Addison's hymn, —

* How are thj serrants blest, Lord^'

every word of which went to our hearts and seemed
from thence to arise to God. With many tears that
hymn was sung ; and well did the last verse bring us to
the shore : —

* Our lifei whilst thou preserv'st that life.

Thy sacrifice shall be,
And death, when death shall be our lot,
Shall join our souls to thee.'

^'With most hearty greetings were we welcomed to
that shore. Every one present seemed to vie with every
other in expressing gladness and gratitude and praise
to our God. What eagerness was there to get one grasp
of the hand and to speak or to hear but one word with
the ' new massas' and the ^ new ladies'! "

Such is the account given by the Rev. P. H. Cornford,
an English Baptist missionary, of the landing of him-
self and a missionary party on the island of Jamaica
in January, 1841.

From another source we learn that the missionaries
and their friends did not monopolize the whole of the
singing. Mr. Hinton tells us-, " As soon as their voices
had ceased, their African brethren and sisters struck up

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 385

a response, singing a few verses of affectionate welcome
which had been written for the occasion."

Officers of the British Navy. — That singing the
high praises of God has sometimes a salutary influence
on unconverted men was clearly proved dui'ing the War
of 1812, in the case of the late eminently worthy Deacon
Epa Korris, who lived and died in the Korthem Neck, —
the peninsula formed by the Chesapeake Bay and the
Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers in Virginia. During
the war between the United States and Great Britain,
this excellent man was taken prisoner, hurried on board,
and required to give information as to the strength and
position of the American forces. He told his inquirers
that he did not read the papers and had very little
knowledge of national affairs, but that if he had the
knowledge they desired he would suffer death before he
would communicate it to them. By degrees the officers
became convinced that he was an honest and unsophisti-
cated man, and admired his patriotism and heroic firm-
ness. The commandant of the ship gave a dinner to the
officers of the fleet, and did Mr. Norris the honor to
select him from the American prisoners of war to be a
guest. The deacon, in his homespun attire, took his seat
at the table with the aristocracy of the British navy.
The company sat long at the feast: they drank toaata,
told stories, laughed and sang songs. At length Mr.
Norris was called on for a song. Be desired to eji^cuso
himself, but in vain : h^ must sing. He poeses^ed • fin^^

Digitized by

Google

386 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

strong, musical voice, which had been improved by sing-
ing simple and plain tunes. In an appropriate and
beautiful air, he commenced singing the Ninety-Second
Psalm of Watts :—

" Sweet is the work, my God, my King,
To praise thy name, giye thanks, and sing.*'

Thoughts of home and of his lost religious privileges,
and of his captivity, imparted an unusual pathos and
power to his singing. One stanza of the excellent psalm
must have seemed peculiarly pertinent to the occasion : —

'* Fools never raise their thoughts so high :
Like brutes they live, like brutes they die ;
Like grass they flourish, till thy breath
Blast them in everlasting death."

When the singing ceased, a solemn silence ensued. At
length the commandant broke it by saying, "Mr. Non'is,
you are a good man, and shall return immediately to
your family." The commodore kept his word; for in a few
days Mr. Morris was sent ashore in a barge, with a hand-
some present of salt, — then more valuable in the country
than gold.

Kew York Merchants. — ^Not long since, a newsboy
in Kew York was heard crying, " ^ Bank-Note Reporter/
sir ? Three more banks down I'' The little fellow had
not known half a score years, but his eyes were bright,
his tongue fluent^ and his manners attractive. Stepping
into a counting-house, with his bundle of papers under

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. 387

his arm, he saw two gentlemen sitting in front of a fire,
engaged in trifling conversation, and proposed to one of
them his inquiry, " Bank-Note Eeporter, sir ?'*

" No/' replied one of the gentlemen: "we don't want
any. But stop ! if you will sing us a song we will buy
one of your Eeporters."

The boy agreed to the terms, and the gentlemen, with
an air which showed that they anticipated sport, placed
the little fellow on a high stool and told him to proceed to
sing. They evidently expected to hear some jovial song,
— ^when, to their astonishment, he began the beautiful
hymn,—

" I think, when I read that sweet story of old,
When Jesus was here aqiong men,^
How he called little children the lambs of his fold,
I should like to have been with them then.'*

The effect upon his listeners was at once perceptible,
and before he had sung through the four verses they
wore both in tears. When he had finished, one of the
gentlemen inquired, "Where did you learn that hymn?"
" At Sabbath-school,'' replied the boy.

The reader will, of course, expect to hear that the
gentlemen purchased the ^' Reporter, ^^ and will not be
sorry to learn that, in addition to this, they presented
him with a sum of money, and after they had obtained
his name and residence they allowed him to go on his
way. Is there nothing to move and improve the Keart
even in the singing of a child ?

Digitized by

Google

388 INFLUENCE OF HYMNS ON

Miscellaneous. — Two of our modern poets have made
an admiittble use of the story of Damocles^ as told by
Cicero. Damocles was one of the flatterers of Dionysius,
the monarch of Sicily, who died three hundred and sixty-
eight years before the Christian era. He admired the
wealth and grandeur of that sovereign and pronounced
him the happiest man on earth. Dionysius, wishing to
correct his views, prevailed on him to undertake for a
time the charge and the duties of royalty. Damocles
consented; and, having ascended the throne, he gazed
with delight on the splendor and luxury by which he was
surrounded. But he soon perceived a sword suspended
by a horse-hair directly over his head. This spoiled all
his enjoyment; and he speedily begged permission to
relinquish so dangerous a position.

The Eev. Joseph Stennett, in his paraphrase of Proverbs
xiv. 9, thus alludes to the fact: —

** Who laughs at sin laughs at his Maker's frowns,
Laughs at the sword of vengeance o*er his head.**

And Charles Wesley, in one of his hymns, says, —

" Show me the naked sword
Impending o'er my head."

The celebrated William Byrd, the author of *^Non nobis
Domine/* gave the following very forcible reasons for
learning to sing, in a scarce work published in 1698,
entitled *^ Psalms, Sonnets, and Songs of Sadness and
Pietie.

Digitized by

Google

PERSONAL AND SOCIAL HAPPINESS. dO^

" FiiTst, It is a knowledge easilie taught and quickly
learned; when there is a good master and an apt
scholar.

"Secondly, The exercise of singing is delightful to
nature and good to preserve the health of man.

" Thirdly, It doth strengthen all parts of the heart, and
doth open the pipes.

" Fourthly, It is a singular good remedie for a stuttering
and stammering in the speech.

" Fifthly, It is the best means to preserve a perfect pro-
nunciation and to make a good orator.

" Sixthly, It is the only way to know when Nature hath
bestowed a good voice, — which gift is so rare that there
is not one amongst a thousand that hath it; and in many
that excellent gift is lost because they want an art to ex-
press nature.

"Seventhly, There is not any music of instruments
whatsoever comparable to that which is made of men's
voices when the voices are good and the same well
sorted and ordered.

" Eighthly, The better the voice is, the meeter it is to
honor and serve God therewith ; and the voice of man is
chiefly to be employed to that end."

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

FIRST LINES OF HYMNS REFERRED TO IN TfflS VOLUME.

VAOB

Affliction is a stonny deep 117

Again we lift our voice 286

Ah! lovely appearance of death 846

All haU the power of Jesus' name 219, 221, 222, 224

All people that on earth do dwell 66, 248

Alone, yet not alone, am 1 881, 882

Am I a soldier of the cross 268

And are ye wretches yet alive 58

And will the great eternal God 188

As I glad bid adieu to the world's fancied pleasure 817

Asleep in Jesus! blessed sleep 100

Awake, and sing the song ^ 168

Awaked by Sinai's awfiil sound 218

Awake, my soul, in joyful lays 194

Awake, my soul, to meet the day 189

Before JehovaVs awful throne 62, 871

Behold a stranger at the door 161

Behold the glories of the Lamb 258

Behold the Saviour of mankind 289

Behold the western evening light 217

Behold where in a mortal form 146

Beyond the glittering, starry sky 251

Blessed are the sons of God 174

Blessed Saviour, thee Hove 142

Blest be the tie that binds 147

Blest hour, when mortal man retires 228

By faith we find the place above 277

391

Digitized by

Google

392 FIRST LIXES OF HYMNS.

PAQK

Cease here longer to detain me 108

Children of God, who faint and slow 95

Children of the heavenly King 112

Christ leads me through no darker rooms 82

Christians, if your hearts are warm 187

Come, dearest Lord, and feed thy sheep 198

Come, Desire of nations, come 271

Come, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost 273

Come, gracious Spirit, heavenly Dove 98

Come, Holy Spirit, heavenly Dove 358

Come, humble sinner, in whose breast 175

Come, let our voices join ^ 102

Come, let us join our friends above.. 284

Come, O my soul, in joyful lays .- 91

Come, thou all-victorious Lord 282

Come, thou Almighty King 351

Come, thou Fount of every blessing 229

Come, thou soul-transforming Spirit 175

Come, ye disconsolate, where'er ye languish 203

Come, ye souls by sin afflicted 244

Creator Spirit, by whose aid 113, 141

Dear Friend of friendless sinners, hear 172

Dear is the hallowed mom to me 128

Depth of mercy! can there be 302

Far from the world, Lord, I flee 121

Father of spirits, hear our prayer 94

Flow fast, my tears, thy cause is great....M 235

From dear New England's happy shore 382

From every earthly pleasure.. 131

From Greenland's icy mountains 167, 374

From heaven aloud the angelic song began 235

From whence does this union arise 78

Give me the enlarged desire 276

Give me the wings of faith, to rise 264

Give to the winds thy fears 156

Glory to God, whose sovereign grace 278

Digitized by

Google

FIBST LINES OF HYMNS. 393

PAOX

God and the Saviour^s grace proclaim; 204

God is in this and every place 285

God moves in a mysterious way 119

God of my life, and of my choice 86

Go, preach the blest salvation 144

Go to the grave in all thy glorious prime 202

Great God, in vain man's narrow view 185

Great God of all thy churches, hear 184

Great God of heaven and nature, rise 138

Great God of wonders, all thy ways 180

Great God, the nations of the earth 253

Great King of glory, come 152

Guide me, thou Great Jehovah 294

Hail, Father, whose creating call 290

Hail, God the Son, in glory crowned 290

Hail, mighty Jesus, how divine 252

Hail, sovereign love, which first began 96

Hail, sweetest, dearest tie that binds 241

Hail, thou once-despised Jesus 77

Hark, in the wilderness a cry 235

Hark, the Eternal rends the sky 857

Hark, the voice of love and mercy 146

Have mercy on me. Lord, I pray 349

Hear, gracious Sovereign, from thy throne 377

Hearken to the solemn voice 280

Hear, Lord, the song of praise and prayer 126

He dies, the Friend of sinners dies 63

He lives who lives to God alone 123

Holy and reverend is the name 206

Holy be this as was the place 245

How are tliy servants blest, Lord 884

How blest thy creature is, God 120

How fine has the day been, how bright was the sun 266

How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord 186

How happy is the pilgrim's lot 288

Hqw pleasant 'tis to see 835

How sweet the name of Jesus sounds 86

Digitized by

Google

394 FIRST LIN£S OF HYMNS.

How yam are all things here below 261

How weak the thoughts, and Tain 272

If e*er you meet with trials 320

If human kindness meets return 210

If I must die, oh, let me die 83

If life's pleasures charm thee 183

I lore thy church, God 143

I love to steal a while away 97, 378

In all my Lord's appointed ways 232

Infinite God, to thee we raise 141, 287

In the cross of Christ I glory 95

In the floods of tribulation 218

I think, when I read that sweet story of old 887

It is the Lord, enthroned in light 161

I would not live alway, I ask not to stay 52, 204

Jerusalem, my happy home 182, 133

Jesus, and shall it ever be 57, 161

Jesus can make a dying bed , 325

Jesus, from thy heavenly place 283

Jesus, full of all compassion 251

Jesus, I love thy charming name 86, 136

Jesus, I my cross have taken 190

Jesus, in sickness and in pain 154

Jesus, lover of my soul 821, 324

Jesus, my all, to heaven is gone 112

Jesus, the very thought of thee 86

Jesus, thou art the sinner's friend 106

Jesus, thy blood and righteousness Ill

Jesus, we lift our souls to thee 342

Just as I am, without one plea 144

Learn we now that wondrous strain 200

Let every heart rejoice and sing 255

Let others boast their ancient line 127

Let the Most Blessed be my guide 104

Let the old heathen tune their songs 821

Let us awake our joys 184

Digitized by

Google

riKST LINES OF HYMNS. 395

PAGE

Let Zion's watchmen all awake 137

Long haye I seemed to serve thee, Lord 283

Lo, he comes, with clouds descending 214, 215

Lord, dismiss us with thy blessing 104

Lord, lead the way the Saviour went 127

Lord of the Sabbath, hear our vows 135

Lord, teach a little child to pray 233

Lord, we are blind, we mortals blind. 340

Lord, we come before thee now 163

Loving Shepherd, kind and true 74

Mercy, good Lord, mercy I ask 194

Mid scenes of confusion and creature complaints 131

Mighty God, while angels bless thee 229, 231, 339

Mortals, awake, with angels join 194

My drowsy powers, why sleep ye so 378

My faith looks up to thee 217

My God, I thank thee: may no thought 211

My God, thy service well demands 137

My gracious Redeemer I love 151

My Sabbath suns may all have set 103

My thoughts on awful subjects roll 334

No longer I follow a sound 124

No room for mirth or trifling here 311

Not all the blood of beasts 318, 326

Not worlds on worlds in phalanx deep 159

Now begin the heavenly theme 186

Now from the altar of our hearts 193

Now let our mourning hearts revive 137

Now that the sun is gleaming bright 27

0*er the gloomy hills of darkness 294

O'er the realms of pagan darkness 116

Oft have we passed the guilty night 280

Oh for a closer walk with God 119

Oh for a thousand tongues to sing 282

Oh for the happy hour 90

holy, holy, holy Lord 144

Digitized by

Google

396 FIRST LINES OV HYMNS.

PAOK

O God of Jacob, hj whose hand... 136

O head so full of bruises 87

Oh, what hath Jesus bought for me 334

O Lord, thy heayenly grace impart 211

O love diTine, how sweet thou art 345

Oh, most delightful hour by man 128

Oh, tell me no more of this world's yain store... 155

On that great, that awful day Ill

Our country's voice is pleading 76

thou from whom all goodness flows 166

O thou, my soul, forget no more 216

Zion, afflicted with wave upon wave 160

Paschal Lamb, by God appointed 77

Peace, my soul, thou needst not fear 333

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow 179, 373

Prepare us, sracious God 146

Bemember thee, remember Christ 254

Return, O wanderer, return 116

Rock of ages, cleft for me 248, 250

Savior, breathe an evening blessing 841

See how great a flame aspires 282

See the leaves around us falling 174

Servant of God, well done 201

Shepherd of Israel, bend thine ear 137

Show pity, Lord, Lord, forgive 307

Shrinking from the cold hand of death 286

Since all the varying scenes of time 171

Sinners, will you scorn the message 75

Sleep safe, wave-worn mariner 295

Softly fades the twilight ray 287

Source of light and power divine 235

Spirit, leave thy house of clay 20O

Stand, the omnipotent decree 276

Stand up, stand up for Jesus 142

Stop, poor sinner, stop and think 301

Sweet as the shepherd's tuneful reed 235

Digitized by

Google

FIRST LINES OF HYMKS. 397

PAOK

Sweet is tbe work, my God, my King 886

Sweet the moments, rioh in blessing 81

Tell me not, in mournful numbers 188

That day of wrath, that dreadful day 110

The fabric of nature is fair 218

The flowers of fifty summers gone 201

The God of Abraham praise 214

The great arohangel's trump shall sound 285

The Lord of Sabbath let us praise 290

The morning flowers display their sweets 290

There is a Fountain filled with blood 824

There is a happy land 814

There is aland of pure delight , 262

There is an hour of hallowed peace '... 246

There is a region lovelier far 250

The sorrows of the mind 819

The voice of free grace cries, Escape to the mountain 324

The waters of Bethesda's pool 80

They pass refreshed the thirsty vale 196

Thou art the Way, to thee alone 134

Though all the world my choice deride 247

Thou God of glorious majesty 60, 274

Thou God of love, thou ever-blest 350

Thou hidden love of God, whose height 247, 287

Thou, my Jesus, thou didst me 297

'Tis midnight, and on Olive's brow 245

To Jesus, the crown of my hope , 126

To thee, thou high and lofty One 216

Vital spark of heavenly flame 225, 226

Wake, Isles of the South, your redemption is near 245

We come to the Fountain, we stand by the wave 91

Well, the Redeemer's gone 339

When Abraham's servant, to procure «. 238

When, as returns this solemn day 79

When gathering clouds around I view 158

When Jesus dwelt in mortal clay 157

34

Digitized by

Google

398 FIRST LINES OF HYMNS.

PAGK

When Jordan hushed his waters still 107

When, marshalled on the nightly plain 291, 829

When on my sick-bed I languish 225

When thou, my righteous Judge, shalt come 348

When torn is the bosom by sorrow or care 189

Where high the heavenly temple stands 187

Where two or three together meet 182

While on the verge of life I stand 140

Why dost thou, tyrant, boast thyself 849, 350

Why do we mourn departing friends 359

Woe to the men on earth who dwell 277

Worship, and thanks, and blessing 280, 282

Would you win a soul to God 168

Ye dying sons of men 92

Yes, my native land, I love thee 287, 822

Digitized by

Google

INDEX.

Actress, an English, 802.

Adams, Rey. John : anecdote of, 850.

Adams, Sarah F. : hymns and other writings bj, 73.

Addison, Joseph : sketch of his life, works, and hymns, 73 ; death

and character, 74.
Allen, Rev. James : hymn by, early life, persecution, 76.
Alterations of hymns censured, 57 ; sometimes valuable, 62.
Amendment, a real, 876.
Ancient hymns the conserratiTes of truth, 29.
Ancient Lyre, order for, 50.

Anderson, Mrs. G. W. : sketch of and hymns by, 76.
Angelus, Christopher : origin, studies, and hymn, 74.
Anniversary at Andover, 881.
Anthems, facts about, 364.
Augustine: influence of 'singing on his heart, 26.

Bacon, Rev. L., D.D. : character of his hymns, sketch of his life, and
remarkable escape of, 76.

Bakewell, Rev. John : hymn by, sketch of, and his long life, 77.

Baldwin, Rev. T., D.D. : union hymn by, life and character of, 78.

Baptist General Assembly of 1692 : their counsel on singing, 82.

Barbauld, Anna L. : connected with the English ITnitarians, decease,
early instructed by Doddridge, 79.

Barton, Bernard: early bereavement of, character of his poetry,
extract, from one of his letters, 79.

Batty, Rev. Christopher : hymn by, his great disinterestedness, con-
nection with the Wesleys, 81.

399

Digitized by

Google

400 INDEX.

Baxter, Rev. Richard : his delight in singing, 38 ; Toluminousness of

his writings, hymns by, character as a poet, 82.
Beddome, Rey. Benjamin: sketch of his life, invited to London,

attachment to Bourton, 83; his marriage, 84; sickness and

death commended by Robert Hall, 85.
Beecher, Rey. Charles : family of, character of his publications, 86.
Beecher, Rey. H. W. : extract from, on the character and influence

of hymns, 19.
Bellamy, Rey. Dr., on singing, 43.

Bernard, St. : his Latin hymn, translation of its parts, 86.
Berridge, Rey. John, his singular characteristics, 87; his extraor-
dinary zeal and success, 88: anecdotes relating to, 89; his

prospect in death, 90.
Bethune, Rev. G. W., D.D. : his reproof of a hymn-" tmprwcr," 60;

pleasant origin of one of his hymns, 90 ; hymns on baptism,

his entrance on the ministry, 91.
Beza, Theodore : his encouragement of singing, 33.
Billing, W., on the duty of singing, 39; his N. England Psalm-Singer,

48.
Blacklock, Rev. Thomas, D.D. : born in Scotland, early blindness, 91 ;

marriage, habits of composition, 92; testimonies of Spencer

and E. Burke, 92.
Boden, Rev. James : his birth, early residence, 92 ; entrance on the

ministry, his happy decease, 93.
Bonar, Rev. Horatius, D.D. : a native of Scotland, his family con-
nections, 93.
Bond, Rev. T. E., M.D. : short popular hymh by, 94; sketch of his

life and character, testimony of an intimate friend, 94. .
Boston congregations, 357.
Boston, singing at, 41.

Bowdler, John : his early character and decease, 95.
Bowring, John, LL.D. : remarkable for his attainments, connected

with the Unitarians, 95.
Bradburn, Rev. Samuel, 837.
Braintree, council at in 1723, 40 ; singing at, 41.
Bremer, Frederika : a foreigner, character of her hymns, 96.
Brewer, Rev. Jehoiada : character of his hymns, sketch as a theo-

logian, 96.
Broaddus, Rev. Dr., 340.

Digitized by

Google

INDEX. 401

Bromfield, £dw., Jr. : builder of the first orgun in Boston, 41.

Brother, the, and sister, 883.

Brown, Rev. John N., D.D. : attached to the Baptists, decline of his
health, deyotedness to literature, 97.

Brown, Mrs. Phoebe H. : her religious character misapprehended, 97 ;
her defence, her hymn first printed, mission of her son, 98.

Browne, Roy. Simon : origin of his ministry, singular malady, 98 ;
its origin, Toplady's opinion of him, 99; Dr. Watts' s testi-
mony to, 100.

Browning, Elizabeth Barrett : her first publication, Dr. Bethune's esti-
mate of her talents, 100 ; her early afflictions and recoTery,
101.

Bryant, John H. : natiye of New England, removed to Illinois, his
mental character, 101.

Bryant, William G. : * birth and education, engagements and ge-
nius, 102.

Budden, William : hymn by, 102.

Bunting, Rev. W. : his character, attainments and spirit of, 108.

Bunyan, Roy. John : character as a hymn- writer, hymn by, 104.

Burder, ReT. George : hymn by, sketch of, 104 ; usefulness of, 105.

Burgess, Bishop : early studies of, consecrated bishop, works, 105.

Burke, Hon. E. : his testimony to Dr. Blacklock, 92.

Bumham, Rey. Richard : pastor of Baptist churches, his life a check-
ered one, 106.

Bums, Robert: destitute of piety, 106; peculiar talents, immo-
rality, 107.

California : tune so called, 51.

Calvin, John : his introduction of singing, 33.

Cambridge : psalms first printed at, 45.

Campbell, Thomas : origin, early work, 107 ; respect of Americans
for, decease, 108; anecdote of, 815.

Captive, the young and her father : 829.

Cawood, Rev. John: his education and works, 108.

Cecil, Rev. Richard : beautiful hymn by, 108 ; his history and cha-
racter, 109.

Celano, Thomas Von : his celebrated Latin hymn, versions of, 109 ;
extraordinary effects of, opinions of by Scott, Johnson, and
others, 110; curious facts of, HI.
34^'

Digitized by

Google

402 INDEX.

Cennick, R«t. John : favorite hymn by, dispute as to its author, 111 ;
anecdote of, other hymns by Cenniok, 112.

Chanting : Dr. Whittaker on its usefulness, 68.

Chapin, Rey. E. H., D.D. : his birth, 112; charges and publica-
tions, 118.

Charlemagne: his authorship of Veni Creator^ dispute respecting,
character of, 118.

Child, a sick, 822.

Chimney-Sweeper, a, 819.

China, 858.

Choir : fully established at Worcester, 42 ; reproved by a minis-
ter, 52, 58.

Chorister, a, administers reproof to a minister, 52.

Christians : the early subjects of their singing, 24.

Churches in Scotland, 874.

Circle, a private, 879.

Clarke, Rev. Dr. A. : his dislike to instrumental music in worship, 56.

Clergyman, a Vermont, 821.

Clergymen in Georgia, 846. <

Clergymen, thoughtless, 840.

Cobbin, Rev. Ingram : birth and parentage of, failure of his health,
his devotedness to Christian literature, 114.

Coincidence, 858.

Coleman, Dr. L. : his testimony as to the singing of the ancient
pagans, 28 ; of the early Christians, 24 ; Germans, 84.

Collier, the historian, on church-music, 65.

Collegiate dinner at Andover, 873.

CoUyer, Rev. Dr. W. B. : his distinguished popularity, his numerous
hymns, 115; interview with Dr. Raffles, 226.

Common Prayer Book: its use as a text, 81.

Conder, Josiah: birth and education, extent of poetical and other
writings, 116; his testimony as to singing at the Reforma-
tion, 31.

Congregational services, length of, 64.

Congregational singing, 870.

Cotterill, Rev. Thomas: friend of James Montgomery, author of
several hymns, 116; his alteration of the hymns of others, 117.

Cotton, Nathaniel, M.D. : success among the insane, Cowper's esti-
mate of him, 117.

Digitized by

Google

. — I

INDEX. 403

Cowper, William : early history, his favorite residences still objects
of attraction, 118 ; his beautiful hymns, " Lighi Bhming out of
DarkMU," "Oh for a closer walk with God," 119; Dr.
Southey's mistake respecting him, " How blest thy creature
is, God," 120; "Far from the world, Lord, I flee," 121;
Cowper*s reflection in church, 122; Cowper's share in the
*' Olney Symau" his contribution to the " BilU of Mortality y"
128; "No longer I foUow a sound," 124; "Hear, Lord, the
song of praise and prayer," Andrew Fuller's testimony to
Cowper's piety, 125.

Coxe, Bey. A. C, D.D., his high reputation, connected with the Epis-
copal Church, 126.

Crosswell, Rev. W., D.D. : author of several beautiflil hymns, 126;
his death sudden and afi'ecting, 127.

Crowd, a vast, 880.

Cruttenden, Robert : an eminent Londoner in the eighteenth century,
an occasional preacher, 127 ; his conversion and happy death,
128.

Cunningham, Rev. J. W. : eminent for sweetness of Christian spirit,
Head Master of Harrow School, 128.

Cutting, Rev. S. S. : his life marked by activity and usefulness, yet
promises much good for the Church, 129.

Dagg, Rev. Dr. J. L. : interesting anecdote by, 340.

Dale, Rev. Thomas : his early history, eminent success in his literary

and poetical efforts, 129.
Dark ages : state of singing in the, 30.
David : his musical establishments, 22.
Davies, Rev. : President at Princeton, author of several excellent

hymns, his eminence as a preacher, 180.
Davies, Rev. Ifiliel: his father schoolmaster of John B. Gough,

"From every earthly pleasure," early decease, 131.
Dawson, W. : his " YouiM Entertaimmg Amusement," 49.
Dawson, W. : anecdotes of, 222, 845.
Day, Stephen: his book of psalms flrst printed, 45.
Deacon in a difficulty, 847.

Denham, Rev. David : his early history, and places of ministry, 131.
Dickson, Rev. David : favorite hymn by, authorship disputed, 182 ;

affecting anecdote of its influence, 183.

Digitized by

Google

404 INDEX.

Doane, Bishop : his early history, and works, 184.

Doddridge, Rey. Philip, D.D., 134; Dr. Stanghton's testimony, suc-
cess of his hymns, his yersatility, mode of composing, 135 ; Dr.
James Hamilton's beautiful tribute, 186 ; origin of the hymns
" Now let our mourning hearts reyive," " Let Zion's watchmen
all awake," " My God, thy service well demands," «* Shepherd
of Israel, bend thine ear," 137, "And will the great eternal
God," ** Great God of heaven and nature, rise," his talent for
satire, epigrams, 138 ; his early rising, and use of the hymn
♦* Awake, my soul, to meet the day," verses for children, their
popularity and usefulness, 139 ; remarkable dream, 140.

Dry den, John : author of paraphrase of " Veni Creator Spiritus,** also
of *' Te Deum Laudamus,'* 141.

Duffield, Rev. George, Jr.: *< Stand up! stand up for Jesus!" its
solemn origin, his early history and Christian usefulness, 142.

Dwight, Rev. Timothy, D.D. : valuable character of his works, *« The
Conquer of Cancuin," 143.

Dyer, Rev. Sidney : sketch of, and hymns by, 144.

Eastbubne, Rev. J. W. : valuable character of hymn by, 144.

Edmeston, James: sketch of, various works, 146.

Edward VI. : state of singing in his day, 30.

Edwards, Rev. Jonathan : his testimony on the character of the old
hymns, 32 ; his testimony on singing, 46 ; enjoined the duty, 65.

Eliot, John : his translation of the psalms, 46.

Elliott, Charlotte : eminent usefulness of hymn by, 144 ; sketch of
her life, 146.

Elliott, Rev. R. : author of well-known hymn, sketch of life, 145.

Emmons, Rev. Dr., 360.

Enfield, Rev. William, LL.D. : ministry and professorship in Eng>
land, his life and sermons published by Dr. Aikin, 146.

English clerks, 361.

Eusebius, his testimony as to the singing of the primitive Christians,
26.

Evans, Rev. Jonathan : sketch of life and character, 146 ; his dis-
tinguished and prolonged usefulness, 147.

Facts, miscellaneous, 378.
Family, a, in Louisiana, 382.

Digitized by

Google

IND£X. 405

Fanch, ReY. James: joint author of a hymn with Bey. Daniel
Turner, 251.

Fault found, 346.

Fawcett, Rev. John, D.D. : long and devoted ministry, his early
hymns, "Blest be the tie that binds," 147; its popularity,
148 ; '< Essay on Anger" and anecdote concerning it, his fond-
ness for psalmody, 149 ; a closing scene, 160.

Fellowes, John : character of his writings, contemporary with Gill and
Toplady, 160 ; mistake corrected, 161.

Fletcher, Bev. John: testimony to Bev. Thomas Oliver, 214; his
favorite hymn, Mr. Soathey and Mr. Benson's high estimate
of his character, 276.

FoUen, Eliza Lee : hymns by, success of her writings, her bereave-
ment, 161.

Francis, Bev. Benjamin : early usefulness, 161 ; ignorance of the
English language^ his distinguished success, his piety, happy
decease, 162.

Furman, Bev. Bibhard, DiD. : his character and successful labors,
his influential position, 168.

Fumess, Bev. W. H., D.D. : hymns by, character of his writings;
identified with numerous reform-movements, 163; fondness
for the fine arts, 164.

Gallaudet, Thomas H., LL.D. : interest in the deaf and dumb,

character of his mind and writings, 164.
Gambold, Bev. John : hymn by, 164 ; a favorite of Bowland Hill, his

early history, his eminent piety as displayed in his writings,

testimony of Judge Story, 166,
Gerhard, Bev. Paul : popularity and character of his hymns, a fa-
vorite German poet, 166 ; his " Hymn to Christf" 87.
Germany : universal singing in, 34.
Gibbons, Bev. Thomas, D.D. : intimate with Whitefield and Dr. Watts,

Dr. Cotton Mather's testimony, 167.
Gilbert, Ann : her family connections, 167 ; character of her writings,

168.
Gisborne, Bev. Thomas: his official position, high character and

popularity of his writings, 168.
Glenelge, Lord: warm friend of missions, 168; elevation to the

peerage, 159.

Digitized by

Google

406 IND£X.

■ Good, John Mason, M.D. : Ms yersatility, change of faith; tribute of

Mr. Allibone, 159.
Gould : his description of singing at Plymouth Rock, 38.
Gould, Hannah F: her early history, eleyating character of her

poetry, 160.
Grant, John: his position and character, adaptation of secular

melodies, 160.
Greene, Thomas: favorite hymn by, 161.
Griffin, Rev. Dr. E. D., 388.

Grigg, Rev. Joseph : his early history, hymns by, 161.
Griswold, Dr. R. W. : testimony of to J. H. Bryant, 101.
Guion, Madame : sketch of by William Cowper, 161 ; her religious

views, 162; employment while in prison, happy submission

to her lot, 163.

Hall, Robert, 320, 339.

Hammond, Rev. Wm. : increasing usefulness of his compositions, 163 ;
his change of faith, other works by, 164.

Hart, Rev. Joseph : his faithfulness through affliction, testimony of
Rev. Mr. Hughes, 164; funeral of, Dr. Samuel Johnson,
165.

Hawes, Rev. Thomas, LL.B., M.D. : expelled from Oxford Univer-
sity, its consequence. Lady Huntingdon's chaplain, 165; his
writings, interest in missions, testimony of, and anecdote by,
Rev. John Newton, 166.

Heber, Bishop: his history and sudden death, "From Greenland's
icy mountains," its origin, 167 ; alteration thereof, 168.

Herbert, Rev. George: his exemplary life, fondness for music, a
wayside incident, 169; his peaceful death, the forcible cha-
racter of his hymns, 170.

Hervey, Rev. G. W. : his remarks on John Wesley, 55.

Hervey, Rev. James: his charity, writings, appearance, and elo-
quence, 171 ; his estimate of himself, 172.

Hill, Governor, 315.

Hill, Rev. Rowland : his lack of poetical talent, usefulness of his
hymns, 172; his delight in Sunday-schools, hymns revised by
Cowper, 173.

Home, Bishop: character of his hymns, 173; his fondness for the
Psalms, 174.

Digitized by

Google

INDEX, 407

Humphries, Rot. Joseph: several hymns by, 174.

Hymn, character of a, 19.

Hymn, influence of a good, 21.

Hymn, origin of a, 20.

Hymns, authors of the early, 24.

Hymns, improper alterations in, 67.

Hymns of the old style, 852.

Idb, Rev. G. B., D.D. : sketch of^ife, hymns by, 174.
Instrumental music in worship: John Wesley's dislike to, Dr. A.
Clarke's disapproval of, 66.

Jay, Rev. William : hymns by, his prolonged and successful ministry,

his manner of preaching, 175.
Jerome : testimony to the early singing, 26.

Jesuits : their opposition to singing, 83 ; practised it in Brazil, 67.
Jewess, a dying, 817.
Jones, Rev. Edward: eminent piety of, 175; character of his

writings, 176.
Judson, Rev. Adoniram: hymns by, 176; early history of, 177;

his devotion to Christian missions, 177.

Keach, Rev. B. : his work on singing, 32.

Kelly, Rev. Thomas: early history, 177; eloquence of, humility of,

178; meeting with Lord Plunket, happy death, 179.
Ken, Bishop : his hymns and Doxology, 179 ; his early history, in-
stances of Christian fortitude, 180 ; Montgomery's testimony,

181.
Kent, John : humble origin of, sketch of his life and death, 182.
Key, Francis S. : hymn by, scene at the communion-table, 183.
Kingsbury, Rev. William : two beautiful hymns by, his remarkable

conversion, his long pastorate, his connection with the London

Missionary Society, his peaceful death, 184.
Kippis, Rev. Andrew, D.D. : his early life, character of his writings,

185.
Kirkham, Rev. John: hymn by, believed to have been a feUow-

student of the Wesleys and Whitefield, 186.
Klopstock and his wife, 886.

Digitized by

Google

408 ' INDEX.

Lady, an aged, 322.

Landford, Bey. John : sketch of his life, his piety, 186.

Leavitt, Dr. Joshua : on singing in seasons of reyiyal, 67.

Leland, Rev. John : origin of the hymn; " ChriBtians, if your hearts

are warm," 187.
Logan, Rev. John : sketch of his life, 187 ; character of his writings,

188.
Longfellow, Henry W. : fayorite hymns by, character of hia poems,

188.
Lover, a taunting, 816.
Luther, Martin : his loYe and practice of singing, 34 ; assisted by

Walther, 35.
Lutton, Ann : a correspondent of the " RevtvaUst^" her hymn adapted

to *^ Sweet ffomef" its usefulness, 189.
Lyons, Mr. : his ** Urania," 48.
Lyte, Rev. Henry Francis : author of a hymn attributed to wrong

authors, sketch of his life, character of his writings, 190.

Mage, Master: his **Mimc*8 Monument" 37.

Mackay, Mfhi. : "Asleep in Jesus, blessed sleep,'' 190; anecdote of

its origin, 191.
Madan, Rev. Martin : remarkable conversion of, 191 ; sketch of his

life and writings, 192
Man, a young, 305.
Man, a young, in Virginia, 323.
Manly, Rev. Basil, Jr. : one of the editors of " The Bcg^tiai Psalmodsf^"

character of his hymns, his laborious life, 193.
Marlowe, Mr. J. : his work on singing, 32.
Marot, Clement : his version of the Psahns, 38.
Mason, Rev. John : number and character of his hymns^ 198.
Mason, Dr. LoweU : his early literary history, 49 ; imecdote by, 243.
Mather, Dr. C, on the services of the Pilgrim ohorohes, 39; his

translation of the Psalms, 47.
Maze Pond, London : origin of the church in, 33.
Medley, Rev. Samuel : his early life and conversion, his subsequent

successful ministi^, 194 ; his hymns and other writings, 195.
Millerite preacher reproved, 52.
Milman, Rev. Henry H. : character of his various writings, what

his hymns lack, 195.

Digitized by

Google

INDEX. 409

Milton, John: his view of Dayid's singers, 22; hymns by, their
beauty, 196; sketch of "his manner of life," 197.

Minister, a Tory, 842.

Minister : reproof given by one to a chorister, 62.

Miscellaneous, 888.

Miscellaneous facts, 878.

Missionaries' landing, the, 888.

Montgomery, James: his testimony on the Doxology, 181; devoted
labors for the Christian press, its influence, 197 ; premature
report of his death, scene at the Wesleyan Methodist Con-
ference at Sheffield, 198 ; his regular contribution to the Sun-
day-school jubilees, 199 ; his last hymn for a Sunday-school
Union, hymn written in York C&stle, 200; his ideas and
manner of composition, << Servant of God, well donel" 201 ;
'* Go to the grave in tAi thy glorious prime," occasion of their
composition, 202.

Moody, Rev. S. : his reproof of his precentor, 45.

Moore, Thomas : high character of his poetic qualities, influence of
his early poems, sketch of his life, 208 ; his description of
Charles Wesley, 271.

More, Hannah : Rev. John Newton's admiration of, 208.

Morell, Rev. Thomas : several valuable hymns by, sketch of his life,
204.

Mother, an unhappy, 808.

Mother, a suffering, 819.

Muhlenberg, Rev. Wm. A., D.I). : favorite hymn by, its history, 204.

Music: Rev. Charles Wesley on the proper use of instrumental,
John Wesley and Dr. A. Clarke opposed to, 66.

Music, singular, 861.

Nbedhah, Rev. John : hymns by, sketch of his life, 205.

Neighbors, quarrelsome, 885.

"i^cw England Couran^'' on the Braintree Council, 40.

Newton, Rev. James : high reputation and usefulness of, author of a
volume of original hymns, 206.

Newton, Rev. John : his early life and conversion, associated with
Cowper, 206 ; his style and manner of preaching, his popu-
larity, 207 ; his admiration of Hannah More, 208 ; delightful
character of his writings, 209 ; a singular fact, 210.
35

Digitized by

Google

410 INDEX.

New York merchantB, 886.

Nobleman, an English, 309.

Noel, Hon. and Rev. Baptist : hymns by, early history, change of

opinion, 210.
Norton, Andrews : hymns by, sketch of his life, 211.

Oberlin, John F. : hymn by, his mother's early teachings, 211 ; his

early piety and distinguished success, 212.
Occum, Bey. Samson : his visit to England, hymn by, its usefulness, 213.
Officer, a military, 826.
Officers of the British navy, 885.
** Old Hundred,** origin of the tune, 66.
Oliyers, Rev. Thomas : noble character of hymns^ by, sketch of his

life, testimony of Rev. John Fletcher, 214; John Wesley's

reference to him, 215.
Oxford, Te Deum annually sung in the Uniyersity of, 28.

Pal, Krishna : first Hindoo oonveirt, 216 ; his soeceMAil ministf^F,

hymns by,. 216.
Palmer, Mrs. : hymn by, 216.

Palmer, Eey. Ray, D.B. : origin of a favorite hymn by, 217
Parker, Rev. J. : anecdote by, 806.
Parody, an old, 851.
Pastor, a dying, 824.

Peaibody, Rev. A. P., D.D. : character of his worki, 217.
Pearce, Rev. Samuel: the beauty of his hymns, his early death,

218.
Persecutor, an Irish, 804.
Perronett, Rev. Edward : " All hail the power of Jesus' name I" its

history, sketch of his life, 219.
Pilgrim Fathers : their delight in singing, 88.
Plymouth Rock : first song of praise at, 88.
Pope, Alexander: ode by, its origin, John Wesley's admiration of it,

226.
"Presbyterian Quarterly Review:'* extract from on the character of a

hymn, 19.
Psalmist, the blind, 826.

Quaker hymn-book : one published, 61.

Digitized by

Google

INDEX. 411

BAvrUB, Key. Thomas, D.D., LL.D. : intlmaoy with Dr. CoUyer, 226 ;
sudden death of Bey. Thomas Spencer, succeeded as pastor
by Dr. R., sketch of his character, 227 ; pastoral hymns by, 228.

Bedstone Presbytery, 856.

Jleed, Ber. Andrew, D.D. : several hymns and other works by, 228 ;
his yisit to the United States, 229.

Reformation : state of singing at the time of, 80.

Beyiyals : character of music in, 67.

Right feelings : importance of, 849.

Robinson, Bey. Robert : hymns by, sketch of his life, 229 ; ** Come,
thou Fount of eyery blessing," anecdote regarding it, 230 ;
fayorite hymn, origin of, 281.

Rowley : extracts from the history of. on singing, 48.

Royalists and Roundheads : the collisions of, 86.

Ryland, Rey. John, D.D. : his early history, 281 ; succeeds his father
as pastor. Dr. John P^e Smith's estimate of him, '<In all my
Lord's appointed ways," its origin, 282 ; ** Lord, teach a little
child to pray,'* its interesting origin, and mode of circulating
the hymn, 233.

Sag&amental Singing, 878.

Scene, an impresinye, 876.

Shirleyi Hon. and Rey. Walter : hymns by, his holy zeal and success-
ful ministry, 286.

Sigoumey, Lydia Huntley : beauty of her compositions, her early
history, her position as a writer, 236.

Singing at Bangor, 863.

Singing on board the North Carolina, 873.

Singing, regulations of, 848.

Singing : the primitiye, uniyersally practised, 26.

Sisters : two in New York State, 828.

Smith, Rey. S. F., D.D. : hymns by, one of the editors of " The Ptalm-
isty** 287.

Spence, Rey. Joseph : testimony of to Dr. Blacklock, 92.

Spencer, Rey, Thomas : sudden death of, 227.

Sprague, Rey. Dr. : extract from his ** American Annals" 44.

Steele, Anne : her early history^ 287 ; testimony of Dr. Caleb Eyans,
her peaceful death, 238; appropriate epitaph, powerful in-
fluence of her hymns, 289.

Digitized by

Google

412 INDEX.

Bteanett, Rot. Samuel, B.D. : personal ftiend of Geo. III., 239 ; re-
fuses high preferment, his happy decease, 240.

Biernhold and Hopkins : Thomas Fuller's opinion of their psalms,
singular character of Sternhold, Scaliger's delight in the
Eighteenth Psalm as rendered by Sternhold, 242; the popu-
larity of their versions, 248.

Stevens, Rev. B. : pastor at Eittery, 44.

Stillman, Rev. Dr., 339.

Strype : testimony of as to singing in 1559, 80.

Sunday-school, an Irish, 312.

Sutton, Rev. Amos, D.D. : hymn by, its beauty, sketch of his life,
241.

Swaine, Rev. Joseph : hymns by, sketch of his life, early death, 244.

Symmes, Rev. Mr., on the singing of the New England settlers, 39.

Tappan, Wm. B. : hymns by, his interest in Sabbath-schools, 246.

Tate and Brady: their ^^ New Version of the Psdlmt,^* sketch of their
history, 246.

Taylor, Rev. Thomas : hymn written by James Montgomery to com-
memorate the death of, 201.

Tersteegan, G. : hymns by, his humble and pious life, the valuable
influence it exerted, beauty of his poetry, 247.

Toplady, Rev. Augustus M. : his early history, his power as a
preacher, 248 ; his blissful anticipations of death, 249 ; anec-
dote by Dr. Pomeroy, 250.

Topsfield : extract from Church Records of on singing, 44.

Tuck, Miss : hymns by, and other works, 250.

Tufts, Mr. : his introduction to singing, 48.

Tunes : character of the old, 66 ; character of good, Andrew Fuller
on, 68.

Turner, Rev. Daniel: hymns by, sketch of his life and writings,
261.

Tupis : their love of music, 57.

Walker, Rev. Mr., on the singing of the old New England churches,

40.
Wallin, Rev. Benjamin : hymn by, his early history, 262 ; succeeds

his father as pastor of Maze Pond Baptist Church, 253.
Walther : assistance rendered by him to Luther, 85.

Digitized by

Google

INDEX. 418

Ward, Rev. W. : missionary hymn by, anecdote of Wm. Carey, 268 ;
sketch of his life and labors, 264.

Wardlaw, Bey. Ralph : hymns by, sketch of his life, and character
of his writings, 264.

Ware, Bey. Henry, ]>.]>. : sketch of his life, 264 ; character of his
hymns, 266.

Washburn, H. S. : hymns by, his important services, 266.

Watts, Bey. Isaac, P.D. : some of hifi hymns improved by John
Wesley, 62 ; curious parody of one of his psalms, 61 ; his
Huguenot descent, his parents suffer for conscience* sake, his
early history, 266 ; character of the hymns in use before his
time, his first attempt to improve them, 267 ; his first hymn-
book, letter to Dr. Cotton Mather, 268; Mr. Montgomery's
testimony to the value of his hymns, 259 ; his " Divine Songs
for Children^** 260; "How vain are all things here below," its
history, 261 ; <* There is a land of pure delight," tribute to its
beauty, scene of its origin, 262 ; ** Am I a soldier of the cross ?"
noble character of this hymn, 263 ; his friendship with Dr.
Doddridge, ** Give me the wings of faith, to rise," its powerful
effect, 264 ; Mrs. S. C. Hall's visit to his home, 266 ; testi-
mony of William Wilberforce, his psalms and hymns in Africa,
266 ; testimony of William Wirt, 267.

Wesley s: the alteration of hymns censured by John W., 62; his
constant attention to singing, 64 ; his knowledge of musical
notes, 66 ; publication of their hymn-books, 68 ; their early
history and descent, 268 ; the power of their preaching, 269 ;
the wonderful influence of their hymns, 270 ; Moore's descrip-
tion of Charles Wesley, "Come, Desire of Nations, come,"
271; "How weak the thoughts and vain," history of their
origin, 272; ^* Hymns written in the Times of the ThimidtSf**
June, 1780, by C. W., their history, quotation firom satirical
poem, " Bymnsfor the Nation,** occasion of their composition,
"Come, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost," its origin, 278; Mr.
Creamer's defence of John Wesley, " Thou God of glorious
majesty," where it was composed, 274; Mr. Montgomery's
tribute to its beauty. Dr. Adam Clarke visits the scene of its
composition, 276; "Stand! the omnipotent decree," its special
reference, " Give me the enlarged desire," a favorite hymn of
John Fletcher, 276 ; " Woe to the m«n on earth who dwell,"
36»

Digitized by

Google

414 IHDEX.

•< Bj fmiih we find the phMe aboTe," their origin, 277 ; '* Glory
to God, whose soTereign grmee," its interesting origin, 278;
Whitefield's first sermon in the open air, happj resnlts, 279;
««Oft have we passed the guilty night," «* Hearken to the
solemn Toioe," their origin, '* Worship, and thanks, and UesB-
ing," written after delirerance in a tumult, 280; **0h for a
thousand tongues to sing," written on the anniyersary of their
conyersion, ** Come, thou all-vioftorious Lord," where it
was written, ** See how great a flame aspires," 282 ; joyful
ocoasion on which it was written, <* Jesus, from thy heayenly
place," **Long have I seraied to serre thee. Lord," peculiar
circumstances of its composition, 288; ** Come, let us join
our friends above," anecdote of John Wesley and Rer. Thomas
Spencer, 284 ; " God is in this and eyery place," coincidence
connected with it, ** The great Archangel' s trump shall sound,"
its origin, 285; *< Shrinking from the cold hand of death,"
anecdote concerning it, *' Again we lift our Toice," occasion
of its composition, 286 ; *' Infinite God, to thee we raise,"
Mr. Love's testimony to its beauty, ** Thou hidden Love of
God, whose height," 287 ; '' How happy is the pilgrim's lot,"
Mr. Creamer's account of its personal reference to its author,
288 ; << Behold the Saviour of mankind," its singular pre-
servation and history, 289.

Wesley, Samuel, Jr. : various hymns by, special beauty of one of
them, 290.

Western liturgies : character of them, 27.

White, Henry Eirke: his early history, his works edited by Br.
Southey, 291 ; tablet erected to his memory, beautiful lines
inscribed upon it by Professor Smythe, 292,

Whitefield on chanting, 68.

Whitefield, Rev. G. : his attention to singing, 65 ; his first sermon
in the open air, 278.

Whittier, John G. : a Quaker poet, lack of unction in his hymns, 293.

William the Conqueror : influence of singing in his dying hour, 27.

Williams, Rev. William : his early history and arduous labors, 293 ;
character of his writings, 294.

Willis, Nathaniel P. : hynan by, character of his writings, 294 ; a
sweet thought, 295.

Winchester College, Latin hymn annually sung in, 28.

Digitized by VjOOQ IC

INDEX. 416

Wirt, William : his opinion of Watts's Hymns, 267.
Women, two young, 334.
Worcester : choir established at, 42.

Wordsworth, William: sketch of his history, interesting extract
from one of his letters, 295.

Xayier, Francis : hymn by, his missionary ardor, a lofty sentiment,
297 ; testimony of John Angel James, 298.

York Minster : psalm-singing in, 87.

THE END.

•TSBSOTTPKD BT L. JOHNSON 4 00.
PHILADKLrHIA.

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by

Google

Digitized by VjOOQ IC

Digitized by

Google