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gift of
Mr, James F. Lalsy
STANFOftO UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES
i
THE STORY OF THE
HYMNS AND TUNES
BY
THERON BROWN
AND
HEZEKIAH BUTTERWORTH
//
Muliae ierricolis linguae^ coelestibus una.
Ten thousandy thousand are their tongues.
But all their joys are one.
;i^j:f ^'
mm-
'ff ffr
NEW "^SJr YORK
GEORGE H. DORAN COMPANY
COPYBIGHT, IMW,
BY AMERICAN TRACT SOdETT
••^A r .
THE STORY OF HYMNB AND TDNE3. IZ
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CONTENTS.
niEFACBy W
INTRODUCTION, IX
I. HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP, I
2. SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES, 53
3. HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION AND EXPERIENCE, lOO
4. MISSIONARY HYMNS 165
5. HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST, I90
6. CHRISTIAN BALLADS, 237
7. OLD REVIVAL HYMNS, 262
8. SUNDAY SCHOOL HYMNS, 293
9. PATRIOTIC HYMNS, 321
K). sailor's HYMNS, 353
11. HYMNS OF WALES, 378
12. FIELD HYMNS, 409
13. HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL, 458
14. HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION, 509
INDEXES OF NAMES, TUNES. AND HYMNS 543
LIST OF PORTRAITS.
THOMAS ON, Frontispiece
ouvEit HOLDENy Opp. page 14
JOSEPH HAYDN, ** 30
CHARLES WESLEY, ** 46
MARTIN LUTHER, " 62
LADT HUNTINGDON, ** 94
AUGUSTUS MONTAGUE TOPLADY, «* I26
THOMAS HASTINGS, ** 1 42
FRANCES RIDLEY HAVERGAL, <' 1 5S
REGINALD HEBF.R, " 1 74
GEORGE JAMES WEBB, ** I90
JOHN WESLEY, " 206
JOHN B. DYKES, ** 222
BLLEN M. H. GATES, ** 254
IAMBS MONTGOMERY, *' 286
PANNY J. CROSBY, ** 3O2
SAMUEL F. SMITH, *' 334
WILLIAM B. BRADBURY, «' 366
ISAAC WATTS, '* 398
GEORGE FREDERICK HANDEL, ** 4I4
PHILIP DODDRIDGE, *' 446
LOWELL MASON, *' 478
CARL VON WEBER, " 494
HORATIUS BONAR, *' 526
PREFACE,
When the lapse of time and accumulation of
fresh material suggested the need of a new and
revised edition of Mr Hezekiah Butterworth's
St&ry of the Hymns^ which had been a popular
text book on that subject for nearly a generation ^
the publishers requested him to prepare such a
work, reviewing the whole field of hymnobgy and
its literature down to date. He undertook the ta$k>
but left it unfinished at his lamented deaths com-
mitting the manuscript to me in his last hours to
arrange and complete.
To do this proved a labor of considerable magni-
tude, since what had been done showed evidence
of the late author's failing strength, and when, in
a conference with the publishers, it was proposed
to combine the two books of Mr, Butterworth,
the Story of the Hymns and the Story of the
Tunest in one volume, the task was doubled.
The charming popular style and story-telling
gift of the Well-known compiler of these books had
kept them in demand, the one for thirty and the
other for fifteen years, but later information had
discounted some 9f their historic and biographical
VI
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUKES.
matter, and» while many of the monographs were
too meagre, others were unduly long. Besides,
the Story of the Tunes^ so far from being the
counterpart of the Story of the HymnSy bore no
special relationship to it, only a small portion of its
selections answering to any in the hymn-list of the
latter book. For a personal friend and practically
unknown writer, to follow Mr. Butterworthj and
"improve'' his earlier work to the more modem
conditions, was a venture of no little difficulty and
delicacy- The result is submitted as simply a con*
scientious effort to give the best of the old with the
new.
So far as was possible, matter from the two
previous books, and from the crude manuscript,
has been used, and passages here and there tran-
scribed, but so much of independent plan and
original research has been necessary in arranging
and verifying the substance of the chapters that
the Story of the Hymns and Tunes is in fact a
new volume rather than a continuation. The
chapter containing the account of the Gospel
Hymns is recent work with scarcely an exception,
and the one on the Hymns of Wales is entirely new,
Without increasing the size of this volume be-
yond easy purchase and convenient use, it was im-
possible to discuss the great oratorios and dramatic
set-pieces, festival and occasional, and only pass-
ing references are made to them or their authors.
Among those who have helped me in my work
special acknowledgements are due to Mr. Hubert
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES. Vll
P. Main of Newark, N. J.; Messrs. Hughes & Son
of Wrexham, Wales; the American Tract Society,
New York; Mr. William T. Meek, Mrs. A. J.
Gordon, Mr. Paul Foster, Mr. George Douglas,
and Revs. John R. Hague and Edmund F. Mer-
riam of Boston; Professor William L. Phelps of
New Haven, Conn.; Mrs. Ellen M. H. Gates of
New York; Rev. Franklin G. McKeever of New
London, Conn.; and Rev. Arthur S. Phelps of
Greeley, Colorado. Further obligations are grate-
fully remembered to Oliver Ditson & Co. for
answers to queries and access to publicadons, to
the Historic-and-Geneological Society and the
custodians and attendants of the Boston Public
Library (notably in the Music Department) for
their uniform courtesy and pains in placing every
resource within my reach.
THERON BROWN.
Boston, May 15th, 1906.
INTRODUCTION,
Augustine defines a hymn as 'Upraise to God
with song/' and another writer calls hymn-sing-
ing "a devotional approach to God in our emo*
tions," — ^ which of course applies to both the
words and the music. This religious emotion,
reverently acknowledging the Divine Being in
song, is a constant element, and wherever felt it
makes the song a worship, irrespective of sect or
creed. An eminent Episcopal divine, (says the
Christian R^gistfTy) one Trinity Sunday, at the
close of his sermon, read three hymns by Unita-
rian authors: one to God the Father, by Samuel
Longfellow, one to Jesus, by Theodore Parker,
and one to the Holy Spirit, by N, L. Frothing-
ham. "There," he said, '*you haVe the Trinity
— Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."
It is natural to speak of hymns as "poems,"
indiscriminately, for they have the same structure.
But a hymn is not necessarily a poem, while a
poem that can be sung as a hymn is something
more than a poem. Imagination makes poems;
devotion makes hymns. There can be poetry
without emotion, but a hymn never. A poem may
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
argue; a hymn must not. In short to be a hymn,
what is written must express spiritual feelings and
desires. The music of faith j hope and charity will
be somewhere in its strain.
Philosophy composes poems, but not hymns.
"It is no love-symphony we hear when the lion
thinkers roar/* some blunt writer has said. "The
moles of Science have never found the heavenly
dove's nest, and the Sea of Reason touches no shore
where balm for sorrow grows,"
On the contrary there are thousands of true
hymns that have no standing at the court of the
muses. Even Cowper's Olney hymns, as Gold win
Smith has said, "have not any serious value as
poetry. Hymns rarely have,'' he continues,
**There is nothing in them on which the creative
imagination can be exercised. Hymns can be little
more than the incense of a worshipping souK"
A fellow-student of Phillips Brooks tells us that
"most of his verse he wrote rapidly without re-
vising, not putting much thought into it but using
it as the vehicle and outlet of his feelings. It was the
sign of responding love or gratitude and joy"
To produce a hymn one needs something more
exalting than poetic fancy; an influence
** — subtler than the sun^light in the leaf-bud
That ihn\h thro' all the forest, making May/'
It is the Divine Spirit wakening the human heart
to lyric language,"
Religion sings; that is true, though all "relig-
ions" do not sing* There is no voice of sacred
INTRODUCTION*
^
^
song in Islamism. The muezzin call from the
minarets is not music. One listens in vain for
melody among the worshippers of the *' Light of
Asia/' The hum of pagoda litanies, and the
shouts and gongs of idol processions arc not
psalms. But many historic faiths have lost their
melody, and we must go far back in the annals
of ethnic life to find the songs they sung<
Worship appears to have been a primitive human
bstinct; and even when many gods took the place
of One in the blinder faith of men it was nature
WQCship making deities of the elements and ad-
drei^ing them with supplication and praise.
Ancient hymns have been found on the monu-
mental tablets of the cities of Nimrod; fragments
of the Orphic and Homeric hymns are preserved
in Greek anthology; many of the Vedic hymns are
esetant in India; and the exhumed stones of Egypt
have revealed segments of psalm-prayers and
liturgies that antedate history. Dr. Wallis Budge,
the English Orientalist, notes the discovery of a
priestly hymn two thousand years older than the
time of Moses* which invokes One Supreme Being
who "cannot be figured in stone."
So far as we have any real evidence, however^
the Hebrew people surpassed all others in both
the custom and the spirit of devout song. We get
snatches of their inspired lyrics in the song of Moses
and Miriam, the song of Deborah and Barak, and
die song of Hannah (sometimes called "the Old
Tcitainent Magnificat"), in the hymns of David
%u
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
and Solomon and all the Temple Psalms, and
later where the New Testament gives us the
** Gloria** of the Christmas angels, the thanks*
giving of Elizabeth (benedictus minor), Mary's
Magnificat, the song of Zacharias (benedictus
major), the ''nunc dimitris" of Simeon, and the
celestial ascriptions and hallelujahs heard by St*
John in his Patmos dream. For what we know of
the first formulated human prayer and praise we
are mostly indebted to the Hebrew race. They
seem to have been at least the only ancient nation
that had a complete psalter — and their colleaion is
the mother hymn-book of the world*
Probably the first form of hymn-worship was
the plain-song — a declamatory unison of assem*
bled singers, every voice on the same pitch, and
within the compass of five notes — and so con-
tinued, from whatever may have stood for plain-
song in Tabernacle and Temple days down to the
earliest centuries of the Christian church. It was
mere melodic progression and volume of tone, and
there were no instruments — after the captivity.
Possibly it was the memory of the harps hung
silent by the rivers of Babylon that banished the
timbrel from the sacred march and the ancient lyre
from the post-exilic ^nagogues. Only the Feast
trumpet was left. But the Jews sang. Jesus and
his disciples sang. Paul and Silas sang; and so
did the post-apostolic Christians; but until to-
wards the close of the i6th century there were no
instruments allowed in religious worship.
mXRODUCTrON*
xm
Stt Hilasy^ Bishop of Poitiers has been called
**the father of Christian hymnology" About the
middle of the 4th century he regulated the ecclesias-
tical song-service, wrote chant music (to Scripture
words or his own) and prescribed its place and use
Lin his choirs. He died A. D, 368, In the Church
Fcaleiidars, Jan. 13th (following "Twelfth Night"),
is still kept as"St< Hilary's Day" in the Church of
England, and Jan. 14th in the Church of Rome*
St, Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, a few years later,
improved the work of his predecessor, adding
words and music of his own. The **Ambrosian
Chant" was the antiphonal plain- song arranged
and systematized to statelier effect in choral
symphony • Ambrose died A. D, 397,
Toward the end of the 6th century Christian
music showed a decline in consequence of im-
patient meddling with the slow canonical psalm-
ody, and "reformers" had impaired its solemnity
by introducing fanciful embellishments* Gregory
the Great (Pope of Rome, 590-604) banished these
from the song service, founded a school of sacred
melody, composed new chants and established the
distinctive character of ecclesiastical hymn worship.
The Gregorian chant — on the diatonic eight sounds
and seven syllables of equal length — continued,
with its majestic choral step, to be the basis of
cathedral music for a thousand years. In the
meantime (930) Hucbald, the Flanders monk,
invented sight music, or written notes — happily
called the art of ** hearing with the ^yes and seeing
im
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
With the ears"; and Guido Arentino (1024) goiv-'*
trived the present scale, or the "hexachord'* on
which the present scale was perfected.
In this long interval, however, the " established *'
system of hymn service did not escape the intrusion
of inevitable novelties that crept in with the change
of popular taste. Unrhythmical singing could not
always hold its own; and when polyphonic music
came into public favor, secular airs gradually found
their way into the choirs. Legatos, with their pleas-
ing turn and glide, caught the ear of the multitude.
Tripping allegrettos sounded sweeter to the vulgar
sense than the old largos of Pope Gregory the Great,
The guardians of the ancient order took alarm.
One can imagine the pained amazement of con-
servative souls today on hearing ''Ring the Bells
of Heaven" substituted in church for "Mear" or
the long-metre Doxology, and can understand the
extreme distaste of the ecclesiastical reactionaries
for the worldly frivolities of an A* D. 1550 choin
Presumably that modem abomination, ihevihrato^
with its shake of artificial fright, had not been
invented then, and sanctuary form was saved one
indignity. But the innovations became an abuse
so general that the Council of Trent commissioned
a select board of cardinals and musicians to arrest
the degeneration of church song-worship.
One of the experts consulted in this movement
was an eminent Italian composer bom twenty
miles from Rome. His full name was Giovanni
Pietro Aloysio da Palestrina^ and at that time he
1
INTRODUCTION.
XV
■vas in the prime of his powers. He was master of
polyphonic music as well as plain-song, and he
proposed applying it to grace the older modet pre-
serving the solemn beauty of the chant but adding
le charming chords of counterpoint. He wrote
^•hree "masses/* one of them being his famous
"** Requiem*" These were sung under his direction
"before the Commission. Their magnificence and
purity revealed to the censors the possibilities of
contrapuntal music in sanctuary devotion and
praise. The sanction of the cardinals was given —
and part-song harmony became permanently one
of the angel voices of the Christian church,
Palestrina died in 1594J but hymn-tunes adapted
fmm his motets and masses are sung today. He
was the father of the choral tune. He lived to
see musical instruments and congregational sing-
ing introduced* in public worship, and to know
(possibly with secret pleasure, though he was a
Romanist) how richly in popular assemblies, dur-
ing the Protestant Reformation, the new freedom
of his helpful art had multiplied the creation of
spiritual hymns.
Contemporary in England with Palestrina in
Italy was Thomas Tallis who developed the
Anglican school of church music, which differed
less from the Italian (or Catholic) psalmody than
that of the Continental churches, where the revolt
of the Reform arion extended to the tune-worship
IS notably as to the sacraments and sermons. This
*BQt HOC hify ttflibllthed ia uie till thoat 1615.
XVI STORY OF THE HYMHS AND TUMES.
difference created a dmsion of method and prac-
tice even in England^ and extreme Protestants who
repudiated everything artimc or ornate formed
the Puritan or Genevan School Their style is
represented among our h}Tnn-tunes by "Old Hun-
dred/* while the representative of the Anglican
is "Tallis' Evening Hymn." The division was only
temporary. The two schools were graduaOy recon-
ciied» and together made the model after which
the best sacred tunes are built. It is TalHs who is
called *'The father of English Cathedral music/*
In Germany, after the invention of harmony,
church music was still felt to be too formal for a
working force, and there was a reaction against the
motets and masses of Palestrina as being too stately
and difficult- Lighter airs of the popular sort,
such as were sung between the acts of the " mystery
plays/' were subsidized by Luther, who wrote com-
positions and translations to their measure. Part-
song was simplified, and Johan Walther compiled
a hymnal of religious songs in the vernacular for
from four to six voices. The reign of rhythmic
hymn music soon extended through Europe.
Necessarily — except in ultra-conservative locali-
ties like Scotland— the exclusive use of the Psalms
(metrical or unmetrical) gave way to religious lyrics
inspired by occasion, Clement Marot and Theo-
dore Beza wrote hymns to the music of various
compnser?i| and Caesar Malan composed both hymns
and their melodies- By the beginning of the i8th
centuiy the triumph of the hymn-tune and the
INTRODUCTION XVll
hymnal for lay voices was established for all time.
4i 4c 4c 4c 4c 4c
In the following pages no pretence is made of
selecting all the best and most-used hymns, but the
purpose has been to notice as many as possible of
the standard pieces — and a few others which seem
to add or re-shape a useful thought or introduce a
new strain.
To present each hymn with its tune appeared
the natural and most satisfactory way, as in most
cases it is impossible to dissociate the two. The
melody is the psychological coefficient of the met-
rical text. Without it the verse of a seraph
would be smothered praise. Like a flower and
its fragrance, hymn and tune are one creature, and
stand for a whole value and a full effect. With
this normal combination a complete descriptive
list of the hymns and tunes would be a historic
dictionary. Such a book may one day be made,
but the present volume is an attempt to the same
end within easier limits.
CHAPTER I.
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND
WORSHIP.
"TE DEUM LAUDAMUS."
This famous church confession in song was con>-
posed A, D. 387 by Ambrose, Bishop of Mitan, pro-
bably both words and music.
Te Deum laud am ui, Tc Dominum confitemur
Tc aecemym Psitnecn omnis terra veneratur
Tibi onnties angeti, tibi coeli et tiniversae potest atcs^
Ttbi chenibim et seraphim inaccesstbili voce proclamant
SanctuSf sanctus Dofninus Deus Sabaoth,
In the whole hymn there are thirty lines. The
saying that the early Roman hymns were echoes
of Christian Greece, as the Greek hymns were
echoes of Jerusalem, is probably true, but they were
only echoes* In A. D, 252, St* Cyprian, writing his
consolatory epistle* during the plague in Car-
thage, when hundreds were dying every day, says,
*'Ah, perfect and perpetual bliss! [in heaven-]
There is the glorious company of the apostles
*JJifi lOu OvJ^i *'Od due Mcrtalkr**' i
2 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
there is the fellowship of the prophets rejoicing;
there is the innumerable multitude of martyrs
crowned." Which would suggest that lines or
fragments of what afterwards crystalized into the
formula of the "Te Deum" were already familiar in
the Christian church. But it is generally believed
that the tongue of Ambrose gave the anthem its
final form.
Ambrose was bom in Gaul about the middle of
the fourth century and raised to his bishopric in
A. D. 374. Very early he saw and appreciated the
popular effect of musical sounds, and what an
evangelical instrument a chorus of chanting voices
could be in preaching the Christian faith; and he
introduced the responsive singing of psalms and
sacred cantos in the worship of the church. "A
grand thing is that singing, and nothing can stand
before it," he said, when the critics of his time
complained that his innovation was sensational.
That such a charge could be made against the
Ambrosian mode of music, with its slow move-
ment and unmetrical lines, seems strange to us,
but it was new — and conservatism is the same in
all ages.
The great bishop carried all before him. His
school of song-worship prevailed in Christian
Europe more than two hundred years. Most of
his hymns are lost, (the Benedictine writers credit
him with twelve), but, judging by their effect on
the powerful mind of Augustine, their influence
among the common people must have been pro-
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
founds and far more lasting than the author's life.
"Their voices sank into mine ears, and their truths
discilled into nfiy heart/' wrote Augustine, long
afterwards, of these hymns; "tears ran down, and
I rejoiced in them/*
Poetic tradition has dramatized the story of the
birth of the **Te Deum/' dating it on an Easter
Sunday, and dividing the honor of its composition
between Ambrose and his most eminent convert.
It was the day when the bishop baptized Augus-
tiiie> in the presence of a vast throng that crowded
the Basilica of Milan, As if foreseeing with a
prophet^s eye that his brilliant candidate would
become one of the ruling stars of Christendom,
Ambrose lifted his hands to heaven and chanted
in a holy rapture, —
We pmse Thc€, O God! We acknowledge Thee to be the
Lord;
AH the Earth doth worship Thee, the Father EverUsting.
He paused, and from the lips of the baptized dis-
ciple came the response, —
To Thee all the angels cry aloud: the heavens and all the
powers therein.
To Thee chembtm and seraphim continually do dy,
"Holy, holy, holy Lord God of Sibaoth;
Heaven and Earth are full of the inajesty of Thy gloiyl**
and so, stave by stave, in alternating strains, sprang
that day from the inspired lips of Ambrose and
Augustine the "Te Deum Laudamus," which has
ever since been the standard anthem of Christian
pnuse*
4 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Whatever the foundation of the story^ we may
at least suppose the first public singing* of the
great chant to have been associated with that
eventful baptism,
The various anthems, sentences and motets in
all Christian languages bearing the titles "Tris-
agion" or "Tersanctus/* and "Te Deum" are
taken from portions of this royal hymn. The sub-
lime and beautiful "Holy, Holy> Holy" of Bishop
Heber was suggested by it.
THE TUNE.
Nd echo remains J so far as is known, of the
responsive chant actually sung by Ambrose, but
one of the best modern choral renderings of the
*'Te Deum" is the one by Henry Smart in his
Morning and Evening Service. In an ordinary
church hymna! it occupies seven pages. The staff-
directions with the music indicate the part or cue of
the antiphonal singers by the words Decani (Dec.)
and Cantor (Can.), meaning first the division of the
choir on the Dean's side, and second the division
on the Cantor's or Precentor's side.
Henry Smart was one of the five great English
composers that followed our American Mason.
He %vas born in London, Oct. 25^ 18 12, and chose
music for a profession in preference to an offered
commission in the East Indian army. His talent
^Hke "Te l>un*' w» fint waa^ ih En^hh hj H^e m&ttftj Eubop Rjdlej,
m 8c«fa* Cburch* vbcA he vru «C one Ume viai*
n
lis
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHtr. |
^ a composer^ especially of sacred music, was
iMrvdous, and I though he became blind » his loss
of sight was no more hindrance to his genius than
loss of hearing to Beethoven.
No composer of his time equalled Henry Smart
AS a writer of music for female voices. His can-
tatas have been greatly admired, and his hymn
tunes are unsurpassed for their purity and sweet-
ness, while his anthems, his oratorio of ** Jacob,"
and indeed all that he wrote, show the hand and the
inventive gift of a great musical artist*
He died July lo, 1879, universally maumed for
his inspired work, and his amiable character.
''ALL GLORY, LAUD AND HONOR.**
Gloria^ Laus tt Honor.
This stately Latin hymn of the early part of the
gth century was composed in A. D, 820^ by Theo-
dulph» Bishop of Orleansi while a captive in the
cloister of Anjou, King Louis (le Debonnaire)
son of Chademagne, had trouble with his royal
relatives, and suspecting Theodulph to be in
sympathy with them, shut h:m up in prison. A
pretty story told by Clichtovius, an old church
writer of A,D. 1518, relates how on Palm Sunday
the king, celebrating the feast with his people,
passed in procession before the cloister, where the
face of the venerable prisoner at his cell window
caused an involuntary halt, and, in the moment of
sflence, the bishop raised his voice and sang this
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
I
hymn; and how the delighted king relea^d the
singer, and restored him to his bishopric. This
tale, totd after seven hundred years, is not the oniy
legend that grew around the hymn and its author^
but the fact that he composed it in the cloister of
Anjou while confined there is not seriously disputed.
Glona» laus et honor Tibi sit. Rex Chnstc Redemptorp
Cu] puerile decus prompsit Hosanna pium.
Israel Tu Rex, Davidis et inclyta proles,
NDmin^ qui in Domini Roc benedicee venis
Gloria, laus et honor.
Theodulph was born in Spain^ but of Gothic ped-
igree, a child of the race of conquerors who, in the
5th century > overran Southern Europe- He died
in 821, but whether a free man or still a prisoner
at the time of his death is uncertain. Some
accounts allege that he was poisoned in the cloister.
The Roman church canonized him^ and his hymn
is still sung as a processional in Protestant as well
as Catholic churches. The above Latin lines are
the first four of the original seventy-eight. The
foUowing is J, M, Neale's translation of the portion
now in use:
All gjorjr, laud, and honor.
To Tliee, Redeemer^ Kingi
To whom the h'ps of children
Made sweet Hosannas ring.
Thou are the King of Israel,
Thou David's royal Son,
Who in the Lord's name comest.
The Kinj^ and Blessed One* All gloiy, etc
I
I
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP,
I
The company of angels
Are praising Thee on high;
And mortal men, and all things
Createii^ make reply. All glory, dc
The people of the Hebrews
With palms before Thee went;
Out praise and prayer and anthems
Before Thee we presenip All gloiy, eic
To Thee before Thy Passion
They sang their hymns of praise;
To Thee J now high exalted
Our melody we raise. All gloiy, ctc^
Thou didst accept their praises;
Accept the prayers we bring.
Who in all good delightest^
Thou good and gracious King. All glory, etc.
The translator. Rev* John Mason Neale, D. D.,
was born in London, Jan. 24, 1818, and graduated
at Trinity College, Cambridge^ in 1840* He was a
prolific writer, and after taking holy orders he
held the office of Warden of Sackville College,
East Grimstead, Sussex* Best known among his
published works are Mediceval Hymns and Se-
fuenceSf Hymns for Children^ Hymns of the East-
ern Church, and Thi Rhythms of Morlaix. He
died Aug, 6, 1866.
THE TUNE.
There is no certainty as to the original tune of
Theodulph's Hymnj or how long it survived, but
various modem composers have given it music
8
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
in more or less keeping with its character, notably
Melchior Teschner, whose harmony^ ** St. Theo^
dulph," appears in the new Methodist Hymnal.
It well represents the march of the bishop's Latin,
Melchior Teschner, a Prussian musician , was
Precentor at Frauenstadt, Silesia, about 1613-
^ALL PRAISE TO THEE, ETERNAL LORD.**
Gdohet Seist du J^su Christ.
This introductory hymn of worship, a favorite
Christmas hymn in Germany, is ancient, and
appears to be a versification of a Latin prose
''Sequence'* variously ascribed to a 9th centuiy
author, and to Gregory the Great in the 6th
century. Its German form is still credited to
Luther in most hymnals. Julian gives an earlier
German form (1370) of the "Gelobet," but attri-
butes all but the first stanza to Luther, as the hymn
now stands. The following translation, printed
first in the Sabbath Hymn Book^ Andover,
1858, is the one adopted by ScharfFin his Christian
in Song:
All praise to Thee» eternal Lord,
Clothed in the garb of flesh and blood;
Choosing a manger for Thy throne^
While worlds on worlds are Thine aloncl
Once did the skies before Thee bow;
A virgin's arms contain Thee now;
Angel Sj who did in Thee rejoice.
Now listen for Thine infant voice.
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIPp 9
A little child, Thou art our guest.
That weary ones in Thee may rest;
Forlorn and lowly in Thy birth,
That wc may rise to heaven from earth.
Thou tomest tn the darksome night-
To make us children of the light;
To mate us, in the realms divine,
Like Thine own angels round Thee shioe.
All this for us Thy love hath done;
By this to Thee our love is won;
For this we tune our cheerful lays,
And shout our thanks in endless pratftCw
THE TUNE.
The 1 8th century tune of *' Weimar" (Evan*
get teal Hymnal) , by Emanuel Bach, suits the
spiritual tone of the hymn, and suggests the Gre-
gorian dignity of its origin,
Karl Philip Emanuel Bach, called *'the Berlin
Bach" to distinguish him from his father, the
great Sebastian Bach of Saxe Weimar, was born
in Weimar, March 1 4, 1 7 1 4. He early devoted him-
self to music, and coming to Berlin when twenty-
four years old was appointed Chamber musician
(Kammer Musicus) in the Royal Chapel, where he
often accompanied Frederick the Great (who was
an accomplished flutist) on the harpsichord. His
most numerous compositions were piano music but
he wrote a celebrated " Sanctus/'and two oratorios,
besides a number of chorals^ of which "Weimar**
is one* He died in Hamburg, Dec. 14, 1788,
lO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
THE MAGNIFICAT.
MeyaXwu i) ^^'vx^ f"^ ^^ Kvjpior*
Magnificat anima mea Dominum,
£t cxultavit Spiritus metis in Deo salutari i
Luke 1:46-55
We can date with some certainty the hymn itself
composed by the Virgin Maiy, but when it first
became a song of the Christian Church no one
can tell. Its thanksgiving may have found tone
among the earliest martyrs, who, as Pliny tells
us, sang hymns in their secret worship. We can
only trace it back to the oldest chant music, when
it was doubtless sung by both the Eastern and
Western Churches. In the rude liturgies of the
4th and 5th centuries it must have begun to assume
ritual form; but it remained for the more modem
school of composers hundreds of years later to
illustrate the "Magnificat "with the melody of art
and genius. Superseding the primitive unisonous
plain-song, the old parallel concords, and the
simple faburden (faux bourdon) counterpoint
that succeeded Gregory, they taught how musical
tones can better assist worship with the beauty
of harmony and the precision of scientific taste.
Musicians in Italy, France, Germany and England
have contributed their scores to this inspired
hymn. Some of them still have place in the
hymnals, a noble one especially by the blind Eng-
lish tone-master, Heniy Smart, author of the ora-
torio of * 'Jacob. " None, however, have equaled
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP,
II
N
^^^ work of HandeL His " Magnificat** was one
^ ' riis favorite productions, and he borrowed strains
^^■^111 it in several of his later and lesser productions*
George Frederic Handei, author of the immor-
*^1 "Messiah," was born at Halle, Saxony, in
^^85, and died in London in 1759. The musica!
5*^nt of his genius was apparent almost from his
*^fancy. At the age of eighteen he was earning
*>is living with his violin, and writing his first
*^|:>era. After a sojourn in Italy, he settled in
*^^anover as Chapel Master to the Elector^ who
^Tterwards became the English king, George I.
T^he friendship of the king and several of his
noblemen drew him to England, where he spent
forty-seven years and composed his greatest works-
He wrote three hymn-tunes (it is said at the
request of a convened actress), "Canons," "Fitz-
^rilliam," and "Gopsall," the first an invitation,
** Sinners, Obey the Gospel Word," the second a
fneditation/* O Love Divine, How Sweet Thou Art,"
and the third a resurrection song to Welsey's
words " Rejoice, the Lord is King." This last stilJ
survives in some hymnals.
THE DOXOLOGIES.
Be TTioa, O God, exalred highj
And 1$ Thy glory fills the sky
So 1^ It be on earth displayed
TiU Thou art here as there obeyed.
STORV OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
This sublime quatrain, attributed to Nahum
Tate, like the Lord 's Prayer, is suited to all occasions ,
to all Christian denominations, and to all places
and conditions of men. It has been translated
into all civilized languages, and has been rising
to heaven for many generations from congregations
round the globe wherever the faith of Christendom
has built its altars. This doxology is the first
stanza of a sixteen line hymn (possibly longer
originally), the rest of which is forgotten.
Nahum Tate was bom in Dublin, in 1652, and
educated there at Trinity College. He was ap-
pointed poet-laureate by King William III. in
1690, and It was in conjunction with Dr, Nicholas
Brady that he executed his "New "metrical version
of the Psalms. The entire Psalter, with an appen-
dix of Hymns, was licensed byWilUamand Mary
and published in 1703. The hymns in the volume
are all by Tate, He died in London, Aug. 12, 1717.
Rev, Nicholas Brady, D, D., was an Irishman,
son of an officer in the royal army, and was born
at Bandon, County of Cork, Oct. 28, 1659* He
studied in the Westminister School at Oxford,
but afterwards entered Trinity College, Dublin,
where he graduated in 1685. William made him
Queen Mary's Chaplain, He died May 20, 1726.
The other nearly contemporary form of doxol-
ogy is in common use, but though elevated and
devotional in spirit, it cannot be universal, owing
to its credal h'ne being objectionable to non-Trini-
tarian Protestants:
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP. IJ
Praise God from whom all btes«tng$ flow,
Praiie Him all creatures here below^
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host.
Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
The author, the Rev, Thomas Ken, was bom in
Berkhampstead, Hertfordshire, Eng., July, 1637,
and was educated at Winchester School, Hertford
Colleget and New College, Oxford. In i66z he
took holy orders, and seventeen years later the king
(Charles IL) appointed him chaplain to his sister
Mary, Princess of Orange. Later the king, just
before his death, made him Bishop of Bath and
Wells,
Like John the Baptist, and Bourdaloue, and
Knox, he was a faithful spiritual monitor and
adviser during all his days at court. " I must go in
and hear Ken tell me my faults,^' the king used to
say at chapel time. The "good little man*' (as
he called the bishop) never lost the favor of the
dissipated monarch. As Macaulay says, "Of all
the prelates, he liked Ken the best."
Under James, the Papist, Ken was a loyal
subject, though once arrested as one of the "seven
bishops" for his opposition to the king's religion,
and he kept his oath of allegiance so firmly that it
cost him his place. William IIL deprived him of his
bishopic, and he retired in poverty to a home
kindly offered him by Lord Viscount Weymouth
in LongIeat,near Frome,in Somersetshire, where he
spent a serene and beloved old age. He died set.
seventy-four, March 17, 1711 (N, S,), and was
H
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
I
carried to his grave, according to his request, by
" six of the poorest men in the parish/'
His great doxology is the refrain or final stanza
of each of his three long hymns> *' Morning,''
"Evening" and ''Midnight/* printed m a Prayer
Manual for the use of the students of Winchester
College. The "Evening Hymn" drew scenic in-^Jj
spiration, it is told, from the lovely view in
Horningsham Park at "Heaven's Gate Hill/*
while walking to and from church.
Another four-line doxology, adopted probably
from Dr. Hatfield (i8o7-i883),is almost entirely
superseded by Ken's stanza, being of even more
pronounced credal character.
To God the Father, God the Son,
And God the Spirit, Three in One.
Be honor, praise and glory given
By all on earth and all in heaven.
The Methodist Hymnal prints a collection
ten doxologies, two by Watts, one by Charles
Wesley, one by John Wesley, one by William
Goode» one by Edwin F. Hatfield, one attributed
to "Tate and Brady," one by Robert Hawkes,
and the one by Ken above noted. These are all
technically and intentionally doxologies* To give
a history of doxologies in the general sense of the
word would carry one through every Christian age
and language and end with a concordance of the
Book of Psalms.
Oliver
Holden
», ^
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP,
»s
I
THE TUNE.
Few would think of any music more appropriate
a standard doxology than "Old Hundred."
This grand Gregorian harmony has been claimed
be Luther*s production, while some have
believed that Louis Bourgeoisj editor of the French
lenr:*au P sailer, composed the tune, but the
?eight of evidence seems to indicate that it was
khe work of GuiUaume le Franc, (William Franck
>r William the Frenchman,) of Rouen, in France,
*who founded a music school in Geneva, 1541.
He was Chapel Master there, but removed to
Lausanne, where he played in the Catholic choir
and wrote the tunes for an Edition of Ma-
rot's and Beta's Psalms* Died in Lausanne,
1570.
•*THE LORD DESCENDED FROM ABOVE/
A flash of genuine inspiration was vouchsafed
to Thomas Stemhold when engaged with Rev.
John Hopkins in versifying the Eignteenth Psalm*
The ridicule heaped upon Sternhold and Hopkins's
psalm book has always stopped^ and sobered into
admiration and even reverence at the two stanzas
beginning with this leading line—
The Lord descended from aboT#
And bowed the Heavens most h»|h.
And undemeach His feet He c^m
The darkness of the sky.
l6 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNE8.
On cherub and on cherubim
Full royally He rode,
And on the wings of mighty winds
Came flying all abroad.
Thomas Stemhold was bom in Gloucester-
shire, Eng. He was Groom of the Robes to Henry
Vni, and Edward VI., but is only remembered for
his Psalter published in 1562, thirteen years after
his death in 1549.
THE TUNE.
"Nottingham" (now sometimes entitled "St.
Magnus*') is a fairly good echo of the grand verses,
a dignified but spirited choral in A flat. Jeremiah
Clark, the composer, was bom in London, 1670.
Educated at the Chapel Royal, he became organ*
ist of Winchester College and finally to St. Paul's
Cathedral where he was appointed Gentleman of
the Chapel. He died July, 1707.
The tune of "Majesty" by William Billings will
be noticed in a later chapter.
TALLiy EVENING HYMN.
Glory to Thee, my God, this night
For all the blessings of the light.
Keep me, O keep me, King of kings.
Under Thine own Almighty wings.
This stanza begins the second of Bp. Ken's three
beautiful hymn-prayers in his Manual mentioned
on a previous page.
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
^7
THE TUNE.
For more than three hundred and fifty years
devout people have enjoyed that melody of
mingled dignity and sweetness known as "Tallis*
Evening Hymn/'
Thomas Tallis was an Englishman, born about
I520> and at an early age was a boy chorister at
St. Paul's* After his voice changed, he played the
organ at Waltham Abbeyi and some time later
was chosen organist royal to Queen Elizabeth.
His pecuniary returns for his talent did not make
him rich, though he bore the title after 1542 of
Gentleman of the Chapel Royal, for his stipend was
sevenpence a day. Some gain may possibly have
come to him, however, from his publication, late
in life, under the queen's special patent, of a col-
lection of hymns and tunes.
He wrote much and was the real founder of the
English Church school of composers, but though
St. PauFs was at one time well supplied with his
motets and anthems, it is impossible now to give a
list of Tallis' compositions for the Church. His
music was written originally to Latin words, but
when, after the Reformation, the use of vernacular
hymns, was introduced he probably adapted his
scores to either language.
It is inferred that he was in attendance on Queen
Elizabeth at her palace in Greenwich when he
died, for he was buried in the old parish church
there in November, 1585, The rustic rhymer who
iS
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
indited his epitaph evidently did the best he could
to embalm the virtues of the great musician as a
man> a citizen^ and a husband :
Enterred here dgth \y a worthy wyght.
Who for bng time in musick bore the hell:
His name to shew was Thomas Tallis hyght;
In honest vertuous lyff he dyi excel L
y.
He served long tyme in chap pel with grete prayse.
Power sovcrcygnes reignes, (a thing not often
I mean King Henry and Prince Edward's dayes,
Quene Made, and Elizabeth our quene.
He maryed was^ though children he had none,
And lyv'd in love full three and thirty ye res
With loyal spowse, whose name yclept was Jone,
Whop here entombed, him company now bears.
As he dyd lyve, so also dyd he dy^
In my Id and quyet sort, O happy manl
To God ful oft for mercy did he ciy;
Wherefore he lyves, let Deth do what he can,
"THE GOD OF ABRAHAM PRAISE,"
This IS one of the thanksgivings of the ages.
The God of Abraham praise.
Who reigns enthroned above;
Ancient of everlasting days.
And God of love,
Jehovah, Great I AM!
By earth and heaven confessed,
1 bow and bless the sacred Name,
Forever blest.
The hymn, of twelve eight-line stanzas, is too long
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHrF*
19
to quote entire, but is found in both the Plymouth
^nd Methodist Hymnals.
Thomas Olivers, born in Tregynon, near New-
town, Montgomeryshire, Wales, 1725, was, ac-
cording to local testimony, "the worst boy known
in all that country, for thirty years." It is more
charitable to say that he was a poor fellow who
had no friends. Left an orphan at five years of
age, he was passed from one relative to another
until all were tired of him, and he was "bound
out" to a shoemaker. Almost inevitably the
neglected lad grew up wicked, for no one appeared
to care for his habits and moralsj and as he sank
lower in the various vices encouraged by bad
company, there were more kicks for him than
helping hands. At the age of eighteen his repu-
tation in the town had become so unsavory that he
was forced to shift for himself elsewhere.
Providence led him, when shabby and penniless,
to the old seaport town of Bristol, where Whitefield
was at that time preaching,* and there the young
sinner heard the divine message that lifted him to
his feet.
**When that sermon began/' he said, "I was one
of the most abandoned and profligate young men
living; before it ended I was a new creature* The
world was all changed for Tom Olivers."
His new life, thus begun, lasted on earth more
than sixty useful years* He left a shining record
^Wlutcficld'i text wu, "It not tbts a briod plucked out ot tht fire f" Z*^
10
STOKY OF THE HYMKS AND TUNES,
as a preacher of righteousness, and died in the
triumphs of faith, November, 1799. Before he
passed away he saw at least thirty editions of hxs
hymn published, but the soul-music it has awakened
among the spiritual children of Abraham can only
reach him in heaven. Some of its words have been
the last earthly song of many, as they were of the
eminent Methodist theologian, Richard Watson —
I shill behold His face,
I shall His power adore.
And sing the woaders of Hii grace
Forcvcrmorc.
THE TUNE.
The precise date of the tune "Leoni" is un-
known, as also the precise date of the hymn* The
story is that Olivers visited the great *' Duke's
Place" Synagogue, Aldgate, London, and heard
Meyer Lyon (Leoni) sing the Yigdal or long
doxology to an air so noble and impressive that
it haunted him till he learned it and fitted to it the
sublime stanzas of his song, Lyon, a noted Jewish
musician and vocalist, was chorister of this
London Synagogue during the latter part of the
18th century and the Yigdal was a portion of
the Hebrew Liturgy composed in medieval times,
it is said, by Daniel Ben Judah. The fact that
the Methodist leaders took Olivers from his
bench to be one of their preachers answers any
suggestion that the converted shoemaker copied
the Jewish hymn and put Christian oh rases in it
p
^
ffYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP* ai
He knew nothing of Hebrew, and had he known
it, a literal translation of the Yigdal will show
hardly a similarity to his evangelical lines. Only
the music as Leoni sang it prompted his own song,
and he gratefully put the singer's name to it.
Montgomery, who admired the majestic style of
the hymn, and irs glorious imagery, said of its
author, "The man who wrote that hymn must
have had the finest ear imaginable, for on account
of the peculiar measure^ none but a person of equal
nriusical and poetic taste could have produced the
harmony perceptible in the verse,*'
Whether the hymnist or some one else fitted the
hymn to the tune, the "fine ear" and *' poetic
taste" that Montgomery applauded are evident
enough in the union.
"O WORSHIP THE KING ALL GLORIOUS ABOVE."
This hymn of Sir Robert Grant has become
almost universally known, and is often used as
a morning or opening service song by choirs and
congregations of all creeds. The favorite stanzas
are the first four —
O worship the King all-glorious above.
And gratefully sing His wonderful love —
Our Shield and Defender, the Ancient of Days^
Pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise.
O tell of His might, and sing of His grace,
Whose robe if the light, whose canopy, space;
His chariots of wraih the deep thunder-clouds form.
And dark it His path on the wings of the stonn.
22
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Thy bountifti] care what tongue can recite ?
It breath*® in the air, it shines in the hght.
It streams from the hills, it descends to the ptakiii^
And sweetly distils in the dew and the rain.
Frail children of dust, and feeble as frail,
In Thee do we trust, nor find Thee lo fail.
Thy mercies how tenderl how firm to the end I
Our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend I
This is a model hymn of worship. Like the
previous one by Thomas Olivers, it is strongly
Hebrew in its tone and diction, and drew its in-
spiration from the Old Testament Psalteti the
text-book of all true praise-song.
Sir Robert Grant was born in the county of In-
verness, Scotland, in 1785, and educated at Cam-
bridge. He was many years member of Parliament
for Inverness and a director in the East India
Company, and 1834 was appointed Governor of
Bombay, He died at Dapoorie, Western India,
July 9, 1838.
Sir Robert was a man of deep Christian feeling
and a poetic mind. His writings were not numer-
ous, but their thoughtful beauty endeared him to
a wide circle of readers. In 1839 his brother.
Lord Glenelg, published twelve of his poetical
pieces, and a new edition in 1868. The volume
contains the more or less well-known hymns^ —
and —
The starry firmament on high^
Saviour, when in dust to Thee,
When gathering clauJ^ aiound I view^
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
23
I
Sir Robert's death, when scarcely past his prime^
would indicate a decline by reason of illness, and
perhaps other serious affliction^ that justified the
poetic license in the submissive verses beginning —
Thy mercy heard my Infant prayer*
« « « ^ 4< «
And now in age and grief Thy name
Do^ still my languid heart inflame.
And bow my faltering knee*
Oh, yet this bosom feels the fire.
This trembling hand and drooping lyre
Have yet a strain for Thee*
THE TUNE.
Several musical pieces written to the hymn,
**Op Worship the King," have appeared in church
psatm-bookSf and others have been borrowed for
it, but the one oftenest sung to its words is Haydn*s
"Lyons." Its vigor and spirit best fit it for
Grant's noble lyric*
"MAJESTIC SWEETNESS SITS ENTHRONED."
Rev. Samuel Stennett D, D,,the author of this
hymn, was the son of Rev* Joseph Stennett, and
grandson of Rev; Joseph Stennett D. D,, who
wrote — ■
Another six days' work is done,
Another Sabbath is begun.
All were Baptist ministers, Samuel was born in
1727, at Exeter, Eng.^ and at the age of twenty^
24 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
one became his father*s assistant^ and subse-
quently his successor over the church in Little
Wild Street* Lincoln's Inn Fields, London*
Majestic sweetness sits e!itHrone<i
Upon the Saviour's brow;
His head with radiant glories crawned^
His lips with grace o*er€ow^
****♦♦
To Him I owe my life and breath
And all rhe joys I have;
He makes me triumph over death,
He saves me from the grave.
« * ]^ * * 4t
Since from His bounty I receive
Such proofs of love divine.
Had I a thousand hearts to give^
Lord, they shoi^ld alt be Thine.
Samuel Stennett was one of the most respected
and influential ministers of the Dissenting per-
suasion, and a confidant of many of the most dis-
tinguished statesmen of his time. The celebrated
John Howard was his parishoner and intimate
friend. His degree of Doctor of Divinity was be-
stowed upon him by Aberdeen University* Besides
his theological writings he composed and published
thirty-eight hymns, among them^
On Jordan's stormy brinks ! stand.
When two or three with sweet accord.
Here at Thy tabic. Lord, we m*^,
and —
" *Tis finished," so the Saviour cned*
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
iS
"Majestic Sweetness** began the third stanza of
his longer hymn —
To Christ the Lord let every tongue.
Dr- Stennett died in London^ Aug. 24, 1795*
THE TUNE.
For fifty or sixty years "Ortonville" has been
linked with this devout hymn, and still main-
tains its fitting fellowship* The tune, composed
in 1830, was the work of Thomas Hastings^ and
is almost as well-known and as often sung
as his immonal "Toplady." (See chap- 3, "Rock
of Ages."
'*ALL HAIL THE POWER OF JESUS' NAME,'*
This inspiring lyric of praise appears to have
been written about the middle of the eighteenth
century. Its author, the Rev. Edward Perronet,
son of Rev, Vincent Perronet, Vicar of Shorehamj
Eng., was a man of great faith and humility but
i&ealous in his convictions, sometimes to his serious
expense. He was born in !72i, and, though
eighteen years younger than Charles Wesley, the
two became bosom friends, and it was under the
direction of the Wesleys that Perronet became a
preacher in the evangelical movement. Lady
Huntingdon later became his patroness, but some
needless and imprudent expressions in a satirical
poem» *'The Mitre," revealing his hostility to the
union of church and state, cost him her favor»
26 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
and his contention against John Wesley's law that
none but the regular parish ministers had the right
to administer the sacraments, led to his complete
separation from both the Wesleys* He subse-
quently became the pastor of a small church of
Dissenters in Canterbury, where he died, in Jan-
uary, 1792, His piety uttered itself when near his
happy death, and his last words were a Gloria.
All hail the power of Jesus' name I
Let angeb prostrate fall;
Bring forth the royal diadem,
To crown Him Lord of all.
Ye seed of Israel's chosen race^
Ye ransomed of the fall,
Hail Him Who saves you by His graces
And crown Him Lord of all.
Sinners, whose love can ne'er foiget
The wormw^ood and the gall,
Go, spread your trophies at His fee^
And crown Him Lord of all.
Let every tribe and every tongue
That bound creation's call,
Now shout the universal song.
The crowned Lord of all
With two disused stanzas omitted, the hymn as it
stands differs from the original chiefly in the last
stanza, though in the second the initial line is now I
transposed to read —
Ye chosen seed of IsraeVt raoe^
The fourth stanza now reads —
HYMNS OP PRAISE AND WORSHIP 2/
Ltt every kind re d^ every tribe
On this tcrresmal ball
To Him 2.1\ majesty ascribe.
And crown Him Lord of alt.
And what is now the favorite last stanza is the one
added by Dn Rippon —
O that with yonder sacred throng
We at His feet may fall^
And join the everlasting song.
And crown Him Lord of all,
THE TUNE.
Eveiyone now calls it "Old Coronation/* and it
is entitled to the adjective by this time, being con-
sidererably more than a hundred years of age.
It was composed in the very year of Perronet's
death and one wonders just how long the hymn
and tune waited before they came together; for
Heaven evidently meant them to be wedded for all
time* This is an American opinion^ and no
reflection on the earlier English melody of "Miles
Lane," composed during Pcrronet's lifetime by
William Shrubsole and published with the words
in 1 780 in the Gospel Magazine, There is also a
fine processional tune sung in the English Church
to Perronet*s hymn.
The author of" Coronation '* was Oliver Holden,
a self-taught musician, bom in Shirley, Mass.,
; 765, and bred to the carpenter's trade. The little
pip^ organ on which tradition says he struck the
first notes of the famous tune is now in the Histor-
z8
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
ical rooms of the Old State House, Boston, placed
there by its late owner, Mrs. Fanny Tyler, the old
musician's granddaughter* Its tones are as mel-
low as ever, and the times that "Coronation** has
been played upon it by admiring visitors would far
outnumber the notes of its score*
Holden wrote a number of other hymn-tunes,
among which "Cowper," "Confidence,'* and
*'Concord" are remembered, but none of them
had the wings of "Coronation," his American
"Te Deum." His first pubHshed collection was
entitled The American Harmony ^ and this was
followed by the Union Harmony^ and the Wor-
cester Collection. He also wrote and published
"Mt. Vernon/* and several other patriotic anthems,
mainly for special occasions, to some of which he
supplied the words. He was no hymnist, though
he did now and then venture into sacred metre-
The new Methodist Hymnal preserves a simple
four-stanza specimen of his experiments in verse :
They who seek the throne of grace
Fintl that throne In every pUqe:
If we lead a life of prayer
God is present everywhere.
Sacred music, however, was the good man's pas*
sion to the last. He died in 1844.
"Such beautiful themes!'' he whispered on his
death bed, "Such beautiful themes! But I can
write no more/*
The enthusiasm always and everywhere aroused
by the singing of "Coronation,** dates from the
I
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP. 29
time It first went abroad in America in its new
wedlock of music and words. '*This tune/' says
an accompanying note over the score in the old
Carmtna Sacra, "was a great favorite with the late
Dr. Dwight of Yale College (1798), It was often
syng by the college choir, while he, catching, as it
were* the music of the heavenly world, would join
them^ and lead with the most ardent devotion,"
**AWAKE AND SING THE SONG/'
This hymn of six stanzas is abridged from a
longer one indited by the Rev, William Hammond,
and published in Lady Huntingdon s Hymn-book.
It was much in use in early Methodist revivals*
It appears now as it was slightly altered by Rev,
Martin Madan —
Awake and sing the song
Of Moses and the Lamb;
Join every heart and every tongue
To prmtic the Savior's name.
The sixth verse is a variation of one of Watts*
hymns, and was added in the Brethren*! Hymn'
book^iioi—
There shall each heart and tongue
His endless praise proclaim.
And sweeter voices join the song
Of Moses and the Lamb,
The Rev. WilUam Hammond was bom Jan. 6t
1 7 19, at Battle, Sussex, Eng., and educated at St,
39
STORT or THE HYMKS AHD TUNES-
Johti's CoU^e, Cunbridfe. Eiriy In his minis*
tenal life he was a CaKinistic Nfethodisr, but
ukimarely joined the Moravians. Died in London,
Aiig- rg* 1793* His eoJlection of Psclms itnJ
Hymns and Sfiriiual Songs was published in 1745.
The Rev. Maitin At adan, son of Cot Madan,
was bom 1726. He founded Lock Hospital, Hyde
Parle, and long ofBciated as its chaplain. As a
preacher he was popular, and his reputation as a
composer of music was considerable. There is
no proof that he wrote any original hymns, but
he amended, pieced and expanded the work of
others. Died in 1770,
THE TUNE.
The hymn has had a variety of musical inter-
pretations. The more modem piece is *' St, Philip/'
by Edward John Hopkins, Doctor of Music, bom
at Westminster, London, June 30, 1818. From a
member of the Chapel Royal boy choir he became
organist of the Michtam Church, Surrey, and
afterwards of the Temple Church, London. Re-
ceived his Doctor's degree from the Archbishop
of Canterbury in 1882.
-'CROWN HIS HEAD WITH ENDLESS BLESSlNa"
^ "■ ■ - , ^1
The writer of this hymn was William Goode,
who helped to found the English Church Missionary
Society, and was for twenty years the Secretary of
the ''Society for the Relief of Poor Pious Clergy-
I
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP,
31
men." For celebrating the praise of the Saviour, he
seems to have been of like spirit and genius with
Perronet. He was born in Buckinghamj Eng.,
April Zf 1762; studied for the ministry and became
a curate, successor of William Romaine. His
spiritual maturity was early, and his habits of
thought were formed amid associations such as
the young Wesleys and Whitefield sought. Like
them, even in his student days he proved his aspi-
ration for purer religious life by an evangelical zeal
that cost him the ridicule of many of his school-
fellows, but the meetings for conference and prayer
which he organized among them were not unat-
tended, and were lasting and salutary In their effect,
Jesus was the theme of his life and song, and
was his last word. He died in 18 16.
Crown His head with endless ble^stng
Who m God the Father's name
With compassion never ceasing
Comes salvation to proclaim.
Hail, ye saints who know His favor^
Who within His gates are found,
HaiK ye saints, th' exalted Saviour,
Let His couns with praise resound*
THE TUNE.
"Haydn/' bearing the name of its great com-
poser^ is in several important hymnals the chosen
music for William Goode^s devout words. Its
strain and spirit are lofty and melodious and in
entire accord with the pious poet's praise*
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Joseph Haydn* son of a poor wheelwright, was
bom 1732, in Rohron, a village on the borders of
Hungary and Austria. His precocity of musical
talent was such that he began composing at the
age often years* Prince Esterhazy discovered his
genius when he was poor and friendless, and his
fortune was made. While Music Master for the
Prince's Private Chapel (twenty years) he wrote
many of his beautiful symphonies which placed him
among the foremost in that class of music. In-
vited to England, he received the Doctor's degree
at Oxford, and composed his great oratorio of
**The Creation," besides his "Twelve Grand
Symphonies," and a long list of minor musical
works secular and sacred. His invention was in-
exhaustible.
Haydn seems to have been a sincerely pious
man. When writing his great oratorio of "The
Creation" at sixty-seven years of age, "I knelt
down every day," he says, "and prayed God to
strengthen me for my work*" This daily spirit-
ual preparation was similar to HandeFs when he
was creating his "Messiah/' Change one word
and it may be said of sacred music as truly as
of astronomy, "The undevout composer is mad/'
Near Haydn's death, in Vienna, 1809, when he
heard for the last time his magnificent chorus,
"Let there be Light!" he exclaimed, "Not mine,
not mine. It all came to me from above/*
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
iS
"NOW TO THE LORD A NOBLE SONG
When Watts finished this hymn he had achieved
a ** noble song^^' whether he was conscious of it or
not; and it deserves a foremost place, where it
can help future worshippers in their praise as it
has the past. It is not so common in the later
hymnals, but it is imperishable, and still later
collections will not forget it.
Now to the Lord a noble song,
Awake my soul, awake my tongue!
Hosanna to the Eternal Naine^
And all His boundless love proclaim.
See where it shines in Jesus' face,
The brightest image of His grace I
God in the person of His Son
Has all His mightiest works outdone.
A rather finical question has occurred to some
minds as to the theology of the word *' works" in
the last line» making the second person In the God-
head apparently a creature; and in a few hymn-
books the previous line has been made to read —
God m the Gospel of His Son.
But the question is a rhetorical one, and the poet's
free expression^here as in hundreds of other
cases — has never disturbed the general confidence
in his orthodoxy-
Montgomery called Watts "the inventor of
hymns in our language," and the credit stands
practically undisputed, for Watts made a hymn
style that no human master taught him, and his
34
STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
model has been the ideal one for song worship ever
since; and we can pardon the climax when Pro-
fessor Charles M, Stuart speaks of him as "writers
scholar, thinker and saint/* for in addition to all
the rest he was a very good man,
THE TUNE,
Old "Ames" was for many years the choir
favorite, and the words of the hymn printed with
It in the note-book made the association familiar.
It was, and iV, an appropriate selection, though
in later manuals George Kingsley*s *'Ware" is
evidently thought to be better suited to the high-
toned verse. Good old tunes never *'wear out,*'
but they do go out of fashion.
The composer of "Ames/* Sigismund Neu-
komm, Chevalier, was bom in Salzburg, Austria,
July 10, 1778, and was a pupil of Haydn, Though
not a great genius, his talents procured him access
and even intimacy in the courts of Germany, France,
Italy, Portugal and England, and for thirty years he
composed church anthems and oratorios with pro-
digious industry* Neukomm's musical productions,
numbering no less than one thousand, and popular in
their day, are, however, mostly forgotten, excepting
his oratorio of " David" and one or two hymn-tunes.
George Kingsley, author of "Ware,** was bom
in Northampton, Mass., July 7, iSii, Died in
the Hospital, in the same city, March 14, 1884. He
compiled eight books of music for young people and
several manuals of church psalmody, and was foi
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP. 35
sometime a music teacher in Boston » where he played
the organ at the HoUts St. church. Subsequently he
became professor of music in Girard College, Phila-
delphia, and music instructor in the public schools,
being employed successively as organist (on Lord*s
Day) at Dr* Albert Barnes* and Arch St. churches,
and finally In Brooklyn at Dn Storrs* Church
of the Pilgrims. Returned to Nonhampton, 1853,
*' EARLY, MY GOD, WITHOUT DELAY."
This and the five following hymns, all by Watts,
are placed in immediate succession^ for unity's
sake — with a fuller notice of the greatest of hymn-
writers at the end of the series.
Early, my God, wirhout dday
1 haste to seek Thy face.
My thirsty spirit faints away
Without Thy cheering grace.
In the memories of very old men and women »
who sang the fugue music of Morgan's "Mont-
gomery," still lingers the second stanza and some
of the "spirit and understanding" with which if
used to be rendered in meeting on Sunday mornings.
So pilgrims on the scorching sand.
Beneath a burning iky.
Long for a cooling stream at hand
And they must drink or die.
THE TUNE.
Many of the earlier pieces assigned to this hymn
were either too noisy or too tame. The best and
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
longest-serving is "Lanesboro/' which^ wJth its
expressive duet in the middle and its soaring final
strain of harmony, never fails to carry the mean-
ing of the words. It was composed by William
Dixon^and arranged and adapted by Lowell Mason.
William Dixon, an English composer, was a
music engraver and publisher, and author also of
several glees and anthems. He was born 1750,
and died about 1825,
Lowell Mason, bom in Medfield> Mass., 1792, has
been called, not without reason,** the father of Amer-
ican choir singing." Returning from Savannah,
Ga., where he spent sixteen years of his younger life
as clerk in a bank, he located in Boston (1827), being
already known there as the composer of "The Mis-
sionary Hymn/' He had not neglected his musical
studieswhileliving in the South, and it was in Savan-
nah that he made the glorious harmony of that tune.
He became president of the Handel and Haydn
Society, went abroad for special study, was made
Doctor of Music, and collected a store of themes
among the great models of song to bring home for
his future work.
The Boston Academy of Music was founded by
him and what he did for the song-service of the
Church in America by his singing schools, and
musical conventions, and published manuals, to
form and organize the choral branch of divine
worship > has no parallel, unless it is Noah Webster'^
service to the English language.
Dr. Mason died in Orange^ N. J., in 1872,
HYMNS OF PRAISE ANB WORSHIP. 37
"SWEET IS THE WORK, MY GOD, MY KING."
This is one of the hymns that helped to give its
author the title of" The Seraphic Watts/'
Sweet is the work, my God, my King
To pratse Thy name, give thanks and sing
To show Thy love by morning light.
And talk of all Thy truth at night.
THE TUNE.
No nobler one> and more akin in spirit to the
hymn, can be found than "Duke Street," Hatton's
imperishable choral.
Little is known of the John Hatton who wrote
**Duke St.'* He was earlier by nearly a century^
than John Li phot Hatton of Liverpool (born in
i8og)j who wrote the opera of "Pascal Bruno/*
the cantata of "Robin Hood*' and the sacred
drama of "Hezekiah/' The biographical index
of the Evangelical Hymnal says of John Hatton, the
author of "Duke St. " : " John» of Warrington; af-
terwards of St* Helens, then resident in Duke St, in
the township of Windle; composed several hymn-
tunes; died in 1793** ^^^ funeral sermon was
preached at the Presbyterian Chapel, St- He!ens>
Dec. 13/'
-TOME, WE THAT LOVE THE LORD/*
Watts entitled this hymn "Heavenly Joy on
Earth/' He could possibly, like Madame Guyon,
*Tradi|ioD laji he wmt kiUed by being thnnm from m ftagcHCOtdi*
^ STORY OF THE HYiMNS AND TUNES.
have written such a hymn in a dungeon, but it is
no less spiritual for its birth (as tradition will have
it) amid the lovely sceneiy of Southampton where
he could find in nature ** glory begun below/*
Come, we that love the Lord,
And let our joys be known j
Join in a song with sweet accord.
And thus surround the throne*
There shall we see His face.
And never, never sin;
There, from the rivers of His graoCp
Drink endless pleasui:es in.
Children of grace have found
Glory begun below:
Celestial fruits on earthly ground
From faith and hope may grow.
Mortality and immortality blend their charms
in the next stanza. The unfailing beauty of the
vision will be dwelt upon with delight so long as
Christians sing on earth.
The hill of Sion yields
A thousand sacred sweets^
Before we reach the heavenly fietdi^
Or walk the golden streets*
THE TUNE.
"St. Thomas" has often been the interpreter of
the hymnj and still clings to the words in the
memory of thousands*
The Italian tune of " Ain" has more music. It
is a fugue piece (simpUBed in some tune-books).
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP*
39
and the joyful traverse of its notes along the staff
in four-four time* with the momentum of a good
choir, is exhilarating in the extreme.
Corelli, the composer, was a master violinist, the
greatest of his day, and wrote a great deal of
violin music; and the thought of his glad instru-
ment may have influenced his work when harmo-
nizing the four voices of ** Ain/'
Arcangelo Corelli was bom at Fusignano, in
1653. He was a sensitive artist, and although
faultless in Italian music, he was not sure of him-
self in playing French scores, and once while
performing with Handel (who resented the slightest
error), and once again with Scarlatti, leading an
orchestra in Naples when the king was present, he
made a mortifying mistake. He took the humili-
ation so much to heart that he brooded over it till
he died, in Rome, Jan* 18, 171 7*
For revival meetings the modem tune set to
"Come we that love the Lord/' by Robert Lowry,
should be mentioned. A shouting chorus is ap-
pended to it, but it has melody and plenty of stim-
ulating motion.
The Rev. Robert Lowry was bom in Philadelphia,
March 12, 1826, and educated at Lewisburg, Pa,
From his 28th year till his death, 1899, he was a
faithful and successful minister of Christ, but
is more widely knovni as a composer of sacred
musk*
40 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"BE THOU EXALTED, O MY GOa"
In this hymn the thought of Warts touches the
etemai summits. Taken from the 57th and loSth
Psalms —
Be Thou exalted, O my God,
Above the heavens where angels dwell;
Thy power on earth be known abroad
And land to land Thy wonders tell.
t * * * * *
High o'er the earth His mercy reigns.
And reaches to the utmost sky;
His truth to endless years remains
When lower worlds dissolve and die,
THE TUNE.
Haydn furnished it out of his chorus of morning
starss and it was christened ** Creation/' after the
name of his great oratorio. It is a march of
trumpets,
*'BEFORE JEHOVAH'S AWFUL THRONE.*'
No one could mistake the style of Watts in this
sublime ode. He begins with his foot on Sinat^
but flies to Calvary with the angel preacher whom
St» John saw in his Patmos vision :
Before Jehovah's awful throne
Ye nations bow with sacred joy;
Know that the Lord h God alone;
He can create and He destroy*
1
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP. 4!
His sovereign power without our aid
Made us of chy and formed us men^
And when like wandering sheep we stray.
He brought us to His fold again.
Well cfowd Thy gates with thankful songi^
High as the heaven our voices raise.
And earth with her ten thousand tongues
Shall fill Thy courts with sounding praise,
TUNE— OLD HUNDRED.
Maitin Madan's four-page anthem, ''Den-
mark/' has some grand strains in it, but it ts a
tune of florid and difficult vocalization, and is now
heard only in Old Folks' Concerts.
The Rev. Isaac Watts, D. D., was bom at
Southampton, Eng*, in 1674. His father was a
deacon of the Independent Church there, and
though not an uncultured man himself, he is said
to have had little patience with the incurable
penchant of his boy for making rhymes and verses.
We hear nothing of the lad's mother, but we can
fancy her hand and spirit in the indulgence of his
poetic tastes as well as in his religious training.
The tradition handed down from Dn Price, a
colleague of Watts, relates that at the age of
eighteen Isaac became so irritated at the crabbed
and untuneful hymns sung at the Nonconformist
meetings that he complained bitterly of them to
his father- The deacon may have felt something
44
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
— enforced his text, "AH things are yours/* The
hymn, —
Not all the blood of beasts
On Jewish altars slain,
— was, as some say^ suggested to the writer by a
visit to the abbatoir in Smithfield Market- The
same hymn years afterwards, discovered, we are
told, in a printed paper wrapped around a shop
bundle, converted a Jewess, and influenced her to a
life of Christian faith and sacrifice,
A young man, hardened by austere and min-
atory sermons, was melted, says Dr* Belcher, by
simply reading,^
Show pity Lord, O Lord, forgive.
Let a repenting sinner live.
—and became partaker of a rich religious experience*
The summer scenery of Southampton^ with its
distant view of the Isle of Wight, was believed to
have inspired the hymnist sitting at a parlor
window and gazing across the river Itchen, to
write the stanza^ —
Sweet 6 elds beyond the swelling fiood
Stand drest In hving green;
So to the Jews old Canaan stood
While Jordan rolled between*
The hymn, "Unveil thy bosom, faithful tomb,*'
was personal, addressed by Watts "to Lucius on
the death of Seneca."
A severe heart-trial was the occasion of another
hymn. When a young man he proposed marriage
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP,
45
to Miss Elizabeth Singer, a much-admired young
lady, talented, beautiful, and good. She rejected
him — kindly but finally; The disappointment
was bitter, and in the first shadow of it he wrote, —
How vafn are all things here below.
How false and yet how fair.
Miss Singer became the celebrated Mrs, Eliza-
beth Rowcj the spiritual and poetic beauty of
whose Meditations once made a devotional text*
book for pious souls. Of Dr, Watts and his
offer of his hand and heart, she always said, "I
loved the jewel, but I did not admire the casket."
The poet suitor was undersized, in habitually
delicate health — and not handsome.
But the good minister and scholar found noble
employment to keep his mind from preying upon
itself and shortening his days. During his long
though afflicted leisure he versified the Psalms,
wrote a treatise on Logic^ an Introduction to the
Study of Astronomy and Geography ^ and a work
On the improvement of the Mind; and died in
1748, at the age of seventy-four.
"O FOR A THOUSAND TONGUES TO SING."
Charles Wesley, the author of this hymn, took up
the harp of Watts when the older poet laid it down.
He was bom at Epwonh, Eng,, in 1708, the third
son of Rev, Samuel Wesley, and died in London,
March 2g> 1788. The hymn is believed to have
46 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
been written May 17, 1739, for the anniversary of
his own conversion :
O for a thousand tongues to sing
My great Redeemer's praise.
The glories of my God and King,
And triumphs of His grace*
The remark of a fervent Christian friend, Peter
Bohler^ ** Had I a thousand tongues I would praise
Christ Jesus with them all/' struck an answering
chord in Wesley's heart, and he embalmed the
wish in his fluent verse. The third stanza (printed
as second in some hymnals), has made language for
pardoned souls for at least four generations:
JesusI the name that calms our fears
And bids our sorrows cease;
"Tis music in the sinner's ears,
Tis life and health and peace,
Charles Wesley was the poet of the soul, and
knew every mood. In the words of Isaac Taylor,
"There is no main article of belief. * . no moral
sentiment peculiarly characteristic of the gospel
that does not find itself. . . .pointedly and clearly
conveyed in some stanza of Charles Wesley's
poetry/* And it does not dim the lustre of Watts,
considering the marvellous brightnessjversatility and
felicity of his greatest successor, to say of the latter,
with the London Quarterly^ that he "was, perhaps^
the most gifted minstrel of the modern Church."
Most of the hymns of this good man were hymns
of experience — and this is why they are so dear to
CI
larles
'esley
\y
\
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP*
47
the Christian heart. The music of eternal life is
in them. The happy glow of a single line in one
of them —
Love Divine, all loves excel ling,
— ^thrills through them all. He led a spotless life
from youth to old age, and grew unceasingly in
spiritual knowledge and sweetness. His piety
and purity were the weapons that alike humbled
his scoffing fellow scholars at Oxford, and con-
quered the wild colliers of Kingwood, With his
brother John, through persecution and ridicule, he
preached and sang that Divine Love to his country-
men and in the wilds of America, and on their
return to England his quenchless melodies multi-
plied till they made an Evangelical literature
around his name. His hymns — he wrote no less
than six thousand — are a liturgy not only for the
Methodist Church but for English-speaking Chris-
tendom,
The voices of Wesley and Watts cannot be
hidden, whatever province of Christian life and
service is traversed in themes of song, and in these
chapters they will be heard again and again,
A Watts-and-Wesley Scholarship would grace
any Theological Seminary , to encourage the study
and discussion of the best lyrics of the two great
Gospel bards.
THE TUNES.
The musical mouth-piece of ''O for a thousan<J
tongues, "nearest to its own date, is old "Azmon***
JO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Help, O Lord, my weak endeavor;
This dull soul to rapture raise;
Thou must light the flame or never
Can my love be warmed to praise*
Lord, this bosom's ardent feclmg
Vainly would my life express;
Low before Thy footstool Icncclmg,
Deign Thy suppliant's prayer to bless.
Let Thy grace, my soul's chief treasutc.
Love's pure flame within me raise.
And, since words can never measure,
Let ray life show forth Thy praise,
THE TUNE.
**St. Chad," a choral in D, with a four-bar
unison^ in the Evangelical Hymnal^ is worthy of
the hymn. Richard Redhead, the composer,
organist of the Church of St. Mary Magdalene,
Paddington, Eng., was born at Harrow, Middle-
sex, March r, 1820, and educated at Magdalene
College, Oxford. Graduated Bachelor of Music
at Oxford, 1871- He published Lauder Domirns^
a Gregorian Psalter, 1843, a Book of Tunes for
the Christian Teavt and is the author of much rit-
ual music,
-HOLY, HOLY, HOLY, LORD GOD ALMIGHTY."
There is nothing so majestic in Protestant hym-
nology as this Tersanctus of Bishop Heber*
The Rt. Rev, Reginald Heber, son of a clergy-
man of the same name, was bom in Matpas.
A
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP
51
Cheshire, Eng., April 21st, 1783, and educated
at Oxford. He served the church in Hodnet,
Shropshire, for about twenty years, and was then
appointed Bishop of Calcutta, E* L His labors
there were cut short in the prime of his life, his
death occurring in 1826, at Trichinopoly on the
3d of April, his natal month.
His hymns, numbering fifty-seven^ were collected
by his widow, and published with his poetical
works in 1842*
Holy! holy! hdy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning oyr song shall rise to Thee*
Holy! holy I holy! merctful and mighty,
God in Three Persons, blessed Trinity,
Holy! holy! holy! all the saints adore Thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around rhe glassy sea;
Chenibim and seraphim, falling down before Thee,
Which wert, and arti and evermore shall be,
THE TUNE.
Grand as the hymn is, it did not come to its full
grandeur of sentiment and sound in song-worship
till the remarkable music of Dr. John B. Dykes
wzs joined to it* None was ever written that in
performance illustrates more admirably the solemn
beauty of congregational praise. The name
"NtGEa" attached to the tune means nothing to
the popular ear and mind, and it is known every-
where by the initial words of the first line.
Rev. John Bacchus Dykes, Doctor of Music»
was bom at Kingston-upon-Hull, in 1823; and
s^
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
graduated at Cambridge, in 1847. He became a
master of tone and choral harmony, and did much
to reform and elevate congregational psalmody
in England. He was perhaps the first to demon-
strate that hymn-tune making can be reduced to a
icience without impairing its spiritual purpose.
Died Jan. 22, 1876,
*'LORD OF ALL BEING, THRONED AFAR/'
This noble hymn was composed by Dr. Oliver
Wendell HoImes> born in Cambridge, Mass*, 1809*
and graduated at Harvard University. A physician
by profession, h** was known as a practitioner
chiefly in literature^ being a brilliant writer and
long the leading poetical wit of America^ He was,
however, a man of deep religious feeling, and a
devout attendant at King's Chapel^ Unitarian, in
Boston where ht spent his life. He held the
Harvard Professoi.^hip of Anatomy and Physiology
more than fifty yezrh^ but his enduring work is in
his poems» and his cH*^rming volume, The Auto^
crai of the Breakfast T^ble, Died Jan. 22, 1S96.
THE f LNE.
Holmes* hymn is sung in some churches to
*'Louvan," V. C Taylor's ad^^Ir^ble praise tune-
Other hymnals prefer with it the rru^ic of '* ICeble/'
oneof Dn Dykes' appropriate and finbii^d melodies.
Virgil Cbrydon Taylor, an American wal com-
poser, was bom in Barkhamstead^ Conn., A^rit 2,
iSi/^ died 1S9E.
CHAPTER IL
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT
WITNESSES.
JOHN
OF DAMASCUS-
John of Damascus, called also St, John of
Jerusalem, a theologian and poet, was the last
but one of the Christian Fathers of the Greek
Church, This eminent man was named by the
Arabs **Ibn Mansur," Son (Servant?) of a Con-
queror^ either in honor of his father Sergius or
because it was a Semitic translation of his family
tide- He was bom in Damascus early in the 8th
centuiy, and seems to have been in favor with the
Caliph, and served under him many years in some
important civil capacity, until, retiring to Palestine^
he entered the monastic order^ and late in life was
ordained a priest of the Jerusalem Church, He
died in the Convent of St, Sabas near that city
about A. D. 780.
His lifetime appears to have been passed in
54
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
comparative peace* Mohammed having died
before completing the conquest of Syria, the
Moslem rule before whose advance Oriental
Christianity was to lose its first field of triumph
had not yet asserted its persecuting power in the
north. This devout monk, in his meditations at
St. Sabas, dweh much upon the binh and the
resurrection of Christ, and made hymns to cele-
brate them. It was probably four hundred years
before Bonaventura ( ?) wrote the Christmas
"Adeste Fideles" of the Latin West that John of
Damascus composed his Greek ^'Adeste Fideles"
for a Resurrection song in Jerusalem.
Come ye faithful, raise the stralit
Of triumphant gladness.
* »^ « « « #
Tis the spring of souls today
Christ hach burst His prison;
From the frost and gloom of death
Light and life have risen.
Hie nobler of the two hymns preserved to us»
(or six stanzas of it) through eleven centuries is
entitled ** The Day of Resurrection/'
The day of resurrection.
Earth, tell Its joys abroad;
The Passover of gladness^
The Passover of God.
From death to life eternal^
From earth unto the sky,
Our Christ hath brought us
With hymns of victorv.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES, 55
Our hearts be pure from cvilp
That we may see aright
The Lord in rays eternal
Of resurrection light;
And, listening to His accents.
May hear, so calm and plain.
His own» **AII haiir' and hearing
May raise the victor-strain.
Now let the heavens be joyful,
Let earth her song begin ^
Let all the world keep triumph,
AH that dwell therein.
In grateful ejtukation^
Their notes let all things hieni].
For Christ the Lord is risen,
O joy thai hath no end I
Both thesf hytnns of John of Damascus were
translated b^ John Mason Neale,
THE TUNE.
"The Day of Resurrection** is sung in the
modem hymnals to the tune of *' Rotterdam,"
composed by Bert hold of Tours, born in that city of
the Neth'^rlands, Dec. 17, 1838. He was educated
at the conservatory in Leipsic, and later made
London his permanent residence, writing both
vocal and instrumental music* Died 1897. "Rot-
terdam'^ is a stately, sonorous piece and conveys
the flavor of the ancient hymn.
"Come ye faithful" has for its modem inter-
preter Sir Arthur Sullivan, the celebrated com-
po ^ crT bfiOi «*?tular and sacred works, but best
56
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
known in hymnody as author of the great Christian
march, "Onward Christian Soldiers."
Hymns are known to have been written by the
earlier Greek Fathers, Ephrem Syrus of Mesopo-
tamia (A. D. 307-373), Basil the Great, Bishop
of Cappadocia (A. D. 329-379) Gregory Nazi*
anzen, Bishop of Constantinople (A. D, 335-390)
and others, but their fragments of song which have
come down to us scarcely rank them among the
great witnesses— with the possible exception of the
last name. An English scholar. Rev* Allen W,
Chatfield, has translated the hymns extant of
Gregory Nazianzen- The following stanzas give
an idea of their quality. The lines are from an
address to the Deity :
How J tJ 11 approached! shall mind of tnsn
Descry Thy dazzling throne,
And pierce and Hnd Thee out, arid scan
Where Thou dost dwell alone ?
Unuttercd Thou I all uttered things
Have had their birth from Thee;
The One Unknown, from Thee the spring
Of all wc know and see.
And lo! all things abide in Thee
And through the complex whole,
Thou spread St Thine own divinity.
Thyself of alt the GoaL
This is reverent, but rather philosophical than
evangelical* and reminds us of the Hymn of
AratuSj more than two centuries before Christ
was bom.
2
30lfE HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
ST. STEPHEN, THE SABAITE.
57
This pious Greek mont, (734-794,) nephew of
St. John of Damascus, spent his life* from the age
of ten, in the monastery of St. Sabas. His sweet
hymn, known in Neale's translation, —
Art thou weafy, art thou languid.
Aft thou sore distrest ?
Come to Mc, saith One» and coming
Be ar restp
— ^is Still in the hymnals, with the tunes of Dykes,
and Sir Henry W. Baker (1821-1877), Vicar of
Monklandi Herefordshire,
KING ROBERT IL
/Vni, SancU Spiritus,
" Robert the Second, surnamed " Robert the Sage"
and ''Robert the Devout/* succeeded Hugh Capet,
his father, upon the throne of France, about the
year 997. He has been called the gentlest monarch
that ever sat upon a throne, and his amiability of
character poorly prepared him to cope with his
dangerous and wily adversaries. His last years
were embittered by the opposition of his own sons,
and the political agitations of the times. He died
at Melun in 1031, and was buried at St. Denis.
Robert possessed a reflective mind, and was fond
of learning and musical art. He was both a poet
and a musician. He was deeply religious, and, from
unselfish motives, was much devoted to the church.
58
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
Robert's hymn, ** Veni, Sancte Spiritus," is given
below. He himself was a chorister; and there was
no kingly service that he seemed to love so welL
We are told that it was his custom to go to the
church of St. Denis, and in his royal robes, with
his crown upon his head, to direct the choir at
matins and vespers, and join in the singing. Few
Icings have left a better legacy to the Christian
church than his own hymn, which, after nearly a
thousand years, is still an influence in the world:
Come, Thou Holy Spirit, come.
And from Tltitie eternal home
Shed the ray of light divine;
Come, Thou Father of the poor.
Come, Thou Source of all our store.
Come, within our bosoms shine.
Thou of Comforters the best,
Thou the soul*s most welcome Guest,
Sweet Refreshment here below 1
In our labor Rest most sweet,
Grateful Shadow from the heat#
Solace in the midst of woe!
Oh J most blessed Light Divine,
Shine wtthin these hearts of Thine,
And our inmost being filli
If Thou take Tl%y grace away.
Nothing pure in man will stay,
All our good is turned to ilL
Hejil our wounds; our strength renew
On our dryness pour Thy dew;
Wash the stains of guilt awayf
Bend the stubborn heart and wiU,
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
59
Melt ihe frcwccn, warm the chilly
Guide the steps that ga astray.
Nede*s Transiaiion^
THE TUNE.
The metre and six-line stanza* being uniform
with those of "Rock of Ages/' have tempted some
to borrow **TopIady'* for this ancient hymn, but
Hastings* tune would refuse to sing other words;
and, besides, the alternate rhymes would mar the
euphony- Not unsuitable in spirit are several
existing tunes of the right measure— like *'Nassau"
r ''St- Athanasius"— but m truth the "Veni,
Sancte Spiritus" in English waits for its perfect
setting. Dr. Ray Palmer's paraphrase of it in
stxes-and-fours, to fit " Olivet/' —
Comc^ Holy Ghost in love, etc*
objectionable both because the word Ghost is
an archaism in Christian worship and more
especially because Dr* Palmer's altered version
usurps rhe place of his own hymn, "Olivet"
with "My faith looks up to Thee*' makes as in-
violable a case of psalmodic monogamy as "Top*
lady'* with "Rock of Ages."
ST, FULBERT.
"Chori C^ntorej Hitrusalem Nov<w."
St. Fulbert's hymn is a worthy companion of
Perronet's "Coronation'*— if, indeed, it was not
PI
1.
6o
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
its original prompter — as King Roberts' great
litany was the mother song of Watts*'* Come, Holy
Spirit, heavenly Dove," and the countless other
sacred lyrics beginning with similar vFords. As
the translation stands in the Church of England,
there are six stanzas now sung, though in America
but four appear, and not in the same sequence*
The first four of the six in their regular succession
are as follows;
Ye choirs of New Jerusalem,
Your sweetest notes employ.
The Paschal victory to hymn
In strains of holy joy.
For Judah's Lion bursts His chains.
Crushing the serpent's head;
And cncs aloud, through death's domains
To wake the imprisoned dead.
Devouring depths of hell their prey
At His command restore;
His ransomed hosts pursue their way
Where Jesus goes before.
Triumphant in His glory now.
To Him all power is given;
To Him m one communion bow
All saints in earth and heaven*
Bishop Fulbert, known in the Roman and in
the Protestant ritualistic churches as St, Fulbert of
Chartres, was a man of brilliant and versatile
mind, and one of the most eminent prelates of his
time* He was a contemporary of Robert 11, and
his intimate friend, continuing so after the Pope
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
6l
(Gregory V.) excommunicated the king for manying
a cousin, which was forbidden by the canons of
the church,
Fulbert was for some time head of the Theo-
logical College at Chartres, a cathedral town of
France, anciently the capital of Celtic Gaul, and
afterwards he was consecrated as Bishop of that
^^dbcese. He died about 1029.
r '^
beai
THE TUNE.
The modem tone-interpreter of Fulbert*s hymn
bears the name "La Spezia'* in some collections,
and was composed by James Taylor about the
time the hymn was translated into English by
Robert Campbell Research might discover the
ancient tune — for the hymn is said to have been
sung in the English church during Fulbert's life-
iime — but the older was little likely to be the better
music. "La Spezia*' is a choral of enlivening but
easy chords, and a tread of triumph in its musical
motion that suits the march of " Judah's Lion" :
Hrs ransomed hosts pursue their way
Where Jesus goes before.
James Taylor, bom 1833, is a Doctor of Music,
organist of the University of Oxford and Director
[of the Oxford Philharmonic Society.
Robert Campbell the translator, was a Scotch
lawyer, bom in Edinburghj who besides his work
as an advocate wrote original hymns, and in other
ways exercised a natural literary gift. He compiled
62 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
the excellent Hymnal of the diocese of St. Andrews,
and this was his best work. The date of his death
is given as Dec. 29, 1868.
THOMAS OF CELANO.
Dies irael dies 312,
Solvet saedum in favilla.
Teste David cum Sybilla.
Day of wrath! that day of burning
All the worid to ashes turning.
Sung by prophets far discerning.
Latin ecclesiastical poetiy reached its high
water mark in that awful hymn. The solitaire (^
its sphere and time in the novelty of its rhythmic
triplets, it stood a wonder to the church and
hierarchy accustomed to the slow spondees of the
ancient chant. There could be such a thing as a
trochaic hymn! — and majestic, too!
It was a discovery that did not stale. The com*
pelling grandeur of the poem placed it distinct and
alone, and the veiy difficulty of staffing it for vocal
and instrumental use gave it a zest, and helped to
keep it unique through the ages.
Latin hymnody and hymnography, appealing
to the popular ear and heart, had gradually sub-
stituted accent for quantity in verse; for the com-
mon people could never be moved by a Christian
song in die prosody of the classics. The religion
of the cross, with the song-preaching of its pro-
pagandists, created medieval Latin and made k
I
Dr, Martin
Luther
It
SOME HlTSfNS OF GREAT WITNESSES*
63
secondary classic — mother of four anthem
languages of Western and Southern Europe. Its
golden age was the 12th and 23th centuries. The
new and nniore flexible school of speech and music
in hymn and tune had perfected rhythmic beauty
and brought in the winsome assonance of rhyme.
The "Dies Irae*' was bom, it is believed, about
the year 1255- Its authorship has been debated,
but competent testimony assures us that the
original draft of the great poem was found in a
box among the efFects of Thomas di Celano after
his death. Thomas — surnamed Thomas of Celano
from his birthplace, the town of Celano in the prov-
ince of Aquila, Southern Italy — ^wasthe pupil, friend
and co-iaborer of St. Francis of Assisi.and wrote his
memoirs* He is supposed to have died near the end
of the 13th century. That he wrote the sublime
judgment song there Is now practically no question-
The label on the discovered manuscript would
suggest that the writer did not consider it either
a hymn or a poem. Like the inspired prophets he
had meditated — and while he was musing the fire
burned* The only title he wrote over it was
" Prosa de mortuis^** Prosa (or prosa oratio)—
from prorsus^ "straight forward'*— appears here
in the truly conventional sense it was beginning to
bear, but not yet as the antipode of ** poetry/*
The modest author, unconscious of the magnitude
of his work, called it simply " Plain speech con-
cerning the dead."*
6+
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
The hymn is much too long to quote entire^ but
can be found in Daniers Thesaurus in any large
public library. As to the translations of it, they
number hundreds — in English and German alone,
and Italy, Spain and Portugal have their ver-
nacular versions — not to mention the Greek and
Russian and even the Hebrew. A few stanzas fol-
lowj with their renderings into English (always
imperfect) selected almost at random;
Quanms tt^mor est futurus
Quando Judex est venturus,
Cuncta srncte discussurust
Tuba minim spargens sonum
Per sepulcra regionum,
Coget omnes ante thronumi
O the dready the contrite kneeling
When the Lord^ in Judgment dealings
Comes each hidden thing reveahngi
When the trumpet's awful tone
Through the realms sepulchral blown.
Summons all before the Thronel
The solemn strength and vibration of these
tremendous trilineals suffers no general injury by
the variant readings — ^and there are a good many.
As a sample, the first stanza was changed by some
canonical redactor to get rid of the heathen word
Sybilla, and the second linevras made the third:
laK cranjTy* Durmg and after the l Ith century thfry were called "Sequcnctt"
(i, e, ftiitmiiing lire "Gospel" in the liturgy )t in d wctc in metrical foi-m, bavioi^
t prayerfui tone. ^Sequefitia pro d^uoctis'' was the Utef ink of the **Diei
SOME HYMNS OK GREAT WITNESSES, 65
Dies Irac, dies ilia
Cruets expandens vtxll]^
Solvei G^eclum in favilb.
Day of wrath! that day foretold^
With the cross-flag wide un rolled ^
Shall the world in fire enfold!
Iti some readings the original "In favilla" is
changed to *V«m favilla," 'WrA ashes** instead of
"in ashes"; and ** Teste Petro" is substituted
for "Teste David/*
THE TUNE.
The varieties of music set to the "Hymn of
Judgment" in the different sections and languages
of Christendom during seven hundred years arc
probably as numerous as the pictures of the Holy
Family in Christian art. It is enough to say that
one of the best at hand» or, at least, accessible, is
the solemn minor melody of Dr. Dykes in William
Henry Monk's Hymns Ancient and Modern, It
was composed about the middle of the last century.
Both the Evangelical and Methodist Hymnals have
Dean Stanley's translation of the hymn, the
former with thirteen stanzas (six-line) to a D
minor of John Stainer, and the latter to a C major
of Timothy Matthews, The Plymouth Hymnal
has seventeen of the trilineal stanzas, by an un-
known translator, to Ferdinand Hiller's tune in
F minor, besides one verse to another F minor — ^
hymn and tune both nameless.
66
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TimES.
All the composers above named are musicians
of fame. John Stainer, organist of St, Paiii*s
Cathedral, was a Doctor of Music and Chevalier of
the Legion of Honor, and celebrated for his works
m sacred music, to which he mainly devoted his
time. He was bom June 6, 1840* He died March
31,1901.
Rev, Timothy Richard Matthews, bom at Colm-
worth, Eng., Nov, 20, 1826, is a clergyman of the
Church of England^ incumbent of a Lancaster
charge to which he was appointed by Queen Alex-
andra.
Ferdinand Hiller, born 181 1 at Frankfort-on-the-
Main, of Hebrew parentage, was one of Germany's
most eminent musicians. For many years he was
Chapel Master at Cologne, and organized the
Cologne Conservatory. His compositions are
mostly for instrumental performance, but he wrote
cantatas, motets^ male chomses, and two oratorios^
one on the "Destruction of Jerusalem." Died
May JO, 1855.
The Very Rev. Arthur Penrhyn Stanley, Dean
of Westminster, was an author and scholar whom
all sects of Christians delighted to honon His
writings on the New Testament and his published
researches in Palestine, made him an authority in
Biblical study, and his contributions to sacred
literature were looked for and welcomed as eagerly
as a new hymn by Bonar or a new poem by Tenny-
son. Dean Stanley was bom in 1815, and died
JulyiSth, 1881,
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
67
THOMAS A KEMPIS.
Thomas k Kempis^ sub-prior of the Convent
of St, Agnes, was born at Hamerkin, Holland,
about the year 1380, and died at Zwoll, 147 1- This
pious monk belonged to an order called the
"Brethren of the Common Life" founded by
Gerard de Groote, and his fame rests entirely upon
his one bookj the Imitation of Christy which
continues to be printed as a religious classici and
is unsurpassed as a manual of private devotion.
His monastic life^as was true generally of the
monastic life of the middle ages — was not one of
useless idleness. The Brethren taught school and
did mechanical work. Besides, before the in-
vention of printing had been perfected and brought
into common service, the multiplication of books
was principally the work of monkish pens. Kern-
pis spent his days copying the Bible and good
books — as well as in exercises of devotion that
promoted religious calm.
His idea of heaven, and the idea of his order,
was expressed in that clause of John's description
of the City of God, Rev* 22:3^ *^anJ His servants
shall serve Htm'* Above all other heavenly joys
that was his favorite thought. We can well under-
stand that the pious quietude wrought in his mind
and manners by his habit of life made him a saint
in the eye^ of the people. The frontispiece of one
edition of his Imitaiio Christi pictures him as
68 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
being addressed before the door of a convent bjf
a eroubied pilgrim^ —
•'O where i$ peace ? — for thou m pathi hast trod,'*
— and his answer completes the couplet, —
"In poverty, retirement, and with God/*
Of all that is best in inward spiritual life, much
can be learned from this inspired Dutchman.
He wrote no hymns, but in his old age he com-
posed a poem on " Heaven's Joys,'* whict is some*
times called **Thomas k Kempis* Hymn":
High the angd choirs are raising
Heart and voice in harmony;
The Creator King still praising
Whom in beauty there they see.
Sweetest strains from ^ft harps stealing.
Trumpets' notes of triumph pealing.
Radiant wings and white stoles gleaming
Up the steps of gloiy streaming;
Wh^rc the heavenly bells are ringing;
**Hoiyl holy! holy!" singing
To the mighty Trinity!
•'Holy! holyT holy!*' crying,
For all earthly care and sighing
In that ciiy cease to be(
These lines are not in the hymnals df ^oday —
and whether tney ever found their way inic choral
use in ancient times we are not told. Worse poetry
has been sung — and more un-hymnlike. Some
future composer will make atune tothe wordsof a
Christian who stood almost in sight of his hundredth
year — and of the eternal home he writes aboikt.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
MARTIN LUTHER.
"^Ein Ftste Burg ht Vnstr Gott."
69
Of Martin Luther Coleridge said, " He did as
iTiuch for the Reformation by his hymns as he did
by his translation of the Bible," The remark is so
true that it has become a commonplace.
The above line — which may be seen inscribed
on Luther*s tomb at Wittenburg — is the opening
sentence and key-note of the Reformer's grandest
hymn. The forty-sixth Psalm inspired it, and it
is in harmony with sublime historical periods
from its very nature, boldness, and sublimity. It
was written, according to Welles, in the memorable
year when the evangelical princes delivered their
protest at the Diet of Spires^from which the word and
the meaning of the word "Protestant" is derived.
"Luther used often to sing it in 1530, while the
Diet of Augsburg was sitting. It soon became the
favorite psalm with the people. It was one of the
p watchwords of the Reformation, cheering armies
^to conflict, and sustaining believers in the hours of
fiery trial"
" After Luther*s death, Melancthon, his affection-
ate coadjutor, being one day at Weimar with his
banished friends, Jonas and Creuziger, heard a
little maid singing this psalm in the street, and
said, 'Sing on, my little girl, you little know whom
you comfort;'"
A mighcy fortress Is our God,
A bulwark never failings
TO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Our hdper He, amid die flood
Of moital ills prevailing.
For still our ancient foe
Doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and power are great.
And, armed with cruel hate.
On eaith is not his equal.
« « 4( « « «
The Prince of Darkness grim—
We tremble not for him:
His rage we can endure.
For lo! his doom is sure.
One little word shall fell him.
That word above all earthly power*—
No thanks to them — abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours.
Through Him who with us sidetfa.
Let goods and kindred go,
This moital life also;
The body they may kill,
God's truth abideth still.
His kingdom is for ever.
Martin Luther was bom in Eisleben, in Saxony,
Nov. 10, 1483. He was educated at the University
of Erfurth, and became an Augustinian monk
and Professor of Philosophy and Divinity in the
University of Wittenberg. In 15 17 he composed
and placarded his ninety-five Theses condemning
certain practices of the Romish Church and three
years later the Pope published a bull excom-
municating him, which he burnt openly before a
sympathetic multitude in Wittenberg. His life
was a stormy one, and he was more than once in
BOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES,
71
mortal danger by reason of his antagonism to the
papal authority* but he found powerful patrons^
and lived to see the Reformation an organized fact-
He died in his birthplace, Eisleben, Feb, i8th,
1546.
The translation of the "Ein feste burg," given
above, in part, is by Rev, Frederick Henry Hedge,
D-D,, bom in Cambridge, March 1805, a graduate
of Harvard, and formerly minister of the Unitarian
Church in Bangor, Me. Died, 1890.
I Luther wrote ihiny-six hymns, to some of which
he fitted his own music, for he was a musician and
singer as well as an eloquent preacher The tune
in which "Ein feste Burg" is sung in the hymnals,
was composed by himself. The hymn has also a
noble rendering in the music of Sebastian Bach.
8-4 time, found in Hymns Ancient and Modern »
BARTHOLOMEW RINGWALDT.
"Great God, What Do I See and Hear J"
I
The history of this hymn is somewhat indefinite,
though common consent now attributes to Ring*
waldt the stanza beginning with the above iine.
The imitation of the **Dies Irae" in German
which was first in use was printed in Jacob Klug's
**Gesangbuch*^ in 1535* Ringwaldt's hymn of
the Last Day, also inspired from the ancient Latin
original^ appears in his Handhuchlin of 1586,
but A*Mt not contain this stanza. The first line h^
"T'*c ^*^ul Day will surely come," (Es ist
72 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
gewisslich an der Zeit). Nevertheless through
the more than two hundred years that the hymn
has been translated and re-translated, and gone
through inevitable revisions, some vital identity
in the spirit and tone of the one seven-Une stanza
has steadily connected it with Ringwaldt's name.
Apparently it is the single survivor of a great lost
hymn— edited and altered out of recognition.
But its power evidently inspired the added verses*
as we have them. Dr. Collyer found it, and,
regretting that it was too short to sing in public
service, composed stanzas ad, 3d and 4th. It is
likely that Collyer first met with it in Psalms an J
Hymns for Public art J Private Devotion^ Sheffield
l8o2, where it appeared anonymously. So far as
known this was its first publication in English,
Ringwaldt*s stanza and two of Collyer*s are here
given :
Gnat God, what do I see and hearl
The end of things created I
The Judge of mankind doth appear
On clouds of glory seated.
The trumpet sounds, the graves restore
The dead which they contained before;
Prepare, my soul, to meet Him,
The dead tn Christ shall first arise
At the last trumpet sounding,
Caught up to meet Him in the skies.
With joy their Lord surrounding.
No gloomy fears their souls dismay
His presence sheds eternal day
On those prepared to meet Him*
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 75
Far over space to distant spheres
The lightnings are prevailing
Th' ungodly rise^ and atl their tears
And sighs are unavailing.
The day of grace is past and gone;
They shake before the Judge's Throne
AH unprepared to meet Him*
Batholomew Ringwaldt, pastor of the Lutheran
Church of Longfeld, Prussia, was born in 1531,
and died in 1599. His hymns appear in a coU
lection entitled Hymns for the Sundays and Festi'
vals of the Whole Tear,
Rev, William Bengo Cbllyer D.D,, was born
at Blackheath near London, April 14, 178Z,
educated at Homerton College and settled over a
Congregational Church in Peck ham. In 18 12 he
published a book of hymns, and in 1837 a Service
Book to which he contributed eighty-nine hymns*
He died Jan, 9, 1854,
THE TUNE.
Probably it was the customary singing of Ring-
W3ldt*s hymn (in Germany) to Luther*s tune that
gave it for some time the designation of " Luther's
Hymn/' the title by which the music is still knovm
— an air either composed or adapted by Luther,
and rendered perhaps unisonously or with ex-
tempore chords. It was not until early in the last
century that Vincent Novello wrote to it the noble
arrangement now in use- It is a strong, even-time
hafmony with lofty tenor range, and very im-
74 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
pressive with full choir and organ or the vocal
volume of a congregation. In Cheetharns Psalmody
is it written with a trumpet obligato.
Vincent Novello, bom in London^ Sept. 6, 1781,
the intimate friend of Lamb, Shelley> Keats, Hunt
and Hazlitty was a professor of music who attained
great eminence as an organist and composer of
hymn-tunes and sacred pieces. He was the
founder of the publishing house of Novello and
Ewer, and father of a famous musical family.
Died at Nice, Aug. 9, 1861.
ST. FRANCIS XAVIER.
"0 Deus^ Ego Amo Te.''
Francis Xavier, the celebrated Jesuit missionary^
called ''The Apostle of the Indies/' was a Spaniard,
bom in 1506. While a student in Paris he met
Ignatius Loyola, and joined him in the formation
of the new "Society for the Propagation of the
Faith." He was sent out on a mission to the East
Indies and Japan, and gave himself to the work
with a martyr's devotion. The stations he estab-
lished in Japan were maintained more than a
hundred years. He died in China, Dec. 1552.
His hymn, some time out of use, is being revived
in later singing-books as expressive of the purest
and highest Christian sentiment:
O Deus, ego amo Te.
Nee amo Te, ut salves me,
Aut quia non amantes Te
iEtemo punis igne.
aOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES-
My God, I love Thee — not because
I hope for heaven thereby;
Nor yet because who love Thee not
Must bufTi eternally*
After recounting Christ's vicarious sufFerings
as the chief claim to His disciples' unselfish love,
the hymn continueSj —
Cur igitur non amem Te,
O Jesu amantissimel
Non, lit in coe!o salves nie,
Aut in ajtcmufn damncs me.
Then why J O blessed Jesus Chnst,
Should 1 not love ITiec well ?
Not for ihc sake of winning heaven.
Nor of escaping hell i
Not with the hope of gaining aughCy
Nor seeking a reward,
But as Thyself hast loved mc.
Oh, ever-loving Lord!
E'en so I love Thee, and will love.
And in Thy praise will sing;
Solely because Thou art my God
And my eternal King*
TTie translation is by Rev. Edward CaswalU
1814-1878, a priest in the Church of Rome,
Besides his translations, he published the Lyra
CatholicQy the Masque of Mary, and several other
poetical works. (Page 101,)
THE TUNE.
^St. Bernard'*— apparently so named because
originally composed to Caswall's translarion of
76 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
one of Bernard of Gairvaux's hymns — is by
John Richardson, bom in Preston, Eng., Dec.
4, 1817, and died there April 13, 1879. He was
an organist in Liverpool, and noted as a composer
of glees, but was the author of several sacred
tunes.
SIR WALTER RALEIGH.
"Give Me My Scallop-Shell of Quiet.**
Few of the hymns of the Elizabethan era survive,
though the Ambrosian Midnight Hymn, '^Hark,
'tis the Midnight Cry," and the hymns of St. Ber-
nard and Bernard of Cluny, are still tones in the
church, and the religious poetry of Sir Walter
Raleigh comes down to us associated with the
histoiy of his brilliant, though tragic career. The
following poem has some fine lines in the quaint
English style of the period, and was composed by
Sir Walter during his first imprisonment:
Give me my scallop-shell of quiet.
My staff of faith to walk upon.
My scrip of joy — immortal diet —
My bottle of salvation,
My gown of glory, hope's true gage-*
And thus I take my pilgrimage.
Blood must be my body's balmer.
While my soul, like faithful palmer,
Travelleth toward the land of heaven;
Other balm will not be given.
Over the silver mountains
Where spring the nectar fountains.
$aUE HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. J J
There will I kiss die bowl of bliss»
And drink my everlasting fill.
Upon every milken hill;
My soul will be a-diy before.
But alter that will thirst no more.
The musings of the unfortunate but high-
souled nobleman in expectation of ignominious
death are interesting and pathetic, but they have
no claim to a tune, even if they were less rugged
and unmetrical. But the poem stands notable
among the pious witnesses.
MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.
"O Domine Deus^ Speravi in Te.**
This last passionate prayer of the unhappy
Mary Stuart just before her execution — in a
language which perhaps flowed from her pen more
easily than even her English or French — is another
witness of supplicating faith that struggles out of
darkness with a song. In her extremity the de-
voted Catholic forgets her petitions to the Virgin^
and comes to Girist:
O Domine Deus, Speravi in Te;
O care mi Jesu, nunc libera me!
In dura catena, in misera poena
Desidero Te!
Languendoy gemendo, et genuflectendo
AdorOy imploro ut liberes mel
My Lord and my God I I have trusted m Thee;
O JesuSy my Saviour belov'd, set me free:
In rigorous chains, in piteous pains.
FTOffT or THE HITMNS AMU TUNEt*
IbrTliKf
TIkc, O Lpocd. t^ mc fieel
«Qiil«l» at fii^ thought, judge this simple
ciy worthy of aB appropriate tone-
be sung by prison evangelists like
lim Vohtt^eeis of America, to convicts in the jaiis
littntian^. But i^ special errand and
arc voiced so literally that hardened
liearefs would probably misapply it — however
anoN^ the pcdtianer herself meant to invoke
'apiriciftil rather than temporal deliverance. The
li)tEmt if we may call it so, is foo literaL Possibly
at some time or other it may have been set to
onusic but not for ordinary choir service-
iAMUEL RUTHERFORD.
I
I
Tbc sxDds of time 2.TC dnktng^
••**«•
But, gtonr, glory dwellcth
In Immmuers Land.
This hymn is biographical, but not autobio*
I graphicaK Like the discourses in Herodotus and
Plutarch} it is the voice of the dead speaking
through the sympathetic genius of the living after
^loilg generations. The strong, stern Calvinist of
1636 in Aberdeen was not a poet, but he be-
l|ueathed his spirit and life to the verse of a poet of
1845 in Melrose* Anne Ross Cousin read his two
hundrW and twenty letters written during a two
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
79
years' captivity for his fidelity to the purer faith ^
and studied his whole history and experience till
her soul took his soul's place and felt what he felt.
Her poem of nineteen stanzas (152 lines) is the
voice of Rutherford the Coven an ter> with the
prolixity of his manner and age sweetened by his
triumphant piety, and that is why it belongs with
the Hymm of Great Witnesses, The three or
four stanzas still occasionally printed and sung
are only recalled to memory by the above three
lines.
Samuel Rutherford was born in Nisbet Parish,
Scotland, in 1600. His settled ministry was at
Anworth, in Galloway — 1630-1651 — ^with a break
between 1636 and 1638, when Charles L angered
by his anti-prelatical writings, silenced and banished
him- Shut up in Aberdeen, but allowed, like
Paul in Rome, to live *'in his own hired house" and
write letters, he poured out his heart's love in Epis-
tles to his Anworth flock and to the Non-conform-
ists of Scotland* When his countrymen rose against
the attempted imposition of a new holy Romish
Sfcf vice-book on their churches, he escaped to his
people, and soon after appeared in Edinburgh and
signed the covenant with the assembled ministers.
Thirteen years lateri after Cromwell's death and
the accession of Charles H. the wrath of the pre-
lates fell on him at St» Andrews, where the Pres-
bytery had made him rector of the college. The
King's decree indicted him for treason, stripped
him of all his offices, and would have forced him to
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
%
the block had he not been strtcken with his last sick*
Hess* When the officers came to take him he said,
"I am summoned before a higher Judge and Ju*
dicatory»and I am behooved to attend them/' H^
died soon after, tn the year i66i> ^
The first, and a few other of the choicest stanzas
of the hymn inspired by his life and death are here
given:
The sands of time are sinking,
TTie dawn of heaven breaks^
The sumnier mom Fve sighed for —
The fait J sweet mom — awakes.
Dark, datk hath been the midnight^
But day spring is at hand;
And glory, glory dwcHeth
In Immanuers land.
Oh! well h is for ever —
Oh! well for evermore;
My nest hung in no forest
Of all this death-doomed shoie;
Yea, let this vain wotld vanish.
As from the ship the strand.
While glory, glory dwelleth
In Immanuers land,
i» * « « « «
The little birds of Anwotth —
I used to count them b!e^£
Now beside happier altars
I go to build my nest;
O'er these there broods no silence
No graves around them stand;
For glory Jearliless dwelleth
In Immanuers land.
SOME HYMKS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
Si
I
I have bome scorn and hatred,
I have borne wi-ong and shame.
Earth's proud ones have reproached me
For Christ's thrice blessed name.
Where God*s seals set the fairest.
They've stamped their foulest brandy
But judgment shines like noonday
In Immanuer$ land.
They Ve summoned me before them,
But there 1 may not come;
My Lord says, **Come up hither;"
My Lord says, "Welcome homej"
My King at His white throne
My presence doth command.
Where glory ^ glory dwellcth^
Id Immanuers land.
A refniniscence of St. Paul in his second Epis-
tle to Timothy (chap. 4) comes with the last two
stanzas.
THE TUNE.
The tender and appropriate choral in B flat^
named '* Rutherford'* was composed by D'Urhan,
a French musician, probably a hundred years ago*
It was doubtless named by those who long after-
wards fitted it to the words, and knew whose spirit-
aal proxy the lady stood who indited the hymn. It
IS reprinted in Pelou bet's Selt€t Songs ^ and in the
Coronation Hymnal. Naturally in the days of the
hymn*s more frequent use people became accus-
tomed to calling *'The sands of time are sink-
ing," "Rutherford's Hymn/' Rutherford^s own
82 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
words certainly furnished the memorable refrain
with its immortal glow and gladness. One of his
joyful exclamations as he lay dying of his lingering
disease was, '' Glory shineth in Immanuel's Land!"
Chretien (Christian) Urhan, or D'Urhan, was
bom at Montjoie, France, about 1788, and died, in
Paris, 1845. He was a noted violin-player, and com-
poser, also, of vocal and instrumental music.
Mrs. Anne Ross (Cundell) Cousin, daughter of
David Ross CundeII,M.D., and widow of Rev. Will-
iam Cousin of the Free church of Scotland, was
bom in Melrose ( ?), 1824. She wrote many poems,
most of which are beautiful meditations rather
than lyrics suitable for public song. Her " Ruther-
ford Hymn" was first published in the Christian
Treasury, 1857.
GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS.
**Fenuige Nicbt Du Haufiein Klein.*'
The historian tells us that before the battle of
Lutzen, duringthe Thirty Years' War (1618-1648)^
King Gustavus of Sweden, in the thick fog of an
autumn moming, with the Bohemian and Austrian
armies of Emperor Ferdinand in front of him, knelt
before his troops, and his whole army knelt with
him in prayer. Then ten thousand voices and the
whole concert of regimental bands burst forth in
this brave song:
Fear not» O little flock, the foe
Who madly seeks your oveithrow,
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. Sj
Dread not his rage and power:
What though your courage sometimes faints.
His seeming triumph o*er Gcm1*s saints
Lasts but a little hour*
Be of good cheer, your cause helongt
To Him who can avenge your wrongs;
Leave it to Him, our Lord:
Though hidden yet from all our eyes^
He sees the Gideon who shall rise
To save us and His word.
As true as God*s own word Js tniCi
Nor earth nor hell with all their crew.
Against us shall prevail:
A jest and by-word they are grown;
God is with us, we are His own.
Our victory cannot fail.
Amen, Lord Jesus, grant our prayer!
Great Captain, now 7*hine arm make baie»
Fight for us once again :
So shall Thy saints and martyrs raise
A mighty chorus to Thy praise.
World without end* Amen.
ThearmyofGustavus moved forward to victory
^s the fog lifted; but at the moment of triumph a
riderless horse came galloping back to the camp.
It was the horse of the martyred King.
The battle song just quoted — next to Luther's
*'Ein feste Burg" the most famous German hymn —
has always since that day been called "Gustavus
Adolphus' Hymn"; and the mingled sorrow and
joy of the event at Lutzen named it also " King
Gustavus' Swan Song." Gustavus Adolphus did
H
rrORTf OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
not write hymns* He could sing them, and he could
make them historic — and ic was this connectton
that identified him with the famous battle song. Its
author was the Rev. Johan Michael Akenburg» a
Lutheran clergyman, who composed apparently
both hymn and tune on receiving news of the
king's victory at Leipsic a year before,
Gusiavus Adolphus was bom in 1594^ His
death on the battlefield occurred Nov, 5, 1632 —
when he was in the prime of his manhood. He was
one of the greatest military commanders in history,
besides being a great ruler and administrator^ and
a devout Christian. He was, during the Thirty
Years' War (until his untimely death), the leading
champion of Protestantism in Europe.
The English translator of the battle song was
Miss Catherine Wink worth, bom in London, Sept*
ijj 1827. She was an industrious and successful
translator of German hymns, contributing many
results of her work to two English editions of the
Lyra Germania, to the Church Book of En gland ^ and
to Christian Singers of Germany. She died in 1 8 78.
The tune of "Ravendale" by Walter Stokes
(born 1847) is the best modem rendering of the
celebrated hymn.
PAUL GERHARDT-
I ■' H
i
Paul Gerhardt was one of those minstrels of ex-
perience who are —
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
85
^
"Cradled into poetry by wrong.
And learn in sufTering what tbey teach m song,"
!e was a graduate of that sGhool when he wrote
his *'Hymn of Trust:"
Commit thou all thy griefs
And ways into His hands ^
To His sure trust and tender care
Who eanh and heaven commands.
Thou on the Lord rely,
So» i^fCf shah thou go on ;
Fix on His work thy steadfast cy^
So shall thy work be done*
Give to the winds thy fears;
Hope, and be undismayed;
God hears thy sighs and counts thy tears^
He shall lift up thy head.
Through waves and clouds and stormt
He gently clears thy way;
Wait thou His time^ so shall this night
Soon end in joyous day.
Gerhardt was born at Grafenheinchen, Saxony,
r6o6- Through the first and best years of man-
hood's strength (during the Thirty Year's War),
a wandering preacher tossed from place to place,
he was without a parish and without a home.
After the peace of Westphalia he settled in the
little village of Mittenwalde* He was then fony-
four years old. Four years later he married and re^
moved to a Berlin church. During his residence
there he buried his wife, and four of his children,
86
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
was deposed from the ministry because his Luther
an doctrines offended the Elector Frederick, and
finally retired as a simple arch-deacon to a small
parish in Lubben, where he preached, toiled, and
suffered amid a rough and uncongenial people til
he died, Jan. i6, 1676-
Few men have ever Uved whose case more needed
a ^*Hymn of Trust" — and fewer still could have
writteri it themselves* Through all thoce trial
years he was pouring forth his soul in devout
verses, making in all no less than a hundtsd and
twenty-five hymns — every one of them a comfort-
to others as well as to himself. ^|
He became a favorite, and for a time th& favor-
ite > hymn-writer of all the German-speaking
people. Among these tones of calm faith and joy
we recognize today (in the English tongue)^ —
Since Jems 15 my Friend,
Thee J O Immanue], we praise.
All my hean chis night rejoices*
How shaK I nieet Thee,
— and the Enghsh translation of his " O Haupt voU
Biut und Wunden/' turned into German by him-
self from St- Bernard Clairvaux's "Salve caput
cruentatum," and made dear to us in Rcv< James
Alexander's beautiful lines —
O sacred head now wounded^
With grief and shame weighed do^m^
Now scornful iy surrounded
With thoms. Thine only crown.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
87
^
^
THE TUNE.
A plain-song by Alexander Reinagle is used by
some congregations, but is nor remarkably ex-
pressive. Reinagle, Alexander Robert, (1799-
1877) of Kidljngton, Eng., was organist to the
church of St, Peter-in-the-East, Oxford.
The great " Hymn of Trust " could have found
no more sympathetic interpreter than the musician
of Gerhardt's own land and language^ Schumann,
the gentle genius of Zwickau, It bears the name
''Schumann,'* appropriately enough, and its elo-
cution makes a volume of each quatrain, notablj
I the one —
Who points the clouds their course^
^^ Whom wind and seas obey;
^K He shall direct thy wandering fect^
He shall prepare thy way.
Robert Schumann, Ph* D*, was born in Zwickau,
I Saxony, June 8, 1810. He was a music director
H and conservatory teacher, and the master-mind of
^ the pre-Wagnerian period ♦ His compositions be-
came popular, having a character of their own,
combining the intellectual and beautiful in art.
He published in Leipsic a journal promotive of his
school of music, and founded a choral society in
Dresden, Happy in the cooperation of his wife, her-
self a skilled musician, he extended his work to Vien-
■ na and the Netherlands; but his zeal wore him out,
^ and he died at the age of forty-six, universally
lamented as "the eminent man who had done so
much for the happiness of others/'
88 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
Gerhardt*s Hymn (ten quatrains) is rarely
printed entire, and where six are printed only four
are usually sung* Different coUections choose por-
tions according to the compiler's taste, the stanza
beginning —
Give to the winds thy feaiip
— being with some a favorite first verse.
The translation of the hymn from the German ts
John Wesley's,
Purely legendary is the beautiful story of the
composition of the hymn, "Commit thou all thy
griefs"; how, after his exile from Berlin > traveling
on foot with his weeping wife, Gerhardt stopped
at a wayside inn and wrote the lines while he rested;
and how a messenger from Duke Christian found
him there, and offered him a home in Meresburg,
But the most ordinary imaginarion can fill in the
possible incidents in a life of vicissitudes such at
Gerhardt's was.
LADY HUNT1NGTX)N.
"When Thou My Righteous Judge Shalt Come-*
Selina Shirley, Countess of Huntingdon, bom
1707, died 1791, is familiarly known as the titled
friend and patroness of Whitefield and his fellow-
preachers. She early consecrated herself to God»
and in the great spiritual awakening under White-
field and the Wesleys she was a punctual and
sympathetic helper. Uniting with the Calvinistic
Methodists, she nevertheless stood aloof from none
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
«9
who preached a personal Christ» and whose watch-
words were the salvation of souls and the punfica-
tion of the Church, For more than fifty years
she devoted her wealth to benevolence and spiritual
niinistnes, and died at the age of eighty-foun "I
have done my work/' was her last testimony,
^'I have nothing to do but to go to myFather."
At various times Lady Huntingdon expressed
her religious experience in verse, and the manful
vigor of her school of faith recalls the unbending
confidence of Job, for she was not a stranger to
iffltction.
Goi\ furnace doth in Zxon stand,
But Zion 5 God sits by,
Ai the refiner views his gold,
With an observant eye.
His thoughts are high. His love is wise.
His wounds a cure intend;
And, though He does not always mnile,
He loves titito the end.
ler great hymn, that keeps her memory green,
has the old-fashioned flavor, "Massa made God
BIG!" was the comment on Dn Bellany made by
his old negro servant after that noted minister's
death. In Puritan piety the sternest self-depreci-
ation qualified every thought of the creature, while
every allusion to the Creator was a magnificat-
Lady Huntingdon's hymn has no flattering phrases
for the human subject, "Worthless worm/* and
"vilest of them all'* indicate the true Pauline or
Oriental prostration of self before a superior
90 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
being; but there is grandeur in the metre, the
awful reverence, and the scene of judgment in
the stanzas^ — always remembering the mighty
choral that has so long given the lyric its voice in
the church, and is ancillary to its fame:
When Thou, my ngbteous Judgc^ shalt coin«
To take Thy ransomed people home,
S hill I I among them stand P
Shall such a worthless worm as I^
Who sometimes am afraid to die.
Be found ar Thy right hand I
I love to meet Thy people now.
Before Thy feet with them to bow.
Though vilest of them all;
But can I bear the piercing thought.
What if my name should be left out.
When Thou for them shalt call ?
O Lord J prevent it by Thy grace: *
Be Thou my only hiding place^
In this th' accepted day;
Thy pardoning voice, oh let me hear.
To still my unbelieving fear.
Nor let me fall, I pray.
Among Thy saints let me be found.
Whene'er the archangeKs trump shall aound^
To see Thy smiling face;
Then loudest of the throng Til sin^
While heaven's resounding arches ring
With shouts of sovereign grace.
THE TUNE.
The tune of "Meribah," in which this hymn has
been sung for the last sixty or more years, is one of
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
91
Dr* Lowell Mason's masterpieces. An earlier
German harmony attributed to Heinrich Isaac
and named "Innsbruck" has in some few cases
claimed association with the words, though com-
posed two hundred years before Lady Huntingdon
was born. It is strong and solemn, but its cold
psalm-tune movement does not utter the deep
emotion of the author's Hnes, "Meribah" was
inspired by the hymn itself, and there is nothing
invidious in saying it illustrates the fact, memor-
able in all hymnology, of the natural obligation of
a hymn to its tune.
Apropos of both, it is related that Mason was
once presiding at choir service in a certain church
where the minister gave out "When thou my
righteous Judge shalt come" and by mistake
directed the singers to "omit the second stanza/*
Mason sat at the organ, and while playing the last
strain, *'Be found at thy right hand/' glanced
ahead in the hymnbook and turned with a start
just in time to command, **Sing the next verse!'*
The choir did so, and "O Lord, prevent it by Thy
grace!" was saved from being a horrible prayer
to be kept out of heaven.
2TNZENDORF.
"Jesus, Thy Blood and Righteousness/'
Nicolaus Ludwig, Count Von Zmzendorf, was
born at Dresden, May 26, 1700, and educated at
Halle and Wittenberg. From his youth he evinced
9^
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
marked seriousness of mind» and deep religious
sensibilittes^ and this character appeared in his
sympathy with the persecuted Moravians, to whom
he gave domicile and domain on his lai^e estate.
For eleven years he was Councillor to the Elector
of Saxony, but subsequently, uniting with the
Brethren's Church, he founded the settlement
of Herrnhut, the first home and refuge of the
reorganized sect, and became a Moravian minister
and bishop.
Zinzendorf was a man of high culture, as well
as profound and sincere piety and in his hymns
^of which he wrote more than two thousand) he
preached Christ as eloquently as with his voice.
The real birth-moment of his religious life is said
to have been simultaneous with his study of the
"Ecce Homo'* in the Dusseldorf Gallery, a won-
derful painting of Jesus crowned with thorns.
Visiting the gallery one day when a young man, he
gazed on the sacred face and read the legend
aiiperocribed, "All this I have done for thee;
What doest thou for me?" Ever afterwards his
mocto was *'I have but one passion, and that is
He, and only He" — a version of Paurs '*For me
to live is Christ/*
JcMs, TK^ blood am) nghteousnes
Mf betuiy are, my glorious dress:
*%! >d$t fiaming worlds^ in these arrayed,
Wkh py sh»U I lift up my head,
BqM iHitl 1 stand in Thy gfeat day.
For iilii> ail|^l to my charge slialt lay f
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 93
Fully absolved through these I am —
From sin and fear, from guilt and shame.
Loidy I believe were sinners more
Than sands upon the ocean shore.
Thou hast for all a ransom paid.
For all a full atonement made.
Nearly all the hymns of the great Moravian are
now out of general use, having accomplished their
mission, like the forgotten ones of Gerhardt, and
been superseded by others. More sung in Europe,
probably, now than any of the survivors is, " Jesus,
geh voran," ("Jesus, lead on,") which has been
translated into English by Jane Borthwick"*"
(1854). Two others, both translated by John
Wesley, are with us, the one above quoted, and
**GIoiy to God, whose witness train." "Jesus,
Thy blood," which is the best known, frequently ap-
pears with the alteration —
Jesus, Thy robe of righteousness
My beauty is^ my glorious dress.
THE TUNE.
"Malvern," and "Uxbridge" a pure Gregorian,
both by Lowell Mason, are common expressions
of the hymn — the latter, perhaps, generally pre-
ferred, being less plaintive and speaking with a
surer and more restful emphasis.
♦Bom in Edinkurgfa 1813.
94 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
ROBERT SEAGRAVE.
"Rise, My Soul, and Stretch Thy Wings."
This hymn was written early in the 1 8th century,
by the Rev. Robert Seagrave, bom at Twyford,
Leicestershire, Eng., Nov. 22, 1693. Educated
at Cambridge, he took holy orders in the Estab-
lished Church, but espoused the cause of the great
evangelistic movement, and became a hearty co-
worker with the Wesleys. Judging by the l}nic
fire he could evidently put into his verses, one
involuntarily asks if he would not have written
more, and been in fact the song-leader of the
spiritual reformation if there had been no Charles
Wesley. There is not a hymn of Wesley's in use
on the same subject equal to the one immortal
hymn of Seagrave, and the only other near its
time that approaches it in vigor and appealing
power is Doddridge's "Awake my soul, stretch
every nerve."
But Providence gave Wesley the harp and ap-
pointed to the elder poet a branch of possibly
equal usefulness, where he was kept too busy to
enter the singers' ranks.
For eleven years he was the Sunday-evening
lecturer at Lorimer's Hall, London, and often
preached in Whitefield's Tabernacle. His hymn
is one of the most soul-stirring in the English
language:
Rise, my soul, and stretch thy wings;
Thy better poition trace;
S. Huntingdon
L
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 95
Rite from transitoiy things
Toward Heaven, thy native place;
Sun and moon and stars decay,
Time shall soon this earth remove;
Rise, my soul and haste away
To seats prepared above.
Rivers to the ocean run.
Nor stay in all their course;
Fire ascending seeks the sun;
Both speed them to their source:
So a soul that's bom of God
Pants to view His glorious face.
Upward tends to His abode
To rest in His embrace.
41 41 41 41 « «
Cease, ye pilgrims, cease to mourn.
Press onward to the prize;
Soon your Saviour will return
Triumphant in the skies.
Yet a season, and you know
Happy entrance will be given;
All our sorrows left below.
And earth exchanged for heaven.
Tills hymn must have found its predestinated
organ when it found —
THE TUNE.
"Amsterdam/* the work of James Nares, had
its birth and baptism soon after the work of
Seagrave; and they have been breath and bugle
to the church of God ever since they became one
song. In The Great MusicianSy edited by Francis
HufFer, is found this account of J^mes Nares:
96
STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"He was bcjm at HanwelU Middlesex, in 1715;
was admitted chorister at the Chapel Royal, undef
Bernard Gates, and when he was able to play the
organ was appointed deputy for Pigott, of St.
George's Chape!, Windsor, and became organise
at York Minster in 1734* He succeeded Greene
as organist and composer to the Chapel Royal in
1756, and in the same year was made Doctor of
Music at Cambridge, He was appointed master
of the children of the Chapel Royal in 1757, on
the death of Gates, This post he resigned in
1780, and he died in r783, (February 10,) and
was buried in St* Margaret's Church, West-
minster.
"He had the reputation of being an excellent
trainer of boy's voices, many of his anthems having
been written to exhibit the accomplishments of
his young pupils. The degree of excellence the
boys attained was not won in those days without
the infliction of much corporal punishment/'
Judging from the high pulse and action in the
music of "Amsterdam," one would guess the
energy of the man who made boy choirs — and
made good ones. In the old time the rule was,
" Birds that can sing and won't sing, must be made
to sing'*; and the rule was sometimes enforced
with the master's time-stick.
A tune entitled "Excelsius," written a hundred
years later by John Henry Cornell, so nearly
resembles "Amsterdam" as to suggest an intention
to amend it. It changes the modal note from G
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
97
to A> but while it marches at the same pace it
lacks the jubilant modulations and the choral
glory of the 18th-century piece.
SIR JOHN BOWRING.
**In the Cross of Qitm I GI017."
f In this hymn we see, sitting humbly at the feet
of the great author of our religion, a man who im-
pressed himself perhaps more than any other save
Napoleon Bonaparte upon his own generation,
and who was the wonder of Europe for his im-
mense attainments and the versatility of his powers*
Statesman, philanthropist, biographer, publicist,
linguist, historian, Bnancter, naturalist, poet,
political economist — there is hardly a branch of
knowledge or a field of research from which he
did not enrich himself and others, or a human
condition that he did not study and inEuence>
Sir John Bowring was born in 1792. When a
youth he was Jeremy Bent ham's political pupil,
but gained his first fame by his vast knowledge of
European literature, becoming acquainted with
no less than thirteen* continental languages and
dialects. He served in consular appointments at
seven different capitals, carried important reform
measures in Parliament, was Minister Plenipoten-
tiary to China and Governor of Hong Kong, and
ojncluded a commercial treaty with Siam, where
every previous commissioner had failed* But in
*£ufgerated io ■oaae iceounu to forty.
98 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
all his crowded years the pen of this tireless and
successful man was busy. Besides his political^
economic and religious essays, which made him
a member of nearly eveiy learned society in
Europe, his translations were countless, and
poems and hymns of his own composing found
their way to the public, among them the tender
spiritual song, —
How sfvecuy flowed oic Cjutptl sound
From lips of gendcncss md gnce
When listemiig chousauids gubued lomid.
And jof and ^bdnesi iSed the pUcc^
— and the more famous hymn indicated at the head
of this sketch. Knowledge of all religions only
qualified him to worship the Crucified with both
faith and reason. Though nominally a Unitarian,
to him, as to Channing and Martineau and Ed*
mund Sears, Christ was ''all we know of God.**
Bowring died Nov. 23, 1872. But his faymn
to the Cross will never die:
In the cross of Qirist I ^oiy.
Towering o*cr the wrecks of time;
AH the light of sacred stocy
Gathers round its head sahlime.
When the woes of life o*eitake me
Hopes deceiTe, and feais annoy.
Never shall the cross forsake me;
Lo! it glows with peace and joy.
When the sun of hiiss is beaming
Light and love upon my way.
From the cross the radiance srreaming
Adds new lustre to the day.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 99
Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure
By the cross are sanctified,
Peace is there that knows no measure^
Joys that through all time abide.
THE TUNE.
Ithamar G>nkey's ''Rathbun" fits the adoring
words as if they had waited for it. Its air, swelling
through diatonic fourth and third to the supreme
syllable, bears on its waves the homage of the lines
from bar to bar till the four voices come home to
rest full and satisfied in the final chord —
Gathers round its head sublime.
Ithamar Conkey, was bom of Scotch ancestiy,
in Shutesbuiy, Mass., May 5th, 18 15. He was a
noted bass singer, and was for a long time con-
nected with the choir of the Calvary church. New
York City, and sang the oratorio solos. His tune
of "Rathbun** was composed in 1847, and pub-
lished in Greatorex's collection in 185 1. He died
in Elizabeth, N. J., April 30, 1867.
CHAPTER HI.
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVO-
TION AND EXPERIENCE.
"JESU DULCIS MEMORIA."
"Jesus the Very Thought of Thee,"
The original of this delightful hymn is one <rf
the devout meditations of Bernard of Qairvaux»
a Cistercian monk (1091-1153). He was bom of
a noble family in or near Dijon, Burgundy > and
when only twenty-three years old established a
monastery at Clairvaux, France, over which he
presided as its first abbot. Educated in the
University of Paris, and possessing great natural
abilities, he soon made himself felt in both the
religious and political affairs of Europe, For more
than thirty years he was the personal power that
directed belief, quieted turbulence, and arbitrated
disputes, and kings and even popes sought his
counsel. It was his eloquent preaching that in-
spired the second crusade.
His fine poem of feeling, in fifty Latin stanzas^
has been a source of pious song In several language ^
ClOO)
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
lOI
I jterally —
Jesu^ clulcis memorift
Dans vera cordt gauilia^
Scd mjp€r mel el omniuni
Ejus dutcis preseQtia.
Jesus I a sweet nieniory
Giving true joys to the heart,
But sweet above honey and aJI things
His frtsence [is].
The five stanzas (of CaswalPs free translation)
now in use are familiar and dear to all EngUsh-
speaking believers;
^b Jesus, the very thought of Thee
^^^H With sweetness fits my breast,
^^^A But sweeter far Thy face to seep
^^^H And in Thy presence rest*
^^^M' Nor voice can sing nor heart can frame
^^^K Nor can the memory Hnd,
^^^^ft A sweeter sound than Thy blest name,
^^^^ O Saviour of mankind.
" The Rev, Edward Caswall was bom in Hamp-
shire* Eng.j July 15, 18 1 4, the son of a clergyman.
He graduated with honors at Brazenose College,
Oxford, and after ten years of service in the minis^
try of the Church of England joined Henry New-
man's Oratory at Birmingham, was confirmed in the
Church of Rome, and devoted the rest of his life to
works of piety and charity. He died Jan, 2, 1878,
I
THE TUNE.
No single melody has attached itself to this
hymn, the scope of selection being as large as the
I02 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
supply of appropriate common-metre tunes. Bam-
b/s "Holy Trinity/' Wade's "Holy Cross" and
Griggs' tune (of his own name) are all good, but
many, on the giving out of the hymn, would as-
sociate it at once with the more familiar "Heber"
by George Kingsley and expect to hear it sung.
It has the uplift and unction of John Newton's —
Hofw sweet die name of Jesus sounds
In the believer's ear.
"GOD CALLING YET! SHALL I NOT HEART
Gerhard Tersteegen, the original author of the
hymn, and one of the most eminent religious poets
of the Reformed German church in its early da}r5»
was bom in 1697, in the town of Mors, in West-
phalia. He was left an orphan in boyhood by the
death of his father, and as his mother's means were
limited, he was put to work as an apprentice when
very young, at Muhlheim on the Rhur, and be-
came a ribbon weaver. Here, when about fifteen
years of age, he became deeply concerned for his
soul, and experienced a deep and abiding spiritual
work. As a Christian, his religion partook of the
asceric t^-pe, but his m}*sticism did not make him
useless to his fellow-men.
At the age of twent}--seven, he dedicated all his
resources and energies to the cause of Christ,
writing the dedication in his own blood. "God
graciously called me*" he says, •'out of the worid,
and granted me the desire to befeng to Him, and
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
103
^
to be willing to follow Him." He gave up secular
einployments altogether, and devoted his whole
time to religious instruction and to the poor. His
house became famous as the ** Pilgrims' Cottage,"
and was visited by people high and humble from
all parts of Germany, In his lifetime he is said
CO have written one hundred and eleven hymns.
Died April 3, 1769.
Goi calling yet! shall I not hear?
E3fth*s pleasures shall I stjll hold dear!
Shall life's swift-passing jears all fly.
And still my soul in slumber lie f
God calling yet! I cannot stay;
My heart I yield without delay.
Vain worldj farewell; from thee I part;
The voice of God hath reached my heart*
The hymn was translated from the German by
Miss Jane Borthwick, bom in Edinburgh, 1813-
She and her younger sister, Mrs. Findlater, jointly
translated and published, in 1854, Hymns From
the Land of Luther^ and contributed many poetical
pieces to the Family Treasury. She died in 1897,
Another translation > imitating the German metre,
is more euphonious, though less literal and less
easily fitted to music not specially composed for it,
on account of its "feminine" rhymes;
God calling yetf and shall I never hearken?
But still earth's witcheries my spirit darken;
This passing life, these passing joys all flying,
And still my soul in dreamy slumbers lying ?
104
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
THE TUNE.
Dr. Dykes' "Rivauk** is a sober rhoral thai
articulates the hymn-writer^s sentiment with sin-
cerity and with considerable earnestness, but
breathes too faintly the interrogative and ex-
postulary tone of the lines. To voice the devout
solicitude and self^-remonst ranee of the hymn there
is no tune superior to ''Federal St,"
The Hon. Henry Kemble Oliver, author of "Fed-
eral St,," was bom in Salem, Mass., March, 1800,
and was addicted to music from his childhood.
His father compelled him to relinquish it as a
profession, but it remained his favorite avocation,
and after his graduation from Harvard the cares
of none of the various public positions he held,
from schoolmaster to treasurer of the state of
Massachusetts, could ever wean him from the study
of music and its practice. At the age of thirty-nine,
while sitting one day in his study, the last verse of
Anne Steele's hymn —
So fades the lovely blooming flower,
— floated into his mind, and an unbidden melody
came with it. As he hummed it to himself the
words shaped the air, and the air shaped the
words.
— became
Then gentle patience smtles on patii»
Then dying hope revives again.
See gentEe patience smHe on pun;
See dying hope revive again:
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
105
— and with the change of a ward and a tense the
hymn created the melody, and soon afterward
the complete tune was made. Two years later it
was published by Lowell Mason> and Oliver gave
it the name of the street in Salem on which hts
wife was bom, wooed, won, and married. It adds
a pathos to its history that " Federal St." was sung
at her bunal
This first of Oliver's tunes was followed bj
" Harmony Grove/' " Morning/* " Walnut Grove,"
^VMerton/' ''Hudson/' "Bosworth/' "Sahsbury
Plain/' several anthems and motets^ and a '*Tu
Deum/'
In his old age, at the great Peace Jubilee in
Boston, 1872, the baton was put into his hands,
and the gray-haired composer conducted the
chorus of ten thousand voices as they sang the
words and music of his noble harmony. The
incident made ''Federal St." more than ever a
feature of New England history. Oliver died in
1885-
'l^SY GOD, HOW ENDLESS IS THY LOVE.**
The spirited tune to this hymn of Watts, by
Frederick Lampe, variously named "Kent" and
"Devonshire/' historically reaches back so near
to the poet's time that it must have been one of the
earliest expressions of his fervent v^ords.
Johan Fried rich Lampe, born 1693, in Saxony,
was educated in music at Helmstadt, and came to
io6
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
England in 1725 as a band musician and composer
to Covent Garden Theater. His best-known sec-
ular piece is the music written to Henry Carey's
burlesque, "The Dragon of Wantley/'
Mrs, Rich, wife of the lessee of the theater, was
converted under the preaching of the Methodists,
and after her husband's death her house became
the home of Lampe and his wife, where Charles
Wesley often met him*
The influence of Wesley won him to more seri-
ous work, and he became one of the evangel! st*s
helpers, supplying tunes to his singing campaigns,
Wesley became attached to him, and after his
death — in Edinburgh, 1 752 — commemorated the
musician in a funeral hymn.
In popular favor Bradbury's tune of '* Rolland"
has now superseded the old music sung to Watts'
lines^
My Go4^ how endless is Thy love.
Thy g;ifts are evefy evening new.
And morning mercies from above
Gently diitil like early dew.
******
I yield my powers to Thy command;
To Thee I consecrate my days;
Perpetual blessings from Thy hand
Demand perpetual songs of praise.
William Batchelder Bradbury^ a pupil of Dr,
Lovveil Mason, and the pioneer in publishing
Sunday-school music, was bom 1816, in York, Me*
Hi» father, a veteran of the Revolution^ was a
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION,
107
choir leader, and William's love of music was in-
herited. He left his father's farm, and came to
Boston, where he first heard a church-organ.
Encouraged by Mason and others to follow music
as a profession, he went abroad^ studied at Leipsic,
and soon after his return became known as a
composer of sacred tunes. He died in Montclair,
N, J., 1868,
"I^ NOT Af^HAMKD TO OWN MY LORD."
The favorite tune for this spiritual hymn, also by
Watts, is old " Arlington," one of the most useful
church melodies in the whole realm of English
psalmody. Its name clings to a Boston street ^ and
the beautiful chimes of Arlington St* church
(Unitarian) annually ring its music on special
occasions, as it has since the bells were tuned:
Tm not ashamed to own my LordI
Or to defend HiS cause.
Maintain the honor of His Word,
The glo^ of His crass.
Jesus, my God!— I know His Name;
His Name is all my trust.
Nor will He put my soul to shame
Nor let my hope be lost.
Dr* Thomas Augustine Arne, the creator of
"Arlington," was bom in London, 1710, the son
of a King St. upholsterer. He studied at Eton, and
though intended for the legal profession, gave his
whole mind to music. At twenty-three he Began
I08 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
writing operas for his sister, Susanna (a singef
who afterwards became the famous tragic actress,
Mrs. Gibber).
Ame*s music to Milton's •*Comus,** and to
"Rule Brittannia'' established his reputation. He
leas engaged as composer to Druiy Lane Theater,
and in 1759 received from Oxford his degree of
Music Doctor. Later in life he turned his attention
to oratorios, and other forms of sacred music, and
was the first to introduce female voices in choir
singing. He died March 5, 1778, chanting hal-
lelujahs, it is said, with his last bteath.
"IS THIS THE KIND RETURN r
Dr. Watts in this hymn gave experimental piety
its hour and language of reflection and penitence:
Is this the kind return ?
Are these the thanks we owe.
Thus to abuse Eternal Love
Whence all our blessings flow ?
* « « « « «
Let past ingratitude
Provoke our weeping eyes.
United in loving wedlock with these words in
former years was "Golden Hill," a chime of sweet
counterpoint too rare to bury its authorship under
the vague phrase "A Western Melody." It was
caught evidently from a forest bird"^ that flutes its
clear solo in the sunsets of May and June. There
4Tlie wood thrush.
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTIOM.
¥
109
can be no mistaking the imication-^he same com-
pass, the same upward thriQ^ the same fall and
^9^arbled turn. Old-time folk used to call for
it, "Sing, my Fairweather Bird/' It lingers in a
few of the twenty* or thirty-years-ago collections,
but stronger voices have drowned it out of the new.
"Thacher," (set to the same hymn^) faintly re-
calls its melody. Nevertheless "Thacher" is a
gcx)d tune. Though commonly written in sharps,
contrasting the B flat of its softer and more liquid
rival of other days, it is one of Handel's strains,
and lends the meaning and pathos of the lyric text
to voice and instrument.
•IVHEN 1 SURVEY THE WONDROUS CROSS,"
This crown of all the sacred odes of Dr. Watts
for the song-service of the church of God was
called by Matthew Arnold the *' greatest hymn in
the English language/' The day the eminent
critic died he heard it sung in the Sefton Park
Presbyterian Church, and repeated the opening
lines softly to himself again and again after the
services. The hymn is certainly one of the greatest
in the language. It appeared as No, 7 in Watts'
third edition (about 1710) containing five stanzas.
The second line —
On which the Prince of Glory died,
— read originally —
Where the young Prince of Glory died-
no STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Only four stanzas are now generally used. The
omitted one —
His dying crimson like a robe
Spreads o*er His body on the tree;
Then am I dead to all the globe.
And all the globe is dead to me«
— IS a flash of tragic imagination, showing the
sanguine intensity of Christian vision in earlier
time, when contemplating the Saviour's passion »
but it is too realistic for the spirit and genius of
song-worship- That the great hymn was designed
by the writer for communion seasons^ and was
inspired by Gal. 6:14, explains the two last Hnes if
not the whole of the highly colored verse.
THE TUNE.
One has a wide field of choice in seeking the
best musical interpretation of this royal song of
faith and self-effacement;
When I survey the wondroas Cross
On which the Prince of Glory died.
My richest gam I count but loss.
And pour contempt on all my pride.
Forbid It, Lord, that I should boast
Save in the death of Christ my God;
Alt the vain things that charm me most»
1 sacrifice them to His blood*
See from His head. His hands, His feet.
Sorrow and love flow mingled down;
Did e'er such love and sorrow meetj
Or thorns compose so rich a crown 2
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAK DEVOTION.
Ill
Were the whole realm of Nature mmc.
That were a present far too smalh
Love so amazfng, so divine.
Demands my soy!j my life, my alU
To match the height and depth of these words
^th fitting glory of sound might well have been
an ambition of devout composers. Rev. G. C
Wells' tune in the Revival isi^ with its emotional
chorusj I. B, Woodbury's ** Eucharist" in the
Methodist HymnaU Henry Smart's effective cho-
ral in Bamby's Hymnary (No. 1 70), and a score
of others, have woven the feeling lines into melody
with varjaog success. Worshippers in spiritual
sympathy with the words may question if, after
all, old '* Hamburg," the best of Mason*s loved
Gregorians, does not, alone, in tone and elocu-
tion, rise to the level of the hymn.
"LOVE DIVINE, ALL LOVES EXCELLING."
This evergreen song-wreath to the Crucified,
was contributed by Charles Wesley, in 1 746. It is
found in his collection of 1756, Hymns for Those
That Seek and Those That Have Redemption in
the Blood of Jesus Christ.
Love Divine all loves excelling,
Joy of Heaven to eanh come dowiii,
Fk in us Thy humhie dwelling,
All Thy faithful mercies crown.
« « * 4^ * #
Coftie Almighty to deliver,
1^ us all Thy life receive.
112 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
Suddenly return, and never,
Nevermore Thy temples leave,
******
Finish then Thy new creation j
Pure and spotless let tis be;
Let us see our whole salvation
Perfectly secured by Thee.
Changed from glory into glory
Till in Heaven we take our ptace^
Till we cast our crowns before Tlice
Lost in wonder Jove and praise!
The hymn has been set to H, Isaac*s ancient
tune (1490), to Wyeth's "Nettleton** (1810), to
Thos. H, Bailey's (1777-1839) '" Isle of Beauty, fare
thee weir* (named from Thomas Moore's song)^
to Edward Hopkins' '' St. Joseph," and to a multi-
tude of others more or less familiar.
Most familiar of all perhaps, (as in the instance
of "Far from mortal cares retreating,") is its
association with "Greenville," the production of
that brilliant but erratic genius and freethinker,
Jean Jacques Rousseau* It was originally a love
serenade, (**Days of absence, sad and dreary")
from the opera of Le Devin du Fillagf, written
about 1752, The song was commonly known
years afterwards as "Rousseau's Dream." But
the unbeh*eving philosopher, musician, and mis-
guided moralist builded better than he knew, and
probably better than he meant when he wrote his
immortal choral Whatever he heard in his
'* 'dream" (and one legend says It was a **song of
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
^^3
angels'*) he created a harmony dear to the church
he despised, and softened the hearts of the Chris-
tian world towards an evil teacher who was In-
spired, like Balaam, to utter one sacred strain.
Rousseau was born in Geneva^ 17 12, but he
never knew his mother, and neither the affection
or interest of his father or of his other relatives
was of the quality to insure the best bringing up of
a child.
He died July, 1778, But his song survives, while
the world gladly forgets everything else he wrote.
It is almost a pardonable exaggeration to say that
every child in Christendom knows ** Green viUe/'
"WHEN ALL THY MERCIES, O MY GOD,"
This charming hymn was written by Addison »
the celebrated English poet and essayist, about
1701, in grateful commemoration of his delivery
from shipwreck in a storm off the coast of Genoa,
Italy, It originally contained thirteen stanzas^
but no more than four or six are commonly sung.
It has put the language of devotional gratitude
into the mouths of thousands of humble disciples
who could but feebly frame their own :
When all Thy mercies, O my God,
My rising soul surveys.
Transported with the view Vm lost
In wonder, love and praise.
Unnumbered comforts on my soul
Thy tender care bestowed
114 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Before my infant heart concehred
From whom those comforts flowed.
When in the slippery paths of youth
With heedless steps I ran.
Thine arm unseen conveyed me safe^
And led me up to man.
Another hymn of Addison —
How are Thy servants bless'd, O Lord,
— was probably composed after the same return
from a foreign voyage. It has been called his
"Traveller's Hymn."
Joseph Addison, the best English writer of his
time, was the son of Lancelot Addison, rector of
Milston, Wiltshire, and afterwards Dean of
Litchfield. The distinguished author was bom in
Milston Rectory, May i, 1672, and was educated
at Oxford. His excellence in poetry, both English
and Latin, gave him early reputation, and a
patriotic ode obtained for him the patronage of
Lord Somers. A pension from King William IIL
assured him a comfortable income, which was
increased by further honors, for in 1704 he was
appointed Commissionerof Appeals, then secretary
of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, and in 171 7
Secretary of State. He died in Holland House,
Kensington, near London, June 17, 17 19.
His hymns are not numerous, (said to be only five),
but they are remarkable for the simple beauty
of their style, as well as for their Christian spirit.
Of his fine metrical version of the 23rd Psalm,—
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
The Lord my pasture shaJI prepare.
And feed me with a shepherd^a care.
115
-one of his earliest productions^ the tradition is
that he gathered its imagery when a boy living
at Netheravonj near Salisbury Plain, during his
lonely two-mile walks to school at Amesbury and
back again. AH his hymns appeared first in the
Spectator r to which he was a prolific contributor,
THE TUNE.
The hymn *'When all Thy mercies" still has
"Geneva" for its vocal mate in somt congrega-
tional manuals. The tune is one of the rare
'survivals of the old "canon" musical method, the
parts coming in one after another with identical
notes* It is always delightful as a performance
with its glory of harmony and its sweet duet, and
for generations it had no other words than Addi-
son's hymn.
John Cole, author of ''Geneva," was born in
Tewksbur)s Eng., 1774, and came to the United
States in his boyhood (i785), Baltimore, Md,
became his American home, and he was educated
there< Early in life he became a musician and
music publisher. At least twelve of his principal
song collections from i8oo to 1832 are mentioned
by Mr. Huben P. Main, most of them sacred and
containing many of his own tunes.
He continued to compose music till his death,
Aug, 17, 1855. Mr. Cole w^s leader of the regi-
ii8
STOEY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
THE TUNE.
The hymn has been sometimes sung to " Pis*
gab/' an old revival piece by J- C Lowry (1820)
once much heard in camp-meetings, but it is a pe-
destrian tune with too many quavers, and a head*
long tempo*
Bradbury's "Jazer," in thiee-four time, is a
melody with modulations, though more sympa-
thetic, but it IS hard to divorce the hymn from its
long-time consort, old "Arlington," It has the ac*
cent of its sincerity, and the breath of its devotion,
-XO, ON A NARROW NECK OF LAND/'
This hymn of Charles Wesley is always desig-
nated now by the above line, the first of the second
stanza as originally written. It is sj^id to have been
composed at Land's End, in Cornwall, with the
British Channel and the broad Atlantic in view
and surging on both sides around a 'Vnarrow neck
of land/*
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
O God, mine inmost soul convert.
And deeply on my thoughtful heart
Eternal things impress:
Give me to feel their solemn weight.
rfii
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
And tremble on the bnnk of fate^
And wake to nghteousness.
119
The preachers and poets of the great spiritual
nnovement of the eighteenth century in England
abated nothing in the candor of their words* The
terrible earnestness of conviction tipped their
tongues and pens with fire.
THE TUNE,
Lady Huntingdon would have lent **Meribah"
gladly to this hymn, but Mason was not yet bom.
Many times it has been borrowed for Wesley's
words since it came to its own, and the spirit of the
pious Countess has doubtless approved the loan* It
is rich enough to furnish forth her own lyric and
more than one other of like matter and metre*
The muscular music of" Ganges " has sometimes
carried the hymn, and there are those who think its
thunder is not a whit more Hebraic than the words
require.
"COME YE SINNERS POOR AND NEEDY/'
Few hymns have been more frequently sung in
prayer-meetings and religious assemblies during the
last hundred and fifty years. Its author^ Joseph
Hart, spoke what he knew and testified what he
felt. Bom in London, 171 2, and liberally educated^
he was in his young manhood very religious, but he
went so far astray as to indulge in evil practices, and
120
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUN ES-
even published writings, both original and trafis^
lated, against Christianity and religion of any kind.
But he could not drink at the Dead Sea and live*
The apples of Sodom sickened him. Conscience
asserted itself, and the pangs of remorse nearly
drove him to despair till he turned back to the
source he had forsaken. He alludes to this expe-
rience in the lines —
Lee not conficknce niake you linger.
Nor of fitness fondly dream;
All the fitness He re<|uireth
Is to feci yoyr need of Him,
During Passion Week, 1767, he had an amazing
view of the sufferings of Christ, under the stress of
which his heart was changed- In the joy of this ex-
perience he wrote^
Come ye sinners poor and needy ,
— and —
Come all ye chosen saints of God*
Probably no two hymn-lines have been oftener
repeated than —
If you tarry till you're better
You will never come at all.
The complete form of the original stanzas is:
Come ye sinners poor and needy ^
Weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you.
Full of pity, love and power.
He is able.
He is willing; doubt no more.
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION,
121
The whole hymn — ^ten stanzas — is not sung
now as one, but two, the second division begin-
ning with the line —
Come yc weary, heavy laden.
Rev, Joseph Hart became minister of Jewin St.
Congregational Chapel, London, about 1760,
where he labored till his death, May 24, 1768.
THE TUNE.
A revival song by Jeremiah Ingalls (176+-1828),
written about 1804, with an easy, popular swing
and a sforxando chorus^ —
Turn to the Lord and seek salvation^
— monopolized this hymn for a good many years.
The tunes commonly assigned to it have since been
" Greenville'^ and Von Weber's " Wilmot," in which
last it is now more generally sung— dropping the
echo lines at the end of each stanza.
Carl Maria Von Weber, son of a roving musician,
was bom in Eutin, Germany, 1786. He developed
no remarkable genius till he was about twenty
years old, though being a fine vocalist, his singing
brought him popularity and gain; but in 1806 he
nearly lost his voice by accidently drinking nitric
acid* He was for several years private secretaiy to
Duke Ludwig at Stuttgart, and in r8i3 Chapel-
Master at Prague, from which place he went to
Dresden in 18 17 as Musik-Director.
Von Weber's Komer songs won the hearts of all
Germany, and his immortal *'Der Freischutz"
122
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
(the Free Archer), and numerous tender melodies
like the airs to "John Anderson, my Jo" and "O
PoortithCauld" have gonetoallcivilized nations. No
other composer had such feeling for beauty of sound.
This beloved musician v^^as physically frail and
delicate, and died of untimely decline, during a
visit to London in 1826.
"O HAPPY SAINTS WHO DWELL IN LIGHT. "
Sometimes printed "O happy j^ow/x/' This poet-
ical and flowing hymn seems to have been for-
gotten in the making up of most modern church
hymnals* Hymns on heaven and heavenly joys
abound in embarrassing numbers, but it is dif-
ficult to understand why this beautiful lyric should
be universally neglected. It was written probably
about 1760, by Rev. John Berridge, from the text»
'' Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, '*
The first line of the second stanza —
Released from sorrow^ toil and strife^
— has been tinkered in some of the older hymn-
books, where it is found to read^.
Released from sorrow, toil and grief,
— not only committing a tautology, but destroying
the perfect rhyme with " life '* in the next line. The
whole hymn J too, has been much altered by substi*
tuted words and shifted lines, though not gen-
erally to the serious detriment of its meaning and
music*
I
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
123
The Rev. John Berridge^friend of the Wesleys,
Whitefield, and Lady Huntingdon— was an ec-
centric but very worthy and spiritual minister, born
the son of a farmer^ in Kingston, Nottinghamshire,
Eng.jMar i, 1716* Hestudied at Cambridge, and
^vas ordained curate of Stapleford and subse*
quently located as vicar of Everton, 1 775. He died
Jan. 22, 1793. He loved to preach, and he was de-
termined that his tombstone should preach after
his voice was still His epitaph, composed by him-
self, IS both a testimony and a memoir:
*'Here He the earthly remains of John Berridge^ late vicar ot
Everton, and an itinerant servant of Jesus Christy who loved
hii Master and His work, and after running His errands
m^ny years, was called up to wait on Him above.
'^Reader, art thou bom again P
•*No salvation without tbe new birth.
"I was bom in sin, February, 1716.
*' Remained ignorant of my fallen state till 1730.
*Xtved proudly on faith and works for salvation till 1751.
'* Admitted to Everton vicarage, 1755.
**Fl«d to Jesus alone for refuge, 1756,
**Fell asleep in Je^us Christ,—*' (1793*)
THE TUNE,
The once popular score that easily made the
hymn a favorite^ was "Salem/* m the old Psal-
modisi. It stitl appears in some note-books, though
the name of its composer is uncertain. Its notes
(in 6-8 time) succeed each other in syllabic mod-
ulations that give a soft dactylic accent to the meas-
ure and a wavy current to the lines :
124 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
O Itippy tamrs that dwell in Vt^tf
Ab^ walk with Jesus clothed in white.
Safe landed on that peaceful shore,
Wliere pilgrims meet to part no more:
Released from sorrow, toil and strife^
Death was the gate to endless life.
And now they range the heavenly plalat
And sing His love in melting strains.
Another version reads:
and welcome to an endless life.
Their souls have now begun to prove
The height and depth of Jcstis' love,
nmOU PEAR REDEEMER, DYING LAMB."
The author, John Cennick, like Joseph Hart,
was led to Christ after a reckless boyhood and
youchp by the work of the Divine Spirit in his soul,
independent of any direct outward infiuence.
Sickened of his cards, novels, and playhouse
pleasures, he had begun a sort of mechanical
reform, when one day, walking in the streets of
London, he suddenly seemed to hear the text
spoken "I am thy salvation I" His consecration ■
began at that moment, ^M
He studied for the ministry, and became a '
preacher, first under direction of the Wesley s,
then under Whitefield, but afterwards joined the
Moravians, or " Brethren.'* He was bom at Read-
ing, Derbyshire, Eng., Dec. IZ, 1718* and died in
London, July 4, 1755*
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION-
THE TUNE.
125
The word '* Rhine" (in some collections — in
others "Emmons") names a revival tune once so
linked with this hymn and so well known that few
religious people now past middle life could enjoy
singing it to any other. With a compass one note
beyond an octave and a third, it utters every line
wth a clear, bold gladness sure to infect a meeting
with its own spiritual fervon
Thou dear Redeemer, dying Lamb,
I love to hear of Thee;
No music like Thy charming nam^
Nor half so sweet can be.
P
The composer of the bright legato melody JU5|
described was Frederick Burgniiiller, a young
German musician, born in 1804. He was a remark-
able genius, both in composirion and execurion,
but his health was frail, and he did not live to
fulfil the rich possibilities that lay within him. He
died in 1824— only twenty years old* The tune
r' Rhine*' ('* Emmons'*) is from one of his marches*
'WHILE THEE I SEEK, PROTECTING POWER."
Helen Maria Williams wrote this sweet hymn,
probably about the year iSoo, She was a bril-
liant woman, better known in literary society for
her political verses and essays than by her hymns;
but the hymn here noted bears sufficient wit^
ness to her deep religious feeling:
126 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
While Thcc I seek. Protecting Power,
Be my vain wishes stilled.
And may this consecrated hour
With better hopes be filled.
Thy love the power of thought bestowed;
To Thee my thoughts would soar.
Thy mercy o'er my life has flowed.
That mercy I adore.
Miss Williams was bom in the north of Eng-
land, Nov. 30, 1762, but spent much of her life in
London,and in Paris, where she died,Dec. 14, 1827.
THE TUNE.
Wedded so many years to the gentle, flowing
music of Pleyel's "Brattle Street,'* few lovers of
the hymn recall its words without the melody of
that emotional choral.
The plain psalm-tune, "Simpson,'' by Louis
Spohr, divides the stanzas into quatrains.
**JESUS MY ALL TO HEAVEN IS GONE.''
This hymn, by Cennick, was familiarized to the
public more than two generations ago by its re-
vival tune, sometimes called " Duane Street,'' long-
meter double. It is staffed in various keys, but
its movement is full of life and emphasis, and its
melody is contagious. The piece was composed
by Rev. George G)les, in 1835.
The fact that this hymn of Cennick with Coles's
tune appears in the New Methodist Hymnal
indicates the survival of both in modem favor.
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. 127
Jenit my all to heaven is gone.
He whom I fixed my hopes upon;
His track I see, and 111 pursue
The narrow way till Him I view.
The way the holy prophets went.
The road that leads from banishment.
The King's highway of holiness
I'll go for all Thy paths are peace.
The memory has not passed away of the hearty
unison with which prayer-meeting and camp-
meeting assemblies used to ''crescendo" the last
stanza —
Then wiU I tell to sinners round
What a dear Saviour I have found;
ril point to His redeeming blood.
And say "Behold the way to God."
The Rev. George 0)les was bom in Stewkley,
Eng., Jan. 2, 1792, and died in New York City,
May I, 1858. He was editor of the N. T. Chris-
tian Advocatey and Sunday School Advocatiy for
several years, and was a musician of some ability,
besides being a good singer.
"SWEET THE MOMENTS, RICH IN BLESSING.''
The Hon. and Rev. Walter Shirley, Rector of
Loughgree, county of Galway, Ireland, revised this
hymn under the chastening discipline of a most
trying experience. His brother, the Earl of
Ferrars, a licentious man, murdered an old and
faithful servant in a fit of rage, and was executed
at Tyburn for the crime. Sir Walter, after the
128 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
disgrace and long distress of the imprisonmem,
trial, and final tragedy, returned to his little parish
in Ireland, humbled but driven nearer to the Cross.
Sweet the moments, rich m blessing
Which befofie the Cross I spend;
Life and health and peace possessing
From the sinner's dying Friend.
AV the emotion of one who buries a mortifying
sorrow in the heart of Christ, and tries to forget,
trembles in the lines of the above hymn as he
changed and adapted it in his saddest but devoutest
hours. Its original writer was the Rev, James
Allen, nearly twenty years younger than himself,
a man of culture and piety, but a Christian of
shifting creeds. It is not impossible that he sent
his hymn to Shirley to revise. At all events it owes
its present form to Shirley's hand* ,
Truly blessed is the station
Low before His cross to lie, ,
While I see Divine Compassion
Beaming in His gracious eye.*
The influence of Sir Walter's family misfortune
is evident also in the mood out of which breathed
his other trustful lines —
Peace, troubled soul, whose plaintive moan
Hath taught these rocJts the notes of woe,
(changed now to *'hath taught tkest scenes** tic).
Sir Walter Shirley, cousin of the Countess of
Huntingdon, was born 1725, and died in 1786,
i^fioitiflg in Hitluiguu) eyt** leeaki to hife bceo tbc earlier ver»o&
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
129
Even in his last sickness he continued to preach to
his people in his house, seated in his chair.
Rev, James Oswald Allen was born at Gayle,
Yorkshire, Eng,, June 24* 1743. He left the
University of Cambridge after a year's study, and
became an itinerant preacher, but seems to have
been a man of unstable religious views* After
roving from one Christian denomination to another
several times, he built a Chapel, and for forty
years ministered there to a small Independent
congregation. He died in Gayle, Oct. 31,1 804.
The tune long and happily associated with
"Sweet the Moments" is "Sicily," or the "Sicilian
Hymn" — frcm an old Latin hymn-tune, "O
Sanctissima."
"O FOR A CLOSER WALK WITH GOD.-
The author, WilHam Cowper, son of a clergy-
man, was bom at Berkhampstead, Hertfordshire,
Eng., Nov. 15, 1 73 1, and died at Dereham,
Norfolk, April 25, 1800. Through much of his
adult life he was afflicted with a mental ailment
inducing melancholia and at times partial insanity,
during which he once attempted suicide* He
sought literary occupation as an antidote to his
disorder of mind, and besides a great number of
lighter pieces which diverted him and his friends,
composed "The Task," an able and delightful
moral and domestic poetic treatise in blank verse,
and in the same style of verse translated Homer^s
Odyssey and Iliad,
J30
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
One of the most beloved of English poets, this
»ufFering man was also a true Christian, and wrote
some of our sweetest and most spiritual hymns.
Most of these were composed at Olney, where he
resided for a time with John Newton, his fellow
hymnist, and jointly with him issued the volume
known as the Olney Hymns.
THE TUNE,
Music more or less closely identified with this
familiar hymn is Gardiner^s "Dedham," and also
"Mear/* often attributed to Aaron Williams- Both^
about equally with the hymn, are seasoned by time,
but have not worn out their harmony — or their
fitness to Cowper's prayer*
William Gardiner was bom in Leicester, Eng-j
March 15, 1770, and died there Nov* 11, 1853.
He was a vocal composer and a '*musicographer"
or writer on musical subjects.
One Aaron Williams, to whom "Meat" has by
some been credited, was of Welsh descent, a com-
poser of psalmody and clerk of the Scotch church
in London. He was bom in 1734, and died in
1776. Another account, and the mote probable
one, names a minister of Boston of still earlier
date as the author of the noble old harmony. It
is found in a small New England collection of
1726, but not in any English or Scotch collection.
"Mear" is presumably an American tune.
I
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. I3I
"'WHAT VARIOUS HINDRANCES WE MEET^
Another hymn of Cowper's; and no one ever
suffered more deeply the plaintive regret in the
opening lines, or better wrought into poetic ex-
pression an argument for prayer.
What various hindrances we meet
In coming to a mercy-seat I
Yet who that knows the worth of pnytt
But wishes to be often there ?
Prayer makes the darkest clouds withdraw.
Prayer climbs the ladder Jacob saw.
The whole hymn is (or once was) so thoroughly
learned by heart as to be fixed in the church among
its household words. Preachers to the diffident
do not forget to quote —
Have you no words ? ah, think again;
Words flow apace when you comflain*
Were half the breath thus vainly spent
To Heaven in supplication sent.
Our cheerful song would oftener be,
''Hear what the Lord hath done for mel^
And there is all the lifetime of a proverb in the
conplet —
Satan trembles when he 1
The weakest saint upon his knees.
'fune, Lowell Mason's '"Rockingham/
^p STORY OF THE HYMNS ANB TUNES.
•^n- GRACIOUS REDEEMER I LOVE."
Thb is one of Benjamin Francis's lays of de*
The Christian Welshman who bore that
was a Gospel minister full of Evangelical
ical, who preached in many places, though his
pastoral home was with the Baptist church in
Sboftwood, Wales. Flattering calls to London
could not tempt him away from his first and only
partsh» and he remained there till his triumphant
death. He was bom in 1734, and died in 1799-
My gracious Redeemer I love^
His praises aloud III proclaim.
And join with the armies above.
To diout His adorable name.
To gaze on His glories dmne
Shall be my eternal employ;
To see them incessantly shine.
My boundless, ineffable j<qr. 1
Tune, " Birmingham '* — an English melody.
Anonymous^
"^BLEST BE THE TIE THAT BITTOS/*
Perhaps the best hymn-expression of sacred
brotherhood, at least k has had, and still has the
indorsement of constant use- The author, John
Fawcett* D,D-, is always quoted as the example
of his own words> since he sacrificed ambition
and personal interest to Christian affection*
Born near Bradford, Yorkshire, Jan, 6, 1739)
and converted under the preaching of Whitefieldi
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION*
133
he joined the Methodists, but afterwards became
a member of the new Baptist church in Bradford.
Seven years later he was ordained over the Baptist
Society at Wainsgate. In 1772 he received a call
to succeed the celebrated Dn Gilljn London, and
accepted. But at the last moment, when his
goods were packed for removal, the clinging love
of his people, weeping their farewells around him,
melted his heart. Their passionate regrets were
more than either he or his good wife could with-
stand.
I *'I will stay^" he said; "you may unpack my
goods» and we will live for the Lord lovingly
together/*
It was out of this heart experience that the
tender hymn was born.
Our fears, our hapes, our aims ntt oiie«
Our Gomfons 2nd our cares.
^^^^Dr. Fawcett died July 25, 1817.
^ Tune, '*Boylston/' L, Mason; or
H. G. Nageli.
'Dennis/
*1 LOVE THY KINGDOM, LORD/'
f **Dr. Dwight's Hymn," as this is known par
eminence among many others from his pen, is
one of the imperishable lyrics of the Christian
Church- The real spirit of the hundred and
twenty-second Psalm is in it, and it is worthy of
Watts in his best moments.
134 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Timothy Dwight was bom at Northampton,
Mass, May 14, 1752, and graduated at Yale
College at the age of thirteen. He wrote several
religious poems of considerable length. In 1795
he was elected President of Yale College, and in
1800 he revised Watts' Psalms, at the request of the
General Association of Connecticut, adding a num-
ber of translations of his own.
I love Thy kingdom. Lord,
The house of Thine abode.
The Church our blest Redeemer saved
With His own precious blood.
I love Thy Church, O God;
Her walls before Thee stand.
Dear as the apple of Thine eye.
And graven on Thy hand.
Dr. Dwight died Jan. 11, 181 7.
Tune, "St. Thomas," Aaron Williams, (1734-
1776.)
Mr. Hubert P. Main, however, believes the
author to be Handel. It appeared as the second
movement of a four-movement tune in Williams^s
1762 collection, which contained pieces by the
great masters, with his own; but while not credited
to Handel, Williams did not claim it himself.
'T4ID SCENES OF CONFUSION."
This hymn, common in chapel hymnbooks
half a century and more ago, is said to have been
written by the Rev. David Denham, about 1826.
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. I35
THE TUNE.
**Home, Sweet Home" was composed, accord-
ing to the old account, by John Howard Payne as
one of the airs in his opera of *'Clari» the Maid of
Milan/' which was brought out in London at
Druiy Lane in 1823. ^"^ Charles Mackay, the
English poety in the London Telegraph, asserts
that Sir Henry Bishop, an eminent musician, in
his vain search for a Sicilian national air, invented
one, and that it was the melody of " Home, sweet
Home," which he afterwards set to Howard Payne's
words. Mr. Mackay had this story from Sir
Henry himself.
Mid scenes of confusion and creature complaints
How sweet to my soul is communion with saints.
To find at the banquet of mercy there's room
And feel in the presence of Jesus at home.
Home, home, sweet, sweet home!
Prepare me, dear Savior for glory, my home.
John Howard Payne, author at least, of the
original words of "Home, Sweet Home,'* was born
in New York City June 9, 1791. He was a singer,
and became an actor and theatrical writer. He com-
posed the words of his immortal song in the year
1823, when he was himself homeless and hungry
and sheltered temporarily in an attic in Paris.
His fortunes improved at last, and he was ap-
pointed to represent his native country as consul
in Tunis, where he died, Apr. 9, 1852.
IZ
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
This sublime quatrain^ attributed to Nahum
Tate, like the Lord's Prayer js suited to a II occasions,
to all Christian denominations, and to all places
and conditions of men. It has been translated
into all civilized languages, and has been rising
to heaven for many generations from congregations
round the globe wherever the faith of Christendom
has built its altars. This doxology is the first
stanza of a sixteen line hymn (possibly longer
originally), the rest of which is forgotten.
Nahum Tate was born in Dublin, in 1652, and
educated there at Trinity College* He was ap-
pointed poet-laureate by King William III. in
1690, and it was in conjunction with Dr. Nicholas
Brady that he executed his '* New" metrical version
of the Psalms. The entire Psalter, with an appen-
dix of Hymns, was licensed by William and Mary
and published in 1703. The hymns in the volume
are all by Tate, He died in London, Aug. la, 171 7*
Rev, Nicholas Brady, D. D., was an Irishman,
son of an officer in the royal army, and was bom
at Bandon, County of Cork, Oct. 28, 1659. He
studied in the Westminister School at Oxford,
but afterwards entered Trinity College, Dublin »
where he graduated in 1685, William made him
Queen Mary's Chaplain. He died May 20, 1726.
The other nearly contemporary form of doxol-
ogy is in common use, but though elevated and
devotional in spirit, it cannot be universal, owing
to its credal line being objectionable to non-Trini-
tarian Protestants:
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP. IJ
Pnuse Go<f from whom all blesdng^ ^gw^
Praise Him all creatures here below^
Praise Him above, ye heaven ty host,
PraiBc Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
The author, the Rev* Thomas Ken, was bom in
Berkhampstead^ Hertfordshire, Eng., July, 1637,
and was educated at Winchester School, Hertford
College, and New College, Oxford. In 1662 he
took holy orders, and seventeen years later the king
(Charles H.) appointed him chaplain to his sister
.Mary, Princess of Orange. Later the king, just
before his death, made him Bishop of Bath and
Wells,
Like John the Baptist, and Bourdatoue, and
Knox, he was a faithful spiritual monitor and
adviser during all his days at court- " I must go in
and hear Ken tell me my faults," the king used to
say at chapel time. The "good little man" (as
he called the bishop) never lost the favor of the
dissipated monarch. As Macaulay says, *'Of all
the prelates, he liked Ken the best/*
Under James, the Papist, Ken was a loyal
fiuhject, though once arrested as one of the "seven
bishops** for his opposition to the king's religion,
and he kept his oath of allegiance so firmly that it
cost him his place. William IIL deprived him of his
bishopic, and he retired in poverty to a home
kindly offered him by Lord Viscount Weymouth
in Longleat,near From e, in Somersetshire, where he
spent a serene and beloved old age. He died aet.
seventy-four, March 17, 1711 (N, S,), and was
14
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
carried to his grave, according to his request,
" six of the poorest men in the parish/'
His great doxology is the refrain or final stanza
of each of his three long hymns, "Morning,"
*' Evening" and "Midnight/' printed in a Prayft
Manual for the use of the students of Winchester
College, The "Evening Hymn" drew scenic in-
spiration, it is told, from the lovely view in
Horningsham Park at "Heaven's Gate Hill/'
while walking to and from church-
Another four-line doxology, adopted probably
from Dr. Hatfield (1807- 1883)* is abnost entirely
superseded by Ken's stanza, being of even moi
pronounced credal character.
To God the FathcTj God the Sofi,
And God the Spirit^ Three in One.
Be honor^ praise and glory given
By all on canii ainl all in heaven.
The Methodist Hymnal prints 2 collection of
ten doxologies, two by Watts, one by Charles
Wesley, one by John Wesley, one by William
Goode« one by Edwin F, Hatfield, one attributed
to "Tate and Brady,*' one by Robert Hawkes,
and the one by Ken above noted. Th^e are all
technically and intentionally doxologies. To give
m hraoiy of doxologies in the general sense of the
vrord would carri' one through every- Christian age
and langiia^ and end with a concordance of
Book cf P^JxBS.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^Ei^^^H
I^H
b
i
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1
^^^^^l^H
w
1
1
c
}liver
Holden
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■^
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
'S
THE TUNE.
Few would think of any music more appropriate
to a standard doxology than "Old Hundred."
This grand Gregorian harmony has been claimed
to be Luther's production, while some have
believed that Louis Bourgeois, editor of the French
Genevan Psalter, composed the tune* but the
^weight of evidence seems to indicate that it was
the work of Guillaame le Franc, (William Franck
or William the Frenchman,) of Rouen, in France,
who founded a music school in Geneva, 1541-
He was Chapel Master thercj but removed to
Lausanne, where he played in the Catholic choir
and wrote the tunes for an Edition of Ma-
rot's and Beza's Psalms. Died in Lausanne,
^ 1570*
'nrHE LORD DESCENDED FROM ABOVE."
A flash of genuine inspiration was vouchsafed
to Thomas Stemhold when engaged v^^ith Rev.
John Hopkins in versifying the Eignteenth Psalm.
The ridicule heaped upon Stemhold and Hopkins*s
psalmbook has always stopped, and sobered into
admiration and even reverence at the two stanzas
beginning with this leading line —
The Lord descended from abov*
And bowed rhe heavens most h^gh»
And underneath Hk feet He ca^
The darkness of the sky.
1 8 STORY OF THE HYWNS AND TUNES.
indited his epitaph evidently did the best he could
to embalm the virtues of the great musician as a
man, a citizen^ and a husband :
Efitfirred here doth ly a worthy wygbt.
Who for long time in musick Bore the bclh
His name to shew was Thomas Tdlis hyght;
In hoaest vertuous lyW he dyd exccll.
He serred long tyme in chappel with grctc prmysc^
FowCT sovereygncs rdgnes^ (a thing not often saene);
I mean King Henry and Prince Edward's dayes^
Queue Mine, and Elizabeth our <]uene.
He maryed was, though children he had none.
And iyv*d in love full three and thirty yercs
With loyal spowse, whose name yclept was Jone,
Who, here entombed, him company now bears.
As he dyd lyvc, so also dyd he dy.
In myld and quyet sort, O happy mac 1
To God fuf oft for mercy did he cry;
Wherefore he lyves, let Deth do what he can.
'THE GOP OF ABRAHAM PRAISE."
This is one of the thanksgivings of the ages.
The God of Abraham praise.
Who reigns enthroned a bore ;
Ancient of everlasting days.
And God of love.
Jehovah, Great I AMt
By earth and heaven confessed,
1 bow and bless the sacred Name,
Forever blest,
Thchymn, of twelve eight-line stanzas, is too long
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
19
to quote entire, but is found in both the Plymouth
and Methodist Hymnals.
Thomas Olivers, born in Tregynon, near New-
towTij Montgomeryshire, Wales, 1725, was, ac-
cording to local testimony, "the worst boy known
in all that country, for thirty years/' It is more
charitable to say that he was a poor fellow who
had no friends. Left an orphan at five years of
age, he was passed from one relative to another
until all were tired of him^ and he was "bound
out'* to a shoemaker. Almost inevitably the
neglected lad grew up wicked, for no one appeared
to care for his habits and morals, and as he sank
lower in the various vices encouraged by bad
company, there were more kicks for him than
helping hands. At the age of eighteen his repu-
tation in the town had become so unsavory that he
was forced to shift for himself elsewhere.
Providence led him, when shabby and penniless^
to the old seaport town of Bristol, where Whitefield
was at that time preaching,* and there the young
sinner heard the divine message that lifted him to
his feet.
"When that sermon began," he said> "I was one
of the most abandoned and profligate young men
living; before it ended I was a new creature. The
world was all changed for Tom Olivers."
His new life, thus begun, lasted on earth more
than sixty useful years. He left a shining record
tWhitefield^i ten irii, '*Ii not chit a bra&d plucked ot^t of the fife?'' £ick
20
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
as a preacher of righteousness^ and died m the
triumphs of faith, November, 1799. Before hel
passed away he saw at least thirty editions of his
hymn published, but the soul-music it has awakened
among the spiritual children of Abraham can only
reach him in heaven. Some of its words have been
the last earthly song of many, as they were of the
eminent Methodist theologian, Richard Watson—
I shall behold His face,
I shall His power adart^
And sing the wonders of His grace
Forevermore.
THE TUNE,
The precise date of the tune "Leoni" is un-
known, as also the precise date of the hymn. The
story js that Olivers visited the great "Duke's
Place" Synagogue, Aldgate, London, and heard
Meyer Lyon (Leoni) sing the Yigdal or long
doxology to an air so noble and impressive that
it haunted him till he learned it and fitted to it the
sublime stanzas of his song, Lyon, a noted Jewish
musician and vocalist, was chorister of this
London Synagogue during the latter part of the
1 8th century and the Yigdal was a portion of
the Hebrew Liturgy composed in medieval times*
it is said, by Daniel Ben Judah, The fact that
the Methodist leaders took Olivers from his
bench to be one of their preachers answers any
suggestion that the converted shoemaker copied
the Jewish hymn and put Christian phrases in it
HYMNS OK PRAISE AND WORSHIP- 21
He knew nothing of Hebrew, and had he known
it> a literal translation of the Yigdal will show
hardly a similarity to his evangelical lines* Only
the music as Leoni sang it prompted his own song,
and he gratefully put the singer's name to it,
Montgomer}s who admired the majestic style of
the hjTTin, and its glorious imagery, said of its
author, '*The man who wrote that hymn must
have had the finest ear imaginable, for on account
of the peculiar measure, none but a person of equal
musical and poetic taste could have produced the
harmony perceptible in the verse."
Whether the hymnist or some one else fitted the
hymn to the tune, the "fine ear" and '^poetic
taste*' that Montgomery applauded are evident
enough in the union,
-'O WORSHIP THE KING ALL GLORIOUS ABOVE."
This hymn of Sir Robert Grant has become
almost universally known^ and is often used as
a morning or opening service song by choirs and
congregations of all creeds. The favorite stanzas
are the first four —
O worship the King all-glorbus above,
And gratefully sing His wonderful love —
Our Shield and Defender, the Ancient of Days,
Pavilioned in splendor, and girded with praise,
O tell of His might, and sing of His grace.
Whose robe is the light, whose canopy^ space;
His chariots of wrath the deep thunder-clouds form.
And dark is Hb path on the wings of the storm.
22
STORY OF THE H\TaNS AND TUNES-
Thif boundftit care what toogue can recke f
It breathw tn the air, k shines in the ligbx.
It screams from the hills, ii descends to the plain.
And sweetly disdb in the dew and the T^m^
Frail child inen of dust, and feehle as frail.
In Thee do we trust, nor find Thee to fait
Thy mercies how tender! how firm to the cndt
Our Maker, Defender, Redeemer, and Friend!
This is a model hymti of worship. Like the
previous one by Thomas Olivers, it is strongly
Hebrew in its tone and diction, and drew its in-
spiration from the Old Testament Psalter, the
text-book of all true praise-song.
Sir Robert Grant was bom in the county of In-
vemesSj Scotland, in 1785, and educated at Cam-
bridge. He was many years member of Parliament
for Inverness and a director in the East India
Company, and 1834 was appointed Governor of
Bombay- He died at Dapoorie, Western India,
Julyg, 1838.
Sir Roben was a man of deep Christian feeling
and a p)oetic mind. His writings were not numer-
ous, but their thoughtful beauty endeared him to
a wide circle of readers. In 1839 ^^^ brother.
Lord Glenelg, published twelve of his poetical
pieces, and a new edition in 1868. The volume
contains the more or less well-known hymns —
The stany firrnament on high.
Saviour, when in dust to Thee,
and —
When gathering clauJs abound I view.
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
^3
Sir Robert's death, when scarcely past his prime,
'^vould indicate a decline by reason of illness, and
perhaps other serious affliction, that justified the
poetic license in the submissive verses beginning —
Thy mercy heard my tafant prayer*
And now m agf and grief Thy name
Does stiU my languid heart inBame,
And bow my faltering knee.
Oh, yet this bosom feels the fire.
This trembling hand and drooping lyre
Have yet a strain for Thee*
THE TUNE.
Several musical pieces written to the hymn,
"O, Worship the King,'* have appeared in church
psalm-books, and others have been borrowed for
it, but the one oftenest sung to its words is Haydn^s
" Lyons/* Its vigor and spirit best fit it for
Grant's noble lyric.
^'MAJESTIC SWEETNESS SITS ENTHRONED."
Rev. Samuel Stennett D.D.,the author of this
hymn, was the son of Rev, Joseph Stennett, and
grandson of Rev. Joseph Stennett D* D., who
wrote —
Another six days' work is done^
Another Sabbath i& begun*
All were Baptist ministers, Samuel was born in
1727, at Exeter, Eng., and at the age of twenty-
24 STOEY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
one became his father's assistant, and subse-
quently his successor over the church in Little
Wild Street, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London.
Majestic sweetness sits enthroned
Upon the Saviour's brow;
Hj« head with radiant gloriei crawii«d|
His lips with grace overflow.
To Him 1 owe my life and breath
And all the joys I have;
He makes me triumph over death.
He saves me from the grave.
1^ « * « ii. 1^
Since from His bounty I receive
Such proofs of bve divine.
Had I a thousand hearts to give.
Lord, they should all be Thine*
Samuel Stennett was one of the most respected
and influential ministers of the Dissenting per-
suasion, and a confidant of many of the most dis-
tinguished statesmen of his time. The celebrated
John Howard was his parishoner and intimate
friend- His degree of Doctor of Divinity was be-
stowed upon him by Aberdeen University, Besides
his theological writings he composed and published
thirty-eight hymns, among them —
On Jordan's stormy banks I ftand^
When two or three with sweet accord,
Here at Thy table. Lord, we m*^,
and —
'TIs finished," so the Saviour crietl.
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
^S
"Majestic Sweetness" began the third stanza of
his longer hymn —
To Christ the Lord let every tgngue,
Dr, Stennett died in London^ Aug, 24, 1795-
THE TUNE.
For fifty or sixty years "Ortonville" has been
linked with this devout hymn, and still main-
tains its fitting fellowship. The tune, composed
in 1830, was the work of Thomas Hastings, and
is almost as well-known and as often sung
as his immortal "Toplady/' (See chap. j/'Rock
of Ages."
"ALL HAIL THE POWER OF JESUS' NAME/^
This inspiring lyric of praise appears to have
been written about the middle of the eighteenth
century. Its author, the Rev, Edward Perronet,
son of Rev* Vincent Perronet, Vicar of Shoreham,
Eng,, was a man of great faith and humility but
zealous in his convictions* sometimes to his serious
expense. He was born in 1721, and, though
eighteen years younger than Charles Wesley, the
two became bosom friends, and it was under the
direction of the Wesleys that Perronet became a
preacher in the evangelical movement. Lady
Huntingdon later became his patroness, but some
needless and imprudent expressions in a satirical
poem, "The Mitre," revealing his hostility to the
union of church and state, cost him her favor,
26 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
and his contention against John Wesley's law that
none but the regular parish ministers had the right
to administer the sacraments, led to his complete
separation from both the Wesleys. He subse-
quently became the pastor of a small church of
Dissenters in Canterbury, where he died, in Jan-
uary, 1792. His piety uttered itself when near his
happy death, and his last words were a Gloria.
All hail the power of Jesus' name!
Let angels prostrate fall;
Bring forth the royal diadem,
To crown Him Lord of all.
Ye seed of Israel's chosen race.
Ye ransomed of the fall.
Hail Him Who saves you by His graoe^
And crown Him Lord of alL
Sinners, whose love can ne'er forget
The wormwood and the gall,
Go, spread your trophies at His feet.
And crown Him Lord of all.
Let every tribe and every tongue
That bound creation's call.
Now shout the universal song.
The crowned Lord of all.
With two disused stanzas omitted, the hymn as it
stands differs from the original chiefly in the last
•tanza, though in the second the initial line is now
transposed to read —
Ye chosen seed of Israel's race*
The fourth stanza now reads —
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP z;
Let every kindred, every trtb^
On this terrestrial ba!l
To Him all majesty ascribe.
And crown Him Lord of alL
And what is now the favorite last stanza is the one
added by Dn Rippon —
O that with yopder sacred throng
We at His feet may fall,
And jom the everlasting song.
And crown Him Lord of alL
THE TUNE.
Everyone now calls it '*01d Coronation/' and it
is entitled to the adjective by this timci being con-
sidererably more than a hundred years of age.
It was composed in the very year of Perronet's
death and one wonders just how long the hymn
and tune waited before they came together; for
Heaven evidently meant them to be wedded for all
dme. This is an American opinion, and no
reflection on the earlier English melody of " Miles
Lane," composed during Perronet's lifetime by
William Shrubsole and published with the words
in 1780 in the Gospel Magazine. There is also a
fine processional tune sung in the English Church
to Perronet's hymn.
The author of" Coronation " was Oliver HoIdeOi
a self-taught musician, born in Shirley, Mass.^
1765, and bred to the carpenter*s trade. The tittle
pipe? ofE^an on which tradition says he struck the
first notes of the famous tune is now in the Histor*
3^
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
John's College, Cambridge. Early in his mints-
terial life he was a Calvinistic Methodist 5 but
ultimately joined the Moravians. Died in London,
Aug, ig, 1793. His collection of Psalms and
Hymns and Spiritual Songs was published in 1745.
The Rev. Martin Madan, son of Coh Madan^
was born 1726, He founded Lock Hospital, Hyde
Park, and long officiated as its chaplain. As a
preacher he was popularj and his reputation as a
composer of music was considerable. There is
no proof that he wrote any original hymns, but
he amended, pieced and expanded the work of
others. Died in 1770.
THE TUNE,
The hymn has had a variety of musical inter*
pretations. The more modern piece is '* St. Philip, **
by Edward John Hopkins, Doctor of Music, bom
at Westminster, London, June 30, 1818. From a
member of the Chapel Royal boy choir he became
organist of the Michtam Church, Surrey, and
afterwards of the Temple Church, London. Re-
ceived his Doctor's degree from the Archbishop
of Canterbury in 1882,
"CROWN HIS HEAD WITH ENDLESS BLESSING."
The writer of this hymn was William Goode,
who helped to found the English Church Missionary
Society, and was for twenty years the Secretary of
the " Society for the Relief of Poor Pious Clergy-
I
I
Joseph
Haydn
BYMKS UF PRAISE AND WORSHIP,
31
men/* For celebrating the praise of the Saviour, he
seems to have been of like spirit and genius with
Perronet, He was bom in Buckingham, Eng,,
Apri! z, 1762; studied for the ministry and became
a curate, successor of William Romaine. His
spiritual maturity was early, and his habits of
thought were formed amid associations such as
the young Wesleys and Whitefield sought. Like
them, even in his student days he proved his aspi-
ration for purer religious life by an evangelical zeal
that cost him the ridicule of many of his school-
fellows, but the meetings for conference and prayer
which he organized among them were not unat-
tended, and were lasting and salutary in their effect,
Jesus was the theme of his life and song, and
was his last word. He died in 1816.
Crown Hii head with endless blessing
Who in God the Father's name
With compassion never ceasing
Comes salvation to proclaim.
Hail, ye saints who know His favor.
Who within His gates are foynd.
Hail, ye saints, th' exalted Saviour,
Let His courts with praise resound.
THE TUNE,
"Haydn/' bearing the name of its great com-
poser, is in several important hymnals the chosen
music for William Goode's devout words. Its
strain and spirit are lofty and melodious and in
entire accord with the pious poet's praise.
p'
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
Joseph Haydn* son of a poor wheelwright, was
bom i732> in Rohron, a village on the borders of
Hungary and Austria. His precocity of musical
talent was such that he began composing at the
age often years. Prince Esterhazy discovered his
genius when he was poor and friendless, and his
fortune was made. While Music Master for the
Prince's Private Chapel (twenty years) he wrote
many of his beautiful symphonies which placed him
among the foremost in that class of music. In-
vited to England, he received the Doctor's degree
at Oxford, and composed his great oratorio of
"The Creation," besides his "Twelve Grand
Symphonies," and a long list of minor musical
works secular and sacred. His invention was in-
exhaustible.
Haydn seems to have been a sincerely pious
man. When writing his great oratorio of "The
Creation" at sixty-seven years of age, "I knelt
down every day," he says, "and prayed God to
strengthen me for my work/' This daily spirit^
ual preparation was similar to Handel's when he
was creating his "Messiah." Change one word
and it may be said of sacred music as truly as
of astronomy, "The undevout composer is mad."
Near Haydn's death, in Vienna, 1809, when he
heard for the last time his magnificent chorus,
"Let there be Light!" he exclaimed, "Not mine,
not mine. It all came to me from above."
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP. JJ
'T^OW TO THE LORD A NOBLE SQNG/*
When Watts finished this hymn he had achieved
a "noble song/' whether he was conscious of it or
not; and it deserves a foremost place, where it
can help future worshippers in their praise as it
has the past. It is not so common in the later
hymnals, but it is imperishable, and still later
collections will not forget it.
Now to the Lord a noble wng.
Awake my soul, awake my tongtiel
H OS anna to the Eternal Name,
And alt His boundless love proclaim.
Sec where it shines in Jesus' face.
The brightest image of His grace!
God m the person of His Son
Has all His mightiest works outdone.
A rather finical question has occurred to some
minds as to the theology of the word ** works" in
the last line, making the second person in the God-
head apparently a creature; and in a few hymn-
books the previous line has been made to read —
God in the Goxpei of His Son.
But the question is a rhetorical one, and the poet's
free expression — here as in hundreds of other
cases— has never disturbed the general confidence
in his orthodoxy,
Montgomery called Watts "the inventor of
hymns in our language/' and the credit stands
practically undisputed, for Watts made a hymn
style that no human master taught him, and his
34 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
model has been the Ideal one for song worship ever
since; and we can pardon the climax when Pro*
fessor Charles M. Stuart speaks of him as ''writer,
scholar, thinker and saint/* for in addition to all
the rest he was a very good man.
THE TUNE.
Old "Ames** was for many years the choir
favorite, and the words of the hymn printed with
it in the note-book made the association familiar.
It was, and fV, an appropriate selection, though
in later manuals George Kingsley*s "Ware** is
evidently thought to be better suited to the high-
toned verse. Good old tunes never "wear out,**
but they do go out of fashion.
The composer of "Ames,** Siglsmund Neu-
komm. Chevalier, was bom in Salzburg, Austria,
July lo, 1778, and was a pupil of Haydn. Though
not a great genius, his talents procured him access
and even intimacy in the courts of Germany, France,
Italy, Portugal and England, and for thirty years he
composed church anthems and oratorios with pro^
digious industry. Neukomm*s musical productions,
numbering no less than one thousand, and popular in
their day, are, however, mostly forgotten, excepting
his oratorio of " David** and one or two hymn-tunes.
George Kingsley, author of "Ware,** was born
in Northampton, Mass., July 7, 181 1. Died in
the Hospital, in the same city, March 14, 1884. He
compiled eight books of music for young people and
several manuals of church psalmody, and was foi
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP,
35
sometime a music teacher in Boston, where he played
the organ at the Hollis St, church. Subsequently he
became professor of music in Girard College, Phila-
delphia, and music instructor in the public schools,
being employed successively as organist (on Lord's
Day) at Dr. Albert Barnes' and Arch St. churches ,
and finally in Brooklyn at Dr. Storrs* Church
of the Pilgrims. Returned to Northampton, 1853,
**EARLY, MY GOD, WITHOUT DELAY."
This and the five following hymns, all by Watts,
are placed in immediate succession, for unity's
sake — ^with a fuller notice of the greatest of hymn-
writers at the end of the series.
Early, say GoJ, without dday
I haste to seek Thy face;.
My thirsty sprrit faints away
Without Thy cheering grace.
In the memories of very old men and women,
who sang the fugue music of Morgan's "Mont-
gomery," still hngers the second stanza and some
of the "spirit and understanding" with which if
used to be rendered in meetingon Sunday mornings.
So pttgrims on the scorching sand,
Beneath a burning sky,
Ixxng for a cooling stream at hlfu!
And they must drink or die.
THE TUNE,
Many of the earlier pieces assigned to this hymn
were either too noisy or too tame. The best and
36
STORY OF THE HV'MNS AND TUNES.
longest-serving is ''Lanesboro," which, with its
expressive duet in the middle and its soaring final
strain of harmony, never fails to cariy the mean-
ing of the words. It was composed by William
Dixon, and arranged and adapted by Lowell Mason.
William Dixon, an English composer* was a
music engraver and publisher, and author also of
several glees and anthems. He was bom 1750,
and died about 1825.
Lowell Mason, born in Medfield, Mass., 1792, has
been called, not without reason," the father of Amer-
ican choir singing." Returning from Savannah,
Ga., where he spent sixteen years of his younger life
as clerk in a bank> he located in Boston (182 7), being
already known there as the composer of '* The Mis-
sionary Hymn," He had not neglected his musical
studies while living in the South, and it was in Savan-
nah that he made the glorious harmony of that tune-
He became president of the Handel and Haydn
Society, went abroad for special study, was made
Doctor of Music, and collected a store of themes
among the great models of song to bring home for
his future work.
The Boston Academy of Music was founded by
him and what he did for the song-service of the
Church in America by his singing schools, and
musical conventions, and published manuals, to
form and organize the choral branch of divine
worship, has no parallel, unless it is Noah Webstei^f
service to the English language.
Dn Mason died in Orange, N. J., in 1872.
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
37
"SWEET IS THE WORK, MY GOD. MY KING^
This is one of the hymns that helped to give its
author the title of '*The Seraphic Watts/'
Sweet IS the work, my God, my King
To praise Thy name, give thanks and sing
To show Thy love by moming hght.
And talk of all Thy truth at night.
THE TUNE.
No nobler one, and more akin in spirit to the
hymn, can be found than "Duke Street/' Hatton's
imperishable choral.
Little is known of the John Hatton who wrote
**Duke St." He was earlier by nearly a century
than John Li phot Hatton of Liverpool (born in
1809), who wrote the opera of "Pascal Bruno/'
the cantata of "Robin Hood" and the sacred
drama of "Hezekiah/' The biographical index
of the Evangelical Hymnal says of John Hatton, the
author of "Duke St/'; "John, of Warrington; af*
terwards of St. Helens, then resident in Duke St. in
the tow^nship of Windle; composed several hymn-
tunes; died in 1793^* His funeral sermon was
preached at the Presbyterian Chapel^ St, Helens,
Dec. 13/'
*'COME, WE THAT LOVE THE LORD."
Watts entitled this hymn "Heavenly Joy on
Earth/' He could possibly, like Madame Guyon,
^Tradition af% he wat killed hf bemg thnnm hum m ttftfCHCoich-
38 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
have written such a hymn in a dungeon, but it is
no less spiritual for its birth (as tradition will have
it) amid the lovely scenery of Southampton where
he could find in nature ** glory begun below/'
Cqibc, we that love the Lord,
And let our joys l>e known;
join in a song with sweet accord ^
And thus surround the throne.
There shall we see His face^
And never, never sin;
There, from the rivers of His grace^
Drink endless pleasures in*
Children of grace have found
Glory begun below:
Celestial fruits on earthly ground
From faith and hope may grow.
Mortality and immortality blend their charms
in the next stanza. The unfailing beauty of the
vision will be dwelt upon with delight so long as
Christians sing on earth.
The hilt of Sion yields
A thousand sacred sweets.
Before we reach the heavenly fieldib
Or walk the golden streets.
THE TUNE.
"St. Thomas** has often been the interpreter of
the hymn, and still clings to the words in the
memory of thousands.
The Italian tune of *' Ain" has more music. It
is a fugue piece (simplified in some tune-books)i
HYMNS OF PRAJSE AND WORSHIP.
39
and the joyful traverse of its notes along the staff
in four-four time, with the momentum of a good
choir, is exhilarating in the extreme-
G>reUi, the composer^ was a master violinist, the
greatest of his day* and wrote a great deal of
violin musk; and the thought of his glad instru-
ment may have influenced his work when harmo-
nizing the four voices of ** Ain/*
Arcangelo Corelli was bom at Fusignano, in
i653. He was a sensitive anist, and although
faultless in Italian music, he was not sure of him-
self in playing French scores, and once while
performing with Handel (who resented the slightest
error), and once again with Scarlatti, leading an
orchestra in Naples when the king was present, he
made a monifying mistake. He took the humili-
ation so much to heart that he brooded over it till
he died, in Rome, Jan. i8j 1717.
For revival meetings the modem tune set to
"Come we that love the Lord," by Robert Lowry^
should be mentioned. A shouting chorus is ap-
pended to it, but it has melody and plenty of stim-
ulating motion.
The Rev, Robert Lowry was bom in Philadelphia,
March 12, 1826, and educated at Lewisburg, Pa.
From his 28th year till his death, 1899, he was a
faithful and successful minister of Christ> but
is more widely known as a composer of sacred
musk.
40 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"BE THOU EXALTED, Q MY GOD."
In this hymn the thought of Watts touches the
eternal summits. Taken from the 57th and io8th
Psalms —
Be Thou exalted^ O my God^
Above the heavens where angels dwell;
Thy power on earth be known abroad
And land to land Thy wonders tell
« * * » ii *
High o*er the earth His mercy reigns,
And reaches to the utmost sky;
His truth to endless years remains
When lower worlds dissolve and die.
THE TUNE.
Haydn furnished it out of his chorus of morning
stars, and it was christened "Creation," after the
name of his great oratorio. It is a march of
trumpets.
"BEFORE JEHOVAH ^S AWFUL TIIRONE.^
No one could mistake the style of Watts in this
sublime ode. He begins with his foot on Sinai,
but flies to Calvary with the angel preacher whom
St, John saw in his Patmos vision:
Before Jehovah's awful throne
Ye nations bow with sacred joy;
Know that the Lord is God alone;
He can create and He destroy.
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
His sovereign power without our aid
Made tif of day and formed us men.
And when like wandering sheep we stray.
He brought us to His fold again*
* ^ ^ m * *
We*U crowd Thy gates with thankful songi^
High as the heaven our voices raise.
And earth with her ten thousand tongues
Shall iili Thy couns with sounding praise.
TUNE— OLD HUNDRED.
Martin Madan's four-page anthem, "Den-
mark/' has some grand strains in it^ but it is a
tune of florid and difficult vocalization, and is now
heard only in Old Folks' Concerts,
The Rev. Isaac Watts, D.D., was bom at
Southampton, Eng., in 1674* His father was a
deacon of the Independent Church there, and
though not an uncultured man himself, he is said
to have had little patience with the incurable
penchant of his boy for making rhymes and verses.
We hear nothing of the lad's mother, but we can
fanqr her hand and spirit in the indulgence of his
poetic tastes as well as in his religious training.
The tradition handed down from Dr Price, a
colleague of Watts, relates that at the age of
eighteen Isaac became so irritated at the crabbed
and un tuneful hymns sung at the Nonconformist
meetings that he complained bitterly of them to
his father. The deacon may have felt something
42
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
as Dr. Way land did when a rather "fresh" student
criticised the Proverbs, and hinted that making such
things could not be " much of a job/* and the Doc-
tor remarked, ''Suppose you make a few." Possi-
bly there was the same gentle sarcasm in the reply
of Deacon Watts to his son, "Make some yourself,
then."
Isaac was in just the mood to take his father at
his wordj and he retired and wrote the hymn —
Behold the glories of the Lamb*
There must have been a decent tune to carry it,
for it pleased the worshippers greatly, when it wss
sung in meeting — and that was the beginning of
Isaac Watts' career as a hymnist.
So far as scholarship was an advantage, the young
writer must have been well equipped already, for
as early as the entering of his fifth year he was
learning Latin, and at nine learning Greek; at
eleven, French; and at thirteen, Hebrew. From
the day of his first success he continued to indite
hymns for the home church, until by the end of his
twenty-second year he had written one hundred
and ten, and in the two following years a hundred
and forty-four more, besides preparing himself for
the ministry. No. 7 in the edition of the first one
hundred and ten> was that royal jewel of alt his
lyric work —
When I fiirvey the wondrous cross.
Isaac Watts was ordained pastor of an Inde-
pendent Church in Mark Lane, London, 1702, but
HYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP.
43
repeated illness finally broke up his ministry^ and
he retired, an invalid, to the beautiful home of Sir
Thomas Abney at Theobaldo, invited, as he sup-
posed, to spend a week, but it was really to spend
the rest of his life — thirty-six years.
Numbers of his hymns are cited as having bio-
graphical or reminiscent color. The stanza in —
When 1 can read my tide clear,
— ^which reads in the original copy, —
Should earth against my ^ul engage
And hflhsh dartt he hurled^
Then I can smile at Saians rag^
And face a frowning world,
— is said to have been an allusion to Voltaire and his
attack upon the church, while the calm beauty of
the harbor within view of his home is supposed to
have been in his eye when he composed the last
stanza, —
There shall 1 bathe my weary soul
In seas of heavenly re^it.
And not a wave of trouble roll
Across my peaceful breast.
According to the record, —
What shall the dying sinner do f
— ^was one of his "pulpit hymns," and followed a
sermon preached from Rom* i :i6. Another, —
And IS this life prolonged to yoti ?
— iftara sermon from I Cor, 3:22; and another,^
How vast 3 treasure we possess.
44 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
— enforced his text, "All things are yours," The
hymDj^ —
Not all the blood of beasts
On Jewish altars slain,
— was, as some say, suggested to the writer by a
visit to the abbatoir in Smithfield Market- The
same hymn years afterwards, discovered, we are
told, in a printed paper wrapped around a shop
bundle, converted a Jewess, and influenced her to a
life of Christian faith and sacrifice.
A young man, hardened by austere and min-
atory sermons, was melted, says Dr. Belcher, by
simply reading,—
Show pity Lord, O Lord, foigive.
Let a repenting sinner live.
— and became partaker of a rich religious experience.
The summer scenery of Southampton, with its
distant view of the Isle of Wight, was believed to
have inspired the hymnist sitting at a parlor
window and gazing across the river Itchen, to
write the stanza —
Swe«t fields beyond the swelling flood
Stand drest in living green;
So to the Jews old Canaan stood
While Jordan roHed between.
The hymn, ''Unveil thy bosom, faithful tomb,**
was personal, addressed by Watts *'to Lucius on
the death of Seneca*"
A severe heart-trial was the occasion of another
hymn. When a young man he proposed marriage
HYMKS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP,
45
to Miss Elizabeth Singerj a much-admired young
lady, talented^ beautiful, and good. She rejected
him — kindly but finally. The disappointment
was bitter, and in the first shadow of it he wrote, —
How vain arc all (Kings here below.
How false and yet how fair*
Miss Singer became the celebrated Mrs. Eliza'^
beth Rowe» the spiritual and poetic beauty of
whose Meditations once made a devotional text-
book for pious souls. Of Dr. Watts and his
offer of his hand and heart, she always said, "I
loved the jewel, but I did not admire the casket,"
The poet suitor was undersized, in habitually
delicate health — and not handsome.
But the good minister and scholar found noble
employment to keep his mind from preying upon
itself and shortening his days. During his long
though afflicted leisure he versified the Psalms,
wrote a treatise on Logicj an Introduction to the
Study of Astronomy and Geography^ and a work
On the Improvement of the Mind; and died in
1 748, at the age of seventy-four.
"O FOR A THOUSAND TONGUES TO SING."
Charles Wesley, the author of this hymn, took up
the harp of Watts when the older poet laid it down.
He was born at Epworth, Eng., in 1708, the third
son of Rev. Samuel Wesley, and died in London,
March 29, 1788. The hymn is believed to have
46
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
been written May 17, 1739, for the anniversary of
his own conversion :
O for a thousand tongues to smg
My great Redeemer's praise.
The glories of my God and Kingp
And iriumphs of His grace.
The remark of a fervent Christian friend, Peter
Bohler, " Had I a thousand tongues I would praise
Christ Jesus with them all/* struck an answering
chord in Wesley's heart, and he embalmed the
wish in his fluent verse* The third stanza (printed
as second in some hymnals)^ has made language for
pardoned souls for at least four generations:
Jesus I the name that calms our fears
An4 bids our sorrows cease;
*Tis music in the sinner's ears,
Tis Hfe and health and peace.
4
Charles Wesley was the poet of the soul, and
knew every mood. In the words of Isaac Taylor,
** There is no main article of belief. . , ,no moral
sentiment peculiarly characteristic of the gospel
that does not find itself. , . . pointedly and clearly
conveyed in some stanza of Charles Wesley's
poetry/* And it does not dim the lustre of Watts,
considering the marvellous brightnessjversatility and
felicity of his greatest successor, to say of the latter,
with the London Quarterly y that he "was, perhaps, |
the most gifted minstrel of the modern Church."
Most of the hymns of this good man were hymns
of experience — and this is why they are so dear to
I*
MYMNS OF PRAISE AND WORSHIP;
47
the Christian heart. The music of eternal life is
in them- The happy glow of a single line in one
of them —
Love Divme, all loves excelling,
— thrills through them alL He led a spotless life
from youth to old age, and grew unceasingly in
spiritual knowledge and sweetness. His piety
and purity were the weapons that alike humbled
his scoffing fellow scholars at Oxford, and con-
quered the wild colliers of KIngwood- With his
brother John, through persecution and ridicule, he
preached and sang that Divine Love to his country-
men and in the wilds of America, and on their
return to England his quenchless melodies multi-
plied till they made an Evangelical literature
around his name* His hymns — he wrote no less
than six thousand — ^are a liturgy not only for the
Methodist Church but for English-speaking Chris-
tendom.
The voices of Wesley and Watts cannot be
hidden, whatever province of Christian life and
service Is traversed in themes of song, and in these
chapters they will be heard again and again,
A Watts-and-Wesley Scholarship would grace
any Theological Seminary^ to encourage the study
and discussion of the best lyrics of the two great
Gospel bards.
THE TUNES.
The musical mouth-piece of "O for a thousancf,
tongues," nearest to its own date^ is old "Azmon/**
4»
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
by Carl Glaser (i 734-1 829), appearing as No.
in the New Methodist Hymnal. Arranged by
Lowell Mason, 1830^ it is still comparatively
familiar, and the flavor of devotion is in its tone
and style,
Henry John Gauntlett, an English lawyer and
composer, wrote a tune for it m 1872, noble in its
uniform step and time, but scarcely uttering the
hymnist*s characteristic ardor*
The tune of *' Dedham/' by William Gardiner,
now venerable but surviving by true merit, is not
unlike ^'Azmon*' in movement and character.
Though less closely associated with the hymn, as
a companion melody it is not inappropriate. But
whatever the range of vocalization or the dignity
of swells and cadences, a slow pace of single semi-
breves or quarters is not suited to Wesley *s hymns*
They are flights.
Professor William Gardiner wrote many works
on musical subjects early in the last century, and
composed vocal harmonies, secular and sacred.
He was born in Leicester, Eng., March 5, 1770,
and died there Nov. 16, 1853,
There is an old-fashioned unction and vigor in
the ^le of "Peterborough" by Rev. Ralph
Harrison (1748-18 10) that after all best satisfies
the singer who enters heart and sou! into the spirit
of the hymn* Old Peterborough was composed in
1786.
HYMNS OF PRAISE AKD WORSHIP,
49
"LORD WITH GLOWING HEART FD PRAISE THEE/'
This was written in 1817 by the author of the
"Star Spangled Banner/* and is a noble American
hynin of which the country may well be proud,
both because of its merit and for its birth in the
heart of a national poet who was no less a Christian
than a patriot,
Francis Scott Key, lawyer, was born on the
estate of his father, John Ross Key, in Frederick,
Md., Aug. 1st, 1779; and died in Baltimore, Jan.
11* 1843, A bronze statue of him over his grave>
and another in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco>
represent the nationality of his fame and the
gratitude of a whole land.
Though a slaveholder by inheritance, Mr, Key
deplored the existence of human slavery, and not
only originated a scheme of African colonization,
but did all that a model master could do for the
chattels on his plantation, in compliance with the
Scripture command,* to lighten their burdens.
He helped them in their family troubles, defended
them gratuitously in the courts, and held regular
Sunday-school services for them.
Educated at St. John's College, an active
member of the Episcopal Church, he was not only
a scholar but a devout and exemplary man.
Lord, with gtowing heart I'd praise Thcc
For the bliss Thy love bestows.
For the pardoning grace that savei me»
And the peace that from k How£,
jO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
Help^ O Lord J my weak endeavor;
This dull soul to rapture raise;
Thou musi light the flame or never
Can my love be warmed to praise.
Lord J this bosom's ardent feeling
Vainly would my life express;
Low before Thy footsiooi kneeling.
Deign Thy suppliant's prayer to bltss*
Let Thy grace, my soul's chief treasure.
Love's pure (tame within me raise.
And, since words can never measure^
Let my life show forth Thy praise*
THE TUNE.
**St. Chad/* a choral in D; with a four-bar
unison, in the Evangelical Hymnal^ is worthy of
the hymn. Richard Redhead* the composer^
organist of the Church of St* Maty Magdalene*
Paddington, Eng., was born at Harrow, Middle-
sex, March i, 1820, and educated at Magdalene
College, Oxford, Graduated Bachelor of Music |
at Oxford, 1871* He published Laudes Domin^t^
a Gregorian Psalter, 1843, a Book of Tunes for
the Christian Year^ and is the author of much rit-*
ual music,
'^HOLY, HOLY, HOLY, LORD GOD ALMIGHTY/'
There is nothing so majestic in Protestant hym-
nology as this Tersanctus of Bishop Heben
The Rt. Rev, Reginald Heber, son of a clergy-
man of the same name^ was bom in Malpas.
HltUnS OF PRAISE AKD WORSHIP
51
Cheshire, Eng,, April 2ist» 1783, and educated
at Oxford. He served the church in Hodnet,
Shropshire, for about twenty yearsj and was then
appointed Bishop of Calcutta , E, L His labors
there were cut short in the prime of his life* his
death occurring in 1826, at Trichinopoly on the
3d of April, his natal month.
His hymns, numbering fifty-seven, were collected
by his widow, and published with his poetical
worics in 1842.
Holy! Wy! liolyi Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee.
Holy! holy! holy! merciful and mighty,
God in Three Persons, blessed Triniry,
Holy! holy I holy! all the saints adore Thee,
Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea;
Chenihim and seraphim, falling down before Thee,
Which wert, and art, and evermore shall be*
THE TUNE.
Grand as the hymn is, it did not come to its full
grandeur of sentiment and sound in song-worship
till the remarkable music of Dr, John B* Dykes
was joined to it. None was ever written that in
performance illustrates more admirably the solemn
beauty of congregational praise. The name
"Nicsea'* attached to the tune means nothing to
the popular ear and mind* and it is known every-
where by the initial words of the first line*
Rev. John Bacchus Dykes* Doctor of Music,
was bom at Kingston-upon-HuU, in 1823; and
52
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
graduated at Cambridge, in 1847, He became a
master of tone and choral harmony, and did much
to reform and elevate congregational psalmody
in England* He was perhaps the first to demon-
strate that hymn-tune making can be reduced to a
science without impairing its spiritual purpose.
Died Jan, %z, 1876.
' 'LORD OF ALL BEING. THRONED AFAR."
This noble hymn was composed by Dn Oliver
Wendell Holmes, born in Cambridge, Mass., 1809,
and graduated at Harvard University. A physician
by profession^ he was known as a practitioner
chiefly in literature, being a hritliant writer and
long the leading poetical wit of America* He was,
however, a man of deep religious feeling, and a
devout attendant at King's Chapel^ Unitarian^ in
Boston where ht spent his life* He held the
Harvard Professoiship of Anatomy and Physiology
more than fifty yerr%, but his enduring work is in
his poems, and his charming volume, Th^ Auto-
crat of ike Breakfast T^^ble. Died Jan. 22, 1896.
THE f LNE.
Holmes* hymn is sung in some churches to
"Louvan," V* C, Taylor's ad.^irikble praise tune.
Other hymnals prefer with it the n:u5tc of '* Keble,"
one of Dr. Dykes* appropriate andfini?ikej melodies.
Virgil Cbrydon Taylor, an American v/val com-
poser, was bom in Barkhamstead, Conn., April 2|
181 7» died 1891*
CHAPTER n.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT
WITNESSES.
DAMASCUS.
"EpxeoOe, & xiorof,
John of Damascus, called also St. John of
Jenicaleniy a theologian and poet, was the last
but one of the Christian Fathers of the Greek
Church. This eminent man was named by the
Arabs " Ibn Mansur/* Son (Servant ?) of a Con-
queror, either in honor of his father Sergius or
because it was a Semitic translation of his family
title. He was bom in Damascus early in the 8th
century, and seems to have been in favor with the
Caliph, and served under him many years in some
important civil capacity, until, retiring to Palestine^
he entered the monastic order, and late in life was
ordained a priest of the Jerusalem Church. He
died in the Convent of St. Sabas near that city
about A. D. 780.
His lifetime appears to have been passed in
(68)
54
STORT OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
comparative peace* Mohammed having died
before completing the conquest of Syria, the
Moslem rule before whose advance Oriental
Christianity was to lose its first field of triumph
had not yet asserted its persecuting power in the
north. This devout monk, in his meditations at
St. Sabas, dwelt much upon the birth and the
resurrection of Christ, and made hymns to cele-
brate them. It was probably four hundred years
before Bonaventura ( ?} wrote the Christmas
" Adeste Fideles" of the Latin West that John of
Damascus composed his Greek "Adeste Fideles"
for a Resurrection song in Jerusalem,
Come ye faithful, raise the strabi
Of triumphanc gladness.
* 1^ « ^ * *
Tis the spring of souls today
Christ hath burst His prison;
From the frost and gloom of death
Light snd life have risen.
The nobler of the two hymns preserved to us,
(or six stanzas of it) through eleven centuries is
entitled '* The Day of Resurrection."
The day of resurrection,
Earth, tell its joys ahroad:
The Passover of gladness^
The Passover of God.
From death to life eternal.
From earth unto the sky,
Our Christ hath brought us
With hymns of victorv.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 55
Our hearts be pure from cvil^
Th;it wc may sec aright
The Lord in rays eternal
Of resurrection light;
And, listening to His accents,
May hear^ so calm and plain.
His own, **AU hail I ' and hearing
May raise the vktor-scrain.
Now let the heavens he joyful.
Let eanh her song begin.
Let all the world keep triumph.
All that dwell therein.
In grateful exultation.
Their notes lei all things blend.
For Christ the Lord is risen,
O joy that hath no end I
Both these hymns of John of Damascus wer^
translated b; John Mason Neale.
THE TUNE,
''The Day of Resurrection** is sung in the
modem hymnals to the tune of "Rotterdam,"
composed by Bert hold of Tours, born in that city of
the Netherlands, Dec, 17, 1838. He was educated
at the conservatory in Leipsic, and later made
London his permanent residence, writing both
vocal and instrumental music* Died 1897- "Rot-
terdam" is a stately, sonorous piece and conveys
the flavor of the ancient hymn.
"Cbme ye faithful'* has for its modem inter-
prc»**r Sir Anhar Sullivan, the celebrated com-
po J of W-ii)( stcular and sacred works, but best
56
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
known In hymnody as author of the great Christian
march, *' Onward Christian Soldiers*"
Hymns are known to have been written by the
earlier Greek Fathers, Ephrem Syrus of Mesopo-
tamia (A. D. 307-373), Basil the Great, Bishop
of Cappadocia (A. D. 329-379) Gregory Nazi-
anzen, Bishop of Constantinople (A. D. 335-390)
and others, but their fragments of song which have
come down to us scarcely rank them among the
great witnesses— with the possible exception of the
last name. An English scholar, Rev, Allen W.
Chatfield, has translated the hymns extant of
Gregory Nazianzen. The following stanzas give
an idea of their quality. The lines are from an
address to the Deity :
How, Un appro ached! shall mind of man
Descry Thy daizling throne^
And pierce and find Thee out» and scan
Where Thou dost dwell alone f
Unuttered Thou I all uttered thin^
Have had their birth from Thee;
The One Unknown^ from Thee the spring
Of all we know and see.
And lol all things abide in Thee
And through the complex whole,
Thou spread St Thine own divinity.
Thyself of all the Goal
This is reverent, but rather philosophical than
evangelical, and reminds us of the Hymn of
Aratus, more than two centuries before Christ
was bom.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 57
ST, STEPHEN, THE SABAITE.
This pious Greek monk, (734-794,,) nephew of
St, John of Damascus, spent his life, from the age
often, in the monastery of St* Sabas. His sweet
hymn, known in Neale's translation* —
An thou weary, art rhou languid.
Art thou sore distrest ?
Come to Mc, saith One, and coming
Be ar rest,
—is still in the hymnals, with the tunes of Dykes,
and Sir Henry W. Baker (1821-1877), Vicar of
Monkland, Herefordshire.
KING ROBERT IT.
f^^ Fm^ Sancte Spirttui^
Roben the Second ^ sumamed ** Robert the Sage"
and "Robert the Devout," succeeded Hugh Capet,
his father, upon the throne of France, about the
year 997* He has been called the gentlest monarch
that ever sat upon a throne, and his amiability of
character poorly prepared him to cope with his
dangerous and wily adversaries. His last years
were embittered by the opposition of his own sons,
and the political agitations of the times. He died
at Melun in 1031, and was buried at St< Denis-
Robert possessed a reflective mind, and was fond
of learning and musical art. He was both a poet
and a musician. He was deeply religious, and, from
unselfish motives, was much devoted to the church.
58 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TONES,
Robert's hymn, " Veni, Sancte Spiritus/' is given
below. He himself was a chorister j and there was
no kingly service that he seemed to love so well.
We are told that it was his custom to go to the
church of St. Denis, and in his royal robes, with
his crown upon his head, to direct the choir at
matins and vespers, and join in the singing. Few
kings have left a better legacy to the Christian
church than his own hymn, which, after nearly a
thousand years, is still an inHuence in the world:
Come, Thou Holy Spirit^ come.
And from Thine eternal home
Shed the ray of light divine;
Cbme^ Thou Father of the poor.
Come, Thou Source of all our storc^
Come, within our bosomi shine*
Thou of Comforters the best,
Thou the soul's most welcome Gues^
Sweet Refreshment here below I
in our labor Rest most sweet.
Grateful Shadow from the heat^
Solace in the midst of woel
Oh, most blessed Light Divine,
Shine within these beans of ThinCp
And our inmost being fill;
If Thou take Thy grace away.
Nothing pure in man will stay.
All our good is turned to lEl.
Heal our wounds; our strength renew
On our dryness pour Thy dew;
Wash the stains of guilt awayl
6end the stubborn heart and will.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
59
Melt the frozen, warm the chill,
Guide the ttepi that go astray.
THE TUNE.
The metre and six-line stanza, being uniform
with those of "Rock of Ages/' have tempted some
to borrow "Toplady** for this ancient hymn, but
Hastings' tone would refuse to sing other words;
and, besides J the alternate rhymes would mar the
euphony. Not unsuitable in spirit are several
existing tunes of the right measure— like "Nassau"
or "St. Athanasius" — but in truth the "Veni,
Sancte Spiritus'* in English waits for its perfect
setting. Dn Ray Palmer's paraphrase of it in
sixes-and-fours, to fit " Olivet/* —
Come, Holy Ghost in love, etc*
— is objectionable both because the word Ghost is
an archaism in Christian worship and more
especially because Dr. Palmer's altered version
usurps the place of his own hymn. "Olivet"
with " My faith looks up to Thee " makes as in-
violable a case of psalmodic monogamy as "Top-
lady " with " Rock of Ages."
ST. FULBERT.
1 M ■ I ■
**Chmi Cantor f I Hifrusahm Nava^J*
St. Fulbert's hymn is a worthy companion of
Perronet's "Coronation" — ^if, indeed, it was not
6o
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
its original prompter — as King Roberts* great
litany was the mother song of Watts*'* Come, Holy
Spirit, heavenly Dove," and the countless other
sacred lyrics beginning with similar words. As
the translation stands in the Church of England,
there are six stanzas now sung, though in America
but four appear, and not in the same sequence.
The first four of the six in their regular succession
are as follows:
Yc clioirs of New Jerusalem,
Your sweetest notes employ.
The Paschal viaory to hymn
In strains of holy joy.
For Judah'a Lion bursts His chains.
Crushing the serpent's head;
And cries aloud, through death's domains
To wake the imprisoned dead.
Devouring depths of hell their prey
At His command restore;
His ransomed hosts pursue their way
Where Jesus goes before.
Triumphant in Wts glory now,
To Him all power is given;
^ Tu Him in one communion bow
All saints in earth and heaven.
Bishop Fulbert, known in the Roman and in
the Protestant ritualistic churches as St* Fulbert of
Chartres, was a man of brilliant and versatile
mind, and one of the most eminent prelates of his
time* He was a contemporary of Robert II, and
his intimate friend, continuing so after the Pope
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
6l
(Gregory V.) excommunicated the king for marrying
a cousin, which was forbidden by the canons of
the church.
Fulbert was for some time head of the Theo-
togtcat College at Chartres* a cathedral town of
France, anciently the capital of Celtic Gaul, and
afterwards he was consecrated as Bishop of that
diocese. He died about 1029.
THE TUNE.
The modem tone-interpreter of Fulbert's hymn
bears the name **La Spezia" in some collections,
and was composed by James Taylor about the
time the hymn was translated into English by
Robert CampbelL Research might discover the
ancient tune— for the hymn is said to have been
sung in the English church during Fulben's life-
time— but the older was little likely to be the better
music* **La Spezia" is a choral of enlivening but
easy chords, and a tread of triumph in its musical
motion that suits the march of** Judah*s Lion":
His ratisomed hosts pursue their way
Where Jesus goes before,
James Taylor, bom 1833, is a Doctor of Music,
organist of the University of Oxford and Director
of the Oxford Philharmonic Society.
Robert Campbell, the translator, was a Scotch
lawyer, bom in Edinburgh, who besides his work
as an advocate wrote original hymnsj and in other
ways exercised a natural literary gift- He compiled
184 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
and sang his life songs, and died in 1858 at the
age of thirty-nine.
A tune preferred by many as the finer music is
the one written to the words by Mr. Sankey»
Sacred Songs, No. 2.
'^SPEEDAWAYI SPEED AWAY!"
This inspiriting song of farewell to departing
missionaries was written in 1890 to Woodbury's
appropriate popular melody by Fanny J. Crosby,
at the request of Ira D. Sankey. The key-word
and refrain are adapted from the original song by
Woodbury (1848), but in substance and lan-
guage the three hymn-stanzas are the new and
independent work of this later writer.
Speed away I speed away on your mission of light.
To the lands that are lying in darkness and night;
Tis the Master's command; go ye forth in His name.
The wonderful gospel of Jesus proclaim;
Take your lives in your hand, to the work while 'tis day,
Speed away! speed away! speed away!
Speed away, speed away with the life-giving Word,
To the nations that know not the voice of the Lord;
Take the wings of the morning and fly o'er the wave.
In the strength of your Master the lost ones to save;
He is calling once more, not a moment's dday.
Speed away! speed away! speed away!
Speed away, speed away with the message of rest.
To the souls by the tempter in bondage oppressed;
For the Saviour has purchased their ransom from sin.
■
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Dr. Martin
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SOME H\'MNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
63
a secondary classic— mother of four anthem
languages of Western and Southern Europe. Its
golden age was the 1 2th and 13th centuries. The
new and more flexible school of speech and music
in hymn and tune had perfected rhythmic beauty
and brought in the winsome assonance of rhyme.
The "Dies Irae" was bom, it is believed, about
the year 1255. Its authorship has been debated,
but competent testimony assures us that the
original draft of the great poem was found in a
box among the effects of Thomas di Celano after
his death. Thomas — surnamed Thomas of Celano
from his birthplace, the town of Celano in the prov-
ince of Aquila* Southern Italy — was the pupil, friend
and co-iaborer of St. Francis of Assisi, and wrote his
memoirs. He is supposed to have died near the end
of the 13th centur)\ That he wrote the sublime
judgment song there is now practically no question >
The label on the discovered manuscript would
suggest that the writer did not consider it either
a hymn or a poem. Like the inspired prophets he
had meditated— and while he was musing the fire
burned. The only title he wrote over it was
*'Prosa de mortuisr Prosa (or prosa oratio)^ —
from prorsuSj "straight forward"— appears here
in the truly conventional sense it was beginning to
bear, but not yet as the antipode of "poetiy/'
The modest author, unconscious of the magnitude
of his work, called it simply '* Plain speech con-
cerning the dead.""*"
***F^Bef^' were origitul ^itiAget mtrodueed into ecdcfiiitical chanu m liSi«
64
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
The hymn is much too long to quote entire, but
can be found in Daniel's Thesaurus in any large
pubtic library. As to the translations of it, they
number hundreds^ — in English and German alone,
and Italy, Spain and Portugal have their ver-
nacular versions — not to mention the Greek and
Russian and even the Hebrew, A few stanzas fol-
low^ with their renderings into English (always
imperfect) selected almost at random :
Quantus tremor est futums
Quando Judex est ven turns,
Cuncta stncte discussurus!
Tub ft minim spargens sonum
Per sepulcra region um,
Cogct omnes ante thronumt
O the dread, the contrite kneeling
When the Lord, in Judgment dealing
Comes each hidden thing reveating!
When the trumpet's awful tone
Through the realms sepulchral blown,
Symmons all before the Throne I
The solemn strength and vibration of these
tremendous trilineals suffers no general injury by
the variant readings — and there are a good many.
As a sample, the first stanza was changed by some
canonical redactor to get rid of the heathen word
Sybilla, and the second line was made the third :
loth c«itUT7» DurJEig and afttr the i nh cftiiurj they were called "Sequencei"
(L t. feifc^irjg the **Goipd" m the liturgy ),ind wax^ in metrical forin^ haTin^
« prayerful tone, ^^Sequentia pro defunct is '^ irai the later title of the "Die*
Itie."
50ME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES- 65
Dies Irae^ dies ilia
Cnicis ex pan dens vcxilk,
Sol vet saeclum in faviUt.
Day of wrath? that day foretold,
With the cross-flag wide unrolled,
Shall the world in hrc enfold 1
In some readings the original *'in favilla'^ is
changed to "rwm favtIla/'*WM ashes" instead of
'*m ashes*'; and '* Teste Petro" is substituted
for "Teste David/'
THE TUNE-
The varieties of music set to the "Hymn of
Judgment" in the different sections and languages
of Christendom during seven hundred years are
probably as numerous as the pictures of the Holy
Family in Christian art. It is enough to say that
one of the best at hand» or, at least, accessiblei is
the solemn minor melody of Dn Dykes in William
Henry Monk's Hymns Ancient an J Modern, It
was composed about the middle of the last century.
Both the Evangelical and Methodist Hymnals have
Dean Stanley's translation of the hymn, the
former with thirteen stanzas (six-line) to a D
minor of John Stainer, and the latter to a C major
of Timothy Matthews. The Plymouth Hymnal
has seventeen of the trilineal stanzas, by an un-
known translator, to Ferdinand Hiller's tune in
F minor, besides one verse to another F minor —
hymn and tune both nameless.
66
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
All the composers above named are masiclans
of fame< John Stainer, organist of St. PauFs
Cathedral^ was a Doctor of Music and Chevalier of
the Legion of Honor, and celebrated for his works
in sacred music j to which he mainly devoted his
time. He was born June 6, 1840. He died March
31,1901.
Rev. Timothy Richard Matthews, bom at Colm-
worth^ Eng., Nov. 20, i8z6, is a clergyman of the
Church of England, incumbent of a Lancaster
charge to which he was appointed by Queen Alex-
andra.
Ferdinand Killer^ born rSii at Frankfort-on-the-
Main, of Hebrew parentage, was one of Germany's
most eminent musicians. For many years he was
Chapel Master at Cologne, and organized the
Cologne Conservatory* His compositions are
mostly for instrumental performance, but he wrote
cantatas, motets, male choruses, and two oratorios,
one on the "Destruction of Jerusalem/* Died
May 10, 1855*
The Very Rev, Arthur Penrhyn Stanley, Dean
of Westminster, was an author and scholar whom
all sects of Christians delighted to honor. His
writings on the New Testament and his published
researches in Palestine, made him an authority in
Biblical study, and his contributions to sacred
literature were looked for and welcomed as eagerly
as a new hymn by Bonar or a new poem by Tenny«
son. Dean Stanley was born in 1815, and died
July i8th»i88i.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
67
THOMAS A KEMPIS.
k
I
Thomas h Kempis, sub-prior of the Convent
of St. Agnes, was born at Hamerkin, Holland,
about the year 13S0, and died at Zwoll, 1471. This
pious monk belonged to an order called the
"Brethren of the Common Life" founded by
Gerard de Groote, and his fame rests entirely upon
his one book, the Imitation of Christy which
continues to be printed as a religious classic, and
is unsurpassed as a manual of private devotion.
His monastic life — as was true generally of the
monastic life of the middle ages — was not one of
useless idleness. The Brethren taught school and
did mechanical work. Besides, before the in-
vention of printing had been perfected and brought
into common service, the multiplication of books
was principally the work of monkish pens. Kem-
pis spent his days copying the Bible and good
books — as well as in exercises of devotion that
promoted religious calm.
His idea of heaven, and the idea of his order*
was expressed in that clause of John's description
of the City of God, Rev. 22:3^ *' and His servants
shall serve Him'^ Above all other heavenly joys
that was his favorite thought. We can well under-
stand that the pious quietude wrought in his mind
and manners by his habit of life made him a saint
in the eyes of the people. The frontispiece of one
edition of his Imitatio Christt pictures him as
68 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
being addressed before the door of a convent bjr
a troubled pilgrim, —
*'0 where it peace ? — for thou its paths hast trod,*'
—and his answer completes the couplet, —
''In poverty, retirement, and with God/'
Of all that is best in inward spiritual life, much
can be learned from this inspired I>itchman.
He wrote no hymns, but in his old age he com-
posed a poem on "Heaven's Joys," whicl* is some-
times called "Thomas k Kempis' Hymn";
High the angel choirs are raising
Heart and voice in harmony;
The Creator King still praising
Whom in beauty there they see.
Sweetest strains from soft harps stealings
Trumpets' notes of triumph pealing,
Radiant wings and white stoles gleaming
Up the steps of gloiy streaming;
Where the heavenly bells are ringing;
**Holy! holy! holy I" singing
To the mighty Trinity!
••Holy! hol/I holy!" crying.
For all earthly care and sighing
In that city cease to be!
These lines are not in the hymnals d *oday —
and whether they ever found their way inic choral
use in ancient times we are not told. Worse poetry
has been sung — and more un-hymnlike. Some
future composer will make a tune to the words of a
Christian who stood almost in sight of his hundredth
year — and of the eternal home he writes about.
80ME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
MARTIN LUTHER.
"Ein Ffstf Burg 1st Unser G<at:*
Of Mamn Luther Coleridge said, "He did as
much for the Reformation by his hymns as he did
by his translation of the Bible/' The remark is so
true that it has become a commonplace.
The above line — which may be seen inscribed
on Luther's tomb at Wittenburg — is the opening
sentence and key-note of the Reformer*s grandest
hymn. The forty-sixth Psalm inspired it> and it
is in harmony with sublime historical periods
from its very nature, boldness, and sublimity. It
was written, according to Welles* in the memorable
year when the evangelical princes delivered their
protest at the Diet of Spires, from which the word and
the meaning of the word "Protestant" is derived-
" Luther used often to sing it in 1530, while the
Diet of Augsburg was sitting* It soon became the
favorite psalm with the people. It was one of the
watchwords of the Reformation, cheering armies
to conflict^ and sustaining believers in the hours of
fiery trial"
*' After Luther's death, Melancthon, his affection-
ate coadjutor, being one day at Weimar with his
banished friends, Jonas and Creuziger, heard a
little maid singing this psalm in the street, and
said, *Sing on, my little girl, you little know whom
you comfort:'"
A mighty fortress is our God,
A bulwark never failing;
70 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Our helper He, amid die flood
Of mortal ills prevafling.
For sdll our ancient foe
Doth seek to work us woe;
His craft and power are great.
And, armed with cruel hate.
On earth is not his equaL
4i 4i 4i 4i 4i 4i
The Prince of Darkness grim—
We tremble not for him:
His rage we can endure.
For lo! his doom is sure.
One little word shall fell him.
That word above all earthly power*—
No thanks to them — abideth;
The Spirit and the gifts are ours.
Through Him who with us sidedi.
Let goods and kindred go,
This mortal life also;
The body they may kill,
God's truth abideth still.
His kingdom is for ever.
Martin Luther was bom in Eisleben, in Saxony,
Nov. 10, 1483. He was educated at the University
of Erfurth, and became an Augustinian monk
and Professor of Philosophy and Divinity in the
University of Wittenberg. In 15 17 he composed
and placarded his ninet}'-(ive Theses condemning
certain practices of the Romish Church and three
\xars later the Pope published a bull excom-
municating him« which he burnt openly before a
sympathetic multitude in Wittenbcig. His life
was a stormy one, and he was more dian once in
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES,
71
martal danger by reason of his antagonism to the
papal authority, but he found powerful patrons^
and lived to see the Reformation an organized fact-
He died in his birthplace, Eisleben^ Feb* i8th,
The translation of the *'Ein feste burg," given
above, in part» is by Rev- Frederick Henry Hedge,
D.D., bom in Cam bridge I March 1805, a graduate
of Harvard J and formerly minister of the Unitarian
Church in Bangor, Me. Died, i8go.
Luther wrote thirty-six hymns, to some of which
he fitted his own music, for he was a musician and
singer as well as an eloquent preachen The tune
in which *'Ein feste Burg" is sung in the hymnals,
was composed by himself The hymn has also a
noble rendering in the music of Sebastian Bach-
8-4 time, found in Hymns Ancient and Modern,
BARTHOLOMEW RINGWALDT.
^'Great God, What Do I See and Hear?"
The history of this hymn is somewhat indefinite,
though common consent now attributes to Ring*
waldt the stanza beginning with the above line.
The imitation of the "Dies Irae" in German
which was first in use was printed in Jacob Klug's
"Gesanghuch*^ in 1535- Ringwaldt's hymn of
the Last Day, also inspired from the ancient Latin
original, appears in his Handbuchlln of 1586,
but do*3 not rontain this stanza. The first line is,
^'T^e -^^ul Day will surely come/' (Es ist
n
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUHES-
gewissUch an der Zeit). Nevertheless through
the more than two hundred years that the hymn
has been translated and re-translated, and gone
through inevitable revisions^ some vital identity
in the spirit and tone of the one seven-line stanza
has steadily connected it with Ringwaldt's name.
Apparently it is the single survivor of a great lost
hymn — edited and altered out of recognition.
But its power evidently inspired the added verses,
as we have them. Dr, Collyer found rt, and»
regretting that it was too short to sing in public
service, composed stanzas id, 3d and 4th* It is
likely that Collyer first met with it in Psalms and
Hymns for Public and Private Deuotiony Sheffield
1802, where it appeared anonymously. So far as
known this was its first publication in English,
Ringwaldt's stanza and two of Cotlyer's are here
given;
Great God, what do 1 see and heart
The end of things created 1
The Judge of manltind doth appear
On clouds of gloiy seated.
The trumpet sounds^ the graves restore
The dead whtch they contained before;
Prepare, my sou!, to meet Him.
The dead m Christ shall Erst arise
At the last trumpet sounding,
Caught up to meet Mim in the skies.
With joy their Lord surrounding.
No gloomy fears their souls dismay
His presence sheds eternal day
On those prepared to meet Him.
SOME HYMNS OF CEEAT WITNESSES. 73
Far over space to distant spheres
The lightnings are prevAtHng
Th' ungodly rise, and all iheir tcart
And sighs are unavailmg.
The day of grace Is past and gone;
They shake before the Judge's Thfqnc
All unprepared to meet Him.
Batholomew Ringwaldt, pastor of the Lutheran
Church of Longfeld, Prussia, was born in 153 1>
and died in 1599. His hymns appear in a col-
lection entitled Hymns for the Sundays and Festi''
vals of the Whole Tear-
Rev, William Bengo Cbllyer D.D.> was born
at Blackheath near London, April i+, 1782,
educated at Homerton College and settled over a
Congregational Church in Peckham. In 1812 he
published a book of hymns, and in 1837 a Service
Book to which he contributed eighty-nine hymns*
He died Jan, 9, 1854,
THE TUNE.
Probably it was the customary singing of Ring-
waldt's hymn (in Germany) to Luther's tune that
gave It for some time the designation of " Luther's
Hymn," the title by which the music is still known
— an air either composed or adapted by Luther,
and rendered perhaps unisonously or with ex-
tempore chords. It was not until early in the last
century that Vincent Novello wrote to it the noble
arrangement now in use* It is a strong, even-time
harmony with lofty tenor range, and very im-
74
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
pressive with full choir and organ or the vocal
volume of a congregation. In Cheethanis Psalmody
is it written with a trumpet obligato,
Vincent Novello, born in London, Sept. 6, rySi^
the intimate friend of Lamb^ Shelley, Keats, Hunt
and Haziitt, was a professor of music who attained
great eminence as an organist and composer of
hymn-tunes and sacred pieces. He was the
founder of the publishing house of Novello and
Ewer, and father of a famous musica! family.
Died at Nice, Aug. 9, 1861,
ST. FRANCIS XAVIER.
**0 Dtus, Ego Amo Ti^
Francis Xavier, the celebrated Jesuit missionafy^
called *'The Apostle of the Indies," was a Spaniard,
bom in 1506. While a student in Paris he met
Ignatius Loyola, and joined him in the formation
of the new "Society for the Propagation of the
Faith.'* He was sent out on a mission to the East
Indies and Japan, and gave himself to the work
with a martyr's devotion. The stations he estab-
lished in Japan were maintained more than a
hundred years. He died in China, Dec, 1552,
His hymn, some time out of use, is being revived
in later singing-books as expressive of the purest
ind highest Christian sentiment:
O Dcus, ego a mo Te,
Nee amo Tc, ut salves me^
Aut <]ujii non am antes Te
JEterno punis igne.
I
MifE HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 75
My God, I love Thee — not because
I hope for heaven thereby;
Nor yet because who love Thee not
Must bum eternally.
After recounting Christ's vicarious sufferings
as the chief claim to His disciples' unselfish love,
die hymn condnues, —
Cur igitur non amem Te,
O Jesu amantissime!
Non, ut in coelo salves me,
Aut in aetemum damnes me.
Then why, O blessed Jesus Christ,
Should I not love Thee well ?
Not for the sake of winning heaven.
Nor of escaping hell;
Not with the hope of gaining aught^
Nor seeking a reward,
But as Thyself hast loved me.
Oh, ever-loving Lord!
E*cn so I love Thee, and will love.
And in Thy praise will sing;
Solely because Thou art my God
And my eternal King.
The translation is by Rev. Edward Caswall,
1814-1878, a priest in the Church of Rome.
Besides his translations, he published the Lyra
Catholicay the Masque of Mary^ and several other
poetical works. (Page loi.)
THE TUNE.
*'St. Bernard** — apparently so named because
originally composed to Caswall's translation of
76
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
one of Bernard of CIairvaux*s hymns — is
John Richardson^ born in Preston, Eng*, Dec*
4, 1817, and died there April 13, 1879. He was
an organist in Liverpool, and noted as a composer
of glees, but was the author of several sacred
tunes.
5;TR WALTER RALEIGH,
"Give Mc My Scallop-Shell of Quiet,*'
i
Few of the hymns of the Elizabethan era survive,
though the Ambrosian Midnight Hymn, "Hark,
'tis the Midnight Cry," and the hymns of St. Ber-
nard and Bernard of Cluny, are still tones in the
church, and the religious poetry of Sir Walter
Raleigh comes down to us associated with the
histoiy of his brilliant, though tragic career The
following poem has some fine lines in the quaint
English style of the period, and was composed by
Sir Walter during his first imprisonment:
Give me my scaUop-shell of qufct,
My staff of fartK to walk upon.
My scrip of joy — immoital diet —
My bottle of salvation,
My gown of glory , hope's true gag^^
And thus I take my pilgrimage.
Blood must be my body's b aimer,
While my soul, like faithful palmer.
Travel leth toward the land of heaven;
Other balm will not be gtvcn*
Over the sjlver mountains
Where spring the nectar fountain t.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES, JJ
Their will I kiss the bowl of bllm^
And drink my everUstmg fill.
Upon every milken hill;
My fioul will be a-dry before,
Bui after that i^ill thirst no more.
The musings of the unfortunate but high-
souled nobleman in expectation of ignominious
death are interesting and pathetic^ but they have
no claim to a tune, even if they were less rugged
and unmetricat But the poem stands notable
among the pious witnesses.
MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS.
*'0 Domint Deus, Sprr^ m Te"
This last passionate prayer of the unhappy
Mary Stuart just before her execution — in a
language which perhaps flowed from her pen more
easily than even her English or French— is another
witness of supplicating faith that struggles out of
darkness with a song. In her extremity the de-
voted Catholic forgets her petitions to the Virgin,
and comes to Christ:
O Domine Deus, Speravi In Tei
O care mi Jesu, nunc libera mcl
In dura catena, m misera poena
De^idero Te!
Languendo^ gemendo, et genu fleet en do
AdorOy imploro ut Uberes me!
My Lord and my GodT I have trusted in Thee;
0 Jesus, my Saviour bclov'd, set me free:
In rigorous chains, in piteous pains.
7? STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
I am longing for Tliee!
In weakness appealing, ifi agony kneeling^
I pray, I be^ech Th«e, O Lord, set nie freel
One would, at first thought > jtidg^ this simple
Atjt eloquent cry worthy of an appropriate tone*
expression — to be sung by prison evangelists like
the Volunteers of America* to convicts in the jails
and penitentiaries. But its special errand and
burden are voiced so literally that hardened
hearers would probably misapply it — however
sincerely the petitioner herself meant to invoke
spiritual rather than temporal deliverance. The
hymn, if we may call it so, is ioo literal. Possibly
at some time or other it may have been set to
music but not for ordinary choir service-
SAMUEL RUTHERFORD.
I — ■ t 1^
The sands of dme are sinking,
Butj glory, glory dwellcth
In Ifiimanuers Land.
This hymn is biographical, but not autobio*
graphicaL Like the discourses in Herodotus and
Plutarch, it is the voice of the dead speaking
through the sympathetic genius of the living after
long generations. The strong, stern Calvinist of
1636 in Aberdeen was not a poet, but he be-
queathed his spirit and life to the verse of a poet of
1845 in Melrose. Anne Ross Cousin read his two
hundred and twenty letters written during a two
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
79
years' ca privity for his fidelity to the purer faith ^
and studied his whole history and experience til]
her soul took his soul's place and felt what he felt.
Her poem of nineteen stanzas (152 lines) is the
voice of Rutherford the Covenanter, with the
prolixity of his manner and age sweetened by his
triumphant piety, and that is why it belongs with
the Hymns of Great fViinesses. The three or
four stanzas still occasionally printed and sung
are only recalled to memory by the above three
lines*
Samuel Rutherford was bom in Nisbet Parish,
Scotland, in 1600- His settled ministry was at
Anworth* in Galloway — 1 630-1 651 — with a break
between 1636 and 1638, when Charles L angered
by his anti-prelatical writings, silenced and banished
him. Shut up in Aberdeen, but allowed, like
Paul in Rome, to live *'in his own hired house" and
write letters, he poured out his heart's love in Epis-
tles to his Anworth flock and to the Nonconform-
ists of Scotland. When his countrymen rose against
the attempted imposition of a new holy Romish
service-book on their churches, he escaped to his
people, and soon after appeared in Edinburgh and
signed the covenant with the assembled ministers.
Thirteen years later, after Cromwell's death and
the accession of Charles IL the wrath of the pre-
lates fell on him at St. Andrews, where the Pres*
bytery had made him rector of the college. The
King's decree indicted him for treason, stripped
him of all his offices, and would have forced him to
So
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNE 8,
the block had he not been stricken with his last sick*
ness. When the officers came to take him he said,
"I am summoned before a higher Judge and Ju-
dicatory, and I am behooved to attend them." He
died soon after, in the year 1661.
The first, and a few other of the choicest stanzas
of the hymn inspired by his life and death are here
given:
The s^nds of time are sinking.
The dawn of heaven breaks.
The summer mom IVe sighed for —
The fair, sweet mom — awakes.
Dark, dark hath been the midnight^
But dayspnng is at hand;
And gloiy^ glory dwelleth
In Immanucrs land*
« * « * ip «
Oh I well it is for ever —
Oh I well for evemiorc:
My nest hung in no forest
Of all this death-doomed shore;
Yea, let this vain world vanish.
As from the ship the strand^
While gloiy, glory dwellclh
In Immanuers land^
The little birds of Anworth —
I used to count them hl^t;
Now beside happier altars
I gp to build my nest;
O^er these there broods no silence
No graves around them stand;
For glory deathless dwelleth
In Immanuers land.
I
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 8 1
I have fx)mc scom and hatred,
I have home wrong and shames
Earth's proud ones have reproached me
For Christ's thrice blessed name.
Where God's seals set the fatrcst^
They've stamped their foulest brand;
But judgment shines like noonday
In Immanuel's land.
They've summoned me before them^
But there I may not come;
My Lord says^ "Come up hither;**
My Lord says, ■* Welcome home;"
My King at His white throne
My presence doth comma nd^
Where glory ^ glory dweUeth,
Id Immaouers land.
A remtntscence of St. Paul in his second Epis*
tie to Timothy (chap. 4) comes with the last two
stanzas.
THE TUNE,
The tender and appropriate choral in B flatp
named ''Rutherford" was composed by D'Urhan,
a French musician, probably a hundred years ago.
It was doubtless named by those who long after-
wards fitted it to the words, and knew whose spirit-
ual proxy the lady stood who indited the hymn. It
is reprinted in Pelou bet's SeUct Songs ^ and in the
Coronation HymnaL Naturally in the days of the
hymn's more frequent use people became accus-
tomed to calling **The sands of time are sink-
ing*" "Rutherford's Hymn/' Rutherford's own
82 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
words certainly furnished the memorable refrain
with its immortal glow and gladness. One o£ his
joyful exclamations as he lay dying of his lingering
disease was, " Glory shineth in ImmanueFs Land!"
Chretien (Christian) Urhan, or D'Urhan, was
bom at Montjoie, France, about 1788, and died, in
Paris, 1845. He was a noted violin-player, and com-
poser, also, of vocal and instrumental music.
Mrs. Anne Ross (Cundell) Cousin, daughter oT
David Ross Cundell, M. D., and widow of Rev. Will-
iam Cousin of the Free church of Scotland, was
bom in Melrose ( ?), 1824. She wrote many poems,
most of which are beautiful meditarions rather
than lyrics suitable for public song. Her '* Ruther-
ford Hymn" was first published in the Christian
Treasury, 1857.
GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS.
**Vef%age Nicbt Du HaufUin Klein.'*
The historian tells us that before the battle of
Lutzen, duringthe Thirty Years' War (1618-1648)^
King Gustavus of Sweden, in the thick fog of an
autunm moming, with the Bohemian and Austrian
armies of Emperor Ferdinand in front of him, knelt
before his troops, and his whole army knelt with
him in prayer. Then ten thousand voices and the
whole concert of regimental bands burst forth in
this brave song:
Fear not, O little flock, the foe
Who madly seeks your overthrow.
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST-
205
1773 to 1836, and in 1787 he published a song<
manual called A Selection of Hymns from the Best
Authors^ etc., in which "How Firm a Foundation"
appears as a new piece, with the signature " K — /'
The popularity of the hymn in America has been
remarkable, and promises to continue. Indeed,
there are few more reviving or more spiritually
helpful. It is too familiar to need quotation. But
one cannot suppress the last stanza, with its power-
ful and affecting emphasis on the Divine promise —
The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repose
J will not, I wiJl not, desert to his foesj
That sou I J though all hell should endeavor to shake,
ril never, no never, no never forsake.
THE TUNE.
The grand harmony of" Portuguese Hymn " has
always been identified with this song of trust.
One opinion of the date of the music writes it
"about 1780/' Since the habit of crediting it to
John Reading (1677-1764) has been discontinued,
it has been in several hymnals ascribed to Marco
Portogallo (Mark, the Portuguese), a musician bom
in Lisbon^ iy6^t who became a composer of operas
in Italy, but was made Chapel-Master to the Port-
uguese King. In 1807, when Napoleon invaded
the Peninsula and dethroned the royal house of
Braganza, Old King John VI. fled to Brazil and
took Marco with him, where he lived till 18 15, but
returned and died in Italy > in 1830. Such is the
story, and it is all true, only the man's name was
84
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
not write hymns. He could sing them, and he could
make them historic — and it was this connection
that identified him with the famous battle song. Its
author was the Rev. Johan Michael Ahenburg» a
Lutheran clergyman, who composed apparently
both hymn and tune on receiving news of the
king's victory at Leipsic a year before,
Gustavus Adolphus was bom in 1594. His
death on the battlefield occurred Nov. 5, 1632^ —
when he was in the prime of his manhood. He was
one of the greatest military commanders in history>
besides being a great ruler and administrator, and
a devout Christian. He was, during the Thirty
Years* War (until his untimely death), the leading
champion of Protestantism in Europe.
The English translator of the battle song was
Miss Catherine Winkworth, born in London, Sept.
13, 1827- She was an industrious and successful
translator of German hymns, contributing many
results of her work to two English editions of the
Lyra Germania^ to the Church Book of England^ and
to Christian Singers of Germany. She died in 1878.
The tune of "Ravendale" by Walter Stokes
(born 1847) is the best modem rendering of the
celebrated hymn.
PAUL GERHARDT.
''Befiehl Du Dam W^gt^
Paul Gerhardt was one of those minstrels of ex-
perience who are —
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 85
"Cradled into poetry by wrong,
And learn in suffering what they teach in song*"
He was a graduate of that school when he wrote
his *'Hymn of Trust;*'
Commit thou all thy griefs
And ways into His hands;
To His sure truM and tender care
Who earth and heaven cominandi*
Thou on the Lord rely,
So» safe, shalt thou go on;
Fix on His work thy steadfast eft^
So shall thy work be done.
* jk « ^ ^ *
Giyc to the winds thy fears;
Hope, and be undismayed;
God hears thy sighs and counts thy tears^
He shall lift up thy head.
Through waves and clouds and stormi
He gently dears thy wayj
Watt thou His time^ so shall this night
Soon end in joyous day.
Gerhardt was born at Grafenheinchen, Saxonyi
1606. Through the first and best years of man-
hood's strength (during the Thirty Year's War),
a wandering preacher tossed from place to place,
he was without a parish and without a home.
After the peace of Westphalia he settled in the
Httle village of Mittenwalde. He was then forty-
four years old. Four years later he married and re-
moved to a Berlin church. During his residence
there he buried his wife, and four of his children.
86
STORY OF THE HYMNS ANT> TUNES,
was deposed from the ministry because his Luther-
an doctrines offended the Elector Frederick, and
finally retired as a simple arch-deacon to a small
parish in Lubben, where he preached, toiled, and
suffered amid a rough and uncongenial people till
he died, Jan. 16, 1676,
Few men have ever lived whose case more needed
a **Hymn of Trust'* — and fewer still couU have
writtert it themselves. Through all thoce trial
years he was pouring forth his soul in devout
verses, making in all no less than a hundred and
twenty-five hymns — every one of them a comfort
to others as well as to himself-
He became a favorite, and for a time the- favor-
ite, hymn-writer of all the German-speaking
people. Among these tones of calm faith and joy
We recognize today (in the English tongue), —
Since Jei;us h my Friend^
Theep O I mm an u el, we praise,
All my tieart this nigKt rejoices^
How shall I meec Tl*«,
— and the English translation of his "OHaupt voU
Blut und Wunden/' turned into German by him-*
self from St, Bernard Clairvaux's "Salve caput
cruentatum," and made dear to us in Rev. James
Alexander's beautiful lines—
O sacred head now wounded.
With grfef and shame weighed down,
Now scornfully surrounded
With thorns. Thine only crown.
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
87
THE TUNE.
A plain-song by Alexander Reinagle is used by
some congregations^ but is not remarkably ex-
pressive. Reinagle, Alexander Robert, (1799-
1877) of Kidlington, Eng., was organist to the
church of St. Peter-in-the-East, Oxford.
The great *'Hynin of Trust" could have found
no more sympathetic interpreter than the musician
of Gerhardt's own land and language, Schumann^
the gentle genius of Zwickau. It bears the name
*' Schumann," appropriately enough^ and its elo'
cutton makes a volume of each quatrain, notablj
the one —
Who points the clouds their course.
Whom wind and seas obey;
He shall direct thy wandering feet.
He shall prepare thy way,
Robert Schumann, Ph. D.^ was born in Zwickau,
Saxony, June 8, 1810, He was a music director
and conservatory teacher, and the master-mind of
the pre-Wagnerian period. His compositions be-
came popular, having a character of their own,
combining the inteUectual and beautiful in art.
He published in Leipsic a journal promotive of his
school of musiCf and founded a choral society in
Dresden* Happy in the cooperation of his wife, her-
self a skilled musician, he extended his work to Vien-
na and the Netherlands; but his zeal wore him out,
and he died at the age of forty-six^ universally
lamented as "the eminent man who had done so
much for the happiness of others/'
88 fflOKY OF THE HTlfXS AMD
Gerfaardt^s Hymn (ten quatrains) it ni^
printed entire^ and where six are printed onljr four
are nsuaOjr sin^. Diffcrem collections chocMe por*
tions according to the compiler's taste, the stanza
b^inning —
Give to die winds uty wtMM^
— being with some a favorite first verae.
The translation of the hjnm from die German is
John Wesley's.
Purely legendary is the beautiful story of die
composition df the hymn, ''Commit thou all thy
griefs"; how, after his exile from Berlin, traveling
on foot with his weeping wife, Gerhardt stopped
at a wayside inn and wrote the lines while he rested;
and how a messenger from Duke Chrisdan found
him there, and oflFered him a home in Meresburg.
But the most ordinary imaginarion can fill in the
possible incidents in a life of vicissitudes such as
Gerhardt's was.
LADY HUNTINGDON.
"When Thou My Ri^teous Judge Shah Come.*
Selina Shidey, Countess of Huntingdon, bom
1707, died 1 79 1, is familiarly known as the dded
friend and patroness of Whitefield and his fellow-
preachers. She early consecrated herself to God,
and in the great spiritual awakening under White-
field and the Wesleys she was a punctual and
sympathetic helper. Uniting with the Calvinistic
Methodists, she nevertheless stood aloof from none
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
«>
who preached a personal Christ, and whose watch-
words were the salvation of souls and the purifica-
tion of the Church. For more than fifty years
she devoted her wealth to benevolence and spiritual
ministries, and died at the age of eighty-four. " I
have done my work," was her last testimony.
**[ have nothing to do but to go to myFathen"
At various times Lady Huntingdon expressed
her religious experience in verse, and the manfu!
vigor of her school of faith recalls the unbending
confidence of Job, for she was not a stranger to
affliction,
God*s furnace doth in Zion stiuid.
But Zton's God sits by.
At the refiner views his gold,
With an observant eye-
His thoughts are high. His love If wJie,
His wounds a cure intend;
And, though He doe$ not always tmile,
He loves unto the end.
Her great hymn, that keeps her memory grccn^
lias the old-fashioned flavor. "Massa made God
BIG!" was the comment on Dr. Bellany made by
liis old negro servant after that noted minister's
<Ieath. In Puritan piety the sternest self-depreci-
ation qualified every thought of the creature, while
every allusion to the Creator was a magnificat.
Lady Huntingdon's hymn has no flattering phrases
for the human subject, "Worthless worm," and
"vilest of them all" indicate the true Pauline or
Oriental prostration of self before a superior
90 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
being; but there is grandeur in the metre, the
awful reverence* and the scene of judgment in
the stanzas — always remembering the mighty
choral that has so long given the lyric its voice in
the church, and is ancillary to its fame;
When Thou, my righteous Ju<!ge, shall ccunc
To take Thy ransomed people home.
Shall I among them stand f
Shall such a worthless worm as I,
Who sometimes am afraid to dic^
Be found ar Thy right hand ?
I love to meet Thy people now^
Before Thy feet with them to boWj
Though vilest of them all;
But can I bear the piercing thought^
What if my name should be left out.
When Thou for them shalt call ?
O Lord, prevent it by Thy grace: '
Be Thou my only hiding place.
In this th' accepted day;
Thy pardoning voice, oh let me hear.
To still my unbelieving fear.
Nor let mc fall, I pray-
Among Thy samts let me be found.
Whene'er the arch angers trump sball sound.
To see Thy smiling face;
Then loudest of the throng 111 sing.
While heaven's resounding arches ring
With shouts of sovereign grace,
THE TUNE.
The tune of "Meribah/' in which this hymn has
been sung for the last sixty or more years, is one of
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES,
91
Dn Lowell Mason's masterpieces. An earlier
German harmony attributed to Heinrich Isaac
and named "Innsbruck" has in some few cases
claimed association with the words, though com-
posed two hundred years before Lady Huntingdon
was bom* It is strong and solemn, but its cold
psalm-tune movement does not utter the deep
emotion of the author's lines. "Meribah" was
inspired by the hymn itself, and there is nothing
invidious in saying it illustrates the fact, memor-
able in all hymnology, of the natural obligation of
a hymn to its tune.
Apropos of both, it is related that Mason was
once presiding at choir service in a certain church
where the minister gave out "When thou my
righteous Judge shalt come" and by mistake
directed the singers to '*omit the second stanza/'
Mason sat at the organ, and while playing the last
strain, **Be found at thy right hand," glanced
ahead In the hymnbook and turned with a stan
just in time to command, "Sing the next verse!"
The choir did so, and "O Lord, prevent it by Thy
grace!" was saved from being a horrible prayer
to be kept out of heaven.
ZINZENDORF.
■t - I- t
** Jesus, Thy Blood and Righteousness."
Nicolaus Ludwig, Count Von Zmzendorf, was
bom at Dresden, May 26, 1700, and educated at
HaUe and Wittenberg, From his youth he evinced
9*
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
marked seriousness of mind, and deep religiout
sensibitities, and this character appeared in his
sympathy with the persecuted Moravians, to whom
he gave domicile and domain on his large estate*
For eleven years he was Councillor to the Elector
of Saxony, but subsequently, uniting with the
Brethren *s Church, he founded the settlement
of Herrnhut, the first home and refuge of the
reorganized sect, and became a Moravian minister
and bishop.
Zinzendorf was a man of high culture, as well
as profound and sincere piety and in his hymns
^of which he wrote more than two thousand) he
preached Christ as eloquently as with his voice.
The real birth-moment of his religious life is said
to have been simultaneous with his study of the
"Ecce Homo" in the Dusseldorf Gallery, a won-
derful painting of Jesus crowned with thorns-
Visiting the gallery one day when a young man, he
gazed on the sacred face and read the legend
superscribed, "All this I have done for thee;
What doest thou for me?" Ever afterwards his
motto was "I have but one passion, and that is
He, and only He" — a version of PauFs "For me
to live IS Christ."
Jfsus, Thy blood and righteousness
My beauty are^ nny ^orious dress:
'Midst flaming worlds, in these arrayed.
With joy shall I Kft up my head.
Bold shall I stand in Tby great day^
For who aught to my charge shall lay f
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES.
93
Futly absolved through these I im—
Fiotn sin ind fear, from guilt ^nd shsiine.
Lord^ I believe were sinners more
TTian sands upon the ocean shore.
Thou hast for all a ransom paid.
For all a full atonement made.
Nearly all the hymns of the great Moravian are
now out of general use, having accomplished their
mission^ like the forgotten ones of Gerhardt, and
been superseded by others. More sung in Europe,
probably, now than any of the survivors is, " Jesus,
geh voran/* ("Jesus, lead on/') which has been
translated into English by Jane Borthwick*
(1854), Two others, both translated by John
Wesley, are with us> the one above quoted, and
"Glory to God, whose witness train/' "Jesus,
Thy blood," which is the best known, frequently ap-
K pears with the alteration —
^^*Ma
^ both bi
Jesus, Thy ro^r of righteoustiesa
My beauty tj, my glorious dress.
THE TUNE,
"Malvem,*' and "Uxbridge" a pure Gregorian,
both by Lowell Mason, are common expressions
of the hymn — the latter, perhaps, generally pre-
ferred, being less plaintive and speaking with a
surer and more restful emphasis.
•Bom (n Ediakuf;^ tSij.
94
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
ROBERT SEAGRAVE,
"RJse, My SouS, and Stretch Thy Wings."
This hymn was written early in the i8th century^
by the Rev* Robert Seagrave, bom at Twyford,
Leicestershire, Eng*^ Nov, 2a, 1693. Educated
at Cambridge, he took holy orders in the Estab-
lished Church, but espoused the cause of the great
evangelistic movement, and became a hearty co-
worker with the Wesleys* Judging by the lyric
fire he could evidently put into his verses, one
Involuntarily asks if he would not have written
more, and been in fact the song-leader of the
spiritual reformation if there had been no Charles
Wesley, There is not a hymn of Wesley's in use
on the same subject equal to the one immortal
hymn of Seagrave, and the only other near its
time that approaches it in vigor and appealing
power is Doddridge's **Awake my soul, stretch
every nerve/*
But Providence gave Wesley the harp and ap-
pointed to the elder poet a branch of possibly
equal usefulness, where he was kept too busy to
enter the singers' ranks.
For eleven years he was the Sunday-evening
lecturer at Lorimer's Hall, London, and often
preached in Whitefield's Tabernacle. His hymn
is one of the most soul-stirring In the English
language:
Rfse^ my iou], and stretch thy wings;
Thy better pottioEi tracer
S, Huntingdon
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST. 217
My hope is buiU on nothing less
Til an J^us' blood and righteousness.
I dare not trust the sweetest frame.
But only lean on Jesus' name.
Ckt Christ the solid Rock I stand
Ail other ground is sinking sand.
When darkness veils His lovely face
I trust in His unchanging gtace.
In cveiy high and stormy gale
My anchor holds within the veil.
On Christ the solid Rock, etc.
Wm. B. Bradbury composed the tune (1865),
It is usually named "The Solid Rock."
*'ABIDE WITH ME! FAST FALLS THE EVENTIDE/'
The Rev. Henry Francis Lyte, author of this melo^
dious hymn-prayer> was bom at Ednam, near Kel-
so, Scotland, June first, 1793* A scholar, graduated
at Trinity College, Dublin; a poet and a musician^
the hard-working curate was a man of frail phy*
sique» with a face of almost feminine beauty, and
a spirit as pure and gentle as a little child's. The
shadow of consumption was over him all his life*
His memory is chiefly associated with the district
church at Lower Brixham, Devonshire, where he
became *' perpetual curate" in 1823. He died at
Nice, France, Nov, 20, 1847.
On the evening of his last Sunday preaching
and communion service he handed to one of his
family the manuscript of his hymn, "Abide with
me,** and the music he had composed for it. It
96
ffTORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
*'He was bom at Hanwell> Middlesex, in 171 5;
was admitted chorister at the Chapel Royal, under
Bernard Gates, and when he was able to play the
organ was appointed deputy for Pigott, of St*
George's Chapel, Windsor, and became organist
at York Minster in 1734. He succeeded Greene
as organist and composer to the Chapel Royal in
1756, and in the same year was made Doctor of
Music at Cambridge- He was appointed master
of the children of the Chapel Royal m 1757, on
the death of Gates. This post he resigned in
1780, and he died in 1783, (February 10,) and
was buried in St» Margaret's Church* West-
minsten
"He had the reputation of being an excellent
trainer of boy's voices, many of his anthems having
been written to exhibit the accomplishments of
his young pupils. The degree of excellence the
boys attained was not won in those days without
the infliction of much corporal punishment/'
Judging from the high pulse and action in the
music of "Amsterdam," one would guess the
energy of the man who made boy choirs — and
made good ones. In the old time the rule was,
'* Birds that can sing and won't sing, must be made
to sing*'; and the rule was sometimes enforced
with the master's time-stick.
A tune entitled "Excelsius/' written a hundred
years later by John Henry Cornell, so nearly
resembles "Amsterdam" as to suggest an intention
to amend it. It changes the modal note from G
SOME HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 97
10 A| but while it marches at the same pace tt
lacks the jubilant modulations and die choral
glory of the rSth-century piece.
SIR JOHN BOWRINg
**In the Cross of Christ I Glory/'
In this hymn we see, sitting humbly at the feet
of the great author of our religion, a man who im*
pressed himself perhaps more than any other save
Napoleon Bonaparte upon his own generation,
and who was the wonder of Europe for his im-
inense attainments and the versatility of his powers.
Statesman, philanthropist, biographer, publicist,
linguist^ historian, financier, naturalist, poet,
[K>litical economist — there is hardly a branch of
Kknowledge or a field of research from which he
"^Jid not enrich himself and others, or a human
condition that he did not study and influence.
K Sir John Bowring was bom in 1792. When a
j^outh he was Jeremy Bentham*s political pupiU
but gained his first fame by his vast knowledge of
European literature, becoming acquainted with
no less than thirteen* continental languages and
dialects. He served in consular appointments at
seven different capitals, carried important reform
measures in Parliament, was Minister Plenipoten-
tiary to China and Governor of Hong Kong, and
concluded a commercial treaty with Siam, where
every previous commissioner had failed. But in
*£u|fintcd m mMot accouuCi to fatty.
9«
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
I
all his crowded years the pen of this tireless and
successful man was busy. Besides his political
economic and religious essays^ which made him
a member of nearly every learned society in
Europe, his translations were countless, and
poems and hymns of his own composing found
their way to the public, among them the tender
spiritual song, —
How sweetly flowed the Gospel sound
From lips of gentleness and grace
When listening thousands gathered round,
And joy and gladness filled the place,
— and the more famous hymn indicated at the head
of this sketch. Knowledge of all religions only
qualified him to worship the Crucified with both
faith and reason. Though nominally a Unitarian^
to him, as to Channing and Martineau and Ed-
mund SearSj Christ was "all we know of God.'*
Bowring died Nov. 23, 1872. But his hymn
to the Cross will never die:
In the cross of Chnst I glory,
Towering o'er the wrecks of time^
All the light of sacred story
Gathers round its head suhlimeu
When the woes of life overtake me
Hopes deceive, and fears annoy.
Never shall the cross forsake me;
Lol it glows with peace and joy.
When the srin of hliss is beaming
Light and love upon my way.
From the cross the radiance streaming
Adds new lustre to the day.
8<»fE HYMNS OF GREAT WITNESSES. 99
Bane and blessing, pain and pleasure
By the cross are sanctified.
Peace is there that knows no measure^
Joys that through all time abide.
THE TUNE.
Idi;aiinar Conkey's ''Rathbun" fits the adoring
words as if they had waited for it. Its air, swelling
through diatonic fourth and third to the supreme
syllable, bears on its waves the homage of the lines
from bar to bar till the four voices come home to
rest full and satisfied in the final chord —
Gathers round its head sublime.
Ithamar Conkey, was bom of Scotch ancestry,
b Shutesbuiy, Mass., May 5th, 18 15. He was a
noted bass singer, and was for a long time con-
nected with the choir of the Calvary church. New
York City, and sang the oratorio solos. His tune
of ''Rathbun'' was composed in 1847, and pub-
lished in Greatorex's collection in 185 1. He died
in Elizabeth, N. J., April 30, 1867.
CHAPTER III.
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVO^
TION AND EXPERIENCE.
"JESU DULCIS MEMORIA.^
"Jesus the Very Thought of Thee/*
The original of this delightful hymn is one of
the devout meditations of Bernard of Clairvaux,
a Cistercian monk (i09i-ii53)* He was bom of
a noble family in or near Dijon, Burgundy, and
when only twenty-three years old established a
monastery at Clairvaux, France, over which he
presided as its Brst abbot. Educated in the
University of Paris, and possessing great natural
abilities, he soon made himself felt in both the
religious and political affairs of Europe. For more
than thirty years he was the personal power that
directed belief, quieted turbulence, and arbitrated
disputes, and kings and even popes sought his
counsel. It was his eloquent preaching that in-
spired the second crusade.
His fine poem of feeling, in fifty Latin stanzas,
has been a source of pious song in several languag#«^
Cioo)
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTIOll,
101
iterally —
Je«u, dulcts memorit
Dans vera cordi gaudia,
S^ super mel et omniuixi
Ejus dulcis presently.
Jesusf a sweet memory
Giving true joys ta the hean.
But sweet above honey and all things
His presence [is]*
P The five stanzas (of CaswalFs free translation)
now in use are familiar and dear to all English^
H speaking believers;
H Jesus, the very thought of Thee
H^ With flweetness fills my breast,
^^^^ But ffweeter far Thy face to see,
^^^B And in Thy presence re£L
^^^B Nor voice can sing nor hean can frame
^^^H Nor can the memory Bnd,
^^^^ A sweeter sound than Thy blest name,
^V^^ O Saviour of mankind.
The Rev, Edward Caswall was bom in Hamp-
shire^ Eng., July 15, 18 14, the son of a clergyman.
He graduated with honors at Brazenose College^
Oxford, and after ten years of service in the minis-
try of the Church of England joined Henry New-
man's Oratory at Birmingham, was confirmed in the
Church of Rome, and devoted the rest of his life to
works of piety and charity. He died Jan. 2, 1878,
THE TUNE.
No single melody has attached itself to this
hymn, the scope of selection being as large as the
I02
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
supply of appropriate common^metre tunes. Bam
by's "Holy Trinity," Wade's *'Holy Cross** and
Griggs' tune (of his own name) are all good> but
many, on the giving out of the hymn, would as-
sociate it at once with the more familiar "Hcber"
by George Kingsley and expect to hear it sung.
It has the uplift and unction of John Newton's —
How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
In the believer's car.
"GOD CALLING YET? SHALL I NOT HEAR?"
Gerhard Tersteegen, the original author of the
hymn, and one of the most eminent religious poets
of the Reformed German church in its early days,
was bom in 1697, in the town of Mors, in West-
phalia. He was left an orphan in boyhood by the
death of his father, and as his mother's means were
limited, he was put to work as an apprentice when
very young, at Muhlheim on the Rhur, and be-
came a ribbon weaver. Here, when about fifteen
years of age, he became deeply concerned for his
soul, and experienced a deep and abiding spiritual
work* As a Christian, his religion pa nook of the
ascetic type, but his mysticism did not make him
useless to his fellow-men.
At the age of twenty-seven, he dedicated all his
resources and energies to the cause of Christ,
writing the dedication in his own blood. "God
graciously called me,*' he says, "out of the world,
and granted me the desire to belong to Him, and
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
103
to be willing to follow Him." He gave up secular
employments altogether, and devoted his whole
time to religious instruction and to the poor. His
house became famous as the "Pilgrims' Cottage,"
and was visited by people high and humble from
all parts of Germany. In his lifetime he is said
10 have written one hundred and eleven hymns*
Died April 3, 1769.
God calling yet\ shall I not hear?
£a*th*s pleasures shall I still hold dear t
Shall hfe's swift-passtng years all fly,
Aod ^ill my soul in slumber tie f
*««**#
God ealUng yett I cannot stay;
My heart 1 yield without delay.
Vain wodd, farewell; from thee I partj
The voice of God hath reached my heart.
H The hymn was translated from the German by
■ Miss Jane Borthwick^ born in Edinburgh, 181 3.
She and her younger sister, Mrs, Findlater, jointly
translated and published, in 1S54, Hymns From
the Land of LuthtTf and contributed many poetical
pieces to the Family Treasury. She died in 1897,
H Another translation>imitating the German metre,
" is more euphonious, though less literal and less
easily fitted to music not specially composed for it,
on account of its "feminine*' rhymes:
God calling ycti and shall T never hearken ?
But stil! earth's witcheries my spirit darken;
This passing \vt^, these pasdng joys all flying
And still my soul in dreamy slumbers lying?
104
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
THE TUNE.
Dr< Dykes* "Rivaulx" is a sober choral that
articulates the hymn-writer's sentiment with sin-
cerity and with considerable earnestness, but
breathes too faintly the interrogative and ex-
pos tulary tone of the lines. To voice the devout
solicitude and self-remonstrance of the hymn there
is no tune superior to *' Federal St/'
The Hon, Henry Kemble Oliver, author of** Fed-
eral St.,*' was bom in Salem^Mass., March, 1800,
and was addicted to music from his childhood*
His father compelled him to relinquish it as a
profession, but it remained his favorite avocation,
and after his graduation from Harvard the cares
of none of the various public positions he held,
from schoolmaster to treasurer of the state of
Massachusetts, could ever wean him from the study
of music and its practice. At the age of thirty-one,
while sitting one day in his study, the last verse of
Anne Steele's hymn —
So fades the lovely blooming flower,
— floated into his mind, and an unbidden melody
came with it. As he hummed it to himself the
words shaped the air^ and the air shaped the
words.
Then gcntte patience smiles on pain.
Then dying hope revives again,
— became —
Sec gentle patience smile on pain;
See dying hope revive again;
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION, I05
—and with the change of a word and a tense the
hymn created the melody, and soon afterward
the complete tune was made. Two years later it
was published by Lowell Mason, and Oliver gave
it the name of the street in Salem on which his
wife was bom, wooed, won, and married* It adds
a pathos to its history that ''Federal St/' was sung
at her burial
This first of Oliver's tunes was followed bj
*' Harmony Grove/^ " Morning," " Walnut Grove/'
'•Merton," "Hudson," "Bosworth," "Salisbury
Plain," several anthems and motets^, and a "Te
Deum/'
In his old age, at the great Peace Jubilee in
Boston, 1872, the baton was put into his hands,
and the gray-haired composer conducted tht
chorus of ten thousand voices as they sang the
words and music of his noble harmony. The
incident made "Federal St/' more than ever a
feature of New England history, Oliver died in
1885.
I
"MY GOD, HOW ENDLESS IS THY LOVE."
The spirited tune to this hymn of Watts, by
Frederick Lampe, variously named **Kent" and
"Devonshire," historically reaches back so near
ta the poet's time that it must have been one of the
earliest expressions of his fervent words.
Johan Friedrich Lampe^ born 1693, in Saxony,
Was educated in music at Helmstadt, and came to
iJU
io6
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
England in 1725 as a band musician and composer
to Covent Garden Theater. His best-known sec-
ular piece is the music written to Henry Carey*s
burlesque, "The Dragon of Wantley/'
Mrs, Rich, wife of the lessee of the theater, was
converted under the preaching of the Methodists^
and after her husband's death her house became
the home of Lampe and his wife^ where Charles
Wesley often met him.
The influence of Wesley won him to more seri-
ous work^ and he became one of the evangelist's
helpers^ supplying tunes to his singing campaigns.
Wesley became attached to him, and after his
death — in Edinburgh, 1752 — commemorated the
musician in a funeral hymn.
In popular favor Bradbury's tune of "Rolland*
has now superseded the old music sung to Watts*
lines —
My Godj how endless is Thy love.
Thy gifts are every evening new.
And mommg mercies from above
Gently distil like early dew.
1 yield my powers to Thy command^
To Thee I consecrate my days;
Perpetual blessings from Thy hand
Demand perpetual songs of praise.
William Batchelder Bradburyj a pupil of Dr.
Lowell Mason, and the pioneer in publishing
Sunday-school music> was bom 1816, in York, Me,
His father^ a veteran of the Revolution^ was a
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION,
107
choir leader, and William's love of music was in-
herited. He left his father's farm, and came to
Boston, where he first heard a churchn^rgan-
Encouraged by Mason and others to follow music
as a profession, he went abroad, studied at Leipsic,
and soon after his return became known as a
composer of sacred tunes> He died in Montclair,
N. J., 1868.
"I'M NOT ASHAMED TO OWN MY LORD."
The favorite tune for this spiritual hymn> also by
Watts, is old "Arlington," one of the most useful
church melodies in the whole realm of English
psalmody. Its name clings to a Boston street, and
the beautiful chimes of Arlington St, church
(Unitarian) annually ring its music on special
occasions, as it has since the bells were tuned :
Tin not ashamed to own my Lord
Or to defend His cause.
Maintain the honor of His Word,
The glory of His cross*
Jesus, my God 1 — I know His Name;
His Name is all my trusty
Nor will He put my soul to shame
Nor let my hope be lose.
Dr. Thomas Augustine Arne, the creator of
'* Arlington/' was bom in London, 1710, theson
of a King St. upholsterer* He studied at Eton, and
though intended for the legal profession, gave his
whole mind to music. At twenty-three he began
log
STORY OF THE HTTMNS AND TUNES.
writing operas for his sister, Susanna (a singei
who afterwards became the famous tragic actress^
Mrs* Gibber) •
Ame*s music to Milton's '*Comus/' and to
'Rule Brittannia" established his reputation* He
»vas engaged as composer to Drury Lane Theater,
and in 1759 received from Oxford his degree of
Music Doctor, Later in life he turned his attention
to oratorios^ and other forms of sacred music> and
was the first to introduce female voices in choir
singing. He died March 5^ 1778^ chanting hal*
lelujahSt it is said, with his last btearh.
"IS THIS THE KIND RETURN r
Dr Watts in this hymn gave experimental piety
its hour and language of reflection and penitence;
Is this the kind return ?
Are these the thanks we owe.
Thus to abuse Eternal Love
Whence stl our blessings fiowf
m * * m m m
Let past ingratitude
Provoke our weeping eyes*
United in loving wedlock with these words in
former years was "Golden Hill," a chime of sweet
counterpoint too rare to bury its authorship under
the vague phrase "A Western Melody/* It was
caught evidently from a forest bird* that flutes its
clear solo in the sunsets of May and June. There
*Tbc wood thrudiH,
HYMNS or CHRISTIAN DEVOTION*
109
k
I
can be no mistaking the imitation — the same com-
pass, the same upward thrill* the same fall and
warbled turn. Old-time folk used to call for
it, "Sing, my Fairweather Bird;" It lingers in a
few of the twenty- or thirty-years-ago collecttons,
but stronger voices have drowned it out of the new.
"Thacher/* (set to the same hymnj) faintly re-
calls its melody. Nevertheless **Thacher" is a
good tune* Though commonly written in sharps,
contrasting the B flat of its softer and more liquid
rival of other days, it is one of Handel's strains,
and lends the meaning and pathos of the lyric text
to voice and instrument.
'WHEN 1 SURVEY THE WONDROUS CROSS."
r — -mi- - - ■
This crown of all the sacred odes of Dn Watts
for the song-service of the church of God was
called by Matthew Arnold the "greatest hymn in
the English language-" The day the eminent
critic died he heard it sung in the Sefton Park
Presbyterian Church, and repeated the opening
lines softly to himself again and again after the
services. The hymn is certainly one of the greatest
in the language. It appeared as No. 7 in Watts'
third edition (about 1710) containing five stanzas.
The second line —
On which the Prince of Gloty died,
— ^read originally —
Where the ^oung Prince of Glory died-
230 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
In her humble home in the foimer town her
diiidren were bcm, and it was while caring for her
own little family of four, and a sick sister, that the
incident occurred (August 18 18), which called
forth her tender hymn. She was a devout Chris-
tian, and in pleasant weather, whenever she could
find the leisure, she would ''steal away" at sunset
from her burdens a little while, to rest and com-
mune with God. Her favorite place was a
wealthy neighbor's large and beautiful flower
garden. A servant reported her visits there to the
mistress of the house, who called the ''intruder**
to account.
" If you want anything, why don't you come in ?**
was the rude question, followed by a plain hint that
no stealthy person was welcome.
Wounded by the ill-natured rebuff, the sensitive
woman sat down the next evening with her baby
in her lap, and half-blinded by her tears, wrote
"An Apology for my Twilight Rambles," in the
verses that have made her celebrated.
She sent the manuscript (nine stanzas) to her
captious neighbor — ^with what result has never
been told.
Crude and simple as the little rhyme was, it
contained a germ of lyric beauty and life. The
Rev. Dr. Charles Hyde of Ellington, who was a
neighbor of Mrs. Brown, procured a copy. He
was assisting Dr. Nettleton to compile the Village
Hymns, and the humble bit of devotional verse
was at once judged worthy of a place in the new
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
Ill
Were the whole realm of Nature mine.
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazmg, so divine.
Demands my soul, my life, my all.
To match the height and depth of these words
^th fitting glory of sound might well have been
an ambition of devout composers. Rev. G. C
Wells' tune in the Revivalist, with its emotional
chorus, L B< Woodbury's ''Eucharist'* in the
MefkoJist Hymnal J Henry Smart's eJFective cho-
ral in Bamby's Hymnary (No, 170), and a score
of others* have woven the feeling lines into melody
wth varying success. Worshippers in spiritual
sympathy with the words may question if, after
all, old '* Hamburg/' the best of Mason's loved
Gregorians, does not, alone, in tone and elocu-
tion, rise to the level of the hymn,
'XQVE DIVINE, ALL LOVES EXCELLING,"
This evergreen song«wreath to the Crucified^
was contributed by Charles Wesley, in 1746. It is
found in his collection of 1756, Hymns for Those
That Seek and Those That Hm;e Redemption in
the Blood of Jesus Christ.
Love Divine all loves excelling,
Joy of Heaven to earth come doWDt
Fix in us Thy humble dwelling.
All Thy faithful mercies crowiL
Cc»ne Almighty to deliver,
Let us ait Thy life receive,
112 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Suddenly return, and never.
Nevermore Thy temples le^ve*
* # ll; % ^ *
Finish then Thy new creation;
Pure and spotless let us be;
Let us see our whole salvation
Perfectly secured by Thee.
Changed from glory into glory
Till in Heaven we take our placCi
Till we cast our crowns before Thee
Lost in wonder, love and praise J
The hymn has been set to H* Isaac^s ancient
mne (1490), to Wyeth's "Nettleton'" (1810), to
Thos. H. Bailey*s (1777-1839) ''Isle of Beauty, fare
thee weir' (named from Thomas Moore's song),
to Edward Hopkins' "St* Joseph," and to a multi-
tude of others more or less familiar*
Most familiar of all perhaps, (as in the instance
of "Far from mortal cares retreating/') is its
association with "Greenville," the production of
that brilliant but erratic genius and freethinker,
Jean Jacques Rousseau, It was originally a love
serenade, ("Days of absence, sad and drearj^")
from the opera of Li Devin du Village^ wrinen
about 1752, The song was commonly known
years afterwards as "Rousseau's Dream." But
the unbelieving philosopher, musician, and mis-
guided moralist builded better than he knew, and
probably better than he meant when he wrote his
immortal choral. Whatever he heard in his
***dream" (and one legend says Jt was a '*song of
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
"3
angels") he created a harmony dear to the church
he despised, and softened the hearts of the Chris-
tian world towards an evil teacher who was in-
spired, like Balaam, to utter one sacred strain.
Rousseau was bom in Geneva, 1712, but he
never knew his mother, and neither the affection
or interest of his father or of his other relatives
^'was of the quality to insure the best bringing up of
3 child.
I He died July, 1778, But his song survives, while
^he world gladly forgets everything else he wrote.
3t is almost a pardonable exaggeration to say that
every child in Christendom knows * 'Greenville/
'-WHEN ALL THY MERCIES, O MY GOD/
This charming hymn was written by Addison,
the celebrated English poet and essayist, about
1701, in grateful commemoration of his delive^
from shipwreck in a storm off the coast of Genoa,
Italy, It originally contained thirteen stanzas,
but no more than four or six are commonly sung.
It has put the language of devotional gratitude
into the mouths of thousands of humble disciples
who could but feeblv frame their own:
When all Thy mercies, O my God,
My rising sotjl surveys,
Transported with the view I'm lost
In wonder, love and praise.
Unnumbered comforts on my soul
Thy tender care bestowed
II4> STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
Before my Infmnt heart conceived
From whom those comfofti flowed.
When in the slippery paths of youth
With heedless steps I ran,
Thitic arm unseen conveyed me safcp
And led me up to man.
Another hymn of Addison —
How arc Thy servants bless *d, O Lord,
— was probably composed after the same return
from a foreign voyage. It has been called his
** Traveller's Hymn/*
Joseph Addison, the best English writer of his
time, was the son of Lancelot Addison, rector of
Milston, Wiltshire, and afterwards Dean of
Litchfield, The distinguished author w^as bom in
Milston Rectory, May i, 167a, and was educated
at Oxford. His excellence in poetry, both English
and Latin, gave him early reputation, and a
patriotic ode obtained for him the patronage o|^.
Lord Somers. A pension from King William II|^|
assured him a comfortable income, which wa^^
increased by further honors, for in 1704 he was
appointed Commissionerof Appeals, then secretary
of the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, and in 1717
Secretarj^ of State. He died in Holland House,
Kensington, near London, June 17, 1719.
His hymns are not numerous, (said to beonly five),
but they are remarkable for the simple beauty
of their style, as well as for their Christian spirit.
Of his fine metrical version of the 23rd Psalm,—
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
Ilie Lord my pasture shall prepare.
And feed me with a shepherd's care.
115
ne of his earliest productions, the tradition is
«Jiat he gathered its imagery when a boy living
^t Netheravonj near SaUsbary Plain, during his
lonely two-mile walks to school at Amesbury and
l>ack again. All his hymns appeared first in the
^pectaioTr to which he was a prolific contributor.
THE TUNE.
The hymn '*When all Thy mercies" still has
"Geneva" for its vocal mate in some congrega-
tional manuals. The tune is one of the rare
survivals of the old "canon" musical method^ the
parts coming in one after another with identical
Dotes. It is always delightful as a performance
with its glory of harmony and its sweet duet, and
for generations it had no other words than Addi-
son's hymn*
John Cole, author of "Geneva," was born in
Tewksbury^ Eng., 1774, and came to the United
States in his boyhood (1785}- Baltimore, Md.
became his American home, and he was educated
there. Early in life he became a musician and
music publisher. At least twelve of his principal
song collections from 1800 to 1832 are mentioned
by Mn Hubert P. Main, most of them sacred and
containing many of his own tunes*
He continued to compose music till his death,
Aug* 17, 1855, Mr. Cole was leader of the rcgi-
is8
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
THE TUNE.
The hymn has been sometimes sung to
gah/' an old revival piece by J. C Lowry (1820)
once much heard in camp-meetings, but it is a pe*
destrian tune with too many quavers, and a head^
long tempo,
Bradbury's "Jazer," in three-four time, is a
melody with modulations, though more sympa-
thetic, but it IS hard to divorce the hymn from its
long-time consort, old "Arlington/* It has the ac-
cent of its sincerity, and the breath of its devotion.
'^LO, ON A NARROW NECK OF LAND. "
This hymn of Charles Wesley is always desig-
nated now by the above line, the first of the second
stanza as originally written. It is s?^id to have been
composed at Land's End, in Cornwall, with the
British Channel and the broad Atlantic in view
and surging on both sides around a '* narrow neck
of land,"
Lol on a narrow neck of bnd,
*Twixt two unbounded scas^ 1 stand,
Secure, insensible:
A poini of timcp a moment 3 space;*
Removes me to that heavenly place.
Or shuts me up in hell.
O God, mine inmost soul convert.
And deeply on my though cful heart
Eternal things impress:
Give me to feel their solemn vreight.
I
I
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION,
And tremble on the brink of fate.
And wake to righteousness.
119
The preachers and poets of the great spiritual
rtiovement of the eighteenth century in England
abated nothing in the candor of their words* The
terrible earnestness of conviction tipped their
tongues and pens with fire.
THE TUNE,
Lady Huntingdon would have lent "Meribah"
gladly to this hymn, but Mason was not yet bom*
Many times it has been borrowed for Wesley's
words since it came to its own, and the spirit of the
pious Countess has doubtless approved the loan* It
is rich enough to furnish forth her own lyric and
more than one other of like matter and metre.
The muscular music of *' Ganges" has sometimes
carried the hymn, and there are those who think its
thunder is not a whit more Hebraic than the words
require.
"COME YE SINNERS POOR AND NEEDY."
Few hymns have been more frequently sung in
prayer-meetings and religious assemblies during the
last hundred and fifty years. Its author, Joseph
Hart, spoke what he knew and testified what he
felt. Bom in London, 171 2, and liberally educated,
he was in his young manhood very religious, but he
went so far astray as to indulge in evil practices, and
I20 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
even published writings^ both original and trans-
lated, against Christiani^ and religion of any kind.
But he could not drink at the Dead Sea and live.
The apples of Sodom sickened him. Conscience
asserted itself, and the pangs of remorse nearly
drove him to despair till he turned back to the
source he had forsaken. He alludes to this expe-
rience in the lines —
Let not conscience make jou linger.
Nor of 6cncss fondly dream;
All the Btncss He reqiiiieth
Is to feel jTour need of Him.
During Passion Week, 1767, he had an amazing
view of the sufferings of Christ, under the stress of
which his heart was changed. In the joy of this ex-
perience he wrote —
Come }'e sinners poor and needy,
— and —
Come all ye chosen saints of God.
Probably no two Minn-lines have been oftener
repeated than —
If )-ou tarn- till }-ou*re better
You will ne>-er come at all.
The complete form of the original stanzas is:
Come ye sinners poor and needy.
Weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you.
Full of pity, love and power.
He is able.
He is willing; doubt no more.
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
121
The whole hymn — ^ten stanzas — is not sung
now as one, but two, the second division begin-
fiiBg with the line —
Come ye weary, heavy laden.
Rev. Joseph Hart became minister of Jewin St.
Congregational Chapel, London, about 1760,
^where he labored till his death. May 24, 1768.
THE TUNM.
A revival song by Jeremiah Ingalls (i764-i828)>
written about 1804, with an easy» popular swing
and a sjorzando chorus —
Turn to the Lord and seek salvatioiip
— ^monopolized this hymn for a good many years.
The tunes commonly assigned to it have since been
*' Greenville " and Von Weber's " Wilmot, " in which
last it is now more generally sung — dropping the
echo lines at the end of each stanza.
Carl Maria Von Weber, son of a roving musician,
was born in Eutin, Germany^ 1786, He developed
no remarkable genius till he was about twenty
years old, though being a fine vocalist, his singing
brought him popularity and gain; but in 1806 he
nearly lost his voice by accidently drinking nitric
acid. He was for several years private secretary to
Duke Ludwig at Stuttgart, and in 18 13 Chapel-
Master at Prague, from which place he went to
Dresden in 1817 as Musik-Directon
Von Weber's Komer songs won the hearts of all
Germany, and his immortal "Der Freischutz"
242 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
— Written April, 1814. It was the fashion then for
musical sociedes to call on the popular poets for
contributions, and tunes were composed for them,
though these have praaically passed into oblivion.
Byron's ringing ballad (from II Kings 19:35) —
Th' Asayrian came down like a wolf on the fold
And his cohorts were gleaming in puq>le and gold,
— ^has been so much a favorite for recitadon and
declamation that the loss of its tune is never
thought of.
Another poedc rendering of the "Captivity
Psalm** is worthy of notice among the lay hymns
not unworthy to supplement clerical sermons. It
was written by the Hon. Joel Barlow in 1799, and
published in a pioneer psalm-book at Northamp-
ton, Mass. It is neither a translation nor properly
a hymn but a poem built upon the words of the
Jewish lament, and really reproducing something
of its plaindve beauty. Two stanzas of it are as
follows:
Along the banks where Babel's current flows
Our captive bands in deep despondence strayed.
While Zion's fall in deep remembrance rose.
Her friends, her children mingled with the dead.
The tuneless harps that once with joy we strung
When praise employed, or mirth inspired the lay.
In mournful silence on the willows hung,
And growing grief prolonged the tedious day.
Like Pope, this American poet loved onomatope
and imitadve verse, and the last line is a word*
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. I Z j
^The Rev. John Berridge — friend of the Wesleys,
H^hitefield, and Lady Huntingdon — was an ec-
centric but very worthy and spiritual minister, born
the son of a farmer, in Kingston, Nottinghamshire,
Eng*,Mar i, 1716. He studied at Cambridge, and
Was ordained curate of Stapleford and subse-
qiiently located as vicar of Everton, 1775* He died
Jan. 22, 179J- He loved to preach, and he was de-
rermined that his tombstone should preach after
hk is voice was stilL His epitaph, composed by him*
^^If, is both a testimony and a memoir:
tHcre lie the earthly remains of John Bcrridgej late vicar of
Everton, and an itinerant servant of Jesus Christy who loved
hts Master and His work, and afiei- running His errands
many years, was called up to wait on Him above.
Reader^ art thou bom again ?
^0 salvation without the new birth.
"'"I was bom in sin, February, 1716,
* * i^emained ignotant of my fallen state till 1730,
^^^"^ Lived proudly on faith and works for salvation till 175 1.
^^f ^-Admitted to Everton vicarage, 1755,
f fled to Jesus alone for refuge, 1756*
^_ **J^e|l asleep in Jesus Christ,—" (1793.)
THE TUNE,
The once popular score that easily made the
'^ymn a favorite, was '* Salem," in the old Psat-
^^oJist, It still appears in some note-books, though
^ne name of its composer is uncertain. Its notes
(in 6-8 time) succeed each other in syllabic mod-
^^tations that give a soft dactylic accent to the meas-
ure and a wavy current to the lines:
124 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
O happy saints that dwell in ligfit.
And walk with Jesus dot hcd in white.
Safe landed on that peaceful shore.
Where pilgrims meet to part no more:
Released from sorrow, toil and stnfc.
Death was the gate to endless life.
And now they range the heavenly plaiBS
And sing His love in melting Strains.
Another version reads:
^nd welcome to an endless life^
Their souls have now begun to prav«
The height and depth of Jesus* love.
"THOU DEAR REDEEMER, DYING LAMB."
The author^ John Cennick, like Joseph Hart,
was led to Christ after a reckless boyhood and
youth, by the work of the Divine Spirit in his soul,
independent of any direct outward influence.
Sickened of his cardsj novels, and playhouse
pleasures, he had begun a sort of mechanical
reform, when one day, walking in the streets ol
London, he suddenly seemed to hear the text
spoken "I am thy salvation!'* His consecration
began at that moment-
He studied for the ministry , and became a
preacher, first under direction of the Wesleys,
then under Whitefield, but afterwards joined the
Moravians, or '* Brethren/' He was born at Read-
ing, Derbyshire, Eng., Dec, 12, 1 718. and died in
Undon, July 4, 1755-
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
THE TUNE.
125
The word ** Rhine" (in some collections — in
others "Emmons *') names a revival tune once so
linked with this hymn and so well known that few
religious people now past middle life could enjoy
singing it to any other. With a compass one note
beyond an octave and a third, it utters every line
wth a clear, bold gladness sure to infect a meeting
with its own spiritual fervor,
Thou dear Redeemer, dying Lamb^
I love to hear of Thee;
No music like Thy charming name.
Nor half so sweet can be*
^^ The composer of the bright legato melody jusi
I described was Frederick Burgmiiller, a young
German musician^ born in 1804. He was a remark-
able genius, both in composition and execution,
but his health was frail, and he did not live to
fulfil the rich possibilities that lay within him. He
died in 1824 — only twenty years old. The tune
^m ** Rhine" ('VEmmons'') is from one of his marches.
'WHILE THEE I SEEK, PROTECTING POWER,"
Helen Maria Williams wrote this sweet hymn,
probably about the year 1800. She was a bril-
liant woman, better known in literary society for
her political verses and essays than by herhymns;
but the hymn here noted bears sufficient wit'
ness to her deep religious feeling:
246 8T0RY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
of most great music publishers and dealers, pre*
serves the full poem and score.
Its occasion was the death at sea, off St. Helena*
of the Baptist missionary, Mrs. Sarah Hall
Boardman Judson, and the solemn committal of
her remains to the dust on that historic island*
Sept. I, 1845. ^^^ ^^s ^^ h^'* ^^y ^o America
from Burmah at the time of her death, and the
ship proceeded on its homeward voyage im-
mediately after her burial. The touching circum-
stances of the gifted lady's death, and the strange
romance of her entombment where Napoleon's
grave was made twenty-four years before, inspired
Mr. Washburn, who was a prominent layman of
the Baptist denomination, and interested in all its
ecclesiastical and missionary activities, and he
wrote this poetic memorial of the event:
Mournfully, tenderly, bear on the dead;
Where the warrior has lain, let the Christian be bid.
No place more befitting, O rock of the sea;
Never such treasure was hidden in thee.
Mournfully, tenderly, solemn and slow;
Tears are bedewing the path as ye go;
Kindred and strangers are mourners today;
Gently, so gently, O bear her away.
Mournfully, tenderly, gaze on that brow;
Beautiful is it in quietude now.
One look, and then settle the loved to her rest
The ocean beneath her, the turf on her breast.
Mrs. Sarah Judson was the second wife of the
Rev. Adoniram Judson, D. D., the celebrated pio-
CHRI3TIAN BALLADS,
2*7
neer American Baptist missionary, and the
mother by her first marriage^ of the late Rev,
George Dana Boardman, D.D,, LL, D,, of Phila-
delphia.
The Hon, Henry S. Washburn was born in
Providence, R, L, i8i3» and educated at Brown
University, During most of his long life he re-
sided in MassachusettSi and occupied there many
positions of honor and trust, serving in the State
Legislature both as Representative and Senator.
He was the author of many poems and lyrics of
high merit, some of which — notably "The Vacant
Chair"— became popular in sheet-music and in
books of religious and educational use. He died
in 1903,
THE TUNE.
'*The Burial of Mrs. Judson" became favorite
parlor music when Lyman Heath composed the
melody for it — of the same name. Its notes and
movement were evidently inspired by the poem^
for it reproduces the feeling of every line* The
threnody was widely known and sung in the
middle years of the last century» by people, too»
who had scarcely heard of Mrs. Judson, and re-
ceived in the music and words their first hint of her
history- The poem prompted the tune^ but the
tune was the garland of the poem.
Lyman Heath of Bow> N, H,, was born there
Aug, 24, 1804- He studied music» and became a
Tocaliat and vocal composer. Died July 30, 1870.
248 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
*TELL ME NOT IN MOURNFUL NUMBERS.''
Longfellow's " Psalm of Life" was written when
he was a young man, and for some years it carried
the title he gave it, "What the Young Man's Heart
Said to the Psalmist'' — a capdon altogether too
long to bear currency.
The history of the beloved poet who wrote this
optimistic ballad of hope and courage is too well
known to need recounting here. He was bom in
Portland, Me., in 1807, graduated at Bowdoin
College, and was for more than forty years pro-
fessor of Belles Lettres in Harvard University.
Died in Cambridge, March 4, 1882. Of his longer
poems the most read and admired are his beaudful
romance of ''Evangeline," and his epic of "Hia-
watha," but It is hardly too much to say that for
the last sixty years, his "Psalm of Life" has been
the common property of all American, if not
English school-children, and a part of their edu-
cation. When he was in London, Queen Victoria
sent for him to come and see her at the palace.
He went, and just as he was seating himself in the
waiting coach after the interview, a man in working
clothes appeared, hat in hand, at the coach window.
"Please sir, yer honor," said he, "an* are you
Mr. Longfellow.?"
"I am Mr. Longfellow," said the poet.
"An' did you write the Psalm of Life?" he
asked.
" I wrote the Psalm of Life," replied the poet.
CHRISTIAN BALLADS*
2+9
"An*, yer honor, would you be willing to take
a workingman by the hand?"
Mr. Longfellow gave the honest Englishman a
hearty handshake, "And" (said he in telling the
story) " I never in my life received a compliment
that gave me more satisfaction,"
The incident has a delightful democratic flavor
— and it is perfectly characteristic of the amiable
author of the most popular poem in the English
language. The "Psalm of Life" is a wonderful
example of the power of commonplaces put into
tuneful and elegant verse.
The thought of setting the poem to music came
to the compiler of one of the Unitarian church
singing books. Some will question, however,
whether the selection was the happiest that could
have been made. The tune is '* Rathbun," Ithamar
Conkey's melody that always recalls Sir John Bow-
ring's great hymn of praise.
"BUILD THEE MORE NOBLE MANSIONS."
This poem by Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes,
known among his works as "The Chambered
Nautilus/' was considered by himself as his
worthiest achievement in verse, and his wish that
it might live is likely to be fulfilled. It is stately,
and in character and effect a rhjthmic sermon
from a text in "natural theology." The biography
of one of the little molluscan sea-navigators that
continually enlarges its shell to adapt it to its
132 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"MY GRACIOUS REDEEMER I LOVE."
This is one of Benjamin Francis's lays of de-
votion. The Christian Welshman who bore that
name was a Gospel minister full of Evangelical
zeal, who preached in many places, though his
pastoral home was with the Baptist church in
Shortwood, Wales. Flattering calls to London
could not tempt him away from his first and only
parish, and he remained there till his triumphant
death. He was bom in 1734, and died in 1799.
My graeioua Redeemer I love,
Hts praises aloud V\\ proclaim^
And join wkh the armies above.
To shout His adorable name^
To gaze on His glories divine
Shall be my eternal employ;
To see them incessantly shine,
My boundless, tnelfablc joy*
Tune, "Birmingham" — an English melody.
Anonymous*
''BLEST BE THE TIE THAT BINDS,**
Perhaps the best hymn-expression of sacred
brotherhood^ at least it has had, and still has the
indorsement of constant use. The author, John
Fawcett, D,D., is always quoted as the example
of his own words, since he sacrificed ambition
Mid personal interest to Christian affect ion.
Bofn near Bradford, Yorkshire, Jan. 6, 1739,
wmi OMivcrtcd under the preaching of Whiiefield,
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. IJJ
he joined the Methodists, but afterwards became
a member of the new Baptist church in Bradford.
Seven years later he was ordained over the Baptist
Society at Wainsgate. In 1772 he received a call
to succeed the celebrated Dr. Gill, in London, and
accepted. But at the last moment, when his
goods were packed for removal, the clinging love
of his people, weeping their farewells around him,
melted his heart. Their passionate regrets were
more than either he or his good wife could with-
stand.
"I will stay J** he said; "you may unpack my
goods, and we will live for the Lord lovingly
together."
It was out of this heart experience that the
tender hymn was bom.
Our fearSy our hopes, our aims are one.
Our comforts and our cares.
Dr. Fawcett died July 25, 18 17.
Tune, "Boylston,** L. Mason; or "Dennis,**
H. G. Nageli.
'1 LOVE THY KINGDOM, LORD.'*
"Dr. Dwight*s Hymn,** as this is known par
eminence among many others from his pen, is
one of the imperishable lyrics of the Christian
Church. The real spirit of the hundred and
twenty-second Psalm is in it, and it is worthy of
Watts in his best moments.
^^^■^ 134 STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNES. ^H
^^^^^ Timothy D wight was born at Nonhampton,
^^^V Mass, May 14, 175^* ^^d graduated at Yale
^^^1 College at the age of thirteen. He wrote several
^^^1 religious poems of considerable length* In 1 795
^^^H he was elected President of Yale College, and in
^^H 1800 he revised Watts' Psalms, at the request of the
^^^1 General Association of Connecticut, adding a num-
^^^1 ber of translations of his own.
^^^^V I love Thy kingdom, Lord,
^V The house of Thine abode^
^H The Church our blest Redeemer saved
^H With His own precious blood.
^ I love Thy Church, 0 God;
^^^^^^ft Her walls before Thee stand,
^^^^^^H Dear as the apple of Thine eye,
^^^^^^1 And graven on Thy hand.
^^^^f Dn Dwight died Jan. 11, 1817.
^^^^^ Tune, "St. Thomas," Aaron Williams, (1734-
^^^M Mr, Hubert P- Main, however, believes the
^^^1 author to be Handel It appeared as the second
^^^H movement of a four-movement tune in Willjams*s
^^^1 1762 collection, which contained pieces by the
^^^H great masters, with his own; but while not credited
^^^^ to Handel, Williams did not claim it himself,
^^^H •'MID SCENES OF CONFUSFON."
^H a <
hymn, common in chapel hymn books
century and more ago, is said to have been
by the Rev. David Denham, about 1826.
MYUnS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION- I35
THE TUNE,
**Home, Sweet Home" was composed, accord-
ing to the old account, by John Howard Payne as
one of the airs in his opera of "Clari, the Maid of
Milan/' which was brought out in London at
Drury Lane in iSz^, But Charles Mackay, the
English poets in the London Telegraph, asserts
that Sir Henrj^ Bishops an eminent musician, in
his vain search for a Sicilian national air, invented
one> and that it was the melody of " Home, sweet
Home," which he afterwards set to Howard Payne's
words, Mr, Mackay had this story from Sir
Henry himself.
Mid scenes of confusion and creature complatnts
How sweet to my soul is comm union with saintly
To find ai the banquet of mercy there's room
And feel in the presence of Jesus at home.
Home, home, sweet, sweet home!
Prepare me, dear Savior for glory, my home,
John Howard Payne, author at least, of the
original words of **Home, Sweet Home/' was born
in New York City June 9, 1791. He was a singer,
and became an actor and theatrical writer. He com-
posed the words of his immortal song in the year
1823, when he was himself homeless and hungry
and sheltered temporarily in an attic in Paris,
His fortunes improved at last, and he was ap-
pointed to represent his native country as consul
in Tunis, where he died, Apr, 9, 1852.
136 5TORy OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
'*0, COULD I SPEAK THE MATCHLESS WORTH.
The writer of this hymn of worshiping ardor
and exalted Christian love was an English Baptist
minister, the Rev, Samuel Medley. He was born
at Cheshunt, Hertfordshire, June 23, 1738, and at
eighteen years of age entered the Royal Navy,
where, though he had been piously educated* he
became dissipated and morally reckless. Wounded
in a sea fight off Cape Lagos> and in dread of am-
putation he prayed penitently through nearly a
whole night, and in the morning the surprised
surgeon told him his limb could be saved.
The voice of his awakened conscience was not
wholly disregarded, though it was not till some
time after he left the navy that his vow to begin a
religious life was sincerely kept. After teaching
school for four years, he began to preach in 1766,
Wartford in Hertfordshire being the first scene of
his godly labors. He died in Liverpool July I7>
1799, at the end of a faithful ministry there of
twenty-seven years. A small edition of his hymns
was published during his lifetime, in 1789.
O could T speaL the matchless worth,
O could 1 sound the glories forth
"Which in my Saviour shine,
I'd soar and rouch the heavenly stnngp
And vie wtth Gabriel while he singly
In notes almost divine 1
1
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. I37
THE TUNE.
"Colebrook/' a plain choral; but with a noble
movement, by Henry Smart, is the English music
to this fine lyric, but Dr. Mason's "Ariel** is the
American favorite. It justifies its name, for it has
wings — in both full harmony and duet — ^and its
melody feels the glory of the hymn at every bar.
"ROCK OF AGES CLEFT FOR ME.^'
Augustus Montagu Toplady, author of this
almost universal hymn, was bom at Famham,
Surrey, Eng., Nov. 4, 1740. Educated at West-
minister School, and Trinity College, Dublin, he
took orders in the Established Church. In his
doctrinal debates with the Wesleys he was a harsh
controversialist; but his piety was sincere, and
marked late in life by exalted moods. Physically
he was frail, and his fiery zeal wore out his body.
Transferred from his vicarage at Broad Hem-
bury, Devonshire, to Knightsbridge, London, at
twenty-eight years of age, his health began to
fail before he was thirty-five, and in one of his
periods of illness he wrote —
When languor and disease invade
This trembling house of clay,
Tis sweet to look beyond my pains
And long to fly away.
And the same homesickness for heaven appears
under a different figure in another hymn —
IjS STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
Ac anchor bid remote from hom^^
Toiling I cry, "Sweet Spirit, come!
Celestial breeze, no longer stay.
But swcU my saiU, and speed my way!"
Possessed of an ardent religious nature, hu
spiritual frames exemplified in a notable degree
the emotional side of Calvinistic piety. Edward
Payson himself, was not more enraptured in
immediate view of death than was this young
London priest and poet. Unquestioning faith
became perfect certainty* As in the bold metaphor
of *'Rock of Agest" the faith finds voice in —
A debtor to mercy alone,
— and other hymns in his collection of 1776, two
years before the end came. Most of this devout
writing was done in his last days, and he con-
tinued it as long as strength was left, until, on the
nth of August, 1778, he joyfully passed away.
Somehow there was always something peculiarly
heartsome and "filling" to pious minds in the
lines of Top lady in days when his minor hymns
were more in vogue than nowj and they were often
quoted, without any idea whose making they were.
"At anchor laid" was crooned by good old ladies
at their spinning-wheels, and godly invalids found
"When languor and disease invade" a comfort
next to their Bibles*
"Rock of Ages" is said to have been written
after the author, during a suburban walk, had
been forced to shelter himself from a thundei
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION,
U9
shower, under a clifF. This is, however, but one of
several stories about the birth-occasion of the
hymn.
It has been translated into many languages.
One of the foreign dignitaries visiting Queen
Victoria at her "Golden Jubilee" was a native of
Madagascar, v^^ho surprised her by asking leave
to sing, but delighted her, when leave was given,
by singing ** Rock of Ages." It was a favorite of
hers — and of Prince Albert, who whispered it
when he was dying. People who were school-
children when Rev. Justus Vinton came home to
Willington, Ct*, with two Karen pupils, repeat to-
day the "la-pa-ta, i-oo-i-oo" caught by sound
from the brown-faced boys as they sang their
native version of *' Rock of Ages,"
Gen. J. E. B* Stuart, the famous Confederate
Cavalry leader, mortally wounded at Yellow
Tavern, Va., and borne to a Richmond hospital,
called for his minister and requested that "Rock
of Ages" be sung to him*
The last sounds heard by the few saved from
the wreck of the steamer "London" in the Bay of
Biscay, 1866, were the voices of the helpless pas-
Lsengers singing "Rock of Ages" as the ship went
rdown.
A company of Armenian Christians sang "Rock
of Ages" in their native tongue while they were
being massacred in Constantinople.
No history of this grand hymn of faith forgets
the incident of Gladstone writing a Latin trans-
142
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
I
(of the unknown patht— instead of going to many
"worlds"). The Unitarians have their version,
with substitutes for the ''atonement lines/*
But the Christian lyric maintains its life and
inspiratton through the vicissitudes of age and
use, as all intrinsically superior things can and
will, — ^and as in the twentieth line, —
When Ifiy eyestrings break in death;
— modernized
When my eyelHs close m death ,
— the hymn will ever adapt itself to the new
exigencies of common speech, without losing its
vitality and power.
THE TUNE,
A happy inspiration of Dr. Thomas Hastings
made the hymn and music inevitably one. Almost
anywhere to call for the tune of "Toplady'*
(namesake of the pious poet) is as unintelligible
to the multitude as "Key'* would be to designate
the " Star-spangled Banner/* The common people
— thanks to Dr. Hastings — ^have learned "Rock
of Ages" by sound.
Thomas Hastings was born in Washington, Ct.,
1 784* For eight years he was editor of the fFest-
irn Record iTy but he gave his life to church music,
and besides being a talented tone-poet he wrote as
many as six hundred hymns. In 1832, by in-
vitation from twelve New York churches, he went
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. I43
to that City, and did the main work of his life
there, dying, in 187Z, at the good old age of eighty-
nine. His musical collections number fifty-three.
He wrote his famous tune in 1830.
••MY SOUL BE ON THY GUARD.-
Strangely enough, this hymn, a trumpet note
of Christian warning and resolution, was written
by one who himself fell into unworthy ways.* But
the one strong and spiritual watch-song by which
he is remembered appeals for him, and lets us
know possibly, something of his own conflicts.
We can be thankful for the struggle he once
made, and for the hymn it inspired. It is a voice
<^ caution to others.
George Heath, the author, was an English min-
ister, bom in 1781; died 1822. For a time he was
pastor of a Presbyterian Church at Honiton, De^
vonshire, and was evidently a prolific writer, hav-
ing composed a hundred and forty-four hymns,
an edition of which was printed.
THE TUNE.
No other has been so familiarly linked with the
words as Lowell Mason's "Laban" (1830). It has
dash and animation enough to reenforce the hymn,
and give it popular life, even if the hymn had less
earnestness and vigor of its own.
^ hniTe been muble to Tcrifj tlitt ftatement found in Mr. Bulla iruilb*t
••Stoiy of the Htouu."— T. B.
144 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Nc^er think the vic'tiy won
Nor lay thine armor down:
Thy arduous work w'tW not be done
Till thou hast gained thy crown,
Fi|^t on^ my soul till death
Shall bring thee to thy God;
Hell take thee at thy parting breath
To His divine abode*
"PEOPLE OF THE LIVING GOD/'
Montgomery ffit every line of this hymn as he
committed it to paper. He wrote it when, after
years in the '*swim** of social excitements and
ambitions, where his young independence swept
him on* he came back to the little church of his
boyhood. His father and mother had gone to the
West Indies as missionaries, and died there* He
was forty-three years old when, led by divine light,
he sought readmission to the Moravian" meeting"
at Fulneck, and anchored happily in a haven of
peace.
People of the living God
1 have sought the world around.
Paths of sin and sorrow trod.
Peace and comfon nowhere found;
Now to you my spirit tum^—
Turns a fugitive unblest;
Brethren, where your altar burnt,
Oh, receive me into rest.
James Montgomery, son of Rev. John Mont*
gomery, was bom at Irvine, Ayeshire» Scotland^
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION,
H5
Nov* 4, 1 771* and educated at the Moravian
Seminary at Fuineck, Yorkshire, Eng. He be-
came the editor of the Sheffield Iris^ and hiti
pen was busy in non-professional as well as pro-
fessional work until old age- He died in Sheffieldp
April 30, 1854,
His literary career was singularly successful;
and a glance through any complete edition of his
poems will tell us why- His hymns were all
published during his lifetime, and all, as well as
his longer pieces, have the purity and polished
beauty, if not the strength, of Addison's work.
Like Addison, too, he could say that he had written
no line which, dying, he would wish to blot*
The best of Montgomery was in his hymns.
These were too many to enumerate here, and the
more enduring ones too familiar to need enumera-
tion- The church and the world will not soon
forget "The Home in Heaven," —
Forever with the Lord,
Amen, so let it be.
Life from the dead is in thit wordi
Tis immortality*
Nor—
O where shall rest be foundt
— with its impressive couplet —
Tis not the whole of life to live
Nor aJl of death to die.
Nor the haunting sweetness of —
There is a calm for those who weep.
146
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Nor, indeed, the hymn of Christian love just now^
before us.
THE TUNE.
The melody exactly suited to the gentle trochaic
step of the home-song^ '* People of the living God,"
is "Whitman," composed for it by Lowell Mason-
Few Christians, in America, we venture to say»
could hear an instrument play "Whitman " without
mentally repeating Montgomeiy's words<
"TO LEAVE MY DEAR FRIENDS.**
This hymn, called "The Bower of Prayer," was
dear to Christian hearts in many homes and
especially in rural chapel worship half a century
ago and earlier, and its sweet legato melody still
lingers in the memories of aged men and women.
Elder John Osborne, a New Hampshire preach-
er of the "Christian" (Chnst-ian) denomination,
is said to have composed the tune (and possibly
the words) about 1815 — though apparently the
music was arranged from a flute interlude in one
of Haydn's themes. The warbling notes of the
air are full of heart-feeling, and usually the best
available treble voice sang it as a solo-
To leave my dear friends and from nciglibors to part.
And go from my home, it affects not my heart
Like the thought of absenting myself for a day
From that blest rctteat I have chosen to pray,
I have choaen to pra^
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. I47
The caily fhrill notes of the loved nightingale
That dwelt in the bower, I observed as my bell:
It called me to duty, while birds in the air
Sang andiems of praises as I went to prayer.
As I went to prayer.*
Hoiw sweet were the zephyrs perfumed by the pine.
The ivy, the balsam, the wild eglantine.
But sweeter, O, sweeter superlative were
The joys that I tasted in answer to prayer.
In answer to prayer.
"SAVIOUR, THY DYING LOVE/'
This hymn of grateful piety was written in
1862, by Rev. S. Diyden Phelps, D.D., of New
Haven, and first published in Pure Goldy 1871;
afterwards in the (earlier) Baptist Hymn and
Tune Book.
Saviour, Thy dying love
Thou gavest me.
Nor should I aught withhold
Dear Lord, from Thee.
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
Give me a faithful heart.
Likeness to Thee,
That each departing day
Henceforth may see
Some work of love begun.
Some deed of kindness done.
Some wand'rer sought and won.
Something for Thee.
The penultimate line, originally ''Some sinful
wanderer won," was altered by the author him-
*The American Vocalist omitt tliii itaiiza at too fanciful at well at too c
hS
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
self. The hymn is found in most Baptist hymnals^ .
and was inserted by Mr, Sankey in Gospel Hymns i
^o- I, It has since won its way into several '
revival collections and undenominational manuals.
Rev. Sylvester Dryden Phelps, D* D*, was born
in Suffield, Ct., May 15, 1816, and studied at the
Connecticut Literary Institution in that town.
An early call to the ministry turned his talents to
the service of the church, and his long settlement
^-comprising what might be called his principal
life work — was in New Haven, where he was
pastor of the First Baptist church twenty-nine
years. He died there Nov, aj, 1895.
THE TUNE,
The Rev. Robert Lowry admired the hymn, and
gave it a tune perfectly suited to its metre and
spirit. It has never been sung in any other.
The usual title of it is "Something for Jesus/'
The meaning and sentiment of both words and
music are not unlike Miss Havergal's —
I gave my life for thee.
"IN SOME WAY OR OTHER/'
This song of Christian confidence was written
by Mrs. Martha A. W. Cook, wife of the Rev-
Parsons Cook, editor of the Puritan Recorder^
Boston.
It was published in the American Messenger in
1870, and is still in use here, as a German ver-
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. 149
sion of it IS in Germany. The first stanza fol-
lowsy in the two languages:
In 901116 way or other the Lord will provide.
It may not be my way^
It may not be thy way.
And yet in His own way
The Lord will provide.
Sci'i so oder anders, der Hcrr wird's veriehn^
Mag*s nicht sein, wic ich will,
Mag*s nicht sem, wie du willsl,
Doch wird's scin, wie Er will;
Der He IT wird's versehn.
In the English version the easy flow of the two
last lines into one sentence is an example of
rhythmic advantage over the foreign syntax,
Mrs. Cook was married to the well-known
clergyman and editor, Parsons Cook, (1800-1865)
in Bridgeport, Ct,, and survived him at his death
in Lynn, Mass. She was Miss Martha Ann
Woodb ridge, afterwards Mrs. Hawley^ and a
widow at the time of her re-marriage as Mr. Cook's
second wife,
THE TUNE,
Professor Calvin S, Harrington, of Wesleyan
University, Middletown, Ct., set music to the
words as printed in Winnowed Hymns (1873) and
arranged by Dr. Eben Tourjee, organizer of the
great American Peace Jubilee in Boston. In the
Gvspel Hymns it is, however, superseded by the
more popular composition of Philip PhilUps.
150
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Dr Eben Tourjee, late Dean of the College ol
Music in Boston University, and founder and head
of the New England Conservatory, was bom in War-
wick, R- L, June 1, 1834* With only an acad-
emy education he rose by native genius, from a
hard-working boyhood to be a teacher of music
and a master of its science. From a course of
study in Europe he returned and soon made his
reputation as an organizer of musical schools and
sangerfests- The New England Conservatory of
Music was first established by him in Providence,
but removed in 1870 to Boston, its permanent
home. His doctorate of music was conferred
upon him by Wesleyan University. Died in Bos-
ton, April 12, 1891.
Philip Phillips, known as "the singing Pilgrim/'
was bom in Jamestown, Chautauqua, Co., N. Y.,
Aug. 13, 1834* He compiled twenty-nine col-
lections of sacred music for Sunday schools,
gospel meetings, etc.; zho zMethoJist Hymn and
Tune Bookf 1866- He composed a great number
of tunes, but wrote no hymns. Some of his books
were published in London, for he was a cosmo-
politan singer, and traveled through Europe and
Australia as well as America. Died in Delaware,
O., June 25, 1875.
'NEARER, MY GOD, TO THEE."
Mr, William Stead, fond of noting what is
often believed to be the "providential chain of
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION.
»Si
^
I
causes" in everything that happens^ recalls the
fact that Benjamin Flowefj editor of the Cam-
bridge InteUigenciTj while in jail (1798) at the
instigation of Bp* Watson for an article defending
the French Revolution, and criticising the Bishop's
political course, was visited by several sympa-
thizing ladies, one of whom was Miss Eliza Gould.
The young lady's first acquaintance with him
there in his cell led to an attachment which event-
uated in marriage. Of that marriage Sarah
Flower was bom. By the theory of providential
sequences Mr, Stead makes it appear that the
forgotten vindictiveness of a British prelate *'was
the causa causans of one of the most spiritual and
aspiring hymns in the Christian Hymnary,"
"Nearer, My God, to Thee" was on the lips of
President McKinley as he lay dying by a mur-
derer's wicked shot* It is dear to President Roose-
velt for its memories of the battle of Las Quasimas^
where the Rough Riders sang it at the burial of
their slain comrades. Bishop Marvin was saved
by it from hopeless dejection, while practically an
exile during the Civil War, by hearing it sung in
the wilds of Arkansas, by an old woman in a log
hut.
A letter from Pittsburg, Pa., to a leading Boston
paper relates the name and experience of a forger
who had left the latter city and wandered eight
years a fugitive from justice- On the 5th of
November, (Sunday,) 1905, he found himself in
Pittsburg, and ventured into the Dixon Theatre,
152 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
where a religious service was being heldj to hear
the music- The hymn "Nearer, My God, to Thee"
so overcame him that he went out weeping bitterly*
He walked the floor of his room all night, and in
the morning telephoned for the police, confessed
his name and crime, and surrendered himself to be
taken back to the Boston authorities.
Mrs- Sarah Flower Adams, author of the noble
hymn (supposed to have been written in 1840),
was bom at Harlow, Eng,» Feb, 22, 1805, and died
there in 1848, At her funeral another of her
hymns was sung, ending —
When falls the shadow, cold in death
4 1 yet will sing with fearless breath,
As comes to me in shade or sun^
"Father, Thy will, not mine, be done/'
The attempts to ivangelize "Nearer, My God, to
Thee" by those who cannot forget that Mrs.
Adams was a Unitarian, are to be deplored. Such
zeal is as needless as trying to sectarianize an Old
Testament Psalm. The poem is a perfect religious
piece — to be sung as it stands^ with thanks that it
was ever created.
THE TUNE.
In English churches (since 1861) the hymn was
and may still be sung to "Horbury," composed
by Rev, John B. Dykes, and *'St. Edmund," by
Sir Arthur Sullivan, Both tunes are simple and
appropriate, but such a hymn earns and inevitably
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION. l$J
acquires a single tune-voice, so that its music in-
stantly names it by its words when played on in-
struments. Such a voice was given it by Lowell
Mason's " Bethany," (1856). (Why not " Bethel,*'
instead, every one who notes the imagery of the
words must wonder.) "Bethany" appealed to the
popular heart, and long ago (in America) hymn
and tune became each other's property. It is
even simpler than the English tunes, and a single
hearing fixes it in memory.
^I NEED THEE EVERY HQUR.^
Mrs. Annie Sherwood Hawks, who wrote this
hymn in 1872, was born in Hoosick, N. Y., in 1835.
She sent the hymn (five stanzas) to Dr. Lowiy,
who composed its tune, adding a chorus, to make
it more effective. It first appeared in a small
collection of original songs prepared by Lowry
and Doane for the National Baptist Sunday School
Association, which met at Cincinnati, O., Novem-
ber, 1872, and was sung there.
I need Thee every hour.
Most gracious Lord,
No tender voice like Thine
Can peace afford.
Chorus.
I need Thee, Oh, I need Thee,
Every hour I need Thee;
Oh, bless me now, my Saviour,
I come to Theel
^54
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TONES.
One instance, at least, of a hymn made doubljf
impressive by its chorus will be attested by all who I
have sung or heard the pleading words and music!
of Mrs. Hawks' and Dr, Lowiy's '*! need Thee,j
Oh, I need Thee."
"I GAVE Ml^ LIFE FOR THEE."
This was written in her youth by Frances Ridley '
Havergal, and was suggested by the motto over the
head of Christ in the great picture, "Ecce Homo,'*
in the Art Gallery of Dusseldorf, Prussia, where she
was at school. The sight — as was the case with
young Count Zinzendorf — seems to have had
much to do with the gifted girl's early reh'gtous
experience, and indeed exerted Its influence on
her whole life. The motto read "I did this for
thee; what doest thou for me ?" and the generative
effect of the solemn picture and its question soon
appeared in the hymn that flowed from Miss
Havergal's heart and pen.
I gave my life for thee,
My precious blood I shed^
That thou might*st ransomed be
And quickened from the dead*
I gave my life for ihee;
What hast thou given for me F
Miss Frances Ridley Havergal, sometimes called
"The Theodosia of the igth century," was born
at Astley, Worcestershire, Eng., Dec* 14, 1836.
Her father. Rev, William Henry Havergal, a
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DBYOTION. 1 55
clergyman of the Church of England, was himself
a poet and a skilled musician, and much of the
daughter's ability came to her by natural bequest
as well as by education. Bom a poet, she became
a fine instrumentalist, a composer and an accom-
plished linguist. Her health was frail, but her life
was a devoted one, and full of good works. Her
consecrated words were destined to outlast her by
many generations.
"Writing is praying with me," she said. Death
met her in 1879, when still in the prime of woman-
hood.
THE TUNE.
The music that has made this hymn of Miss
Havergal familiar in America is named from its
first line, and was composed by the lamented
Philip P. Bliss (christened Philipp Bliss^), a pupil
of Dr. George F. Root.
He was bom In Rome, Pa., Jan. 9, 1838, and less
than thirty-nine years later suddenly ended his life,
a victim of the awful railroad disaster at Ashtabula
O., Dec. 29, 1876, while retuming from a visit to
his aged mother. His wife, Lucy Young Bliss,
perished with him there, in the swift flames that
enveloped the wreck of the train.
The name of Mr. Bliss had become almost a
household word through his numerous popular
Christian melodies, which were the American
*Mr. Bliss himself changed the spelling of his nane, pidEerrinf to let the
third P. do duty alone, as a middle initial.
1S8
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
I
pcrience, was the outpouring of a poetic melancholy
not uncommon to young and finely strung souls.
He composed it in his twenties, — long before he be-
cime " Doctor'* Muhlenberg, — and for years after-
wards tried repeatedly to alter it to a more cheerful
tone. But the poem had its mission, and it had
fastened itself in the public imagination, either by
its contagious sentiment or the felicity of its tune,
and the author was obliged to accept the fame of it
as it originally stood.
William Augustus Muhlenberg D.D, was bom
in Philadelphia, Sept. i6, 1796, the great-grandson
of Dr Henry M. Muhlenberg, founder of the Luth-
eran church in America. In 18 17 he left his an-
cestral communlonj and became an Episcopal
priest.
As Rector of St. James church, Lancaster, Pa.,
he interested himself in the improvement of eccle-
siastical hymnody, and did much good reforming
work. After a noble and very active life as pro-
moter of religious education and Christian union,
and as a friend and benefactor of the poor, he
died April, 8, 1877, in St* Luke's Hospital, N, Y.
THE TUNE.
This was composed by Mr. George Kingsley in
1833, and entitled "Frederick" (dedicated to the
Rev, Frederick T. Gray), Issued first as sheet
music, it became popular, and soon found a place
in the hymnals. Dr Louis Benson says of the con-
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION,
I 59
dkions and the fancy of the time, '*The standard
of church music did not differ materially from
that of parlor music. . . . .Several editors have
attempted to put a newer tune in the place of Mr.
Kingsley's- It was in vain, simply because words
and melody both appeal to the same taste/*
"SUN OF MY SOUL, MY SAVIOUR DEAR/'
This gem from Keble's Christian }^far illustrates
the life and character of its pious author, and, like
all the hymns of that celebrated collection, is an
incitive to spiritual thought for the thoughtless, as
well as a language for those who stand in the Holy
of Holies.
The Rev* John Keble was born in Cain, St. Ald-
wyn, April 25, 1792, He took his degree of A. M,
and was ordained and settled at Fairford, where he
began the parochial work that ceased only with his
life. He died at Bournmouth, March 29, 1866,
His settlement at Fairford, in charge of three
small curacies^ satisfied his modest ambition,
though altogether they brought himonly about^ioo
per yean Here he preached, wrote his hymns and
translations, performed his pastoral work^ and
was happy- Temptation to wider fields and larger
salary never moved him,
THE TUNE.
The music to this hymn of almost unparalleled
poetic and spiritual beauty was arranged from si
l6o STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
German Choral of Peter Ritter (i 760-1 846) by
William Henry Monk, Mus. Doc^ bom London^
1823. Dr. Monk was a lecturer, composer, editor,
and professor of vocal music at King's College.
This noble tune appears sometimes under the
name "Hursley" and supersedes an earlier one
("Halle") by Thomas Hastings.
Sun of my soul, my Saviour dear.
It is not night if Thou be near.
O may no earth-born cloud arise
To hide Thee from Thy servants' cyei,
******
Abide with me from mom till eve.
For without Thee I cannot live
Abide with me when night is nigh,
For without Thee I cannot die.
The tune "Hursley" is a choice example of po*
lyphonal sweetness in uniform long notes of perfect
chord.
The tune of "Canonbury/' by Robert Schu-
mann, set to Keble's hymn, **New every morn-
ing is the love,^' is deservedly a favorite for flow<-
ing long metres, but it could never replace
*'Hursley" with "Sun of my souL"
"DID CHRIST O'ER SITWERS WEEP?"
The Rev, Benjamin Bed dome wrote this tender
hymn-poem while pastor of the Baptist Congre-
gation at Bourton-on-the-water, Gloucestershire,
Eng. He was born at Henley, Chatwickshire, Jan.
HYMNS or CHRISTIAN DEVOTION,
i6i
^3> ^7*7' Settled in 1743, he remained with the
same church till his death, Sept* 3, ^795* His
hymns were not collected and published till 18 18,
THE TUNE.
''Dennis/* a soft and smoothly modulated har-
mony^ is oftenest sung to the words, and has no
note out of sympathy with their deep feeling.
Did Christ o*er sinners weep^
And shall our checks be dry?
L«t floods of penitential grief
Burn forth ffom every «ye.
The Son of God in tears
Adminng angels seel
Be thou astonished, O my soul;
He shed those tears for thee.
He wept that we might weep;
Each sin demands a tear:
In heaven alone no sin is found.
And there's no weeping there.
The tune of" Dennis" was adapted by Lowell
Mason from Johann Georg Nageli, a Swiss music
publisher, composer and poet. He was bom in
Zurich, 1768. It is told of him that his irrepres-
sible genius once tempted him to violate the ethics
of authorship. While publishing Beethoven's three
great solo sonatas (Opus 31) he interpolated two
bars of his own> an act much commented upon in
musical circles, but which does not seem to have
cost him Beethoven's friendship. Possibly, like
l62 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Murillo to the servant who meddled with his paints
ings, the great master forgave the liberty, because
the work was so good.
Nageli*s compositions are mostly vocal, for school
and church use, though some are of a gay and play-
ful nature. The best remembered of his secular and
sacred styles are his blithe aria to the song of Moore,
'*Life let us cherish, while yet the taper glows'*
and the sweet choral that voices Beddome's hymn*
*'MY JESUS. I LOVE THEE/'
■ II
The real originator of the Coronation Hymnal^
a book into whose making went five years of prayer,
was Dr. A. J, Gordon, late Pastor of the Clarendon
St, Baptist church, Boston. While the volume was
slowly taking form and plan he was wont to hum to
himself, or cause to be played by one of his family,
snatches and suggestions of new airs that came to
him in connection with his own hymns, and
others which seemed to have no suitable music.
The anonymous hymn, "My Jesus, I Love Thee,"
he found in a London hymn-book, and though the
tune to which it had been sung in England was
sent to him some time later, it did not sound sym-
pathetic* Dissatisfied, and with the ideal in his
mind of what the feeling should be in the melody
to such a hymn, he meditated and prayed over the
words till m a moment of inspiration the beautiful
air sang itself to him* which with its simple concords
•The fact that thii iweet B&elodj reciU* to fOtQ« * »iffii!ir tune tung
msvf jean ago reouodt ui mgain d tht ^arj of ibe time "America.'^ It ii
HYMNS OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTION, 1 65
has carried the hymn into the chapels of every de«
nomination.
My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine.
For Thee all the pleatures of sin 1 resign;
My gracious Redeemer, my Saviour ait Thoti^
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, 'tis now*
I will love Thee in lifcj I will love Thee in death.
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me hreath^
And say when the death-dew lies cold on my brow^
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesii% 'tis now.
In mansions of gloiy and endless delight
ni ever adore Thee, unveiled to my sight.
And sing, with the glittering crown on my brow.
If ever I loved Thee^ my Jesus, 'tJs now.
The memory of the writer returns to a day in a
railway-car en route to the great Columbian Fair in
Chicago when the tired passengers were suddenly
surprised and charmed by the music of this melody.
A young Christian man and woman, husband and
wife, had begun to sing '*My Jesus, I love Thee."
Their voices (a tenor and soprano) were clear and
sweet, and every one of the company sat up to lis-
ten with a look of mingled admiration and relief-
Here was something, after all, to make a long jour-
ney less tedious. They sang all the four verses and
paused. There was no clapping of hands, for a rev-
erential hush had been cast over the audience by
HOC iiapcHnble thit an uocontciou* wnmsry helped tn ihape the Atr tkmt ctme
to Dfi Gordon '1 miad; though iutbfirn»Kd tinijlirniet hmvc bcca ineriuhli
m the whole hiita^ of muiic
STOmr OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
music. Instead of the inevitable ap-
dut follows mere entertainment^ a gentle
request for more secured the repetition of
id duet. This occurred again and again «
one in the car— and some had never heard
oc words before — must have learned them
Fatigue was forgotten^ miles had been
ID furlongs in a weary trip, and a company
had been lifted to a holier plane of
this melody there are four tunes by Dr.
I in his collection, three of them with his own
In all there are eleven of his hymns- Of
t)ie "Good morning in Glory/' set to his
t$ &n emotional lyric admirable in revival
ind the one beginning "O Holy Ghost,
'listfllsung* and called for afFectionately as
•Owlon^sHymn/'
Reif* Adoniram Judson Gordon D. D. was born
^Ncir Hampton, N*H., April 19, 1836, and died in
]|gg|oc^ Feb. ad, 1895, after a life of unsurpassed
^iIMmss to his fellowmen and devotion to his
Qjrtfie Master Like Phillips Brooks he went to his
glgie**ici all his glorious prime," and his loss is
Midfy lamented. He was a descendant of John
" ' of Leyden.
CHAPTER IV.
MISSIONARY HYMNS.
'JESUS SHALL REIGN WHERETR THE SUN.^
One of Watts* sublimest hymns, this Hebrew
ode to the final King and His endless dominion
expands the majestic prophesy in the seventy-
second Psalm:
Jesus shall reign whereVr the son
Does his successive journeys run.
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore
Till moons shall wax and wane no more.
The hymn itself could almost claim to be known
"where'er the sun'* etc., for Christian missionaries
have sung it in every land, if not in every lan-
guage.
One of the native kings in the South Sea Islands,
who had been converted through the ministiy of
English missionaries, substituted a Christian for
a pagan constitution in 1862. There were five
thousand of his subjects gathered at the ceremo-
nial, and they joined as with one voice in singing
this hymn.
1 66 SToar of the hymns and tume^.
THE TUNE.
"Old Hundred" has often lent the notes of
its great plain-song to the sonorous lines, and
*'Duke Street," with superior melody and scarcely
inferior grandeur, has given them wings; but
the choice of naany for music that articulates the
life of the hymn would be the tune of "Samson,"
from Handel's Oratorio so named. It appears as
No. 469 in the Evangelical HymnaL
Handel had no peer in the art or instinct of
making a note speak a word.
*'JOY TO THE WORLD! THE LORD IS COMEr
This hymn, also by Watts, is often sung as a
Christmas song; but "The Saviour Reigns" and*'He
Rules the World" are bursts of prophetic triumph
always apt and stimulating in missionary meetings*
Here, again, the great Handel lends appropriate
aid, for **Antioch/' the popular tone-consort of
the hymn, is an adaptation from his "Messiah/'
The arrangement has been credited to Lowell
Mason, but he seems to have taken it from an
English collection by Clark of Canterbury.
"O'ER THE GLOOMY HILLS OF DARKNESS."
Drta y hrinian tywyl niwiiog.
This notable hymn was written, probably about
1750, by the Rev. William Williams, a Welsh
Calvinistic Methodist^ bom at Cefnycoed» Jan.
1
MISSIONARY HYMNS. 167
7, 1 71 7, near Llandover. He began the study of
medicine, but took deacon's orders, and was for
a time an itinerant preacher, having left the
established Church. Died at Pantycelyn, Jan.
II, 1781.
His hymn, like the two preceding, antedates
the great Missionary Movement by many years.
O'er the gloomy hills of darkness
Look my soul! be still, and gazel
See the promises advancing
To a glorious Day of gracel
Blessed Jubilee,
Let thy glorious morning dawnl
Let the dark, benighted pagan.
Let the rude barbarian see
That divine and glorious conquest
Once obtained on Calvary.
Let the Gospel
Loud resound from pole to pole.
This song of anticipation has dropped out of the
modem hymnals, but the last stanza lingers in
many memories.
Fly abroad, thou mighty Gospel!
Win and conquer, never cease;
May thy lasting wide dominion
Multiply and still increase.
Sway Thy scepter.
Saviour, all the world around!
THE TUNE.
Oftener than any other the music of **Zion"
has been the expression of William Williams*
l68 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
Missionary Hymn. It was composed by Thomas
Hastings, in Washington, Ct., 1830,
"HASTEN, LORD, THE GLORIOUS TIME/'
Hasten, Lard, the glonous time
When beneath Messiah's sway
Every nation, eveiy clime
Shall the Gospel call obey.
Mightiest kings its power shall own^
Heathen tribes His name adore,
Satan and his host overthrown
Bound in chains shall huit no more.
Miss Harriet Auber, the author of this melodious
hymn, was a daughter of James Auber of London,
and was bom in that city, Oct, 4, 1773. After
leaving London she led a secluded life at Brox-
boume and Hoddesdon, in Hertfordshire, writing
devotional poetry and sacred songs and para-
phrases.
Her Spirit of the Psalms, published in 1829,
was a collection of lyrics founded on the Biblical
Psalms- '* Hasten Lord/* etc, is from Ps, 72, known
for centuries to Christendom as one of the Messi-
anic Psalms. Her best-known hymns have the
same inspiration, as^ —
Wide, ye heavenly gates, unfold.
Sweet is the work^ O Lord.
With joy we hail the sacred day.
Miss Auber died in Hoddesdon, Jan, 20, 1862.
She lived to witness and sympathise with the
pioneer missionary enterprise of the 19th century,
MISSIONARY HYMNS.
169
and, although she could not stand among the
leaders of the bat tie- line in extending the conquest
of the world for Christ, she was happy in having
written a campaign hymn which they loved to sing.
(It is curious that so pains-taking a work as
Julian's Dictionary of Hymns and H ymn-^writers
credits "With joy we hail the sacred day" to both
Miss Auber and Henry Francis Lyte< Coinci-
dences are known where diiFerent hymns by differ-
ent authors begin with the same line; and in this
case one writer was dead before the other's works
were published. Possibly the collector may have
seen a forgotten hymn of Lyte's, with that first line-)
The tune that best interprets this hymn in spirit
and in living music is Lowell Mason's "Ekham."
Its harmony is like a chime of bells.
"LET PARTY NAMES NO MORE/'
Let pafty names no more
The Christian world o'erspread;
Gentile aini Jew^ and bond and free,
Are one in Christ the Head.
This hymn of Rev. Benjamin Beddome sounds
like a prelude to the grand rally of the Christian
Churches a generation later for united advance
into foreign fields. It was an after-sermon hymn
- — like so many of Watts and Doddridge — and
spoke a good man's longing to see all sects stand
shoulder to shoulder in a common crusade.
Tune — Boylston,
I70
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
"WATCHMAN, TELL US OF THE NIGHT.**
The tune written to this pealing hymn of Sir
John Bowring by Lowell Mason has never been
superseded. In animation and vocal splendor
it catches the author's own clear call^ echoing the
shout of Zion's sentinels from city to city, and
happily reproducing in movement and phrase the
great song-dialogue. Words and music together,
the piece ranks with the foremost missionary
lyrics. Like the greater Mason-Heber world-
song, it has acquired no arbitrary name, appearing
in Mason's own tune-books under its first hymn-
tine and likewise in many others. A few hymnals
have named it "Bowring," (and why not?) and
some later ones simply "Watchman/*
WiccKman, tell us of the nighty
Whac its signs of promise are I
(Antistrophe)
Trav*ler» on yon mountain height.
See that glory- beaming starl
2
Watchman, does its beauteous ray
Aught of hope or joy foreteU f
(Anttstrophe)
TravHer, yes; it brings the day.
Promised day of Israel.
Watchman^ tell us of the nigln;
Higher yet that star ascendi*
(Antistrophe)
MISSIONARY HYMNS.
Travler, ble&seciness and light
Peace and truth its course portenda.
i7«
Watchman^ will its beams alone
Gild the spot tha^ gave them birth ?
(Ami strop he)
Trav'ler, ages are its own.
Sec! it bursts o'er all the eaith.
"YE CHRISTIAN HERALDS. GO PROCLAIM."
In some versions *'Ye Christian h^oes^" tie.
Professor David R. Breed attributes this stirring
hymn to Mrs. Yokes (or Voke) an English or
Welsh lady, who is supposed to have written it
somewhere near 1780, and supports the claim by
its date of publication in Missionary and Devo-
tional Hymns at Portsea^ Wales, in 1797* In
this Dr, Breed follows (he says) **the accepted
tradition/* On the other hand the Coronation
Hymnal (1894) refers the authorship to a Baptist
minister, the Rev. Bourne Hall Draper, of South-
ampton (Eng.)> born 1775, and this choice has the
approval of Dr Charles Robinson. The question
occurs whether, when the hymn was published in
good faith as Mrs. Voices' , it was really the work
of a then unknown youth of twenty-two.
The probability is that the hymn owns a mother
instead of a father — and a grand hymn it is; one
of the most sti m ulating in Missionaty song-literature.
The stanza —
172 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
God shield you with a waLl of fire I
With flaming zeal your breasts inspire;
Bid raging winds their fuiy cease.
And hush the tumult into peace,
— has been tampered with by editors, altering the
last line to " Calm the troubled seas,'- etc., (for the
sake of the longer vowel;) but the substitution,
" H/ll shield you/' etc, in the first line, turns a
prayer into a mere statement.
The hymn was — and should remain — a God-
speed to men like William Carey, who had already
begun to think and preach his immortal motto,
"Attempt great things for God; expect great things
of God/^
THE TUNE
Is the "Missionary Chant," and no other. Its
composer, Heinrich Christopher Zeuner, was bom
in Eisleben, Saxony, Sept< 20, 1795. He came to
the United States in iSzj, and was for many
years organist at Park Street Church, Boston, and
for the Handel and Haydn Society. In 1854 he
removed to Philadelphia where he served three
years as organist to St. Andrews Church, and Arch
Street Presbyterian- He became insane in 1857, and
in November of that year died by his own hand.
He pubUshed an oratorio "The Feast of Tab-
ernacles," and two popular books, the American
Harp, 1 832 J and The Ancient Lyre, 1 833, His
compositions are remarkably spirited and vig-
orousj and his work as a tune-maker was much
1
MISSIONARY HYMNS,
'73
in demand during his life, and is sure to continue,
in its best examples, as long as good sacred music
15 appreciated.
To another beautiful mission aiy hymn of Mrs.
Voices^ of quieter tone, but songful and sweet,
Dn Mason wrote the tune of "Migdol:'^ It is its
musical twin.
Soon may the last glad song arise
Through all the millions of the skies,
That song ortriamph which records
Tliat "all the earth ii now the Lord*s***
•'ON THE MOUNTAIN TOP APPEARFNa"
This admired and always popular church hymn
was written near the beginning of the last century
by the Rev* Thomas Kelly^ bom in Dublin^ 1760.
He was the son of the Hon. Chief Baron Thomas
Kelly of that city, a judge of the Irish Court of
Common Pleas. His father designed him for the
legal profession, but after his graduation at
Trinity College he took holy orders in the Episcopal
Church, and labored as a clergyman among the
scenes of his youth for more than sixty years,
becoming a Nonconformist in his later ministry-
He was a sweet-souled man, who made troops of
friendsi and was honored as much for his piety as
for his poetry, music, and oriental learning.
"I expect never to die," he said, when Lord
Plunkett once told him he would reach a great age*
He finished his earthly work on the 14th of May,
174 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
1855, when he was eighty-five years old. But he
still lives. His zeal for the coming of the Kingdom
of Christ prompted his best hymn.
On the mouma in-top appearing^
Lot tKe sacred herald stands^
Joyful newt to Zion bearings
Zion long m hostile lands;
Mourning captive,
God himself will loose thy bands.
Has the night been long and mournful?
Have thy friends unfaithful proved ?
Have thy foes been proud and scornful.
By thy sighs and tears unmoved ?
Cease thy mourning;
Zton still is well beloved*
THE TUNE.
To presume that Kelly made both words and
music together is possible^ for he was himself a
composer, but no such original tune seems to
survive. In modern use Dn Hastings' "Zion'* is
most frequently attached to the hymn, and was
probably written for it-
•*YE CHRISTIAN HEROES, WAKE TO GLORY/'
This rather crude parody on the "Marsellaise
Hymn" (see Chap. 9) is printed in the American
Vocalist^ among numerous samples of early New
England psalmody of untraced authorship. It
might have been sung at primitive missionary
meetings, to spur the zeal and faith of a Francis
The Right Rev.
Reginald Heber, D.D.
MISSIONARY HYMNS*
175
Mason or a Harriet Newall. It expresses, at leasts
the new-kindled evangelical spirit of the long-ago
consecrations in American church life that first
sent the Christian ambassadors to foreign lands^
and followed them with benedictions.
Ye Christian heroes, wake to glory:
Hark, harkt what milhons bid you rise!
Sec heathen nations bow before you.
Behold their tears, and hear their cries.
Shall pagan priest, their errors breeding,
With darkling hosts, and flags unfuricd.
Spread their delusions o'er the world.
Though Jesus on the Cross hung bleeding ?
To arms I To arms!
Christ's banner fling abroad I
March on! March onl all hearts resolved
To bring the world to God.
O, Truth of God I can man resign theej
Once having felt iby glorious flame ?
Can rolling oceans e*er prevent thee.
Or gold the Christian's spirit tame ?
Too long we slight the world's undoing;
The word of God, salvation's plan.
Is yet almost unknown to man.
While millions throng the road to ruitl.
To arms I to arms!
The Spirit's sword unsheath:
March onl March ont all hearts resolved,
To victory or death.
"HAIL TO THE LORD'S ANOINTED."
James Montgomery (says Dr. Breed) is "dis-
tinguished as the only layman besides Cbwper
176 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
amoag hynm-writen of the front rank in the
En^ish language/' How many millions have
redted and sung his fine and exhaustively de-
scriptive poem» —
Prayer is the toiil't nnceie deriie,
— selections from almost any part of which are
perfect definitions, and have been standard hymns
on prayer for three generations. English Hym-
nologywould as unwillingly part with his missionary
hymnsg —
The kingof ^biy we prodaim.
Haifc» the tong of jubileel
— and» noblest of all, the lyric of prophecy and
praise which heads this paragraph.
Hail to the Lord's anointed.
Sling David's greater Sool
Hail, in the time appointed
His reign on earth begun.
« « « I* « «
Arabia's desert ranger
To Him shall bow the knee.
The Ethiopian stranger
His g|oiy come to see.
Kings shall fall down before Him
And gold and incense bring;
An nations shall adore Him,
His praise all people sing.
The hymn is really the seventy-second Psalm
in metre^ and as a version it suffers nothing by
MISSIONARY HYMNS.
177
comparison with that of Watts. Montgomery
wrote it as a Christmas ode* It was sung Dec.
25, 1 82 1, at a Moravian Convocation, but in 1822
he recited it at a great missionary meeting in
Liveipool, and Dn Adam Clarke was so charmed
with it that he inserted it in his famous Com-
mentary. In no long time afterwards it found its
way into general use.
The spirit of his missionary parents was Mont-
gomeiy s Christian legacy, and in exalted poetical
moments it stirred him as the divine afflatus kindled
the old prophets.
THE TUNE,
The music editors in some hymnals have bor-
rowed the favorite choral variously named " Webb"
in honor of its author, and **The Morning Light
is Breaking" from the first line of its hymn.
Later hymnals have chosen Sebastian Wesley's
''Aurelia" to fit the hymn, with a movement sim-
ilar to that of "Webb" ; also a German B flat
melody "Ellacombe," undated, with livelier step
and a ringing chime of parts. No one of these
is inappropriate.
Samuel Sebastian Wesley, grandson of Charles
Wesley the great hymnist, was bom in London,
1810. Like his father, Samuel, he became a
distinguished musician, and was organist at
Exeter, Winchester and Gloucester Cathedrals.
Oxford gave him the deeree of Doctor of Music
178
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
He composed instrumental melodies besides many
anthems, services, and other sacred pieces for
choir and congregational singing. Died in Glou-
cester, April 19, 1876,
"FROM GREENLAND'S ICY MOUNTAINS."
The familiar story of this hymn scarcely needs
repeating; how one Saturday afternoon in the
year 1819, young Reginald Heber, Rector of
Hodnet, sitting with his father-in-law, Dean
Shipley, and a few friends in the Wrexham
Vicarage, was suddenly asked by the Dean to
"write something to sing at the missionary meeting
tomorrow,*' and retired to another part of the room
while the rest went on talking; how, very soon after,
he returned with three stanzas, which were hailed
with delighted approval; how he then insisted
upon adding another cctrain to the hjmn and
came back with —
Waft, waft, ye winds, His scoiyi
And you, ye waters, n>ll;
— and how the great lyric was sung in Wrexham
Church on Sunday morning for the first time in its
life. The story is old but always fresh. Nothing
could better have emphasized the good Dean's
sermon that day in aid of "The Society for the
Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts," than
that unexpected and glorious lyric of his poet son-
in^aw.
1
MISSIONARY HYMNS.
179
By common consent Heber's "Missionary Hymn"
is the silver trumpet among all the rallying bugles
of the church.
THE TUNE.
The union of words and music in this instance
is an example of spiritual affinity. *'What God
hath joined together let no man put asunder."
The story of the tune is a record of providential
birth quite as interesting as that of the hymn. In
1823, a lady in Savannah, Ga.> having received
and admired a copy of Heber's lyric from England,
desired to sing it or hear it sung, but knew no
music to fit the metre. She finally thought of a
young clerk in a bank close by, Lowell Mason by
name, who sometimes wrote music for recreation,
and sent her son to ask him if he would make a
tune that would sing the Unes. The boy returned
in half an hour with the composition that doubled
Heber's fame and made his own.
In the words of Dr. Charles Robinson, "Like
the hymn it voices, it was done at a stroke* and
it will last through the ages,"
"THE MORNING LIGHT IS BREAKING."
Not far behind Dr* Heber's chef-i'mnvre in
lyric merit is the still more famous missionary
hymn of Dr. S. F. Smith, author of '*My Country,
^Tis of Thee/' Another missionary hymn of his
which IS widely used is—
l8o STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Yes, my native land, I love thee.
All thy scenes, I love them well.
Friends, connections, happy country.
Can I bid you all farewell ?
Can I leave you
Far in heathen lands to dwell ?
Drs. Nutter and Breed speak of "The Morning
Light 18 Breaking/' and its charm as a hymn of
peace and promise, and intimate that it has ''gone
farther and been more frequently sung than any
other missionary hymn.'' Besides the English,
there are versions of it in four Latin nations, the
Italian, Spanish, Portuguese and French, and
oriental translations in Chinese and several East
Indian tongues and dialects, as well as one in
Swedish. It author had the rare felicity, while on
a visit to his son, a missionary in Burmah, of
hearing it sung by native Christians in their lan-
guage, and of being welcomed with an ovation
when they knew who he was.
The morning light is breaking!
The darkness disappears;
The sons of earth are waking
To penitential tears;
Each breeze that sweeps the ocean
Brings tidings from afar.
Of nations in commotion.
Prepared for Zion's war.
Rich dews of grace come o'er us
In many a gentle shower.
And brighter scenes before us
Are opening every hour.
MISSIONARY HYMNS.
iSi
Each cry to heaven going
Abundant answer brings.
And heavenly gales are blowing
With peace upon their wings.
m * * * * *
Blest river of Salvation,
Pursue thy onward way;
Flow thou to every nation.
Nor in thy richness stay.
Stay not till all the lowly
Triumphant reach their home;
Stay not till atl the holy
Proclaim, "The Lord is come I"
Samuel Francis Smith, D<D,, was born in
Boston in i8o8j and educated in Harvard Uni-
versity (1825-1829). He prepared for the ministry,
and was pastor of Baptist churches at Waterviile,
Me,, and Newton, Mass., before entering the
service of the American Baptist Missionary union
as editor of its Missionary Magazine.
lie was a scholarly and graceful writer^ both in
verse and prose, and besides his editorial work,
he was frequently an invited participant or guest
of honor on public occasions, owing to his fame
as author of the national h}Tnn. His pure and gentle
character made him everywhere beloved and
reverenced, and to know him intimately in his
happy old age was a benediction. He died sud-
denly and painlessly in his seat on a railway train,
November 16, 1895 in his eighty-eighth year.
Dr- Smith wrote twenty-six hymns now more or
l82
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
:he music and
" it has been
less in use in church worship, and eight for Sab-
bath school collections.
THE TUNE.
''Millennial Dawn " is the title give
ton compiler, about 1844, but since (
hymn became '*one and indtvisable
named "Webb," and popularly known as "Morn-
ing Light'* or oftener still by its first hymn-line,
"The morning light is breaking*'*
George James Webb was bom near Salisbury,
Wiltshire, Eng., June 24, iSoj, He studied music
in Salisbury and for several years played the
organ at Falmouth Church, WTien still a youuj
man (1830), he came to the United States, an
settled in Boston where he was long the leading
organist and music teacher of the city. He was
associate director of the Boston Academy of Music
with Lowell Mason^ and joint author and editor
with him of several church-music collections. Died
in Orange J N, J.^ Nov, 7, 1887.
Dr- Webb's own account of the tune "Millen-
nial Dawn " states that he wrote it at sea while on
his way to America — and to secular words and
that he had no idea who first adapted it to the
hymn, nor when,
"IF I WERE A VOICE, A PERSUASTVE VOICE."
This animating lyric was written by Charles
Mackay, Sung by a good vocalist^ the fine solo
air composed (with its organ chords) by L B.
Woodbury, is still a feature in some missionary
meetings, especially the fourth stanza —
MISSIONARY HYMNS. rfj
If I were a voice, an tmtnortal vojcc»
I would fly the eanh around:
And wherever man to his tdoU bowed ,
rd publish in notes both long and loud
The Gospel's joyful sound.
1 would fly, I would fly, on the wings of day,
Fftx:l aiming peace on my world*wide way,
Bidding the saddened earth rejoice —
If 1 were a voice, an immortal voice,
I would fly, 1 would fly,
I would fly on the wings of day.
Charles Mackay, the poet, was bom in Perth,
Scotland, 1814, and educated in London and
Brussels; was engaged in editorial work on the
London Morning Chronicle and Glasgow Argus^
and during the Corn Law agitation wrote popular
songs, notably "The Voice of the Crowd'* and
"There's a Good Time Coming/' which (like the
far inferior poetry of Ebenezer Elliot) won the last-
ing love of the masses for a superior man who could
be "The People's Singer and Friend." He came
to the United States in 1857 as a lecturer, and
again in 1862, remaining three years as war
correspondent of the London Times. Glasgow
University made him LL* D* in 1S47. His numer-
ous songs and poems were collected in a London
edition. Died Dec* 24, 1889.
Isaac Baker Woodbury was born in Beverly,
Mass., 18 19, and rose from the station of a black-
smith's apprentice to be a tone-teacher in the
church* He educated himself in Europe, returned
184 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
and sang his life songs, and died in 185S at the
age of thirty-nine.
A tune preferred by many as the finer music is
the one written to the words by Mr. Sankey,
Sacred Songs ^ No. 2,
**SPEED AWAYI SPEED AWAYf"
This inspiriting song of farewell to departing
missionaries was written in 1890 to Woodbury's
appropriate popular melody by Fanny J, Crosby,
at the request of Ira D. Sankey. The key-word
and refrain are adapted from the original song by
Woodbury (1848), but in substance and lan-
guage the three hymn-stanzas are the new and
independent work of this later writer.
Speed awayf ipeed away on your mission of light*
To the lands that are lying in darkness and night;
Tis the Master's command; go ye forth in His name.
The wonderful gospel of Jesus proclaim;
Take your lives in your hand, to the work while 'tis day,
Spted away! speed away I speed aw ay I
Speed away^ speed away with the Hfe-giving Word»
To the nations that know not the voice of the Lord;
Take the wings of the morning and fly o'er the wave.
In the strength of your Master the lost ones to save;
He is calh'ng once more, not a moment's delay ^
Speed away! speed awayl speed away!
Speed away, speed away with the message of rest.
To the souls by the tempter in bondage oppressed;
For the Saviour has purchased their tansom from sm.
MISSIONARY HYMNS. 185
And the banquet is ready. O gather them in;
To the rescue make haste» there's no droe for delay.
Speed awayl speed awayl speed awayl
^'ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS!**
Rev. Sabine Baring-Gould, the author of this
rousing hymn of Christian warfare, a rector of the
Established Church of England and a writer of
note, was bom at Exeter, Eng., Jan. 28, 1834.
Educated at Clare College, Cambridge, he entered
the service of the church, and was appointed
Rector of East Mersea, Essex, in 1871. He was
the author of several hymns, original and trans-
lated, and introduced into England from Flanders,
numbers of carols with charming old Christmas
music. The " Christian Soldiers" hymn is one of his
(original) processionals, and the most inspiring.
Onward, Christian soldiers.
Marching as to war.
With the cross of Jesus
Going on before.
Christ the Royal Master
Leads against the foe;
Forward into battle,
See, His banners go!
Onward, Christian loldien^ dc
Like a mighty army
Moves the Church of God;
Brothers, we are treading
Where the saints hav^ trod;
l86 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
We are not divided.
An one body we,
C^ in hope, in doctrine^
One in chanty.
THE TUNE.
Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan, Doctor of Music,
who wrote the melody for this hymn, was bom in
London, May 13, 1842. He gained the Men-
delssohn SclK>larship at the Royal Academy of
Music, and also at the G)nservatory of Leipsic.
He was a fertile genius, and his compositions in-
cluded operettas, symphonies, overtures, anthems,
hymn-tunes, an oratorio ("The Prodigal Son"),
and almost every variety of tone production, vocal
and instrumental. Queen Victoria knighted him
in 1883.
The grand rhythm of "Onward, Christian
Soldiers'* — hymn and tune — is irresistible whether
in band march or congregational worship. Sir
Arthur died in London, November 22, 1900.
"O CHURCH ARISE AND SING.^
Designed originally for children's voices, the
hymn of five stanzas beginning with this line was
written by Hezekiah Butterworth, author of the
Story of the Hymns (1875), Story oft he Tunes
(1890), and many popular books of historic
interest for the young, the most widely read of
which is Zigzag Journeys in Many Lands. He
MISSIONARY HY^rNS,
187
I
also composed and published many poems and
hymns. He was born m Warren, R, L, Dec* 22,
1839, and for twenty-five years was connected
with the Youth* s Companion as regular contributor
and member of its editorial staff. He died in
Warren, R, L, Sept. 5, 1905*
The hymn "O Church, arise'' was sung in
Mason's tune of *'Dort'* until Prof. Case wrote a
melody for it, when it took the name of the "Con-
vention Hymn/'
Professor Charles Clinton Case, music composer
and teacher, was born in Linesville, Pa., June 6>
1843. Was a pupil of George F. Root and pursued
musical study m Chicago^ 111., Ashland, O., and
South Bend, Ind. He was associated with Root,
McGranahan, and others in making secular and
church music books, and later with D. L, Moody
in evangelical work.
As author and compiler he has published numer-
ous works, among them Church AnthemSt the Har-
vest Song and Case^s Chorus Collection,
O Church! arise and stng
The tnuinpbs of yotir King^
Whose reign is love;
Sing your enlarged desires.
That conquering faith inspires.
Renew your signal fires.
And forward move!
^ ^ 1^ * « «
Beneath the glowing arch
The ransomed armies march,
Wt follow on;
l88 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Lead on^ O cross of Light,
From conquering height to. height.
And add new victories bright
To triumphs wonl
*THE BANNER OF IMMANUELP'
This hymn, set to music and copyrighted in
Buffalo as a floating waif of verse by an unknown
author, and used in Sunday-school work, first
appeared in Dr. F. N. Peloubet's Select Songs
(Biglow and Main, 1884) with a tune by Rev.
George Phipps.
The hymn was written by Rev. Theron Brown,
a Baptist minister, who was pastor (1859-1870) of
churches in South Framingham and Canton, Mass.
He was bom in Willimantic, Ct., April 29, 1832.
Retired from pastoral work, owing to vocal
disability, he has held contributory and editorial
relations with the Touth^s Companion for more
than forty years, for the last twenty years a member
of the office staff.
Between 1880 and 1890 he contributed hymns
more or less regularly to the quartet and anti-
phonal chorus service at the Ruggles St. Church,
Boston, the " Banner of Immanuel" being one of the
number. The Blount Family ^ Nameless Women of
the Bible f Life Songs (a volume of poems), and sev-
eral books for boys, are among his published works.
The banner of Immanuell beneath its glorious folds
For life or death to serve and fight we pledge our loyal souls.
MISSIONARY HYMNS.
189
No other flag such honor boasts, or bears so proud a name.
And far its red-cross signal flies as flies the lightning's flame.
««««««
Salvation by the blood of Christ! the shouts of triumph ring;
No other watchword leads the host that serves so grand a King.
Then rally, soldiers of the Cross! Keep eveiy fold unfuried.
And by Redemption's holy sign we'll conquer all the worid.
The Rev. George Phipps, composer of the tune,
'Immanuers Banner/' was bom in Franklin,
Mass., Dec. 11, 1838, was graduated at Amherst
G>llege, 1862, and at Andover Theological Semi-
nary, 1865. Settled as pastor of the Congregational
Church in Wellesley, Mass., ten years, and at
Newton Highlands fifteen years.
He has written many Sunday-school melodies,
notably the music to ''My Saviour Keeps Me Com-
pany."
CHAPTER V.
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND
TRUST.
One inspiring chapter in the compensations of
life is the record of immortal verses that were
sonrow-boni. It tells us in the most affecting way
how affliction refines the spirit and ''the agonizing
throesof thought bringforth glory/' Often a broken
life has produced a single hymn. It took the long
living under trial to shape the supreme experience.
^Thc anguish of the singer
Made the sweetness of the song.
Indeed, if there had been no sorrow there would
have been no song.
''MY LORD, HOW FULL OF SWEET CONTENT.'*
Jeanne M. B. de la Mothe — known always as
Madame Guyon — the lady who wrote these words
in exile, probably sang more *' songs in the night''
than any hymn-writer outside of the Dark Ages.
She was bom at Montargis, France, in 1648, and
190
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST. I9I
died in her seventieth year, 1771, in the ancient
city of Blois, on the Loire,
A convent-educated girl of high family, a wife at
the age of fifteen > and a widow at twenty-eight,
her early piety» ridiculed in the daz2Hng but corrupt
society of Louis XIV 's time, blossomed through
a long life in religious ministries and flowers of
sacred poetry.
She became a mystic, and her book Spiritual
Torrents indicates the impetuous ardors of her
souL It was the way Divine Love came to her.
She was the incarnation of the spiritualized Book
of Canticles, An induction to these intense sub-
jective visions and raptures had been the remark
of a pious old Franciscan father, *VSeek God in
your heart, and you will find Him."
She began to teach as well as enjoy the new
light so different from the gUtter of the traditional
worship. But her "aggressive holiness" was obnox*
ious to the established Church, "Quietism" was
the brand set upon her written works and the
offense that was punished in her person, Bossuet,
the king of preachers, was her great adversary*
The saintly Fenelon was her friend, but he could
not shield her. She was shut up hke a lunatic in
prison after prison, till, after four years of dungeon
life in the Bastile, expecting every hour to be ex-
ecuted for heresy, she was banished to a distant
province to end her days.
Question as we may the usefulness of her pie-
ristic books, the visions of her excessively exalted
tg% STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
moods, and the passionate^ almost erode phraseol*
ogy of her Contemplations^ Madame Guyon has
held the world's admiration for her martyr spirit,
and even her love-Bights of devotion in poetry and
prose do not conceal the angel that walked in the
flame.
Today, when religious persecution is unknown,
we can but dimly understand the perfect triumph
of her superior soul under suffering and the trans-
ports of her utter absorption in God that could
make the stones of her dungeon "look like jewels,"
When we emulate a faith like hers— vrith all the
weight of absolute certainty in it — we can sing her
hymn:
My Lord, how full of sweet content
I pass my years of banishment.
Where'er I dwell, I dwell with Thcc,
In heaven or earth, or on the sea.
To me remains nor place nor time:
My country is in every clime;
I can be calm and free from care
On any shore, since God is there*
And could a dearer vade mHum enrich a Chris*
tian's outHt than these lines treasured in memory ?
While place we seek or place we shun*
The soul finds happiness in none;
But, with a God to guide our way,
'Tis e<|ual joy to go or stay.
Cowper, and also Dr, Thomas Upham^ translated
(from the French) the religious poems of Madame
Guyon* This hymn is Cowper 's translation.
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST. igj
THE TUNE.
A gentle and sympathetic melody entitled "Al-
sace" well represents the temper of the words —
and in name links the nationalities of writer and
composer. It is a choral arranged from a sonata
of the great Ludwig von Beethoven, born in
Bonn, Germany, 1770, and died in Vienna, Mar.
1827- Like the author of the hymn he felt the
hand of affliction, becoming totally deaf soon after
his fortieth yean But Jn spite of the privation, he
kept on writing sublime and exquisite strains
that only his soul could hean His fame rests upon
his oratorio, "The Mount of Olives," the opera
of'Tidelio" and his nine wonderful "Sympho-
nies,"
'*NO CHANGE IN TIME SHALL EVER SHOCK/'
Altered to common metre from the awkward
long metre of Tate and Brady, the three or four
stanzas found in earlier hymnals are part of their
version (probably Tate's) of the 31st Psalm —
and it is wonh calling to mind here that there is no
' hymn treasury so rich in tuneful faith and ieliancc
upon God in trouble as the Book of Psalms, This
feeling of the Hebrew poet was never better ex-
pressed (we might say, translated) in English than
by the writer of this single verse —
No change of time shall ever shock
My rrust, O Lord, in Thee,
194 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
¥of Thou hast always been my Rock,
A sure defense to me.
THE TUNE.
The sweet, tranquil choral long ago wedded
to this hymn is lost from the church collections,
and its very name forgotten. In fact the hymn
itself is now seldom seen. If it ever comes back,
old "Dundee'* (Guillaume Franc 1 500-1 570) will
sing for it, or some new composer may rise up to put
the spirit of the psalm into inspired notes,
"WHY DO WE MOURN DEPARTED FRIENDS?"
This hymn of holy comfort, by Dr Watts, was
long associated with a remarkable tune in C
minor, "a queer medley of melody" as Lowell
Mason called it, still familiar to many old people
as "China," It was composed by Timothy Swan
when he was about twenty-six years of age (1784)
and published in 1801 in the New England Har-
mony. It may have sounded consolatory to mature
mourners, singers and hearers in the days when
religious emotion habitually took a sad key, but
its wild and thrilling chords made children weep-
The tune is long out of use^ — though, strange to
say, one of the most recent hymnals prints the
hymn with a new minor tune.
Why do we mourn departed friends^
Or sh lice at death's alarms 1
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST, 1 95
Tii but the voice that J.*sus sends
To call them to His anns*
Are wc not tending upward too
As fast as time can move ?
Nor should we wish the hours more slow
To keep us from our Love*
The graves of all His saints He bles^
And softened every bed:
Where should the dying members rest
But witli their dying Head ?
Timothy Swan was born in Worcester, Mass.,
July 23, 1758, and died in Suffield, Ct., July 23^
1842. He was a self-taught musician, his only
''course of study'* lasting three weeks, — in a country
singing school at Groton. When sixteen years
old he went to Northfield, Mass., and learned the
hatter's trade, and while at work began to practice
making psalm-tunes. "Montague/* in two parts,
was his first achievement* From that time for
thirty years, mostly spent in Suffield, Ct., he wrote
and taught music while supporting himself by his
trade. Many of his tunes were published by him-
self, and had a wide currency a century ago.
Swan was a genius in his way, and it was a true
comment on his work that '*his tunes were re-
markable for their originality as well as singularity
—unlike any other melodies/* *' China/' his
masterpiece, will be long kept track of as a curio,
and preserved in replicates of old psalmody to illus-
trate self-culture in the art of song. But the major
196 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
mode will replace the minor when tender voices
on burial days sing —
Wh]f do wc mourn depaned frieridB ?
Another hymn of Watts, —
God IS the refuge of His taints
When storms of sharp distress invade,
— sung to Lowell Mason's liquid tune of ** Ward,''
and the priceless stanza, —
Jesus ean make a dying bed
Feel soft as downy pillows are,
doubly prove the claim of the Southampton bard
to a foremost place with the song-preachers of
Christian trust.
The psalm (Amsterdam version), '*God is the
refuge/* etc, is said to have been sung by John
Howland in the shallop of the Mayflower when
an attempt was made to effect a landing in spite
of tempestuous weather. A tradition of this had
doubtless reached Mrs. Hemans when she wrote —
Amid the stonn they sang^ etc.
"FATHER, WHATETR OF EARTHLY BUSS:"
This hymn had originally ten stanzas, of which
the three usually sung are the three last. The
above line is the first of the eighth stanza, altered
from^ —
And O* whatever of eaithly bliss*
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TKUST.
197
Probably for more than a century the familiar
surname "Steele" attached to this and many other
hymns in the hymn-books conveyed to the general
public no hint of a mind and hand more feminine
than Cowper's or Montgomery's. Even intelligent
people, who had chanced upon sundry copies of
The Spectator^ somehow fell into the habit of
putting "Steele" and "Addison" in the same
category of hymn names^ and Sir Richard Steele
got a credit he never sought. But since stories
of the hymns began to be published — and made
the subject of evening talks in church conference
rooms — many have learned what "Steele" in the
hymn-book means* It introduces us now to a
very retiring English lady, Miss Anna Steele, a
Baptist minister*s daughter. She was bom in 1 706*
at Broughton, Hampshire, in her father's parson-
age, and in her father's parsonage she spent her
life, dying there Nov, 1778.
She was many years a severe sufferer from
bodily illness, and a lasting grief of mind and heart
was the loss of her intended husband, who was
drowned the day before their appointed wedding.
It is said that this hymn was written under the
recent sorrow of that loss.
In 1760 and 1780 volumes of her works in
verse and prose were published with her name,
"Theodosia," and reprinted in 1863 as "HymnSf
Psalms t and Poems^ by Anna Steele." The hymn
" Father, whate'er," etc., is estimated as her best*
though some rank it only next to her —
198 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Dear Refuge of my weaiy touL
Other more or less well-known hymns of this
devout and loving writer are, —
Lordy how mysterious are Thy ways,
O Thou whose tender mercy hears^
Thou lovely Source of true delight,
Alas, what hourly dangers rise.
So fades the lovely blooming flower,
— to a stanza of which latter the world owes the
tunc of "Federal St."
THE TUNE.
The true musical mate of the sweet hymn-
prayer came to it probably about the time of its
hundredth birthday; but it came to stay. Lowell
Mason's "Naomi" blends with it like a symphony
of nature.
Father, whate'er of earthly bliss
Thy sovereign will denies.
Accepted at Thy throne of grace
Let this petition rise.
Give me a calm and thankful heart
From every murmer free.
The blessings of Thy grace impart.
And make me live to Tliee.
^'GUIDE ME, O THOU GREAT JEHOVAH."
This great hymn has a double claim on the name
of Williams. We do not have it exactly in its orig-
HYMNS OF SUFFERIKG AND TKUST.
199
inal form as written by Rev. William Williams,
*'The Watts of Wales," familiarly known as "Wil-
liams of Pantycelyn/* His fellow countryman and
contemporaiy, Rev. Peter Williams, or "Williams
of Carmarthen," who translated it from Welsh
into English (i77r) made alterations and substi-
tutions in the hymn with the result that only the
first stanza belongs indisputably to Williams of
Pantycelyn, the others being Peter's own or the
joint production of the two. As the former, how-
ever, is said to have approved and revised the Eng-
lish translation, we may suppose the hymn retained
the name of its original author by mutual consent.
Guide me, O Thou Greiit Jehovah,
Pilgrim through this barreti land^
I am weak, but Thou art mighty.
Hold me by Thy powerful hand;
Bread of heaven,
Feed me till I want no more^
Open Thou the cryital Fount ai a
Whence the healing streams do flow.
Let the fiery cloudy pillar
Lead me all my joymey th rough «
Strong Deliverer,
Be Thou still my Strength and Shield!
When I tread the verge of Jordan
Bid my ansdous fears subside;
Death of death, and helVs de^ ruction,
Land me safe on Canaan*S Side,
Songs of praises
I wiU ever give to Thee,
aOO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUVfEB.
Muting on my habitation^
Musing on my heavenly home,
Filb my heait with holy longing;
Come, Lord Jesus» quickly come.
Vanity is all I see.
Lord, I long to be with Thee.
The second and third stanzas have not escaped
die touch of critical editors. The line, —
Whence the healing streams do iow
—becomes, —
Whence the healing waters flow,
— ^with which alteration there is no fault to find
except that it is needless, and obliterates the an-
cient mark. But the third stanza, besides losing its
second line for —
Bid the swelling stream divide,
— is weakened by a more needless substitution.
Its original third line —
Death of death, and hell's destruction,
— is exchanged for the commonplace —
Bear me through the swelling current.
That is modem taste; but when modem taste
meddles with a stalwart old hymn it is sometimes
more nice than wise.
It is probable that the famous hymn was sung
in America before it obtained a European repu-
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST, WI
tation* Its history is as follows: Lady Hunting-
don having read one of Williams' books with much
spiritual satisfaction, persuaded him to prepare
a collection of hymns, to be called the Gloria in
Excehis^ for special use in Mn Whitefield's
Orphans* House in America. In this collection
appeared the original stanzas of "Guide me, O
Thou Great Jehovah." In 1 774, two years after its
publication in the Gloria in Excehis^ it was repub-
lished in England in Mr, Whitefield's collections of
hymns.
The Rev, Peter Williams was bom in the parish
of Llansadurnen, Carmarthenshire, Wales, Jan-
7, 1722, and was educated in Carmarthen College,
He was ordained in the Established Church and
appointed to a curacy, but in 1748 joined the
7alvinistic Methodists. He was an Independent
of the Independents however, and preached where
ever he chose. Finally he built a chapel for him-
self on his paternal estate, where he ministered dur-
ing the rest of his life. Died Aug, 8, 1796.
THE TUNS.
If "SardiuSp" the splendid old choral (triple
time) everywhere identified with the hymn, be not
its original music, its age at least entitles it to its
high partnership. The Sacred Lyre (1858) ascribes
it to Ludovic Nicholson, of Paisley, Scotland,
violinist and amateur composer, born 1770; died
1852; but this is not beyond dispute. Of several
202 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
names one more confidently referred to as its author
is F- H. Barthcleraon (i 741- 1808).
"PEACE, TROUBLED SOUL"
Is the brave faith-song of a Christian under deep
but blameless humiliation— Sir Walter Shirley.*
THE TUNE.
Apparently the favorite in several (not recent)
hymnals for the subdued but confident spirit of
this hymn of Sir Walter Shirley is Mazzinghi's
•'Palestine," appearing with various tone-signatures
in different books. The treble and alto lead in a
sweet duet with slur-fllghtSj like an obligato to the
bass and tenor. The melody needs rich and cultured
voices, and is unsuited for congregational singing.
So, perhaps, is the hymn itself.
Pe^ce, troubled soul, whose plaintive moan
Hsith taught these rocks the notes of woe;
Cease thy complaint^ — suppress thy groan.
And let thy tears forget to flow;
Behold the precious batm is found^
To lull thy pain, to heal thy wound.
Come, freely come, by sin oppressed.
Unburden here thy weighty load;
Here find thy refuge and thy rest^
And trust the mercy of thy God,
Thy God*» thy Saviour — glorious word!
For ever love and praise the Lord.
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TUUST,
203
"scenes" is substituted
As now sung the word
for "rocks" in the second line, eliminating the
poetry. Rocks give an echo; and the vivid thought
in the author's mind is flattened to an unmeaning
generality-
Count Joseph Mazzinghi, son of Tommasso
Mazzinghi, a Corsican musician, was bom in Lon-
don, 1765: He was a boy of precocious talent.
When only ten years of age he was appointed or-
ganist of the Portuguese Chapel, and when nineteen
years old was made musical director and composer
at the King's Theatre, For many years he held the
honor of Music Master to the Princess of Wales>
afterwards Queen Caroline, and his compositions
were almost numberless* Some of his songs and
glees that caught the popular fancy are still remem-
bered in England, as "The Turnpike Gate," *'The
Exile," and the rustic duet, "When a Little Farm
We Keep."
Of sacred music he composed only one mass and
six hymn-tunes, of which latter " Palestine" is one.
Mazzinghi died in 1844, in his eightieth year.
'BEGONE UNBELIEF, MY SAVIOUR IS NEAR/'
The Rev, John Newton, author of this hymn,
was bom in London* July 24, 1725. The son of a
sea-captain, he became a sailor, and for several
years led a reckless life* Converted, he took holy
orders and was settled as curate of OIney, Buck-
inghamshire, and afterwards Rector of St* Mary of
204 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Woolnothy London, where he died, Dec. 21, 1807.
It was while living at Olney that he and Cowper
wrote and published the Olney Hymns. His de-
fiance to doubt in these lines is the blunt utterance
of a sailor rather than the song of a poet:
Begone, unbelief, my Saviour is near.
And for my relief will surely appear.
By prayer let me wrestle and He will perform;
With Christ in the vessel I smile at the ftorm.
THE TUNE
Old " Hanover,*' by William Croft (1677 — 1727),
carries Newton's hymn successfully, but Joseph
Haydn's choral of "Lyons" is more familiar — and
better music.
"Hanover" often accompanies Charles Wesley's
lyric,—
Ye servants of God, your Master proclaim.
"HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION/'
The question of the author of this hymn is treat-
ed at length in Dr. Louis F. Benson's Studies of
Familiar Hymns. The utmost that need to be
said here is that two of the most thorough and
indefatigable hymn-chasers, Dr. John Julian and
Rev. H. L. Hastings, working independently of
«ach other, found evidence fixing the authorship
with strong probability upon Robert Keene, a pre-
centor in Dr. John Rippon's church. Dr. Rippon
was pastor of a Baptist Church in London from
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST,
205
1773 to 1836, and in 1787 he published a song-
manual called A Selection of Hymns from the Best
Authors^ etc<, in which "How FirnfiaFoundarion"
appears as a new piece, with the signature " K — /*
The popularity of the hymn in America has been
remark ablcj and promises to continue. Indeed,
there are few more reviving or more spiritually
helpful. It is too familiar to need quotation. But
one cannot suppress the last stanza, with its power-
ful and affecting emphasis on the Divine promise —
The soul that on Jesus has leaned for repc^e
1 wilJ not, I will not, desert to his foes;
That soul J though all hell should endeavor to shake,
rU never, no never, no never forsake.
THE TUNE,
The grand harmony of '* Portuguese Hymn" has
always been jdentiBed with this song of trust.
One opinion of the date of the music writes it
"about 1780." Since the habit of crediting it to
John Reading (1677-1764) has been discontinued^
it has been in several hymnals ascribed to Marco
pDrtogallo(Markj the Portuguese), a musician bom
in Lisbon, 1763, who became a composer of operas
in Italy, but was made Chapel-Master to the Port-
uguese King. In 1807, when Napoleon invaded
the Peninsula and dethroned the royal house of
Braganza, Old King John VL fled to Brazil and
took Marco with him, where he lived till 1815, but
returned and died in Italy, in iSjo, Such is the
story, and it is all true, only the man's name was
Zq6
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
Simaoy instead of Marco. Grovels DicUonary ap-
pends to Simao's biography the single sentence,
"His brother wrote for the church." That the
Brazilian episode may have been connected with
this brother's history by a confusion of names. Is
imaginable, but it is not known that the brother's
name was Marco,
On the whole, this account of the authorship of
the *' Portuguese Hymn** — originally written for
the old Christmas church song " Adeste Fideles" —
is late and uncertain. Heard (perhaps for the first
time) in the Portuguese Chapel, London, it was
given the name which still clings to it. If proofs
of its Portuguese origin exist, they may yet be found*
"How Firm a Foundation" was the favorite of
Deborah Jackson, President Andrew Jackson's be-
loved wife, and on his death-bed the warrior and
statesman called for it* It was the favorite of Gen.
Robert E. Lee, and was sung at his funeral. The
American love and familiar preference for the re-
markable hymn was never more strikingly illus-
trated than when on Christmas Eve, 1898,3 whole
corps of the United States army Northern and
Southern, encamped on the Quemados hills, near
Havana, took up the sacied tune and words —
"Fear not, I am with thee, O be not dismayed,"
Lieut, CoL Curtis Guild (since Governor Guild
of Massachusetts) related the story in the Sunday
School Times for Dec* 7, igor^ and Dr* Benson
quotes it in his book.
John
fVesley
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST-
207
'^HILE THEE I SEEK, PROTECTING POWER/'
Miss Helen Maria Williams, who wrote this gen-
jtle hymn of confidence, in 1786, was bom in the
[north of England in 1762* When but a girl she
won reputation by her brilliant Uterary talents and
a mental grasp and vigor that led her, like Gail
(Hamilton, "to discuss public affairs, besides cloth-
ing bright fancies and devout thoughts in graceful
verse/' Most of her life was spent in London,
and in Paris, where she died, Dec, 14, 1827*
While Thee 1 seek. Protecting Power
Be my vain wishes stilled,
And may this consecrated hour
With better hopes be filled:
When gladness wings my favored hour.
Thy love my thoughts shaH fill.
Resigned where storms of sorrow lower
My sou] shall meet Thy will.
My lifted eye without a tear
The gathering storm shall see:
My steadfast heart shall know no fear:
My heart will rest on Thee*
THE TUNES.
Old " Norwich* " from Day^s Psalter, and *' Simp-
son," adapted from Louis Spohr, are found with
the hymn in several later manuals. In the memor-
ies of older worshipers "Brattle-Street/* with its
melodious choral and duet arranged from Pleyel
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
by Lowell Mason, is inseparabte from Miss Wil-
liams' words; but modem hymnals have dropped
it, probably because too elaborate for average con-
gregational use,
Ignaz Joseph Pleyel was bom June i, 1757*
at R uppers thai, Lower Austria, He was the
twenty-jourth child of a village schoolmaster*
His early taste and talent for music procured
him friends who paid for his education. Haydn
became his master, and long afterwards spoke of
him as his best and dearest pupiL Pleyel'swork
— entirely instrumental — was much admired by
Mo2art*
During a few years spent in Italy, he composed
the music of his best-known opera, '^Iphigenia in
Aulide," and, besides the thirty-four books of his
symphonies and chamber-pieces, the results of his
prolific genius make a list too long to enumerate.
Most of his life was spent in Paris, where he founded
the (present) house of Pleyel and Wolfe, piano
makers and sellers. He died in that city, Nov. 141
''CX^ME UNTO ME."
Come unto Mc, when shadows darkly gather,
When the sat! heart is weary and distressed,
Seeking for comfort from your heavenly Father,
Come unto Me, and I will give you rest.
This sweet hymn, by Mrs. Catherine Esling, it
well known to many thousands of mourners, as also
is its equally sweet tune of "Henley," by Lowell
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST.
209
Mason. Melody and words melt together like harp
and dute.
Large are the mansions in thy Father's dwelling,
Glad are the homes that sorrows never dim^
Sweet are the harps in holy music swelling.
Soft are the tones that raifie the heavenly hymn.
Mrs* Catherine Harbison Waterman Esling wa«
born in Philadelphia, Apr rz, 1812. Awriterfor
many years under her maiden name^ Waterman >
she married, in 1840, Capt* George EsUng, of the
Merchant Marine, and Uved in Rio Janeiro till her
widowhood, in 1844.
JOHN WESLEY'S HYMN.
^ wid
^^^^^ How happy is the pilgrim's lot,
^^^^ How free from every anxious thought.
\^ These are the opening lines of "John Wesley's
Hymn/' so called because his other hymns ait
mostly translations, and because of all his own it is
the one commonly quoted and sung*
^ John Wesley, the second son in the famous
H Epworth family of ministers^ was a man who
knew how to endure " hardness as a good soldier
of Christ." He was born June 27, 1703, and stud-
ied at Charterhouse^ London, and at Christ
Church, Oxford, becoming a Fellow of Lincoln
College. After taking holy orders he went as a
missionary to Georgia, U. S*, in 1735, and on his
return began his remarkable work in England,
preaching a more spiritual type of religion, and
a 10 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
awakening the whole kingdom with his revival
fervor and his brother's kindling songs- The fol-
lowing paragraph from his itinerant life, gathered
probably from a page of his own journals, gives
a gUmpse of what the founder of the great Methodist
denomination did and suffered while carrying his
Evangelical message from place to place.
On February 17^ ij^tf when days were short
and weather far from favorable, he set out on
horseback from Bristol to Newcastle, a distance be-
tween three and four hundred miles. The journey
occupied ten days. Brooks were swollen, and in
some places the roads were impassbte, obliging the
itinerant to go round through the fields. At Al-
drige Heath, in Staffordshire, the rain turned to
snowy which the northerly wind drove against
him, and by which he was soon crusted over from
head to foot. At Leeds the mob followed him, and
pelted him with whatever came to hand. He ar-
rived at Newcastle, February 26, *'free from every
anxious thought," and "every worldly fear,"
How lightly he regarded hardship and moles*
tation appears from his verses^ —
Whate'er Rioletrs or troubles life,
When past, as nothing we esteem,
Atid pain^ like pleasure, is a dream*
And that he actually enjoys the heroic freedom of
a rough-rider missionary life is hinted in his hymn-
Confined to neither court nor cell.
His soul disdains on eanh fo dweUj
He only sojourns here.
HYMNS or SUFFERING AND TRUST.
HI
God evidently built John Wesley fire-proof and
water-proof with a view to precisely what he was
to undenake and accomplish. His frame was
vigorous, and his spirit unconquerable. Besides
all this he had the divine gift of a religious faith
that could move mountains and a confidence in
his mission that became a second nature* No
wonder he could suffer, and last. The brave
young man at thirty was the brave old man at
nearly ninety. He died in London, March 2, 1791*
Blest with the scorn of finite gcxid,
My soul is tightened of its load
And seeks ihe things above*
There Is my house and portion fair;
My treasure and my heart are there.
And my abiding home.
For me my elder brethren stay,
And angels beckon me away,
And Jesus bids me come.
THE TUNE.
An air found in the Revival ist (1869), in sextuple
time, that has the real camp-meeting swing,
preserves the style of music in which the hymn
was sung by the circuit-preachers and their con-
gregations—ringing out the autobiographical verees
with special unction. The favorite was —
No foot of land do I possess^
No cottage in this wilderness;
A poor wayfaring man.
212 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNIS.
I lodge awhile in tents bdow^
Or gladly wander to and fro
Tin I my Canaan gain.
More modem voices sing the John Wesley
h}rmn to the tune " Habbakuk, " by Edward Hodges.
It has a lively three-four step, and finer melody
than the old.
Edward Hodges was bom in Bristol, Eng.,
July 20, 1796, and died there Sept. 1876. Or-
ganist at Bristol in his youth, he was graduated
at Cambridge and in 1825 received the doctorate
of music from that University. In 1835 he went
to Toronto, Canada, and two years later to New
York city, where he was many years Director of
Music at Trinity Church. Returned to Bristol
in 1863.
' 'WHEN GATHERING CLOUDS AROUND I VIEW/'
One of the restful strains breathed out of illness
and affliction to relieve one soul and bless millions.
It was written by Sir Robert Grant (i 785-1838).
When gathering clouds around I view.
And days are dark, and friends are few^
On Him I lean who not in vain
Experienced eveiy human pain.
The lines are no less admirable for their literary
beauty than for their feeling and their faith. Un-
consciously, it may be, to the writer, in this and
the following stanza are woven an epitome of the
Saviour's history. He —
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST.
213
P
Expenenced every human pain,
felt temptation *s power^
- — -wept o'er Lazarus dead,
— and the crowning assurance of Jesus* human
sympathy is expressed in the closing prayer, —
when I have safely passed
Thfo' every conflict but the last,
Stillj still unchanging watch beside
My painful bed — for Thou hasi died.
THE TUNE.
Of the few suitable six-line long metre part songs,
the charming Russian tone-poem of **St. Peters-
burg" by Dimitri Bortniansky is borrowed for the
hymn in some collections^ and with excellent
effect. It accords well with the mood and tenor
of the words, and deserves to stay with it as long
as the hymn holds its place.
Dimitri Bortniansky, called "The Russian
Palestrina," was born in 1752 at Gloukoff, a
village of the Ukraine. He studied music in
Moscow, St. Petersburg, Vienna, Rome and
Naples. Returning to his native land, he was
made Director of Empress Catharine's church choir.
He reformed and systematized Russian church mu-
sic, and wrote original scores in the intervals of his
teaching labors. His works are chiefly motets and
concertos, which show his genius for rich harmony-
Died 1S25.
21+ STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"JUST AS I AM, WITHOUT ONE PLEA/'
Charlotte Elliott, of Brightorij Eng.^ would have
been welHtnown through her admired and useful
hymns>^ —
My God, my Father^ while I stray.
My God J is any hour so sweet,
With tearful eyes I look a rounds
— and many others. But in "Just as I am" she
made herself a voice in the soul of every hesitating
penitent » The currency of the hymn has been too
swift for its authorship and history to keep up
with, but it is a blessed law of influence that good
works out-run biographies. This master-piece
of metrical gospel might be called Miss Elliott^s
spiritual-binh hymn, for a reply of Dr. Caesar
Malan of Geneva was its prompting cause. The
young lady was a stranger to personal religion
when, one day, the good man, while staying at her
father's house, in his gentle way introduced the
subject. She resented it, but afterwards, stricken
in spirit by his words, came to him with apologies
and an inquiry that confessed a new concern of
mind, "You speak of coming to Jesus, but how?
I'm not fit to come."
"Come just as you are," said Dn Malan.
The hymn tells the result.
Like all the other hymns bound up in her
Jnvalid^s Hymn-hook^ it was poured from out the
heart of one who, as the phrase is, "never knew a
HYMKS OF SUrrERlNG AND TRUST,
215
well day," — though she lived to see her eighty-
second year.
Illustrative of the way it appeals to the afflicted,
a little anecdote was told by the eloquent John B.
Gough of his accidental seat-mate in a city church
service. A man of strange appearance was led
by the kind usher or sexton to the pew he occupied.
Mr* Gough eyed him with strong aversion. The
I man's face was mottled, his limbs and mouth
twitched, and he mumbled singular sounds.
When the congregation sang he attempted to
sing, but made fearful work of it* During the
organ interlude he leaned toward Mr. Gough and
asked how the next verse began « It was —
Just as I attif poor, wretched, blind.
"That's it," sobbed the strange man, "I'm
blind — God help me!" — and the tears ran down
his face — '* and I'm wretched — ^and paralytic," and
then he tried hard to sing the line with the rest.
"After that," said Mr. Gough, "the poor
paralytic's singing was as sweet to me as a Beetho-
ven symphony*"
Charlotte Elliott was bom March 18, 17895
and died in Brighton, Sept* 22, 1871. She stands
in the front rank of female hymn-writers.
The tune of " Woodworth," by William B. Brad-
bury, has mostly superseded Mason's "Elliott/*
and is now the accepted music of this lyric of
perfect faith and pious surrender.
2l6 8T0RY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Just as I am, — Thy love unknown
Hath broken every barrier down.
Now to be Thine, yea. Thine ak>ne^
O Lamb of God, I come, I come.
^TyiY HOPE IS BUILT ON NOTHING LESS.''
The Rev. Edward Mote was bom in London,
1797. According to his own testimony his parents
were not God-fearing people, and he "went to a
school where no Bible was allowed;** but at the
age of sixteen he received religious impressions
from a sermon of John Hyatt in Tottenham Court
Chapel, was converted two years later, studied for
the ministry, and ultimately became a faithful
preacher of the gospel. Settled as pastor of the
Baptist Church in Horsham, Sussex, he remained
there twenty-six years — until his death, Nov. 13,
1874. The refrain of his hymn came to him one
Sabbath when on his way to Holborn to exchange
pulpits:
On Christ the solid rock I stand.
Ail other ground is sinking sand.
There were originally six stanzas, the first be-
ginning:
Nor earth, nor hell, my soul can move,
I rest upon unchanging love.
The refrain is a fine one, and really sums up the
whole hymn, keeping constantly at the front the
comer-stone of the poet's trust.
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST, 217
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus' blood and righteousneis*
] dare not trust the sweetest frame^
But only leui on Jesus* nafne.
On Christ the solid Rock I stand
AU other ground is sinking sand.
When darkness veik His lovely fa^
1 trust in His unchanging grace,
In every high and stormy gaJe
My anchor holds within the veil
On Christ the ^hd Rock, etc,
Wm. B* Bradbury composed the tune (1863),
It is usually named "The Solid Rock."
"ABIDE WITH MEI FAST FALLS THE EVENTIDE."
I The Rev, Henry Francis Lyte, author of this melo-
dious hymn-prayer, was born at Ednam, near Kel-
so, Scotland, June firsts 1793. A scholar^ graduated
fat Trinity College, Dublin; a poet and a musician,
the hard-worLing curate was a man of frail phy-
sique, with a face of almost feminine beauty, and
a spirit as pure and gentle as a little child's. The
shadow of consumption was over him all his Hfe,
His memory is chiefly associated with the district
church at Lower Brixham, Devonshire, where he
became "perpetual curate'* in 1823* He died at
Nice, France, Nov, 20, 1 847.
On the evening of his last Sunday preaching
and communion service he handed to one of his
family the manuscript of his hymn, "Abide with
me/' and the music he had composed for it. It
2l8 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
was not till eight years later that Henry Ward
Beecher introduced it, or a part of it, to American
Congregationalists, and fourteen years after the
author's death it began to be sung as we now
have it, in this country and England.
Abide with mel Fast falls the eventide.
The darkness deepens, — Lord with me abidel
When other helpers fail, and comforts flee.
Help of the helpless, O abide with me!
4i 4i 4i 4i 4i 4i
Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom, and point me to the skies;
Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me!
THE TUNE
There is a pathos in the neglect and oblivion of
L)rte's own tune set by himself to his words,
especially as it was in a sense the work of a dying
man who had hoped that he might not be "wholly
mute and useless" while lying in his grave, and
who had prayed —
O Thou whose touch can lend
Life to the dead. Thy quickening grace supply.
And grant me swan-like my last breath to spend
In song that may not die!
His prayer was answered in God's own way.
Another's melody hastened his hymn on its useful
career, and revealed to the world its immortal
value.
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST*
219
P
By the time it had won its slow recognition in
England, it was probably tuneless, and the com-
pilers of Hymns Ancient and Modem (1861) dis-
covering the fact just as they were finishing their
work, asked Dr. William Henry Monk, their
music editor, to supply the want. " In ten minutes,"
it is said, **Dr- Monk composed the sweet, pleading
chant that is wedded permanently to Lyte's swan
song.*'
Wilham Henry Monk, Doctor of Music, was
bom in London, 1823. His musical education
was early and thorough, and at the age of twenty-
six he was organist and choir director in King's
College, London. Elected (1S76) professor of the
National Training School, he interested himself
actively in popular musical education, delivering
lectures at various institutions, and establishing
choral services.
His hymn-tunes are found in many song-manuals
J of the English Church and in Scotland, and several
have come to America.
Dr. Monk died in 1889,
m 1
TOME, YE DISCONSOLATE."
By Thomas Moore — about 1814. The poem
in its original form differed somewhat from the
hymn v;e sing. Thomas Hastings — whose religious
experience, perhaps, made him better qualified
than Thomas Moore for spiritual expression —
changed the second line, —
220 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
Comey at God's altar fcrventijr knae^
Come to the mercy seat,
— and in the second stanza replaoed—
Hope when all others die^
— with —
Hope (^ the penitent;
— ^and for practically the whole of the last
Go ask the infidel what boon he brings us^
What chann for aching hearts he can rereaL
Sweet as that heavenly promise hope singii us,
"Eacth has no sorrow that heaven cannot hett^"
— Hastings substituted —
Here see the Bread of life, see waters flowing
Forth from the throne of God, pure from aborel
Come to the feast Love, come ever knowing
Eacth has no sorrow but heaven can remove.
Dr. Hastings was not much of a poet, but he
could make a singable hymn, and he knew the
rhythm and accent needed in a hymn-tune. The
determination was to make an evangelical hymn
of a poem "too good to lose," and in that view
perhaps the editorial liberties taken with it were
excusable. It was to Moore, however, that the
real hymn-thought and key-note first came, and
the title-line and the sweet refrain are his own —
for which the Christian world has thanked him,
lo these many years.
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST.
221
THE TUNE.
^
^
^
Those who question why Dr* Hastings* interest
in Moore's poem did not cause him to make a
tune for it, must conclude that it came to him with
its permanent melody ready made, and that the
tune satisfied him.
The "German Air" to which Moore tells us he
wrote the words, probably took his fancy, if it did
not induce his mood. Whether Samuel Webbe's
tune now wedded to the hymn is an arrangement
of the old air or wholly his own is immaterial One
can scarcely conceive a happier yoking of counter-
parts. Try singing '*Come ye Disconsolate'* to
''Rescue the Perishing," for example, and we
shall feel the impertinence of divorcing a hymn
that has found its musical affini^.
HAVE TAKEN."
This is another well-known and characteristic
hymn of Henry Francis L)^e — originally six
stanzas. We have been told that, besides his
bodily affliction, the grief of an unhappy division
or difference in his church weighed upon his
spirit, and that it is alluded to in these lines —
Man may trouble and distress me.
Twill but drive me to Thy breast.
Life with trials hard may press me.
Heaven will bring me sweeter rest.
%2Z STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
O, *tis not in grief to harm mc
While Thy love is left to mcp
Of 'tis not m joy to rharm mc
Were that joy unmixed with Thee,
Tunes, "Autumn," by F- H, Barthelemon, or
"EUesdie/' (formerly called "Disciple") from
Mozart — familiar in either.
"FROM EVERY STORMY WIND THAT BLOWS/'
This is the much-sung and deeply-cherished
hymn of Christian peace that a pious Manxman^
Hugh Stowell, was inspired to write nearly a
hundred years ago. Ever since it has carried
consolation to souls in both ordinary and extra-
ordinary trials.
It was sung by the eight American martyrs,
Revs. Albert Johnson, John E. Freeman, David
£• Campbell and their wives, and Mn and Mrs,
McMuIlen, when by order of the bloody Nana
Sahib the captive missionaries were taken prisoners
and put to death at Cawnpore in 1857, Two
little children, Fannie and Willie Campbell,
iuffered with their parents.
From every stormy wind that blow«^
From every swelling tide of woefi
There is a calm, a sure retreat;
'TIS found beneath the Mercy Seat*
Ah, whither €ould we flee for aid
When tempted, desolate, dismayed.
Or how the hosts of hdl defeat
Had suFering saints no Mercy Seat ?
I
^
John
Dyk,
1
HfMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST, ZZJ
There, iherc on eagle wings wc soar,
And sin and sense molest no more.
And heaven comes down our souls to grtet
While glory crowns the Mercy Seat.
Rev, Hugh Stowell was born at Douglas on the
Isle of Man, Dec, 3, 1799. He was educated at
Oxford and ordained to the ministry 1823, re-
ceiving twelve years later the appointment of
Canon to Chester Cathedral.
He was a popular and effective preacher and a
graceful writer. Forty-seven hymns are credited
'to him, the above being the best known. To
presume it is "his best," leaves a good margin of
merit for the remainder.
"From every stormy wind that blows" has
practically but one tune. It has been sung to
Hastings " Retreat" ever since the music was made.
"CHILD OF SIN AND SORROW/'
Child of sin and sorrow, 61 led with dismay.
Wait not for loroorrow, yield thee today.
Heaven bids thee come, while yet there's room,
Child of stn and sorrow, hear and obey.
Words and music by Thomas Hastings.
*'LEAD, KINDLY LIGHT/'
John Henry Newman, bom in London, Feb*
21, 1 801 — known in religious history as Cardinal
Newman — wrote this hymn when he was a young
clergyman of the Church of England. "Bom
M4 STORY OF THE HVMH3 AND TUNB't
Within the sound of Bow bells,'* says Or- Benson,
"he was an imaginative boy> and so superstitxoiis,
that he used constantly to cross himself when
going into the dark." Intelligent students of the
fine hymn will note this habit of its authors mtnd
— and surmise its influence on his religious
musings.
The agitations during the High Church move-
ment, and the persuasions of Hurrell Froude, a
Romanist friend, while he was a tutor at Oxford,
gradually weakened his Protestant faith, and in
his unrest he travelled to the Mediterranean coast,
crossed to Sicily, where he fell violently ill, and after
his recovery waited three weeks in Palermo for
a return boat. On his trip to Marsailles he wrott
the hymn — ^with no thought that it would ever bf
called a hymn.
When complimented on the beautiful pro^
duction after it became famous he modestly said)
**It was not the hymn but the tune that has gained
the popularity* The tune is Dykes' and Dr, Dykt t
is a great master/*
Dr* Newman was created a Cardinal of the Church
of Rome in the CathoHc Cathedral of London* 1879-
Died Aug, 11, 1890,
THE TUNE.
"Lux Benigna," by Dr* Dykes, was composed
in Aug. 1865, and was the tune chosen for this
hjrmn by a committee preparing the Appendix
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST,
225
to Hymns Ancient and Modern* Dr. Dykes'
statement that the tune came into his head while
walking through the Strand in London ** presents
a striking contrast with the solitary origin of the
hymn itselT* (Benson),
Lead, kindl^r Light, amid th' encircling gloom.
Lead Thou me on*
The night Is dark and I am far from home;
Lead Thou me on.
Keep Thou my feet; I do not ask to see
The distant scene, — one step enough for mc
So long Thy power hath bless 'd me, sure it ftiH
Wtll lead me on»
O'er moor and fen, o^er crag and torrent, till
The night is gone.
And with the mom those angel faces smile
Which I have loved long since, and lost awhile.
"I HEARD THE VOICE OF JESUS SAY,"
Few if any Christian writers of his generation
have possessed tuneful gifts in greater opulence
or produced mare vital and lasting treasures of
spiritual verse than Horatius Bonar of Scotland,
He inherited some of his poetic faculty from his
grandfather, a clergyman who wrote several
hymns, and it is told of Horatius that hymns used
to ** come to" him w^hile riding on railroad trains.
He was educated in the Edinburgh University
and studied theology with Dr. Chalmers, and hii
226
6TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNEf,
life was greatly influenced by Dr. Guthrie, whom
he followed in the establishment of the Free
Church of Scotland*
Bom in 1808 in Edinburgh, he was about forty
years old when he came back from a successful pas-
torate at Kelso to the city of his home and Alma
Mater, and became virtually Chalmers' successor
as minister of the Chalmers Memorial Church,
The peculiar richness of Bonar's sacred songs
very early created for them a warm welcome in the
religious worid, and any devout lyric or poem with
his name attached to it is sure to be read*
Dr. Bonar died in Edinburgh, July 31, 1889*
Writing of the hymn^ "I heard the voice," etc., Dr,
David Breed calls it "one of the most ingenious
hymns in the language," referring to the fact that
the invitation and response exactly halve each
stanza between them — song followed by counter*
song. ** Ingenious" seems hardly the right word
for a division so obviously natural and almost
automatic. It is a simple art beauty that a poet
of culture makes by instinct. Bowring^s "Watch-
man, tell us of the night,'* is not the only other in*
ttance of similar countersong structure, and the
regularity in Thomas Scott's little hymn, "Hasten,
sinner, to be wise," is only a simpler case of the
way a poem plans itself by the compulsion of its
subject.
I heard the voice of Jesus ssiy^
Come unto me and rest,
Lay down, thou weary one, lay down
Thy head upon My hreasc:
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST,
aay
^
I came to Jesus m I was^
Weary and worn and sad,
1 found in Him a resting-place.
And He has made me glad*
THE TUNE.
The old melody of "Evan," long a favorite,
and since known eveiywhere through the currency
given to it in the Gospel HymnSf has been in
many collections connected with the words. It is
good congregational psalmody, and not unsuited to
the sentiment, taken line by line, but it divides the
stanzas into quatrains, which breaks the happy
continuity- ''Evan'* was made by Dr. Mason in
1850 from a song written four years earlier by
Rev. William Henry Ha vergal. Canon of Worcester
Cathedral, Eng. He was the father of Frances
Ridley HavergaL
The more ancient "Athens/' by Felice Giar-
dini (171 6-1 796), author of the "Italian Hymn/'
has clung, and still clings lovingly to Sonar's
hymn in many communities. Its simplicity^ and
the involuntary accent of its sextuple time, exactly
reproducing the easy iambic of the verses, in-
evitably made it popular, and thousands of older
singers today will have no other music with "I
heard the voice of Jesus say/'
"Vox Jesu," from the andante in one of the
quartets of Louis Spohr (i 784-1 859), is a psalm-
tune of good harmony, but too little feeling.
An excellent tune for all the shades of expression
228 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
in the hymn, is the arrangement by Hubert P. Main
from Franz Abt — ^in A flat, triple time. Gentk
music through the first fifteen bars, in alternate
duet and quartet, utters the Divine Voice with
the true accent of the lines, and the second portion
completes the harmony in glad, full chorus — the
answer of the human heart.
"Vox Dilecti," by Dr. Dykes, goes farther and
writes the Voice in B flat minor — which seems a
needless substitution of divine sadness for divine
sweetness. It is a tune of striking chords, but its
shift of key to G natural (major) after the first
four lines marks it rather for trained choir per-
formance than for assembly song.
It is possible to make too much of a dramadc
perfection or a supposed indication of structural
design in a hymn. Textual equations, such as
distinguish Dr. Bonar's beautiful stanzas, are not
necessarily technical. To emphasize them as in-
genious by an ingenious tune seems, somehow, a
reflection on the spontaneity of the hymn.
Louis Spohr was Director of the Court Theatre
Orchestra in Cassel, Prussia, in the first half of the
last century. He was an eminent composer of
both vocal and instrumental music, and one of the
greatest violinists of Europe.
Hubert Piatt Main was bom in Ridgefield, Ct.,
Aug. 17, 1839. He read music at sight when only
ten years old, and at sixteen commenced writing
hymn-tunes. Was assistant compiler with both
Bradbuiy and Woodbuiy in their various publica-
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST.
229
tionst and in 1 868 became connected with the
firm of Biglow and Main, and has been their book-
maker until the present time. As music editor in
the partnership he has superintended the publica-
tion of more than five hundred music-books, ser-
vices, etc.
'1 LOVE TO STEAL AWHILE AWAY/'
^
^
The burdened wife and mother who wrote this
hymn would, at the time, have rated her history
with "the short and simple annals of the poor/'
But the poor who are ''remembered for what they
have done," may have a larger place in history
than many rich who did nothing.
Phebe Hinsdale Brown, was bom in Canaan,
N. Y., in 1783, Her father, George Hinsdale, who
died in her early childhood, must have been a
man of good abilities and religious feeling, being
the reputed composer of the psalm-tune, ''Hins-
dale," found in some long-ago collections.
Left an orphan at two years of age» Phebe **feU
into the hands of a relative who kept the county
jail,'* and her childhood knew little but the bitter
fare and ceaseless drudgery of domestic slavery.
She grew up with a crushed spirit, and was a
timid, shrinking woman as long as she lived. She
married Timothy H. Brown, a house-painter of
Ellington, Ct*, and passed her days there and in
Monson, Mass., where she lived some twenty-five
yearft.
230 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
In her humble home in the former town her
children were bom, and it was while caring for her
own little family of four, and a sick sister, that the
incident occurred (August r8r8), which called
forth her tender hymn. She was a devout Chris-
tian> and in pleasant weather, whenever she could
find the leisure, she would "steal away" at sunset
from her burdens a little while, to rest and com**
mune with God. Her favorite place was a
wealthy neighbor's large and beautiful flower
garden, A servant reported her visits there to the
mistress of the house, who called the " intruder**
to account.
*' If you want anything, why don't you come in ?"
was the rude question, followed by a plain hint that
no stealthy person was welcome.
Wounded by the ill-natured rebuff, the sensitive
woman sat down the next evening with her baby
in her lap, and half-blinded by her tears^ wrote
"An Apology for my Twilight Rambles," in the
verses that have made her celebrated.
She sent the manuscript (nine stanzas) to her
captious neighbor — ^with what result has never
been told*
Crude and simple as the little rhyme was, it
contained a germ of lyric beauty and life. The
Rev. Dr. Charles Hyde of Ellington, who was a
neighbor of Mrs. Brown, procured a copy. He
was assisting Dr, Nettleton to compile the Fillagi
Hymns f and the humble bit of devotional verse
was at once judged worthy of a place in the new
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST.
231
I
book. Dr. Hyde and his daughter Emeline giving
it some kind touches of rhythmic amendment.
I love to steal awhile away
From litde ones and care,
— became, —
1 love to steal awhile away
From every cumh^ring eare.
In the last line of this stanza —
In gratkude and prsiyer
— was changed to^
In humble^ grateful prayer^
— and the few other defects in syllabic smoothness
or literary grace were affectionately repaired, but
the slight furbishing it received did not alter the
individuality of Mrs. Brown's work. It remained
hers — and took its place among the immortals of its
kind, another illustration of how little poetry it takes
to make a good hymn. Only five stanzas were
printed, the others being voted redundant by both
author and editor. The second and third, as now
sung, are —
I love in solitude to shed
The penitential tear.
And all His promises to plead
Where none but God can hear.
I love to think on mercies past
And future good implore^
And ail my cares and sorrows cast
On Him whom I adore.
232
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Phebe Brown died at Henry, ILL, in 1861; but she
had made the church and the world her debtor
not only for her little lyric of pious trust, but by
rearing a son, the Rev* Samuel Brown, D.D*, who
became the pioneer American missionary to Japan
—to which Christian calling two of her grandchil-
dren also consecrated themselves.
THE TUNE.
Mrs* Brown's son Samuel, who, besides being a
good minister, inherited his grandfather's musical
gift> composed the tune of *' Monson/* (named in
his mother's honor, after her late home), and it may
have been the first music set to her hymn- It was
the fate of his offering, however, to lose its filial
place, and be succeeded by different melodies,
though his own still survives in a few collections,
sometimes with CoUyer's "O Jesus in this solemn
hour." It is good music for a hymn of praise
rather than for meditative verse. Many years the
hymn has been sung to "Woodstock,'* an appro-
priate and still familiar tune by Deodatus Dutton,
Button's "Woodstock" and Bradbury's "Brown,"
which often replaces it, are worthy rivals of each
other, and both continue in favor as fit choral inter-
pretations of the much-loved hymn*
Deodatus Dutton was born Dec. 22, 1808, and
educated at Brown University and Washington
tford Ct, While there
College (now
ty)
he was a student of music and played the organ
HYMNS OF SUFFERING AND TRUST.
233
at Dr- Matthews' church. He studied theology
in New York city, and had recently entered the
ministry when he suddenly died, Dec. 16, 1832, a
moment before rising to preach a sermon. Dur-
ing his brief life he had written several hymn-
tunes, and published a book of psalmody. Mrs.
Sigoumey wrote a poem on his death.
•THERE'S A WIDENESS IN GOD'S MERCY."
Frederick William Faber, author of this favorite
hymn-poem, had a peculiar genius for putting
golden thoughts into common words, and making
them sing. Probably no other sample of his work
shows better than this his art of combining literary
cleverness with the most reverent piety. Cant was
a quality Faber never could put into his religious
verse.
He was bom in Yorkshire, Eng., June 28, 1814^
and received his education at Oxford. Settled
as Rector of Elton^ in Huntingdonshire, in 1843,
he came into sympathy with the '* Oxford Move-
ment," and followed Newman into the Romish
Church. He continued his ministry as founder
and priest for the London branch of the Catholic
congregation of St, Philip Neri for fourteen
years, dying Sept. 26, 1863, at the age of forty-
nine.
His godly hymns betray no credal shibboleth or
doctrinal bias, but are songs fcr the whole earthly
church of God.
234 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
There's a wideness in God's mercy
Like the wideness of the sea;
There's a kindness in His justice
Which is more than liberty.
There is welcome for the sinner
And more graces for the good;
There is mercy with the Saviour,
There is healing in His blood.
There's no place where earthly sorrows
Are more felt than up in heaven;
There's no place where earthly failings
Have such kindly judgment given.
There is plentiful redemption
In the blood that has been shed.
There is joy for all the members
In the sorrows of the Head.
For the love of God is broader
Than the measure of man's mind^
And the heart of the Eternal
Is most wonderfully kind.
If our love were but more simple
We should take Him at His word.
And our lives would be all sunshine
In the sweetness of the Lord.
No tone of comfort has breathed itself more
surely and tenderly into grieved hearts than these
tuneful and singularly expressive sentences of
Frederick Faber.
THE TUNE.
The music of S. J. Vail sung to Fabcr's hymn
is one of that composer's best hymn-tunes, and its
HYMNS OF SUrFERING AND TRUST.
^35
melody and natural movement impress the mean-
ing as well as the simple beauty of the words.
Silas Jones Vail, an American music-writer» was
bom Oct., 1818, and died May 20, 1883, Another
charming tune is " Wellesley," by Lizzie S. Tourjee*
daughter of the late Dr. Eben Tourjee.
'^HE LEADETH ME! OH, BLESSED THOUGHT/'
Professor Gilmore, of Rochester University,
N. Y., when a young Baptist minister (1861) sup-
plying a pulpit in Philadelphia "jotted down this
hymn in Deacon Watson's parlor" (as he says) and
passed it to his wife, one evening after he had made
**a conference- room talk" on the 23d Psalm.
Mrs. Gilmore, without his knowledge, sent it to
the Watchman and Refiector (now the fFatchman)*
Years after its publication in that paper, when a
candidate for the pastorate of the Second Baptist
Church in Rochester, he was turning the leaves of
the vestry hymnal in use there, and saw his hymn
in it* Since that first publication in the Devotional
Hymn and Tune Book (1865) it has been copied in
the hymnals of various denominations, and steadily
holds its place in public favor. The refrain added
by the tunemaker emphasizes the sentiment of the
lines, and undoubtedly enhances the effect of the
hymn.
"He leadeth me" has the true hymn quality,
combining all the simplicity of spontaneous thought
and feeling with perfect accent and liquid rhythm.
230 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
He leadeth mel Oh, blessed thou^t,
Ohy words with heavenly comfort fraught;
Whate'er I do, where'er I be.
Still 'tis God's hand that leadeth mel
******
Lord, I would clasp Thy hand in mine^
Nor ever murmur nor repine —
G>ntent, whatever lot I see.
Since 'tis my God that leadeth me.
Professor Joseph Heniy Gilmore was bom in
Boston, April 29, 1834. He was graduated at Phil-
lips Academy, Andover, at Brown University, and
at the Newton Theological Institution, where he
was afterwards Hebrew instructor.
After four years of pastoral service he was elected
(1867) professor of the English Language and
Literature in Rochester University. He has pub-
lished Familiar Chats on Books and Readingy also
several college text-books on rhetoric, logic and
oratory.
THE TUNE.
The little hymn of four stanzas was peculiarly
fortunate in meeting the eye of Mr. William B.
Bradbury, (1863) and winning his musical sympathy
and alliance. Few composers have so exactly caught
the tone and spirit of their text as Bradbury did
when he vocalized the gliding measures of "He
leadeth me."
CHAPTER VI.
CHRISTIAN BALLADS.
Echoes of Hebrew thought, if not Hebrew
psalmody^ may have made their way into the more
serious pagan literature. At least in the more en-
lightened pagans there has ever revealed itself
more or less the instinct of the human soul that
"feels after'' God. St. Paul in his address to the
Athenians made a tactful as well as scholarly point
to preface a missionary sermon when he cited a line
from a poem of Aratus (B, Q 272) familiar^ doubt-^
less, to the majority of his hearers.
Dr. Lyman Abbot has thus translated the pas*
sage in which the line occurs:
Let us begin from God. Let every mortal raise
The grateful voice to tune God*s endless praise,
God filU the heaven, the earth, the sea, the air;
We feel His spirit moving ev^iywhere.
And we His olFspring are,* He^ ever good^
Daily provides for man his daily food.
To Him, the First, the Last, alt homage yield,—
Our Father wonderful, our help, our shield."
♦Totf Yip )W£l yivoq Itr^jtiv.
C23T)
^ CTOltY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
'^RISE, CROWNED WITH LIGHT,'*
Afexuider Pope, a Roman Catholic poet, bom in
Loftdon 1 688) died at Twickenham 17449 was not
a kvmnisty but passages in his most serious and ex-
iked flights deserve a tuneful accompaniment.
His translations of Homer made him famous, but
Kis ethical poems, especially his ''Essay on Man/'
are inexhaustible mines of quotation, many of the
lines and couplets being common as proverbs. His
^Messiah,'' written about 1 711, is a religious an-
iKem in which the prophecies of Hoty Writ kindle
lU the splendor of his verse.
THE TUNE.
The closing strain, indicated by the above line,
hat been divided into stanzas of four lines suitable
to a church hymn-tune. The melody selected by
the compilers of the Plymouth Hymnal^ and of the
Unitarian Hymn an J Tune Book is "Savannah,"
an American sounding name for what is really one
of Pleyel's chorals. The music is worthy of Pope's
triumphal song.
The •€»• shall waste, the skies to smoke decay,
Rocks fall to dust, and mountains melt away,
But fixed His Word; His saving power remains:
Thy realm shall last; thy own Messiah reigns.
''OH, WHY SHOULD THE SPIRIT r
This is a sombre poem, but its virile strength and
its literary merit have given it currency, and com«
CHRISTlArf BALLADS*
n9
mended it to the taste of many people, both weak
and strong, who have the pensive temperaments
Abraham Lincoln loved it and committed it to
memory in his boyhood. Philip Phillips set it to
music, and sang it — or a part of it — one day during
the Civil war at the anniversary of the Christian
Sanitary Commission, when President Lincoln,
who was present, called for its repetition,* It was
written by William Knox, born 1789, son of a
Scottish farmer.
The poem has fourteen stanzas, the following
being the first and two last —
Oh J why should the spirit of mortal he proud I
Like a swift-fleeting meteor, a fast-flying cbud
A flash of the Eightning, a break of the wave.
He passeth from lift to rest in the grave*
« « « t * t
Yea, hope and despondency, pleasure and pain,
A« mingled together like sunshine and rain;
And the smile and the tear^ the song and the dirgep
Still follow each other like surge upon surge-
Til the wink of an eye; 'tis the draft of a breath
From the blossom of health to the paleness of death.
From the gilded saloon to the bter and the shroudp
Oh» why should the spirit of mortal he proud ?
Philip Phillips was bom in Jamestown, Chao-
tauqua Co., N. Y*, Aug. 11, 1834, and died in Det
•Thii itcoont io neirly rcieroble* the itaty of Mrs.Gitet' "Your Million,"
fimg to 1 timilar ludicncc, od a iimitxr occati^Dr bj the tame ina[i» thit « pa«-
fble confutkin kj the Eurrators of the incident hat hcta luggested. But ihit
Mr, PhiUipi ung twkx before the iVesideot during the war doe* oof a|»peai
It be GOOEradkted^ To wfiat air be laog the «bOT« Yeriu it unccrtaia^
no njniiiif
bar tbe airs of
«har.
: lir<|iigiitiy by his
lUbcftP.Mdn. Hecom-
forSim-
odisiHjmm mmiTmme Baok^ hsutd m 1866.
He was a pioocer gospel silver, and his tuneful
jmimeys thion^ Ameika, En^and and Australia
gave Idm the name of the ''Singing Pilgrim,*' the
tide of his song coBwfinn (1867).
*^WHEN ISRAEL <y THE LORD BELOVED,"
The "Song of Rebecca Ae Jewess," in "Ivan-
hoe,'' was written hj Sir Waher Scott, author of the
Waverly Novels, "Manrnon,** etc, bom in Edin-
burgh, I77i» and died at Abbotsford, 1832. The
lines purport to be the Hebrew hymn with which
Rebecca closed her daily devotions while in prison
under sentence of death.
When Isnd of die Lord beloved
Got of die land of bondage came
Her fadien' God before her moved.
An awful Guide in smoke and flame.
ik i^ i^ i^ i^ *
Then roee die choral hymn of praise,
And rrump and dmbrel answered keen,
And Zion's daughters poured dieir lays.
With pncst's and warrior's voice between.
^ 3|c 3|c 3|c ;i: :|c
CHRISTIAN BALLADS.
241
By day along th' astonished lands
The cloudy Pillar glided slow,
B^ night Arahia'fi crtmson'd sandf
Returned the fiery Colufiiii'5 glow*
*****
I
And O, when gathers o*er our path
In shade and storm the frequent night
Be Thou, long suffering, slow to wrath,
A burning and a shining Light!
The "Hymn of Rebecca" has been set to music
though never in common use as a hymn. Old
"Truro", by Dr. Charles Burney (1726-1814)
is a grand Scotch psalm harmony for the words,
though one of the Unitarian hymnals borrows Zeun-
er's sonorous choral, the "Missionary Chant,"
Both sound the lyric of the Jewess in good Christ-
ian music.
"WE SAT DOWN AND WEPT BY THE WATERS."
The 137th Psalm has been for centuries a fav-
orite with poets and poetical translators, and its
pathos appealed to Lord Byron when engaged in
wriring his Hebrew Melodies,
Byron was born in London 1 1788, and died at
Missolonghi, Western Greece, 1824.
We sat down and wept by the waters
Of Babel, and thought of the day
When the foe, in the hue of his slaughters.
Made Salem^s high places h»s prey.
And ye, Oh her desolate daughters,
Were scattered all weeping away-
242 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
— Written April, 1814. It was the fashion then for
musical societies to call on the popular poets for
contributions, and tunes were composed for them,
though these have pracrically passed into oblivion.
Byron's ringing ballad (from II Kings 19:35) —
Th' Assyriam came down like a wolf on the fold
And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold,
— ^has been so much a favorite for recitadon and
declamation that the loss of its tune is never
thought of.
Another poetic rendering of the "Captivity
Psalm*' is worthy of notice among the lay hymns
not unworthy to supplement clerical sermons. It
was written by the Hon. Joel Barlow in 1799, and
published in a pioneer psalm-book at Northamp-
ton, Mass. It is neither a translation nor properly
a hymn but a poem built upon the words of the
Jewish lament, and really reproducing something
of its plaintive beauty. Two stanzas of it are as
follows:
Along the banks where Babel's current flows
Our captive bands in deep despondence strayed.
While Zion's fall in deep remembrance rose.
Her friends, her children mingled with the dead.
The ttmeless harps that once with joy we strung
When praise employed, or mirth inspired the lay.
In mournful silence on the willows hung.
And growing grief prolonged the tedious day.
Like Pope, this American poet loved onomatope
and imitative verse, and the last line is a word*
CHRISTIAN BALLADS.
243
picture of home-sick weariness. This ** psalm'*
was the best piece of work in Mr. Barlow's series of
attempted improveineots upon Isaac Watts —
which on the whole were not very successful. The
sweet cantabile of Mason's " Melton " gave " Along
the banks" quite an extended lease of life, though
it has now ceased to be sung.
Joel Barlow was a versatile gentleman, serving
his country and generation in almost every useful
capacity, from chaplain in the continental army
to foreign ambassador. He was born in Redding^
Ct-, I755f and died near Cracow, Poland, Dec,
1812.
^'AS DOWN IN THE SUNLESS,"
Thomas Moore, the poet of glees and love*
madrigals^ had sober thoughts in the intervals of
his gaiety, and employed his genius in writing
religious and even devout poenis, which have been
spiritually helpful in many phases of Christian
experience. Among theni was this and the four
following hymns, with thirty-four others, each of
which he carefully labelled with the nameof amusic
composer, though the parricular tune is left in-
definite. **The still prayer of devotion" here
answers, in rhyme and reality, the simile of the
sea-flower in the unseen deep, and the mariner's
compass represents the constancy of a believer.
As J still to the star of its worship, though clouded.
The needle pomts fatth fully o'er the dim sea^
So, dark as I roam in this wintry world shrouded.
The hope of my spirit turns trembling to Thee*
244 nX>RY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
It is sung in Plymouth Hymnal to Bamby's "St.
Botolph/'
^THE TURF SHALL BE MY FRAGRANT SHRINE"
Is, in part, still preserved in hymn collections, and
sung to the noble tune of " Louvan/' Virgil Tay-
lor's piece. The last stanza is especially reminis-
cent of the music.
There's nothing bright above, below.
From flowers that bloom to stars that glow;
But in its light my soul can see
Some feature of Thy deity.
**0 THOU WHO DRY'ST THE MOURNER'S TEAR ^
Is associated in the Baptist Praise Book with
Woodbury's "Siloam."
•THE BIRD LET LOOSE IN EASTERN SKIES"
Has been sung in Mason's "Coventry," and the
Plymouth Hymnal assigns it to "Spohr" — a name-
sake tune of Louis Spohr, while the Unitarian
Hymn and Tune Book unites to it a beautiful triple-
time melody from Mozart, and bearing his name.
'THOU ART, O GOD, THE LIFE AND LIGHT."
This is the best of the Irish poet's sacred songs —
always excepting, " Come, Ye Disconsolate." It is
said to have been originally set to a secular melody
composed by the wife of Hon. Richard Brinsley
CHRISTIAN BALLADS.
H5
Sheridan. It is joined to the tune of ''Brighton"
in the Unitarian books, and William Monk*s
"Matthias" voices the words for the Plymouth
HymnaL The verses have the true lyrical glow,
and make a real song of praise as well a composition
of more than ordinary literary beauty.
Thou art, O Godj the Hfe and light
Of a!I this wondrous wortd we see;
Its glow by day, its smife by night
Are but reflections caughl from Thee
Where'er we turn Thy glories shine,
And all things fair and bright are Thine.
^ « * * « «
When night with wings of stany gloom
Overshadows all the earth, and skies
Like some dark, beauteous bird, whose plume
Is sparkling with unnumbered eyes^
That sacred gloom ^ those fires divine,
So grand, so countless, Lord, are Thine.
When youthful spring around us breathes.
Thy Spirit warms her fragrant sigh,
And every flower the summer wreathes
Is bom beneath that kindling eye-
Where'er wc turn Thy glories shine.
And all things fair and bright are Thine»
"MOURNFULLY, TENDERLY, BEAR ONTHE DEAD."
A tender funeral ballad by Henry S. Washburn,
composed in 1846 and entitled ''The Burial of Mrs.
Judson." It is rare now in sheet-music form bur
the American Vocalist^ to be found in the stores
566 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
It bade mf <iaik fotcbodinp cease;
And tfarongh the stonn and danger^s dual.
It led me to the poet of peace.
Novr, safely moored, my perOs o'er,
m singy first in n^ht's diadem.
For erer and for evermore.
The Star, the Star of Bethkhemt
Besides this delightful hymn, with its graphic
sea-faring metaphors, two others, at least, of the
same boy-poet hold their place in many of the
church and chapel collections:
The Lord our God is dodied with
The winds obqr His will;
He gpcaks, and in his heavenljr hei^bt
The rolling son stands stilL
And—
Oft m danger, oft m woe.
Onward, Christians^ onward go.
Henry Kirke White died in the autumn of 1806,
when he was scarcely twenty years old. His "Ode
to Disappointment,'' and the miscellaneous flowers
and fragments of his genius, make up a touching
volume. The fire of a pure, strong spirit burning
through a consumptive frame is in them all.
THE TUNE.
'"When, marshalled on the mighty plain'* has
a choral set to it in the Methodist Hymnal — credi-
ted to Thos. Harris, and entitled "Crimea" — •
which divides the three stanzas into six, and
CHRISTIAN BALLADS.
247
^
I
neer American Baptist missionary, and the
mother by her first marriage, of the late Rev.
George Dana Boardman, D.D,, LL* D*, of Phila-
delphia.
The Hon. Henry S. Washbiim was born in
Providence, R. L, 18 13, and educated at Brown
University. During most of his long life he re-
sided in Massachusetts, and occupied there many
positions of honor and trust, serving in the State
Legislature both as Representative and Senator-
He was the author of many poems and lyrics of
high merit, some of which — notably "The Vacant
Chair" — became popular in sheet-music and in
books of religious and educational use. He died
in 1903.
THE TUNE.
"The Burial of Mrs. Judson*' became favorite
parior music when Lyman Heath composed the
melody for it — of the same name. Its notes and
movement were evidently inspired by the poem,
for it reproduces the feeling of every line. The
threnody was widely known and sung in the
middle years of the last century, by people, too,
who had scarcely heard of Mrs. Judson, and re-
ceived in the music and words their first hint of her
history. The poem prompted the tune, but the
tune was the garland of the poem.
Lyman Heath of Bow, N. H., was bom there
Aug. 24, 1804^ He studied music, and became a
Tocalist and vocal composer. Died July 30, 1870,
14^ SIOKT OF THE HTIfNS AND TUNES.
TELL ME NOT IN MOURNFUL NUMBERS."
~ Psalm of Life" was written when
; a Yom^ man, and for some years it carried
be gave it, *' What the Yomig Man's Heart
Said to the Psalmist" — ^a caption altogether too
kng to bear currency.
Tbe history of the beloved poet who wrote this
optknittic ballad of hope and comage is too well
fcnown to need recounting here. He was bom in
Povtland, Me.» in 1807, graduated at Bowdoin
CbUe^» and was for more than forty years pro-
lessor of Belles Lettres in Harvard University.
Died in Cambridge, March f, 1882. Of his longer
pcen\s the most read and admired are his beautiful
ivmance of ** E^Tingcline," and his epic of " Hia-
wacha«'* but it is hardly too much to say that for
the last sixTfc- j-ears, his "Psalm of Life" has been
the cvvnmon property of all American, if not
Kn^lish school-children, and a part of their edu-
cate). Wlien he was in London, Queen Victoria
sent for him to come and see her at the palace.
He went, and just as he was seating himself in the
waiting ciKioh after the interview, a man in working
ck>the$ appeared, hat in hand, at the coach window.
*MMease sir» >'er honor," said he, "an* are you
Mr. longfellowr
*M an^ Mr. Longfellow," said the poet.
•\\n* did wu write the Psalm of Life.?" he
'' I wn>te the Psalm of Life," replied the poet.
CHRISTIAN BALLADS*
249
**An*f ycr honor, would you be willing to take
a workingman by the hand?"
Mr, Longfellow gave the honest Englishman a
hearty handshake, "And" (said he in telling the
story) " I never in my life received a compliment
that gave me more satisfaction."
The incident has a delightful democratic flavor
— and it is perfectly characteristic of the amiable
author of the most popular poem in the English
language. The "Psalm of Life" is a wonderful
example of the power of commonplaces put into
tuneful and elegant verse.
The thought of setting the poem to music came
to the compiler of one of the Unitarian church
singing books. Some will question, however,
whether the selection was the happiest that could
have been made. The tune is '* Rathbun," Ithamar
Conkey*s melody that always recalls Sir John Bow-
ring's great hymn of praise.
''BUILD THEE MORE NOBLE MANSIONS,"
This poem by Dr» Oliver Wendell Holmes,
known among his works as "The Chambered
Nautilus/' was considered by himself as his
worthiest achievement in verse, and his wish that
it might live is likely to be fulfilled. It is stately,
and in character and effect a rhythmic sermon
from a text in ** natural theology*" The biography
of one of the little molluscan sea-navigators that
continually enlarges its shell to adapt it to its
ISO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
growth tnspired the thoughtful lines* The thirdi
fourth and fifth stanzas are as follows:
Year afrer year beheld the silent toil
That spread the lustroua cdli
Stilly as the spiral grew,
He left the last year's dwelling for elie new^
Stole with soft step the shinmg archway throttg|i»
Built up its idle door,
Strftched in his last-found home, and knew the otd oo more^
Thanks for the heavenly message brought by thee»
Child of the wand 'ring sea.
Cast from her lap forloml
From thy dead lips a clearer note is born
Than ever Triton blew from wreathed homi
While on my ear tt rings
ThrQUgh the deep caves of thought 1 hear a voice that sings,
''Byild thee more noble mansion«^ O my ioul<
As the swift seasons roll:
Leave thy low-vaylted past I
Let each new temple, nobler than the laM^
Shut thee from heaven with a dome moie VM,
Till thou at length art free^
Leaving thy outgrown shell by lifers unresting sea."
Dr, Frederic Hedge included the poem in his
hymn-book but without any singing-supplement to
the words,
WHITTIER'S SERVICE SONG.
It may not be our lot to wield
The Kckle in the harvest field.
If this Stanza and the four following do noc
reveal all the strength of John G, Whittier's spirit,
CHRISTIAN BALLADS.
251
they convey its serious sweetness* The verses
were loved and prized by both President Garfield
and President McKinley. On the Sunday before
the latter went from his Canton, O., home to his
inauguration in Washington the poem was sung
as a hymn at his request in the services at the
Methodist church where he had been a constant
worshipper-
The second stanza is the one most generally
recognized and oftenest quoted:
Yci where our duty'* task is wroiiglie
In unison with God's great thought.
The near and future btend in one.
And whatsoever is willed. Is done.
John Greenleaf Whittier, the poet of the
oppressed, was bom in Haverhill, Mass., 1807,
worked on a farm and on a shoe-benchj and studied
at the local academy, until, becoming of age, he
went to Hartford^ Conn., and began a brief
experience in editorial life. Soon after his return
to Massachusetts he was elected to the Legislature^
and after his duties ended there he left the state
for Philadelphia to edit the Pennsylvania Free-
man. A few years later he returned again, and
established his home in Amesbury, the town with
which his life and works are always associated.
He died in 1892 at Hampton Falls, N, H,> where
he had gone for his health.
25^ STORT OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
I
THE TUNE.
** Abends/' the smooth triple-time choral joined
to Whittier's poem by the music editor of the new |
Meihodiit Hymnal t speaks its meaning so well
that it is scarcely worth while to look for another.
Sir Herbert Stanley Oakeley, the composer, was
bom at Ealing^ Eng., July 22, 1830, and educated 1
at Rugby and Oxford* He studied music in
Germanyp and became a superior organist^ winning
great applause by his recitals at Edinburgh Uni-
versity, where he was elected Musical Professor*
Archbishop Tait gave him the doctorate of music at
Canterbury in 1871, and he was knighted by Queen
Victoria in 1876.
Besides vocal duets, Scotch melodies and student
songSj he composed many anthems and tunes for
the church^ — notably "Edina" ('* Saviour, blessed
Saviour") and "Abends," originally written to Ke*
blc's^'SunofmySouL"
• ^THE BIRD WITH THE BROKEN PINTOR*'
This lay of a lost gift, with its striking lesson^
might have been copied from the wounded bird's
own song, it is so natural and so clear-toned.
The opportune thought and pen of Mr. Hezekiah
Butte rw^onh gave being to the little ballad the
day he heard the late Dr. George Lorimer preach
from a text in the story of Samson's fall (Judges
l6:ai) "The Philistines took him» and put out
his ey^St and brought him down to Gaza • * . .
CHRISTIAN BALLADS*
253
and he did grind in the prison-house," A sentence
in the course of the doctor's sermon, '*The bird
with a broken pinion never soars as high again/*
was caught up by the listening author^ and became
the refrain of his impressive song. Rev. Frank M,
Lamb, the tuneful evangelist, found it in print, and
wrote a tune to it, and in his voice and the voices
of other singers the little monitor has since told its
story in revival meetings, and mission and gospel ser-
vices throughout the land*
I walked through the woodland meadows
Where sweet the thrushes sing.
And found on a bed of mosses
A bird with a broken wing.
I healed its wound, and each morning
It sang Its old sweet strain,
But the bird with a broken pitiion
Never soared as high again.
I found a young life broken
By mn*s seductive art;
And, touched with a Chiist-Uke pity,
I took him to my heart.
He lived — with a noble puq^ose.
And struggled not in vain^
But the life that sin bad stricken
Never soared as high again^^
But the bird with a broken pinioa
Kept another from the snare.
And the life that sin had stricken
Saved another from despair.
Each loss has its compensation.
There is healing for every pain
But the bird with a broken pinioa
Never soars as high again.
254 STX>RY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
In the tune an extra stanza is added — ^as if
something conventional were needed to make the
poem a hymn. But the professional tone of the
appended stanza, virtually all in its two lines —
Then come to the dear Redeemer,
He will cleanse you from every strain,
— ^is forced into its connection. The poem told the
truth, and stopped there; and should be left to
fasten its own impression. There never was a
more solemn warning uttered than in this little
apologue. It promises ** compensation ** and ** heal-
ing/' but not perfect rehabilitation. Sin will
leave its scars. Even He who "became sin for us**
bore them in His resurrection body.
Rev. Frank M. Lamb, composer and singer of
the hymn-tune, was bom in Poland, Me., i860,
and educated in the schools of Poland and Auburn.
He was licensed to preach in 1888, and ordained the
same year, and has since held pastorates in Maine,
New York, and Massachusetts.
Besides his tune, very pleasing and appropri-
ate music has been written to the little ballad of
the broken wing by Geo. C. Stebbins.
UNDER THE PALMS.
In the cantata, "Under the Palms" ("Captive
Judah in Babylon") — the joint production of
George F. Root* and Hezekiah Butterworth, several
*See page 316.
Ellen M.
H. Gates
^
CHRISTIAN BALLADS. 255
of the latter's songs detached themselves, with their
music, from the main work, and lingered in choral
or solo service in places where the sacred operetta
was presented, both in America and England.
One of these is an effective solo in deep contralto,
with a suggestion of recitative and chant —
B7 the daric Euphrates' stream.
By the Tigris^ sad and lone
I wandered, a captive maid;
And the cruel Assyrian said,
* 'Awake your harp's sweet tone!"
I had heard of my fathers' glory from the lips of holy men.
And I thought of the land of my fathers; I thought of my
fathers' land then.
Another is —
O church of Christ! our blest abodc^
Celestial grace is thine.
Thou ait the dwelling-place of God,
The gate of joy divine.
Whene'er I come to thee in joy.
Whene'er I come in tears,
Still at the Gate called Beautiful
My risen Lord appears.
ith the chorus —
Where'er for me the sun may set.
Wherever I may dwell.
My heart shall nevermore foiget
Thy courts, Immanuel!
15^ nOMY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
TF YOD CANNOT ON THE OCEAN.''
This popubr Christian ballad, entitled "Your
NOssioa,'* was written one stormy day in the win*
ler of i86i-2 by Miss Ellen M. Huntington (Mrs.
Isa^c Gates), and made her reputation as one of
the few didactic poets whose exquisite art wins a
hearing for them everywhere. In a moment of
ieTtry, iHiile looking through the window at the
fattiiig snow, die words came to her:
Vjom cuatot on die oeean
Saa MMW the swiftest fleet.
She tunied away and wrote the lines on her
slite» (bUowing with verse after verse till she
fini:$lied the whole poem* "It wrote itself," she
*4\"^ in her own account of it.
Reading afterwards what she had written, she
waii surj^ri^nl at her work. The poem had a meaning
and a ** mission." So strong was the impression
that the de\-out girl fell on her knees and con-
secratt^ it to a divine purpose. Free copies of it
wrut tv^ the Cooperstown, N. Y., local paper, and
t\^ the New York Examiner^ and appeared in both.
Kr\Mn that time the history and career of "Your
Mt8$k>n** presents a marked illustration of "catenal
inrtucnce%** or transmitted suggestion.
In the later days of the Civil War Philip Phillips,
wh\^ had a>wnderfuUy sweet tenor voice, was invited
to ning at a great meeting of the United States Chris-
tian (.\)innussion in the Senate Chamber at Wash-
)ngton» February, 1865, President Lincoln and
CHRISTIAN BALLADS*
^57
Secretary Seward (then president of the commis-
sion) were there, and the hall was crowded with
leading statesmen, army generals, and friends of
the Union. The song selected by Mr, Phillips was
Mrs- Gates* **Your Mission*':
If you c^mnot on the ocean
Sail among the swiftest fleet.
Rocking on the highest billows.
Laughing at ihe ^orms you meet.
You can stand among the sailors
Anchorc<l yet within the bay;
You can lend a hand to help them
As they launch their boats away.
The hushed audience listened spell-bound as
the sweet singer went on, their interest growing to
feverish eagerness until the climax was reached
in the fifth stanza:
If you cannot In the conflict
Prove yourself a soldier true.
If where lire and smoke are thickest
There's no work for you to do^
When the battlefield is silent
You can go with careful tread;
You can bear away the wounded^
You can cover up the dead.
In the storm of enthusiasm that followed^ Presi-
dent Lincoln handed a hastily scribbled line on
a bit of paper to Chairman Seward,
"Near the close let us have *Your Mission*
repeated/*
• Mr, Phillips' great success on this occasion
brought him so many calls for his services that he
Z58
STORY OF THE HYMNS AKD TUNES,
gave Up everything and devoted himself to hii
tuneful art. "Your Mission*' so gladly welcomed
at Washington made him the first gospel songster,
chancing round the world the divine message of the
hymns* It was the singing by Philip Phillips that
first impressed Ira D, Sankey with the amazing
power of evangelical solo song, and helped him
years later to resign his lucrative business as a
revenue officer and consecrate his own rare vocal
gift to the Christian ministiy of sacred music-
Heaven alone can show the birth-records of souls
won to God all along the journeys of the "Singing
Pilgrims,** and the rich succession of Mn Sankey's
melodies, that can be traced back by a chain of
causes to the poem that "wrote itself" and became
a hymn. And the chain may not yet be complete.
In the words of that providential poem —
Though they msLy forget the singer
They wUL not forget the song*
Mrs. Ellen M, H. Gates, whose reputation as an
author was made by this beautiful and always
timely poem, was bom in Torrington, Ct., and is
the youngest sister of the late Collis P. Huntington.
Her hymns — included in this volume and in other
publications— are much admired and loved, both
for their sweetness and elevated religious feeling,
and for their poetic quality. Among her published
books of verse are "Night," "At Noontide," and
"Treasures of Kurium," Her address is New
York City.
I
CHRISTIAN BALLADS.
THE TUNE.
^59
Sidney Martm Grannis, author of the tune, was
bom Sept. 23s 1877, in Geneseo, Livingston county,
N*Y. Lived in Leroy, of the same state, from
1 83 1 to 1884, when he removed to Los Angeles,
CaL, where several of his admirers presented him
a cottage and grounds, which at last accounts he
still occupies. Mr. Grannis won his first reputa-
tion as a popular musician by his song ''Do They
Miss Me at Home, "and his ** Only Waiting/*
"Cling to the Union," and " People Will Talk You
Know," had an equally wide currency* As a solo
singer his voice was remarkable, covering a range
of two octaves, and while travelling with members
of the "Amphion Troupe," to which he belonged,
he sang at more than five thousand concerts-
His tune to "Your Mission" was composed in New
Haven, Ct.> in 1864,
'T^OO LATE! TOO LATEI YE CANNOT ENTER NOW."
"Too Late" is a thrilling fragment or side-song
of Alfred Tennyson's, representing the vain plea
of the five Foolish Virgins, Its tune bears the
name of a London lady, ''Miss Lindsay" (after-
wards Mrs. J. Worthington Bliss). The arrange-
ment of air, duo and quartet is veiy impressive*,
*Tate, Utc, m latcl and dark the night and chill:
Late^ laie, so tatel hut we can enter EtilL''
"Too latel too late I ye cannot enter nowl"
^Mmk^Uti Mymnai, No. 741.
%6o 8T0RY OF THB HYMNS AND TUNB8.
''No lig^l 80 latel and dark and chiU the i^
O let us in that we may find the lightl
**Too latel too latel ye cannot enter nowl**
''Have we not heard the Bridegroom is so i
O let us in that we may kiss his feetl'*
'*No» No — 1 too latel ye cannot enter nowl"
The words are found in "Queen Guinevere/* a
canto of the "Idyls of the King."
"OH, GALILEE, SWEET GALILEE,**
This is the chorus of a channing poem of three
stanzas that shaped itself in the mind of Mr.
Robert Morris while sitting over the ruins on the
traditional site of Capernaum by the Lake of
Genneseret.
Each cooing dove, each sighing bou^.
That makes the eve so blest to me.
Has something far diviner now.
It bears me back to Galilee.
Chorus
Oh» Galilee, sweet Galilee,
Where Jesus loved so much to be;
Oh, Galilee, blue Galilee,
Come sing thy song again to me.
Robert Morris, LL.D., bom Aug. 31, 1818,
was a scholar, and an expert in certain scientific
subjects, and wrote works on numismatics and the
"Poetry of Free Masonry." Commissioned to
Palestine in 1868 on historic and archeological
service for the United Order, he explored the
CHRISTIAN BALLADS.
261
scenes of ancient Jewish and Christian life and
event in the Holy Land, and being a religious man,
followed the Saviour's earthly footsteps with a
reverent zeal that left its inspiration with him
while he lived. He died in the year 1888, but his
Christiain ballad secured him a lasting place in
eveiy devout memory.
THE TUNE.
The author wrote out his hymn in 1874 and
sent it to his friend, the musician, Mr. Horatio R.
Palmer,^ and the latter learned it by heart, and
carried it with him in his musings ''rill it floated out
in the melody you know," (to use his own words.)
•See pefe 311.
CHAPTER VII.
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS.
The sober churches of the "Old Thirteen"
states and of their successors far into the nineteenth
century, sustained evening prayer-meetings more
or less commonly, but necessity made them in
most cases "cottage meetings," appointed on
Sunday and here and there in the scattered homes
of country parishes. Their intent was the same
as that of "revival meetings," since so called,
though the method — and the music — ^were dif-
erent. The results in winning sinners, so far as
they owed anything to the hymns and hymn-
tunes, were apt to be a new generation of Christian
recruits as sombre as the singing. "Lebanon"
set forth the appalling shortness of human life;
"Windham" gave its depressing story of the great
majority of mankind on the "broad road," and
other minor tunes proclaimed God's sovereignty
and eternal decrees; or if a psalm had His love in
it, it was likely to be sung in a similar melancholy
key. Even in his gladness the good minister,
Tliomas Baldwin, of the Second Baptist Church,
(202)
OLD REVIVAL HYMNa.
263
at Boston, North End, returning from Newport,
N. H., where he had happily harmonized a dis-
cordant church, could not escape the strait-lacc
of a C minor for his thankful hymn —
From whence doth this union ariie.
That hatred is conquered by love.
"The Puritans took their pleasures seriously/*
and this did not cease to be true till at least two
hundred years after the Pilgrims landed or Boston
was founded*
Time, that covered the ghastly faces on the old
grave-stones with moss, gradually stole away the
unction of minor-tune singing.
The songs of the great revival of 1 740 swept the
country with positive rather than negative music.
Even Jonathan Edward? admitted the need of bet-
ter psalm-books and better psalmody.
Edwards, during his life, spent some time among
the Indians as a missionary teacher; but probably
neither he nor David Brainerd ever saw a Christian
hymn composed by an Indian. The following,
from the early years of the last century, is appar-
ently the first, certainly the only surviving, effort
of a converted but half-educated red man to utter
his thoughts in pious metre. Whoever trimmed
the original words and measure into printable
shape evidently took care to preserve the broken
English of the simple convert. It is an interesting
relic of the Christian thought and sentiment of a
pagan just learning to prattle prayer and praise:
264 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
In de dark wood, no Indian ni^
Den me look heaben, send up ciy.
Upon my knees so low.
Dat God on high, in shinee place.
See me in night, with teary face,
De priest, he tell me so.
God send Him angel take me care;
Him come Heself and hear um prayer.
If Indian heart do pray.
God see me now. He know me here.
He say, poor Indian, neber fear.
Me wid you nig^t and day.
So me lub God wid inside heait;
He fight for me. He take my part.
He save my life before.
God lub poor Indian in de wood;
So me lub God, and dat be good;
Me pray Him two times more.
When me be old, me head be gray.
Den He no lebe me, so He say:
Me wid you till you die.
Den take me up to shinee place.
See white man, red man, black man's face»
Ail happy 'like on high.
Few days, den God will come to me.
He knock off chains, He set me free.
Den take me up on high.
Den Indian sing His praises blest.
And lub and praise Him wid de rest.
And neber, neber cry.
The above hymn, which may be found in dif-
fecent forms in old New England tracts and hymn-
l^ookSy and which used to be sung in Methodist con-
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS-
265
fereocc and prayer-meetings in the same way that
old slave- hymns and the "Jubilee Singers" re-
frains are sometimes sung now, was composed by
William Apes, a converted Indian, who was bom
in Massachusetts, in 1798. His father was a white
man, but married an Indian descended from the
family of King Philip, the Indian warrior, and the
last of the Indian chiefs* His grandmother was the
king's granddaughter, as he claimed, and was fa-
mous for her personal beauty. He caused his auto-
biography and religious experience to be published.
The original hymn is quite long, and contains some
singular and characteristic expressions.
The authorship of the tune to which the words
were sung has been claimed for Samuel Cowdell, a
schoolmaster of Annapolis Valley > Nova Scotia,
1820, but the date of the lost tune was probably
much earlier
In the early days of New England, before the
Indian missions had been brought to an end by the
sweeping away of the tribes j several fine hymns
were composed by educated Indians, and were
used in the churches. The best known is that be-
ginning—
When shall we all meet again ?
It was composed by three Indians at the planting
of a memorial pine on leaving Dartmouth College,
where they had been studying. The lines indicate
an expectadon of missionary life and work-
When shall we all meet again f
When shall we ail meet again ?
266 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Oft shall glowing hope expire^
Oft shall wearied love retire.
Oft shall death and sorrow rdgil
Ere we all shall meet again.
Though in distant lands we si^
Parched beneath a burning sky,
Though the deep between us roUi^
Friendship shall unite our souls;
And in fancy's wide domain.
There we all shall meet again.
When these burnished locks are gjOKfp
Thinned by many a toil-spent day.
When around this youthful pine
Moss shall creep and ivy twine,
(Long may this loved bower remain!)
Here may we all meet again.
When the dreams of life are fled.
When its wasted lamps are dead.
When in cold oblivion's shade
Beauty, health, and strength are laid.
Where immortal spirits reign.
There we all shall meet again.
This parting piece was sung in religious meet-
ings as a hymn, like the other once so common, but
later, —
**When shall we meet again.
Meet ne'er to sever ?"
— to a tune in Bflat minor, excessively plaintive, and
likely to sadden an emoional singer or hearer to
tears. The full harmony is found in the American
Vocalistj and the air is reprinted in the Rexnvalist
(i868). The fact that minor music is the natural
^^^^H OLD REVIVAL HYMNS. 26? ^M
^m Indian tone in song makes it probable that the ^H
^H melody is as ancient as the hynnn — though no date ^^M
^M is given for either. ^H
^1 Tradition says that nearly fifty years later the ^H
^M same three Indians were providentially drawn to ^H
^m the spot where they parted, and met again, and ^H
^m while they were together composed and sang an- ^H
^M other ode. Truth to tell, however, it had only one ^M
^m note of gladness, and that was in the first stanza: ^H
^^^^L Parted many a toil-spent year, ^^H
^^^^m Pledged in youth to memofy dear, ^^H
^V Still ta friendship's magnet tnie, ■
^H Wc our social pya renew; 1
^^^^^^^ Bound by love's unsevered chain, 1
^^^^^^^ Here on eank we meet again. 1
^m The remaining three stanzas dwell principally on ^H
^m the ravagestime has made. The reunion odeof those ^H
^M stoical college classmates of a stoical race could ^H
^■^ have been sung in the same B flat minor. ^H
^^^^K **AWAKED BY SINAI'S AWFUL SOUND." ^^H
^K The name of the Indian, Samson Occum,who ^^|
^M wrote this hymn (variously spelt Ockom, Ockum, ^H
^M Occam, Occom) is not home by any public insti- ^H
^M tution, but New England owes the foundation of ^H
^m Dartmouth College to his hard work* Dartmouth ^H
^m College was originally "Moore's Indian Charity ^H
^M School,** organized (1750) in Lebanon, Ct., by Rev. ^H
^M Eleazer Wheelock and endowed (1755) by Joshua ^H
^M Moore (or More). Good men and women who ^H
ygO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Send out Thy Word from pole to pole.
And with Thy blood make thousands whole,
Andy after that come dawn,
Nancy Jones would have been a useful member of
the ''Singing Sisters" band, so efficient a century
or more afterwards.
The tunes of the Reformation under the " Metho-
dist Fathers" continued far down the century to be
the country airs of the nation, and reverberations
of the great spiritual movement were heard in their
rude music in the mountain-bom revival led by
Jack Edward Watkin in 1779 and in the local
awakenings of 1791 and 181 7. Later in the 19th
century new hymns, and many of the old, found
new tunes, made for their sake or imported from
England and America.
The sanctified gift of song helped to make 1829
a year of jubilee in South Wales, nor was the same
aid wanting during the plague in 1831, when the
famous Presbyterian preacher, John Elias,* won
nearly a whole county to Christ.
An accession of temperance hymns in Wales
followed the spread of the " Washingtonian "
*Those who read his biography wiU call him the "Seraphic John Elias."
His name was John Jones when he was admitted a member of the presby-
tery. What followed is a commentary on the embarrassing frequency of a
common name, nowhere realized so unirersally as it is in Wales.
"What is his father *s name ?" asked the moderator when Joha Jones was
aoaounced.
"Elias Jones/' was the answer.
"Then call the young man John Elias/' said the speaker, "•tkerxriae we
•hall by and by hare nobody but John Joneses."
And "John Elias" it remained.
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS.
269
Tnistees of which Lord Dartmouth was chairman.
When it was decided to remove the school from
Lebanon, Ct., the efForts of Governor Wentworth, of
New Hampshire, secured its location at Hanover in
that state. It was christened after Lord Dartmouth
— and the names of Occum, Moore and Wheelock
retired into the encyclopedias.
The Rev, Samson Occam died in 1779, while
laboring among the Stock bridge (N, Y.) Indians.
Several hymns were written by this remarkable
man, and also " An Account of the Customs and
Manners of the Montauks/' The hymn, "Awaked
by Sinai's Awful Sound/' set to the stentorian tune
of "Ganges," was a tremendous sermon in itself
to old-time congregations, and is probably as indie-*
ative of the doctrines which converted its writer as
of the cotemporary belief prominent in choir and
pulpit.
Awaked by Sinai's awful sotindp
My soul in bonds of gulk I found^
And knew not where to go,
Eternal trmh d\d loud proclaim
"The dinner must be bora again,
Or sink in endless woe/'
When to the law I trembling fled.
It poured its curses on my head;
1 no relief could find.
This fearful truth increased my pain,
"The sinner must be bora again/*
And whelmed my ttoubled mmd*
# « * # ip #
tyO STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNEB.
But whik I thus in anguish by,
Jems of Nazareth passed that way;
I felt His pity move.
The sinner, once by justice fUinp
Now by His grace is bom again ^
And sings etema! Love!
The rugged original has been so often and so
variously altered and ** toned down/' that only a
few unusually accurate aged memories can re-
call it. The hymn began going out of use fifty
years agOj and is now seldom secn-
The name "S. Chandler, " attached to "Ganges/*
leaves the identity of the composer in shadow. It
is supposed he was bom in 1760. The tune ap-
peared about 1790.
** WHERE NOW ARE THE HEBREW CHILDREN V
This quaint old unison, repeating the above three
times, folbvred by the answer (thrice repeated) and
climaxed with —
Safely in the Promised Land,
— was a favorite at ancient camp-meetings, and a
good leader could keep it going in a congregation
or a happy group of vocalists, improvising a new
start-line after every stop until his memory or in-
vention gave out-
They went up from the fiery fumacc^
They went up from the ficiy furnace,
They went up from the fiery fumar*
Safely to the Promised Land.
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS*
271
Sometimes it was —
Where now is the good Elijah ?
— and> —
He went up m a chariot of fire;
— and again, —
Where now is the gppd old Daniel F
He went up from the den of Uons;
— and so on, finally announcing —
By and hy wel! go home for to meet hjm, [three timet]
Safelj in the Promised Land.
The enthusiasm excited by the swinging rhythm of
the time sometimes rose to a passionate pitch, and
It was seldom used in the more controlled relig-
ious assemblies. If any attempt was ever made to
print the song* the singers had little need to read
the music. Like the ancient runes, it came into
being by spontaneous generation, and lived in pho-
netic tradition.
A strange^ wild paean of exultant song was one
often heard from Peter Cartwright, the muscular
circuit-preacher. A remembered fragment shows
its quality;
Then my soul mountiid high""
In a chanot of fire,
And the moon it was under my feet.
There is a tradition that he sang it over a stalwart
blacksmith while chastising him for an ungodly de-
*Mr* Hubert P. M«in Wlieref he ooee law '^Tbe Hebrew ChOdia'* in
pern mcmdf Kans Wiiart^ editiont of tb« SMatk BtU.
394 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
their efForts, appeared in the young people's prayer
meetings in February, 1904, at New Quay, Cardi-
ganshire. The interest increased, and when branch-
work was organized a young praying and singing
band visited Newcastle Emiyn in the course of
one of their tours, and held a rally meeting. Evan
Roberts went to the meeting and found his own
mission. He left his studies and consecrated him-
self, soul and body, to revival work. In every
spiritual and mental quality he was surpassingly
well-equipped. To the quick sensibility of his
poetic nature he added the inspiration of a seer
and the zeal of a devotee. Like Moses, Elijah,
and Paul in Arabian solitudes, and John in the
Dead Sea wilds, he had prepared himself in
silence and alone with God; and though, on
occasion, he could use effectively his gift of words,
he stood distinct in a land of matchless pulpit
orators as "the silent leader." . Without preaching
he dominated the mood of his meetings, and with-
out dictating he could change the trend of a service
and shape the next song or prayer on the intuition
of a moment. In fact, judged by its results, it
was God Himself who directed the revival, only
He endowed His minister with the power of div-
ination to watch its progress and take the stum-
bling-blocks out of the way. By a kind of hallowed
psychomancy, that humble man would detect a
discordant presence, and hush the voices of a con«
gregadon till the stubborn soul felt God in the
stillness, and penitently surrendered.
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS. 273
the original music, with an added refrain of invita-
tion, "Will you go ? will you go ?"
We are bound for the land of the pure and the holy.
The home of the happy, the kingdom of love;
Ye wand'rers from God on the broad road of folly,
O say, will you go to the Eden above ?
The old hymn-tune has a brisk out-door delivery,
and is full of revival fervor and the ozone of the
pines.
"O CANA-AN, BRIGHT CANA-AN'*
Was one of the stimulating melodies of the old-time
awakenings, which were simply airs, and were sung
unisonously. "O Cana-an" (pronounced in three
syllables) was the chorus, the hymn-lines being
either improvised or picked up miscellaneously
from memory, the interline, " I am bound for the
land of Cana-an," occurring between every two.
John Wesley's "How happy is the pilgrim's lot*'
was one of the snatched stanzas swept into the
current of the song. An example of the tune-
leader's improvisations to keep the hymn going
was —
If you get there before I do, —
/ am bound for the land of Cana-an!
Look out for me, I'm coming too —
/ am hound for the land of Cana^anl
And then hymn and tune took possession of the
assembly and rolled on in a circle with —
0 Cana-an, bright Cana-anf
1 am bound for the land of Cana-an;
274 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
0 Cana-an it is my hap-py home,
1 am bound for the land of Cana-an
— ^till the voices came back to another starting-line
and began again. There was always a movement
to the front when that tune was sung, and — ^with all
due abatement for superficial results in the sen-
sation of the moment — it is undeniable that many
souls were truly born into the kingdom of God un-
der the sound of that rude woodland song.
Both its words and music are credited to Rev. John
Maffit, who probably wrote the piece about 1829.
"A CHARGE TO KEEP I HAVE.''
This hymn of Charles Wesley was often heard
at the camp grounds, from the rows of tents in the
morning while the good women prepared their
pancakes and coffee, and
THE TUNE.
was invariably old "Kentucky/* by Jeremiah In-
galls. Sung as a solo by a sweet and spirited voice, it
slightly resembled "Golden Hill," but oftener its
halting bars invited a more drawling style of execu-
tion unworthy of a hymn that merits a tune like
"St.Thomas."
Old "Kentucky" was not field music.
•"CHRISTIANS, IF YOUR HEARTS ARE WARM."
™ ■ ■ ' . ■ I ■■ ■ ■i-i— ^■i^.— .^—^— ^■^— ^— ^-fiffpppiipip-j
Elder John Leland,bom in Grafton, Mass., 1754,
was not only a strenuous personality in the Baptist
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS.
^75
I
<!enomination> but was well known everywhere in
New England, and, in fact, his preaching trip to
Washington (1801) with the ''Cheshire Cheese*'
made his fame national He is spoken of as '* the
minister who wrote his own hymns" — a peculiarity
in which he imitated Watts and Doddridge. When
some natural shrinking was manifest in converts of
his winter revivals, under his rigid rule of imme-
diate baptism, he wrote this hymn to fortify them:
Christians^ if your hearts arc warm.
Ice and cold can do no hann;
If by Jesus you are prized
Rise, beEieve and be baptized.
He found use for the hymn, too, in rallying
church-members who staid away from his meetings
in bad weather. The "poetry" expressed what he
wanted to say^ — which, in his view, was suflScient
apology for it. It was sung in revival meetings like
others that he wrote, and a few hymnbooks now
long obsolete contained it; but of Leland's hymns
only one survives. Gray-headed men and women
remember being sung to sleep by their mothers
with that old-fashioned evening song to Amzi
Chapin's* tune —
The day is past and gone.
The cYcning shades appear,
O may we all remember well
The night of death draws near;
*Amii Chtpin h«i leFt, »pp«icQttf , nothbg men ibiti tlte record of ^
birth j Mudi i, i7&S> and tbc memory d hit tune. It jppeirrd hi csrtf Ai
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
— -and with all its solemnity and other-worldness it
IS dear to recollection J and its five stanzas are lov-
ingly hunted up in the few hymnals where it is found.
Bradbury's " Braden/' (Baptist Praise Book^ 1873,)
is one of its tunes.
Elder Leland was a remarkable revival preacher,
and his prayers — as was said of Elder Jabez Swan*s
fifty or sixty years later— ** brought heaven and
earth together/* He traveled through the Eastern
States as an evangelist, and spent a season in
Virginia in the same work. In 1801 he revisited
that region on a curious errand. The farmers of
Cheshire, Mass., where Leland was then a settled
pastor, conceived the plan of sending *'the biggest
cheese in America" to President Jefferson^ and
Leland (who was a good democrat) offered to go
to Washington on an ox-team with it, and "preach
all the way"^which he actually did.
The cheese weighed 1450 lbs.
Elder Leland died in North Adams, Mass., Jan.
14, 1S44. Another of his hymns > which deserved to
live with his ''Evening Song," seemed to be answered
in the brightness of his death-bed hope;
O when shall 1 sec Jesus
And reign wjrh Him above.
And from that flowing fountain
Drink everlasting love ?
"AWAKE, MY SOUL, TO JOYFTL LAYSJ
This glad hymn of Samuel Medley is his thanks-
giving song, written soon after his conversion. In
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS.
277
I
the places of rural worship no lay of Christian
praise and gratitude was ever more heartily sung
than this at the testimony meetings.
Awake, my soul, to joyful lays.
And sing thy great Redeemer's praise^
He justly claims a song from mer
His loving-kindness, oh, how free!
Loving-kindness^ loving-k mdness,
His loving-kindness, oh, how frccl
THE TUNE,
With Its queer curvet in every second line, had no
other name than *' Loving-Kindness," and was
probably a camp-meeting melody in use for some
time before its publication* It is found in Leavitfs
Christian Lyre as early as 1830. The name
"William Caldwell" is all that is known of its com-
poser, though he is supposed to have lived in
Tennessee.
"THE LORD INTO HIS GARDEN COMES/*
Was a common old-time piece sure to be heard at
every religious rally, and everyone present, saint and
sinner, had It by heart, or at least the chorus of it —
Amen, amen, my soul replies,
Vm bound to meet you in the skies.
And claim my mansion there> etc.
The anonymous* "Garden Hymn, as old, at
*A"RcT.'' Mr, CimpbeH. *«tbor erf "The GlorbuB Light of Zioo,""Tti«ft
ii J Holy City," ind "There ia a Laod of Plcisure/' hai been i^meti^e*
credited with the origta of ihe Giirdea Hymn.
ZjS STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
least, as 1800/' has nearly passed out of reach,
except by the long arm of the antiquary; but tt
served its generation.
Its vigorous tune is credited to Jeremiah Ingalls
(1764-1838).
The Lord into His garden comet;
The spices yield a rich perfume.
The lilies grow and thrive.
The liUes grow and thrive.
Refreshing showers of grace divine
From Jesus flow to every vine.
Which makes the dead revive.
Which makes the dead revive.
''THE CHARIOT! THE CHARIOTI"
Henry Hart Milman, generally known as Dean
MiUnan, was bom in 179I9 and was educated at
Oxford. In 1821 he was installed as university
professor of poetry at Oxford, and it was while
filling this p)osition that he wrote this celebrated
hymn, under the title of " The Last Day/* It is not
only a hymn, but a poem — a sublime ode that re-
calls, in a different movement, the tones of the
"Dies Irae."
Dean Milman (of St Paul's), besides his many
striking poems and learned historical works, wrote
at least twelve hymns, among which are —
Ride on, ride on in majesty,
O help us Lord; each hour of need
Thy heavenly succor give.
When our heads are bowed with woe«
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS.
279
— which last may have been written soon after he laid
three of his children in one grave, in the north
aisle of Westminister Abbey, He lived a laborious
and useful life of seventy-seven years, dying Sept,
24, 1868,
There were times in the old revivals when the
silver clarion of the "Chariot Hymn" must needs
replace the ruder blast of Occum in old *' Ganges'*
and sinners unmoved by the invisible God of Horeb
be made to behold Him — in a vision of the *' Last
Day."
The Chariot! the Chariot! its whcfrls roll in fite
When the Lord comcth down in the pomp of Hit Ittp
Lo, self-moving, it drives on its pathway of dou4|
And the heavens with the burden of Godhead are bowed*
The Judgment I the Judgment 1 the thrones are at) set^
Where the Lamb and the white- vested elders arc m^;
There all fle&h is at once in the sight of the Lord,
And the doom of eternity hanga on His word*
The name " WiUiams" or " J-WiUiams" is attached
to various editions of the trumpet*Uke tune, but
so far no guide book gives us location»date or sketch
of the composer,
"COME, MY BRETHREN,"
Another of the "unstudied" revival hymns ot
invitation.
Come, my brethren, let us try
Eor a little season
Eveiy burden to lay by,
Come and let us reasoiiM
iSo STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNBS.
What i$ this that casta yon down.
What is this that grieve* you ?
Speak and let your wants be known^
Speaking may relieve you,
This colloquial rhyme was apt to he started by
some good brother or sister in one of the chilly
pauses of a prayer-meeting* The air (there was
never anything more to it) with a range of only a
fifthj slurred the last syllable of every second line,
giving the quaint eiFect of a bent note, and al-
together the music was as homely as the verse. Both
are anonymous. But the little chant sometimes
served its purpose wonderfully well*
'^BRETHREN, WHILE WE SOJOURN HERE/'
This hymn was always welcome in the cottage
meetings as well as in the larger greenwood
assemblies. It was written by Rev. Joseph Swain^
about 1783,
Brethreni while we sojourn here
flight we mu5tp hut should not fear.
Foes we have, but we've a Friend,
One who loves us to the endj
Forward then with courage go;
Long we shall not dwell below.
Soon the joyful news will come,
*'Cbildf your Father calb^ 'Come home,"*
The tune was sometimes "Pleyel's Hymn,"
but oftener it was sung to a melody now generally
forgotten of much the same movement but slurred
in peculiarly sweet and tender turns. The cadence
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS,
281
of the last tune gave the refrain line a melting
effect:
Quid, your Fath^ calk, *'Come home. ^
Some of the spirit of this old tune (in the few
hymnals where the hymn is now printed) is pre-
served in Geo* Kingsley*s *' Messiah " which accom-
panies the words, but the modulations are wanting,
Joseph Swain was born in Birmingham, Eng*
in 1 76 1. Bred among mechanics, he was early
apprenticed to the engraver*s trade, but he was a
boy of poetic temperament and fond of writing
verses. After the spiritual change which brought
a new purpose into his lifcj he was baptized by Dr*
Rippon and studied for the ministry* At the age
of about twenty-five, he was settled over the Baptist
church in Walworth, where he remained till his
death, April i6> 1 796.
For more than a century his hymns have lived
and been loved in all the English-speaking world.
Among those still in use are —
How sweety how heavenly is the flighty
Pilgrinis wc are to Canaan bound »
O Thou in whose presence my soul takes delig^
''HAPPY DAY."
O flippy day that fixed my choice,
O how happy are they who the Saviour obey*
—Chmks Wi^f.
iSl STOEY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
These were voices as sure to be heard in con-»
verts' meetings as the leader's prayer or text, the
former sung inevitably to Rimbault's tune,
** Happy Day," and the latter to a '* Western Mel-
ody*' quite as closely akin to Wesley's words,
Edward Francis Rimbault, bom at Soho, Eng,,
June 13, 18 16, was at sixteen years of age organist
at the Soho Swiss Church, and became a skilled
though not a prolific composer. He once received
—and declined — the offer of an appointment as
professor of music in Harvard College, Died of a
lingering illness Sept» 26, 1 876,
"COME, HOLY SPIRIT, HEAVENLY DOVE,"
—Wms.
This was the immortal song-litany that fitted
almost anywhere into every service. The Presby
terians and Congregadonalists sang it in Tansur's
"St. Martins," the Baptists in William Jones*
"Stephens" and the Methodists in Maxim*s
"Turner" (which had the most music), but the
hymn went about as well with one as with another.
The Rev. William Jones (1726-1800) an English
rector, and Abraham Maxim of Buck field, Me.,
(i 773-1829) contributed quite a liberal share of
the "continental" tunes popular in the latter part
of the 1 8th century, Maxim was eccentric^ but
the tradition that an unfortunate aiFair of the heart
once drove him into the woods to make away with
himself, but a bird on the roof of a logger's hut,
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS,
283
making plaintive sounds^ interrupted him, and he
sat down and wrote the tune *' Hallowell/' on a
strip of white birch bark, is more likely legend-
ary* The following words, said to have inspired
his minor tune, are still set to it in the old collec-
tions ,
At on some lonely building's top
The ipatrow makes her fnoan.
Far from the tentfi of joy and hope
I Bit and grieve alotie**
Maxim was fond of the minor mode, but his
minors, like "Hallowellj" *'New Durham," etc,
are things of the past. His major chorals and
fugues, such as "Ponland,*' "Buckfield," and
** Turner" had in them the spirit of healthier
melody and longer life. He published at least two
colleaions. The Ornntal Harmony ^ in 1802, and
The Nori hern Harmony ^ in 1805.
William Tansur (Tans-ur), author of "St. Mar-
tins" (1669- 1 783), was an organist, composer, com-
piler, and theoretical writen He was bom at
Barnes, Surrey, Eng*, (according to one account,)
and died at St. Neot*s*
^'COME. THOU FOUNT OF EVERY BLESSING.'^
This hymn of Rev, Robert Robinson was almost
always heard in the tune of "Nettleton," com-
posed by John Wyeth, about 18 iz* The more
*Ven^ed hf Naliura Tate EnMn Fi. ta»i7«
i84
STORY OF THE HYMKS AKD TUNES,
wavy melody of "Sicily" (or "Sicilian Hymn")
sometimes carried the verses, but never with the
same sympathetic unction. The sing-song move
mcnt and accent of old "Nettleton" made it the
country favorite-
Robert Robinson^ bom in Norfolk, Eng., Sept*
27, 1735, was a poor boy, left fatherless at eight
years of age, and apprenticed to a barber, but was
converted by the preaching of Whitefield and
studied till he obtained a good education, and was
ordained to the Methodist ministry. He is
supposed to have written his well-known hymn in
1758. A certain unsteadiness of mind, however,
caused him to revise his religious beliefs too often
for his spiritual health or enjoyment, and after
preaching as a Methodist, a Baptist, and an
Independent, he finally became a Socinian. On
a stager-coach journey, when a lady fellow-passen-
ger began singing " Come, Thou Fount of Every
Blessing,*' to relieve the monotony of the ride, he
said to her, "Madam, I am the unhappy man
who wrote that hymn many years ago; and I
would give a thousand worlds, if I had them, if I
could feel as I felt then."
Robinson died June 9, 1790.
John Wyeth was born in Cambridge, Mass.,
1792, and died at Harrisburg, Pa*, 1858. He was
a musician and publisher, and issued a Music
Book, Wyetft*s Repository of Sacred Music*
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS. 285
**A POOR WAYFARING MAN OF GRIEF/'
Written by James Montgomery, Dec., 18269 was a
hymn of tide and headway in Gieorge Coles' tune of
"Duane St./' with a step that made every heart
beat time. The four picturesque eight-line stanzas
made a practical sermon in verse and song from
Matt. 25:35, telling how —
A poor wayfaring man of grief
Hath often crossed me on my wqrt
Who sued so humbly for relief
That I could never answer nay.
I had no power to ask his name,
Whither he went or whence he came^
Yet there was something in his qre
That won my love, I knew not why;
— and in the second and third stanzas the narrator
relates how he entertained him, and this was the
sequel —
Then in a moment to my view
The strangeA st-ited lom
The token in Hit '\ .\.di I knew;
My Saviour stood before my
When once that song was started, every tongue
took it up, (and it was strange if every foot did
not count the measure,) and the coldest kindled
with gospe/ warmth as the story swept on.*
^Mootgonieiy't poeniy ''The Stranger/' hat teven ttanzit. The full dra*
■Mtk efiect of their connection could only be produced ky a aet piece.
406 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNBt.
He would Hold my bead above;
I riiall through the waves go tingiiig
For one look of Him I love.
Apparently the sentiment and substantially the
expression of this humble hynm became the burden
of more than one Christian lay. Altered and
blended with a modem gospel hymn, it was sung
at the crowded meetings of 1904 to Robert Lowiy's
air of ''Jesus Only/' and often rendered very
impressively as a solo by a sweet female voice.
In the deep and mig^ waters
There is none to hold my head
But my loving Bridegroom, Jesus,
Who upon the cross hath hied.
If I've Jesus, Jesus only
Then my sky will have a gem
He's the Sun of brightest splendor.
He's the Star of Bethlehem.
He's the Friend in Death's dark river.
He will lift me o'er the waves,
I will sing in the deep waters
If I only see His face.
If I've Jesus, Jesus only, etc.
A few of the revival tunes have living authors
and are of recent date; and the minor harmony of
"Ebenezer" (marked "Ton Y Bote!"), which was
copied in this country by the New York Examiner,
with its hymn, is apparently a cotemporary piece.
It was first sung at Bethany Giapel, Cardiff, Jan.
8, 1905, the hymn bearing the name of Rev, W,
E. Winks.
^
1
§
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS.
287
The more important and canonical hymnals and
praise-books had no place for ** Sonnet," as the
bugle-Uke air to this hymn was called. Rev-
Jonathan Aldrich, about i860, harmonized it in
his Sacred Lyre^ but this, and the few other old
vestry and field manuals that contain it, were com-
piled before it became the fashion to date and
authenticate hymns and tunes. In this case both
are anonymous* Another (and probably earlier)
tune sung to the same words is credited to *'S.
Arnold," and appears to have been composed
about 1790*
"I'M A PILGRIM, AND FM A STRANGER.*'
This hymn still lives — and is likely to live, at
least in collections that print revival music* Mrs.
Mary Stanley (Bunce) Dana, bom in Beaufort,
S*C, Feb. 15, 1810, wrote it while living in a
northern state, where her husband died. By the
name Dana she is known in hymnology, though
she afterwards became Mrs, Shindler. The tune
identified with the hymn, **rm a Pilgrim," is
untraced, save that it is said to be an "Italian
Air," and that its original title was "Buono Notte"
(good night).
No other hymn better expresses the outreaching
of ardent faith. Its very repetitions emphasize and
sweeten the vision of longed-for fruition,
I can tarry^ I can tarry but a niglit,
I>o not detain me^ for I am going.
288 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNBS.
There die sunbeams are ever diining,
O my looguig beait, my loog^ig heait is cheie.
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Of that coontiy to which I'm going,
Mj Redeemer, my Redeemer is the li^it.
There is no sorrow, nor any sighing
Nor any m there, nor any dying,
I'm a pilgrim, etc.
The same devout poetess also wrote (1840) the
once popular consolatory hynui, —
O stng to me of heaven
When I'm about to die,
— sung to the familiar tune by Rev. E. W. Dunbar;
also to a melody composed 1854 by Dr. William
Miller.
The line was first written—
When / am called to die,
— in the author's copy. The hymn (occasioned by
the death of a pious friend) was written Jan.
15, 1840.
Mrs. Dana (Shindler) died in Texas, Feb. 8,
1883.
**JOYFULLY, JOYFULLY ONWARD I MOVE.**
The maker of this hymn has been confounded
with the maker of its tune — partly, perhaps, from
the fact that the real composer of the tune also
wrote hymns. The author of the words was the
Rev. William Hunter, D.D., an Irish-American,
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS. 289
and a Methodist minister. He was bom near
Ballymoney, County Antrim, Ire., May, 1811, and
was brought to America when a child six years
old. He received his education in the common
schools and at Madison College, Hamilton, N. Y.»
(now Madison University), and was successively
a pastor, editor and Hebrew professor. Besides
his work in these different callings, he wrote many
helpful hymns — ^in all one hundred and twenty-
five — of which "Joyfully, Joyfully," dated 1842,
is the best. It began originally with the line, —
Friends fondly cherished have pasted on before^
— and the line, —
Home to the land of delight I will go^
— was written, —
Home to the land of bright spirits IH gow
Dr. Hunter died in Ohio, 1877.
THE TUNE.
Rev. Abraham Dow Merrill, the author of the
music to this triumphal death-song, was bom in
Salem, N- H., 1796, and died April 29, 1878. He
also was a Methodist minister, and is still eveiy*
where remembered by the denomination to which
he belonged in New Hampshire and Vermont.
He rode over these states mingling in revival
scenes many years. His picture bears a close
resemblance to that of Washington, and he was
THE HncCS AMD TUKES,
fm Aim iMegAhncc. His work
and he left an imperisb-
New EnghmL The time, linked
■« bjnmi, formed the fa%oiiie
beoi the dj-ing song of many
r k amid die old revival scenes:
wiA 1% weapoDS of vzr bj me kpw|
hmg cftHTon; I fe^ tidc the blow,
die l>irf ol" die tomb,
j/OfviMfp ju^fuj' baste to ilijr nopite*
HiE OLD SHIP OF ZIOK, HALLELUJAHl"
This inajr be foundi vocalized with full harmonyt
VI the Amiric&n Vocalisi, With atl the parts to-
gethef (mofe or less) it must have made a vocif-
\ soi^-scnrice, but the hymn was oftener sung
in sopmno unison; and there was sound
in the single melody to satisfy the most
acalous,
Al bef pae^igers will land on the bright etetnal shovv^
O, gloiy hallelujah!
Sbe hit Un<}ed many thousands^ and will land as many more,
O, gloiy hallelujahl
Both hymn and tune have lost their creators*
nsmeS) and, like many another ''voice crying in
the wilderness," they have left no record of their
beginning of days,
*'MY BROTHER, I WISH YOU WELL.-
My brother, 1 wish you well»
My brother, I wish you well;
OLD REVIVAL HYMNS. 29!
When my Lord calls I trust you will
Be mentioned in the Promised Land*
Echoes that remain to us of those fervid and
affectionate^ as well as resolute and vehement,
expressions of religious life as sung in the earljr
revivals of New England, in parts of the South,
and especially in the Middle West, are suggestive
of spontaneous melody forest-bom, and as un-
conscious of scale, clef or tempo as the song of a
bird. The above "hand-shaking" ditty at the
altar gatherings apparently took its tune self-made,
inspired in its first singer's soul by the feeling of
the moment — and the strain was so simple that the
convert could join in at once and chant —
When my Lord comes I trust / shall
— through all the loving rotations of the crude
hymn-tune. Such song-births of spiritual enthu-
siasm are beyond enumeration — and it is useless to
hunt for author or composer. Under the momen-
tum of a wrestling hour or a common rapture of
experience, counterpoint was unthought of, and
the same notes for every voice lifted pleading and
praise in monophonic impromptu. The refrains—
O how I love Jesusy
O the Lamhy the Lamh, the loving Lamb,
I*m going home to die no more.
Pilgrims we are to Canaan's land,
O turn ye, O turn ye, for why will you die»
Come to Jesus, come to Jesus, just now.
2^ STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
— each at the sound of its first syllable brought itt
own music to every singer*s tongue, and all — malp
and female — were sopranos together. This habit
in singing those rude liturgies of faith and fellow-
ship was recognized by the editors of the Rfvivalisi^
and to a multitude of them space was given only
for the printed melody, and of this sometimes only
the three or four initial bars. The tunes were the
church's rural field-tones that everybody knew-
Culture smiles at this unclassic hymnody of long
ago, but its history should disarm criticism. To
wanderers its quaint music and "pedestrian"
verse were threshold call and door-way welcome
into the church of the living God. Even in the
flaming days of the Second Advent following,
in 1842-3, they awoke in many hardened hearts
the spiritual glow that never dies. The delifsion
passed away, but the grace remained.
The church — and the world — owe a long debt
to the old evangelistic refrains that rang through
the sixty years before the Civil War, some of fhem
flavored with tuneful piety of a remoter fime.
They preached righteousness, and won sou!t that
fiermons could not reach. They opened b^-'^ven
CO thousands who are now rejoicing thei^.
CHAPTER VIII.
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS.
SHEPHERD OF TENDER YOUTH,
We are assured by repeated references in the
patristic writings that the primitive years of the
Christian Church were not only years of suffering
but years of song. That the despised and often
persecuted "Nazarenes," scattered in little colon-
ies throughout the Roman Empire, did not forget
to mingle tones of praise and rejoicing with their
prayers could readily be believed from the much-
quoted letter of a pagan lawyer, written about as
long after Jesus' death, as from now back to the
death of John Quincy Adams — the letter of Pliny
the younger to the Emperor Trajan, in which
he reports the Christians at their meetings singing
"hymns to Christ as to a god/*
Those disciples who spoke Greek seem to have
been especially tuneful, and their land of poets
was doubtless the cradle of Christian hymnody.
Believers taught their songs to their children, and
(203)
294
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
it is as cenain that the oldest Sunday-school hymn
was written somewhere in the classic East as that
the Book of Revelation was written on the Isle of
Patmos. The one above indicated was found in
an appendix to the Tutors a book composed by
Titus Flavius Clemens of Alexandria, a Christian
philosopher and instructor whose active life began
late in the second century* It follows a treatise
on Jesus as the Great Teacher, and, though his own
words elsewhere imply a more ancient origin of
the poem, it is always called "Clement^s Hymn.*'
The line quoted above is the first of an English
version by the late Rev. Henry Martyn Dexter,
D.D, It does not profess to be a translation, but
aims to transfer to our common tongue the spirit
and leading thoughts of the original
Shepherd of tender youth^
Guiding m love 2nd truth
Through devious ways;
Christy our triumph^uic King^
We come Thy name to mng^
Hither our children bring
To shout Thy praise^
The last stanza of Dn Dexter's version rcpne-
mnt% the sacred song spirit of both the earliest and
ihc latest Christian centuries:
So now. ind till we die
Sound wc Thy praise hi^
And joyfu! sing;
Infamts, and the glad thioof
Who to Thy church belong
Unite to swell the song
To Chri^ our King*
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 295
While they give us the sentiment and the reli^ous
tone of the old hymn, these verses, howevert
recognize the extreme difficult of an3^hing like
verbal fidelity in translating a Greek hynm, and
in this instance there are metaphors to avoid as
being strange to modem taste. The first stanza,
literally rendered and construed, is as follows:
Bridle of untaught foals.
Wing of unwandering birds.
Helm and Girdle of babes.
Shepherd of royal lambsl
Assemble Thy simple children
To praise holily.
To hymn guilelessly
With innocent mouths
Christ, the Guide of children.
Figures Hke —
Catching the chaste fishes.
Heavenly milk, etc.,
— are necessarily avoided in making good English
of the lines, and the profusion of adoring epithets in
the ancient poem (no less than twenty-one different
titles of Christ) would embarrass a modem song.
Dr. Dexter might have chosen an easier metre
for his version, if (which is improbable) he intended
it to be sung, since a tune written to sixes and
fours takes naturally a more decided lyrical move-
ment and emphasis than the hymn reveals in his
stanzas, though the second and fifth possess much
of the hymn quality and would sound well in
Giardini's "Italian Hymn."
296 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
More nearly a translation, and more in the
cantabile style, is the version of a Scotch Presby^
terian minister, Rev. Hamilton M. Macgill, D.D.^
two of whose stanzas are these:
Thyself, Lord, be the Bridle
These wayward wills to stay;
Be Thine the Wing unwand'ring,
To speed their upward way.
« « « « « «
Let them with songs adoring
Their artless homage bring
To Christ the Lord, and crown Him
The children's Guide and King.
The Dexter version is set to Monk's slow har*
mony of "St. Ambrose*' in the Plymouth Hymnal
(Ed. Dr. Lyman Abbott, 1894) without the
writer's name — ^which is curious, inasmuch as the
hymn was published in the Congregationalist in
1849, in Hedge and Huntington s (Unitarian)
Hymn-book in 1853, ^^ ^^^ Hymnal of the Presby-
terian Church in 1866, and in Dr. SchafPs Christ
in Song in 1869.
Clement died about A.D. 220.
Rev. Henry Martyn Dexter, D.D., for twenty-
three years the editor of the Congregationalist y was
bom in Plymouth, Mass., Aug. 13, 1821. He was
a graduate of Yale (1840) and Andover Divinity
School (1844), a well-known antiquarian writer
and church historian. Died Nov. 13, 1890-
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS,
297
^HOW HAPPY IS THE CHILD WHO HEARS."
This hymn was quite com manly heard in Sunday*
schools during the eighteen-thirties and forties,
andj though retained in few modem collections,
its Sabbath echo lingers in the memory of the
living generation* It was written by Michael
Bruce, bom at Kinneswood> Kinross-shire, Scot-
land, March 27, 1 746. He was the son of a weaver,
but obtained a good education, taught school, and
studied for the ministry. He died, however, while in
preparation for his expected work , July 5, 1 767, at the
age of twenty-one years, three months and eight days.
Young Bruce wrote hymns, and several poems,
but another person wore the honors of his work,
John Logan, who was his literary executor, ap-
propriated the youthful poet's Mss. verses, and
the hymn above indicated — as well as the beautiful
poem, "To the Cuckoo,"* still a classic in English
literature, — bore the name of Logan for more than
a hundred years. In Julians Dictionary of Hym~
nology is told at length the story of the inquiry and
discussion which finally exposed the long fraud
upon the fame of the rising genius who sank, like
Henry Kirke White, in his morning of promise.
THE TUNE.
Old *'Balerma" was so long the musical mouth-
piece of the pious boy-schoolmaster's verses that
*Hii]| beiuteouc EtraagET of the wood.
Attend ant on the Spriag;
New Hutch repairs tby rural teat,
Aud woodt tby Wcoms ring>
298 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
the two became one expression, and one could
not be named without suggesting the other.
"Balerma'' (Palermo) was ages away in style
and sound from the later type of Sunday-school
tunes, resembling rather one of Palestrina's chorals
than the tripping melodies that took its place; but
in its day juvenile voices enjoyed it, and it suited
very weU the grave but winning words.
How happ)r is the child who heart
Instruction's warning voice.
And who celestial Wisdom makes
His early, only choice!
For she hath treasures greater far
Than East and West unfold,
And her rewards more precious are
Than all their stores of gold.
She guides the young with innocence
In pleasure's path to tread,
A crown of gloiy she bestows
Upon the hoaiy head.
Robert Simpson, author of the old tune,* was a
Scottish composer of psalmody; bom, about 1722,
in Glasgow; and died, in Greenock, June, 1838.
*'0 DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED/'
Written about 1803, by the Rev. John A. Gre-
nade, bom in 1770; died 1806.
O do not be discouraged, 1 ..
For Jetus is your Friend; J
He will give you grace to conquer.
And keep you to the end.
*11m tuM was erideiitly reduced from the itfll older "SifdlM^ («
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS*
299
Fight orij ye little soldiers, 1
The battle you shall win, J
For the Saviour Is your Captain,
And He has vanquished sin.
And when the conflict's over.
Before Him you shill stand,
You shall sing His praise forever
In Caoain^s Happy land.
.}
kii
THE TUNE.
The hymn was made popular thirty or more
years ago in a musical arrangement by Hubert P.
Main, with a chorus, —
I'm glad I'm in this anny.
And ril battle for the schooL
Children took to the little song with a keen relish*
and put their whole souls — and bodies — into it.
"LITTLE TRAVELLERS ZIONWARD^
Belongs to a generation long past. Its writer was
an architect by occupation > and a man whose piety
equalled his industry. He was bom in London
1 79 1, and his name was James Edmeston. He
loved to compose religious verses — so well, in fact,
that he is said to have prepared a new piece every
week for Sunday morning devotions in his family
and in this way accumulated a collection which
he published and called Cottager* s Hymns ^ Be-
sides these he is credited with a hundred Sunday^
school hymns.
JOO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
Little travellers Zionward,
Each one entering into rest
In the Kingdom of your Lord,
In the mansions of the blest.
There to welcome Jesus waits.
Gives the crown His followers win.
Lift your heads^ ye golden gates^
Let the little travellers in.
The original tune is lost — and the hymn is
vanishing with it; but the felicity of its rhyme and
rhjfthm show how easily it adapted itself to music.
*yM BUT A STRANGER HERE.**
The simple beauty of this hymn, and the
sympathetic sweetness of its tune made children
love to sing it, and it found its way into a few Sun-
day-school collections, though not composed for
such use.
A young Congregational minister, Rev. Thomas
Rawson Taylor, wrote it on the approach of his
early end. He was bom at Osset, near Wakefield,
Yorkshire, Eng., May 9, 1807, and studied in
Bradford, where his father had taken charge of a
large church, and at Manchester Academy and
Airesdale College. Sensible of a growing ailment
that might shorten his days, he hastened to the
work on which his heart was set, preaching in
surrounding to^ns and villages while a student,
and finally quitting college to be ordained to his
sacred profession. He was installed as pastor of
Howard St* Chapel, Sheffield, July, 1830, when
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 3OI
only twenty-three. But in less than three years
his strength failed, and he went back to Bradford,
where he occasionally preached for his father, when
able to do so, during his last days. He died there
March 15, 1835. Taylor was a brave and lovely
Christian — and his hymn is as sweet as his life.
Fm but a stranger here.
Heaven is my home;
Eaith is a desert drear.
Heaven is my home.
Dangers and sorrows stand
Round me on every hand;
Heaven is my Fatherland-
Heaven is my home.
What though the tempest rage^
Heaven is my home;
Short is my pilgrimage.
Heaven is my home.
And time's wild, wintry blatt
Soon will be overpast;
I shall reach home at last-
Heaven is my home.
In his last attempt to preach, young Taylor
uttered the words, ''I want to die like a soldier,
sword in hand." On the evening of the same
Sabbath day he breathed his last. His words were
memorable, and Montgomery, who loved and ad-
mired the man, made them the text of a poem,
part of which is the familiar hymn "Servant of
God, well done.'**
•See page 498
rs2 mrM,
L3W n MW. VML anc g II ling as
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Is
mbct I Y3t Vac a di^;
ik»l ^Mi av loxt kircs God I knam
TV VTi,'itir» B horn Thee.
1
Fanny /. Crosby
428 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
ter of an English banker, is the author of this very
devout and tender Christian poem, written appar-
ently in the eighteen-sixties. At least it is said that
her little volume. Heart to Hearty was published in
1865 or 1866, and this volume contains ''Tell me
the Old, Old Stoiy,*' and its answer.
We have been told that Miss Hankey was re-
covering from a serious illness, and employed her
days of convalescence in composing this song d
devotion, beginning it in January and finishing it in
the following November.
The poem is very long — a thesaurus of evan-
gelical thoughts, attitudes, and moods of faith —
and also a magazine of hymns. Four quatrains of
it, or two eight-line stanzas, are the usual length of
a hymnal selection, and editors can pick and
choose anywhere among its expressive verses.
Tell me the old, old stoiy
Of unseen things above.
Of Jesus and His gloiy.
Of Jesus and His love.
Tell me the stoiy simply
As to a little child.
For I am weak and weaiy.
And helpless and defil^.
i^ i^ i^ i^ i^ i^
Tell me the stoiy simply
That I may take it in —
That wonderful Redemption,
God's remedy for sin.
aUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS*
3^3
THE TUNE.
*'Audientes " by Sir Arthur Sullivan fe a gentle,
emotional piece, rendering the first quatrain of
each stanza in E flat unison, and the second in C
harmony.
"TIS RELIGION THAT CAN GIVE/'
This simple rhyme, which has been sung
perhaps in every Sunday-school in England and
the United States, is from a small English book
by Mary Masters, In the preface to the work, we
read, "The author of the following poems never
read a treatise of rhetoric or an art of poetry, nor
was ever taught her English grammar. Her educa*
tion rose no higher than the spelling-book or her
writing-master/'
Tis religion that can give
Sweetest pleasure while we livej
Tis religion can supply
Solid comfort when we die.
After death lis joys shall be
Lasting as eternity*
Save the two sentences about herself, quoted
above, there is no biography of the writer. That
she was good is taken for granted.
The tune-sister of the little hymn is as scant of
date or history as itself. No. 422 points it out in
The Revivalist, where the name and initial seem to
ascribe the authorship to Horace Waters.*
♦Fnmi Kit SiMaih BeH, Horace Watefs, i promiiiiimt Baptist tifmill,
was bora ia Jcf^ioai Lincoln Co^ Me., Not. j^ iSta* and died m Ne«
Yerk City, April ii^ JS93, He waa a piaAo-dedu- and pubJiiher.
504 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"THERE IS A HAPPY LAND FAR, FAR AWAY,"
This child's hymn was written by a lover of
children, Mr. Andrew Young, head master of
Niddrey St. School, Edinburgh, and subsequently
English instructor at Madras G)llege, E. I. He
was bom April 23, 1807, and died Nov. 30, 1899,
and long before the end of the century which his
life-dme so nearly covered his little carol had
become one of the universal hymns.
THE TUNE.
A Hindoo, air or natural chanson, that may
have been hummed in a pagan temple in the hear-
ing of Mr. Young, was the basis of the little mel-
ody since made familiar to millions of prattling
tongues.
Such running tone-rhythms create themselves in
the instinct of the ruder nations and tribes, and
even the South African savages have their in-
cantations with the provincial "clicks" that mark
the singers' time. With an ear for native chirrups
and trills, the author of our pretty infant-school
song succeeded in capturing one, and making a
Christian tune of it.
The musician, Samuel Sebastian Wesley, some-
time in the eighteen-forties, tried to substitute
another melody for the lines, but "There is a happy
land" needs its own birth-music.
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 305
*'I HAVE A FATHER IN THE PROMISED LAND/'
Another cazonet for the infant class. Instead of a
hymn, however, it is only a refrain, and — like the
ring-chant of the " Hebrew Children," and even
more simple— owes its only variety to the change
of one word. The third and fourth lines, —
My father calls me, I must go
To meet Him in the Promised Land,
— take their cue from the first, which may sing, —
I have a Saviour
I have a mother
I have a brother
— and so on ad libitum. But the little ones love
every sound and syllable of the lisping song, for
it is plain and pleasing, and when a pinafore school
grows restless nothing will sooner charm them into
quiet than to chime its innocent unison.
Both words and tune are nameless and stotyless.
**I THINK WHEN I READ THAT SWEET STORY"
While riding in a stage-coach, after a visit to a
mission school for poor children, this hymn came
to the mind of Mrs. Jemima Thompson Luke, of
Islington, England. It speaks its own purpose
plainly enough, to awaken religious feeling in
young hearts, and guide and sanctify the natural
childlike interest in the sweetest incident of the
Saviour's life.
306 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
I think when I read that sweet stoiy of did
When Jesus was here among men.
How He called little children as lambs to His fold^
I diould like to have been with them then.
I wish that His hands had been laid on my head.
And I had been placed on His knee.
And that I might have seen His kind look when He said,
"Let the little ones come unto me."
This IS not poetry, but it phrases a wish in a
child's own way, to be melodized and fixed in a
child's reverent and sensitive memory.
Mrs. Luke was bom at Colebrook Terrace, near
London, Aug. 19, 1813. She was an accomplished
and benevolent lady who did much for the edu«
cation and welfare of the poor. Her hymn — of
five stanzas — ^was first sung in a village school
at Poundford Park, and was not published until
1841.
THE TUNE.
It is interesting, not to say curious, testimony to
the vital quality of this meek production that so
many composers have set it to music, or that
successive hymn-book editors have kept it, and
printed it to so many different harmonies. All the
chorals that carry it have substantially the same
movement — for the spondaic accent of the long
lines is compulsory — but their offerings sing "to
one clear harp in divers tones."
The appearance of the words in one hymnal
with Sir William Davenant's air (full scored) to
Moore's love-song, "Believe me, if all those en-
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 307
dearing young charms,'^ now known as the tune
of " Fair Harvard," is rather startling at first, but
the adoption is quite in keeping with the policy of
Luther and Wesley.
*'St. Kevin," written to it forty years ago by
John Henry Cornell, organist of St. Paul's, New
York City, is sweet and sympathetic.
The newest church collection (1905) gives the
beautiful air and harmony of "Athens" to the
hymn, and notes the music as a "Greek Melody."
But the nameless English tune, of uncertain
authorship"^ that accompanies the words in the
smaller old manuals, and which delighted Sunday-
schools for a generation, is still the favorite in the
memory of thousands, and may be the very music
first written.
"WE SPEAK OF THE REALMS OF THE BLEST."
Mrs. Elizabeth Mills, wife of the Hon. Thomas
Mills, M.P., was bom at Stoke Newington, Eng.,
1805. She was one of the brief voices that sing one
song and die. This hymn was the only note of her
minstrelsy, and it has outlived her by more than
three-quarters of a century. . She wrote it about
three weeks before her decease in Finsbury PlacCj
London, April 21, 1839, at the age of twenty- four.
We speak of the land of the blest,
A countiy so bright and so fair.
And oft are its glories confest.
But what must it be to be theret
1^ 1^ 4( ♦ « ♦
^Harmonized by Hubert P. Main.
308 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
We speak of its freedom from sin.
From sorrow, temptation and care.
From trials without and within.
But what must it be to be therel
THE TUNE.
The hymn, like several of the Gospel hymns
besides, was carried into the Sunday-schools by
its music. Mr. Stebbins' popular duet-and-chorus
is fluent and easily learned and rendered by rote;
and while it captures the ear and compels the voice
of the youngest, it expresses both the pathos and
the exaltation of the words.
Geoige Coles Stebbins was bom in East Carie-
ton, Orleans G)., N. Y., Feb. 26, 1846. Educated
at common school, and an academy in Albany,
he turned his attention to music and studied in
Rochester, Chicago, and Boston. It was in Chicago
that his musical career began, while chorister
at the First Baptist Church; and while holding
the same position at Qarendon St. Church, Boston,
(1874-6), he entered on a course of evangelistic
work with D. L. Moody as gospel singer and com-
poser. He was co-editor with Sankey and McGran-
ahan of Gospel Hymns,
*'ONLY REMEMBERED.'*
This hymn, beginning originally with the line8»-^
Up and away like the dew of the morning.
Soaring from earth to its home in the sun.
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 3O9
—has been repeatedly altered since it left Dr. Bo-
nar's hands. Besides the change of metaphors, the
first personal pronoun singular is changed to the
plural. There was strength, and a natural vivacity
in —
So let mi steal away gently and loving^.
Only remembered for what / have done.
As at present sung the first stanza reads — ,
Fading away like the stars of the morning
Losing their light in the glorious sun.
Thus would vji pass from the earth and its toiling
Only remembered for what wi have done.
The idea voiced in the refrain is true and beauti-
ful, and the very euphony of its words helps to
enforce its meaning and make the song pleasant
and suggestive for young and old. It has passed
into popular quotation, and become almost a pro-
verb.
THE TUNE.
The tune (in Gospel Hymns No. 6) is Mr.
Sankey's.
Ira David Sankey was bom in Edinburgh, Law-
rence G)., Pa., Aug. 28, 1840. He united with
the Methodist Church at the age of fifteen, and
became choir leader, Sunday-school superintendent
and president of the Y. M. C. A., all in his native
town. Hearing Philip Phillips sing impressed him
deeply, when a young man, with the power of a
gifted solo vocalist over assembled multitudes, but
he did not fully realize his own capability till Dwight
310 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
L. Moody heard his remarkable voice and con-
vinced him of his divine mission to be a gospel
singer.
The success of his revival tours with Mr. Moody
in America and England is history.
Mr. Sankey has compiled at least five singing
books, and has written the Story of the Gospel
Hymns. Until overtaken by blindness, in his later
years he frequently appeared as a lecturer on sacred
music. The manuscript of his story of the Gos-
pel Hymns was destroyed by accident, but, un-
dismayed by the ruin of his work, and the loss
of his eye-sight, like Sir Isaac Newton and Thomas
Carlyle, he began his task again. With the
help of an amanuensis the book was restored
and, in 1905, given to the public. (See page 258.)
"SAVIOUR, LIKE A SHEPHERD LEAD US."
Mrs. Dorothy Ann Thrupp, of Paddington
Green, London, the author of this hymn, was bom
June 20, 1799, and died, in London, Dec. 14, 1847.
Her hymns first appeared in Mrs. Herbert Mayo's
Selection of Poetry and Hymns for the Use of
Infant and juvenile Schools ^^ (1838.)
Wc are Thine, do Thou befriend us.
Be the Guardian of our way:
Keep Thy flock, from sin defend us.
Seek us when we go astray;
Blessed Jesus,
Hear, O hear us when we pray.
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 3II
The tune everywhere accepted and loved is W.
B. Bradbury's; written in 1856.
'*YIELD NOT TO TEMPTATION.*'
A much used and valued hymn, with a captiva-
ting tune and chorus for young assemblies. Both
words and music are by H. R. Palmer^ composed
in 1868.
Yield not to temptation*
For yielding is sin;
Each vict'iy will help yoo
Some other to win.
Fight manfully onward.
Dark passions subdue;
Look ever to Jesus,
He will cany you throu^
Horatio Richmond Palmer was bom in Sher«
bume, N.Y., April 26, 1834, of a musical family,
and sang alto in his father's choir when only nine.
He studied music unremittingly, and taught music at
fifteen. Brought up in a Christian home, his relig-
ious life began in his youth, and he consecrated his
art to the good of man and the glory of God.
He became well-known as a composer of sacred
music, and as a publisher — the sales of his Song
Queen amounting to 200,000 copies. As a leader
of musical conventions and in the Church Choral
Union, his influence in elevating the standard of
song-worship has been widely felt.
312 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
THERE ARE LONELY HEARTS TO CHERISH.'*
"While the days are going by" is the refrain
of the song, and the line by which it is recognized.
The hymn or poem was written by George Cooper.
He was bom in New York City, May 14, 1840—
a writer of poems and magazine articles, — com-
posed "While the days are going by" in 1870.
There are lonely heaits to cherish
Whfle the days are going by.
There are weaiy souls who perish
While the dzys are going by.
Up! then, trusty heaits and true.
Though the day comes, nig^t comes, too:
Oh, the good we all may do
While the dzys are going by!
There are few more practical and always-
timely verses than this three-stanza poem.
THE TUNE.
A very musical tune, with spirited chorus, (in
Gospel Hymns) bears the name of the refrain, and
was composed by Mr. Sankey.
A sweet and quieter harmony (uncredited) is
mated with the hymn in the old Baptist Praise
Book (p. 507) and this was long the fixture to the
words, in both Sunday-school and week-day school
song-books.
"JESUS
THE WATER OF LIFE WILL GIVE."
This Sunday-school lyric is the work of Fanny
J. Crosby (Mrs. Van Alstyne). Like her other and
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 313
greater hymn, "Jesus keep me near the Cross,"
(noted on p. 156,) it reveals the habitual attitude of
the pious author's mind, and the simple earnest-
ness of her own faith as well as her desire to win
others.
Jesus the water of life will give
Freely, freely, freely;
Jesus the water of life will give
Freely to those who love Him.
The Spirit and the Bride say "Come
Freely, freely, freely.
And he that is thirsty let him come
And drink the water of life.'*
Full chorus, —
The Fountain of life is flowing,
Flowing, freely flowing;
The Fountain of life is flowing.
Is flcnving for you and for me.
THE TUNE.
The hymn must be sung as it was maJe to be
sung, and the composer being many years en
rapport with the writer, knew how to put all her
metrical rhythms into sweet sound. The tune —
in Mr. Bradbury's Fresh Laurels (1867) — is one of
his sympathetic interpretations, and, with die duet
sung by two of the best singers of the middle class
Sunday-school girls, is a melodious and impressive
piece.
314 STORY OF THE HYMNS AHD TUNES
''WHENHECOBfETH,WHENHECX)METHr
The Rev. W. O. Gushing, with the beautiful
thought in Mahchi 3:17 singing in his soul, com-
posed this favorite Sunday-school hymn, which has
gone round the world.
When He comeaiy when He umicin
To make up His jewels.
An the jewels, precious jewds^
His loved and His own.
like the stars of the morning
His hri^it hrow adorning
They diaU shine in their beauty
Bn^t gems for His crown*
He will gather. He will gather
The gems for His Kingdom,
All the pure ones, all the bright ones.
His loved and His own.
Like the stars, etc
Little children, little children
Who love their Redeemer,
Are the jewels, precious jewels
His loved and His own.
Like the stars, etc.
Rev. William Orcutt Gushing of Hingham,
Mass., bom Dec. 31, 1823, wrote this little hymn
when a young man (1856), probably with no idea
of achieving a literary performance. But it rings;
and even if it is a "ringing of changes'* on pretty
syllables, that is not all. There is a thought in it
that sings. Its glory came to it, however, when it
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 315
got its tune — and he must have had a subcon-
sciousness of the tune he wanted when he made
the lines for his Sunday-school. He died Oct. 19^
1902.
THE TUNE.
The composer of the music for the "Jewel
Hymn "* was Gleorge F. Root, then living in Read-
ing, Mass.
A minister returning from Europe on an English
steamer visited the steerage, and after some
friendly talk proposed a singing service — if some-
thing could be started that "everybody" knew —
for there were hundreds of emigrants there from
nearly every part of Europe.
"It will have to be an American tune, then,"
said the steerage-master; "try *His jewels.'"
The minister struck out at once with the melody
and words, —
When He cometfay when He cometh,
— and scores of the poor half-fare multitude joined
voices with him. Many probably recognized the
music of the old glee, and some had heard the sweet
air played in the church-steeples at home. Other
voices chimed in, male and female, catching the
air, and sometimes the words — ^they were so easy
and so many times repeated — and the volume of
^Comparison of the "Jewel HTmn" tune with the old glee of ''Johnny
Schmoker" giTcs color to d^ anettioo that Mr. Root caught up and adapted a
popular ditty for his Christian melody^as was so often done in Wala^and
in the Lutheran and Wesleyas refonnations. He baptized the comic fugue-
Mid promoted it from the TauderiUe suge to the Sunday School.
3l6 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
song increased, till the singing minister stood in
the midst of an international concert, the most
novel that he ever led.
He tried other songs in similar visits during the rest
of the voyage with some success, but the ''Jewel
Hymn*' was the favorite; and by the time port
was in sight the whole crowd of emigrants had it by
heart.
The steamer landed at Quebec, and when the
trains, filled with the new arrivals, rolled away, the
song was swelling from nearly eveiy car, —
When He comedi, wkeo He comedi.
To make up His jewels.
The composer of the tune — ^with all the patri-
otic and sacred master-pieces standing to his
credit — never reaped a richer triumph than he
shared with his poet-partner that day, when
"Precious Jewels" came back to them from over
the sea. More than this, there was missionary joy
for them both that their tuneful work had done
something to hallow the homes of alien settlers
with an American Christian psalm.
George Frederick Root, Doctor of Music, was
bom in Sheffield, Mass., 1820, eldest of a family of
eight children, and spent his }'outh on a farm. His
genius for music drew him to Boston, where he
became a pupil of Lowell Mason, and soon advanced
so far as to teach music himself and lead the choir
in Park St. church. AfterwardshewcnttoNewYork
as director of music in Dr. Deems's Church of the
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMKS. 317
Strangers. In 1852, after a year's absence and study
in Europe^ he returned to New York, and founded
the Normal Musical Institute. In 1860, he removed
to Chicago where he spent the remainder of his life
writing and publishing music. He died Aug. 6,
1895, in Maine.
In the truly popular sense Dr. Root was the best-
known American composer; not excepting Stephen
C. Foster. Root's " Hazel Dell/' "There's Music
in the Air," and " Rosalie the Prairie Flower" were
universal tunes — (words by Fanny Crosby,) — ^as
also his music to Henry Washburn's "Vacant
Chair." The songs in his cantata, "The Hay-
makers," were sung in the shops and factories
everywhere, and his war-time music, in such melo-
dies as "Shouting the Battle-cry of Freedom" and
"Tramp, Tramp, Tramp, the Boys are Marching"
took the country by storm.
^'SCATTER SEEDS OF KINDNESS.**
This amiable and tuneful poem, suggested by
Rom. 12:10, is from the pen of Mary Louise Riley
(Mrs. Albert Smith) of New York City. She was
bom in Brighton, Monroe Co., N. Y. May 27,
1843.
Let us gather up the sunbeams
Lying all along our path;
Let us keep the wheat and roses
Casting out the thorns and chaff.
3l8 S1X)RY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Chorus.
Then scatter seeds of kindness (frr)
For our reaping by and by.
Silas Jones Vail, the tune-writer, for this hymn,
was bom Oct. 1818, and died May 20, 1883. For
years he worked at the hatter's trade, with Beebe
on Broadway, N.Y. and afterwards in an establish-
ment of his own. His taste and talent led him into
musical connections, and from time to time, after
relinquishing his trade, he was with Horace
Waters, Philip Phillips, W. B. Bradbury, and F. J.
Smith, the piano dealer. He was a choir leader
and a good composer.
"BY COOL SILOAM'S SHADY RILL/'
This hymn of Bp. Heber inculcates the same
lesson as that in the stanzas of Michael Bruce be-
fore noted, with added emphasis for the young on
the briefness of time and opportunity even for them.
How fair the lily grows^
— ^is answered by —
The lily must decay»
— but, owing to the sweetness of the favorite melody,
it was never a saddening hymn for children.
THE TUNE.
Though George Kingsley's "Heber** has in some
books done service for the Bishop's lines, " Siloam, "
SUNDAY-SCHOOL HYMNS. 3I9
easy-flowing and finely harmonized, is knit to the
words as no other tune can be. It was composed
by Isaac Baker Woodbury on shipboard during a
storm at sea. A stronger illustration of tranquil
thought in terrible tumult was never drawn.
" O Galilee, Sweet Galilee,*' whose history has
been given at the end of chapter six, was not only
often sung in Sunday-schools, but chimed (in the
cities) on steeple-bells — nor is it by any means for-
gotten today — on the Sabbath and in social singing
assemblies. Like " Precious Jewels," it has been,
in many places, taken up by street boys with a
relish, and often displaced the play-house ditties in
the lips of little newsboys and bootblacks during a
leisure hour or a happy mood.
T AM SO GLAD.''
This lively little melody is still a welcome choice
to many a lady teacher of fluttering five-year-olds,
when both vocal indulgence and good gospel are
needed for the prattlers in her class. It has been
as widely sung in Scotland as in America. Mr.
Philip P. Bliss, hearing one day the words of the
familiar chorus —
O, how I love JesuB,
— suddenly thought to himself, —
"I have sung long enough of my poor love to
Christ, and now I will sing of His love for me. *'
Under the inspiration of this thought, he wrote —
322
STORY OF THE HYMNS AKD TUNES.
Patent tellusj Typhlsquc novo®
Deiegmt orbes, nee sit temi
Ultima Thule*
A time will come in future ages far
When Ocean will his cirding bciiinds unbar.
And, opening vaster to the Pilot's hand.
New worlds shall rise^ where mightier kingdoms m^
Nor Thule Longer be the utmost land.
This poetic forecast, of which Washington Irving
wrote '*the predictions of the ancient oracles were
rarely so unequivocal/' is part of the "chorus" at
the end of the second act of Seneca's "Medea," writ-
ten near the date of St, Paul's first Epistle to the
Thessalonians,
Seneca, the celebrated Roman (Stoic) philoso-
pher, was bom at or very near the time of our Sav-
iour's birth. There are legends of his acquaintance
with Paul, at Rome, but though he wrote able and
quotable treatises On Consolation^ On Providencij
On Calmness of Soul^ and On the Blessed Lije^ there
is no direct evidence that the savor of Christian
faith ever qualified his works or his personal
principles. He was a man of grand ideas and
inspirations,but he was a time server and a flatterer
of the Emperor Nero, who, nevertheless, caused
his death when he had no further use for him.
His compulsoiy suicide occurred A. D. 65, the
year in which St. Paul is supposed to have suffered
martyrdom.
PATRIOTIC HYMNS. 323
*nrHE BREAKING WAVES DASHED HIGH."
Sitting at the tea-table one evening, near a
century ago, Mrs. Hemans read an old account
of the "Landing of the Pilgrims," and was inspired
to write this poem, which became a favorite in
America — like herself, and all her other works.
The ballad is inaccurate in details, but presents
the spirit of the scene with true poet insight. Mr.
James T. Fields, the noted Boston publisher, visited
the lady in her old age, and received an auto-
graph copy of the poem, which is seen in Pilgrim
Hall, Plymouth, Mass.
The breaking waves dashed high, on a stem and rock-bound
coast.
And the woods against a stonny sky, their giant branches
tossed.
And the heavy night hung dark, the hills and waters o'er,
When a band of exiles moored their bark on the wild New Enff-
land shore.
Not as the conqueror comes, they, the true-hearted, came;
Not with the roll of stirring drums, and the trumpet that sings
of fame;
Not as the flying come, in silence and in fear, —
They shook the depths of the desert's gloom with their hymns
of lofty cheer.
Amidst the storm they sang, and the stars heard, and the seal
And the sounding aisles of the dim woods rang to the anthem of
the free!
The ocean eagle soared from his nest by the white waves* foam.
And the rocking pines of the forest roared, — this was their wel-
come home!
324 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
There were men with hoaiy hair amidst that pilgrim band,-*
Why had they come to wither there, away from their childhood's
land?
There waa woman's fearless eye, lit by her deep love's truth;
There was manhood's brow, serenely high, and the fieiy heart
of youth.
What soug^ they thus afar ? bright jewels of the mine ?
The wealth of seas f the spoils of war f — ^Th^ sought a faith's
pure shrine!
Ay, call it holy grocmd» the soil where first they trod;
They left unstained what there they found, — freedom to wor-
ship God I
Felicia Dorothea Browne (Mrs. Hemans) was
bom in Liverpool, Eng., 1766, and died 1845.
THE TUNE.
The original tune is not now accessible. It was
composed by Mrs. Mary E. (Browne) Arkwright,
Mrs. Hemans' sister, and published in England
about 1835. But the words have been sung in
this country to "Silver St.," a choral not entirely
forgotten, credited to an English composer, Isaac
Smith, bom, in London, about 1735, and died there
in 1800.
**WESTWARD THE COURSE OF EMPIRE."
Usually misquoted " Westward the Star of Em-
pire," etc. This poem of Bishop Berkeley pos-
sesses no lyrical quality but, like the ancient
Roman's words, partakes of the prophetic spirit,
and has always been dear to the American heart
FATRlOnC HYMNS.
3^5
by reason of the above Ibe* It seems to formulate
the ** manifest destiny** of a great colonizing race
that has already absorbed a continent, and ex*
tended its sway across the Pacific ocean.
Not such as Europe breeds in her decay;
Such as she bred when fresh and young.
When heavenly Hatne did animate her day^
By future poets shall be sung^
Westward the course of empire takes rta way;
The four first acts already past^
The fifth shall close the drama of the day:
Time's noblest oflFspnng is the laKt.
George Berkeley was born March 12, 1684, and
educated at Trinity College, Dublin- A remarkable
student, he became a remarkable man^ as priest,
prelate, and philosopher. High honors awaited
him at home, but the missionary passion seized him.
Inheriting a small fortune, he sailed to the West,
intending to evangelize and educate the Indians of
the "Summer Islands," but the ship lost her course,
and landed him at Newport, R.L, instead of the
Bermudas. Here he was warmly welcomed, but
was disappointed in his plans and hopes of founding
a native college by the failure of friends in England
to forward funds, and after a residence of six years
he returned home. He died at Cloyne> Ireland,
^753"
The house which Bishop Berkeley built is still
shown (or was until very recently) at Newport
after one hundred and seventy-eight years. He
wrote the ** Principles of Human Knowledge^
526 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
the Minute Philosopher^ and many other works
of celebrity in their time, and a scholarship in Yale
bears his name; but he is bestloved in this country
for his Ode to America.
Pope in his list of great men ascribes —
To Berkeley cvciy virtue under heaven.
"SOUND THE LOUD TIMBREL/'
One would scarcely guess that this bravura
hymn of victory and " Come, ye disconsolate, " were
written by the same person, but both are by
Thomas Moore. The song has all the vigor and
vivacity of his '^Harp That Once Through Tara's
Halls/' without its pathos* The Irish poet chose
the song of Miriam instead of the song of Deborah
doubtless because the sentiment and strain of the
first of these two great female patriots lent them-
selves more musically to his lyric verse — and his
poem is certainly martial enough to convey the
spirit of both.
Sound the bud timbrel oVr Egypt*s dart sea!
Jehovah hath triumphed^ His people are free!
Smgp for the pride of the tyrant ts broken;
His chariots^ his horsemen, all splendid and brave —
How vain was their boasting, the Lord hath but spoken.
And chariots and horsemen are sttctk in the wave,
THE TUNE.
Of all the different composers to whose music
Moore's *' sacred songs" were sung — Beethoven,
PATRIOTIC HYMNS,
3^7
Mozart, Stevenson, and the rest — Avison seems to
be the only one whose name and tune have clung
to the poet's words; and we have the man and the
melody sent to us, as it were, by the lyrist himself*
The tune is now rarely sung except at church
festivals and village entertainments, but the life
and clamor of the scene at the Red Sea are in it,
and it is something more than a mere musical
curiosity. Its sr}'Ie, however, is antiquated — with
its timbre! beat and its canorous harmony and
"coda fortis" — and modem choirs have little use
in religious service for the sonata written for viols
and horns.
It was Moore's splendid hymn that gave It
vogue in England and Ireland, and sent it across
the sea to find itself in the house of its friends with
the psalmody of Billings and Swan, Moore was
the man of all men to take a fancy to it and make
language to its string-and-trumpet concert. He
was a musician himself, and equally able to adapt
a tune and to create one. As a festival perform-
ance> replete with patriotic noise, let Avison's old
"Sound the Timbrel" live.
Charles Avison was bom at Newcastle-on-Tyne,
1710* He studied in Italy, wrote works on music,
and composed sonatas and concertos for stringed
orchestras. For many years he was organist of
St. Nicholas* Kirk in his native town.
The tune to "Sound the Loud Timbrel" is a
chorus from one of his longer compositions,
died in 1770,
He
328 STOKY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
THE HARPTHATONCE THROUGH TARA'S HALLS."
This is the only one of Moore's patriotic *' Irish
Melodies" that lives wherever sweet tones are
loved and poetic feeling finds answering hearts.
The exquisite sadness of its music and its text is
strangely capdvating, and its untold story beckons
from its lines.
Tara was the ancient home of the Irish kings.
King Dermid, who had apostarized from the faith
of St. Patrick and his followers, in A.D., 554,
violated the Christian right of sanctuary by taking
an escaped prisoner from the altar of refuge in
Temple Ruadan (Tipperary) and putting him to
death. The pation priest and his clergy marched
to Tara and soUmnly pronounced a curse upon
the King. Not long afterwards Dermid was
assassinated, and superstition shunned the place
"as a castle under ban." The last human resident
of "Tara's Hall" was the King's bard, who
lingered there, forsaken and ostracized, till he
starved to death. Years later one daring visitor
found his skeleton and his broken harp.
Moore utilized this story of tragic pathos as a
figure in his song for "fallen Erin" lamenting her
lost royalty — under a curse that had lasted thirteen
hundred years.
The haqj that once through Tara's halls
The soul of music shed.
Now hangs as mute on Tara's walls
As if that soul were fled.
PATRIOTIC HYMNS.
329
So steeps the pride of fomier days^
So glory's thrill is o'er.
And heatts that once beat hi|^ for praise
Now feel chat pulse no more.
No one can read the words without "thinking**
the tune. It is supposed that Moore composed
them both.
THE MARSEILLAISE HYMR
Ye sons of Franccj awake to glory I
Hark! harkf what millions bid you risel
The "Marseillaise Hymn" so long supposed to be
the musical as well as verbal composition of
Roget de Lisle, an army engineer, was proved to
be only his words set to an air in the "Credo'' of a
German mass^ which was the work of one H0I2-
man in 1726* De Lisle was known to be a poet
and musician as well as a soldier, and, as he is said to
have played or sung at times in the churches and
convents, it is probable that he found and copied
the manuscript of Holzman's melody. His haste
to rush his fiery "Hymn" before the public in the
fever of the Revolution allowed him no time to
make his own music, and he adapted the German's
notes to his words and launched the song in the
streets of Strasburg. It was first sung in Paris by
a band of chanters from Marseilles, and, hke the
trumpets blown around Jericho, it shattered the
walls of the French monarchy to their foundations*
The " Marseillaise Hymn'* is mentioned here for
its patriotic birth and associations. An attempt to
MMD TDlfES.
afm m iiauiJid in the Fomth
ODE gy sopacE,
a <|iHXi nimr, oanademig Ks coo-
aariior was no iiwittLiir cf the Moses.
Umnr is uyymrJ id be MMiictiuwi the coroUaiy
r riot ^nsa — vindie'va' die leader
So ScKDCC iptcads iser i3ad ttt
0*cr lands ^us kx^ i= dirkness br;
Slie vxsars tifr Co^rmSra,
And sets her sects axz»ocg ^)e stars.
THE TUXE
Was the really notable part of this old-dme *'Ode,**
the favorite of \Tllage assemblies, and the inevitable
practice-piece for amateur violinists. The author
of the crude s\Tnphonv was Deacon Janaziah (or
Jazariah) Summer, of Taunton, Mass., who pre-
pared it — music and probably words — for the
semi-centennial of Simeon Dagget's Academy in
1798. The "Ode" was subsequently published
in Philadelphia, and also in Albany. It was a song
of the people, and sang itself through the country
PATRIOTIC HYMNS.
33t
I
for fifty or sixty years, always culminating m the
^ swift crescendo chorus and repeat —
The British yoke and Gallic chain
Were urged upon our necks in vain;
^ Al] haughty tyrants we disdain,
P And shout "Long live America!**
The average patriot did not mind it if "Colum-
bi-ay" and "Amen~kay*' were not exactly classic
orthoepy,
"HAIL COLUMBIA/'
This was written ( 1 798) by Judge Joseph Hop-
kinson,bom,in Philadelphia, rj/o, and died therci
1843. He wrote it for a friend in that city who
was a theatre singer, and wanted a song for In-
dependence Day, The music (to which it is still
sung) was "The President's March," by a com-
poser named Fyles, near the end of the 1 8th
century.
There is nothing hymn-like in the words, which
are largely a gloriBcation of Gen, Washington, but
the tune, a concerted piece better for band than
voices, has the drum-and-anvil chorus quality suit*
able for vociferous mass singing — ^and a zealous
Salvation Army corps on field nights could even fit
a processional song to it with gospel words.
OLD ''CHESTER/'
Let tyrants shake their iron rod.
And slavery clank her galling chains:
We'll fear them not; wc trust in God:
New England's God forever reigps*
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES
Old "Chester," both words and tune the work
of WilHam Billings^ is another of the provincial
freedom songs of the Revolutionary period, and of
the days when the Republic was young, Billings
was a zealous patriot, and (says a writer in Moore's
Cyclopedia of Music) '*one secret, no doubt, of the
vast popularity his works obtained was the patri-
otic ardor they breathed. The words above quoted
are an example, and 'Chester/ it is said, was
frequently heard from every fife in the New Eng-
land ranks. The spirit of the Revolution was also
manifest in his * Lamentation over Boston/ his
* Retrospect/ his 'Independence/ his 'Columbia/
and many other pieces/*
William Billings was bom, in Boston, Oct> 7* 1 746.
He was a man of little education, but his genius for
music spurred him to study the tuneful art* and en-
abled him to learn all that could be learned with-
out a master. He began to make tunes and pub-
lish them, and his first book, the New England
Psalm-singer was a curiosity of youthful crudity and
confidence, but in considerable numbers it was sold,
and sung^ — and laughed at. He went on studying
and composing, and compiled another work, which
was so much of an improvement that it got the name
of Billings^ Best, A third singing- book followed, and
finally a fourth entitled the Psalm Singer s Amuse-
ment^ both of which were popular in their day. His
**Majesty'* has tremendous capabilities of sound,
and its movement is fully up to the requirements of
Nahum Tate's verses,^ —
PATRIOTIC HYMNS.
353
And on tfie wings of mighty winds
Cmme Sying all abroad,
William Billings died in i8oo» and his remains
He in an unmarked grave in the old ** Granary"
Burying Ground in the city of his birth.
National feeling has taken maturer speech and
finer melody, but it was these ruder voices that set
the pitch. They were sung with native pride and
affection at fireside vespers and rural feasts with
the adopted songs of Burns and Moore and Mrs.
Hemans, and, like the lays of Scotland and Pro-
vence> they breathed the flavor of the country air
and soil, and taught the generation of home-bom
minstrelsy that gave us the Hutchinson family,
Ossian E, Dodge, Covert with his "Sword of
Bunker HJll,'' and Philip Phillips, the "Singing
Pilgrim."
THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER.
Near the close of the last war with England,
Francis Scott Key, of Baltimore, the author of this
splendid national hymn, was detained under guard
on the British flag-ship at the mouth of the Petap-
sco, where he had gone under a flag of truce tu
procure the release of a captured friend. Dr. Wil-
liam Beanes of Upper Marlboro, Md.
The enemy's fleet was preparing to bombard
Fort McHenry, and Mr. Key's return with his
friend was forbidden lest their plans should be
disclosed. Forced to stay and witness the attack
on his country's flag, he walked the deck through
334 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
the whole night of the bombardment unt3 the
bieak of day showed the brave standard still flying
at full mast over die fort. Relieved of his patriotic
anxieQr, he pencilled the exultant lines and chonu
of his song on the back of a letter, and, assoon as he
was released^ carried it to the city, where withir
twenty-four hours it was printed on flyers» circu-
lated and sung in the streets to the air o^" Anacreoi
in Heaven'' — which has been the '"Star Spanglec
Banner'' tune ever since.
O tsf , can yen wee by die dawn's earily figh^
Wbac so pmadty we hafled ai the twilight's last gleaming?
Whose broad stripes and blight stars thiou^ the perilous fig^
(Xer the rampaits we watched, were so gallantly streaming.
And the rockets red glare, the bombs bursting in air
Gave proof through the night that the flag W2S still there:
O say, does the star-spangled banner yet wave,
CXer the land of the free and the home of the brave ?
♦ ♦♦♦♦♦
O dius be it ever when freemen shall stand.
Between their loved homes and the war's desolation;
Blessed with victory and peace, may the heaven-
rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a
nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just.
And this be our motto, "In God is our trust'*
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave.
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave.
The original star-spangled banner that wavec
over Fort McHenry in sight of the poet when he
wrote the famous hymn was made and presentee
to the garrison by a girl of fifteen, afterwards Mrs
(
PATRIOTIC HYMNS. 335
Sanderson, and Is still preserved in the Sanderson
family at Baltimore.
The additional stanza to the ^'Star-Spangled
Banner" —
When our land is illumined vnth Liberty's smile, etc.,
— ^was composed by Dr. O. W. Holmes, in 1861.
The tune "Anacreon in Heaven" was an old
English hunting air composed by John Stafford
Smith, bom at, Gloucester, Eng. 1750. He was
composer for Covent Garden Theater, and con-
ductor of the Academy of Ancient Music. Died
Sep. 20, 1836. The melody was first used in
America to Robert Treat Palne's song, "Adams
and Liberty." Paine, bom 1778 — died 181 1, was
the son of Robert Treat Paine, signer of the Declar-
ation of Independence.
"STANDI THE GROUND'S YOUR OWN,MY BRAVES.^
Sympathetic admiration for the air, " Scots wha
hae wV Wallace bled," (or "Bruce's address," as it
was commonly called), with the syllables of Robert
Bums' silvery verse, lingered long in the land after
the wars were ended. It spoke in the poem of
John Plerpont, who caught Its pibroch thrill, and
built the metre of "Warren's Address at the Battle
of Bunker Hill" on the model of "Scots wha hae."
Stand! the ground's your own, my braves;
Will ye give it up to slaves ?
Will ye look for greener graves ?
« « « « « «
336 8T0&Y OF THB HTMNS AMD TUllBi.
Ill tllS CjOQ oTll&tlKt f
Die W6 1111^9 oc dw we 1
Bat O wbm cin dutt to dot
Be contMied 10 wdk
As where Heiveii tts dewi niD thed^
On uie nuilyred pstnot t bed^
And the lodee Aall nite their head
or hit deeds to tcO?
This poem, written about 1823, held a phce
many years in scho(^book8» and was one cf the
favorite achod-boy declamations. Whenever sung
on patriotic occasions, the music was sure to be
"Brace's Address/* That typi<cal Scotch tune was
phyed on the H^hland bag-pipes long before
Bums was bom; and known as "Hey tuttie taite/'
"Heard on Eraser's hautboy, it used to fill my
eyes with tears," Bums himself once wrote.
Rev. John Pierpont was bom in Litchfield, Ct.,
^ril 6, 1785. He was graduated at Yale, 1804,
taught school, studied law, engaged in trade, and
finally took a course in theology and became a
Unitarian minister, holding the pastorate of Hollis
St. Church, Boston, thirty-six years. He travelled
in the East, and wrote "Airs of Palestine." His
poem, "The Yankee Boy," has been much quoted.
Died in Medford, Mass., Aug. 26. 1866.
"MY COUNTRY, TIS OF THEE.'*
M
This simple lyric, honored so long with the name
America," and the title ''Our Natii^nal Hymn,"
PATRIOTIC HYMNS. 337
was written by Samuel Francis Smith, while a
theological student at Andover, Feb. 2, 1832. He
had before him several hymn and song tunes which
Lowell Mason had received from Germany, and,
knowing young Smith to be a good linguist, had
sent to him for translation. One of the songs, of
national character, struck Smith as adaptable to
home use if turned into American words, and he
wrote four stanzas of his own to fit the tune.
Mason printed them with the music, and under
his magical management the hymn made its debut
on a public occasion in Park St. Church, Boston,
July 4, 1832. Its very simplicity, with its rever-
ent spirit and easy-flowing language, was sure to
catch the ear of the multitude and grow into fami-
liar use with any suitable music, but it was the
foreign tune that, under Miason's happy pilotage,
winged it for the western world and launched it
on its long flight.
My country, 'tis of thcc.
Sweet land of liberty.
Of thee I sing;
Land where my fathers died.
Land of the pilgrims' pride.
From every mountain-side
Let freedom ring.
♦♦♦♦♦♦
Let music swell the breeze.
And ring from all the trees
5wect Freedom's song;
L^t mortiir tongues awake.
338 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Let all that breathe partake.
Let rocks their silence break.
The sound prolong.
Our fathers' God, to Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing;
Long may our land be brigltt
With Freedom's holy light;
Protect us by Thy might.
Great God, our King.
THE TUNE.
PageSy and at least two volumes, have been writ-
ten to prove the origin of that cosmopolitan, half-
Gregorian descant known here as "America/* and
in England as "God Save the King." William C.
Woodbridge of Boston brought it home with him
from Germany. The Germans had been singing
it for years (and are singing it now, more or less)
to the words, "Heil Dir Im Siegel Kranz," and the
Swiss to "Rufst Du mein Vaterland/* It was
sung in Sweden, also, and till 1833 it was in public
use in Russia commonly enough to give it a nat-
ional character. Von Weber introduced it in his
" Jubel" overture, and Beethoven, in 18 14, copied
it in C Major and wrote piano variations on it.
It has been ascribed to Henry Purcell (1696), to
LuUi, a French composer (1670), to Dr. John Bull
(1619), and to Thomas Ravenscroft and an old
Scotch carol as old as 1609. One might fancy that
the biography of the famous air resembled Melchi-
zedek's.
PATRIOTIC HYMNS,
339
The truth appears to be that certain bars of
music which might easily happen to be similar,
or even identical, when plain-song was the common
style, were produced at different times and places,
and one man finally harmonized the wandering
strains into a complete tune. It is now generally
conceded that the man was HenryCarey,a popular
English composer and dramatist of the first half
of the i8th century, who sang the melody as it now
is, in 1 740, at a public dinner given in honor of
Admiral Vernon after his capture of Porto Bello
(Brazil). This antedates any authenticated use
of the tune ipsissima forma m England or conti-
nental Europe,
The American history of it simply is that Wood-
bridge gave it to Mason and Mason gave it to
Smith — and Smith gave it "My Country Tis of
Thee,"
"BY THE RUDE BRIDGE/'
This genuinely American poem, written by
Ralph Waldo Emerson and called usually the
"Concord Hymn,'* was prepared for the dedicadon
of the Battle-monument in Concord, April 19, 1836,
and sung there to the time of "Old Hundred."
Apparently no change has been made in the
original except of a single word in the first line.
By the rude bridge that arched rhe flood.
Their fiag to April^s breeze unfurled.
Here once the embattled farmers stood.
And fired the shot heard round the world.
464 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
Joy to the woridi the Saviour reigpisl
Let men their songs employ
Whfle fields and floods, rocks, hills and plaoM
Repeat the sounding joy.
Dr. Edward Hodges (i 796-1867) wrote an ex-
cellent psalm-tune to it which is still in occasional
use, but the music united to the hymn in the pop-
ular heart is '^Antioch/' an adaptation from
Handel's Messiah. This companionship holds
unbroken from hymnal to hymnal and has done so
for sixty or seventy years; and, in spite of its fugue,
the tune — apparently by some magic of its own —
contrives to enlist the entire voice of a congregation,
the bass falling in on the third beat as if by intui-
tion. The truth is, the tune has become the habit
of the hymn, and to the thousands who have it by
heart, as they do in every village where there is a
singing school, "Antioch" is "Joy to the World,'*
and "Joy to the World" is "Antioch."
''HARK! WHAT MEAN THOSE HOLY VOICES r
This fine hymn, so many years appearing with
the simple sign " Cawood " or " J. Cawood " printed
under it, still holds its place by universal welcome.
Hark I what mean those holy voices
Sweetly sounding through the skies ?
Lo th' angelic host rejoices;
Heavenly hallelujahs rise.
Hear them tell the wondrous story.
Hear them chant in hymns of joy.
PATRIOTIC HYMNS. 34I
Awakening at early daybreak, she began ''to twine
the long lines of a hymn which promised to suit the
measure of the * John Brown * melody/*
This hymn was written out after a fashion in the
dark, by Mrs. Howe> and she then went back to sleep.
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coining of the Lord;
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are
stored;
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift swoni;
His truth is marching on.
I have seen Him in the watch-fires of a hundred circling campi^
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps;
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps;
His day is marching on.
I have read a fiery gospel writ in burnished rows of steel;
** As ye deal with my contemners, so with you my grace shall deal ;"
Let the Hero, bom of woman, crush the serpent with His heel.
Since God is marching on.
He has sounded forth the trumpet that shall never call retreat;
He is sifting out the hearts of men before His judgment seat;
Oh, be swift, my soul, to answer Him! be jubilant my feet!
Our God is marching on.
In the beauty of the lilies Christ was bom across the sea.
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me;
As He died to make men holy, let us die to make men free.
While God is marching on.
THE TUNE.
The music of the old camp-meeting refrain^ —
Say, brothers will you meet us ?
-or,—
O brH^r. will vou meet me.
342 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
(No. 173 in the Revivalist^ was written in 1855, ^7
John William StefFe, of Richmond, Va., for a fire
company, and was afterwards arranged by Frank-
lin H. Lummis. The air of the "John Brown
Song" was caught from this religious melody. The
old hymn-tune had the "Glory, Hallelujah" coda,
cadenced off with, " For ever, ever more."
In 1860-61 the garrison of soldiers at work on
the half-dismantled defenses of Fort Warren in
Boston Harbor, were fain to lighten labor and mock
fatigue with any species of fun suggested by cir-
cumstances or accident, and, as for music, they sang
everything they could remember or make up.
John Brown^s memory and fate were fresh in the
Northern mind, and the jollity of the not very
reverent army men did not exclude frequent allu-
sions to the rash old Harper's Ferry hero.
A wag conjured his spirit into the camp with a witti-
cism as to what he was doing, and a comrade retorted,
"Marchin' on, of course."
A third cried, "Pooh, John Brown's under-
ground."
A serio-comic debate added more words, and in
the midst of the banter, a musical fellow strung a
rhythmic sentence and trolled it to the Methodist
tune. " John Brown's body lies a mould'rin' in the
ground" was taken up by others who knew the air,
the following line was improvised almost instantly,
and soon, to the accompaniment of pick, shovel,
and crowbar, —
His soul goes marching on.
PATRIOTIC HYMNS.
343
I
—rounded the couplet with full lung power through
all the repetitions^ till the inevitable " glory, glory
hallelujah" had the voice of every soldier in the
fort. The song "took/' and the marching chorus
of the Federal armies of the Civil War was started
on its way* Mrs. Howe gave it a poem that made
its rusticity sublime, and the "Battle Hymn of the
Republic" began a career that promises to run till
battle hymns cease to be sung*
Julia Ward was born in New York city, May 27,
1819. In 1843 ^^^ became the wife of Samuel
Gridley Howe, the far-famed philanthropist and
champion of liberty^ and with him edited an anti-
slavery paper, the Boston Commonwialtb^ until the
Civil War closed its mission. During the war she
was active and influential— and has never ceased
to be so — in the cause of peace and justice, and in
every philanthropic movement. Her great hymn
first brought her prominently before the public, but
her many other writings would have made a literary
reputation. Her four surviving children are all emi-
nent in the scientific and literary world.
KELLER'S AMERICAN HYMN,
Naturally the title suggests the authorship of the
ode, but fate made Keller a musician rather than
a poet and hymnist, and the honors of the fine
anthem are divided. At the grand performance
which created its reputation, the hymn of Dr; O. W,
Holmes was substituted for the composer's words.
This is Keller's first stanza:
344 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Speed our republic, O Father on hjg^l
Lead us in pathways of justice and r^it.
Rulers, as well as the ruled, one and all.
Girdle with virtue the armor of might.
Hail! three times hail, to our countiy and iagi
Rulers, as well as the ruled, one and all.
Girdle with virtue the armor of might;
Hail! three times hail, to our countiy and flag!
**Flag" was the unhappy word at the end of
every one of the four stanzas. To match a short
vowel to an orotund concert note for two beats and
a "hold" was impossible. When the great Peace
Jubilee of 1872, in Boston, was projected, Dr.
Holmes was applied to, and responded with a lyric
that gave each stanza the rondeau effect designed
by the composer, but replaced the flat final with a
climax syllable of breadth and music:
Angel of Peace, thou hast wandered too long!
Spread thy white wings to the sunshine of love!
Come while our voices are blended in song.
Fly to our ark like the storm-beaten dove!
Fly to our ark on the wings of the dove.
Speed o'er the far-sounding billows of song,
Crown'd with thine olive-leaf garland of love»
Angel of Peace, thou hast waited too long!
« « 4> « 4c 4c
Angels of Bethlehem, answer the strain!
Hark! a new birth-song is filling the sky!
Loud as the storm-wind that tumbles the main.
Bid the full breath of the organ reply.
Let the loud tempest of voices reply.
Roll its long surge like the earth-shaking maini
Swell the vast song till it mounts to the sky!
Angels of Bethlehem, echo the strain!
PATRIOTIC HYMNS.
345
But the glory of the tune was Keller's own.
Soon after the close of the war a prize of S500 had
been offered by a committee of American gentlemen
for the best "national hymn" (meaning words and
music). Mr. Keller, though a foreigner, was a
naturalized citizen and patriot and entered the lists
as a competitor with the zeal of a native and the
ambition of an artist. Sometime in 1866 he finished
and copyrighted the noble anthem that bears his
name J and then began the struggle to get It before
the public and test Its merit. To enable him to
bring It our before the New York Academy of
Music, where (unfortunately) he determined to
make his first trial, his brother kindly lent him four
hundred dollars (which he had laid by to purchase
a little home), and he borrowed two hundred more
elsewhere.
The performance proved a failure, the total
receipts being only forty-two dollars. Keller was
$500 in debt, and his brother's house-money was
gone. But he refused to accept his failure as final
Boston (where he should have begun) was intro-
duced to his masterpiece at every opportunity, and
gradually, with the help of the city bands and a few
public concerts, a decided liking for it was worked
up. It was entered on the program of the Peace Ju-
bilee and sung by a chorus of ten thousand voices.
The effect was magnificent. "Keller's American
Hymn" became a recognized star number in the
repertoire of "best" national tunes j and now few
346 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
public occasions where patriotic music is demanded
omit it in their menu of song.*
It is pathetic to know that the composer's one
great success brought him only a barren renown.
The prize committee, on the ground that none of
the competing pieces reached the high standard of
excellence contemplated, withheld the $500, and
Keller's work received merely the compliment of
being judged worth presentation. The artist had
his copyright, but he remained a poor man.
Matthias Keller was bom at Ulm, Wurtemberg,
March 20, 18 13. In his youth he was both a musi-
Hn Buttcrworth^t ''Story of the Tunes,"'' under the account ol KeUer*8
puid motet, the foUowing sacred hymn is inserted as "often sung to kl**'—
Father Almighty, we bow at thy feet;
Humbly thy grace and thy goodness we own.
Answer in love when thy children entreat.
Hear our thanksgiving ascend to thy throne.
Seeking thy blessing, in worship we meetf
Trusting our souls on thy mercy alone;
Father Almighty, we bow at thy feet.
Breathe, Holy Spirit, thy comfort divine,
Tune every voice to thy music of peace;
Hushed in our hearts, with one whisper of thiney
Pride and the tumult of passion will cease.
Joy of the watchful, who wait for thy sign,
Hope of the sinful, who long for release,
Breathe, Holy Spirit, thy comfort divine.
God of salvation, thy glory we sing,
Honors to thee in thy temple belong;
Welcome the tribute of gladness we bring,
Loud-pealing organ and chorus of song.
While our high praises, Redeemer and King,
Blend with the notes of the angelic throng,
God of salvation, thy glory we sing.
— T heron Brawn,
PATRIOTIC HYMNS,
347
cian and a painter. Coming to this country, he
chose the calling that promised the better and
quicker wages, playing in bands and theatre
orchestras, but never accumulating money. He
could make fine harmonies as well as play them,
but English was not his mother-tongue, and though
he wrote a hundred and fifty songs, only one made
him well-known- When fame came to him it did
not bring him wealth, and in his latter days, crippled
by partial paralysis, he went back to his early an
and earned a living by painting flowers and re-
touching portraits and landscapes. He died in
1875, only three years after his Coliseum triumph.
*'GOD BLESS OUR NATIVE LAND/'
This familiar patriotic hymn is notable — though
not entirely singular — for having two authors.
The older singing-books signed the name of J, S.
Dwight to it, until inquiring correspondence
brought out the testimony and the joint claim of
Dwight and C. T, Brooks, and it appeared that
both these scholars and writers translated it from
the German. Later hymnals attach both their
names to the hymn,*
John Sullivan Dwight, born, in Boston, May 13,
18 13, was a virtuoso in music, and an enthusiastic
student of the art and science of tonal harmony.
He joined a Harvard musical club known as "The
*FQr ■ ft^n Mocoum cf thU dicputed hjmui^ and tlie crurbui trick of mcroorf
irhidi ctmfuted four nicoet m the questtoii of itt tu^ctfihip, tee Dr. Benaoo't
470 CTO&Y OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Rector Brooks was then in charge. Lewis Henrjr
Redner, bom 1831, was not only near the age of his
friend and pastor but as much devoted to the in-
terests of the Sunday-school, for whose use the
hymn was written, and he had promised to write
a score to which it could be sung on the coming
Sabbath. Waking in the middle of the night, after
a busy Saturday that sent him to bed with his
brain *'in a whirl/' he heard "an angel strain,"
and immediately rose and pricked the notes of the
melody. The tune had come to him just in rime
to be sung. A much admired tune has also been
written to this hymn by Hubert P. Main.
PALM SUNDAY.
FAURE'S 'TALM BRANCHES/'
Sur nos chemins Us rameaux et les fieurs
Sont Tepandot —
O'er all the way gr^en palms and blossoms gay
Are stn wn to-day in festive preparation.
Where Jesus comes to wipe our tears away.
E'en now the throng to welcome Him prepare;
Join all and sing. —
Jean Baptiste Faure, author of the words and
music> was bom at Moulins, France, Jan. 15, 1830.
As a boy he was gifted with a beautiful voice, and
crowds used to gather wherever he sang in the ^
PATRIOTIC HYMNS.
349
n
N
the two were united by Mason himself. It is
braver music than '* America/* and would have
carried Dr. Smith's hymn nobly, but the borrowed
tune, on the whole, better suits "My Country *tis
of thee," — and besides, it has the advantage of a
middle-register harmony easy for a multitude of
voices.
"THOU, TOO, SAIL ON, O SHIP OF STATE,"
The closing canto of Longfellow's "Launch-
ing of the Ship," almost deserves a patriotic hymn-
tune, though its place and use are commonly with
school recitations.
"GOD OF OUR FATHERS, KNOWN OF OLD."
Rudyard Kipling, in a moment of serious re-
flection on the flamboyant militarism of British
sentiment during the South African War, wrote
this remarkable "Recessional^" so strikingly un-
like his other war-time poems. It is to be hoped
he did not suddenly repent his Christian impulse,
but with the chauvinistic cry around him, *'Our
Gauntry, right or wrong!" he seems to have felt
the contrast of his prayer — and flung it into the
waste-basket. His watchful wife rescued it (the
story says) and bravely sent it to the London
Times- The world owes her a debt. The hymn
IS not only an anthem for Peace Societies, but a
tonic for true patriotism. When Freedom fights
in self-defense, she need not force herself to *' for-
get" the Lord of Hosts,
350 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
God of our fathers, known of old.
Lord of our far-^ting battle-line.
Beneath whose awful hand we hold
Dominion over palm and pine;
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet.
Lest we forget, lest we forget.
The tumult and the shouting dies.
The captains and the kings depai^
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice.
An humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us ytt.
Lest we forget, lest we forget.
Far-called, our navies melt away.
On dune and headland sinks the fiie;
Lo all our pomp of yesterday
Is one with Nineveh and Tyre.
Judge of the narions, spare us yet.
Lest we forget, lest we forget.
If, drunk with sight of power, we loose
Wild tongues that have not Thee in awe.
Such boasting as the Genriles use
Or lesser breeds without the law.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet.
Lest we forget, lest we forget.
For heathen heart that puts her trust.
In reeking tube and iron shard,
All valiant dust that builds on dust
And guarding, calls not Thee to guard.
For frantic boast and foolish word
Thy mercy on thy people, Lord!
Had Kipling cared more for his poem, and kept
It longer in hand, he might have revised a line or
two tiiat would possibly seem commonplace to
PATRIOTIC HYMKS.
351
H him — and corrected the grammar in the first line
H of the second stanza. But of so fine a composition
H there is no call for finical criticism. The *' Reces-
■ sional*' is a product of the poet's holiest mood*
"The Spirit of the Lord came upon him"^ — as the
old Hebrew phrase is, and for the time he was a
rapt prophet, with a backward and a forward
vision. Providence saved the hymn> and it touched
and sank into the better mind of the nation. It is
already learned bj heart — and sung — wherever
English is the common speech, and will be heard
in numerous translatrcns, with the wish that there
were more patriot -: nynins of the same Christian
temper ar: ; strength,
Rudyard Ktpling was bom in Hindostan in 1865.
Even with his first ) outhful experiments in the field
of literature he was hailed as the coming apostle of
muscular poetry and prose. For a time he made
America his home, and it was while here that he
faced death through a fearful and protracted sickness
that brought hina very near to God. He has visited
many countries and described them all, and, though
sometimes his imagination drives a reckless pen,
the Christian world hopes much from a man whose
genius can make the dullest souls listen.
tHE TUNE.
The music set to Kipling's hymn is Stainer*«
"Magdalen'* — (not his "Magdalina " which is a
common-metre tune) — and wonderfully fits the
476 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
And seized eternal youth,
Man all immortal, hail I
Hetven's all the ^ory, man's the boundless bliat.
*TES, THE REDEEMER ROSE,''
In the six-eight syllable verse once known as
'^ hallelujah metre" — ^written by Dr. Doddridge
to be sung after a sermon on the text in ist Co-
rinthians noted in the above anthem —
Yes, the Redeemer rose.
The Saviour left the dead.
And o*er our hellish foes
High raised His conquering head.
In wild dismay the guards around
Fall to the ground and sink away.
Lewis Edson's ''Lenox'' (1782) is an old favorite
among its musical interpreters.
**0 SHORT WAS HIS SLUMBER/'
This hymn for the song-service of the Ruggles
St. Church, Boston, was written by Rev. Theron
Brown.
O short was His slumber; He woke from the dust;
The Saviour death's chain could not hold;
And short, since He rose, is the sleep of the just;
They shall wake, and His glory behold.
41 41 41 41 * *
Dear grave in the garden; hope smiled at its door
Where love's brightest triumph was told;
Christ lives! and His life will His people 1
They shall wake, and His glory behold.
CHAPTER X.
SAILORS' HYMNa
The oldest saflors* hymn is found in the 107th
Psalm, vss. 23-30:
They that go down to the sea in Mpe,
To do business in great waters.
These see the works of the Lord,
Aod His wonders in the deep, etc
Montgomery has made this metrical renderii^
of these verses:
They that toil upon the deep.
And in vessels light and frafl
O'er the mighty waters sweep
With the billows and the gale,
Mark what wonders God performs
When He speaks, and, unconfined.
Rush to battle all His storms
In the chariots of the wind.
The hymn is not in the collections, and has no tune.
Addison paraphrased the succeeding verses of the
Psalm in his hymn, "How are thy servants blessed
O Lord, " sung to Hugh Wilson's* tune of "Avon " :
4Bugh Wilioo was a Scotch weaTcr of Kflmamock, ham 17^; died i8^»
(368)
354 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
When by the dreadful tcmpesi borne
H^ on the broken ware.
They knowThoa art not slow to beai^
Nor impotent to save.
The storm Is laid, the winds retire^
Obedient to Thy will;
The sea that roars at Thy command.
At Thy command is sdll.
-HERCE WAS THE WILD BILLOW •
The ancient writer, Anatolius, who composed
this hymn has for centuries been confounded with
**St" Anatolius, patriarch of Constandnople, who
died A. D. 458. The author of the hymn lived in
the seventh century, and except that he wrote sev-
eral hymns, and also poems in praise of the martyrs,
nothing or next to nothing, is known of him. The
"Wild Billow'* song was the principle seaman's
hymn of the early church. It is being introduced into
modem psalmody, the translation in use ranking
among the most successful of Dr. John Mason
Neale's renderings from the Greek.
Fierce was the wild billow.
Dark was the night;
Oars labored heavily,
Foam glimmered white;
Trembled the mariners;
Peril was nigh;
Then said the God of God«
"PeaccI It is I!"
SAILORS HYMNS, 355
Ridge of the mountain wave.
Lower thy crest!
Wail of Euroclydon,
Be thou at rest I
Sorrow can never be.
Darkness must fly.
When saith the Light of Li^ht»
"Peace! It is I!"
THE TUNE.
The desire to represent the antiquity of the hymn
and the musical style of its age, and on the other
hand the wish to utilize it in the tune-manuals for
Mariners' Homes and Seamen's Bethels, makes a
difficulty for composers to study — and the task is
still open to competition. Considering the peculiar
tone that sailors' singing instinctively takes — and
has taken doubtless from time immemorial — per-
haps the plaintive melody of "Neale," by J. H,
Cornell, comes as near to a vocal success as could
be hoped. The music is of middle register and less
than octave range, natural scale, minor, and the
triple time lightens a little the dirge-like harmony
while the weird sea-song eff^ect is kept. A chorus
of singing tars must create uncommon emotion,
chanting this coronach of the storm.
John Henry Cornell was bom in New York city.
May 8, 1838, and was for many years organist at
St. Paul's Chapel, Trinity Church. He is the author
of numerous educational works on the theory and
practice of music. He composed the above tune in
1872. Died March i, 1894.
35^ 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
*^AVE, MARIS STELLA.'*
One of the titles which the Roman Catholic worid
applied to the Mother of Jesus, in the Middle Ages,
was ** Stella Maris, '' '' Star of the Sea. '' G>lumbus9
being a Catholic, sang this hymn, or caused it to be
sung, every evening, it is said, during his perilous
voyage to an unknown land. The marine epithet
by which the Virgin Mary is addressed is admir-
able as a stroke of poetry, and the hymn — of six
stanzas — ^is a prayer which, though offered to her
as to a divine being, was no doubt sincere in the
simple sailor hearts of 1492.
The two following quatrains finish the voyagenT
petition^ and point it with a doxology —
Vitam praesta puram.
Iter para tutum,
Ut videntes Jesum
Semper collaetemur.
Sit laus Deo Patri,
Summo Chnsto decus,
Spiritui Sancto,
Tribus honor unusi
A free translation is —
Guide us safe, unspotted
Through life's long endeavor
Till with Thee and Jesus
We rejoice forever.
Praise to God the Father,
Son and Spirit be;
One and equal honor
To the Holy Three,
SAILORS HYMNS.
357
Inasmuch as this ancient hymn did not attain the
height of its popularity and appear in all the brev*
iaries until the loth century^ its assumed age has
been doubted, but its reputed author, Venantius
Foitunatus, Bishop of Poitiers, was born about 531,
at Treviso, Italy, and died about 609. Though a
religious teacher, he was a man of romantic and con-
vivial instincts— a strange compound of priest, poet
and beau chevalier, Duffield calls him "the last
of the classics and first of the troubadours/' and
states that he was the *' first of the Christian poets
to begin that worship of the Virgin Mary which
rose to a passion and sank to an idobtiy/'
TUNES
To this ancient rogation poem have been composed
by Aiblinger (Johann Caspar), Bavarian, (1779-
1867,) by Proch(Heinrich), Austrian, {1809-1878,)
byTadolini (Giovanni), Italian, (1803-18 72,) and by
many others. The ''Ave, Maris Stella" is in con-
stant use in the Romish church, and its English
translation by Caswall is a favorite hymn in the
Lyra Caiholica,
"AVE, SANCnSSTMAr
TTiis beautiful hymn is not introduced here in
order of time, but because it seems akin to the
foregoing, and bom of its faith and traditions —
though it sounds rather too fine for a sailor songj on
358 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
ship or shore. Like the other, the tuneful prayer is
khe voice of ultramontane piety accustomed to deify
Mary, and is entitled the ''Evening Song to the
Virgin/'
Ave Sancdssiina! we lift our souls to Thee
Ora pro nobis! 'tis nightfall on the sea.
Watch us while shadows lie
Far o'er the waters spread;
Hear the heart's lonely sigh;
Thine, too, hath bled.
Thou that hast looked on death.
Aid us when death is near;
Whisper of heaven to faith;
Sweet Mother, hearl
Ora pro nobis! the wave must rock our sleep;
Ora, Mater, ora! Star of the Deep!
This was first written in four separate quatrains,
*' *Tis nightfall on the sea" being part of the first
instead of the second line, and "We lift our souls,"
etc., was " Our souls rise to Thee," while the apostro-
phe at the end read, "Thou Star of the Deep."
The fact of the modem origin of the hymn does
not make it less probable that the earlier one of
Fortunatus suggested it. It was written by Mrs.
Hemans, and occurs between the forty-third and
forty-fourth stanzas of her long poem, "The
Forest Sanctuary."
A Spanish Christian who had embraced the
Protestant faith fled to America (such is the story
of the poem) to escape the cruelties of the In-
quisition, and took with him his Catholic wife and
his child. During the voyage the wife pined away
sailors' hymns. 359
and died, a martyr to her conjugal loyalty and
love. The hymn to the Virgin purports to have
been her daily evening song at sea, plaintively
remembered by the broken-hearted husband and
father in his forest retreat on the American shore
with his motherless boy.
The music was composed by a sister of Mrs.
Hemans, Mrs. Hughes, who probably arranged
the lines as they now stand in the tune.
The song, though its words appear in the Paro*
chial Hymn-hook^ seems to be in use rather as
parlor music than as a part of the liturgy.
** JESUS, LOVER OF MY SOUL.'*
The golden quality of this best-known and loved
of Charles Wesley's hymns is attested by two in-
dorsements that cannot be impeached; its peren-
nial life, and the blessings of millions who needed
it.
Jesus, Lover of my soul
Let me to Thy bosom fly.
While the billows near me roll.
While the tempest still is high.
Hide me, O my Saviour, hide.
Till the storm of life is past.
Safe into the haven guide,
O receive my soul at last!
Wesley is believed to have written it when a
young man, and story and legend have been busy
with the circumstances of its birth. The most
poetical account alleges that a dove chased by a
i6o
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
hawk dashed thmugh his open window into hti
bosom» and the inspiration to write the line —
Let me to Thy bosoni flj»
— was the genesis of the poem. Another leport has it
that one day Mr. Wesley, being pursued by in-
furiated persecutors at Killalee^ County Down^
Ireland^ took refuge in a milk-house on the home-
stead of the Island Band Fann, When the mob
came up the farmer's wife, Mrs, Jane Lowrie
Moore, offered them refreshments and secretly
let out the fugitive through a window to the back
garden, where he concealed himself under a hedgp
till his enemies went away. When they had gone
he had the hymn in his mind and partly jotted
down. This tale is circumstantial, and came
through Mrs. Maty E, Hoover, Jane Moore's
granddaughter, who told it many years ago to her
pastor, Dn William Laurie of Bellefonte, Pa, So
careful a narrative deserves all the respect due to
a family tradition. Whether this or still another
theory of the incidental cause of the wonderful
hymn shall have the last word may never be decided
nor is it important*
There is ** antecedent probability," at least, in
the statement that Wesley wrote the first two
stanzas soon after his perilous experience in a
storm at sea during his return voyage from America
to England in 1 736. In a letter dated Oct. aS of
that year, he describes the storm that washed away
a large part of the ship's cargo, strained her seams
SAILORS* HYMNS. 36 1
SO that the hardest pumping could not keep pace
with the inrushing water, and finally forced the
captain to cut the mizzen-mast away. Young
Wesley was ill and sorely alarmed, but knew, he
says, that he ''abode under the shadow of the Al-
mighty,*' and finally, "in this dreadful moment,*'
he was able to encourage his fellow-passengers who
were " in an agony of fear," and to pray with and
for them.
It was his awful hazard and bare escape in that
tempest that prompted the following stanzas —
O Thou who didst prepare
The ocean's cavemed cell.
And teach the gathering waters there
To meet and dwell;
Toss'd in our reeling bark
Upon this briny sea.
Thy wondrous ways, O Lord, we made.
And sing to Thee.
41 4( 4( 4( 4( 4(
Borne on the dark'ning wave^
In measured sweep we go^
Nor dread th' unfathomable grave.
Which yawns below;
For He is nigh who trod
Amid the foaming spray.
Whose billows own'd th' Incarnate Gody
And died away.
And naturally the memory of his almost ship-
wreck on the wild Atlantic colored more or less the
visions of his muse, and influenced the metaphors
of his verse for years.
362 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
The popularity of " Jesus, Lover of my Soul " not
only procured it, at home, the name of *' England's
song of the sea,*' but carried it with "the course of
Empire" to the West, where it has reigned with
"Rock of Ages,'* for more than a hundred and
fifty years, joint primate of inspired human songs
Compiled incidents of its heavenly service would
fill a chapter. A venerable minister tells of the
supernal comfort that lightened his after years of
sorrow from the dying bed of his wife who whis-
pered with her last breath, "Hide me, O my
Saviour, hide/*
A childless and widowed father in Washington
remembers with a more than earthly peace, the wife
and mother's last request for Wesley's hymn, and
her departure to the sound of its music to join the
spirit of her babe.
A summer visitor in Philadelphia, waidng on a
hot street-comer for a car to Fairmount Park, over-
heard a quavering voice singing the same hymn
and saw an emaciated hand caressing a little plant
in an open window — and carried away the picture
of a fading life, and the words —
Other refuge have I none,
Hangs my helpless soul on Thee.
On one of the fields of the Civil War, just after
a bloody battle, the Rev. James Rankin of the
United Presbyterian Church bent over a dying
soldier. Asked if he had any special request to
make, the brave fellow replied, "Yes, sing 'Jesus,
Lover of my Soul.' "
SAILORS* HYMNS. 363
The clergyman belonged to a church that sang
only Psalms. But what a tribute to that ubiqui-
tous hymn that such a man knew it by heart! A
moment's hesitation and he recalled the words, and,
for the first time in his life, sang a sacred song that
was not a Psalm. When he reached the lines, —
Safe into the haven guide,
O receive my soul at last,
— his hand was in the frozen grip of a dead man,
whose face wore "the light that never was on sea
or land." The minister went away saying to him-
self, " If this hymn is good to die by, it is good to live
by."
THE TUNE.
Of all the tone-masters who have studied and
felt this matchless hymn, and given it vocal wings —
Marsh, Zundel, Bradbury, Dykes, Mason — ^none
has so exquisitely uttered its melting prayer,
syllable by syllable, as Joseph P. Holbrook in his
"Refuge." Unfortunately for congregational use,
it is a duo and quartet score for select voices; but
the four-voice portion can be a chorus, and is often
so sung. Its form excludes it from some hymnals
or places it as an optional beside a congregational
tune. But when rendered by the choir on special
occasions its success in conveying the feeling
and soul of the words is complete. There is a
prayer in the swell of every semitone and the touch
of every accidental, and the sweet concord of the
364 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
duet — soprano with tenor or bass — pleads <mi to
the end of the fourth line, where the fuU harmcMiy
reinforces it like an organ with eveiy stop in play.
The tune is a rill of melody ending in a river of
•ong.*
For general congr^adonal use. Mason's ** Whit-
man'' has wedded itself to the hymn periiaps
closer than any other. It has revival associations
reaching back more than six^ years.
**WHEN MARSHALLED ON THE NIGHTLY PLAIN."
Perhaps no line in all familiar hymnology more
readily suggests the name of its author than this.
In the galaxy of poets Heniy Kirke White was a
brief luminary whose brilliancy and whose early
end have appealed to the hearts of three gener-
adons. He was bom at Nottingham, Eng., in the
year 1795. His father was a butcher, but the son,
disliking the trade, was apprenticed to a weaver
at the age of fourteen. Two years later he entered
an attorney's office as copyist and student.
The boy imbibed sceptical notions from some
source, and might have continued to scoff at
religion to the last but for the experience of his
intimate friend, a youth named Almond, whose life
was changed by witnessing one day the happy
death of a Christian believer. Decided to be a
*HoIbrook has also an arrangement of Franz Abt*s, '"When the Swallows
Homeward Fly" written to "Jesus, Lover of my Soul," but with Wesley's
words it is far less effective than his original work * 'Refuge** is not a manufac-
ture hut an inspiration.
sailors' hymns. 365
Christian himself, it was some time before he
mustered courage to face White's ridicule and
resentment. He simply drew away from him.
When White demanded the reason he was obliged
to tell him that they two must henceforth walk
different paths.
"Good God!*' exclaimed White, "you surely
think worse of me than I deserve!**
The separation was a severe shock to Henry,
and the real grief of it sobered his anger to reflec-
tion and remorse. The light of a better life came
to him when his heart melted — and from that rime
he and Almond were fellows in faith as well as
friendship.
In his hymn the young poet tells the stormy
experience of his soul, and the vision that guided
him to peace.
When, manhaned on the nightly plain.
The glittering hoot bestud the sky.
One scar alone of all the train
Can fix the sinner's wandering eye.
Hark, hark! to God the chorus bmks»
From every host, from eveiy gem.
But one alone the Saviour speaks;
It is the Star of Bethlehem.
Once on the raging seas I rode:
The storm was loud, the night was dark;
The ocean yawned, and rudely blowed
The wind that tossed my foundering bark*
Deep horror then my vitals froze,
Dtath-struck, I ceased the tide to stem.
When suddenly a star arose;
It was the Star of Bethlehem.
366 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
It was my guide, my light, my all.
It bade my dark forebodings cease;
And through the stonn and danger's thralL
It led me to the port of peace.
Now, safely moored, my perils o'er,
111 sing, first in night's diadem.
For ever and for evermore,
The Star, the Star of Bethlehem!
Besides this delightful hymn, with its graphic
sea-faring metaphors, two others, at least, of the
same boy-poet hold their place in many of the
church and chapel collections:
The Lord our God is clothed with mi^t.
The winds obey His will;
He speaks, and in his heavenly height
The rolling sun stands still.
And—
Oft in danger, oft in woe.
Onward, Christians, onward go.
Henry Kirke White died in the autumn of 1806,
when he was scarcely twenty years old. His "Ode
to Disappointment,*' and the miscellaneous flowers
and fragments of his genius, make up a touching
volume. The fire of a pure, strong spirit burning
through a consumptive frame is in them all.
THE TUNE.
'"When, marshalled on the mighty plain" has
a choral set to it in the Methodist Hymnal — credi-
ted to Thos. Harris, and entitled "Crimea" — •
which divides the three stanzas into six, and
■l
fVilliam B.
Bradbury
SAILORS HYMNS*
3^
breaks the continuity of the hymn. Better sing i^
in its original form — long metre double — ^to tht
dear old melody of " Bonny Doon," The voices
of Scotland, England and America are blended in it*
The origin of this Caledonian air, though some-
times fancifully traced to an Irish harper and
sometimes to a wandering piper of the Isle of Man,
is probably lost in antiquity. Burns, however,
whose name is linked with it, tells this whimsical
story of it, though giving no date save '* a good
many years ago,** — (apparently about 1753)- A
virtuoso, Mr. James Millar, he writes, wishing he
were able to compose a Scottish tune, was told by a
musical friend to sit down to his harpsichord and
make a rhythm of some kind solely on the black
keySf and he would surely turn out a Scotch tune.
The musical friend, pleased at the result of his
jest, caught the string of plaintive sounds made by
Millar, and fashioned it into " Bonny Doon/*
"LAND AHEADr
The burden of this hymn was suggested by the
dying words of John Adams, one of the crew of
the English ship Bounty who in 1789 mutinied,
set the captain and officers adrift, and ran the
vessel to a tropical island, where they burned her.
In a few years vice and violence had decimated
the wicked crew, who had exempted themselves
from all divine and human restraint, until the last
man alive was left with only narive women and
494 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNBS.
truth; and when both present themselves at once,
the truth needs only commonplace statement. If
the statement is in rhyme and measure more at-
tention is secured. Add a tune to it, and the most
frivolous will take notice. Newton's hymn sung
on the last evening of the year has its opportunity —
and never fails to produce a solemn effect; but
it is to the immortal music given to it in Samuel
Webbe's " Benevento" that it owes its unique and
permanent place. Dykes' "St. Edmund'' may be
sung in England, but in America it will never re-
place Webbe's simple and wonderfully impressive
choral.
Charles Wesley's hymn is the andpode of New-
ton's in metre and movement.
Come, let us anew our journey pursue.
Roll round with the year
And never stand still till the Master appear.
His adorable will let us gladly fulBl
And our talents improve
By the patience of hope and the labor of love.
Our life is a dream, our time as a stream
Glides swiftly away.
And the fugitive moment refuses to stay.
The arrow is flown, the moment is gone.
The millennial year.
Rushes on to our view, and eternity's near.
One could scarcely imagine a greater contrast
than between this hymn and Newton's. In spite
of its eccentric metre one cannot dismiss it as
rhythmical jingle, for it is really a sermon shaped
into a popular canticle, and the surmise is not a
sailors' hymns. 369
Land ahead I its fruits are waving
O'er the hOis of fadeless green;
And the living waters laving
Shores where heavenly forms are seen*
Chorus.
Rocks and storms Til fear no more^
When on that eternal shore;
Drop the anchor! furl the sail I
I am safe within the veil.
Onward, bark! the cape I'm rounding;
See, the blessed wave their hands;
Hear the harps of God resounding
From the bright immortal bands.
The authorship of the hymn is credited to Rev.
E. Adams — ^whether or not a descendent of the
Island Patriarch we have no information. It was
written about 1869.
The ringing melody that bears the words was
composed by John Miller Evans, bom Nov. 30,
1825; died Jan. i, 1892. The original air — ^with a
simple accompaniment — ^was harmonized by Hu-
bert P. Main, and published in Winnowed Hymns
in 1873.
"ETERNAL FATHER, STRONG TO SAVE."
This is sung almost universally on English ships.
It is said to have been one of Sir Evelyn Wood's
favorites. The late William Whiting wrote it in
i860, and it was incorporated with some altera-
tions in the standard English Church collection
370 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
entitled Hymns Ancient and Modem. It is a
translation from a Latin hymn, a triune litany ad-
dressing a stanza each to Father, Son and Holy
Spirit. The whole four stanzas have the same
refrain, and the appeal to the Father, who bids —
—the mi^ty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep,
— ^varies in the appeal to Christ, who—
--wJkeJ upon die foaming deep.
The third and fourth stanzas are the foUowing:
O Holy Spirit, Who didst brood
Upon the waters dark and rude.
And bid their angiy tumult cease.
And give, for wild confusion, peace;
Oh, hear us when we ciy to Thee
For those in peril on the sea.
O Trinity of love and power,
Our brethren shield in danger's hour;
From rock and tempest, fire and foe.
Protect them wheresoe'er they go:
Thus evermore shall rise to Thee
Glad hymns of praise from land to sea.
William Whiting was born at Kensington, Lon-
don, Nov. I, 1825. H^ ^^s Master of Winchester
College Chorister's School. Died in 1878.
THE TUNE,
The choral named "Melita" (in memory of St.
Paul's shipwreck) was composed by Dr. Dykes
in 1 86 1, and its strong and easy chords and mod-
sailors' hymns. 371
erate note range are nobly suited to the devout
hymn.
THE OCEAN HATH NO DANGER.''
This charming sailors' lyric is the work of the
Rev. Godfrey Thring. Its probable date is 1862,
and it appeared in Morell and Howe's collection
and in Hymns Congregational and Othersy pub-
lished in i866y which contained a number from
his pen. Rector Thring was bom at Alford, Som-
ersetshire, Eng.y March 25, 1823, and educated at
Shrewsbury School and Baliol College, Oxford.
In 1858 he succeeded his father as Rector of Alford.
He compiled A Church of England Hymnbook
in 1880.
The ocean hath no danger
For those whose prayers are made
To Him who in a manger
A helpless Babe was laid.
Who, bom to tribulation
And every human ill»
The Lord of His creation^
The wildest waves can sdlL
«]»]»]»««
Though life itself be waning
And waves shall o'er us sweep^
The wild winds sad complaining
Shall lull us still to sleep.
For as a gentle slumber
E'en death itself shall prove
To those whom Christ doth number
As worthy of His love.
372 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
The tune " Morlaix/' given to the hymn by Dr.
DykeSy is simple, but a very sweet and appropriate
harmony.
'^nERCE RAGED THE TEMPEST ON THE DEEP.'*
This fine lyric, based on the incident in the storm
on the Sea of Galilee, is the work of the same writer
and owes its tune "St. Aelred" to the same com-
poser.
The melody has an impressive rallentando of
dotted semibreves to the refrain, " Peace, be still,'*
after the more rapid notes of the three-line stanzas.
The wild winds hushed, the angiy deep
Sank like a little child to sleep,
The sullen waters ceased to leap.
4t 4t ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
So when our life is clouded o'er
And storm-winds drift us from the shote
Say, lest we sink to rise no more,
"Peace! be still."
••PULL FOR THE SHORE."*
When a shipwrecked crew oflF a rocky coast were
hurrying to the long-boat, a sailor begged leave to
run back to the ship's forecastle and save some of
his belongings.
"No sir," shouted the Captain, "she's sinking!
There's nothing to do but to pull for the shore."
Philip P. Bliss caught up the words, and wrought
them into a hymn and tune.
SAILORS HYMNS. 373
Light in the darkness, sailor, day Is at hand I
See o'er the foaming billows fair Haven's land;
Drear was the voyage, sailor, now almost o'er;
Safe in the life-boat, sailor, pull for the shotel
Chorus.
Pull for the shore, sailor, pull for the shore!
Heed not the rolling waves, but bend to the oar;
Safe in the life-boat, sailor, cling to self no more;
Leave the poor old stranded wreck and pull for the shotel
The hymn-tune is a buoyant allegro — solo and
chorus — full of hope and courage, and both imagery
and harmony appeal to the hearts of seamen. It is
popular, and has long been one of the song numbers
in demand at religious services both on sea and land.
The Rev. Edward Hopper, D.D. wrote this
hymn while pastor of Mariner's Qiurch at New
York harbor, "The Church of the Sea and Land."
He was bom in 18 18, and graduated at Union
Theological Seminary in 1843.
Jesus, Saviour, pilot me
Over life's tempestuous sea.
Unknown waves before me roll.
Hiding rock and treacherous shoal;
Chart and compass come from Thee,
Jesus, Saviour, pilot me!
Only three stanzas of this rather lengthy hymn
are in common use.
374 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
THE TUNE.
Without title except " Savior, pilot me/* A simple
and pleasing melody composed by John Edgar
Gould, late of the firm of Gould and Fischer, piano
dealers, Phila., Pa, He was bom in Bangor, Me*>
April 9, 1822. Conductor of music and composer of
psalm and hymn tunes and glees, he also compiled
and published no less than eight books of church,
Sunday-school, and secular songs. Died in Algiers,
Africa, Feb, 13, 1875*
"THROW OUT THE LIFE-LINE."
This IS one of the popular refrains that need but
a single hearing to fix themselves in common
memory and insure their own currency and eclats
The Rev< E, S, UfFord, well-known as a Baptist
preacher, lecturer, and evangelist, was witnessing
a drill at the life-saving station on Point Allerton,
Nantasket Beach, when the order to "throw out
the life-line" and the sight of the apparatus in
action, combined with the story of a shipwreck on
the spot, left an echo in his mind rill it took the
form of a song-sermon. Returning home, he
pencilled the words of this rousing hymn, and,
being himself a singer and player, sat down to his
instrument to match the lines with a suitable air.
It came to him almost as spontaneously as the
music of "The Ninety and Nine" came to Mr.
Sankey< In fifteen minutes the hymn-tune was
SAILORS HYMNS.
375
n
^
^
made — so far as the melody went. It was pub-
lished in sheet form in 1 888, and afterwards pur-
chased by Mr. Sankey, harmonized by Mr. Steb-
bins, and published in Winnowed Songs, 1890*
Included in Gospel Hymns, Nov. 6, 1891.
Ever since it has been a favorite with singing
seamen, and has done active service as one of our
most stirring field-songs in revival work.
Throw out the Life-line across the clark wave,
There is a brother whom some one shout<l savci
Somebody's brother 1 oh, who, then^ will dare
To throw out the Life-Une, his peril to share ?
Throw out the Life-line with hand quick and ftrongf
Why do you tarryj why linger so long?
See I he is sinking; oh, hasten today —
And out with the Life-boat! away, then awayl
Chorus.
Throw out the Lifo-Iincf
Throw out the Life-line I
Some one is drifting away;
Throw out the Life-line!
Throw out the Life-line!
Some one is sinking today.
One evening, in the midst of their hilarity at
their card-tables, a convivial club in one of the large
Pennsylvania cities heard a sweet, clear female
voice singing this solo hymn, followed by a chime
of mingled voices in the chorus, A room in the
building had been hired for religious meetings, and
tonight was the first of the series. A strange cool-
ness dampened the merriment in the club-room,
J76
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNia
as the singing went on, and the gradual silence
became a hush> till finally one member threw down
his cards and declared, "If what they're saying is
right, then we're wrong."
Others followed his example, then another, and
another*
There is a brother whom some one should ssitc.
Quietly the revellers left their cards, cigars and
half-emptied glasses and went home.
Said the ex-member who told the story years
after to Mn UfFord, "Throw Out the Life-line'
broke up that club/*
He is today one of the responsible editors of a
great city daily — ^and his old club-mates are all
holding positions of trust*
A Christian man, a prosperous manufacturer in
a city of Eastern Massachusetts, dates his first
religious impressions from hearing this hymn when
sung in public for the first time, twenty years ago-
Visiting California recently, Mr, Ufford sang his
hymn at a watch-meeting and told the story of the
loss of the Elsie Smith on Cape Cod in 1902, ex-
hibiting also the very life-line that had saved sixteen
lives from the wreck. By chance one of those six-
teen was in the audience*
An English clergyman who was on duty at Gib-
raltar when an emigrant ship went on the rocks
in a storm, tells with what pathetic power and
eflFect "Throw out the Life-line" was sung at a
special Sunday service for the survivors.
SAILORS HYMNS.
377
B At one of Evan Roberts* meetings in Laughor,
■ Wales, one speaker related the stoty of a "vision,"
H when in his room alone, and a Voice that bade him
^ pray> and when he knelt but could not pray, com-
manded him to "Throw out the Life-line/' He
had scarcely uttered these words in his story when
the whole great congregation sprang to its feet and
shouted the hymn together like the sound of many
waters,
"There is more electricity in that song than in
any other I ever heard/' Dn Cuyler said to Mr.
San key when he heard him sing it. Its electricity
has carried it nearly round the world.
The Rev, Edward Smith UfFord was bom in
Newark, N. J., 1851, and educated at Stratford
Academy (Ct) and Bates Theological Seminary,
Me- He held several pastorates in Maine and
Massachusetts^ but a preference for evangelistic
work led him to employ his talent for object-teach-
ing in illustrated religious lectures through his own
and foreign lands, singing his hymn and enforcing
it with realistic representation. He is the author
and compiler of several Sunday-school and chapel
song-manuals, as Converts* Praise^ Life-long SongSp
Wonderful Love and Gathered Gems^
502 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
I cannot always trace the way
Where Thou, Almighty One, dost mcyve^
But I can always, always say
That God is love.
When fear her chilling mantle flings
O'er earthy my soul to heaven above
As to her native home upsprings.
For God is love.
When mystery clouds my darkened path,
ril check my dread, my doubts reprove;
In this my soul sweet comfort hath
That God is love.
Yes, God is love. A thought like this
Can every gloomy thought remove.
And turn all tears, all woes to bliss
For God is love.
The first line of the hymn was originally, **'Tis
seldom I can trace the way."
Howard M. Dow has been many years a resident
of Boston, and organist of the Grand Lodge of
Freemasons at the Tremont St. (Masonic) Temple.
WEDDING.
Time was when hymns were sung at weddings,
though in America the practice was never uni-
versal. Marriage, among Protestants, is not one
of the sacraments, and no masses are chanted for
it by ecclesiastical ordinance. The question of
music at private marriages depends on conven-
HYMNS OF WALES.
379
I
men.'' And ever since the " Battle of the Hallelu-*
jahs" — near Chirk on the border, nine miles from
Wrexham — when the invading Danes were driven
from the field in fright by the rush of the Cymric
army shouting that mighty cry, every Christian
poet in Wales has had a hallelujah in his verse.
Through the centuries, while chased and hunted
by their conquerors among the Cambrian hills, but
clinging to their independent faith, or even when
paralyzed into spiritual apathy under tribute to a
foreign churchy the heavenly song still murmured
in a few true hearts amidst the vain and vicious
!ays of carnal mirth. It survived even when people
and priest alike seemed utterly degenerate and god-
less. The voice of Walter Bute (1372) rang true for
the religion of Jesus in its purity. Brave John
Oldcastle, the martyr, (1417,) clung to the gospel
he learned at the foot of the cross. William Wroth,
dergymatiy saved from Bddling at a drunken dance
by a disaster that turned a house of revelry into a
house of deaths confessed his sins to God and be-
came the '* Apostle of South Wales." The young
vicar, Rhys Pritchard (1579) rose from the sunken
level of his profession^ rescued through an incident
less tragic. Accustomed to drink himself to in-
ebriety at a public-house— a socially winked-at in-
dulgence then — he one day took his pet goat with
him* and poured liquor down the creature's throat.
The refusal of the poor goat to go there again forced
the reckless priest to reflect on his own ways. He
H forsook the ale-house and became a changed man,
k
380 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Among his writings — ^later than this — is found
the following plain, blunt statement of what con-
tinued long to be true of Welsh society, as repre-
sented in the common use of Sunday time.
Of all the days throughout the rolling yezr
There's not a day we pass so much amiss.
There's not a day wherein we all appear
So irreligious, so profaned as this.
A day for drunkenness, a day for spoit,
A day to dance, a day to lounge away,
A day for riot and excess, too short
Amongst the Welshmen is the Sabbath day.
A day to sit, a day to chat and spend,
A day when fighting 'mongst us most prevails,
A day to do the errands of the Fiend —
Such is the Sabbath in most parts of Wales.
Meantime some who could read the languagtl^
and the better educated (like the author of the
above rhymes) knew English as well as Welsh —
had seen a rescued copy of Wycliff^s New Testa-
menty a precious publication seized and burnt (like
the bones of its translator) by hostile ecclesiastics,
and suppressed for nearly two hundred years.
Walter Bute, like Obadiah who hid the hundred
prophets, may well be credited with such secret
salvage out of the general destruction. And there
were doubtless others equally alert for the same
quiet service. We can imagine how far the stealthy
taste of that priceless book would help to strengthen
a better religion than the one doled out profession-
ally to the multitude by a Civil church; and how
HYMNS OF WALES
381
H it kept the hallelujah alive In silent but constant souls ;
and in how many cases it awoke a conscience long
^m hypnotized under corrupt custom, and showed a
H renegade Christian how morally untuned he was*
H Daylight came slowly after the morning star,
" hut when the dawn reddened it was in welcome to
Pritchard's and Penry's gospel song; and sunrise
hastened at the call of Caradoc, and Powell, and
Erbuiy, and Maurice, the holy men who followed
them, some with the trumpet of Sinai and some
with the harp of Calvary.
Cambria was being prepared for its first great
revival of religion-
There was no rich portfolio of Christian hymns
such as exists to-day, but surely there were not
wanting pious words to the old chants of Bangor
and the airs of "Wild Wales/* When time brought
Howell Harris and Daniel Rowland, and the great
"Reformation" of the eighteenth century, the
renowned William Williams, "the Watts of Wales,*'
appeared, and began his tuneful work. The
province soon became a land of hymns. The
candles lit and left burning here and there by
Penry, Maurice, and the Owens, blazed up to
beacon-fires through all the twelve counties when
Harris, at the head of the mighty movement, carried
with him the sacred songs of Williams, kindling
more lights everywhere tetween the Dee and the
British ChanneL
William Williams of Pantycelyn was bom in
1717, at Cefncoed Farm, near Llandovery. Three
382
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
years younger than Harris^ (an Oxford graduate,)
mud educated only at a village school and an
academy at Llwynllwyd, he was the song prota'
gonist of the holy campaign as the other was its
champion preacher From first to last Williams
wrote nine hundred and sixteen hymns, some of
which are still heard throughout the church mili-
tant, and others survive in local u^ and affection.
He died Jan. 1 1, 1791, at Pantycelyn, where he had
made his home after his marriage. One of the
hymns in his Gloria^ his second publication, may
well have been his last. It was dear to him above
others^ and has been dear to devout souls in many
lands.
My God, my pofdon and my love;
My mil on earth, my alt above«
My all wiihm the tocnb;
The treasures of this wodd bdow
Arc but a vain, delusive show.
Thy boiom is my home.
It was fitting that Williams should name the
first collection of his hymns (all in his native Welsh)
The Hallelujah. Its lyrics are full of adoration
for the Redeemer, and thanksgivings for His work.
"ONWARD RIDE IN TRIUMPH, JESUS/'
Marc hog t JesUy yn Uwyddtannus^
Has been sung in Wales for a century and a halC
and is still a favorite.
Onward ride in triumph, Jesus,
Gird thy sword upon thy thigh;
HYMNS OF WALES.
383
Neither caith nor HcH's own vastncss
Can Thy mighty power defy.
In Thy Name such glory dwelleth
Every foe withdraws in fear,
All the wide creation trembleth
Whensoever Thou art near-*
The unusual militant strain in this paean of
conquest soon disappears, and the gentler aspects
of Christ's atoning sacrifice occupy the writer's
mind and pen,
*1N EDEN— Q THE MEMORY!"
3^n Eden cofiaf hyny byth!
The text» *'He was wounded for our trans*
gressions," is amplified in this hymn, and the
Saviour is shown bruising Himself while bruising
the serpent.
The first stanza gives the key-note, —
In Edcn-^ the mefnoiyl
What countless gifb were toM to mel
My crown, my glory fell;
But Calvary's great viaory
Restored that vanished crown to mei
On this my songt £hall dwell;
— and the multitude of Williams' succeeding "songs"
that chant the same theme shows how well he kept
*Tbe fdloviiig stowt the style of Rer, EItcC Lewli* trtotlatlQii;
Bleucd Jesui} march lictoftoui
With Thj fword fiicd at Th^ tide;
Neither death mx hell cm hmder
The God'WMTior in HU ride*
384 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
his promise. The following hymn in WeUi
(Cymmer, Jesu fi feVr ydwyf) antedates the ad-
vice of Dr. Malan to Charlotte Elliott^ ''Come just
as you are" — .
Take me as I am, O Savioar,
Better I can never be;
Thou alone canst bring me nearer.
Self but draws me far from Thee.
I can never
But within Thy wounds be saved;
— ^and another {Mi Jafla match oddi ar fy ngwar)
reminds us of Bunyan's Pilgrim in sight of the
Cross:
111 cast my heavy burden down.
Remembering Jesus' pains;
Guilt high as towering mountain tops
Here turns to joyful strains.
He stretched His pure white hands abroad^
A crown of thorns He wore.
That so the vilest sinner might
Be cleansed forevermore;
Williams was called "The Sweet Sing^':r of
Wales" and "The Watts of Wales** because he was
the chief poet and hymn-writer of his time, but
the lady he married, Miss Mary Francis, was
literally a singer, with a voice so full and melo-
dious that the people to whom he preached during
his itineraries, which she sometimes shared with
him, were often more moved by her sweet liym-
nody than by his exhortations. On one occasion
HYMNS OF WALES.
38s
the good man, accompanied by his wife, put up at
Bridgend Tavern in Llangefin, Anglesea, and a
mischievous crowd, wishing to plague the ''Metho-
dists," planned to make night hideous in the house
with a boisterous merry-making. The fiddler, fol-
lowed by a gang of roughs, pushed his way to the
parlor, and mockingly asked the two guests if they
would "have a tune/'
"Yes/* replied Williams, falling in with his
banter, "anything you like, my lad; 'Nancy Jig'
or anything else/'
And at a sign from her husband, as soon as the
fellow began the jig, Mrs. Williams struck in with
one of the poet-minister's well-known Welsh hymns
in the same metre* —
Gwa^d Dy groes tyn c^ odi fjnj.
Calvary's blood the weak e%aUeth
More than conquerors to be,*
—and followed the player note for note, singing the
sacred words in her sweet, clear voice, till he
stopped ashamed, and took himself off with al! his
gang>
*A lett Ikeril but more hTina-likc tran^atkni m
Jesu'i blood can raise the fctbk
At % C43qttqacT£sir to stiad;
Jesuit blood ti lU^prcTatlmg
O'er the mighty of the laadi
Let the breeie*
Blow From CftlT^uy tm vat*
Saft the author of Swtwi Singtrs «/ WaleSf 'Thu nefraiii hit been the f^m*
irord of mMuy poverful reTivaUJ"
510 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
The exact date of his birth is unknown, though it
was probably about A. D. i lOO. He is called Ber-
nard of Cluny because he lived and wrote at that
place, a French town on the Grone where he was
abbot of a famous monastery, and also to dis-
tinguish him from Bernard of Clairvaux.
His great poem is rarely spoken of as a whole,
but in three portions, as if each were a complete
work. The first is the long exordium, exhausting
the pessimistic title (contempt of the world), and
passing on to the second, where begins the real
" Laus Patriae Coelestis." This being cut in two,
making a third portion, has enriched the Christian
world with two of its best hymns, "For Thee, O
Dear, Dear Country, "and "Jerusalem the Golden.'*
Bernard wrote the medieval or church Latin in
its prime of literary refinement, and its accent is so
obvious and its rhythm so musical that even one
ignorant of the language could pronounce it, and
catch its rhymes. The " Contemptu Mundi " begins
with these two lines, in a hexameter impossible
to copy in translation:
Hora novissima; tempora pessima sunt; Vigilemus!
£cce minaciter imminet Arbiter, lUe Supremus!
Tis the last hour; the times are at their worst;
Watch; lo the Judge Supreme stands threat'ning nighl
Or, as Dr. Neale paraphrases and softens it, —
The World is very evil,
The times are waxing late.
Be sober and keep vigil,
The Judge is at the gate.
HYMNS OF WALES.
387
of English hymns/ the Hosanna (1759) and the
Gloria (i77z)- He fills so large a space in the
hymnology and religious history of Wales that he
will necessarily reappear in other pages of this
chapter.
From the days of the early religious awakenings
under the i6th century preachers, and after the
ecclesiastical dynasty of Rome had been replaced
by that of the Church of England, there were
periods when the independent conscience of a few
pious Welshmen rose against religious formalism,
and the credal constraints of "established^* teach-
ing— and suffered for it. Burning heretics at the
stake had ceased to be a church practice before
the 1740*3, but Howell Harris, Daniel Rowlands,
and the rest of the "Methodist Fathers," with
their followers^ were not only ostracised by society
and haled before magistrates to be fined for preach*
ing, and sometimes imprisoned, but they were
chased and beaten by mobs, ducked in ponds and
rivers, and pelted with mud and garbage when they
tried to speak or sing. But they kept on talking
and singing. Harris (who had joined the army in
1760) owned a commission, and once he saved
himself from the fury of a mob while preaching —
with cloak over his ordinary dress — by lifting his
cape and showing the star on his breast* No one
dared molest an officer of His Britannic Majesty*
V Fct^ WiUkma.
388
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
But all were not able to use St. Paul's expedient in
critical moments**
William Williams often found immunity in his
hymns, for like Luther — and like Charles Wesley
among the Cornwall sea-robbers— he caught up the
popular glees and ballad-refrains of the street and
market and his wife sang their music to his words.
It is true many of these old Welsh airs were minors^
like "Elvj'^' and ** Babel" (a significant name in
English) and would not be classed as "glees" in
any other cmmtry — ^always excepting Scotland —
but they had rw swings and their mode and style
were catchy to r Welsh multitude. In fact many of
these uncopyrig\>t\ d bits of musical vernacular
were appropriated by the hymnbook makers^ and
christened with sue** mles as "Pembroke," "Ara-
bia/' "Brymgfryd/' **Cwyfan," "Thydian," and
the two mentioned ab^jvp.
It was the time whe:\ Whitefield and the Wes-
leys were sweeping the f^ngdom with their con-
quering eloquence, and Hoi*i*ll Harris (their fellow-
student at Oxford) had side if wJth the conservative
wing of the Gospel Reform adou i^orkers, and be-
come a "Whitfield Methodls.^,"' The Welsh
Methodists» ad exemplum^ marche^V with this Cal-
vinistic branch — as they do today. Each division
had its Christian bard. Charles Wcslej' could put
regenerating power into sweet, poetic hjmtis, andW
William WilHams' lyrical preaching made ibn ^ible
a travelling pulpit. The great " Beibl Fety Wit
HYMNS OF WALES.
389
Hams'* with its commentaries in Welsh, since so
long reverenced and cherished in provincial fami-
lies, was not published till 1770^ and for many the
printed Word was far to seek.* But the gospel
minstrels carried the Word with them. Some of the
long hymns contained nearly a whole body of
divinity.
The Welsh learn their hymns by heart, as they
do the Bible — ^a habit inherited from those old days
of scarcity, when memory served pious people in-
stead of print— so that a Welsh prayer-meeting is
never embarrassed by a lack of books. An anec-
dote illustrates this characteristic readiness. In
February, 1797, when Napoleon's name was a
terror to England, the French landed some troops
near Fishguard, Pembrokeshire. Mounted heralds
spread the news through Wales, and in the village
of Rhydybont, Cardiganshire, the fright nearly
broke up a religious meeting; but one brave
woman, Nancy Jones, stopped a panic by singing
this stanza of one of Thomas Williams' hymns, —
Diuw Of ivyt am ddyhenu^r hya.
If Thou would St end the world, O Lord,
Accomplish first Thy promised Word,
And gather home with one accord
From every part Thine own.
*Ai tn incidcTit coDtnbutciiy to the Formation of the BrhiA lAil Farei|ti Bibte
Bodf^f th* itory ha been often repeated of the littie girl wha wept wbea dae
mOMted ber Citechism ^ppoiniment^ ind told ThomAi Charles of Bala that the
Vad weather va^ th« cause of it, for she hid to walk Keren coiled to find i Bil>1c
tvarf time the piepared het Icsnns. See pAge jSo*
jgO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Send out Thy Word from pole to pole.
And with Thy blood make thousands whole.
And, after that come down,
Nancy Jones would have been a useful member of
the ''Singing Sisters'' band, so efficient a century
or more afterwards.
The tunes of the Reformation under the " Metho-
dist Fathers" continued far down the century to be
the country airs of the nation, and reverberations
of the great spiritual movement were heard in their
rude music in the mountain-bom revival led by
Jack Edward Watkin in 1779 and in the local
awakenings of 1791 and 181 7. Later in the 19th
century new hymns, and many of the old, found
new tunes, made for their sake or imported from
England and America.
The sanctified gift of song helped to make 1829
a year of jubilee in South Wales, nor was the same
aid wanting during the plague in 1831, when the
famous Presbyterian preacher, John Elias,* won
nearly a whole county to Christ.
An accession of temperance hymns in Wales
followed the spread of the ** Washingtonian"
•Those who read his biography will call him the "Seraphic John Elias."
His name was John Jones when he was admitted a member of the presby-
tery. What followed is a commentary on the embarrassing frequency of a
common name, nowhere realized so universally as it is in Wales.
"What is his father's name ?" asked the moderator when John Jones was
announced.
"EliM Jones," was the answer.
"Then call the young man John Elias," said the speaker, "etherwiae we
•hall by and by have nobody but John Joneses."
And "John Elias" it remained.
HYMNS OF WALES,
W
movement on the other side of the Atlantic in 1840^
and began a moral reformation in the county of
Merioneth that resulted in a spiritual one» and
added to the churches several thousand converts>
scarcely any of whom fell away.
The revival of 185 1-2 was a local one, but was
believed by many to have been inspired by a
celestial antiphony. The remarkable sounds were
either a miracle or a psychic wonder bom of the
intense imagination of a sensitive race, A few
pious people in a small village of Montgomery-
shire had been making special prayer for an out-
pouring of the spirit, but after a week of meet-
ings with no sign of the result hoped for^ they were
returning to their homes, discouraged, when they
heard strains of sweet music in the sky. They
stopped in amazement, but the beautiful singing
went on — voicesasof a choir invisible, indistinct but
melodious, in the air far above the roof of the chapel
they had just left. Next day, when the astonished
worshippers told the story, numbers in the district
said they had heard the same sounds. Some had
gone out at eleven o'clock to listen, and thought that
angels must be singing. Whatever the music meant^
the good brethren's and sisters' little meetings be-
came crowded very soon after, and the longed-for
out-pouring came mightily upon the neighborhood.
Hundreds from all parts flocked to the churches, all
ages joining in the prayers and hymns and tesri-
monies, and a harvest of glad believers followed
a series of meetings *'led by the Holy Ghost,"
5l6 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
When on my dck-bed I languidly
Full of sozTowy full of anguish,
Faintingy gasping, trembling, crying.
Panting, groaning, speechless, dying;
Methinks I hear some gentle spirit say,
"Be not fearful, come away."
Pope combined these two poems with the words
of Divine inspiration, "O death, where is thy
sting ? O grave, where is thy victory ?" and made
a pagan philosopher's question the text for a tri-
umphant Christian anthem of hope.
Vital spark of heavenly flame.
Quit, oh quit this mortal frame.
Trembling, hoping, ling'ring, fljrin^
Oh the pain, the bliss of dying!
Cease, fond nature, cease thy strife.
And let me languish into life.
Hark I they whisper: angels say,
* 'Sister spirit, come away!"
What is this absorbs me quite.
Steals my senses, shuts my sight.
Drowns my spirit, draws my breath.
Tell me, my soul, can this be death ?
The world recedes: it disappears:
Heaven opens on my eyes; my ears
With sounds seraphic ring.
Lend, lend your wings! I mount! I flyl
O grave where is thy victory ?
O death, where is thy sting ?
THE TUNE.
'iTie old anthem, " The Dying Christian," or "The
Dying Christian to his Soul,'' which first made this
HYMNS OF WALES, JJJ
I heard of old that Jesus,
Who still abides the sam^.
To publicans gave welcome.
And sinners deep in shame.
Oh God I receive me with them.
Me also welcome in.
And pardon my transgressionp
Forgetting all my sin.
The author of the hymn was Thomas Williams of
Glamorganshire, born 1761; died 1844. He pub*
lished a volume of hymns. Waters ofBethesda in 1 823.
The Welsh minor tune of " Clwyd " may appro-
priately have been the music to express the contrite
prayer of the words. The living composer, John
Jones, has several tunes in the Welsh revival
manual of melodies. Ail Atiodiai,
The un para lied religious movement of 1904-5
was a praying and singing revival. The apostle
and spiritual prompter of that unbroken cam-
paign of Christian victories — so far as any single
human agency counted — was Evan Roberts, of
Laughor,a humble young worker in the mines, who
had prayed thirteen years for a mighty descent of
the heavenly blessing on his country and for a clear
indication of his own mission* His convictions
naturally led him to the ministry, and he went to
Newcastle Emlyn to study. Evangelical work had
been done by two societies, made up of earnest
Christians, and known as the "Forward Move*
ment" and the "Simultaneous Mission/' Begin-
nings of a special season of interest as a result of
39f rroRY OF the hymns and tunes.
their efforts, appeared in the young people's prayer
meetings in February , 1904, at New Quay, Cardi-
ganshire. The interest increased, and when branch-
work was organized a young praying and singing
band visited Newcastle Emiyn in the course of
one of their tours, and held a rally meeting. Evan
Roberts went to the meeting and found his own
mission. He left his studies and consecrated him-
self, soul and body, to revival work. In every
spiritual and mental quality he was surpassingly
well-equipped. To the quick sensibility of his
poetic nature he added the inspiration of a seer
and the zeal of a devotee. Like Moses, Elijah,
and Paul in Arabian solitudes, and John in the
Dead Sea wilds, he had prepared himself in
silence and alone with God; and though, on
occasion, he could use effectively his gift of words,
he stood distinct in a land of matchless pulpit
orators as "the silent leader." Without preaching
he dominated the mood of his meetings, and with-
out dictating he could change the trend of a service
and shape the next song or prayer on the intuition
of a moment. In fact, judged by its results, it
was God Himself who directed the revival, only
He endowed His minister with the power of div-
ination to watch its progress and take the stum-
bling-blocks out of the way. By a kind of hallowed
psychomancy, that humble man would detect a
discordant presence, and hush the voices of a con-
gregation till the stubborn soul felt God in the
stillness, and penitently surrendered.
HYMNS OF WALES.
395
Many tones of the great awakening of 1859 were
heard again in 1904-5, — the harvest season with-
out a precedent, when men, women and children
numbering ten per cent of the whole population of
a province were gathered into the membership of
the church of Christ But there were tones a cen-
tury older heard in the devotions of that harvest-
home in Wales* A New England Christian would
have felt at home, with the tuneful assemblies at
Laughor,Trencynon, Bangor, Bethesda, Wrexham,
Cardiff, or Liverpool, singing Lowell Mason's
'*Meribah'* or the clarion melody of Edson's
"Lenox" to Wesley's—
Blow yt the trumpet, blow.
The gladty solemn sound;
to his other well-known —
Arifie my soul, arise.
Shake off thy guilty feani.
The bleeding Sacrifice
In thy behalf appear^
In short, the flood tide of 1904 and 1905 brought
in vciy little new music and very few new hymns.
"Aberystwyth" and '*Tanymarian/' the minor
harmonies of Joseph Parry and Stephens; E. M.
Price^s "St. Garmon;" R, M, Pritchard's, "Hy-
frydol/* and a few others, were choral favorites,
but their composers were all dead, and the con-
gregations loved the still older singers who had
found familiar welcome at their altars and firesides.
The most cherished and oftenest chosen hymns
39^ noKT €(r the Hyms amd tdhes.
dioie of WDIiam WiDiaiiis and Ann Giilfi^
of Chailet Wcdejr, of Isaac Watts— indeed the
itay tongues of fiie diat appealed at Jcmsalem
Uxk on the Cymric speech, and sang tlie boming
Ijfrics of the poet-saints. And in their levival joy
Gsdvinistic Wales sang the Nevr Testament witfa
noieofitsjdiannicdnn of its Pauline teaos. The
of peace— Christ and His Gross — is the
of aH their fajfmns.
*^HE»E BEHOLD THE TENT OF MEETINGL*
Djma BaheU j cjfarfoi.
This hymn, written by Ann Gnffiths, is entitled
'^Love Eternal/' and praises the Divine plan to
satisfy the Law and at the same time save the
sinner. The first stanza g^ves an idea of the
thought:.
H€f€ Dcnold tnc tent oi nmnng^
In the blood a peace with heaven.
Refuge from the blood-avcngen^
For the nek a Healer given.
Here the nnner nestles safdy
At the veiy Throne divine.
And Heaven's ri^iteous law, all holf,
StiQ on him diall smile and shine.
mow SWEET THE COVENANT TO REMEMBER,*
Bydd melus gofio y cyfammod.
Hiis, entitled "'Mysteries of Grace/' is also
from the pen of Ann Griffiths. It has the literal-
HYMNS or WALES. 397
ncss noticeable in much of the Welsh religious
poetry, and there is a note of pietism in it* The
two last stanzas are these :
He IS the great Propitiation
Who with the thieves that angui&h bare|
He nerved the arms of His tormentors
To drive the naiEs that fixed Him there;
While He discharged the sinner's rsmsoRi,
And made the Law in honor be.
Righteousness shone undimmed, resplendent
And me the Covenant set free.
My Bdut, behold Him laid so lowly,
Of peace the Fount, of Kings the Head,
The vast creation in Him moving
And He low-lying with the dead I
The Life and portion of lost sinners,
The marvel of heaven's seraphim.
To sea and land the God Incarnate
The choir of heaven cries, '*Unto Hiror
Ann Griffiths* earliest hymn will be called her
sweetest. Fortunately, too, it is more poetically
translated. It was before the vivid consciousness
and intensity of her religious experience had given
her spiritual writings a more involved and mysrical
expression.
My soul, behold the fitness
Of this great Son of God,
Trust Him for life eternal
And cast on Him thy load,
A man — touched with the pigr
Of every human woe.
398 STORY OF THE HTMliS AMD TUMES.
A God--CD daiB the
Amd ▼aaqwh ewaj Ibc
This Stanza, the last of her little poem on the
^'Eternal Fitness of Jesus,'' came to her when,
returning from an exciting setrice, filled with
thoughts of her unwoithiness and of the gloiious
beauty of her Saviour, she had turned down a
shekeied bme to pray alone. There on her knees
in communion with God her soul felt die spirit of
the sacred song. Bj the time she reached home
die had fonned it into words.
The first and second sramas, tfikien later, are
these:
Great AMkar of sdvadoB
And pnmdence for bub,
iboQ miest cuts sm beavcB
Wttn TcT nr-fmcnziv pb^
1 odxT or OQ tac mocruVy
Wbaterer woe bctsde,
Gnmr us Thr scnxig i\wnnrr,
WiduQ Thr haad to hide.
VTlur dxMi^ the wbds be aagir,
Wbjc tboc^ tbe wares be b^
Willie visdccn is the Rute,
The Lord oc" e^ith and skr ?
Whji tbcc:gh tr>e £ckc c£ eri
Risie iroctnilT iri iiri :
No jwi! cin saik withja k;
Gs>i is Kisa«if tbe ark.
Mn^. Ann GriiSth^, of Dolwar Fechan, Mont-
gomcn'^hinr, wus horn in i;^7t^- and died in 1805.
**She nrmain^t/* .<jiv$ Dr. Pam\ her fcUow-country-
HYMNS OF WALES.
399
man* "a romantic figure in the religious history of
Wales* Her hymns leave upon the reader an un-
definable impression both of sublimity and mysti-
cism. Her brief life-history is most worthy of study
both from a literary and a religious point of
view.
A suggestive chapter of her short earthly career
is compressed in a sentence by the author of
*' Sweet Singers of Wales:"
''She had a Christian life of eight years and a
married life of ten months/'
She died at the age of twenty-nine* In 1904,
near the centennial of her death, amid the echoes of
her own hymns, and the rising waves of the great
Refreshing over her native land, the people of
Etelwar Fechan dedicated the new **Ann Griffiths
Memorial Chapel" to her name and to the glory
of God
Although the Welsh were not slow to adopt the
revival tones of other lands, it was the native, and
what might be called the national, lyrics of that
emotional race that were sung with the richest
unction and hwyl (as the Cymric word is) during
the recent reformation, and that evinced the strong-
est hold on the common heart. Needless to say
that with them was the world-famous song of
William Williams, —
Guide mc, O Thou Great Jehovihf
Arghvydd or ivain iruyr anialachi
— and that of Dr, Hebcr Evans, —
^26 nOBT OF THE HimS AXO lUMHS.
Where k^ai hooa Ml Mifc
O PWadfa^ O PanCxv
The fpadrf |«>oe ar deaiat Lai<
la lowe pcqwo 6r ae.
Wbcre lo^Si iKnti and tracL
TUs aspindooy from the ardent soul of the poet
has been imeq>ieted in song by the same two
musicians, and bjr Joseph Bambjr — aD widi the
title ^Paiadise.^ Their simibii^ of style and
near equality of merit have compelled compilers
to print at least two of them side by side for the
singers' choice. A certain pathos in the strains of
Bamby's composidon gives it a peculiar charm to
many, and in America it is probably the oftenest
sung to the words.
Dr. David Breed, speaking of Faber's *'un-
usuaP' imagination, says, ''He got more out of
language than any other poet of the English ton-
gue, and used words — even simple words — so that
they rendered him a service which no other poet
ever secured from them." The above hymns are
characteristic to a degree, but the telling simplicity
of his style — almost quaint at times — is more
marked in "There's a \^deness in God's Mercy,**
given on p. 234.
HYMNS OF WALES. 4OI
This is another of Thomas Williams' hymns.
One of the tunes suitable to its feeling and its
measure was " Edom, " by Thomas Evans. It was
much sung in 1859, as well as in 1904.
^^CAELBOD YN FORSEC DAN YR IAN.**
Early to bear the yoke excels
By far the joy in sin that dwells;
The paths of wisdom still are found
In peace and solace to abound.
The young who serve Him here below
The wrath to come shall never know;
Of such in heaven are pearls that shine
Unnumbered in the crown divine.
Written for children and youth by Rev. Thomas
Jones, of Denbigh, born 1756; died 1820, — a
Calvinistic Methodist preacher, author of a biog-
raphy of Thomas Charles of Bala, and various
theological works.
"DYMA GARIAD PEL Y MOROEDD,
TOSTURIASTHAN PEL Y LLI/'
Love unfathomed as the ocean
Mercies boundless as the wave I
Lo the King of Life, the guiltless.
Dies my guilty soul to save;
Who can choose but think upon it.
Who can choose but praise and sing?
Here is love, while heaven endureth.
Nought can to oblivion bring.
402 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
This is called "The great Welsh love-song.**
It was written by Rev. William Rees, D. D.,
eminent as a preacher, poet, politician and essayist.
One of the greatest names of nineteenth century
Wales. He died in 1883.
The tune, "Cwynfan Piydian," sung to this
hymn is one of the old Welsh minors that would
sound almost weird to our ears, but Welsh voices
can sing with strange sweetness the Saviour's pas-
sion on which Christian hearts of that nation love so
well to dwell, and the shadow of it, with His love
shining through, creates the paradox of a joyful
lament in many of their chorals. We cannot imi-
Ute it.
*'RHYFEDDODAU DYDD YR ADGYFODIDD. "
Unnumbered are the marvels
The Last Great Day shall see.
With earth's poor storm-tossed children
From tribulation free,
All in their shining raiment
Transfigured, bright and brave.
Like to their Lord ascending
In triumph from the grave.
The author of this Easter hymn is unknown.
The most popular Welsh hymns would be
named variously by different witnesses according
to the breadth and length of their observation.
Two of them, as a Wrexham music publisher
testifies, are certainly the following; "Heaven and
Home," and "Lo, a Saviour for the Fallen." The
HYMNS OF WALES.
¥>3
first of these was sung in the late revival with
"stormy rapture."
''O FRYNAU CAERSALEM CEIR GIVELED."
The heights of fair Salem ascended^
Each wilderness path we shall see;
Now thoughts of each difiicult journey
A sweet meditation shall be.
On deadly on the grave and its terrors
And storms we shall gaze from above
And freed from all cares we shall revel ( ?)
In transports of heavenly love.
According to the mood of the meeting this was
pitched in three sharps to Evelyn Evans* tune of
**Eirinwg" or with equal Welsh enthusiasm in
the C minor of old "Darby/*
The author of the hymn was the Rev. David
Charles, of Carmarthen, born 1762; died 1834.
He was a heavenly-minded man who loved to
dwell on the divine and eternal wonders of re-
demption, A volume of his sermons was spoken
of as "Apples of gold in pictures of silver/' and
the beautiful piety of all his writings made them
strings of pearls. He understood English as well
as Welsh^ and enjoyed the hymns not only of
WiUiam and Thomas Williams but of Watts^
Wesley, Cowper, and Newton*.
*The foUowmg tctri wa« ^nrittca bf him id £i||g]iatii
spirit of gFMtt tad love divme.
Help tDc to fing that: Cbritt tt mmti
And while the theme mj tongue emploji
Fill Thou my wa\A with living joji.
404 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
*T)YMA GEIDWAD I R COLLEDIG.*"
Lo! a Saviour for the fallen.
Healer of the sick and sore,
One whose love the vilest sinners
Seeks to pardon and restore.
Praise Him, praise Him
Who has loved us evermore!
The little now known of the Rev. Morgan
Rhys, author of this hymn, is that he was a school-
master and preacher, and that he was a contempo-
rary and friend of William Williams. Several of
his hymns remain in use of which the oftenest sung
is one cited above, and "O agor fy llygaid 1 weled:^
I open my eyes to this vision,
The deeps of Thy purpose and word;
The law of Thy lips is to thousands
Of gold and of silver preferred ;
When earth is consumed, and its treasure,
God's words will unchanging remain.
And to know the God-man is my Saviour
Is life everlasting to gain.
** Lo! a Saviour for the Fallen '* finds an appropri-
ate voice in W. M. Robert's tune of "Nesta," and
also, like many others of the same measure, in the
much-used minors "Llanietyn," "Catharine," and
"Bo'nCalfaria."
Jesus is miac^ — surpassing thought!
Well miy I set the vrorlJ at nought;
Jesus is mine, O can it b«
That Jesus lircd and died for me?
HYMNS OF WALES. 405
''O SANCTEIDDIA FTNAID ARGLWYDD.'^
Sancdfyp O Lord my spirit,
Evciy power and passion sway.
Bid Thy holy law witbin me
r>welli my wearie<l soul to stayi
Let me never
Rove beyond Thy narrow way.
This one more hymn of William Williams Is
from his'' Song of a Cleansed Heart" and is
amply provided with tunes, popular ones like
"Tyddyn Llwyn;' "Y Delyn Aur," or '^Capel-Y-
Ddol" lending their deep minors to its lines with a
thrilling effect realized, perhaps, only in the land
of Taliessin and the Druids,
The sinjTular history and inspiring cause of one
old Welsh hymn which after various mutilations
and vicissitudes survives as the key-note of a
valued song of trust, seems to illustrate the Pro-
vidence that will never let a good thing be lost. It
is related of the Rev. David Williams, of Llandilo*
an obscure but not entirely forgotten preacher,
that he had a termagant wife, and one stormy
night J when her bickerings became intolerable, he
went out in the rain and standing by the river com-
posed in his mind these lines of tender faith:
In the waves and mighty waters
No one will support my head
But my Saviour^ my Beloved ^
Who was stricken in my stead*
In the cold and mortal river
§yS> STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUMES.
early years: "I have cried in the street because I
was poor," she said in her prosperous years, "and
the poor always seem nearer to me than the rich/*
When reputation came to her as a writer, she re-
moved from her little country home near Cincm-
natii O., where she was born* in 18^4, and settled
in New York City with her sister. She died at
Newport, N. Y,, July 31, 1871, and her hymn was
sung at her fixnerat Her remains rest in Green-
wood Cemetery.
"One Sweetly Solemn Thought," was written in
1852, during a visit to one of her friends. She
wrote (to her friend's inquiry) years afterwards
that it first saw the light ** in your own house- in
the little back third-story bedroom, one Sunday
after coming from church." It was a heart ex-
perience noted down without literary careorarristic
effort, and in its original form was in too irregular
measure to be sung- She set little value upon it as
a poem, but when shown hesitatingly to inquiring
compilers, its intrinsic worth was seen, and various
revisions of it were made. The following is one of
the best versions- — stanzas one, two and three:—
One sweetly solemn thought
Comes to me o'er and o'er,
I am nearer home to-day.
That! I ever have been bdbra^
Nearer my Father's house.
Where the many mansiom bc^
Nearer the great white throne,
Nearer the crystal sea.
HYMNS OF WALES. 407
Send Thy Spirit, I bewech Thee,
Gracious Lord, send while I pray;
Send the Comforter to teach me.
Guide me, help me in Thy way.
Sinful, wretched, I have wandered
Far from Thee in darkest night.
Precious time and talents squandered.
Lead, O lead me into lig^t.
Thou hast heard me; light is breaking—
Lig^t I never saw before.
Now, my soul with joy awaking.
Gropes in fearful g^oom no more:
O the blissl my soul, declare it;
Say what God hath done for thee;
fell it out, let others share it —
Christ's salvation, full and free.
Osm cannot help noticing the fondness of the
Welsh for the 7-6, 8-7, and 8-7-4 metres. These
are favorites since they lend themselves so natur-
ally to the rhythms of their national music —
though their newest hymnals by no means exclude
exotic lyrics and melodies. Even "O mother dear,
Jerusalem," one of the echoes of Bernard of
Cluny^s great hymn, is cherished in their tongue
O, Fryman Caerselem) among the favorites of
song. Old "Truro" by Dr. Bumey appears
among their tunes, Mason's "Eman," "Lowell"
and "Shawmut," I. B. Woodbury's "Nearer
Home" (to Phebe Gary's hymn), and even George
Hews' gently-flowing " Holley." Most of these tunes
retain their own hymns, but in Welsh translation.
To find our Daniel Read's old "Windham" there
53^
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
for old America's sake, if for no other, you will
quit this infernal business.'*
CoL Russel H. Conwell, of Boston, (now Rev.
Dr. Conwell of Philadelphia) who was then visit-
ing China, and was an eye-witness of the scene,
says that the reformation was a permanent one for
both.
"1 WILL SING YOU A SONG OF THAT BEAUTIFUL
LAND/'
One day^ in the year 1865, Mrs. Ellen M- H-
Gates received a letter from Philip PhiiHps noting
the passage in the PiigrinCs Progress which des-
cribes the joyful music of heaven when Christian
and Hopeful enter on its shining shore beyond the
river of death, and asking her to write a hymn in
the spirit of the extract, as one of the numbers m
his Singing Pilgrim. Mrs* Gates complied — ^and
the sequel of the hymn she wrote is part of the mod-
em song-history of the church, Mr, Phillips has
related how, when he received it, he sat down with
his little boy on his knee, read again the passage in
Bunyan^ then the poem again, and, turning to his
organ, pencil in hand, pricked the notes of the
melody. "The 'Home of the Soul,*" he says,
*' seems to have had God's blessing from the
beginning, and has been a comfort to many a
bereaved soul. Like many loved hymns, It has
had a peculiar history, for its simple melody has
flowed from the Ups of High Churchmen, and has
CHAPTER XII.
FIELD HYMNS.
Hymns of the hortatoiy and persuasive tone are
sufficiently numerous to make an ^^embarrassment
of riches" in a compiler's hands. Not a few songs
of invitation and awakening are either quoted or
mentioned in the chapter on "Old Revival Hymns/'
and many appear among those in the last chapter,
(on the Hymns of fFales;) but the working songs of
Christian hymnology deserve a special space as such.
••CXJME HITHER, ALL YE WEARY SOULS/'
Sung to ** Federal St.," is one of the older soul-
winning calls from the great hymn-treasury of Dr.
Watts; and another note of the same sacred bard, —
Life 18 the time to serve the Lord,
— is always coupled with the venerable tune of
"Wells."* Aged Christians are still remembered
who were wont to repeat or sing with quavering
voices the second stanza, —
^oe of Israel Holroyd's times. He was born m England, about 169O) and
was both a ccmpoaer and publisher of psalmodj. His chief oollectian it dated
1746-
410 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
The living know that they muse die.
But all the dead forgotten lie;
Their memory and their sense are gone^
Alike unknowing and unknown.
And likewise from the fourth stanza, —
There are no acts of pardon passed
In the cold grave to which we haste.
**AND WILL THE JUDGE DESCEND r
Is one of Doddridge's monitoiy hymns, once sung
to J. C. Woodman's tune of "State St.," with the
voice of both the Old and New Testaments in the
last verse:
Ye sinners, seek His grace
Whose wrath ye cannot bear;
Fly to the shelter of His Cross,
And find Salvation there.
Jonathan Call Woodman was bom in Newbury-
port, Mass., July 12, 1813, and was a teacher, com-
poser, and compiler. Was organist of St. George's
Chapel, in Flushing, L.I., and in 1858 published
The Musical Casket. Died January, 1894. He
wrote "State St." for William B. Bradbury, in
August, 1844.
"HASTEN SINNER, TO BE WISE"
Is one of the few unforgotten hymns of Thomas
Scott, every second line repeating the solemn
caution, —
Stay not for tomorrow's sun,
FIELD HYMNS.
41 1
— and every line enforcing its exhortation with a
new word. "To be wise," "to implore," *'to re-
turn," and '*to be blest" were natural cumulatives
that summoned and wooed the sinner careless and
astray. It is a finished piece of work, but it owes its
longevity less to its structural form than to its spirit.
For generations it has been sung to "Pleyers
Hymn."
The Rev. Thomas Scott (not Rev. Thomas Scott
the Commentator) was bom in Norwich^ Eng., in
1705, and died at Hupton> in Norfolk, 1776. He
was a Dissenting minister, pastor for twenty-one
years — until disabled by feeble health — at Lowe*
itoft in SufFolk. He was the author of —
Angels roll the rock away,
"MUST JESUS BEAR THE CROSS ALONE?"
This emotional and appealing hymn still holds
its own in the hearts of millions, though probably
two hundred years old. It was written by a clergy-
man of the Church of England^ the Rev. Thomas
Shepherd, Vicar of Tilbrook, bom in 1665- Join-
ing the Nonconformists in 1694, he settled first in
Castle Hill, Nottingham, and afterward in Bock-
ing, Essexj where he remained until his death, Jan-
uary, 1739* He published a selection of his sermons,
and Penitential Cries ^ a book of sacred lyrics, some
of which still appear in collections.
The startling question in the above hne is an-
swered with emphasis in the third of the stanza, —
412 nORY OF THB HYMNS AND TUNB8.
NJ Thoe't a crott for tway ooe^
And there's a crott for mn^
— and diis is fdkiwed by the soog of resolve and
The CMUtwrngJ crott IH bear.
Tin deadi thaD tet me free.
And uien ff^ home my crown to weai^
FQt uiero t a crown lor me«
******
O pwcioot crotti O ^jkirioat crownl
O Rctunecrion Dayl
Ye angdt from die ttan flaA donni
And bear wbj toul awayl
The hymn is a personal New Testament. No
one who analyzes it and feels its Christian vitality
will wonder why it has lived so long.
THE TUNE.
For half a century George N. Allen, composer
of ^'Maitland/' the music inseparable from the
l^nm, was credited with the authorship of the
words also, but his vocal aid to the heart-stirrine
poem earned him sufficient praise. The tune did
not meet the hymn till the latter was so old that the
real author was mostly forgotten, for Allen wrote
the music in 1849; but if the fine stanzas needed
any renewing it was his tune that made them new.
Since it was published nobody has wanted another.
George Nelson Allen was bom in Mansfield,
Mass., Sept. 7, 18 12, and lived at Oberlin, O. It
FIELD HYMNS, 4I3
was there that he composed '* Maitland/* and com*
piled the Social and Sabbath Hymn-book — ^besides
songs for the Western Beil^ published by Oliver
Ditson and Co. He died In Cincinnati, Dec. g^
1877.
"AWAKE MY SOUL, STRETCH EVERY NERVEl"'
This most popular of Dr. Doddridge's hymns
is also the richest one of all in lyrical and spiritual
life. It is a stadium song that sounds the starting-
note for every young Christian at the outset of his
career, and the slogan for every faint Christian on
the way,
A hiovenlf race demands thy zeal.
And an Immortal crown»
Like the *' Coronation " hymn, it transports the
devout singer till he feels only the momentum of
the words and forgets whether it is common or
hallelujah metre that carries him along.
A cloud of witnesses around
Hold thee in full survey;
Forget the steps already trod.
And onward urge thy way!
Tis God's all^anl mating voice
That calls thee from on high^
Til His own hand presents the prise
To thine aspiring eye.
In all persuasive hymnology there is no more
kindling lyric that this. As a Held-hymn it is
indispensable.
414 SIOKT or THE WWJSSa A3SD
THE TUNL.
and bjr mhoataxwer At btarwe pto-
CKsaomi KDowii as v^onHiiias was pKBCO im
mxDoog At grcar HandcTs Songs and mated widi
Doddiidge's fines, die act gaie both hjxnn and
tone new reason to endure, and aD posttiitT
lejotces m die blend. Old ''Qnistmas'* was off%-
inalljr one of die mrlndirt in die great Gomposer^s
Open of ''Groe'* (Crras) 1738. b was wtiuen
to Ladn words {2k on vi pia€fme\ and afterwards
adapted to an En^iidi lefstfication of Job 29:15,
I was cyts to die bond.
Handel, himseir became bfind atdie^ieof sbcqr
og*« (1753)-
'-THERE IS A GREEN HILL F.\R AWAY,"
Written in 184S by Miss Cecil Frances Hum-
pbreys, an Irish bdy, daughter of Major John
Humphrey's of Dublin. She was bom in that city
in 1823. H^^ ^^^^ known name is Mrs. Cecil
Frances .-Mcxander, her husband being the Rt. Rev.
William Alexander, Bishop ot Deny. Among her
works are HrrKns jzr Uttlf Ckilireny yiarrativ^
HrmnSy Hrrtns Descrifcrl^^ and De^xtionaly and
Moral ScK^s. Died 1SC5.
*' There is a gr^m hill '' is poedc license, but the
h>Tnn is sweet and s\-mpathedc, and almost child-
like in its simphcit}'.
TScre is a ^reen hiH fir iwar
Without the orr w^
nge
'derick
ndel
540 STORTT OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"SAFE IN THE ARMS OF lESUS."
If Tenn)^SpOn fiad the mistaken feeling (as Dr.
Benson inttmates) **tha£ hymns were expected to
be commonplace," it was owing both to his mental
breeding and his mental stature* Genius in a co-
lossal frame cannot otherwise than walk in strides.
What is technically a hymn he never wrote, but it
is significant that as he neared the Shoreless Sea,
and looked into the Infinite ^ his sense of the Di-
vine presence instilled something of the hymn spirit
into his last verses.
Between Alfred Tennyson singing trustfully of
his Pilot and Fanny Crosby singing "Safe in the
Arms of Jesus/' is only the width of the choir. The
organ tone and the flute-note breathe the same song.
The stately poem and the sweet one, the masculine
and the feminine, both have wings, but while the
one is lifted in anthem and solemn chant in the
great sanctuaries, the other is echoing Isaiah's
tender text* in prayer meeting and Sunday-school
and murmuring it at the humble firesides like a
mother's lullaby.
S^tfe In the anus of Jesus,
Safe on His gentle breast^
There by His love o^ers haded
Sweetly my soul shall refit.
Hark! 'tis the voice of angdi
Borne in a ^ng to me
Over the Mds of glory^
Over the jasper sea.
FIELD HYMNS. 415
Where our dear Lord was crucified
Who died to save us all.
We may not know, we cannot tell
What pains He had to bear;
But we believe it was for us
He hung and suffered there.
THE TUNES.
There is no room here to describe them all. Airs
and chorals by Berthold Tours, Pinsuti, John
Henry Cornell, Richard Storrs Willis, George C.
Stebbins and Hubert P. Main have been adapted
to the words— one or two evidently composed for
them. It is a hymn that attracts tune-makers —
literally so commonplace and yet so quiet and
tender, with such a theme and such natural melody
of line — but most of the scores indicated are choir
music rather than congregational. Mr. Stebbins*
composition comes nearest to being the favorite, if
one judges by the extent and frequency of its use.
It can be either partly or wholly choral; and the
third stanza makes the refrain —
O dearly, dearly has He loved
And we must love Him too.
And trust in His redeeming blood.
And try His works to do.
This musical shout of joy, written by Dr. Hora-
dus Bonar, scarcely needs a new song helper, as did
4i6
ID a toDc ■fiMilijrot s.
farwMHiiil
He
He
Tnc byuui was oonipoaed oi I074-
rH£ TUNE.
The anthor ofdie^iiglishBlelodjr^Cas ascribed
in GospA Hymns) is said to have been Jolm
Jenkins Husband, bom in Pljmioiidiy Eng*, aboot
1760. He was ckrk at Sunejr Chapel and com-
posed several anthems. Came to the United States
in 1809. Settled in Philadelphia, where he taught
music and was clerk of St. Paul's P. £. Church.
Died there in 1825.
His tune, exactly suited to the hynm, is a true
Christian pzan. It has few equals as a rouser to a
sluggish prayer-meeting — whether sung to Bonar^s
words or those of Rev. William Paton Mackaj
(1866)—
We pnuK Thee, O God, for die Soo oTThx love,
— ^with the refrain of similar spirit in both hymns-
Hallelajahf Thine die ^oiy, Halldajah! Amen,
Halldujahl Thine the gioiy; revive as again;
Sound Hit praitesf tdl the itoiy of Him who was daini
Sound His praises! tdl with gladness, ''He livedi ;
FIELD HYMNS-
417
Husband's tune is supposed to have been written
very early m the last century. Another tune com-
posed by him near the same date to the words —
''VVe are on our journey home
To the New Jerusalem,*'
— is equally musical and animating, and with a vocal
range that brings out the full strength of choir and
congregation-
"COME> SINNER, COME."
A singular case of the same tune originating in
the brain of both author and composer is presented
in the history of this hymn of Rev, William Ells-
worth Witter^ D.D., bom in La Grange, N*Y ,
Dec. g, 1854. He wrote the hymn in the autumn of
1878, while teaching a district school near his home.
The first line —
While Jtsus whispers to you^
— came to him during a brief turn of outdoor work
by the roadside and presently grew to twenty-four
lines. Soon after. Prof* Horatio Palmer, knowing
Witter to be a verse writer, invited him to contrib-
ute a hymn to a book he had in preparation, and
this hymn was sent* Dr. Palmer set it to music, it
soon entered into several collections, and Mr. San-
key sang it in England at the Moody meetings.
Dr. Witter gives this curious testimony,
"While I cannot sing myself j though very fond of
music, the hymn sang itself to me by the madside
54+
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
BftAitriRDj Dr? d, 261
Bpied, D»id R^ t7lt I7^f tiOf
£i6,. . ...*..... *..»«»», 516
BrnooEt, Cbirtes T^, ,,.,...... 34S
BKooca^Bp.Fhiilipt,. .*..i, 164, 169
BsowK, JobOj. ,,,...,.,,*..*.. J4*
BmowKj, Phebe H.,* , t «. « * 129-232, 4R2
BmowNr SifDyd, 2p
BmowN, Tlitfon, . 1S8, 476, 48Q
BiiowN^ Timothy H.,.,..^,,„ . , 21^
Brucc, Michtd,..* 297
Btti^NPAGi;, — —,,,»** ,,. 454
Bull, John,. ...*...♦.. 358
Bt^HOutJl-Lrlti F.,„.* ..., . 415
Burnet, Cbirlcc,. . t^,**, --M'' i°7
Bunrfa, Robert,,. ». 333, 336, 367
BiTTK, WiitcTj , .,„„.».,,, .379, 380
Burrr ft WORTH, Hczcldali, t, ri,
186, 187, J5i,, 254
Caldwell, Waiitm,. .. .,.*»,.♦ 17?
Campbull^ David £^..«^. ,>..., 12^
Campbell, Jane M.,, » .•.<•,.»• 47^
Campbell, Robcft|. . . . ^ . * , « . .^ 6I
CAitADoc, ,...,.. *.i.^«i.... 38*
Caret, Henry, -,.-**,, 339
CAftEt, WiUiaoa, ,. . , . . , 171, 491, 49*
Cakoline, (Qucm),, ♦ . » , 203
CARTjPhcbe .....407, 519, 530
Cahtwught, Peter,. „ . 171, J71
Caii, Cbirlci C, iS7
Caiwall, Edwurd,, 75, 101, 459
Cawood, Joba, , .414, 465
Celaho, Tbomti dl^ ,. , ,62, 63
CcHNicCf John,,.... ,..124, 1^^504
Ckauix«», Tbamai, « ,225, 216
CftAHnLER, Jobo,. . ....,.,.. ^ . . 485
CRAIfDLE»r S...... ............ 270
CuApm, Amzi, ......*.•*«.,... 275
Charlemagke^^ * . • i • .. , 5
Chavlei, DsTid,. 403
CuARLis, ThomaE,.. *,«....*.* 40I
CiBBEX, Mn., ,, , loS
Clare, JercEiiiab,. ....... ^. ... . 9
CL\att, Ad*m, „„,,.„.. 177
CLAUoiUf, Macchiu,. . ......... 478
Clement of Alexandria,.. 294, 296
CtEFHANtp £t i*brtb C, 413
CucBTOvjuip... **..*... 5
Cole, John, 115, 479, 507, 515
CoLii, George,. .*...«.. ti6, ti?, iff
Collter, WOlitm B^ 7*1 73
C^LUkiBU tp Otriftopber, 356
C43ttDm», Jo«jabp...... . 419
CoMicET, Itbunar*, ...... ^..^99, 249
CoHYERiE, CbajIetCn»,itr»,«,^« 42^
CoKWELLpRUESetl H^......,... 531
CooCpMirtba A.W.,... 148, 149
Cooc, PartoDi, . ^ ,.»«,.,*.. , 14S, 149
Cooper, George,... •,,... 311
CoRELu, ArciAgdo,. 39
Cornell, J. B., . . . . > , , , « ^ . 438
CoftKtm Joba Hmii7j 96, ^^^, 415
CoRiEjGea.G.M.,..***.. 4^
CoLTiiNp Anne R....... ........ 79, fo
CQVt»T,... .-,.. 333
CowDELL, Samuflp * 2^|
COWTERp WiUlllDp I, 129, tjl,
17*, 192 *...,... 401
Ceo rr^WilljanQ ».,„..,,,. 204
CitOKiT, Fanny J. » r $6, 184, 312.,
4^5i43S|, S4*
CvTLER, Theodore L.^.. «..,»,».. 377
CtpriaN Qf CARTH AGS, . ........ I
DAtlMtTN, J.W«,..^...,«.«.^,.. 171
Dagget^ Simcoa,, «*,...'..... , 330
DANAjMArjr S,0 .....187, ai*
Dahtvovth, Lord,.. «.,,. 2<l^
DAvtNAi<Tp Sir Wiliiiin, ^, . 30*
DtGRooTE, GerArd,....,. €7
D E LA Moth E^ Jemnne M.B., 190^ 191
Dt Li»Lt, Roget,.....r 319
Dekham, David, . ..,...<.»••,., 134
DcRMio, (King)p. ... .^ 328
DczTKRpHeaijM.,. ••'*^» ^9^
DiTSON^ O] JTO-p ....... . .?ii| 4^3
DiEDif^ William,. . . ....,♦,. ji
Do AH E, B p. George W.,. . . . .432, 483
DoANK, WiUiam H., 157, 425,
419, 430, 438, 450, 4go, 541
DoDoRioOEr Philip, ]i6p ii7»
J 69, 410, 4(3, 476, 4SS, 495, p9
BoocE, Onian £ .,, * ^ « ^ . ^ . ^ . , . . 333
DouGLAJp George,., ........... vii
Dow, Howard M.,. *-.,*. 501
Dow, LoTenzo,«,^* *,.*.,,,.... 17%
i>^i*,FpegT ......-* >7»
Draper, Bourne H.,. .,,,««.,.. 17!
DUNRA*,E.W,. ...... ........ 29S
k
FIELD HYMNS.
Hit love and light
Fill 3i\ my soul tonights
4<9
RlTluiifr. —
One more dzy*& work for Jesus, {tfr}
One less of life for me.
The hymn has five stanzas all expressing the
gentle fervor of an active piety loving service:
THE TUNE.
was composed by the Rev. Robert Lowry, and
first published in Bright Jewels.
THE GOSPEL HYMNS.
rr iw • 1
These popular religious songs have been criti-
cised as *' degenerate psalmody" but those who so
style them do not seem to consider the need that
made them.
The great majority of mankind can only be
reached by missionary methods, and in these art
and culture do not play a conspicuous part. The
multitude could be supplied with technical preach-
ing and technical music for their religious wants*
but they would not rise to the bait, whereas nothing
so soon kindles their better emotions or so surely
appeals to their better nature as even the humblest
sympathetic hymn sung to a simple and stirring
tune. If the music is unctassical and the hymn
crude there is no critical audience to be offended.
420 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
The artless, almost colloquial, words "of a happfly
rhymed camp-meeting lyric and the wood-notes
wild" of a new melody meet a situation. Moral
and spiritual lapse makes it necessary at times for
religion to put on again her primitive raiment, and
be " a voice crying in the wilderness. "
Between the slums and the boulevards live the
masses that shape the generations, and make the
state. They are wage-earners who never hear the
great composers nor have time to form fine musical
and literary tastes. The spiritual influences that
really reach them are of a very direct and simple
kind; and for the good of the church — and the
nation — it is important that at least this elementary
education in the school of Christ should be sup-
plied them.
It is the popular hymn tunes that speed a ref-
ormation. So say history and experience. Once in
two hundred years a great revival movement may
produce a Charles Wesley, but the humbler sing-
ers carry the divine fire that quickens religious life
in the years between.
All this is not saying that the gospel hymns, as a
whole, are or ever professed to be suitable for the
stated service of the sanctuary. Their very style
and movement show exactly what they were made
for — to win the hearing of the multitude, and put
the music of God's praise and Jesus' love into the
mouths and hearts of thousands who had been
strangers to both. They are the modem lay songs
that go with the modem lay sermons. Thev give
FIELD HYMHa.
♦M
voice to the spirit and sentiment of the conference,
prayer and inquiry nneetings, the Epworth League
and Christian Endeavor meetings, the temperance
and other reform meetings, and of the mass-meet-
ings in the cities or the seaside camps*
During their evangelistic mission in England
and Scotland in 1873, Dwight L. Moody and Ira
D, Sankey used the hymnbook of Philip Phillips,
a compilation entitled HaUoweJ Songs, some of them
his own. To these Mr. Sankey added others of his
own composing from time to time which were so
enthusiastically received that he published them in
a pamphlet. This, with the simultaneous publica-
tion in America of the revival melodies of Philip
P. Bliss, was the beginning of that series of popular
hymn-and-tune books, which finally numbered six
volumes. Sankey's Sacred Songs and Solos com-
bined with Bliss's Gospel Songs were the founda-
tion of the Gospel Hymns,
Subjectively their utterances are indicative of
ardent piety and unquestioning faith, and on the
other hand their direct and intimate appeal and
dramatic address are calculated to affect a throng
as if each individual in it was the person meant by
the words. The refrain or chorus feature is notable
in nearly alL
A selection of between thirty and forty of the
most characteristic is here given.
548
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Painc, Robert T-» ..,.♦*,., 335
PALEmaHA, ......>...... . *ii?-iTi
4i7».--- * - 450
FAUdiR, R*y,,...,... , 59
pAftdK, Tlieotkiw^, „ ♦ . ix
Pae^t, Joseph,. , , ,395, 39«
Fatiiick, St.,- *..*..», * . . , 3*8
Pati*£ John Howard,, „ . . 1 jf
FtLouaiT, F. Np, iSS
PcirmT, ,. 381
PtxvowiT, Edw*rd,,.a5, 17, 31, 59
PH^If I, A.S,, .*......,,..*... vii
PHEtrSyS. D,. ,..,..,.,. 147
Phkijb, W, L^,,,.p„ ,... 'rii
PHTur» "King", ^^S
P1111.1JFS, Pbiirp, 149, 150, ^39,
156* *fi7t 309* 333i 4*1* S3'»
53» ---■ 5H
Fii]f^a» George,.. ....i88» 185
PiERFOKT, John,, «,,..„.. 335, 336
FiifsuTi, .,...*............,. 415
pLtTEL, Ignace^ , . , ii4» 20S
PUHT, .......♦*. ,-.... 193
Port, Alciander, 2^38, 3161 515, 516
PawELL, John, .,.,*.„.. 38 1
PkESiiLT, Old F.f . ....,,. .451, 4p
PticE, Dt .,,... « 41
Price, E,M., , , , 39^
PftiTCHARD, Rkfi M.,. .... .379, 396
Pbqcu, Heikricm,.,, ,4, 357
PviCEiXyHesjy,. . .. .. 338
RAtUGB, Sir Walter, ,,.,..... 76
RAHEtTtf James, *.,,,♦.* 361
R4.]tfKiM, Jtreiniah E.,, ........ 496
RAVEHscROrr, Thomas,*, «. ».,. 338
RcAO, D^iet,. . 407, 466
RitAmKG^ John,, ......... 105
Redh eah, Rjcbard,. . .t ^ » * . . ^ * 50
Ru>Hi)i, Lotiti H., .., 469
Rtts, Wflljanj................ 40*
Rein ACLE, Atexander R .^^ t * * . . * 87
RExroKo, Ebea E.,, ....... 439^ 440
Rhti» Morgan, ...... 404
Richardson, Johiij.......,,,. 76
RitiLET, Bp......... * 4
RilLEY, Mary Louise,, *.*,, ,.,, 3I7
RnkraAVLt-jEdwardF.,...,...., 2S2
RutGWAUJTf Butholomew,. . ..71^ 73
Rtrron, JtJkik^. ....,., .17, lOk^^ iSi
RiTTER, Peter,.......,,,.,.... 160
RoRERt II, (KingX.*^..-.S7» S*t ^
RostmTf, Ev»ii,....*..377,393,394
Ro^iiKTf, W, M.,. 404
Robinson, Charley,. ,.,,.,,171, 179
RoitNsON, Rolwit,. ....,«« 1 183, i$4
RaB4Atf<f^, WjHtamp. . * 31
RoOSEVELTjThcmlare,, ...,,,. . ijt
Root, Georgt F, 155, I56,a54»
315.317-419 444
RoUfBEAV, J. J.,,....««,,,tll, tif
RowE, Elizabeth, ...*..«.. 4 4..,. 45
RowiAKOs, Dank!,. ....... 3!!, 3S7
RuTUEJcrORD, Samuel,. . . ,78, 79,81
Salmon, Thommi,. ............ 43a
Sanoiwoh, Mri., -.„.., 335
Saneet, Ira D., 184, 358, 308-
3"» 374, 37 S' 4171 4i«-4a3f
434> 4381 447 .;-<^.^ .*. 51T
ScKMOLEE, Benjamin,, .......' 499
ScKU«AWT<, Robert,.... 87
StoTT, Thomatf , ,.az£, 41 1
Scott, Sir Walter,. ............ X40
ScmvEN, Joseph,. 415
StAGKAVE, Robert,., ..,,... ^.. 94
Sears, Edmund H., 4^
SofECA, ................ .310, 33J
SitKVosflj Mary Eltubctb,. .441, 443
Seward, WilliVm H ... SJT
Sh ti-M CBD, Thomai,. .,..,.,,, 4] 1
Sheupan, Mrs. Richard Bibi«-
ley* ■■ - « " M4
SnirLi:T,I>can,.. 17I
Shirlet, SirWahcr,..i27, iiJ, id
SiMAOjFomigalis, *.„*„, 2oi
Si UPSON, Rohertt . ., .«,*..«*■• . 198
Singer, Eliiabetb,.. ,,. 45
S«A»T, Henry, 4, 5, 10, 137, 465, 51J
Smith, Mr». Albert,* .......... 317
S»(tTH, Alexander, ....<,.«. 368
Smith, Goldwin,.., «..,,.,..«, X
Smith, IsaaCf. p , 314
S^!TM,John Stafford,. 33 y
Smith, Samuel Francii, t8cn8i,
337t - 339
Sf-AFro^ti, Horatio G>,. , . ,.440, 441
SroHR, h^ t2£, 107, 117, laS,
144 ' - 4tt
FIELD HYMNS.
4^3
organ and began playing^ and singing. He had to
read the unfamiliar words and at the same time
make up the music- The tune came — and grew as
he went along till he finished the first verse. He
remembered it well enough to repeat it with the sec-
ond> and after that it was easy to finish the hymn.
A new melody was bom — in the presence of more
than a thousand pairs of eyes and ears. It was a
feat of invention, of memory, of concentration —
and such was the elocution of the trained solDist
that not a word was lost. He had a tearful audience
at the close to reward him; but we can easily credit
his testimony,
*' It was the most intense moment of my life/*
In a touching interview afterwards, a sister of
Mrs< Clephane told Mr. Sankey the authoress had
not lived to see her hymn in print and to know of
its blessed mission.
The first SIX lines give the situation of the lost
sheep in the parable of that name —
There were ninety and nine that safely lay
In the shelter of the fold i
But one was out on the hills away,
Far off from the gates of gold-
Away on the mountains wild and bare*
Away from the tender Shepherd's care.
And, after describing the Shepherd's arduous
search, the joy at his return is sketched and spirit*
ualized in the concluding stanza —
But aU through the mountains, thunder-riven,
And up from the rocky steiep,
S50
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
WiuiAM, (KingX i^ 13
WiuiAifty Aaron, 130^ 134
WiuiAMt, DsYidy 405
WiuiAMty Hden M^ »$, ia6» 206
WiuiAMt, Peter, 199, 101, 3S7, 389
WiLUAia, Thomaiy. . . 393, 401, 403
WiLUAMtyWiDum, 166-168, 199^
381—386, 388, 396, 399,. ... 40$
Wiuit, Richard Stecn,. . . .415, 467
WiLUt, Nathanid, - 467
WiLut, N.P., 467
WiLtOM, Hugbf....- 353
WniKt.W.E., 406
WiMKwoKm, CatBcniie,. .••••• 84
WooDMUMWy William C^ .338; 339
WooDBUBT, Inac B., tti, 183^
a44t 3"^ 497
WooDMAi^ J. C, 410^415
Wood, Sir Evdja,. 368
WBon, WaUam, 379
WTKn, JohB,. at3,a84
XATlBByFkHKH^ 74
Touwi, Aadbevy 301
ZsBBAni , Carif 444
Zbowkb, Hdarich,. 17^ H>
ZmBBMDOBP, (CooatV 9>» 9*
Zmtoti^ Jote, 3%iW
FIELD HYMNS.
427
Myers) who was bom in Alexandria, Va., m 1818.
She composed it in the spring of 1865, while sitting
in the chotr of the M. E, Church, Baltimore, and
the first draft was pencilled on a flyleaf of a singing
bookj The New Lute ofZion.
I hear the Saviour say,
Thy strength indeed is small;
Child of weakness^ watch and pray,
Find in me thtne all in all.
The music of the chorus helped to fix its words
in the common mind, and some idea of the Atone*
ment acceptable, apparently, to both Arminians
and Calvinists; for Sunday-school children in the
families of both» hummed the time or sang the
refrain when alone —
Jeius paid it alt.
All to Him I owe.
Sin had left a crimson Stain;
He washed it white as snow.
THE TUNE.
John Thomas Grape, who wrote the musici was
bom in Baltimore, Md,, May 6, 1835. His modest
estimate of his work appears in his remark that he
" dabbled " in music for his own amusement* Few
composers have amused themselves with better
results.
"TELL ME THE OLD, OLD STORY."
Mjss Kate Hankey, bom about 1846, the daugh-
428 STORY OF THE HYlbfKS AND TUNES.
ler of an English banker, is the author of this very
devout and tender Christian poem^ written appar*
ently in the eighteen-sixties. At least it is said that
her little volume. Heart to Heart, was published in
1865 or i866, and this volume contains ''Tell me
the Old, Old Stoiy," and its answer.
We have been told that Miss Hankey was re-
covering from a serious illness, and employed her
days of convalescence in composing this song of
^yotion, beginning it in Januaxy and finishing it in
the following November.
. ^ The poem is veiy long — z thesaurus of evan-
gelical thoughts, attitudes, and moods of faith —
Wid also a magazine of hymns. Four quatrains of
it, or two eight-Kne stanzas, are the usual length of
a hymnal selection, and editors can pick and
choose anywhere among its expressive verses.
Tell me the old, old stoiy
Of unseen things above.
Of Jesus and His gloiy.
Of Jesus and His love.
TeD me the stoiy simply
As to a little child.
For I am weak and weaiy.
And helpless and defiled.
41 41 41 41 1^ 1^
TeD me the stoiy simply
That I may take it in —
That wonderful Redemptioo,
God's remedy for sin.
FIELD HYMNS. 429
THE TUNE.
Dr. W. H. Doane was present at the Inter-*
national Conference of the Y. M. C. A. at Montreal
in 1867, ^^^ heard the poem read — with tears and
in a broken voice — by the veteran Major-General
Russell. It impressed him so much that he bor-
rowed and copied it, and subsequently set it to
music during a vacation in the White Mountains.
The poem of fifty stanzas was entitled "The
Story Wanted;" the sequel or answer to it, by
Miss Hankey, was named "The Story Told."
This second hymn, of the same metre but different
accent, was supplied with a tune by William
Gustavus Fischer.
I love to tell the stoiy
Of unseen things above.
Of Jesus and His ^oiy.
Of Jesus and His love.
41 41 41 41 :» «
I love to tell the stoiy
Because I know its true;
It satisfies my longings
As nothing else can do.
Choiius.
I love to tell the story;
Twill he my theme in ^oiy;
To tell the old, old stoiy
Of Jesus and his love.
William Gustavus Fischer was bom in Baltimore,
Md., Oct. 14, 1835. M^ ^^^ ^ piano-dealer in the
554
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
lAVINOAU, S4
lATNBAM, 514
MxruGc, 363
MXJOICX AND BE GLAD, 415
MXtCUX THE PKUtRING, 425
»«">. 499»5«3
BCSTOKATION, 5I4
MKTKEATy 223
MKnospxcT, 332
MXVIVK THT WORK, 445
BHINB, 125
BIVAULX, 104
BOLLAND, 106,493
BOCKINOHAlf, 131
BOTTBBDAlf,., $$
BUttlA, f 466
BUTHEBFORD,.., 82
•APB IN TRX ABlIt OP JBSUt,. . 54I
•ALEM, 123
•AUtBUBT PIAIN, I05
lAMtON, 166
tABDIUt, (autumn), 201
SAVANNAH, 238
SAVIOUR, UKE A SHETHERD, 3IO, 3II
SAVIOUR, PIXX>T ME, 374
SCALE, THE, .ziii, xiv
SCATTER SEEDS OT KINDNESS,.. 318
SCHUMANN, 87
SCOTS WHA HAE, 336
SEC^UENCES, (POOT NOTe), 8
SHAWMUT, 407
SHERBURNE, 466
siaLT, 129,283
«">AM, 244,318,319
SILVER STREET, 324
SIMPSON, 126
SOMETHING POR JESUS, I48
SONGS OP THE BEAUTIPUL,. . . . 483
SONNET, 287
SOUND THE LOUD TIMBBAL, 327
SPEED AWAT, 184
SPOHR, 244
8TAPPORD, 466
STAR-SPANGLED BANNKB, THE,
49. 333-135
STATE STEER, 4IO, 515
ST. AMBROSE, 296
•T. AissELM, (we plofw the fiddsX 478
•T. ATBAKASlirS^ 59
ST. BEBMABD,.., •••••• 75
ST. BOTOLPH, •••••••• B44
ST. CHAD, 50
ST. EDMUND...... I5S
ST. GABMON,.. ....... .....••.• 395
ST. KEVIEB, ..••. 307
ST. LOUIS, 469
ST. MAGNUS, li
ST. PETEBSBUBG, 213
ST. PHIUP,. . ^ 30
ST. THOMAS, 38, 134, 523
STEPHENS, l8»
STOWE, 481
SUSSEX, 500
SWEET BT AND BT 534"537
SWEET GAULXE, iSt, 3I9
SWEET HOUB OP PBATBB, 43a
SWITKEB*S SONG OP BOmy....
TALUS* EVENING HTMN,. .Zn» 16, I7
TE DEUM, 1-4
TELEMANN^S CHANT, 474
THACHER, 109
THE BOWEB OP PRATBB, I47
THE BROKEN PINION, 254
THE CHARIOT, 279
TH E DYING CHRISTIAN,. .... .516, 5I7
THE EDEN OP LOVE, 272, 273
THE GARDEN HYMN, 277, 278
THE HARP THAT ONCE, 328
TH E H EBBEW CHILDBEN, 271
THE HOME OP THE SOUI.,..532y 533
THE LAND OP THE BLEST, 308
THE MOBNING UGHT IS BBEAK-
ING, 177, 182, 477
THE NINETY AND NINE, 42I
THE OLD, OLD STOBY, 429
THE PRODIGAL CHILD, 43O
THE SOUD ROCK, 3I7
THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNKB,. . 333
THERE IS A GREEN HILL, 4I4
THROW OUT THE UPB-LOTX,. . . . 374
THYDIAN, 388
TO THE WORK, 438, 480
TOPLADT, 59, I4X
TRENCTNON, 395
TRIUMPH BY AND BT 45O
TBUBO, Hif407
TUBNBB,......«t itl
L
flELD HYMNS. 43 1
"LET THE LOWER LIGHTS BE BURNING!"
An illustration, recited in Mr, Moody's graphic
fashion in one of his discourses, suggested this
hymn to P, P, Bliss,
"A stormy night on Lake Erie, and the sky pitch
dark/'
' Pilot, are you sure this is Cleveland ? There's
only one light/
'Quite sure, Cap'n/
'Where are the lower lights ?'
'Gone out, sir/
'Can you run in f*
' Wive got tOf Cap'n — or die/
"The brave old pilot did his best, but, alas, he
missed the channel The boat was wrecked, with
a loss of many lives. The lower lights had gone
out.
it
Brethren, the Master will take care of the great
Lighthouse. It is our work to keep the lower lights
humingi"
Brightly beams our Father's mcny
From His hghlhouse evermore;
Bui to us He gives the keeping
Of the lights along the shore.
Chorus,
I-et the lower lights be humingi
Send a gleam across the wave;
Some poor fainting, struggling seaman
Yoa may rescue, you may save.
Both words and music — composed in 1871 —
are by Mr. Bliss. There are wakening chords ia
432 nOEY OP THB HYMNS AND TUNB8.
the tune— and especially the chorua-^vrhen the
counterpoint is well vocalized; and the effect is
more pronounced the greater the symphony of
▼oices. Congregations find a zest in eveiy note.
''Hold the Fort" can be sung in the street. ''Let
the Lower Lights be Burning" is at home between
echoing walls.
The use of the song in " Bethel" meetings classes
it with saSbrs' hymns.
"'SWEET HOUR OF PRAYER.'^
Included with the Gospel Hymns, but of older
date. Rev. WiUiam W. Walford, a blind English
minister, was the author, and it was probably
written about the year 1842. It was recited to
Rev. Thomas Salmon, Congregational pastor at
G)leshill, Eng., who took it down and brought it
to New York, where it was published in the New
York Observer.
Little is known of Mr. Walford save that in his
blindness, besides preaching occasionally, he
employed his mechanical skill in making small
useful articles of bone and ivoiy.
The tune was composed by W. B. Bradbury in
1859, and first appeared with the hymn in Cottage
Melodies.
Sweet hour of prayer, sweet hour of prayer
That calls me from a world of care.
And bids me at my Father's throne
Make all my wants and wishes known.
FIELD HYMNS. 433
In seasons of tli stress and gnef
My soul has often found relief,
And oft escaped the tempter*s snare
By thy return, sweet hour of prayer.
"O BLISS OF THE PURIFIED! BLISS OF THE FREE!'*
Rev* Francis Bottome, D*D., bom in Belper,
Derbyshire, Eng-, May 26, 1823, removed to the
United States in 1850, and entered the Methodist
ministry. A man of sterling character and ex-
emplary piety. He received the degree of Doctor
of Divinity at Dickinson College, Carlisle^ Pa-
Was assistant compiler of several singing books,
and wrote original hymns. The above, entitled " O
sing of His mighty love'* was composed by him in
1869. The last stanza reads, —
O Jesus the Crucified! Thee will I smg.
My blessed Redeemetp my God and my King!
My soul, filled with rapture shall shout o'er the graTC
And triumph in death in the Mighty to save*
Chorus.
O sing of His mighty love
Mighty to save I
(i^y
Dr. Bottome returned to England, and died at
Tavistock June 29, 1894,
THE TUNE.
Bradbury's "Songs of the Beautiful" (in fresh
Laurels). The hymn was set to this chorus in 1871*
434 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"WHAT SHALL THE HARVEST BE!"
Very popular in England. Mr, Sankey in hji
Story of the Gospel Hymns relates at length the
experience of Rev, W, O* Lattimorej pastor of a
large church in Evanston^ IIl^ who was saved to
Christian manhood and usefulness by this hymn.
It has suffered some alterations^ but its original
composition was Mrs. Emily Oakey's work. The
Parables of the Sower and of the Tares may have
been in her mind when she wrote the lines in 1850,
but more probably it was the text in GaL 6:7 —
Sowing the seed by the daylight fair.
Sowing the seed by the noonday glare.
Sowing the seed by the fading light.
Sowing the seed in the solemn night.
O^ what shall the harvest be ?
Lattimore> the man whose history was so strange-
ly linked with this hymn, entered the army in 1861,
a youth of eighteen with no vicesi but when pro-
moted to first lieutenant he learned to drink in the
officers' mess. The habit so contracted grew up-
on him till when the war was over, though he mar-
ried and tried to lead a sober life, he fell a victim
to his appetite, and became a physical wreck. One
day in the winter of 1S76 he found himself in a half-
dninken condition Jn the gallery of Moody's Taber-
nacle, Chicago. Discovering presently that he had
made a mistake , he rose to go out, but Mr. Sankey's
voice chained him* He sat down and heard the
whole of the thrilling hymn from beginning to end-
FIELD HYMNS.
435
Then he stumbled out with the words ringing in
his ear$>
Sowing the seed of a lingering pain.
Sowing the seed of a maddened brain^
Sowing the seed of a tarnished name,
Sowing the seed of Eternal shame.
O, what shall the harvest be f
In the saloon, where he went to drown the awak-
enings of remorse > those words stood in blazing
letters on every bottle and glass. The voice of God
in that terrible song of conviction forced him back
to the Tabernacle, with his drink un tasted. He
went into the inquiry meeting where he found
friends, and was led to Christ. His wife and child,
from whom he had long been exiled, were sent for
and work was found for him to do. A natural elo-
quence made him an attractive and efficient helper
in the meetings, and he was finally persuaded to
study for the ministry^ His faithful pastorate of
twenty years in Evanston ended with his death in
1899.
Mrs, Emily Sullivan Oakey was an author and
linguist by profession^ and though in her life of
nearly fifty-four years she "never enjoyed a day of
good health,^' she earned a grateful memory. Born
in Albany, N* Y., Oct. 8, 1829, she was educated at
the Albany Female Academy, and fitted herself for
the position of teacher of languages and English
literature in the same school, which she honored
by her service while she lived. Her contributions
to the daily press and to magazine literature w^re
43^ ncftcr of the btmks aecd tunes.
mifneroaty Imc she is best knoim I7 her remaikabk
hymn. Her death occuned 00 the nth of Majt
rH£ TUNE,
By P* P. Bliss^ is one of that composer's tonal suc-
cesses. The march of the verses with their re-
current words is so automatic that it would in-
evitably suggest to him the solo and its organ-
chords; and the chorus with its sustained soprano
note dominating the running concert adds the last
emphasis to the solemn repetition. The song with
its warning ciy owes no little of its power to this
choral appendix —
Gathered in time or eternity,
Sure» ah lure will the harvest be.
"O /nUNK OF THE HOME OVER THERE.**
A hvnui of Rev, D, W. C. Huntington, suggested
hy IV SS^* 1^ was a favorite from the first,
Rrv. IVWitt Oinu'^n Huntington was bom at
'Vown^thrniU Vt, .\pr,, 27.1830. He graduated at
ihr SviJicusc rniNrmrw and received the degrees
.^^ l^ l^. 4nd II . O, frv^m Genesee College. Preach-
ru instuK^xr And AUthv^r — Removed to Lincobw
O tVi^^i ^>t tV >v«jc oxw A«^e»
v>^: t>fi«. «-rr>
FIELD HYMNS. 43/
O think of the friends over there.
Who before us the journey have trod.
Of the songs that they breathe on the air.
In thetr home in the palace of God.
Over there, (ref)
THE TUNE.
The melody was composed by TuUius Clinton
O'Kane, bom in Delaware, O., March lo, 1830, a
hymnist and musician. It is a flowing tune, with
sweet chords, and something of the fugue feature
in the chorus as an accessory. The voices of a mul-
titude in full concord make a building tremble with
it.
*WHEN JESUS COMES."
Down life's dark vale we wander
Till Jesus comes;
We watch and wait and wonder
Till Jesus comes.
Both words and music are by Mr. Bliss. A
relative of his family, J. S. Ellsworth, says the song
was written in Peoria, Illinois, in 1872, and was
suggested by a conversation on the second coming
of Christ, a subject very near his heart. The
thought lingered in his mind, and as he came down
from his room, soo?. r^O^r, the verses and notes
came to him simultaneoUi> on the stairs. Singing
them over, he seized pencil and paper, and in a few
minutes fixed hymn and tune in the familiar
harmony so well known.
^3? STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
No in ore heait-p^tigs nor sadncn
When Jesus comes ;
All peace and joy and gladness
When Jesus comes.
The choral abounds in repetition, and is half
refrain, but among all Gospel Hymns remarkable
for their tone-delivery this is unsurpassed in the
swing of its rhythm.
All joy his loved ones bringing
When Jesus comes.
All praise thro' heaven Hnging
When Jesus comes.
All beauty bright and vemal
When Jesus comes.
All gloiy grand, eternal
When Jesus comes*
"TO THE WORK, TO THE WORK,''
One of Fanny Crosby's most animating hymns—
with Dr W* H. Doane's full part harmony to re-
enforce its musical accent* Mr. Sankey says, "I
sang it for the first time in the home of Mr. and
Mrs. J. B. Cornell at Long Branch, The servants
gathered from all parts of the house while I was sing-
ing, and looked into the parlor where I was seated.
When I was through one of them said, 'That is
the finest hymn I have heard for a long time/ I felt
that this was a test case, and if the hymn had such
power over those servants it would be useful in
reaching other people as well; so I published it in
the Gospel Hymns in 1875, where it became one of
FIELD HYMNS.
439
the best work-songs for our meetings that we had/'
{Story of ike Gospel Hymns.)
The hymn, written in 1870, was first pubUshed
in 1871 in *^ Pure Gold'' — a book that had a sale
of one million two hundred thousand copies*
To the work! to the work! there j^ labor for all^
For the Kingdom of darkness and error shall fall.
And the name of Jehovah exalted shall be^
In the loud-s welling chorus, "Salvation is free!"
Chorus.
Toiling on, toiling on, tolling oiii tofling on! {r^p)
Let us hope and trust, let ii£ watch and pray.
And labor dIJ the Master comes.
"O WHERE ARE THE REAPERS T
Matt, 13:30 is the text of this lyric from the pen of
Eben E, Rexford.
Go out in the by-ways, and search them all.
The wheat may be there though the weeds are talU
Then search in the highway, and pass none by.
But gather them all for the home on high.
Chorus.
Where are the reapers ? O who will come.
And share in the glory of the harvest home f
O who will he(p us to gamer in
The sheaves of good from the fields of tin ?
THE TUNE.
Hymn and tune are alike. The melody and har-
mony by Dr. George F, Root have all the eager
440 StOKY OP THB HYMNS AND TUNB8.
trip and tread of so many of the gospel hymns, and
of so much of his music, and the lines respond at
evexy step. Any other composer could not have
escaped the compulsion of the final spondees, and
much less the audior of ''Tramp, Tramp, Tramp,'*
and all the best martial song-tunes of the great war.
In this case neither words nor notes can say to the
other, ''We have piped unto you and ye have not
danced," but a little caution will guard too enthu-
siastic singing against falling into the drum-
rhythm, and travest)ang a sacred piece.
Eben Eug^e Rexford was bom in Johnsburg,
N. Y., July i6, 1841, and has been a writer since he
was fourteen years oid. He is the author of several
popular songs, as "Silver Threads Among the
Gold/* "Only a Pansy Blossom" etc., and many
essays and treatises on flowers, of which he is pas-
sionately fond.
^IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL.^
Horatio Gates SpafFord, the writer of this hymn,
was a lawyer, a native of New York state, bom
Oct. 30, 1828. While connected with an institution
in Chicago, as professor of medical jurisprudence,
he lost a great part of his fortune by the great fire
in that city. This disaster was followed by the loss
of his children on the steamer, Ville de Havre, Nov.
22, 1873. He seems to have been a devout Chris-
tian, for he wrote his hymn of submissive faith to-
wards the end of the same year —
FIELD HYMNS. ^l
When peace like a river attend eth my way,
When sorrows like sea-bttlows roll —
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to aay,
**It is well, it is well with my soul/*
A friend of SpafFord who knew his history read
this hymn while repining under an inferior afflic-
tion of his own. *'If he can feel Uke that after
suffering what he has suffered," he said, *'I will
cease my complaints/*
It may not have been the weight of Mr. Spaf-
ford's sorrows wearing him down 5 but one would
infer some mental disturbance in the man seven or
eight years later, ''In 1881" [writes Mr, Hubert
P. Main] '' he went to Jerusalem underthe hallucin-
ation that he was a second Messiah — and died there
on the seventh anniversary of his landing in Pales-
tine, Sept. 5, 1888;" The aberrarions of an over-
wrought mind are beckonings to God's compassion.
When reason wanders He takes the soul of His help-
less child into his own keeping — and **it is welK"
The tune to SpaflFord's hymn is by P. P. Bliss; a
gentle, gliding melody that suits the mood of the
words.
"WAITING AND WATCHING FOR ME,"
Written by Mrs, Marianne Famingham Heam,
bom in Kent, Eng., Dec. 17, 1834. The hymn was
first published in the fall of 1864 in the London
Church World. Its unrythmical first line —
When mysterious whispers are floating about,
— ^was replaced by the one now familiar —
443t STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
^^en my Bnal farewell to the world I have ■aiH,
And gUdly lain down to tny rest.
When softly the watchers shall say^ * 'He is dead^"
And fold my pale hands on my breast.
And when with my gtonfied vision at last
The walls of that City I see.
Will any one there at the Beautiful Gate
Be waiting and watching for me ?
Mrs. Heam — a member of the Baptist denom*
ination — has long been the editor of the (Engiisli)
Sunday School Times^ but her literary work has
been more largely in connection with the Christian
World newspaper of which .she has been a staff-
member since its foundation-
THE TUNE.
The long lines, not easily manageable for con*
gregational singing, are wisely set by Mr. Bliss to
duet music. There is a weighty thought in the
hymn for every Christian, and experience has
shown that a pair of good singers can make it very
affecting, but the only use of the repeat, by way of
a chorus, seems to be to give the miscellaneous
voices a brief chance to sing.
*'HE WILL HIDE ME,"
(Isa. 49:2.)
Miss Mary Elizabeth Servoss, the author of this
trustful hymn, was bom in Schenectady, N. Y.^
Aug, 22 1 1849. When a very young girl her ad*
FIELD HYMNS.
443
miration of Fanny Crosby's writings, and the great
and good service they were doing in the world,
inspired her with a longing to resemble her*
Though her burden was as real, it was not like the
other's, and her opportunities for religious medi-
tation and literary work were fewer than those of
the elder lady, but the Umited number of hymns
she has written have much of the spirit and beau^
of their model.
Providence decreed for her a life of domestic
care and patient waiting. For eighteen years she
was the constant attendant of a disabled grand-
mother, and long afterwards love and duty made
her the home nurse during her mother's protracted
illness and the last sickness of her father, until both
parents passed away.
From her present home in Edeson, 111., some
utterances of her chastened spirit have found their
way to the public, and been a gospel of blessing.
Besides " He Will Hide Me," other hymns of Miss
Servoss are **Ponals of Light," "He Careth,"
"Patiently Enduring," and "Gates of Praise/' the
last being the best known.
When the storms of life arc raging.
Tempests wild on sea and land,
I will seek a place of rcftigc
In the ihadow of God's hand.
Chorus.
He will hide me. He will hide mt^
Where no harm can e'er betide tne.
r<r Hiil
Tm
FSkTi
THE TUNE.
Mr.
Junes BfcGfanahan was the composer. He was
bom ID AdamsriOey Pa.^ Juhr 4. 1840. His edo-
cadon was acquired mosdr at the poUic schools,
and both in general knowledge and in musical
accompliJmynts k may be said of bim that he is
Mosic was bom in bim, and at Ac age of nine-
teen, widi some valuable help from men like
Basmi, Webb, Root and Zenabn, he had studied
to so good purpose that he tai^fat music dasses
himself. This talent, joined to die gift of a veiy
sweet tenor Toice, made bun die natural successor
of die lamented BGss, and, with Major D. W.
Whittle, he entered on a career of g0^>el work,
mating betmeeu 1881 and 1885 two successful
tours of England, Scodand and Ireland, and
tliiou^ the chief American
FIELD HYMNS. 445
Among his publications are the Male Chorus
Booky Songs of the Gospel and the Gospel Male
Choir,
Resides at Kinsman, O.
''REVIVE THY WORK, O LORD.^
(Heb. 3:2.)
The supposed date of the hynm is i860; the
author, Albert Midlane. He was bom at Newport
on the Isle of Wight, Jan. 23, 1825 ^ business
man, but, being a Sunday-school teacher, he was
prompted to write verses for children. The habit
grew upon him till he became a frequent and
acceptable hymn-writer, both for juvenile and for
general use. English collections have at least three
hundred credited to him.
Revive Thy work, O Lord,
Thy mighty arm make bare.
Speak with the voice that wakes the dead.
And make Thy people hear.
THE TUNE.
Music and words together make a song-litany
alive with all the old psalm-tune unction and the
new vigor; and both were upon Mr. McGranahan
when he wrote the choral. It is one of his suc-
cesses.
Revive thy work, O Lord,
Exalt Thy precious name.
44^ STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUKE§.
And by the Holy Ghost our love
For Thee and Thine inilame*
Refrain.
Revive Thy work, O Lord^
And give refreshing showers;
The glory shall he all Thine own^
The blessing shall be ours.
•^HERE IS MY WANDERING BOY TCWOTGWrr
This remarkable composition— words and music
by Revp Robert Lowry— has a record among sacred
songs like that of "The Prodigal Son" among
parables.
A widowed lady of culture, about forty years of
age, who was an accomplished vocalist, had ceased
to sing, though her sweet voice was still in its prime*
The cause was her sorrow for her runaway boy.
She had not heard from him for five years. While
spending a week with friends in a city distant from
home, her hidden talent was betrayed by the friends
to the pastor of their church, where a revival was
in progress, and persuasion that seemed to put a
duty upon her finally procured her consent to sing
a solo.
The church was crowded- With a force and
feeling that can easily be guessed she sang "Where
Is My Boy Tonight f" and finished the first stanza.
She began the second, —
Oticc be was pure as moming dew.
As he knelt at bis mother's knee.
FIELD HYMNS,
No face was to bright, no heart more true,
And none were so sweet as he;
447
— and as the congregation caught up the refrain, — •
O where is my boy tonight ?
O where is my boy tonight ?
My heart o'erflows, for I love him he knowit
O where b my boy tonight ?
— a young man who had been sitting in a back
seat made his way up the aisle and sobbed^
'* Mother, I'm here!" The embrace of that mother
and her long-lost boy turned the service into a
general hallelujah. At the inquiry meeting that
night there were many souls at the Mercy Seat who
never knelt there before— *and the young wanderer
was one,
Mr,Sankey,when in California with Mr, Moody,
sang this hymn in one of the meetings and told the
story of a mother in the far east who had commis-
sioned him to search for her missing son. By a
happy providence the son was in the house —
and the story and the song sent him home
repentant.
At another time Mr, San key sang the same
hymn from the steps of a snow-bound train, and
a man between whose father and himself had been
trouble and a separation, was touched, and re-
turned to be reconciled after an absence of twenty
years.
At one evening service in Stanberry, Mo., the
Etnging of the hymn by the leader of the choir led
442^ STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
to the conversion of one boy who was present, and
whose parents were that night praying for him in
an eastern state, and inspired such earnest prayer
in the hearts of two other runaway boys' parents
that the same answer followed.
There would not be room in a dozen pages to
record all the siipilar saving incidents connected
with the singing of " Where Is My Wandering Boy ?**
The rhetoric of love is strong in every note and
syllable of the solo, and the tender chorus of voices
swells the song to heaven like an antiphonal
prayer.
Strange to say, Dr. Lowry set lightly by his
hymns and tunes, and deprecated much mention of
them though he could not deny their success. An
active Christian since seventeen years of age,
through his early pulpit service, his six years*
professorship, and the long pastorate in Plainfield,
N. J., closed by his death, he considered preaching
to be his supreme function as it certainly was his
first love. Music was to him "a side-issue," an
"efflorescence," and writing a hymn ranked far
below making and delivering a sermon. " I felt a
sort of meanness when I began to be known as a
composer,** he said. And yet he was the author
of a hymn and tune which "has done more to
bring back wandering boys than any other" ever
written.*
^Wbere Is M7 Bay Tonigfat"* wm compoied for a book o£ temperance
hpnDM, Tht Fountain 0/ Song, 1877.
FIELD HYMNS. 449
''ETERNITY/^
This IS the title and refrain of both Mrs. Ellen
M. H. Gates' impressive poem and its tune.
O the clanging bells of Time!
Night and day they never cease;
We are wearied with their chime.
For they do not bring us peace.
And we hush our hearts to hear.
And we strain our eyes to see
If thy shores are drawing near
Eternity! Eternity!
Skill was needed to vocalize this great word, but
the ear of Mr. Bliss for musical prosody did not
fail to make it effective. After the beautiful har-
mony through the seven lines, the choral reverently
softens under the rallentando of the closing bars,
and dwelling on the awe-inspiring syllables, solemn-
ly dies away.
TRIUMPH BY AND BY.
This rally-song of the Qiristian arena is wonder-
fully stirring, especially in great meetings, for it
sings best in full choral volume.
The prize is set before us,
To win His words implore us.
The eye of God is o'er us
From on high.
His loving tones are falling
While sin is dark, appalling,
*Tis Jesus gently calling;
He is nigh!
450 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
Chorus.
By and by we shall meet Hun,
By and by wc shall greet Hinip
And with Jesus reign in gloiy.
By and by!
Well follow where He leadeth.
Well pasture where He feededi.
We'll yield to Him who pkadeth
From on high.
Then nought from Him shall 9ev«r,
Our hope shall brighten ever
And faith shall fail us never^
He is nigh.
Chorus — By and by, etc,
Dr, Christopher Ruby BlackalU the author of
the hymn, was born in Albany, N. Y-, Sept. i8,
1830. He was a surgeon in the Civil War, and in
medical practice fifteen years, but afterwards be-
canne connected with the American Baptist Publi-
cation Society as manager of one of its branches.
He has written several Sunday-school songs set to
music by W. H- Doane,
THE TUNE,
By Horatio R. Palmer is exactly what the hymn
demands. The range scarcely exceeds an octave,
but with the words "From on high," the stroke of
the soprano on upper D carries the feeling to
unseen summits, and verifies the title of the song-
From that note, through melody and chorus the
"Triumph by and by" rings clear.
FIELD HYMNS. 45 1
'*NOT HALF HAS EVER BEEN TOLiy^
This is emotional, but evexy word and note is
uplifting, and creates the mood for religious
impressions. The writer. Rev. John Bush Atchi-
son, was bom at Wilson, N. Y., Feb. 18, 1840, and
died July 15, 1882.
I have read of a beautiful city
Far away in the kingdom of God,
I have read how its walls are of jasper.
How its streets are all golden and broad;
In the midst of the street is Life's River
Clear as crystal and pure to behold.
But not half of that city's bright gloiy
To mortals has ever been told.
The chorus (twice sung) —
Not half has been told,
— concludes with repeat ofthe two last lines of this
first stanza.
Mr. Atchison was a Methodist clergyman who
composed several good hymns. " Behold the Stone
is Rolled Away," "O Crown of Rejoicing,'* and
"Fully Persuaded,** indicate samples of his work
more or less well-known. "Not Half Has Ever
Been Told" was written in 1875.
THE TUNE.
Dr. Otis F. Presbry, the composer, was a young
farmer of York, Livingston Co., N. Y., bom there
the 20th of December, 1820. Choice of a pro-
452 8TORY OF THE RYMN8 AND TUNES.
fessional life led him to Berkshire Medical College,
where he graduated in 1847. ^^ ^^^ years his
natural love of musical studies induced him to give
his time to compiling and publishing religious
tunes, with hymns more especially for Sunday-
schools.
He became a composer and wrote the melody
to Atchison's words in 1877, which was arranged
by a blind musician of Washington, D.C., J. W.
BischoflF by name, with whom he had formed a
partnership. The solo is long — would better,
perhaps, have been four-line instead of eight — but
well sung, it is a flight of melody that holds an
assembly, and touches hearts.
Dr. Presbry's best known book was Gospel Bells
(1883), the joint production of himself » BischofF,
and Rev. J. E. Rankin. He died Aug. 20, 1901.
"TOM?"
One of the most characteristic (both words and
music) of the Gospel Hymns- — " Mrs. James Gib-
son Johnson" is the name attached to it as its
author, though we have been unabU to trace and
verify her claim.
Oy word of words the sweetest,
O9 words in which there lie
All promise, all fulfillment^
And end of mystery;
Lamenting or rejoicing,
With doubt or terror nigh.
FIELD HYMNS. 453
I hear the ''Come'' of Jesiu^
And to His cross I fly.
Chorus.
Come, come —
Weary, heavy-laden, come, O come to me.
THE TUNE,
Composed by James McGranahan, delivers the
whole stanza in soprano or tenor solo, when the
alto, joining the treble, leads off the refrain in duet,
the male voices striking alternate notes until the
full harmony in the last three bars. The style and
movement of the chorus are somewhat suggestive
of a popular glee, but the music of the duet is
flexible and sweet, and the bass and tenor progress
with it not in the ride-and-tie-fashion but marking
time wtih the title-syllable.
The contrast between the spiritual and the in-
tellectual effect of the hymn and its wakeful tune is
illustrated by a case in Baltimore. While Moody
and Sankey were doing their gospel work in that
city, a man, who, it seems, had brought a copy of
the Gospel HymnSy walked out of one of the meet-
ings after hearing this hymn-tune, and on reaching
home, tore out the leaves that contained the song
and threw them into the fire, saying he had "never
heard such twaddle" in all his life.
The sequel showed that he had been too hasty.
The hymn would not leave him. After hearing it
night and day in his mind till he began to realize
454 nORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
what it meanty he went to Mr. Moody and told him
he was ** a vile sinner'' and wanted to know how he
could '^come'' to Christ. The divine invitation
was explained, and the convicted man underwent
a vital change* His converted opinion of the hymn
was quite as remarkably different. He declared it
was '^the sweetest one in the book.'' {Story of the
Gospel Hymns.)
^ALMOST PERSUADED,^
The Rev. Mr. Brundage tells the origin of this
hynm. In a sermon preached by him many years
agOf the closing words were:
''He who is almost persuaded is almost saved,
but to be almost saved is to be entirely lost." Mr.
Bliss, being in the audience, was impressed with
the thought, and immediately set about the com*
position of what proved one of his most popular
songs, deriving his inspiration from the sermon of
his friend, Mr. Brundage. Memoir of Bliss.
Almost persuaded now to believe.
Almost persuaded Christ to receive;
Seems now some soul to say
**Go Spirit, go thy way,
Some more convenient day
On Thee 111 call.*'
Almoflt persuaded— the harvest is pasti
Both hymn and tune are by Mr. Bliss — and the
omission of a chorus is in proper taste. This re-
FIELD HYMNS. 455
vival piece brings the eloquence of sense and sound
to bear upon the conscience in one monitory plead*
ing. Incidents in this country and in England
related in Mr. Sankey*s book, illustrate its power-
It has a convicting and converting history.
"MY AIN COUNTREE,'*
This hymn was written by Miss Mary Augusta
Lee one Sabbath day in i860 at Bowmount, Croton
Falls, N,Y,, and first pubHshed in the New York
Observer^ Dec, 1861. The authoress had been
reading the story of John Macduff who, with his
wife, left Scotland for the United States, and accum*
ulated property by toil and thrift in the great West-
In her leisure after the necessity for hard work
was past, the Scotch woman grew homesick and
pined for her "ain countree/* Her husband, at
her request, came east and settled with her in sight
of the Atlantic where she could see the waters that
washed the Scotland shore. But she still pined,
and finally to save her life, John MacdmfFtook her
back to the heather hills of the mother-land, where
she soon recovered her health and spirits.
I am far from my hame an' I'm weary aften whiles
For the langed-for hamc-bringing an' my Father's welc:omi
smiles,
m ne'er be fu' content until mine ^es do see
The shinin' gates o' heaven an' mine ain countree.
The airt' is flecked wi' flowers mony-tinted, frish an* gay.
The birdies warble blithely, for my Father made them saCp
456
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
Btic these iights mn* these sotin's will naething be to me
When I heu the angels singin* in my aln countrce.
Miss Lee was born in Croton Falls in iS^S^ and
was of Scotch descent, and cared for by her grand-
father and a Scotch nurse^ her mother dying in her
infancy. In 1870 she became the wife of a Mr,
Demarest* and her married life was spent in
Passaic, N, J., until tht^ir removal to Pasadena,
Cal., in hope of restoring her failing health. She
died at Los Angeles, Jan. 8, 1888,
THE TUNE
Is an air written in 1864 in the Scottish style by
Mrs. lone T. Hanna, wife of a banker in Denver*
Colo., and harmonized for choral use by Hubert
P Main in 1873, Its plaintive sweetness suits the
words which probably inspired it< The tone and
metre of the hymn were natural to the young
author's inheritance; a memory of her grand-
father's home-land melodies, with which he once
crooned ** little Mary" to sleep.
Sung as a closing hymn, "My ain countree"
sends the worshipper away with a tender, un-
worldly thought that lingers.
Mrs, Demarest wrote an additional stanza in
188 1 at the request of Mn Main.
Some really good gospel hymns and tunes
among those omitted in this chapter will cry out
against the choice that passed them by* Others
are of the more ephemeral son, the phenomena
FIELD HYMNS.
457
(and the demand) of a generation. Carols of pious
joy with inordinate repetition, choruses that sur-
prise old lyrics with modem thrills, ballads of
ringing sound and slender verse, are the spray of
tuneful emotion that sparkles on every revival high-
tide, but rarely leaves floodmarks that time will not
erase. Religious songs of the demonstrative, not
to say sensational, kind spring impromptu from
the conditions of their time — and give place to
others equally spontaneous when the next spiritual
wave sweeps by. Their value lingers in the im-
pulse their novelty gave to the life of sanctuary
worship, and in the Christian characters theii
emotional power helped into being.
CHAPTER XIII.
HYMNS,
FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL.
CHRISTMAS.
"ADESTE FIDELES/*
This hymn is of doubtful authorship, by some
assigned to as late a date as 1680, and by others to
the 13th century as one of the Latin poems of St.
Bonaventura, Bishop of Albano, who was bom at
Bagnarea in Tuscany, A. D. 1221. He was a learned
man, a Franciscan friar, one of the greatest teachers
and writers of his church, and finally a cardinal.
Certainly Roman Catholic in its origin, whoever was
its author, it is a Christian hymn qualified in every
way to be sung by the universal church.
Adeste, fideles
Laeti triutnphantes,
Venite, venite in Bethlehem;
Natum videte Regem angelonim.
(458)
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 459
Chorus.
Venite, adoremuSy
Venite, adoremusi
VenitCy adoremus Dominum.
This has been translated by Rev. Frederick Oake*
ley (i8o8-i88c) and by Rev. Edward Caswall
(18 14-1878) the version of the former being the one
in more general use. The ancient hymn is much
abridged in the hymnals, and even the translations
have been altered and modernized in the three or
four stanzas commonly sung. CaswalFs version
renders the first line "Come hither, ye faithful,**
literally construing the Latin words.
The following is substantially Oakeley's English
of the "Adeste, fideles."
O come all ye faithful
Joyful and triumphant,
To Bethlehem hasten now with glad accord;
Come and behold Him,
Born the King of Angels.
Chorus.
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ, the Lord.
Sing choirs of angels.
Sing in exultation
Through Heaven's high arches be your praises poured;
Now to our God be
Gloiy in the highest!
O come, let us adore Himl
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL.
461
dred and sixteen lines in twenty-seven strophes.
Some of its figures and fancies are more to the
taste of the seventeenth century than to ourSj but it
IS full of poetic and Christian sublimities, and its
high periods will be heard in the Christmas hym-
nody of coming centuries, though it is not the fash-
ion to sing it now.
John Milton, son and grandson of John Mikons,
was born in Breadstreet, London, Dec. 9> 1608,
fitted for the University in St. Paul's school, and
studied seven years at Cambridge. His parents
intended him for the churchy but he chose literature
as a profession, travelled and made distinguished
friendships in Italy, Switzerland and France, and
when little past his majority was before the public
as a poet, author of the Ode to the Nativity, of a
Masque, and of many songs and elegies. In later
years he entered political life under the stress of his
Puritan sympathies, and served under Cromwell and
his successor as Latin Secretary of State through
the time of the Commonwealth. While in public
duty he became blind, but in his retirement com-
posed "Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained/*
Died in 1676,
THE TUNE.
In the old "Carmina Sacra" a noble choral
(without name except "No war nor battle
sound") well interprets ponions of the 4th and
5th stanzas of the great hymn, but replaces the
Une—
46z
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
"Hie idle spear and shield were high uphung."
— with the more modem and less figurative
'*No hostile chiefs to furious comhat ran."
Three stanzas are also added, by the Rev< H, O,
Dwight, missionary to Constantinople* The sub-
stituted line, which is also, perhaps, the composition
of Mr. Dwight, rhymes with —
"His rei^ of peace upon the earth hegan,"
— and as it is not un<-Mikonic, few singers have
ever known that it was not Milton's own.
Dr. John Knowles Paine, Professor of Music at
Harvard University, and author of the Oratorio
of '\St. Peter," composed a cantata to the great
Christmas Ode of Milton, probably about
i86S.
Professor Paine died Apr, 25, 1906,
It is worth noting that John Milton senior, the
great poet's father, was a skilled m usician and a com-
poser of psalmody. The old tunes '*York** and
^'Norwich," in Ravenscroft's collection and copied
from it in many early New England singing-books»
are supposed to be his.
The Mil tons were an old Oxfordshire Catholic
family, and John, the poet's father, was disin-
herited for turning Protestant, but he prospered in
business, and earned the comfort of a country
gentleman. He died, very aged, in May, 1646, and
his son addressed a Latin poem ("Ad Pattern") to
his memorv.
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 46^
"HARK I THE HERALD ANGELS SING."
B- - T t ■ '1
This hymn of Charles Wesley, dating about 1 730,
was evidently written with the" Adeste Fideles" in
mind» some of the stanzas, in fact, being almost
like translations of it. The form of the two first
lines was origin ally^ —
Harkt how alt the welkm rings,
* 'Glory to the King of Kings I"
— but was altered thirty years later by Rev, Martin
Madan (i 726-1 790) to —
Hark I the herald angels ^ing
Glory to the new-born King I
Other changes by the same hand modified the three
following stanzas^ and a fifth stanza was added by
John Wesley —
Hail the heavenly Prince of Pcacel
Hail the Sun of Righteousness!
Light and life to at! He bringg^
Ris'n with healing in His wings*
tHE TUNE.
*' Mendelssohn " is the favorite musical interpreter
of the hymn. It is a noble and spirited choral from
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy's cantata, " Gott isi
Licht."
"JOY TO THE WORLD, THE LORD IS COMEr'
This Inspirational lyric of Dr. Watts never glows
old. It was written in 171 9.
464 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Joy to the world! the Saviour feigns!
Let men their songs employ
While fields and flood s» rocksp hiJU and plains
Repeat the so un ding joy.
Dr. Edward Hodges (i 796-1867) wrote an ex-
cellent psalm-tune to it which is still in occasional
use, but the music united to the hymn in the pop-
ular heart is ''Antiochj" an adaptation from
Handel's Messiah. This companionship holds
unbroken from hymnal to hymnal and has done so
for sixty or seventy years; and, in spite of its fugue,
the tune — apparently by some magic of its own —
contrives to enlist the entire voice of a congregation,
the bass falling in on the third beat as if by intui-
tion. The truth is, the tune has become the habit
of the hymn, and to the thousands who have it by
heart, as they do in every village where there is a
singing school, "Antioch" is "Joy to the World,*'
and "Joy to the World" is "Antioch."
"HARK! WHAT MEAN THOSE HOLY VOICES r
This fine hymn, so many years appearing with
the simple sign " Cawood '* or ** J. Cawood " printed
under it, still holds its place by universal welcome.
Hark! what mean those holy voices
Sweetly sounding through the skies f
ho th' angehc host rejoices;
Heavenly hallelujahs rise.
Hear them tell the wondrous story,
Hear them chant in hymns of joy.
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 465
Gloiy in the highest, gloiy.
Glory be to God on high!
The Rev. John Cawood, a farmer's son, was bom
at Matlock, Derbyshire, Eng., March i8, 1775, grad-
uated at Oxford, 1801, and was appointed perpetual
curate of St. Anne's in Bendly, Worcestershire.
Died Nov. 7, 1852. He is said to have written seven-
teen hymns, but was too modest to publish any.
THE TUNE.
Dr. Dykes' "Oswald," and Henry Smart's
"Bethany" are worthy expressions of the feeling
in Cawood's hymn. In America, Mason's "Am-
aland," with fugue in the second and third lines,
has long been a favorite.
"WHILE SHEPHERDS WATCHED THEIR FLOCKS."
This was written by Nahum Tate (1652-1715),
and after two hundred years the church remembers
and sings the song. Six generations have grown
up with their childhood memory of its pictorial
verses illustrating St. Luke's Christmas story.
While shepherds watched their flocks by night,
AH seated on the ground,
The angel of the Lord came down
And glory shone around.
*Tear not" said he, for mighty dread
Had seized their troubled mind,
"Glad tidings of great joy I bnng
To you and all mankind."
466
STORy OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
THE TUNE.
Modem hymnals have substituted *' Christmas"
and other more or less spirited tunes for Read's
** Sherburne/' which was the first musical trans-
lation of the hymn to American ears. But, to show
the traditional hold that the New England fugue
melody maintains on the people, many collections
print it as alternate tune. Some modifications have
been made in it, but its survival is a tribute to its
real merit.
Daniel Read, the creator of "Sherburne,*'
''Windham/' "Russia/' "Stafford/' "Lisbon/* and
many other tunes characteristic of a bygone school
of psalmody, vsras born in Rehoboth, Mass., Nov,
2, I757< He published The American Singing
Book^ 1785, Columbian Harmony^ 1793, and sev»
eral other collections. Died in New Haven, Ct.,
1836.
^'IT CAME UPON TTfF MIDNTGTTT CLEAR,"
Rev. Edmund Hamilton Sears, author of this
beautiful hymn-poem, v^ras born at Sandisfield*
Berkshire Co,, Mass., April 6, 1810, and educated
at Union College and Harvard University, He
became pastor of the Unitarian Church in Way-
land, Mass., 1838, Died in the adjoining town
of Weston, Jan. 14, 1876. The hymn first ap-
peared in the Christian Register in 1857,
It came upon the midnight clear.
That glorious song of old,
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. +6/
From angels bending near the earth
To touch their harps of gold.
*Teace to the earth, good will to men
From Heaven's all-gracious King/'
The world in solemn stillness lay.
To hear the angels sing.
Still through the cloven skies they come
With peaceful wings unfurled
And still their heavenly music floats
O'er all the weary world.
Above its sad and lonely plains
They bend on hovering wing.
And ever o'er its Babel sounds
The blessed angels sing.
THE TUNE.
No more sympathetic music has been written
to these lines than "Carol,*' the tune composed by
Richard Storrs Willis, a brother of Nathaniel Parker
Willis the poet, and son of Deacon Nathaniel
Willis, the founder of the Touth^s Companion. He
was born Feb. lo, 1819, graduated at Yale in 1841,
and followed literature as a profession. He was
also a musician and composer. For many years
he edited the N. T. Musical World j and, besides
contributing frequently to current literature, pub-
lished Church Chorals and Choir Studies^ Our
Church Music and several other volumes on
musical subjects. Died in Detroit, May 7, 1900.
The much-loved and constantly used advent
psalm of Mr. Sears^ —
468 STORT OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Calm on die litcoung ear of n^^
Come heaven's mdodioiu itnms
Where wOd Judea ttretchet far
Her flilver-maiided plaiii%
— was set to music by John Edgar Goulds and the
smooth choral with its sweet chords is a remarkable
example of blended voice and verse.
*'0 LITTLE TOWN OF BETHLEHEMr
Phillips Brooks, the eloquent bishop of Massa-
chusetts, loved to write simpk and tender poems
for the children <^ his church and diocese. They
all reveal his loving heart and the beauty of his
consecrated imagination. This one, the best of hb
Christmas SongSy was slow in coming to public
notice, but finally found its place in hymn-tune
collections.
O little town of Bethlehem^
How still we see thee lie!
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by;
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting light;
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight.
For Christ is bom of Mary,
And gathered all above,
While mortals sleep, the angels keep
Their watch of wond'ring love.
O morning stars, together
Proclaim the holy birth!
And praises sing to God the King
And peace to men on earth.
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 469
How silently, how silently^
The wondrous gift is given I
So God imparts to human hearts
The blessings of His heaven.
No ear may hear His coming.
But in this world of sin.
Where meek souls will receive Him still
The dear Christ enters in.
Phillips Brooks, late bishop of the diocese of
Massachusetts, was bom in Boston, Dec. 13, 1835;
died Jan. 23, 1893. He was graduated at Harvard
in 1855, and at the Episcopal Divinity School of
Alexandria, Va., 1859. The first ten years of his
ministry were spent in Pennsylvania, after which
he became rector of Trinity Church, Boston, and
was elected bishop in 189 1. He was an inspiring
teacher and preacher, an eloquent pulpit orator,
and a man of deep and rich religious life.
The hymn was written in 1868, and it was, no
doubt, the ripened thought of his never-forgotten
visit to the "little town of Bethlehem** two years
before.
THE TUNE.
" Bethlehem ** is the appropriate name of a tune
written by J. Barnby, and adapted to the words,
but it is the hymn's first melody (named "St.
Louis" by the compiler who first printed it in the
Church Porch from original leaflets) that has the
credit of carr)4ng it to popularity.
The composer was Mr. Redner, organist of the
Church of the Holy Trinity, Philadelphia, of which
4/0 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
Rector Brooks was then in charge- Lewis Henry
Redner, bom 1831, was not only near the age of his
friend and pastor but as much devoted to the in-
terests of the Sunday-school, for whose use the
hymn was written, and he had promised to write
a score to which it could be sung on the coming
Sabbath. Waking in the middle of the night, after
a busy Saturday that sent him to bed with his
brain *'in a whirl/' he heard **an angel strain/'
and immediately rose and pricked the notes of the
melody. The tune had come to him just in time
to be sung. A much admired tune has also been
written to this hymn by Huben P, Main<
PALM SUNDAY,
FAURE'S 'TALM BRANCHES."
SuT rtos eh f mini les mmeaux H les fieun
Sont repandos —
OVr all the way gr^en palms and blossoms gay
Are strt^wn to-day in festive preparation ^
Where Jesus comes to wipe our tears away.
E'en now the throng to welcome Him prepare;
Join all and sing. — ^
Jean Baptiste Faure, author of the words and
music, was bom at Moulinsj France, Jan. 15, 1830,
As a boy he was gifted with a beautiful voice, and
crowds used to gather wherever he sang in the ijf^J
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL 47 1
streets of Paris. Little is known of his parentage ^
and apparently the sweet voice of the wandering
kd was his only fortune. He found wealthy friends
who sent him to the Conservatoire^ but when his
voice matured it ceased to serve him as a singer.
He went on with his study of instrumental music,
but mourned for his lost vocal triumphs, and his
longing became a subject of prayer. He promised
God that if his power to sing were given back to
him he would use it for charity and the good of
mankind « By degrees he recovered his voice, and
became known as a great baritone. As profes-
sional singer and composer at the Paris Grand
Opera^ he had been employed largely in dramatic
work, but his "Ode to Charity" is one of his endur-
ing and celebrated pieces, and his songs written
for benevolent and religious services have found
their way into all Christian lands.
His **Palm'Branches" has come to be a sine
qua non on its calendar Sunday wherever church
worship is planned with any regard to the Feasts
of the Christian yean
EASTER.
Perhaps the most notable feature in the early
hymnology of the Oriental Church was its Resur-
rection songs. Being hymns of joy, they called
'^forth all the ceremony and spectacle of ecclesias-
472 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
tical pomp. Among them — and the most ancient
one of those preserved — is the hymn of John of
Damascus, quoted In the second chapter (p. 54).
This was the proclamation-song in the watch-
assemblies, when exactly on the midnight moment
at the shout of "Christos egerthe!" (Xpiorbqi^YlpOT).)
"Christ is risen!" thousands of torches were lit,
bells and trumpets pealed, and (in the later cen-
turies) salvos of cannon shook the air.
Another favorite hymn of the Eastern Church
was the **Salvey Beate Mane^^ "Welcome, Happy
Morning," of Fortunatus. (Chap. 10, p. 357.) This
poem furnished cantos for Easter hymns of the
Middle Ages. Jerome of Prague sang stanzas of
it on his way to the stake.
An anonymous hymn, *^Poneluciumy Magdelenay^
in medieval Latin rhyme, is addressed to Mary
Magdelene weeping at the empty sepulchre. The
following are the 3d and 4th stanzas, with a transla-
tion by Prof. C. S. Harrington of Weslyan University:
Gaude, plaude, Magdalenal
Tumba Christus exiiti
Tristis est peracta scena,
Victor mortis rediit;
Quern deflebas morientem.
Nunc arride resurgentcml
Alleluia!
ToUe vultum, Magdalenal
Redivivum aspice;
Vide frons quam sit amcena,
Quinquc plagas inspice;
Fulgent, sic ut margaritai.
BYMN8, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 473
Otnsmenta novae vittB.
AUeluial
Magdalcna, shout for ^ladiiettl
Christ has left die gloomy grave;
Finished is the scene of sadness;
Death destroyed. He comes to save;
Whom with grief thou sawest dyings
Greet with smilec, the tomb defying.
Hallelujah!
Lift thine eyes, O Magdalenat
Lo! thy Lcrd before thee stands;
Seel hew fair the thorn-crowned forehead;
Mark His feet. His side. His hands;
Glow His wounds with pearly whitenessi
Hallowing life with heavenly brightness!
Hallelujahl
TTie hymnaries of the Christian Church for
seventeen hundred years are so rich in Easter
hallcli.jahs and hosannas that to introduce them
all would swell a chapter to the size of an. encyclo-
pedia— and even to make a selection is a responsi-
ble task.
Simple mention must suffice of Luther's —
In the bonds of death He lay;
—of Watts' —
He dies, the Friend of sinners diet;
—of John Wesley's —
Our Lord has gone up on hig^;
—of C. F. Gellert's—
Christ is risen! Christ is risenf
He hath burst His bonds in twain;
474
palnodjTy and ancy
nanaSTTHE LOKP B MSEX TDDMn
of Ckuks Wcdc/s and B abo the
If Mn. ScofiB, wife of the hic Dr. Ridianl Saker
Sfutu of Bmokljniy N • i .
Wcde/s hjnnn ii song— widi or widioot the
kalldo|ah iomfades— to "TdemanD's Chant,*'
(Zcaner), to an air of Mendelssohn, and to John
Stnuoei^s "Pascfaak Gandinm.'* Like the old
New England ^ Easter Anthem " it appears to have
been suggested by an anonymous translation of
some more ancient (Ladn^ andphony.
I Chiitt is risen to dar,
HaDdojah!
Our trinmphaiic hoty daj,
HaOdajah!
♦•♦♦♦#
Who cndiired die cron and ffxwt^
HalHujah!
Sinneis to redeem and save.
Hallelujah!
AN ANTHEM FOR EASTER,
This work of an amateur genius, with its rustic
harmonies, suited the taste of colonial times, and
no doubt the devout church-goers of that day
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 475
found Sincere worship and thanksgiving in its
flamboyant music. "An Anthem for Easter," in
A major by William Billings (1785) occupied
several pages in the early collections of psalmody
and "the sounding joy" was in it. Organs were
scarce, but beyond the viols of the village choirs it
needed no instrumental accessories. The language
is borrowed from the New Testament and
Youngs Night Thoughts.
The Lord is risen indeed I
Hallelujahl
The Lord is risen indeed!
Hallelujah!
Following this triumphant overture, a recitative
bass solo repeats i Cor. 15:20, and the chorus takes
it up with crowning hallelujahs. Different parts,
per fugarrij inquire from clef to clef —
And did He rise ?
And did He rise ? —
Hear [the answer], O ye nadonsl
Hear it, O ye dead!
Then duet, trio and chorus sing it, successively —
He rose! He rose! He rosel
He burst the bars of death.
And triumphed o'er the grave!
The succeeding thirty-four bars — duet and chorus
— take home the sacred gladness to the heart of
humanity —
Then, then 7 rose.
♦***♦♦
476 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
And jCBBBo etefnal youdi^
Man ill immoitaly haill
Ibtven't ill the ^ly, man's die bouncDeai bint.
'TES, THE REDEEMER ROSE,*'
In the six-eight syllable verse once known as
^hallelujah mette^' — written by Dr. Doddridge
to be sung after a sermon on the text in ist G>
lindiians noted in the above anthem —
Yci^ the Redeemer roee.
The Sivioiir left the dead.
And o*er our hellish foes
H^ raised His conquering head.
In wild dismay the g;uards around
FaD to die ground and sink away.
Lewis Edson's ''Lenox'' (1782) is an old favorite
among its musical interpreters.
*^0 SHORT WAS HIS SLUMBER/'
This hymn for the song-service of the Ruggles
St. Church, Boston, was written by Rev. Theron
Brown.
O shoit was His slumber; He woke from the dust;
The Saviour death's chain could not hold;
And short, since He rose, is the sleep of the just;
They shall wake, and His gloiy behold.
« « 41 « « «
Dear grave in the garden; hope smiled at its door
Where love's brightest triumph was told;
Christ lives! and His life will His people restore;
They shall wake, and His gloiy behold.
HYMN8, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. \^^
The music is Bliss' tune to Spafford's ''When
Peace Like a River."
Another by the same writer, sung by the same
church chorus, is —
He rosel O mom of wonderl
Thef saw His light go down
Whose hate had crushed Him under,
A King without a crown.
No plume, no garland wore He,
Despised death's Victor lay.
And wrapped in night His ^oiy.
That claimed a grander day.
4i « « 4i 4i 4i
He rose I He burst immortal
From death's dark realm atones
And left its heavenward portal
Swung wide for all his own.
Nor need one terror seize us
To face earth's final pain.
For they who follow Jesus,
But die to live again.
The composer's name is lost, the tune being kft
nameless when printed. The impression is that
it was a secular melody. A very suitable tune for
the hymn is Geo. J. Webb's '"Millennial Dawn**
("the Morning Light is breaking/*)
47^ STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
THANKSGIVING.
*'D1£ FELDER WIR PFLUGEN UNO STREUEN/
Wc plow the fields and matter
The good seed on the Und,
But it IS fed and watered
By God's Almighty hand.
He sends the snow in winter.
The warmth to swell the gnun.
The breezes, and the sunshine
And soft, refreshing ramj
All, all good gifts around us
Are sent from heaven above
Then thank the Lord, O thank the Loid
For all His lovef
Matthias Claudius, who wrote the German
original of this little poem, was a native of Rein-
feld, Holstein, born 1770 and died 1815. He wrote
lyrics, humorous, pathetic and religious, some of
which are still current in Germany.
The translator of the verses Is Miss Jane Mont-
gomery Campbell, whose identity has not been
traced. Hers is evidently one of the retiring names
brought to light by one unpretending achievement.
English readers owe to her the above modest and
devout hymn, which was first published here in
Rev. C. S, Here's Garland of Songs with Tunes ^
1861.
Little is known of Arthur Cottman, composer to
Miss Campbell's words. He was bom in 1842,
and died in 1879.
•
•I
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 479
''WITH SONGS AND HONORS SOUNDING LOUD."
Stanzas of this enduring hymn of Watts' have
been as often recited as sung.
He sends His showers of blessing down
To cheer the plains below;
He makes the grass the mountains ciown^
And com in valleys grow.
THE TUNE,
One of the chorals — if not the best — to claim
partnership with this sacred classic^ is John Cole's
"Geneva,'* distinguished among the few fugue
tunes which the singing world refuses to dismiss.
There is a growing grandeur in the opening solo
and its following duet as they climb the first tetra-
chord, when the full harmony suddenly reveals
the majesty of the music- The little parenthetic
duo at the eighth bar breaks the roll of the song
for one breathy and the concord of voices closes in
again like a diapason. One thinks of a bird-note
making a watetfall listen,
-'HARVEST HOME/'
L« ui sing of the sheaves, when the summer is done.
And the gamers are stored with the g;ifts of the sun.
Shouting home from the fields like the voice of the se;
Let us join with the reapers in glad jubilee^ —
Rffrain,
Harvest home! {douhh rep.)
Let uf chant His praise who has crowned our days
With bounty of the harvest home.
4S0 STOBT or THB HYMNS AND TUNBt.
WBO am npcoBo mc iniiii hhdo goiiiCH •
who Mtt pDwn 10 aw ▼slk^fs omr t
xlm aw cnwiMsr Hiyit nopy sod aw 1
For die dsjpt when tbe ooid of tbe '
Hanroft homel
Let iis(
r or oie mile 01 oie mntimiey agsni snd ^g*"*^
For the Qcw oil die guden^ die ihowcis 011 die plstiiy
For the jtai^ widi kt hope and kt pramite that end,
GrawDed widi pfeulj and peaces let diannpviii^ 1
Hanrest homel
Let Oil
We Aul Bsnier a hatfcit ot poty^ we know^
FiQoi die nmoifa ov life where in patience we auw.
Bnied knre in die ieU of the heait never diet.
And kt aeed acattered here wiD be dieavea in die 1
Harvest homel
Let us chanty etc
Thanksgiving Hymn. Boston, 1890. Theron
Brown.
Tunc "To the Work, To the Work/' W. H.
Doane.
THE GOD OF HARVEST PRAISE."
Written by James Montgomery in 1840, and
published in the Evangelical Magazine as the
Harvest Hymn for that year.
The God of harvest praise;
In loud thanksgiving raise
Heaity hand and voice.
The valleys smile and sing.
Forests and mountains sin^
The plains their tribute bring.
The streams rejoice.
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 48 1
♦ «♦«♦♦
The God of harvest praise;
HeaitSy hands and voices
With sweet accord;
From field to gamer throngs
Bearing your sheaves alon^
And in your harvest song
Bless ye the Lord.
Tune, "Dort** — Lowell Mason.
MORNING.
'^STILL, STILL WITH THEE.**
These stanzas of Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe,
with their poetic beauty and grateful religious
spirit, have furnished an orison worthy of a place
in all the hymn books. In feeling and in faith the
hymn is a matin song for the world, supplying
words and thoughts to any and every heart that
worships.
Stilly still with Thee, when purple morning breaketh.
When the bird waketh and the shadows flee;
Fairer than moming, lovelier than daylight.
Dawns the sweet consciousness, I am with Thee.
Alone with Thee, amid the mystic shadows
The solemn hush of nature newly bom;
Alone with Thee, in breathless adoration.
In the calm dew and freshness of the monu
41 * « « « «
482 STORT OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
When niikt die souly subdued by toil, to \
ItM doeiiig tftM look up to Thee in pn^er.
Sweet nie npo&t wfneith Thy wii^ii 01
But tweeter ttill to wake and find TThee there.
THE TUNES.
Barob/s ''Windsor/' and ''Stowe'' by Charles
H. Morse (1893) — both written to the words.
Mendelssohn's ''Consolation" is a classic in-
terpretation of the hymn, and finely impressive
whM^n skillfully sung, but simpler — and sweeter
to the popular ear — b Mason's "Henley/' written
to Mrs. Eslings' —
'YJooie unto me when shadows daiklf gather.**
EVENING HTMNS.
John Keble's beautiful meditation —
Sun of my soul. Thou Saviour dear;
John Leland's —
The day is past and gone;
and Phebe Brown's —
I love to steal awhile away;
— have already been noticed. Bishop Doane's
gentle and spiritual lines express nearly everything
that a worshipping soul would include in a moment
of evening thought. The first and last stanzas are
the ones most commonly sung.
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL.
Softly now the light of day
Fades upon my sight away:
Free from care^ from labor free^
Lord I would commune wiih Thee.
Soon for me the light of day
Shall forever pass away^
Then, from sin and sorrow free,
Tak€ me» Lord, to dwell with Thee.
+8i
THE TUNE.
Both Kozeluck and J. E. Gould, besides Louis
M, Gottschalk and Dr. Henry John Gauntlett,
have tried their skill in fitting music to this hymn,
hut only Gottschalk and Kozeluck approach the
mood into which its quiet words charm a pious and
reflective mind. Possibly its frequent association
with "HoUey/' composed by George Hews, may
influence a hearer*s judgement of other melodies
but there is something in that tune that makes
it cling to the hymn as if by instinctive kin-
ship.
Others may have as much or more artistic music
but "Holley" in its soft modulations seems to
breathe the spirit of every word.
It was this tune to which a stranger recently
heard a group of mill-girls singing Bishop Doane's
verses. The lady, a well-known Christian worker,
visited a certain factory, and the superintendent,
after showing her through the building, opened a
door into a long work-room, where the singing of the
4^4 nORT OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
giris delighted and surprised her. It was sunset^
and their hymn was —
Softljr now the liptt oi dajf •
Several of the girls were Sunday-school teachersy
who had encouraged others to sing at that hour,
amd it had become a habit.
''Has it made a diflFerence ?'' the lady inquired.
''There is seldom any quarrelling or coarse jok-
ing amcmg them now/' said the superintendent with
a smile.
Dr. S. F. Smith's hymn of much the same tone
and ten<n^—
Softljr fades die tw3^ n^
or die holjr SaUNOh day,
— ^is commonly sung to the tune of "Holley.**
George Hews, an American composer and piano-
maker, was bom in Massachusetts 1800, and died
July 6, 1873. N^ intelligence of him or his work
or former locality is at hand, beyond this brief note
in Baptie, "He is believed to have followed his
trade in Boston, and written music for some of
Mason's earlier books.
DEDICATION.
"CHRIST IS OUR CORNER-STONE.''
This reproduces in Chandler's translation a song-
service in an ancient Latin liturgy {angulare funia^
BYMNSy FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 485
Clinit 18 our Comer-Stone;
On Him alone we bufld.
With His true saints alone
The Gouits of heaven aie fiOed^
On His great love
Our hopes we place
Of present grace
And joys above.
O then with hymns of praise
These hallowed courts shall ring;
Our voices we will raise
The Thrcc-in-Onc to sing.
And thus proclaim
In joyful song
But loud and long
That glorious Name.
The Rev. John Chandler was bom at Witleyt
Surrey, Eng. June i6, 1806. He took his A.M.
degree at Oxford, and entered the ministiy of the
Church of England, was Vicar of Witley many
years, and became well-known for his translations
of hymns of the primitive church. Died at Putney,
July I, 1876.
THE TUNE.
Sebastian Wesley's ** Harewood '' is plainer and of
less compass, but Zundel's '"Brooklyn" is more
than its rival, both in melody and vivacity.
^'OH LORD OF HOSTS WHOSE GLORY FILLS
THE BOUNDS OF THE ETERNAL HILLS/*
A hymn of Dr. John Mason Neale —
4^6 STORY OF THE HYMNS AKD TUNES.
Endue the creatures with Thy grace
That shall adorn Thy dwelling-place
The beauty of the oak and pine.
The gold and silver, make theni Thine,
The heads that guide endue with skill.
The hands that work preserve from ill.
That we who these foundations lay
May raise the tap-stone in its day*
THE TUNE.
"Wekon," by Rev. Caesar Malan— author of
"Hendon/* once familiar to American singers,
Henri Abraham C^sar Malan was bom at Gen-
cva, Switzerland, 1787, and educated at Geneva
College, Ordained to the ministry of the State
church, (Reformed,) he was dismissed for preach-
ing against its formalism and spiritual apathy; but
he built a chapel of his own, and became a leader
with D*Aubigne, Monod, and others in reviving
the purity of the Evangelical faith and laboring for
the conversion of souls.
Malan wrote many hymns, and published a large
collection, the "Chants de Sion" for the Evan-
gelical Society and the French Reformed Church*
He composed the music of his own hymns* Died
at Vandosurre, 1864,
'T>AUGHTER OF ZION, FROM THE DUST."
Cases may occur where an exhortation hymn
earns a place with dedication hymns.
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 487
The charred fragment of a hymn-book leaf
hangs in a frame on the auditorium wall of the
"New England Church," Chicago- The former
edifice of that church, all the homes of its resident
members, and all their business offices except one,
were destroyed in the great fire. In the ruins of
their sanctuary the only scrap of paper found on
which there was a legible word was this bit of a
hymn-book leaf with the two first stanzas of Mont^
gomery's hymn,
Daughter of Zion, from the dust,
Exak thy falten head;
Again in thy Redeemer trust,
Ht calls thee from the dead^
Awake, awaket put on thy streng^.
Thy beautiful array;
The day of freedom dawns at length,
The Lord's appointed day.
The third verse was not long in coining toeveiy
mind —
Rebuild thy walls! thy bounds enlarge F
— and even without that added word the impov-
erished congregation evidently enough had received
a message from heaven. They took hean of grace,
overcame all difficulties, and in good time replaced
their ruined Sabbath-home with the noble house
in vrhich they worship today,*
If the "New England Church" of Chicago did
not sing this hymn at the dedication of their new
41^ mxj nxd^kff Re? « WitUaia £. Barton D,D. ol Oak Puk« BL
4^8 nORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8.
temple it was for some other reason than bck of
gratitude — not to say reverence.
THE SABBATH.
The veiy essence of all song-worship pitched on
this key-note is the ringing hymn of Watts —
Sweet it die day of sacred rest.
No moital cares disturb my breast, etc.
— but It has vanished from the hymnals with its tune.
Is it because profane people or thoughtless youth
made a travesty of the two next lines —
O may my heart in tune be found
Like David's harp of solemn sound ?
THE TUNE.
Old "Portland" by Abraham Maxim, a fugue
tune in F major of the canon style, expressed all
the joy that a choir could put into music, though
with more sound than skill. The choral is a relic
among relics now, but it is a favorite one.
"Sweet is the Light of Sabbath Eve'* by Edmes-
ton; Stennett's "Another Six Days' Work is Done,"
sung to " Spohr," the joint tune of Louis Spohr and
J.E.Gould; and Doddridge's "Thine Earthly Sab-
bath, Lord, We Love'* retain a feeble hold among
some congregations. And Hayward's "Welcome
Delightful Mom," to the impossible tune of "Lis-
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 489
cher," survived unaccountably long in spite of its
handicap. But special Sabbath hymns are out of
fashion, those classed under that title taking an in-
cidental place under the general head of ** Worship/'
COMMUNION.
"BREAD OF HEAVEN, ON THEE WE FEED.'*
This hymn of Josiah G)nder, copying the phy-
sical metaphors of the 6th of John, is still occasion-
ally used at the Lord's Supper.
Vine of Heaven, Thy blood supplies
This blest cup of sacrifice.
Lord, Thy wounds our healing give.
To Thy Cross we look and live.
The hymn is notable for the felicity with which
it combines imagery and reality. Figure and fact
are always in sight of each other.
Josiah Conder was bom in London, September
17, 1789. He edited the Eclectic Reviewy and was
the author of numerous prose works on historic
and religious subjects. Rev. Garrett Horder says
that more of his hymns are in common use now
than those of any other except Watts and Dod-
dridge. More in proportion to the relative number
may be nearer the truth. In his lifetime Conder
wrote about sixty hymns. He died Dec. 27,
1855-
+90
STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
THE TUNE-
The tune "Corsica" sometimes sung to the
words, though written by the famous Von Gtuck^
shows no sign of the genius of its author. Bom at
Weissenwang, neur New Markt, Prussia, July 2>
17 14, he spent his life in the service of operatic
art, and is called '"the father of the lyric drama/'
but he paid Httle attention to sacred music* Queen
Marie Antoinette was for a while his pupil Died
Nov, 25, 1787.
'*Wilmot,'* (from Von Weber) one of Mason's
popular hymn-tune arrangements, is a melody with
which the hymn is well acquainted. It has a fire-
side rhythm which old and young of the same
circles take up naturally in song.
"HERE, O MY LORD, 1 SEE THEE FACE TO FACE/'
Written in October, 1855, by Dn Horatius Bon an
James Bonar, brother of the poet-preacher, just
after the communion for that month, asked him to
furnish a hymn for the communion record. It was
the church custom to print a memorandum of each
service at the Lord's table, with an appropriate
hymn attached, and an original one would be thrice
welcome* Horatius in a day or two sent thit
hymn:
Here, O my Lord, I see Thee face to face,
Here would I touch and handle things unseen
Here graip with firmer hand th' eternal grace*
And at! my weariness upon Thee lean-
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 491
***««*
Too soon we rise; the symbols disappear;
The feasty though not the love» is past and gone;
The bread and wine remove, but Thou art here
Nearer than ever — still my Shield and Sun.
THE TUNE.
"Morecambe'' is an anon)mnous composition
printed with the words by the Plymouth Hymnal
editors. " Berlin " by Mendelssohn is better. The
metre of Bonar's hymn is unusual, and melodies to
fit it are not numerous, but for a meditative service
it is worth a tune of its own,
''O THOU MY SOUL, FORGET NO MORE.^^
The author of this hymn found in the Baptist
hymnals, and often sung at the sacramental seasons
of that denomination, was the first Hindoo convert
to Christianity.
Krishna Pal, a native carpenter, in consequence
of an accident, came under the care of Mr. Thomas,
a missionary who had been a surgeon in the East
Indies and was now an associate worker with
William Carey. Mr. Thomas set the man's broken
arm, and talked of Jesus to him and the surround-
ing crowd with so much tact and loving kindness
that Krishna Pal was touched. He became a pupil
of the missionaries; embraced Christ, and in-
fluenced his wife and daughter and his brother to
accept his new faith.
492 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNB8*
He alone, however, dared the bitter persecutkui
of his caste, and presented himself for church-
membership. He and Care/s son were baptized
in the Ganges by Dr. Carey, Dec. 28, 1800, in the
presence of the English Governor and an immense
ooncourse of people representing four or five differ-
ent religions.
Krishna Pal wrote several hymns. The one here
noted was translated from the Bengalee by Dr.
Marshman.
O Inoii, wsf socii, loigct no nore
The Friend who all thy aoriowt bore;
Let eveij idol be foigoc;
But, O my aoul, feigec him not.
Renounce thy works and ways, with grief.
And fly to this divine relief;
Nor Him forget, who left His throne.
And for thy life gave up His own.
Eternal truth and mercy shine
In Him, and He Himself is thine:
And canst thou then, with sin beset.
Such charms, such matchless charms foigetf
Oh, no; till life itself depart.
His name shall cheer and warm my heait;
And lisping this, from earth 111 rise.
And join the chorus of the skies.
THE TUNE.
There is no scarcity of good long-metre tunes to
suit the sentiment of this hymn. More commonly
in the Baptist manuals its vocal mate is Brad*
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 493
buiy's ''Rolland" or the sweet and serious Scotch
melody of "Ward," arranged by Mason. Best of
all is ''Hursley/' the beautiful Ritter-Monk
choral set to "Sun of My Soul."
NEW rEAR.
Two representative hymns of this class are John
Newton's —
Whfle with ceaseless course the sun,
— and Charles Wesley's —
Come let us anew our journey pursue;
the one a voice at the next year's threshold, the
other a song at the open door.
While with ceaseless course the tun
Hasted thro' the former year
Many souls their race have run
Nevermore to meet us here.
As the winged arrow flies
Speedily the mark to find.
As the lightening from the slcies
Darts and leaves no trace behind.
Swiftly thus our fleeting days
Bear we down life's rapid stream.
Upward^ Lord^ our spirits raise;
All below is but a dream.
A grave occasion, whether unexpected or peri-
odical, will force reflection, and so will a grave
494 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
truth; and when both present themselves at once,
the truth needs only commonplace statement. If
the statement is in rhyme and measure more at-
tention is secured. Add a tune to it, and the most
frivolous vfill take notice. Nevyton's hymn sung
on the last evening of the year has its opportunity —
and never fails to produce a solemn effect; but
it is to the immortal music given to it in Samuel
Webbe's "Benevento" that it owes its uniqtie and
permanent place* Dykes' "St. Edmund'* may be
sung in England, but in America it will never re-
place Webbe's simple and wonderfully impressive
choraL
Charles Wesley's hymn is the antipode of New-
ton's in metre and movement.
Came, let us anew our joumey pursue^
Rolt round with the year
And never stand still tilt the Master appear.
His adarable will let us gladly fulfil
And our talents improve
By the patience of hope and the labor of iovc
Our life is a dream, our time as a stream
Glides swiftly away.
And the fugitive moment refuses to stay-
The arrow is flown, the moment is gone.
The miiiennial year.
Rushes on to our view, and eternity's near.
One could scarcely imagine a greater contrast
than between this hymn and Newton's. In spite
of its eccentric metre one cannot dismiss it as
rhythmical jingle, for it is really a sermon shaped
into a papular canticle, and the surmise is not a
n
b
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCXASIONAL. 495
difficult one that he had in mind a secular air that
was familiar to the crowd. But the hymn is not
one of Wesley's poems. Compilers who object to
its lilting measure omit it from their books, but it
holds its place in public use, for it carries weighty
thoughts in swift sentences.
0 that each in the Day of His coming may say,
**I have fought my way through,
1 have finished the work Thou didst give me to do."
O that each from the Lord may receive th^ glad word,
"Well and faithfully done.
Enter into my joy, and sit down on my throne.'*
For a hundred and fifty years this has been sung
in the Methodist watch-meetings, and it will be
long before it ceases to be sung — and reprinted in
Methodist, and some Baptist hymnals.
The tune of ** Lucas,*' named after James Lucas,
its composer, is the favorite vehicle of song for
the "Watch-hymn." Like the tune to "O How
Happy Are They," it has the movement of the words
and the emphasis of their meaning.
No knowledge of James Lucas is at hand except
that he lived in England, where one brief reference
gives his birth-date as 1762 and "about 1805" a$;
the birth-date of the tune.
"GREAT GOD, WE SING THAT MIGHTY HAND.**
The admirable hymn of Dr. Doddridge may be
noted in this division with its equally admirable
49^ STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
tunc of "Mclancthon/* one of the old Lutheran
chorals of Germany.
Great God, we ting that mi^ty hand
By which supported still we stand.
The opening year Thy mercy shows;
Thy meny crown it till its close!
By day, by ni^t, at home, abroad.
Still we are guarded by our God.
As this last couplet stood — and ought now to
stand — pious parents teaching the hymn to their
children heard them repeat —
By day, by ni^t, at home, abroad,
Wi an surrounded stili with God,
Many are now living whose first impressive
sense of the Divine Omnipresence came with that
line.
PARTING.
'^GOD BE WITH YOU TILL WE MEET AGAIN.*'
A lyric of benediction, bom, apparently, at the
v^ivine moment for the need of the gre;^ "Society
^of Christian Endeavor," and now adopted into the
Christian song-service of all lands. 1 he author,
Rev. Jeremiah Eames Rankin, D.D., LL.D., was
bom in Thomton, N. H., Jan. 2, 1828. He was
graduated at Middlebuiy College, Vt., in 1848,
and labored as a Congregational pastor more
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 497
than thirty years. For thirteen years he was
President of Howard University, Washington,
D. C. Besides the "Parting Hymn" he wrote The
Auld Scotch Mither^ Ingleside Rhymes^ Hymns
pro Patrtaj and various practical works and relig-
ious essays. Died 1904.
THE TUNE.
As in a thousand other partnerships of hynuiist
and musician. Dr. Rankin was fortunate in his
composer. The tune is a symphony of hearts —
subdued at first, but breaking into a chorus strong
with the uplift of hope. It is a farewell with a
spiritual thrill in it.
Its author, William Gould Tomer, was bom in
Finesville, Warren Co., N. J., October 5, 1832;
died in Phillipsburg, N. J., Sept. 26, 1896. He was
a soldier in the Civil War and a writer of good
ability as well as a composer. For some time he
was editor of the High Bridge Gazette, and music
with him was an avocation rather than a pro-
fession. He wrote the melody to Dr. Rankin's
hymn in 1880, Prof* J. W. BischoflF supplying the
harmony, and the tune was first published in
Gospel Bells the same year.
FUNERALS.
The style of singing at funerals, as well as the
character of the hymns, has greatly changed — if.
498
STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
indeed, music continues to be a part of the service,
as frequently, in ordinary cases, it is not. "China*'
with its comforting words — and terrifying chords —
is forever obsolete, and not only that, but Dr.
Muhlenberg's, *'I Would Not Live Alway," with its
sadly sentimental tune of "Frederick," has passed
out of common use. Anna Steele's *' So Fades the
Lovely, Blooming Flower,*' on the death of a child,
is occasionatly heard, and now and then Dr. S. F.
Smith's, "Sister, Thou Wast Mild and Lovely/'
(with its gentle air of" Mt. Vernon,") on the death
of a young lady. Standard hymns Uke Watts',
** Unveil Thy Bosom, Faithful Tomb," to the slow,
tender melody of the "Dead March," (from Han-
del's oratorio of " Saul ") and Montgomery's
"Servant of God, Well Done," to "Olmutz," or
Woodbury's " Forever with the Lord," still retain
their prestige, the music of the former being
played on steeple-chimes on some burial occasions
in cities, during the precession —
Nor pain nor grief nor anxious fear
Invade thy bounds^ no mortal
Can reach the peaceful sleeper here
While angeb watch the soft repose.
Tlia latter hymn (Montgomery's) is biographi
cal — as described on page 301 —
Servant of God, well done;
Rest from thy loved employ;
The battle fought , the vlct'ry woa^
Enter thy Master's joy.
HYMNSy FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 499
Only five stanzas of this long poem are now in
use.
The exquisite elegy of Montgomeiy» entitled
•'The Grave/'—
There it a calm for those who weep,
A rest for weaiy mortals found
Thqr softly lie and sweetly sleep
Low in the ground.
— ^is by no means discontinued on funeral occasionSf
nor Margaret Mackay's beloved hymn, —
Asleep in Jesus, blessed sleep,
— melodized in Bradbury's "Rest."
Mrs. Margaret Mackay was bom in 1801, the
daughter of Capt. Robert Mackay of Hedgefield,
Inverness, and wife of a major of the same name.
She was the author of several prose works and
Lays of Leisure Hours^ containing seventy-two
original hymns and poems, of which "Asleep in
Jesus" is one. She died in 1887.
*^MY JESUS, AS THOU WILT.**
{fiiiin Jesu, wie du unllst.)
This sweet hymn for mourners, known to us
here in Jane Borthwick's translation, was written
by Benjamin Schmolke (or Schmolk) late in the
17th century. He was bom at Brauchitzchdorf,
in Silesia, Dec. 21, 1672, and received his educa-
tion at the Labau Gymnasium and Leipsic Uni-
vtTMy. A sermon preached while a youth, for his
5O0
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
father, a Lutheran pastor, sho%ved such remark-
able promise that a wealthy man paid the expenses
of his education for the ministry. He was ordained
and settled as pastor of the Free Church at
Schweidnitz, Silesia, in which charge he continued
from 1701 till his death.
Schmolke was the most popular hymn-writer of
his time, author of some nine hundred church
pieces, besides many for special occasions. Withal
he was a man of exalted piety and a pastor of rare
wisdom and influence.
His death, of paralysis, occurred on the anniver-
sary of his wedding, Feb. 12, r737«
My Jesus, as Thou wilr.
Oh may Thy will be minet
Into Thy hand of love
I would my all resign.
Thfo' sorrow or thro' joy
Conduct me as Thine own»
And help me still to say,
My Lord, Thy will be done.
The last line is the refrain of the hymn of four
eight-line stanzas.
THE TUNE.
"Sussex," by Joseph Bamby, a plain-song with
a fine harmony, is good congregational music for
the hymn*
But " Jewett/' one of Carl Maria Von Weber's
exquisite flights of song, is like no other in its
intimate interpretation of the prayerful words.
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 5OI
We hear Luther's "bird in the heart** singing
softly in every inflection of the tender melody as it
glides on. The tune, arranged by Joseph Hol-
brook, is from an opera — the overture to Weber's
Der Freischiitz — but one feels that the gentle
musician when he wrote it must have caught an
inspiration of divine trust and peace. The wish
among the last words he uttered when dying in
London of slow disease was, "Let me go back
to my own (home), and then God's will be done."
That wish and the sentiment of Schmolke's hymn
belong to each other, for they end in the same
way.
My Jesus, as Thou wilt:
AH shall be well for me;
Each changing future scene
I gladly trust with Thee.
Straight to my home above
I travel calmly on.
And sing in life or death
My Lord, Thy will be done.
"I CANNOT ALWAYS TRACE THE WAY.-
In later years, when funeral music is desired,
the employment of a male quartette has become a
favorite custom. Of the selections sung in this
manner few are more suitable or more generally
welcomed than the tender and trustful hymn of
Sir John Bowring, rendered sometimes in Dr.
Dykes* "Almsgiving," but better in the less-known
but more flexible tune composed by Howard M.
Dow^
roi STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
I cannoc always trace ihc way
Where Thou, Almighty One, dost more.
But I can always p always say
That God is bvc.
When fear her chilling mantle flings
O'er earthy my soul to heaven ahove
At to her native home upsp rings,
For God is love.
When mystery clouds my darlcened path»
ril check my dread, my doubts reprove^
Fn this my soul sweet comfort hath
That God is love.
YeSp God is love. A thought like thi»
Can every gloomy thought remove^
And turn all tears, all woes to hliss
For God is love.
The first line of the hymn was onginally^ *"Ti$
seldom I can trace the way."
Howard M* Dow has been many years a resident
of Boston, and organist of the Grand Lodge of
Freemasons at the Tremont St. (Masonic) Temple.
M
WEDDING.
Time was when hymns were sung at weddings,
though in America the practice was never uni-
versaL Marriage, among Protestants, is not one
of the sacraments, and no masses are chanted for
it by ecclesiastical ordinance. The question of
music at private marriages depends on conven-
J
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 5O3
ience, vocal or instrumental equipment, and the
general drift of the occasion. At public weddings
the organ's duty is the "Wedding March/*
To revive a fashion of singing at home marriages
would be considered an oddity — and, where civil
marriages are legal, a superfluity — but in the
religious ceremony, just after the prayer that
follows the completion of the nuptial formula, it
will occur to some that a hymn would "tide over**
a proverbially awkward moment. Even good,
quaint old John Berridge's lines would happily
relieve the embarrassment — besides reminding the
more thoughtless that a wedding is not a mere
piece of social fun —
Since Jesus truly did appear
To grace a marriage feast
O Lord, we ask Thy presence here
To make a wedding guest.
Upon the bridal pair look down
Who now have plighted hands;
Their union with Thy favor crown
And bless the nuptial bands
******
In purest love these souls unite
That they with Christian care
May make domestic burdens light
By taking each a share.
Tune, "Lanesboro," Mason.
A wedding hymn of more poetic beauty is the
one written by Miss Dorothy Bloomfield (now Mrs.
Gumey), bom 1858, for her sister's marriage in
1883.
504 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
O perfect Love, all human thought transcendi&g^
Lowly wc kneel m prayer before Thy throne
That t heir's may be a love which knows no ending
Whom Thou forevennore dost join in one.
O pcffect Life, be Thou their first assurance
Of tender chancy and steadfast faith.
Of patient hope and qtiiet, brave endurance^
With childlike trust that fears nor pain nor death.
Grant them the joy which brightens earthly sorrow.
Grant them the peace which calms all earthly striftt^
And to their day the glorious unknown morrow
That dawns upon eternal love and life.
Time by Joseph Bamby, *' O Perfect Love/*
FRUITION DAT.
*TX>1 HE COMES WITH CLOUDS DESCENDING/'
Thomas Olivers begins one of his hymns with
this line. The hymn is a Judgment-day lyric of
rude strength and once in current use, but now
rarely printed. The "Lo He Comes," here spec-
ially noted, is the production of John Cennick, the
Moravian.
Lot He comes with clouds descending
Once for favored sinnera itain.
Thousand thousand saints attending
Swell the triumph of His train.
Hallelujah 1
God appears on eaith to reign .
# ^ » « 4t ^ «
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 5O5
Yea, amen; let all adore Thee
High on Thy eternal throne.
Saviour, take the power and gloiy,
Qaim the kingdom for thine own;
O come quickly;
Hallelujah I G>me, Lord, come.
THE TUNES.
Various composers have written music to this
universal hymn, but none has given it a choral
that it can claim as peculiarly its own. ''Brest,''
Lowell Mason's plain-song, has a limited range,
and runs low on the staff, but its solemn chords are
musical and commanding. As much can be said
of the tunes of Dr. Dykes and Samuel Webbe,
which have more variety. Those who feel that the
hymn calls for a more ornate melody will prefer
Madan's"Helmsley."
^TX)I WHAT A GLORIOUS SIGHT APPEARS.^
The great Southampton bard who wrote
"Sweet fields beyond the swelling flood" was
quick to kindle at every reminder of Fruition Day.
Lol what a glorious sight appears
To our believing eyes!
The earth and seas are passed away.
And the old rolling skies.
From the third heaven, where God resides^
TTiat holy, happy place.
The New Jerusalem comes down.
Adorned with shining grace.
5o6
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES-
This hymn of Watts' sings one of his most exalted
visions. It has been dear for two hundred years
to every Christian soul throbbing with millennial
thoughts and wishful of the day when —
The God of glory down to men
Removes His best abode,
— and when —
Hts own kind hand shall wipe the tears
From every weeping eye.
And pains and groans, and griefs and fears.
And death itself shall die,
—and the yearning cry of the last stanza^ when the
vision fades, has been the household ? of myriads of
burdened and sorrowing saints-
How long, dear Saviour, O how long
Shall this bright hour delay ?
Fly swifter round ye wheels of Time,
And bring the welcome day!
THE TUNES.
By right of long appropriation both "North-
field" and "New Jerusalem" own a near relation-
ship to these glorious verses. Ingalls, one of the
constellation of early Puritan psalmodists, to which
Billings and Swan belonged, evidently loved the
hymn, and composed his "New Jerusalem" to the
ver^, "From the third heaven/' and his "North-
field" to "How long, dear Saviour/' The former
is now sung only as a reminiscence of the music of
the past, at church festivals, charity fairs and enter*
HYMNS, FESTIVAL AND OCCASIONAL. 507
tainments of similar design, but the action and
hearty joy in it always evoke sympathetic
applause. ''Northfield" is still in occasional
use, and it is a jewel of melody, however irre-
trievably out of fashion. Its union to that im*
mortal stanza, if no other reason, seems likely to
insure its permanent place in the lists of sacred
song.
John Cole's "Annapolis,** still found in a few
hymnals with these words, is a little too late to be
called a contemporary piece, but there are some
reminders of Ingalls "New Jerusalem" in its style
and vigor, and it really partakes the flavor of the
old New England church music.
Jeremiah Ingalls was bom in Andover, Mass.,
March, i, 1764. A natural fondness for music in-
creased with his years, but opportunities to educate
it were few and far between, and he seemed like
to become no more than a fairly good bass-viol
player in the village choir. But his determination
carried him higher, and in time his self-taught
talent qualified him for a singing-school master,
and for many years he travelled through Massa-
chusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont, training
the raw vocal material in the countiy towns, and
organizing choirs.
Between his thirtieth and fortieth years, he com-
posed a number of tunes, and, in 1804 published
a two hundred page collection of his own and
others' music, which he called the Christian
Harmony.
5o8 8T0RY OF THB HYBfNS AND TUNB8.
His home was for some time in Newbeny, Vt.»
but he subsequently lived at Rochester and at
Hancock in the same state.
Among the traditions of him is this anecdote of
the origin of his famous tune ''Northfield/' which
may indicate something of his temper and religious
habit. During his travels as a singing-school
teacher he stopped at a tavern in the town of
Northfield and ordered his dinner. It was very
slow in coming, but the inevitable ''how long?''
dbat formulated itself in his hungry thoughts, in-
stead of sharpening into profane complaint, fell into
the rhythm of Watts' sacred line — and the tune
came with it. To call it ''Northfield" was natural
enough; the place where its melody first beguiled
him from his bodily wants to a dream of the final
Fruition Day.
Ingalls died in Hancock, Vt., April 6, 1828.
CHAPTER XIV.
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CON-
SOLATION.
^JERUSALEM THE GOLDEN^
Urbs Sion Auna.
"The Seven Great Hymns" of the Latin Church
are:
Laus Patriae G>ele8d8, — (Praise of the Heavenly Counttj).
Veni, Sancte Spiritus, — (G>mey Holy Spirit)
Veniy Creator Spiritus,— (Come, Creator Spirit)
Dies Irae,— (The Day of Wrath)
Subat Mater,— (The Mother Stood By)
Mater Speciosa, — (The Fair Mother.)
Vexilla Regis. — (The Banner of the King.)
Chief of these is the first named, though that is
but part of a religious poem of three thousand lines,
which the author, Bernard of Cluny, named "De
Contemptu Mundi" (Concerning Disdain of the
World.)
Bernard was of English parentage, though bom
at Morlaix, a seaport town in the north of France.
(609)
4
5 TO STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
The exact date of his birth is unknown, though it
was probably about A- D. i loo. He is called Ber-
nard of Cluny because he lived and wrote at that
place, a French town on the Grone where he was
abbot of a famous monastery, and also to dis- ^,
tinguish him from Bernard of Clairvaux, ^H
His great poem is rarely spoken of as a whole,^^
but in three portions, as if each were a complete
work* The first is the long exordium, exhausting
the pessimistic title (contempt of the world), and
passing on to the second, where begins the real
"Laus Patriae Coelestis/' This being cut in two,
making a third portion, has enriched the Christian
world with two of its best hymns^ 'Tor Thee, O
Dear, Dear Country/'and "Jerusalem the Golden,"
Bernard wrote the medieval or church La tin in
its prime of literary refinement, and its accent is so
obvious and its rhythm so musical that even one
ignorant of the language could pronounce it, and
catch its rhymes* The *' Contemptu Mundi" begins
with these two lines, in a hexameter impossible
to copy in translation:
Hora novissima; tempora pesstma sunt; VigilemusI
Ecce minaciter imminet Arbiter^ Ule Supremusl
*Tis the last hour; the times are at their worst;
Watch; lo the Judge Supreme stands threatening nighl
Or, as Dr. Neak paraphrases and softens it, —
The World is very evil.
The times are waxing late.
Be sober and keep vigil.
The Judge is at the gatCi
I
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 5II
— and, after the poet's long, dark diorama of the
world's wicked condition, follows the '^ Praise of the
Heavenly Fatherland," when a tender gloiy dawns
upon the scene till it breaks into sunrise with the
vision of the Golden City. All that an opulent and
devout imagination can picture of the beauty and
bounty of heaven, and all that faith can construct
from the glimpses in the Revelation of its glory
and happiness is poured forth in the lavish poetry
of the inspired monk of Quny —
Urbs Sion aurea, patria lactea, cive decora,
Omne cor obruis, omnibus obstruis, et cor et on.
Nescio, nescio quae jubilatio lux tibi qualia^
]2uani socialia gaudia, gloria quam specialit.
Jerusalem, the golden;
With milk and honey blest;
Beneath thy contemplation
Sink heart and voice oppreit*
I know not, O I know not
What joys await us there^
With radiancy of glory,
With bliss beyond compar»#
They stand, those halls of ZSoii,
All jubilant with song,*
And bright with many an angel.
And all the martyr throng.
The Prince is ever in them.
The daylight is serene;
The pastures of the blessed
Are decked in glorious she
Hn imt editioas* **'coHJuhrlant wkh aong.**
512 STORY or THE HYMNS AND TUNBI.
O iweet and blessed count ly.
The home of God's elect!
O 5Weet and blessed country.
That eager hearts expect I
Jesu, in mercy bring us
To that dear land of rest.
Who art, with God the Father,
And Spirit^ ever blest.
Dr. John Mason Neale, the translator, was
obliged to condense Bernard's exuberant verse,
and he has done so with unsurpassable grace and
melody* He made his translation while "inhi-
bited*' from his priestly functions in the Church of
England for his high ritualistic views and practice,
and so poor that he wrote stories for children to
earn his living. His poverty added to the wealth
of Christendom.
THE TUNE.
The music of "Jerusalem the Golden" used in
most churches Is the composition of Alexander
Ewing, a paymaster in the English army. He was
born in Aberdeen > Scotland > Jan, 3d, 1830, and
educated there at Marischal College, The tune
bears his name, and this honor, and its general
favor with the public, are so much testimony to its
merit. It is a stately harmony in D major with
sonorous and impressive chords. Ewing died in 1895.
"WHY .'^HOPLD WE START AND FEAR TO DIET
Probably it is an embarrassment of riches and
despair of space that have crowded this hymn —
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION.
perhaps the sweetest that Watts ever wrote — out of
iome of our church singijig-books. It is pleasant
to find it in the new Methodist Hymnal^ though
with an indifferent tune,
H Christians of today should surely sing the last
two stanzas with the same exalted joy and hope
that made them sacred to pious generations past
■jipd eone^ —
O if my Lord would come and mcct>
My soul would stretch her wings ia hamt^
Fly fearless through death's iron gate,
Nor feci the terrors as she passed.
Jtsvts can niake a dying bed
Fee! soft as downy pillows are^
While on His breast I lean my head
Ajid breathe my Life out fweaiy chene*
THE TUNE.
The plain-music of William Boyd*s 'Pentecost/'
(with modulations in the tenor), creates a new
accent for the familiar Unes. Preferable in every
sense are Bradbury's tender" Zephyr" or '*Rest/'
No coming generation will ever feel the pious
gladness of Amariah Hall's "All Saints New" in
E fiat major as it stirred the Christian choirs of
seventy five years ago. Fitted to this heart-felt
lyric of Watts, it opened with the words —
O if my Lord would come and meet,
in full harmony and four-four time, continuing to
the end of the stanza. The melody, with its slurred
syllables and beautiful modularions was almost
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 515
to mention the fancy figures and refrains of camp-
meeting music, which have cheapened it, neither
John Cole's "Annapolis" nor Ame's "Arlington'*
nor a dozen others that have borrowed these speak-
ing lines, can wear out their association with " Auld
lang Syne." The hymn has permeated the tune,
and, without forgetting its own words, the Scotch
melody preforms both a social and religious mis-
sion. Some arrangements of it make it needlessly
repetitious, but its pathos will always best vocalize
the hymn, especially the first and last stanzas —
When I can read my title dear
To mansions in the skies
rU bid farewell to every fear
And wipe my weeping eyes.
4t * * « 4t 4t
There shall I bathe my weaiy soul
In seas of heavenly rest,
And not a wave of trouble roll
Across my peaceful breast.
''VITAL SPARK OF HEAVENLY FLAME."
This paraphrase, by Alexander Pope, of the
Emperor Adrian's death-bed address to his soul —
Animula, vagula, blandula,
HospeSy comesque corporis,
— ^transfers the poetry and constructs a hymnic
theme.
An old hymn writer by the name of Flatmaa
wrote a Pindaric, somewhat similar to ** Adrian's
Address,'' as follows:
5X6 nOMX OF THE HYMMS itNI> TUNBii^
When on 1117 sMc4ed I IttiguUi^ .
FuU of 8ornm» fiiB of aagoisiv
Faindogy gasping trembiltiii^ ^TioR*
Panting^ groaning speechless* dying;
Mediinks I hear some gentle spirit sqr,
''Be not fearful, come away* "
F6pe combined these two poems with the words
of Divine inspiration, '"O death, where is thy
ft&g I O grave, where is thy victory V* and made
a pagan philosopher's question the text for a tti*
unlphant Christian anthem of hope.
Vital spaii: of heavenly flame^
Qait» cik quit diis mortal frame.
TrembHng^ hoping lingering, ftfin^
Oh the pain, the bliss of dying!
Cease, fond nature, cease thy strife^
And let me languish into life.
Hark I they whisper: angels say,
* 'Sister spirit, come away!"
What is this absorbs me quite.
Steals my senses, shuts my sight.
Drowns my spirit, draws my breath.
Tell me, my soul, can this be death ?
The world recedes: it disappears:
Heaven opens on my eyes; my ears
With sounds seraphic ring.
Lend, lend your wings! I mount 1 1 flyl
O grave where is thy victory ?
O death, where is thy sting ?
THE TUNE.
ITic old anthem, " The Djang Christian," or "The
Dying Christian to his Soul,'' which first made this
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 517
k
I
!yric familiar in America as a musical piece, will
never be sung again except at antique entertain-
ments, but it had an importance in its day.
Beginning in quadruple time on four flats minor,
it renders the first stanza in flowing concords largo
affettuDso, and a single bass fugue. Then suddenly
shifting to one flat, major, duple time, it executes
the second stanza, "Hark! they whisper". .••"What
is this, etc.j" in alternate pianissimo and forte
phrases; and finally, changing to triple time, sings
the third triumphant stanza» andante, through
staccato and fortissimo. The shout in the last
adagio, on the four final bars/' O Death! O Death!"
softening with "where is thy sting ?" is quite in the
style of old orchestral magnificence.
Since "The Dying Christian" ceased to appear
in church music» the poem> for some reason, seems
not to have been recognized as a hymn. It is, how-
ever, a Christian poem, and a true lyric of hope and
consolation, whatever the character of the author
or however pagan the original that suggested it.
The most that is now known of Edward Har-
woodj the composer of the anthem, is that he
was an English musician and psalmodist, born near
Blackburn, Lancaster Co., 1707, and died about
1787-
*^OUR HARPS, YE TREMBLING SAINTS."
This hymn of Toplady, — unlike "A Debtor to
Mercy Alone, "and "Inspirer and Hearer of Pray-
both now little used, — stirs no controversial
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
feeling by a single line of his aggressive CalYinism.
It is simply a song of Christian gratitude and joy.
Your harps^ ye trembling saints
Down from the willows takcj
Loud CO the praise of Love Divine
Bid every string awake.
Though in a foreign land^
We are not Ut from Home,
And nearer to our house above
We every moment come.
Blest is the man, O God,
That stays himself on Thee,
Who waits for Thy salvation, Lonl,
Shall Thy salvation tee,
THE TUNE.
**01nnutz'* was arranged by Lowell Mason from
a Gregorian chant. He set it himself to TopIady*s
hymn, and it seems the natural music for it- The
words are also sometimes written and sung to Jona*
than Woodman's *' State St/'
Jonathan Call Woodman was bom in New-
buryport, Mass.^ July 12, 1813. He was the organ-
ist of St. George's Chapelj Flushing L.I. and a
teacher, composer and compiler. His Musical
Casket was not issued until Dec, J 858, but he
wrote the tune of *' State St.'* in August, 1844. It
was a contribution to Bradbury's PWmo</iV/, which
was published the same year.
A
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 519
"YE GOLDEN LAMPS OF HEAVEN, FAREWELL.**
Dr. Doddridge's '^fareweir* is not a note of re-
gret. Unlike Bernard, he appreciates this world
while he anticipates the better one, but his con-
templation climbs from God's footstool to His
throne. His thought is in the last two lines of the
second stanza, where he takes leave of the sun —
My soul that springs beyond thy sphere
No more demands thine aid.
But his fancy will find a function for the ** golden
lamps" even in the gloiy that swallows up their
Ught—
Ye stars are but the shining dust
Of my divine abode.
The pavement of those heavenly courts
Where I shall dwell with God.
The Father of eternal light
Shall there His beams display.
Nor shall one moment's darkness mix
With that unvaried day.
THE TUNE.
The hymn has been assigned to "Mt. Auburn,"
a composition of George Kingsley, but a far better
interpretation — if not best of all — is H. K. Oliver's
tune of "Merton," (1847,) older, but written pur-
posely for the words.
'TRIUMPHANT ZION, LIFT THY HEAD.'*
This fine and stimulating lyric is Doddridge in
another tone. Instead of singing hope to the in-
520 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES*
dividual, he sounds a note of encouragement to the
church.
Put all thy beauteous garments on.
And let thy excellence be known;
Decked in the robes of right eousne«i.
The world thy glories shall conlesi*
God from on high has heard thy prajreri
His hand thy ruins shall repair^
Nor will thy watchful Monarch cease
To guard thee in eternal peace.
The tune, "Anvem/' is one of Mason's charm-
ing melodies, full of vigor and cheerful life, and
everything can be said of it that is said of the
hymn- Duffield compares the hymn and tune to a
ring and its jewel-
It is one of the inevitable freaks of taste that puts
so choice a strain of psalmody out of fashion.
Many younger pieces in the church manuals could
be better spared.
-'SHRINKING FROM THE COLD HAND OF DEATH."
This is a hymn of contrast, the dark of recoiling
nature making the background of the rainbow.
Written by Charles Wesley^ it has passed among
his forgotten or mostly forgotten productions but
is notable for the frequent use of its 3rd stanza by
his brother John. John Wesley, in his old age, did
not so much shrink from death as from the thought
of its too slow approach. His almost constant
prayer was, "Lord, let me not live to be useless.'
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 5ZI
" At cveiy place, " says Belcher, " after giving to hii
societies what he desired them to consider his last
advice, he invariably concluded with the stanza be«
ginning —
** ^h 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/ "
The anticipation of death itself by both the great
evangelists ended like the ending of the hymn —
No anxious doubt, no guilty gloom
Shall daunt whom Jesus' presence cheers;
My Light, my Life, my God is come.
And glory in His face appears.
'TOREVER WITH THE LORD.**
Montgomery had the Ambrosian gift of spiritual
song-writing. Whatever may be thought of his
more ambitious descriptive or heroic pages of
verse, and his long narrative poems, his lyrics and
cabinet pieces are gems. The poetry in some
exquisite stanzas of his ** Grave'' is a dream of
peace:
There is a calm for those who weep,
A rest for weary mortals found;
They softly lie and sweetly sleep
Low in the ground.
The storms that wreck the winter's sky
No more disturb their deep repose
Than summer evening's latest sigh
That shuts the rose.
iHic ID ine pociiif iiK fMODio n mssf uiy -wibcb
1M an cooflidefiiig-Hiridi kt #raDe tett k I T^
4«i7*'"'^*^" weflMid bsid mes to dift hcigHnf €v
Timi. HewiDiekwiieiiliewasanoUiiiMu The
contemplatioii $o absorbed him that he ooidd not
^ntt his theme dll he had composed twentj^cwo
quatrains. Onty foor <Mr five— or at most cmtjr
seven of thras — are now in general nse. Likehw
^^ Prayer is ihe Soid's SinoN« Desire/* diqr have die
pith of devotional dboaght in dienit but are kss
Sttbjectivie and analydcaL
Twfsvflrwiui UMB I^adl
AiiMsiytbktitlM^
Life from Ae dead it ia dua fposii
Tli immoitality.
Here in the bod/ pent»
Absent from Him I roam^
Yet nightly pitdi my moving tent
A day's maxch nearer borne.
My Father's house on hig^I
Home of my soul, how near
At times to faith's foreseeing qre
Thy golden gates appear.
I hear at mom and even.
At noon and midnight hour.
The choral harmonies of heaven
Earth's Babel tongues o'erpower.
The last line has been changed to read-
Seraphic music pour,
•—and finally the hymnals have dropped the verse
and substituted others. The new line is an im-
I
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 523
provement in melody but not In rhyme, and, be-
sides* it robs the stanza of its leading thought —
heaven and earth offsetting each other, and
heavenly music drowning earthly noise— a thought
that is missed even in the rich cantos of "Jerusalem
the Golden/'
THE TUNES.
Nearly the whole school of good short metre
tunes, from "St. Thomas" to "Boylston** have
offered their notes to Montgomery's "At Home
in Heaven," but the two most commonly recog-
nized as its property are "Momington," named
from Lord Momington, its author, and L B.Wood'
biiiy*s familiar harmony, " Forever with the Lord/*
Garret Colley Wellesley, Earl of Mornington,
and ancestor of the Duke of Wellington, was born
in Dagan, Ireland, July 19, 1735. Remarkable
for musical talent when a child, he became a skilled
violinist, organ-player and composer in boyhood,
with little aid beyond his solitary study and
practice. When scarcely twenty-one, the Univer-
sity of Dublin conferred on him the degree of
Doctor of Music, and a professorship. He excelled
as a composer of glees, but wrote also tunes and
anthems for the church, some of which are still
extant in the choir books of the Dublin Cathedral,
Died March. 22, J 781.
5^4 BTORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
''HARK! HARK, Ml^ SOULr
The Methodist Reformation* while it had found
no practical sympathy within the established
churchi left a deep sense of its reason and purpose
in the minds of the more devout Episcopalians,
and this feeling, instead of taking form in popular
revival methods, prompted them to deeper sin-
cerity and more spiritual fervor in their traditional
rites of worship. Many of the next generatioi*
inherited this pious ecclesiasticism, and carried
their loyalty to the old Christian culture to the
extreme of devotion till they saw in the sacraments
the highest good of the soul. It was Kebk*s
"Christian Year'* and his "Assize Sermon" that
began the Tractarian movement at Oxford which
brought to the front himself and such men as
Henry Newman and Frederick William Faben
The hymns and sacred poems of these sacra-
mentarian Christians would certify to their earnest
piety, even if their lives were unknown,
Fabcr*s hymn *'Hark, Hark My Soul," is wel-
comed and loved by every Christian sect for its
religious spirit and its lyric beauty.
Hark I hark, my soul! angelic songs are iwelling
O'er eaith's green fields and ocean's wave-beat shorct
How sweet the truth those blessed strains ar# belling
Of that new life where sin shall be no moiT
Refhain
Angels of Jesus, angels of light
Si ngtng to welcome the pilgrims of the nigfiL
HYMNS OF HOPS AND CONSOLATION. 525
Onward we go, for still we hear them singiiig
''Come^ weaiy soub» for Jesus bids you come,**
And through the dark, its echoes sweetly ringing.
The music of the gospel leads us home.
Angels of Jesus.
Far, far away, like bells at evening pealing.
The voice of Jesus sounds o'er land and sea.
And laden souls, by thousands meekly stealing.
Kind Shepherd, turn their weary steps to Thee.
Angels of Jesus.
THE TUNES.
John B. Dykes and Heniy Smart — ^both masters
of h)min-tune construction — have set this hymn to
music. *' Vox Angelica'' in B flat, the work of the
former, is a noble composition for choir or congre-
gation, but ''Pilgrim/' the other's interpretation,
though not dissimilar in movement and vocal
range, has, perhaps, the more sympathetic melody.
It is, at least, the favorite in many localities. Some
books print the two on adjacent pages as optionals.
Another much-loved hymn of Faber's is —
O Paradise, O Paradisel
Who doth not crave for rest ?
Who would not see the happy land
Where they that loved are blest?
Rbfrain
Where loyal hearts and true
Stand ever in the light,
All rapture through and throu^
In God's most holy sight.
O Paradise, O Paradise,
The world is growing old;
I ymly woof to tos .
TIm ipscial pim m dMiM Lof4
bbpi pnpmt fiif mi*
Vfham lojnl liatiii m
This aspiiatbiiy from the ardoit aoiil of the poet
has beat interpreted in song by the saune two
BMtsiciansi aind bjr Joseph ftunib)r*--idi with the
tide ""Paradise/' Their simikiiiy of stgrfe and
n^r equality dP merit have tempeDed compilers
to print at feast two of them side by siik for the
singers' choice. A certain pathos in the strains of
Bamby's composition gives it a peculiar charm to
many, and in America it is probably the oftenest
sung to the words.
Dr. David Breed, speaking of Faber's "'un-
usual" imagination, says, "'He got more out of
language than any other poet of the English ton-
gue, and used words — even simple words — so that
they rendered him a service which no other poet
ever secured from them." The above hymns are
characteristic to a degree, but the telling simplicity
of his style — almost quaint at times — is more
marked in ""There's a Wideness in God's Mercy,"
given on p. 234.
/
^-^
1^^^^
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.^jnwv.
ti
^
'JwHBBm
^fl^HiSL
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1
si
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Horatius
Bonar, D.D.
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 527
^BEYOND THE SMILING AND THE WEEPING.^
This song of hope — one of the most strangely
tuneful and rune-like of Dr. Bonar's hymn-poems
— is less frequently sung owing to the peculiarity
of its stanza form. But it scarcely needs a staflF of
notes —
B^^ond the smiling and the weeping
I shall be soon;
Beyond the waking and the sleeping
Beyond the sowing and the reaping
I shall be soon.
Rbtrain
LovCy rest and home!
Sweet hope!
Lord, tarry not, but come.
******
Beyond the parting and the meeting
I shall be soon;
Bqrond the farewell and the greeting
Beyond the pulses' fever-beating
I shall be soon.
Love, rest and hornet
Beyond the frost-chain and the fever
I shall be soon;
Bqrond the rock-waste and the river
Bqrond the ever and the never
I shall be soon.
Love, rest and homei
The wild contrasts and reverses of earthly vi-
cissitude are spoken and felt here in the sequence
of words. Perpetual black-and-white through
time; then the settled life and untreacherous
pa noKt or THE wnamAnohTfmn.
petee dp eternity. EveiywlieitmtlM^ttnpdieiMte
of heavenly hope mtemipts the wail of disappdnt*
meiit» and the chorus retilms to traiispoit the aoid
from the land of emotional whithviiida to imbroken
rest*
THE TUIfES.
Mr. Bradbiuy wrote an admirable tune to this
hymn, though the one since composed by Mr.
Stebbins ^as in: some localities superseded it in
popular favor. Skill in fdlowing tht accent and
unequal rhythms produces a melodious tcme-
poem» and completes the in^piession of Bonai^s
singular but sweet lyric of hope which suggetts a
chant-choral rather than a regular pol)rphonic
harmony. W. A. Tarbutton and the young com-
poser, Karl Harrington, have set the hymn to
music, but the success of their work awaits the
public test.
'WE SHALL MEET BEYOND THE RIVER.^
The words were written by Rev. John Atkinson,
D.D., in January, 1867, soon after the death of his
mother. He had been engaged in revival work
and one night in his study, ''that song, in substance,
seemed,*' he says, "to sing itself into my heart.*'
He said to himself, "I would better write it down,
or I shall lose it."
"There," he adds, "in the silence of my
study, and not far from midnight, I wrote the
hymn. "
I
HYMKS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 529
Wc shall meet b^ond the river
By and by, by and by;
And the darkness will be over
By and by* by and by.
With the toilsome journey done.
And the glorious battle won.
We shall shine forth as the sun
By and by, by and by.
The Rev. John Atkinson was bom in Deerfield,
N. J. Sept. 6, 1835- A clergyman of the Metho-
dist denomination, he is well-known as one of its
writers.The Centennial History of American M aho-
i/ir?72ishis work, and besides the above hymn, he has
written and published The Garden of Sorrows^
and Thi Living Way. He died Dec< 8, 1897.
The tune to "We Shall Meet/' by Hubert P.
Main, composed in 1867, exactly translates the
emotional hymn into music. S, J. Vail also wrote
music to the words. The hymn, originally six
eight-line stanzas, was condensed at his request
to its present length and form by Fanny Crosby.
"ONE SWEETLY SOLEMN THOUGHT/'
Phebe Gary, the author of this happy poem, was
the younger of the two Gary sisters, Alice and
Phebe, names pleasantly remembered in American
literature. The praise of one reflects the praise of
the other when we are told that Phebe possessed a
loving and trustful soul, and her life was an honor
to true womanhood and a blessing to the poor. She
had to struggle with hardship and poverty in her
]
530 STORY OF THE HYMHS AND TUKE8.
early years: "I have cried in the street because I
was poor," she said in her prosperous years, "and
the poor always seem nearer to me than the rich/'
When reputation came to her as a writer^ she re-
moved from her little countty home near Gndn-
nati» O., where she was bom» in 18249 and settled
in New York City with her sister. She died at
Newport, N. Y., July 31, 1871, and her hymn was
smig at her funeraL Her remains rest in Gieen-*
wood Cemetery.
**One Sweetly Solemn Thought," was written in
1852, during a visit to one of her friends. She
wrote (to her friend's inquiry) years afterwards
that it first saw the light "in your own house... ..*in
the little back third-story bedroom> one Sunday
after coming from church." It was a heart ex-
perience noted down without literary careorartisric
effort, and in its original form was in too irregular
measure to be sung. She set little value upon it as
a poem, but when shown hesitatingly to inquiring
compilers, its intrinsic worth was seen, and various
revisions of it were made. The following is one of
the best versions — stanzas one^ two and three ^-^
One sweetly solemn thought
Comes to me o'er and o'er,
I am nearer home to-day.
Than I ever have been belbce.
Nearer my Father's house.
Where the many mansions be^
Nearer the great white throne.
Nearer the crystal sea.
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION- 53 1
Nearer the bound of life,
Where we lay our burdens down.
Nearer leaving the cross
Nearer gmining the crown.
¥
^
THE TUNE.
The old revival tune of "Dunbar," with itt
chorus, "There'll be no more sorrow there," has
been sung to the hymn, but the tone-lyric of Philip
Phillips^ "Nearer Home," has made the words its
own, and the public are more familiar with it than
with any other. It was this air that a young man
in a drinking house in Macao, near Hong-Kong,
began humming thoughtlessly while his companion
was shuffling the cards for a new game. Both were
Americans, the man with the cards more than twen-
ty years the elder. Noticing the tune, he threw
down the pack. Every word of the hymn had
come back to him with the echo of the music.
"Harry, where did you learn that hymn ?"
"What hymn?"
**Why the one you have been singing."
The young man said he did not know what he
had been singing- But when the older one repeated
some of the lines, he said they were learned in the
Sunday-school.
"Come, Harry,** said the older one, " here's what
I*ve won from you* As for me, as God sees me, I
have played my last game, and drank my last
bottle. I have misled you, Harry, and I am sorry
for it. Give me your hand, my hoy» and say that^
5^2 STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
for old America's sake, if for no other, you will
quit this infernal business.'*
Col. Russel H. Conwell» of Boston, (now Rev.
Dr. Conwell of Philadelphia) who was then visit-
ing China, and was an eye-witness of the scene,
Bays that the reformation was a permanent <me for
both.
^ WILL SING YOU A SONG OF THAT BEAUTIFUL
LAND.''
One day, in the year 1865, Mrs. Ellen M. H.
Gates received a letter from Philip Phillips noting
the passage in the Pilgrim's Progress which des-
cribes the joyful music of heaven when Chrlsrian
and Hopeful enter on its shining shore beyond the
river of death, and asking her to write a hymn in
the spirit of the extract, as one of the numbers m
his Singing Pilgrim. Mrs. Gates complied — and
the sequel of the hymn she wrote is part of the mod-
em song-history of the church. Mr. Phillips has
related how, when he received it, he sat down with
his little boy on his knee, read again the passage in
Bunyan, then the poem again, and, turning to his
organ, pencil in hand, pricked the notes of the
melody. "The *Home of the Soul,'" he says,
"seems to have had God's blessing from the
beginning, and has been a comfort to many a
bereaved soul. Like many loved hymns, it has
had a peculiar history, for its simple melody has
flowed from the lips of High Churchmen, and has
BYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 553
sought to make itself heard above the din of Salva-
tion Army cymbals and drums. It has been sung
in prisons and in jailyards, while the poor convict
was waiting to be launched into eternity, and on
hundreds of funeral occasions. One man writes
me that he has led the singing of it at one hundred
and twenty funerals. It was sung at my dear boy's
funeral^ who sat on my knee when I wrote it. It is
my prayer that God may continue its solace and
comfort. I have books containing the song now
printed in seven difFerent languages."
A writer in the Golden Rule (now the Christian
Endeavor World) calls attention to an incident on
a night railroad train narrated in the late Ben-
jamin F. Taylor's World on Wheels^ in which
"this hymn appears as a sort of Traveller's Psalm,"
Among the motley collection of passengers, some
talkative, some sleepy, some homesick and cross, all
tired, sat two plain women who, "would make cap-
ital country aunts. . . .If they were mothers at all
they were good ones-" Suddenly in a dull silence,
near twelve o'clock, a voice, sweet and flexible,
struck up a tune. The singer was one of those
women. " She sang on, one after another the good
Methodist and Baptist melodies of long ago," and
the growing interest of the passengers became
chained attention when she began—-
*'I will sing you a song of that beaunrd land.
The far-away home of the soul.
Where no storms can beat on the glittering strand.
While the years of eternigr roll*
53^
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Op Uiat home of the soul, in my visions and dreams^
Its bright jasper walls I can stt;
Till I fancy but thinly the veil intervenes
Between the fair city and mc/'
**The car was a wakeful hush long before she had I
ended; it was as if a beautiful spirit were floating '
through the air. None that heard will ever for-
get, Philip Phillips can never bring that 'home of
the soul' any nearer to anybody. And never^ I
think, was quite so sweet a voice lifted in a storm
of a November night on the rolling plains o(
Iowa."
In an autograph copy of her hymn, sent to the
editor, Mrs. Gates changes "harps" to '* palms/'
Is it an improvement ? "Palms" is a word of two
meanings.
O how sweet it will be in that beautiful knd^
So free from all sorrow and pain.
With songs on our lips and with harps in pur handt
To meet one another again*
^'THERE'S A LAND THAT IS FAIRER THAN DAY"
This belongs rather with "Christian Ballads*^
than with genuine hymns, but the song has had and
still has an uplifting mission among the lowly
whom literary perfection and musical nicety could
not touch — and the first two lines, at least, are
good hymn-writing. Few of the best sacred lyrics
have been sung with purer sentiment and more
affectionate fervor than "The Sweet By-and-By/"
To any company keyed to sympathy by time, place,
I
I
I
I
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION- $35
and condition, the feeling of the song brings unshed
tears.
As nearly as can be ascertained it was in the year
1867 that a man about forty-eight years old> named
Webster, entered the office of Dr. Bennett in Elk-
hom, Wis*, wearing a melancholy look> and was
rallied good-naturedly by the doctor for being so
blue — Webster and Bennett were friends, and the
doctor was familiar with the other's frequent fits
of gloom*
The two men had been working in a sort of part*
nership, Webster being a musician and Bennett a
ready verse-writer, and together they had created
and published a number of sheet*music songs.
When Webster was in a fit of melancholy, it was the
doctor's habit to give him a "dose" of new verses
and cure him by putting him to work. Today the
treatment turned out to be historic,
"What's the matter now," was the doctor's greet-
ing when his " patient" came with the tell-tale face,
'*0, nothing," said Webster. *Tt'll be all right
by and by,"
" Why not make a song of the sweet by and by ?'*
rejoined the doctor, cheerfully,
*'I don't know," said Webster, after thinking a
second or two, "If you'll make the words, I'll
write the music."
The doctor went to his desk^ and in a short time
produced three stanzas and a chorus to which his
friend soon set the notes of a lilting air, brighten-
ing up with enthusiasm as he wrote. Seizing his
536
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
violin, which he had with him, he played the met
ody, and in a few minutes more he had filled in the
counterpoint and made a complete hymn-time.
By that time two other friends, who could sing, had
come in and the quartette tested the music on the
spot. Here different accounts divide widely
as to the immediate sequel of the new-born
song.
A Western paper in telling its story a year or two
ago, stated that Webster took the " Sweet By and
By"(in sheet-music form), with a batch of other
pieces, to Chicago, and that it was the only song
of the lot that Root and Cady would not buy; and
finally, after he had tried in vain to sell it, Lyon
and Healy took it "out of pity," and paid him
twenty dollars* They sold eight or ten copies (the
story continued) and stowed it away with dead
goods, and it was not till apparently a long time
after, when a Sunday-school hymn-book reprinted
it, and began to sell rapidly on its account, that
the "Sweet By and By*' started on its career round
the world.
This seems circumstantial enough, and the author
of the hymn in his own story of it might have chos-
en to omit some early particulars, but, untrust-
worthy as the chronology of mere memory is, he
would hardly record immediate popularity of a
song that lay in obscurity for years. Dr. Bennett's
words are, "I think it was used in public shortly
after [its production], for within two weeks child*
ren on the street were singing it/'
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 537
I
I
I
The explanation may be partly the different
method and order of the statements, partly lapses
of memory (after thirty years) and partly in collat-
eral facts. The Sunday-school hymn-book was
evidently The Signet Ring^ which Bennett and
Webster were at work upon and into which first
went the "Sweet By and By" — whatever efforts
may have been made to dispose of it elsewhere or
whatever copyright arrangement could have war-
ranted Mr- Healy in purchasing a song already
printed. The Signet Ring did not begin to pro-
fit by the song until the next year, after a copy of it
appeared in the publishers' circulars, and started
a demand; so that the immediate popularity im-
plied in Doctor Bennett's account was limited to
the children of Elkhorn village.
The piece had its run, but with no exceptional
result as to its hold on the public, until in 1873 Ira
D, Sankey took it up as one of his working hymns.
Modified from its first form in the "Signet Ring"
with pianoforte accompaniment and chorus> it
appeared that year in ffinnoweJ Hymns as ar*
ranged by Hubert P, Main, and it has so been
sung ever since.
Sanford Filmore Bennett, born in 1836, appears
to have been a native of the West, or, at least,
removed there when a young man. In r86i he
settled in Elkhorn to practice his profession. Died
Oct., 1898,
Joseph Philbrick Webster was bom in Man-
chester, N.H. March 22, 1819. He was an active
53^ STORY OF THE
member of die Handd smd Ibffa Sociecjr,
various odier muncal assoctttknis. RenKmd to
Madison, Ind. 1851, Radbe^Wii. 18561 aod Elk*
horn. Wis., 1857, ^><^here lie died Jan. 18, 1875.
His Signet Ring was pubfished in 1868.
Thene'fl a land diat it bint dian dqr.
And by faidi I can tee k aftr
For the Father waict oter die wagr
To pfipate lit a dwdfing-plaoe dme»
Indie tweet by and by
We diall meet on that beandfiil tbofo^
We AaB ting on that beantifid diote
The metodiont tongt of die Uet^
And our spirits shall sorrow no morey
Nor sigh for the blessing of rest.
In the sweet by and by, etc.
^SUNSET AND EVENING STAR."
Was it only a poet's imagination that made
Alfred Tennyson approach perhaps nearest of all
great Protestants to a sense of the real ** Presence/'
every time he took the Holy Communion at the
altar ? Whatever the feeling was, it charactenzed
all his maturer life, so far as its spiritual side was
knovm. His remark to a niece expressed it, while
walking with her one day on the seashore, ''God
is with us now, on this down, just as truly as Jesus
was with his two diciples on the way to Emmaus. *'
Such a man's faith would make no room for
dying terrors.
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 539
Sufftet and evening star.
And one dear call for me.
And may there be no moaning of the bar
When I put out to sea,
But such a tide as, moving, seems asleep.
Too full for sound and foam,
When that which drew from out the boundless deep
Turns again home.
Twili^t and evening bell.
And after that the dark.
And may there be no sadness of farewell
When I embark.
For though from out our bourne of time and place
The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crossed the bar.
Tennyson lived three years after penning this
sublime prayer. But it was his swan-song. Bom
at Somersby, Lincohishire» Aug. 6> 1809, dying at
Farringford, Oct. 6, 1892, he filled out the measure
of a good old age. And his prayer was answered,
for his death was serene and dreadless. His unseed
Pilot guided him gently "across the bar** — ^and
then he saw Him.
THE TUNE.
Joseph Bamb/s "Crossing the Bar" has sup-
plied a noble choral to this poem. It will go far to
make it an accepted tone in church worship,
among the more lyrical strains of verse that sing
hope and euthanasia.
540 8TORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
^^FE IN THE ARBtfS OF JESPS.**
If Tennysxxi had the mistaken feefing (as Dr.
Benson intimates) "that hjrmns were exp^xed to
be commonplace^" it was owing both to his mental
breeding and his mental stature. Genius in a co-
lossal frame cannot otherwise than walk in strides.
What is technically a hymn he never wrote» but it
is significant that as he neared the Shoreless Sea»
and looked into the Infinite, his sense of the Di*
vine presence instilled something of the hymn spirit
into his last verses.
Between Alfred Tennyson singing trustfully of
his Pilot and Fanny Crosby singing ''Safe in the
Arms of Jesus/* is only the width of the choir. The
organ tone and the flute-note breathe the same song.
The stately poem and the sweet one, the masculine
and the feminine, both have wings, but while the
one is lifted in anthem and solemn chant in the
great sanctuaries, the other is echoing Isaiah's
tender text"** in prayer meeting and Sunday-school
and murmuring it at the humble firesides like a
mother's lullaby.
Safe in the anns of Jesus,
Safe on His gentle breast.
There by His love o'ershaded
Sweetly my soul shall rest.
Hark I 'tis the voice of angds
Borne in a M>ng to me
Over the fields of gloiy.
Over the jasper sea.
*^isa. 401 II.
HYMNS OF HOPE AND CONSOLATION. 54I
Rbfbain
Safe in the anns of Jesus (ist four lines np,)>
Safe in the arms of Jesus,
Safe from corroding care.
Safe from the world's temptations.
Sin cannot harm me there.
Free from the bli^t of sorrow.
Free from my doubts and fears.
Only a few more trials.
Only a few more tears.
Safe in the arms of J<
Jesus, my heart's dear refuge
Jesus has died for me;
Firm on the Rock of Ages
Ever my trust shall be.
Here let me with patience.
Wait till the night is o'er.
Wait till I see the morning
Break on the Golden Shore.
Safe in the arms of Jesus,
— CompoMdi868.
THE TUNE.
Those who have characterized the Gospel Hymns
as '' sensational" havo always been obliged toexcept
this modest lyric of Christian peace and its sweet
and natural musical supplement by Dr. W. H.
Doane. No hurried and high-pitched chorus dis-
turbs the quiet beauty of the hymn, a simple Ja
capo being its only refrain. "Safe in the Arms of
Jesus "sang itself into public favor with the pulses
of hymn and tune beating together.
INDEX OF NAMES.
Abbot, LymBOy. 137, 326
Abt, Franz^ 218, 364
A0AM8, E^ 369
A0AM8, Johiiy 368
AoAMSy John Quincj^ 293
AoAMSy Sarah F^ 152
AoDitOH, Jo«ph, 113, 114, 353
AoRXAN, (Emperor), 515
Aibiunger, Johan Caspar y 357
Alorich, Jonathan, 287
Ax.EZANDKS,Blrt.C.F^ 414
AixzN, George N^ 412
Allen, J. O^ 129
Aluond, , 364, 365
Altemb erg, Johan M .,. 84
Ambrose, ziii, i, 1, 3
Anatouus, 354
Afes, William, 265
Aratus, 237
Arne, Thomas A^ 107, 108
Arnold, Matthew, 109
Arnold,S^ 287
Atchison, John B^ 451
Atkinson, John, 528, 529
AuBER, Harriet, 168, 169
Augustine, ix, 2, 3
Avi SON, Charles, 329
Bach, Emanuel, 9
Bach, Sebastian, 9, 71
Bailey, Thomas H^ 112
Baker, Sir Henry, 57
Baldwin, Thomas, 262
Barlow, Joel, 242, 243
Barnbt, Joseph, 102, iii, 469,
500,504,526, 539
Barnes, Albert, 35
Barth elem on, F. H^ 202, 222
Basil the GREAT, 54
Bassini, , 444
Bbanes, William, 333
Bed DOME, Benjamin, 160, 169
543
BticHtB,Heiif7Wird9 118
BKrniovEN, Ludwig Voiiy 5, 193,
3»7, 33*
Belch BR, Dr., 44
Bennett, Sanford F., 535-537
Benson, Louis F., 204, 206
Bentham, Jeremy, 97
Berkeley, Bp. George,. .. .324-314
Bernard or CLAiRVAux, 100
Bernard or cluny, 407, 510,
5"f 5>9
Berridck, John, 122, 123, 503
Berthold or TOURS, 55
Beza, Theodore, zri
Bl GLOW AND MAIN, 229
BiLUNGs, William, 16, 327, 332,
333» 475
Bishop, Sir Henry, 135
Blackall, C. R., 450
Buss, Mrs. J. Worthington 259
Buss, Phflip P., 155, 156, 319,
371, 4a"» 4a»> 4H. 43'» 43^»
437,44»»444. 454
BLOOMriBLD, Dorothy, 503
BoABDMAN, George Dana, 247
BoHLBB, Peter, 46
BoNAPABTE, Napoleon,. 97, 389
BoNAB, Horatius, 225, 226, 228,
309»490»4>5» 5*7
BoNAR, James, 490
BONAVENTURA, 54, 458
BoRTH WICK, Jane, 103,499
BoRTNiANSKY, Dimitri, 213
Bottom E, Francis, 433
BOURDALOUE, I3
BouRGEVis, Louis, 15
BowRiNG, Sir John, 97, 98, 170, 501
Boyd, William, 513
Bradbuby, William B., 106, 107,
215, 217, 235, 311, 312, 363,
4"o,5'3» 5^
Brady, Nicholas, 12, 14, 193
INDEX OF NAMES.
545
D^umiiAif t Chriatian,. », . .» ^ , . . . Si
Di/TTOM, Deodlat«i| --,,*,,*„., 333
DwiGHT, H, O., * ,..,..., 461
DwicHTjJobfsS. 347,54*
EhflfiGHTjTjmotby,.....*!^, 133^ 134,
Dt™, JohA B.» 51, 57,65, lOf,
"Pj *Hp *^8i 3*3i 170* 373,
4651 - - S^S
Eoucrrow, J<iid«j, , , i99t 48I
EtJiOM, Lewis,,. .......... * 355, 476
EtiWAH&8 , Jonatbai},, . .,,„..,, 163
EllWj John,. *...... -♦-^, , 390
EuiAiETH J (Queea),, ...*,,... 17
Eluott, Charlottej**M* 114, 115
Eluot, £beo««T,, p. *♦,♦,*,..♦ 183
t.iX3WQwtHtS. S.f,... 437
EuEKtoN, Ra]pb WildOf, ,. .339, 340
ErftJiut, Sjnii,. .............. 56
Ihbuiit,^ , .„„, 381
£iuNCjCatherinCp.....£o8, lo^r 4I1
EvAKi, ETelyB,„ ^ .,... 407
EvAKi, Hcber,. .♦,.,.„„.,,,* 399
EvAHi ^ John MiUer J ,..».. 369
EvAKi J Thomas,.,,,*.. 401
EwiNc, A]extnd«r,.^ . p -,,,♦,,. . 511
FabiRp Frederick W^ 133, Z34,
S" SM
Fa V K tp Jc AD Baptiite^ 470
FAwcrrr, John, « . . , , , 1 31, 1 3 3
FmDLATin^ Mrt.,. ......,.,,,. 103
FiscK Ell , W iU jam G u it itui, , , , , 419
FLAHtfAH, ,,,... ...... 515
FofcTtJKATuipVcujntiyi,*,*.357» 47a
F0»TK1, Piul, ..,,,».., Tli
Faanc, GuiUaame,. . .......,,. 1 94
FjiA»tcts,BeDJamm,,,... •».,.,, 133
FRANKKHBElt AT, A, Dqp ».,...,. 4I4
FkedekicCi (K.jng),. ..,,*«•■**, 94
FniKWAH, Jobn £.,, . ..,..,.... 2it
Frjotuing ham f N* L ,,, . , . , 1 1
FuLBUiTp Bp,, ..*.,.,,.,., . *59-*i
GardinkRi Wnitam,. .^, 130
Gates, Bernard,, * .,,♦,,,.,,.,. 96
Gates, Ellen M, H,, th, 156,
158,430,449,531,.. ., 534
GAi;NrLETTrHenr7lpf»«.*<***48j, 483
DiLLifcT,CiF.,,^, *,,.,.. 473
Geoecei,(K[D|;>,.,,p. II
Gephardt, Paul, 84, 85, 87, 88, 93
Glardin], Feliccj, „ ,........„ 317
GrL«oRE, Joseph Hcnrf 335, 336
G i^osTOif E, WiUiam E,^ ...» 1 39, [40
Glaiei, Carl, ... , , , , 48
Gi.EHELG,Lordj,, „,,,,,..,.,, %%
GooDE, WtUjam,, , , 14, 31
Go«oow,A.J., 161/164
GoRDojf, Mn.A. J*, Til
G0tTSCHAI.lt, I-Oyjl,. , ^ ,,,,*,, , 4S3
Gouott, JohnB.,,. pp». aij
Gould, EUsa,, ....,*,,, ,, J51
Gould, Jobn Edgar, 374, 4681 4BS
Go u 1,0, Sabmc Baring,. ...*,.,, 185
G«APfNii, SidnerfM.,* *..,,,,,,, 3^^
Grapr, Jobn T., . , . , , . . 419
Gjiant, Sir Robert, » * . ai , ii, 111
GrKCOKV M4X1AHEEH ^
Gregory the great, (Pope),
xiiifXiTfSt,., p .pp^p to
GirNAiJi, John,.,,.*,,,,, 39I
GjurriTH s, Ann,„ , ^ , ,, , , , • ^3^^399
GutrriTij 1, Edward,, p . . , p , , . , , 386
GaicGij ,.... ,tp,p.,,-,. .. ia»
Ghoote, GcraJd de,>- ,, . ....... 67
Gtri 00, Arentino,, „,,*,,,,.,,, irf
Gliildj Curtii, .„.,.,,.,,»,,,» . idt
Gd RNKY, Mrs.,. ...,,,,.,.,.,., 50J
Gu«tavu» ADotPHUi, (King), ..81-84
GuroN,Madame»,. ,,190, ift
HACUt, Jobo R,,. ,,,,,,,,,..., TJi
Hall, Amaatab,, , ».«„.. , . .513, 514
HALt,ElTiaaM,,.,,.,,p,»p,,., 416
Hammond, WillLam,. ......,*,, if
Han DEL, George FredcridE, ii,
31,134, 166,.., .,pppp.pp,ppp 414
Hanelet^ Kate^,. , ,«,*,,,,, .^417, 419
Hahha, tout T,,. .. p . p . p ,.,,,. , 456
Haruhgton, CpS,, ppp, 149
Harrington, Kaj:!,. ,.., jiE
Harms, Howell, 381, 387* 3IR
HarriI) Tbomai, 366
Harrison, Ha]pb,.,,> ,,., 48
Hart, Joseph^. ...,..,,*.. ,119, tai
Hare wood, Edward,. ,,, 517
Hastings, H. L., ,.,,,,., 104
HASTtKGi, TfaomaG, 15, ^9, 141,
160,168,174, 319-331,,. mi|
546
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
Matfield, C.F^ 14
Matton, Jolm, 37
Hatton, John LiphoC, 37
Havkboal, Fk-ancct Ridley, 154, 155
Haveroal, William Hcnrfy 2x7
Hawkcs, Annie S., 153
Hawkcs, Robot, 14
Hatdn, Jowph, 32
Hatward, Thomas, 488
Hbarn, Marianne Famingfaam,
441, 44*
Heath, George, 143
Heath, Lyman, 247
Hbbbr, Bp. Reginald, 4, 50, 51 9
178,179. 3«8
Hedge, Frederick H., 71
HsMAHty Felicia, 196, 359, 323,
3H. v; 333
Henry VIII, (King), 18
Hews, George, ^07, 483, 484
Hicks, John J^ 272
HiXART, Bp^ xiii
HiLLER, Ferdinand, 65, 66
Hinsdale, George, 229
H0DCE8, Edward, 212, 464
Holbrook, Joseph P^ 360, 364, 501
Hold EN, Oliver, 27, 28
Holmes, O. W., 52, 249, 344
HoLROTD, Israel, 409
HOLZMAN, , 329
Hopkins, Edward, 30, 112
Hopkins, John, 15
HoPKiNSON, Joseph, 331
Hopper, Edward, 373
HoRDER, Garret, 489
Howard, John, 24
Howe, Julia Ward, 340, 343
Hucbald, xiii
HupPER, Francis, 95
Hughes and SON, vii
Hughes, Mrs., 359
Humphreys, Cecil Frances, 414
Hunter, William, 272, 288, 289
Huntingdon, (Lady) Sclina, 25,
88,89,119,128, 201
Huntington, DeWitt C, 436
Husband, John Jenkins, 416
Hyatt, John, 216
Hyde, Charles, 230
Ingalls, Jeremiah, iii, S749
278, yfi
Irving, Washington, 321
IsAACy Hetnrich, .919 in
Jackson, Andrew, ao6
Jackson, Deborah, ao6
Jerome or PRAGUE.. y 472
John op Damascus, S3' 549 S7
Johnson, Albert, 22s
Johnson, Mrs. James G^ 4p
JoNES,H.R., 391
Jones, John, 39J
Jones, Nancy, 389*390
Jones, Thomas, 401
JuDAH, Daniel Ben, ao
JuDsoN, Sarah B.y 24^
Julian, John, M4
KEBLs,John^ iS9»^P>4i»
Keene, Robert, M4
Kelleb, Matthias, 343, 345, 347
Kellky, Thomas, 173, 174
Kempis, Thomas k, 67
Ken, Bp., 1 3, 14
Key, Francis Scott, 49* 333
Key, John R., 49
King, Jacob, 71
King robebt ii, 11, 57, 58, 60
KiNGSLEY, George, 34, 102, 158,
281,318, 519
KiPUNG, Rudyard, 349^5"
KoEELUCK, , 483
Krishna pal, 491
Lamb, Frank M., 253, 254
Lattimobe, W. O., 434
Lee, Mary Augusta, 455, 456
Lee, Gen. Robert E., 206
Leland, John, 224, 276, 482
Lincoln, Abraham, 239, 256
Lindsay, Miss, 259
Logan, John, 279
Longfellow, Henry W.,.. . .248, 249
Longfellow, Samuel, ix
LoBiMER, George, 2p
Louis,(King), 5, 191
LOWRY, J. C, ii8
LowRY, Robert, 39, 148, 153,
406,419,446, 448
INDEX OF NAMES.
547
LoToiA, Ignatniiy 74
Lucas, Junes, 495
LuDWiOy Duke, 121
Luke, Jeminu T^ 305, 306
Lulu, , 338
LuMias, Franklin H., 342
LuTRKB, Martin, zri, 8, 69-71, 388
Lton, Mejtr, 20
Lttk, Hemj Francis, 217, 221
BCacgiul, Hamilton M^ 296
Macxat, Charles, 135
ICackat, Margaret, 499
BCackat, William Paton, 416
BCaoan, Bfartin, 29, 30, 41, 463, 505
MAmr, John, 274
Maim, Hubert P.,Ti,Tii, 115, 134,
228, 240, 299, 307, 369, 415,
430» 470, 537
Malaw, Osar, rri, 214, 384, 436
Mabco, ( ?), Portugalis, 205, 206
Mabot, Clement, rrt
Mabsh, , 363
BCABViN,Bp^ 151
BCabt, (Queen), 12, 18
BCabt, ^irincessX 12, 18
BiAEY, (Virgin^ 3S^f3S^
Mabt Stuakt, (QueenX 77
Mason, Francis, 175
BCason, LoweO, 36, 91, 93, 105,
106, III, 118, 131, 133, 146,
170, 173, 179» »9*» 3<»» 337»
339»348»363>58»» 5*6
BCasters, Marj, 303
Maurice, , 381
Maxim, Abraham, 282, 283, 488
Mato, Mrs. Herbert, 310
Mazzinobi, Joseph, 202, 203
McGeanaban, James, 308, 444, 452
McKeevee, F. G^ Tii
McKiiTLET, William, 151, 251
Mc Mullen, Mr. and Mrs., 122
Meek, William T., Tii
Meolet, Samuel, 136, 276
Meiancthon, Philip, 69
MkmdelSsobn, Fdiz, 463, 482, 491
Meesiam, Edmund F., vii
Meebill, Abraham, D., 269
MiDLAMB, Alben, 445
MiLLEB, James. 367
MiLMAN, Henry Hart, 178
Mills, Elizabeth, 307
Milton, John, 461, 462
Mohammed, 5
Monk, William H.,..i6o^ 219, 245
MoNTGOMEBT, James, 21, 144,
i45» >76, 177» a8S» 353» 4^
487, 499» 5»'
MoooT, Dwight L., 308, 310,
4a>»4»6, 43«
Moore, (More), Joshua,4. .267, 269
MooBE, Thomas, 112,219,243,
3»5-3»8, 333
Morgan, David, 392
MoRNiNGTON, Garret, CoUqr
WeUesley,Earlof 523
Morris, Robert, 260
Morse, Charles H...... 481
Mote, Edward, iii
Mozart, Johan Wolfgang, 2aa,
M4> 5*7
MuHLZNBEBG, Heiirj M,..i58, 498
MUHLENBEBG, W. A., I57, 1^8
MuBiLLO, Bartoloaieo, 162
Nageu, Johan G., 161, 162
Napoleon, 97, 389
Nabes, James, 95
Neale, John M, 6, 7, 55, 57,
354».; ; 5"
Nero, (Emperor), 322
Newell, Harriet, 175
Newman, John Henry, 223, 224, 524
Newton, John, 130, 203,204,
286,386,403, 493
Nicholson, Ludoric, 201
Novello, Vincent, 73, 74
Nutteb, Dr., 180
Oakelet, Frederick, 459
OAKELT,Sir.H«beitS., »p
Oaket, Emilj, 434, 435
OccuM, Samson, 267-269, 179
O'Kave, TuUius C, 437
Oldcastle, John, 379
OuvsB, Hanxy SL., 104, was
Ouvebs, ThoBts,. . .19, M^ asy 5Q|
OsBOBNE, John, 14II
Pkmm, Jhfcn K^ 46*
54«
STORY OF THE HYMNd AND TUKE8.
PAIMB, Robert T^... 335
PALztniMAy jdfvri
Paimsb, Horttio R^ 261, 31 1,
4»7» 450
PAUiESyRay, 59
pABKEAy Theodore^ is
Pabrt, Joseph, 395, 398
Patsick. St^ 32S
Patns John Howard, 135
Pblovbkt, F. N., 188
PgMRT, , 381
PxEROifiT, Edward,.. a5, 27, 31, 59
PHBtP8,A.S, yii
PHELFSyS. D 147
PHBtn, W.L., Tu
PHiLt», ''King**, 265
Jhnum, Phflip, 149, 150, 239,
»S^. a^f 309» 333» 4*»» S3»»
S3» 534
Phifpi, George, .188, 189
PkBKPOiiT, John, ..33s, 336
Ponvn, 415
Plbtbl, Ignace, 126, 208
Puny, 193
Pops, Alexander, 238, 326, 515, 516
Powell, John, 381
Presbbt, Otis F., 451, 452
PaicEyDr., 41
Pbice, £. M., 395
Pbitchabd, Rhys M., 379, 396
Pboch, Heinrich, 357
PuBCELL, Henry, 338
Raleigh, Sir Walter, 76
Rakkin, James, 362
Rankin, Jeremiah £., 496
Ravenscroit, Thomas, 338
Read, Daniel, 407, 466
Reading, John, 205
Redhead, Richard, 50
Redneb, Louis H., 469
Rees, William, 402
Reinagle, Alexander R., 87
Rezpobd, Ehen £., 439, 440
Rhts, Morgan, 404
Richabdson, John, 76
Ridley, Bp., 4
Riley, Mary Louise, 317
RiMBAULT, Edward F., 282
RucGWALOT, Bartholomew,. . . .71, 73
Rinmty John,. ,^ S7, iO|i ill
RjTTSBf Pebcr,. •••••••••.• ^^aa* if^
RoBKBT n, (KingX«.-.,.^» A^
RoBXBTt, EYan, 377a3il>3H
RoBSBTt, W. M., ••• 40f
RoBiNSOK, Charles, I7i» iTp
RoBiMSOif, Robert,. i9%, atf
RoiiAiMB, Wtniam, 31
RoosKVXLT, Theodore, •• 151
Root, George F., 155, 156,154,
3«5»3«7»439» 444
ROOSSKAU, J. J., IlSy II|
RowB,EliziJbeth,... 45
Rowlands, Danid, 381, 387
RuTBBBfOBD, Samucl,. . • ^Tfig 79^ 81
SAUfOx, Thomas, ^
Samdbbsom, BCrs., 335
Saitkxy, Ira D., 184, 258, 308-
311, 374f 375t 4«7» 4*«-4»J»
434»439>447« 517
ScBMOUEx, Benjamin, * 499
ScHUMAMN, Robert, 87
Scott, Thomas, 226, 411
Scott, Sir Walter, 240
ScBXVEN, Joseph, 425
Seagbave, Robert, 94
Seabs, Edmtind H., 4M
Seneca, 320^ 32s
Sebvoss, Mary Elizabeth,. .442, 443
Sewabd, William H., 257
Shephebd, Thomas, 411
Shebxdan, Mrs. Richard Brins-
ley,... 244
Shipley, Dean, 178
Shirley, Sir Walter,.. 127, 128, 201
SiMAO,Portugalis, 2o(
Simpson, Robert, 298
SiNGEB, Elizabeth, 45
Smabt, Henry, 4, 5, 10, 137, 46$, p5
Smith, Mrs. Albert, 317
Smith, Alexander, 368
Smith, Goldwin, s
Smtth, Isaac, 324
SMrrH,John Sufford, 335
SMrra, Samuel Francis, 180-182,
337» 339
Spafford, Horatio G., 440^ 441
Spohb, L., 126, 207, 227, 228,
M4» 4**
INDEX OF NAMES.
54^
9tMnMy John,.... 65, 66, 351, 474
9xAifUT, (Dean), Arthur P.,
65, 66, 148
9rad, William, 150,151
Stbbbxms, George C, 254, 308,
37S» 4'S» 528
STKXLz,Anna, 197
Stzptk, John W., 342
St. Fulbut, 59^'
Smmrr, Joseph, 13, 488
Stcnnkt, Samuel, 23, 24
Stephens, , 395
Stepb en, (St .)> the Sabaite, .... 57
Sternhold, Thomas,.. S 15, 16
Stevenson, , 327
Stokes, Walter, 84
Stosss, Richard S., 35, 474
Stosss, Mrs. R. S., 474
Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 481
Stowell, Hugh, 222, 223
Staurt, Charles M., 34
Sumner, Janaziah, 330
Swain, Joseph, 28, 281
Swan, Jabez, 286
Swan, Timothy, 194, 195, 327, 506
Tadouni, Gioranni, 35?
Tatt, Abp., 25*
Talus, Thomas zr, 17, 18
Tansur, William, 282, 283
Tarbutton,W.A., 528
Tate, Nahum, ....12, 14, 193, 283
Taylor, Benjamin F., 533
Taylor, James, 61
Taylor, Thomas R., 300, 30I
Taylor, V.C, 52, 244
Tennyson, Alfred,. . . .259, 538-54O
Tersteegen, Gerhard, 102
Teschner, Melchior, 8
Theodulfh, Bp., 5, 6, 7
THOii.\s k Kemfis, 67
Thomas di Celano, 62, 63
Thrinc, Godfrey, 371
Thrupp, Dorothy A., 310
Tomer, William G., 497
Toplaoy, a. M., 137, 138, 517, 18
Tourjee, Eben, 149, 150, 235
Tourjee, Lizzie S., 235
Tours, Berthold, 415
Trajan, (EmpcrarX 193
Tyler, Mrs. Fanny,....- aS
UrPORD, E. S., 374» 37^, 377
Upham, Thomas, 19s
Urban, Christian, 8s
Vail, Silas J., »..*34. ^35
Van Alstyne, BIrs., 156, 184,
3'»» 4*5» • 438
Vernon, (Admiral), 339
Victoria, (Queen),. . . .391, 248, 251
VoKES, Mrs., 171, 173
Voltaire, 43
Von Gluce, 490
VonWerer, C. M., 121 , 338, 490, 500
Wade, , los
Walford, William W., 43s
Walther, Johan, zri
Warner, Anna, 41S
Washrurn, Henry S., 245, 247
Waters, Horace, 303
Watdns, Jack E., 390
Watson, Bp., 151
Watson, Richard, 120
Watts, Isaac, 14, 29, 33, 35, 37,
40, 41-45, 47, 60, 105, 107-
«09» «33» '34» 165, 166, 167,
»43» 396» 403» 463* 506* S>3
Wayland, Francis, 4a
Wehr, George J., 182, 444
Werre, Samuel, 116, 505
Werster, Joseph P., 535-537
Wells, G.C., in
Wentworth, (Gov.), 269
Wesley, Charles, 14, 26, 45, 47,
94, III, 118, 204, 274, 359-
361, 388, 396, 403, 420, 463,
474» 493> 5»o
Wesley, John, 14, 209,211,273,520
Wesley, Samuel, 45, 178
Wesley, Samuel Sebastian, 45,
I77»178, 304, 485
WuEELOCK, Eleazer, 267, 269
White, Henry Kirke, 297, 364-366
Whiteti ELD, George, 19, 31, 88,
ia4> 13»» «>«
WnmNG, William, 369, 370
WflriTiER, John G., 250, 251
WHrrrLs, D.W., 444
550
8TORY OF THB BYlf N0 iIMP TUNES.
Wiuuiiy (KingX* My 13
WnxiAMty AuoOf 130^ 134
WtEJUAMMfDvridp • 4pc
WiUMMty Hdn M.9 |i5y is6» m
WnuAMM, Petw, I99» aoi, 387, 3I9
WiutAMy Tkonaa,. . . 393, 401, 403
WkuiAMSyWi&iamy 166-1689 1999
3ti— 3M^ 388, 396, 399,. ... 40s
WiujSy Rkluvd SMBy. . . .4159 467
Wiuuiy Nathaiiiely....... 467
Wi&us» N.P.t - 4^
WtuoH. Bu^,...... 3«
WlNXWOBniy VAtbCI'lOfif. ••• • • . 84
WooDBmwMt Williim C^ .33^ 339
IPloMOftv^ Imk B9 itit 18^
»44t Hftv-.....- fOf
W9omt»mt h C^.««.....4U^4ic
^KDfm» Sir Evdya....... 39
Wfm, i^M^ 983. a8«
XftniByDnBGii^ •.•*•. 74
TooiMH AafaVf 304
Ztmnm, Bmmkht^ 9n»W
ZimiiiDOM',(GlBatV •fi»fi
Zmwn* JohiC m^m
INDEX OF TUNES.
ATir^t ....
ALUOtT MAtUACiED^,
AUACK|,, ....
AMAIAMDj.
AUSXICA^, . ,
AUrrt^DAU,,,
AKACKKAK IH HLAV^Kj.
JUmATOUl^
AimiEM FOB EAtTKBy.
.... 15»
.... 395
.... 119
.... 37*
...38,39
.... 454
.... 193
.... 513
.... 46s
•33H39
.... 34
•••95.9^
.... 334
•S07,5>S
474
AMTioca, 1 66, 464
ANTIPHOIIAIJ, Ziii
AMVXBIf, 510
ABABIA, 388
AWBL, 137
AKUK^TTOM, IO7, 118,515
ATflEMa,* 227,307
AVDlKHTtt,^ 303
AULO lAHO iYME, 515
AVBiUA,, 177
AUTulrH}(Sardius)f 222
AXMON, 47,48
BABKL,
BALEBMA,
BATTLB BTim CTC,
BKLMONT,
BXNEVKNTO,
BKBUN,
BETHANT,
38«
...297,298
•••34«-343
116
494
49'
...153,465
StTOHDTHtiMIUltGANDTHE.. 528
BiftutirouAW, 132
BONNT DOOM, 367
B08WORTH, 105
BOWEKOPPBATEB,THS I47
BOWBING, 170
BOTLBTON, I33»»69,523
BBADXir,
BBATTLB tTBBBTy
BBBtT,
BBIGHT CANAAW,
BBXGBTON,
BBOKBN rtNION, THE ••••,
BBOOKLTN,
BBOWN,
BBUCX*S AODBBfS,
BBTMOPBTD,
BUCKnSLO,
BUBIAL OP MBt. JUMOHy •
.... 174
.... 50s
.173»S74
.... MS
::::3J
.... 13s
.... 183
.... H7
CALM OM THB UiRMniO MAMp
(epiphantX 468
canaan, 5ia
:::::::::: 4g
467
•33«»33a
.... 194
.414,466
.... 393
.... 137
.... 331
CANONS,
CAPEL T DDOL,
CABOL,
cathabi^i;,**
CHEStCftj.
cMmv,
CHHiaTMAS,*
CLWTD,
COLEBBOOK,
COLUMBIA,
COMC,
COME, MT BBrrHBXH,
COMB, TE DISCCNtOLATB, 221
COMB, TB PAITHPUL, 55
CONIOLATION,* 482
coNvuffTtONHrifK 187
COBONATION, >7» 59
COBSICA, 490
COU^fTELFOlKT,. . Zf
CBXATION, 40
CBIMEA, 366
CBOtSING THB BAB, 539
CBUcirixiON, 514
CWTPAN, 388
CWTNTAN PBTDIAM, 40t
5M
552
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
BAKBTy 403
DEAD MABCB m**'MAVhf** 498
DKDHAMy 489 130
DEMMABK, 4I
Dsmnsy i33»'^>
DXVONSHIBB, IO5
DEVOTION, 514
mis SKAK, 65
DOKT, 187,348,481
SUNBAB, 531
BVNDKB, 194
BVKB tTBBCT, 37» >^
SASTXB AimiEM, 474
406
r or LOVK, 172,273
•• »5»
■ 40»
sm rBSTB BUBGy 71
BBiirwo, 403
XUACOMBB, 177
XLUOTT, 215
BLVT, • 388
BMIfONS, 125
KFIPHANT (CALU ON THK U8TKN-
ing), 468
BBNAN, 407
rrxBNiTY, 449
BUCH ABI8T, Ill
XVANy 227
BVXNING SONG TO THE VIRGIN,. . 359
BXCELSIU8, 96
FAIB HARVABD, 307
FALUOUTH, 514
FEDERAL STREET, 104,105
rmWlLUAM, 4
FOREVER WITH THE LORD, 498
FREDERICK, I58, 498
FROM GREENLAND'S ICY, I79
GANGES, 119, 269, 270
GARDEN HYMN, THE, 277, 278
GENEVA, 115
GOLDEN HILL, I08, 274
GOD BE WITH YOU, 497
GOOD MORNING IN GLORY, 164
GOTT I8T LIGHT, 463
GREENVILLE, 112,121
GRIGGS, 102
RABAnrosy ••.•••••• in
HAIL COLDMBlAy 33!
halleldjabI *iib oombI 4U
■AUAWBZXy 283
BAIIBUBO, Ill
■ANOVBBy ao4
BAFPT DAT, a8l
HAPPY lAMD, 3C4
HABEWOODi 4S5
HABMONT, 514
HABMONT GBOVB, IO5
HABVEST HOMXy 479
HAYDN, 31
HEBEB, IQB,3l8
HE LEADETB MB, 236
RELM8LBT, 5D5
BENDON, 486
HE WILL BIDE If Ey 444
BOLD THE FOBT, 424, 432
HOtLTf* 407,483,484
HOLT CB088, IQB
BOLTy BOLY, BOLT, 5I
HOLY TRINITY, 102
HOME or THE SOUL, THE,. . . .532, 533
HOME, SWEET HOME, I35
HORBURY, 152
HOSANNA, 512
HUDSON, 105
HUR8LEY, 160,493
HYFRTDOL, 375
I*M GLAD I*M IN THIS ARMY,. . . . 299
IMMANUEL^S BANNEB, 188
INDEPENDENCE, 332
INNSBRUCK, 91
IT IS WELL, 440
(See Index of Hymns)
JAZER, 118
JEWETT, 500
JOYrULLY, JOYrULLY, 289,290
(See Index of Hymns)
KEBLE, 52
KELLER *S AMERICAN BYMN, 433~445
KENT, 105
KENTUCKY, 274
LABAN, 143
INDEX OF TUNES.
553
uuiziiT ovzR Bontm, 33a
LAND AHEAD, 369
LANXSBOROy 36, 503
IA8PIZ1A, 61
"wox, 395.476
LXONIy 20
LIT THE LOWER UGHTt, 431
U8BOM, 466
UtCHESy 488
LLANIETYN, 404
lOUVAMf 52, 244
LOVINO-KlNDNESt, 277
LOWELL, 407
WPA8, 494
LUTHES^S BTMN, 73
LUX BEKIGNA, 224
MAGPALEN 35I
MAGNIFICAT,. ••.. Zly ZU, lO
MATTLANO, 4I2
MAJESTY, 16
MALVERN, 93
MANOAH, 116
MARflULLAISE I74y329>352
MASSAC ri (J irm, 514
lUTTUlAS, 245
MEAR, 130
uxLANcrnDK, 496
MELTTA, 370
MILTON, 243
MENDELSSOHN, 463
MERXRAH, 90>9>>"9>395
MERTON, 105, 519
MESSIAH, 281
MIDNIGHT MASS, 460
MIGDOL, X73
MILLENNIAL DAWN,. . . . 177, 182, 477
MISSIONARY CHANT, I72, 29 1
MONSON, 232
MONTGOMERY, 35
MORECAMBE,„ 49I
MORLAIE 372
MORNING,* X05
ICORRTNGCLORr 504
MORNINGTON, 523
MOZART, 244
MT.AUBURN, 519
MT.ySRNON, 498
MT AIN COUMTRES, 456
MT BROTH ER I WISH TOU WELL,. . 9I
MT JS8D8, X LOVX TREE, ifoy 163
NANCY JIG, 385
NAOMI, 198
NEALE, 355
NEARER HOME, 4079 53I
NE8TA, 404
NETTLETON, 112,283,284
NEW DURHAM, 283
NEW JERUSALEM, 5^6,507
NICAEA, 51
NORTH FIELD, 506-508
NORWICH, 207, 46a
NOT HALF HAS EVER BEEN TOLD, 45I
NOTTINGHAM, x6
NO WAR NOR BATTLE SOUND,. . . . 46I
OAK, 30ft
ODE ON SCIENCE, 33O
O ba NOT B E DliCOURAGED^, . . . 299
OI.D Hl/NDKEDf XVl, I5, 4I, X66, 339
OLMUTE, 518
OLD SHIP OF EION, 29O
ONE MORE day's wore, ETC.,.. 418
O^fLTnEMEMBEREDf 3O9
ONWARD, CHRISTIAN SOLDISRSf
56, 186
O, PERFtCT LOVEf* 5Q4
OnTONVtLLE,.. 2$
OVER THERE, 434
PALESTINE, 20a
FAUf BEANCHEI, 47O
PARADISE, 526
PART-SONG, Zf
PASCHALE <;aud[uh, 474
ftstrxosTt 513
JTTillBOEOUGK^t 48
PILGRIM, 525
PISGAH, 118
PLAIN-SONG, Zli, 10
PLEYEL^S HYMN, 280, 4II
POLYPHONIC, ZT
PORTLAND, 283, 488
PORTUGUESE HYMN,. . .205, 206, 460
PRECIOUS JEWELS, 3X5, 316
PRESIDENT'S MARCH, 33I
RAND DE VACHEf, 35I
«ATHBUN, ••••99»M9
554
STORY OP THE HYMNS AND TUNBS.
H
BATSMAAtB^ 9+
■ATlrMAM, ^ 514
MrooE, ,> 363
BBimCB AMD ftl G£AD,,,ii.i.«* 415
BBtcuB TBK rcniniirei,* .,«,., 415
«««». * .-.-.. 4^9, 513
BMOBA'IIOMi.i 514
neiABAT, ..t,«»«* 1Z3
-• B*
MP,.,.-, 445
■aiNSy « , ,., 135
SIVAVLZy «•••••,.. . 104
lOUAMDy .^t06,49}
B0CnMOBAM|.44*« + ,,«„»,,,,*, 131
— 55
.-^ 4*6
»inniBBroui,..<. ^.«.« 82
■ATS nr TBE ARMA OF JSIVt** , 54 ■
tAXJEMy ,... IIJ
iAuuumT rLAUf t- «•*> 105
•AMtONy...».,.«^..,»,». 16&
iABDIUty (a VTVMn),. ...... 30I
SAVANNAH, . „ , . , , , , I38
SAVIOUR, UXE A IHEFHEHD^ 3IO, 3] I
SAVIOUR, PILOT U C^, ,,,.,,.,. . 374
SCALE, THZ, . ..*... ^iiij xlv
SCATTER SKILDI QF KINPN»t^. . 318
SCHUMANN, H».p*»«.,.,,,^H». 87
SCOTS WHA nAt, 336
ssqucNczs, (rooT note),« * ^ « . . 8
SHAWMUT,.. 407
SHERBURNE,* ,,*,*,•« . , * , 466
SICILT, p . , « . . >I19, 283
««>AM, .244>3<8>Si9
SILVER tTRErr,«.,>,,pp,,,.... 314
SIMPSON, ...p., 126
SOMETHING FOR JESU9f. ,,.,*,- 148
SONGS or THE BEAlJTirUL,.... 4S3
SONNET, ,, «, 287
SOUND THE LOU ^ TlMBBAL, 3^7
SPEED AWAT^.........» 184
SPOHR, «p..,ppp..,pi,.p.. 144
STAPFORD,. .,.«,«. I. 466
STAR-tPANOLED BANNEB« THE,
49» " n3-JJ5
STATE STBEST^. , . * . ,410, 5I ^
ST. AMBROSE............ ...... A0
•T. ANSBLM, (ve plow tliff fiddsX 47'
tr.ATaANAiiui p.p. 59
ST. BEKKAJI9, , ... p . ip . p p ..,.,. • Tf
ST. BOTOIPK#4i **»«••>*•*••«.*• *4t
•T. CHAPt. . H» * p .. p .«.••.*•••. - J>
■r. EOMCTMO,*.,.*,^ «..*.«.«.., I|i
STp C(ARM01V,pp,p «,. }ff
ST. EEVtER|»,, ,*•*««, ••••«»«.. 3^
tT. Lomt,. HI 4it
iTpUAONUm,,pp,.,.,.Hp.4.Ht,^«+* it
rr. rEtEBieuao,*, *,*••,«,.».. tQ
BT. PHILIP,,* «*P...4.a«a*»*«i* fO
STp THOMAS, lipUftPl
ifEpRBin^.,* ppp.p.,,... Bb
tTOWE,P«..p.t..P,* *«,«*.•.«•«> 4li
laaiEX H. . i. p . 500
IWECT BT Alffr IPt- SS4^5IT
iWEET GAULEE, * p , . * pift If 31^
iwirr HOUR or PBArBS,, ..... 4|*
twiTzxB't soiio OP mma^mt*
TALUi* EVEHlMa STHV,, -Xt|, l£^ If
TC DEUH^ ..... P 1*4
TELEMAinr'SCHANT,.p..p. 4T4
THACHim .,.-,». P XO9
JHt, BOWER or PVLATBBfp . . . . . 147
THE aftOEEN PlMON,.P....H...P I54
THE CHARlOTip.p, pp-... 17f
TH E DYING CHRISTIAN,. . . . *^$l^t 5IT
THE EDEN or LOVE,. . « . * , pi?!, S73
THW. GAKDEN HTMN - -17T# >?(
THE HARP THAT OHCE,, . . , p .. . 31S
THE HEBREW CHILDREN, I?!
THE HOME OP THE 10ULt..53^ flS
TH E LAND Or TH E BLErT,. p . . . . 3Cli
THE HORNEN43 UCHT 11 BREAK-
ING, 177, ttzt 477
TH E NIXETT AND NlNB|. 4!^
THE OLD, OLa STORE, 4I9
THE TB0DIC;AL CHILD,.. 43O
THE aouD Boci:,., ...pp. 3t7
THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNKB,. . 33}
THERE la A GREEN ltt1X|. , . . . p 4I4
THROW OUT TH E UFEp^UitE,. . . . 374
THYDXAN...... 3St
TO THE WORE,... p.... 1.... 438, 480
TOPLADT,, ,., P .. p ....... P .. 19* 141
TRENCTNOW, «.. p . . . p . , . . J^f
TRIUMPH RT ANB BT. p . p . . .^ . . . 45O
nvMO, H'i4^
TVRNE:R,......iip P aS»
INDEX OF TUNES.
555
VXBKIDOBy • 93
VOX AHOXUCAy. 525
VOX DiLscn, 138
VOX jxtUf •• 127
WAITINO AMP WATOmKly 443
WAunrr cbovk» 105
WAED, i9^>493
WAEE, 34
170
I77fi82
WXOiABy 9
409
»35
486
WX SMALL MEXr, 529
WHAT A FUXHO WX HAVX,. . . . 425
WHAT SHALL THE HAKVXfr BX,
43St 43*
*» 437
WHBM PXACX UKX Ay 47T
WHSV SHALL WX ALL MXKT,.... 264
WHXM THE SWALLOWS HOMK-
WABD PLTy 364
WHERE ABE THE BEAFEBS,.... 429
WHEBE IS MT WAHDEBIMO BOY, 446
WHILETHE DATS ARE GOIMOy.... 312
wnmcAN, 146, 364
WILMOTy 121,490
WINDHAM, 407,466
WIMD80B, 48a
WOODSTOCK, 131
WOODWOBTH, 115
T DELTN AUB, 4P5
TOBK, 462
TOUBMISSIOH, 259
XBTHTB, 513
ziOH, rr. HxstiogsX 168, 174
noM, (A. HaUX 5*4
INDEX OF HYMNS.
A CBAKGX TO KKXP I BAVS, 374
ABIDE WTTB ME, FAtT rALLS, 117
ADAM t AMD UBESTT, 335
ADEtTEy riDELESy 4$!
AlAS, WHAT HOURLY DANGERS RISE, I9S
ALL GLORY, LAUD AMD HOBfOR, 5
ALL HAIL THE rOWER OF JE9Ut* NAME, *S~^f
ALL PRAISE TO THEE, ETERNAL LORD, S
ALMOST PERSUADED, 454
ALONG THE BANKS WHERE BABBLES CURRENT, 24!, 143
A MIGHTY FORTRESS IS OUR GOD, 69
AND IS THIS UFE PROLONGED TO TOUy. 43
AND WILL THE JUDGE DESCEND, 4IO
ANGEL OF PEACE, THOU HAS WAITED, 344
ANGELS ROLL THE ROCK AWAY, 4II
ANOTHER SIX DAYS* WORK IS DONE, *Z» ^
A POOR WAYFARING MAN OF GRIEF, 185
ARISE, MY SOUL, ARISE, 395
ART THOU WEARY, ART THOU LANGUID, 5?
AS DOWN IN THE SUNLESS RETREATS, 243
ASLEEP IN JESUS, BLESSED SLEEP, 499
AT ANCHOR LAID REMOTE FROM HOME, I38
AVE, MARIS STELLA, 356
AVE, SANCnSSIMA, 357
AWAKE AND SING THE SONG, I9
AWAKE MY SOUL, STRETCH EVERY NERVE, 4I3
AWAKE, MY SOUL, TO JOYFUL LAYS, IT^i 277
AWAKED BY SINAI^S AWFUL SOUND, 167
BATTLE HYMN OF THE REPUBUC, 34©, 343
BEFORE JEHOVAH ^S AWFUL THRONE, 4O, 4I
BEGONE UNBEUEF, MY SAVIOUR IS .NEAR, 203
BEHOLD THE GLORIES OF THE LAMR, 42
BEHOLD, THE STONE IS ROLLED AWAY, 45I
BE THOU EXALTED, O MY GOD, 4O
BE THOU, O GOD, EXALTED HIGH, Ill
BEYOND THE SMILING AND THE WEEPING, 527
BLEST BE THE TIE THAT BINDS, I32
BLOW YE THE TRUMPET, BLOW, 395
BREAD OF HEAVEN, ON THEE WE FEED, 4S9
BRETHREN, WHILE WE SOJOURN HERE, 280
BRI<3HTLY beams the FATHER^S MERCY, 43I
BUILD THEE MORE STATELY MANSIONS, 249
BY COOL SILOAM^S SHADY RILL, 3lt
BT THE BUDE BRIDGE THAT ARCHED THE FLOOD, • • . . . 339
656
INDEX OF HYMNS. 557
CALTAMT*t BLOOD THS WXAC BZALnm, ^9$
CHILD or tIM AND SORmOW, 11)
CBUtTIANt, IF TOUB HEARTS ABE WARM, 274, ^75
CHRIST IS OUR CORNER STONE, 485
CHRIST IS risen! CHRIST IS risenI 473
CHRIST THE LORD IS RISEN TODAY, 474
COME HITHER, ALL TE WEART SOULS, 4O9
COME HITHER, TE FAITHFUL, 459
COME, HOLT GHOST, IN LOVE, 59
COME, HOLT SPIRIT, HEAVENLY DOVE, 2$%
COME HOME, COME HOME, 43O
COME, LET US ANEW, 494
COME, MY BRETHREN, LET US TRY, 279
COME, SINNER, COME, 4I7
COME, THOU FOUNT OF EVERY BLESSING, 283, 284
COME, THOU HOLT SPIBIT, COME, 5S
COME TO JESUS JUST NOW, 29I
COMB UNTO ME WHEN SHADOWS, 2o8, 209
COME, WE THAT LOVE THE LOBD, 37> 3^
COME, TE DISCONSOLATE, 2I9, 220, 326
COME, TB FAITHFUL, BAISE THE STAIN, 54
COME, TE SINNERS, FOOB AND NEEDY, II9
COMMIT THOU ALL THY GRIEFS ^4"^$
CROWN HIS HEAD WITH ENDLESS BLESSING, 3O
DAUGHTEB OF ZION, FROM THE DUST, 486, 489
DAT OF WRAThI THAT DAT OF BUBNING, 62-44
DEAR JESUS, EVER AT MY SIDE, 302
DEAR REFUGE OF MT WEART SOUL, I96
DID CHRIST O^ER SINNERS WEEP, 160, 161
DIE FELDER WIR PFLUGEN, 478
DIES IRAE, DIES ILLA, 6%-^
BARLT, MT GOD, WITHOUT DELAY, 35
EARLY TO BBAB THE YOKE EXCELS, 4OI
BIN FESTE BUBO 1ST UNSBB GOTT, 69
STEBNAL FATHEB, STBONO TO SAVE, 369
FADING AWAT USE THE STABS, 309
FATHER, WHATEVER OF EARTHLY BUSS, I96
FEAB NOT, O LITTLE FLOCK, THE FOE, 82
FIBBCB BAGED THE TEMPEST, 372
FIEBCB WAS THE WILD BILLOW, 354
FOBEVEB WITH THE LORD, 521
FROM EVERY STORMY WIND, 222
FROM GREENLAND *S ICY MOUNTAINS, I78, I79
FROM WHENCE DOTH THIS UNION ARISE, 263
FULLY PERSUADED, 45I
OAUDE, PtAUDE, MAGDALENA, 472
msmud tsc nwM» «r mmrbh^ <>
«« tMAmvwm mt^ ^^.sai
mtmM,Mr'Tmt'WAmjL,vmmfW%wMMx^ s#
mumm mmmjm rmt mn «r ■■■mwy ^
mtrntf 0 ttt 4St»m, t •n'mcxy. ^fo
mt> »09ti 0 mamm €09 wtmmtmf 4*^
mom rmm A»o€t, cmom AMM tuumrnCf. <1
m0ur, um;¥f mtn^t, tamm oim^ ?9^ p
iu»fWt €^mmA»M*, fKcniK utm0it^ 4x4
M^»tA m€f¥tMtmAf 519
mmif fttm A r^tntvATKm, .joi, aa(
mm UArrr ftnz cmttMwuo utAa», sy?
mrw UAPTt f me rtumm'^ lot, Mf
mow wwttTLr nowz9 rmt oofrcLtoimo, 9!
iMrir tmt,tt, mow mtArzmvr is rmt, ncmr, 2M1
«<»W tWtrrr THE COYZMAMT TO ECMCMSCa, 5f*
N»W^ VtrAFrSOACflfCOf tMALL MfWO or MASf, 5^
now rAf« ASC AU. TNflVGt MCBC BCUm, 45
MOW rA«T A TEEAaVSC WC POftCSt, 43
f AM fAS flAC MT MAMS, 445
I AM fO OLAO THAT OUR rATNCR, 3'9
I CANNOT ALWATt TRACK THE WAT 50*
If I WftRC A VOICE, l8»
If TNOU WOVLDWT END THE WORLD, 3^9
If TOW CANNOT OM TNE OCEAN, 156-158
' MVS MT UFS FOX T>SS|* ####•#••••••••••••••■•••• ••••■•••• 154
INDEX OF HYMNS. 559
1 KAYS A rAfftltf .P-. *,,.,.,.... ..,..., 505
t HAVm nMJiJ> 0¥ A BIAUTIFUL CUT,. ,,.,,,*,,, >,,. i, *.,... 45!
t HCAK THE SAVIOUft tAY^. « « .,>. .«i,.H. .i.h. .... ^. i * ^^ .*•...<•* * 4:^6
I »KA«J3 THI^ VQlCt OF ICiUl aAT|* ,.h» ».....,,,, ,»5-2^7
t^u. cArr MY UiiAyf lUKotn powN|.i,.i. ...«,,.««.•,.*,.•. ,,•,«**... 3S4
I LOVE T»T KlKGHOMp LORD,, *,....,, ..* , I^J
1 UrVI^TO ITEAl, AWHILC AWAT^...^..*,,* . .U^', I3I
I LOVE TO T£LL TKl. fTOlTj, ..«..«.,...«««.»*«,«, t, ,,,«,«.,...... . 419
1*M A FILC»1U| ..«. ««»*H«.,.,«4..i...H.*.-7vft iSi
]*M PITTA rrKAIfai^R HEAE^.^ ,,•.,.,,.,....•«**.,, «p,»p,*,i.,«.^eiC» 5OI
I^M GOFHG HOME,,.,... ■•.«*......•«■*.»••«••■•«•«••■••■••••• Z9I
1*11 »fOT ASHAMED^... ...•.».4..........i»*. .,„«.«.»«..... . IO7
m Dl PAKE WOOD,, .. ...^...4 4.,. ««.«,» p., ,«,,,,,,,.. .,,,,,,«,.,. 264
IN EDENf 0 TKE WE^Oftrf, .....«.•....•.«......•*.,*«,»••,««»••«,«* ^Sj
t KEt0 TKtE EVEEF UOUR^*. , .. ,,,., .»«.* ...«^..>» I5|
m 90UE WAT OR OTKEK,. ,.,,..>...«...«, .p.^^^. »«««„,, «,,,.,,. 148, J49
JH THE iONOl OF DEATH BE LAY,,,»... .........•«.««..., i«. . 47J
m TM E CK08B dF CH EJfiT t QLOdTi. ....•«•••*.•<•••«*. t .. . . . .......<. 9?
m THE DIET AND MIGHTY WATEIU,, ,..........,•«.*««••.*......, .. 406
tM THE WAVE! AND MIOHTT WATEM|. .......**«.«*•■«•••«* 405
I OfEiif MV ETEl TO TtJI» VJflON^ i.«..*««, * « 4O4
It TKll THE KlVlt> ft^ETURN^. « *•• 4 ,.»,.,*.,... . fo8
FT CAME UPDH THE WfONIOHT Cl-EAft,. .......•.......,,,., ^,«4 ^«, , . 466
t TnmE WttEN I READ THAT KWItT,, ,..,..,. «.,«•.**,. ^Of
rr »iAT NOT VE OUA LOT TO %?IELD,. *•«*...«•., + . ^,.,.. JfO
IT WAI THE WnfTER W]LD,.« ,,..... •.».*•.•..•*•.••....*. 4^0
I WALEED tHTHEWOODtAK&lfEAt)OWt,»...........*..,««,«,,»*,«lJtp£5A
I WILL >maTOU A lONG OF THATj....,, ••«.«« .««»,..«.., 53,^
JEBCTEAtXV THE SOtflEN, ««........«.h.....*««h|.,,,.*,,«,,, .56^, |tl
j[3U| Duu:u MEtiOftiA,»t,.,^.^.*»<*. ,*,,,**»9 ************* 30^
JEPys* BLOOD CAN EAIlE THE FEEELEj. ..,»,, *»***. m****^, 3I5
JEIVS, I LOVE THT CHAEMII^n VAUZ,. .*.*.*****.*** ^ ,,.. tl6
JlftUtp I UT CROSi HAVE TAEEK,, ..*........«......,»«.. .,4,,.. Ul
JElVSi CEEF HE NEAR THE CEOI?,. ....... ,.,,«.• 4 «... 156, If7
pL$VBf UaVTM OF MT fOtJL^ ^ ........... p .... '%ST^^4
JEIU» Ur ALL TO H CAVEH IS OOltE, .... p - ,«•. 4 ,*...«... i ........ * II6
|Tat;»p iAVIOUR, FILOT UWf .h. ...»..<...«.....«,.,,.,.. . 27%
JEfitiS IRALL REIGN WHEREVER THE 01TN, , «•. ]6|
JTSUt, THE VERT THCVOHT OF THEE, « . . « « , 4 » * « » . lOO
JEBUi THE WATER Or UFE WILL OIVEf. ...«.* ...,p.*.,.. pi
|E3Ua, THT ILOOO AKO UCBTEOUIHEIlt ^**,** ^t
JOHM WEILET""! IITMN,.,,^.,...^.. .«.....« ...4 p... ....p.*. > . ZOf
jorFiiu.r| jQTnrLLT onwaed...... *....atS'290
JOT TO THE WaUJ>I TKE UORD It COUE, .....I66, ^ij
KEEP ME VEET HEAR 'TO Ji:tV*r, ..«..........*,«..•«. ..i a ••*«•• 4 .« . 4OO
KELLU'» AMERICAN HTMH........ ,....**«.««.. *%4h 3^5
LANP A^EAUl TBE WtLUTt$ AMX WAVt»G^ *•.,.•»«••••»« jfi?
S6o
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES,
m
Iff
9
txAPyKmotruGWtf.,**^^*
LTT FAETT KAliEi t«0 yOlEp^ ^« . . ., , ..,,..Hi.,,p. «••
LET TtHAHTt IHAEC THEIA IVOIf SODf..., *«.*«.« •««*•»**.
LtT U» CATBia tir THE fUHBEAMI,*
Lrr ui iDfd Dr the b^eave«^..« .......»...*«..••«■*••*
Urt II TKE TIKX TO StftVE THE ljORDt^,H,»,,,..p,**H).».«.«
Ltm^ THAVELLtftS ZlOKWAIDf ...,..«. p,,,..... .....,...,
LOl A SAVIOirit rOR THE rAU-KK,. *.«,.*...............*»•*•.••... . #01
UO! HKCOMEft, Wlt« ClXlt;i>8 DU€IMD[NOf,,,.,..p..H^... ............. 5O4
tof OM A NAMKOW MICE or tAIfH, p t .,...................** . I if
LOI WHAT A GUimpUt tJGHT AmAUj . * ... p. . , . * i
tOmD, HOW HTITEHIOUI ARE TST WAT0,» . .....,.«.. h,., ««..*.*...
tAMD or ALL BEING, THRONED ArAR, .«•,..*... .....^^ Jl
LOHPl WTTH 6UPWIK6 HEART Vt> f RAlll^... ........ ....*«*.« ..ii t^49r 5^^
LOVE DtVTNE^ ALL LOVES EJ£ CELUtfa,. . «..•.,*.•»•,««.... ..47, llfl
U>Vt UNFAIHOUED AS THE OCEANj,.,,, *•.*..». p ^
XAODALENA, IHOirr fOft GLADtn«S,... ...,.*....***«*.«»•« »•....«.. 47}
MAOHtnCAT AKlllA U£A|. ••• •« ,„.,,.., .Sn^ tO
MAJESTIC tWErTNEfS UTI EVTHlOinCO...... .......«....*..... 1 ...-. p IJ
KARSEILLAIBE H nfK,. ...,..»,«» ^ ., ... .....*,.«...« .I74t J^^p 35^
MEIM |EaU, WIE UU WILLIT^. .,....,, ..,.••* .•«,...«......« 49f
MID lC£Nri or CQNriTHON, ..^. ,>..«. ttmfmm I34
UIHE ETEQ. HAVE lEEN THE GLOftT OF TBE,, ,,,,,,..,, .p,,.*.^^^..*.. J^t
MOURWrtJLLT, TENti ERLY B EAK ON THE OtAD,> . , . . *2f 5, 24J&
MtrtT JC8US B EAR TH E CRO»a ALOH t,. ...>. n i. .« i .................<.* - ^tt
M¥ BROTHER, I WISH YOU WELL,. >..,.« ..^..^i..* I99
MT COt;NTlT ^Tt« Or TU EE,. .,...«. .,.«..,.*••.•.*•..... *ll^%^
MT OOD, HOW ENDLEI8 I» THT LOVE, ...*»** tO$t tW
MY GOD, 1 LOVE TREE, NOT BECAtllE .•..•.........,*««•«»*.>*** 75
MT COD, IB ANT HOUR BO BWEET,. «,..,......,. .•«,•««,. Stf
MT ODD, ur rATHER, WHILE 1 BTRAY^.^ «,,•,.••• ,•«.*•,..*««...»*«*•. Uf
MT COD, Mr rORTlOM AND MT LOVE,«« ... ......,*.,. ,^* .. > ^fti
MT CKACIOUB REDEEMER, 1 LOVE,* ^ , ,.,•.•.••*••.*»<* IJS
MT HOJ^t II BUILT ON NOTHINO LXiBf p ^p.^pg,,,*,,,*,,**,....... .ai6, llf
MT JEBUBj A9 THQU WILT,. ...... * »..«ti,*.. *«.*..*. .499* 50O
UT lElUi, t LOVE THEE,, ««.*,..,...,..............«*. •*••*«.. 162, I&3
MT LORD AMD MT OOD, I HAVE TmDBTED;., ,,.« + ,«*•*,««.•.........# » 77
MT LORD, HOW rmxoF BWirr CONTnrri.. .........*.p*,I9cv to
MT BAVIOCR fEE^a ME COMfAMTj* *.»...*«#«•••••*»..»•.. ■!
MT B0I7L, BKHOLD THE rUNXIB,, , .p. p.. , ,p...p«,,« %ff
KCARER, MY ODD, TO THEE, ..,
NO CHANCE or TlVE I HALL EVER BROCSf
NOT ALL TH E BLOOD OF B EAITf ,. . , 1, p , . . .
now TO TH E LORD A NOBLI BONG, . ......
i*«*ti*«..««.p.
O ILlif OF THl PVRJFIED, ..,,,* •*.,
0 CANAAN, BRIGHT CAPIAANj,. >..*..».«.•«..,«......*«...•.......
O CBUBCHj ARISE AND BING,. ,., pp , .•.•^..^ .,««•••»••••••«•• ••
0 coMi^ALLTi rjimirtn, .*.«t.**^«..«..«*««+.».
ill
SI
m
INDEX OF HYMNS,
O COtrtD I IFtAE THl MATCBLUI WOKTIt,, ,..«,,.«.,. ^ ,,,.,.,. ,^ !%€
0 ciiowjsr OP nK/oiciKGj, 4^1
ODE QN 9C] £MCE, , ,*.,., ,,,.,.,,.,,,,,,,.,«,,,».. ^ JO
0 DEU5, ECK} /^O TK,, .... ^ ,..,..,».*»*«»«««.. ^ .*..»«* ^ *«, ^ *.....> . 74
O CO MOT B E E>nCOUIIAGEDj« . , I9S
a*t« AU, THE WAT GREEN FAUfl,, *. .,*,•.*.<. ,*. . 4JO
0*%R THE GLOOMT HILLS OF DARCNEll,. « ^ * .,,. p »«,*,«.,«, i, .,., , . 166
O rO* A CLOSER WALK WITH CJOP*. . . . . , , ....,..,....*,, II9
O rOlt A THOUSAND TOHGU EJ TO UNO^, ,*,,,,,,,.,,...,*.*.«**..... .451 46
OFT IN DANGER, OFT IN WO,, . « . « . < . t • • * «. * * f . * 366
O GAULEEf iWECT OAUE^rEi . « .......160^319
O ttAD I TH S WIHGi OF A DOV^Ej ..,..,.,..,,.,**,,^*,«,«. .,,...,... 4OO
O H AFF Y DAY THAT Fl3C ED MY CtlOlCE. ,.. ^ «. * .^ ......* %%l
0 R AFFT «AiPfT» THAT DWtLL IN UGHT. I W
O UKLF US, XjORD; £ACH HOy« OF N£ED|*,.,, 1. .,,,,...,.,*,,.,,,,,. . 378
O MOW U APPT AAE TH ET, .,,,,«.,.,..,....... iSt
0 HOW I LOVE jEitlSt. , i . . i i 391
O UTTLC TOWN OF BETHLEHCM^. *« 4&8
0 LORD OF HOSTSf WHOSE CLOftT rtLLSj..... «.«,,, 4^5
0»IE HOAZ DAT'b WORJC FO A | ES(7S,. ....«...*.,,.,,,,»«... ^ «.*...... . 4tS
ONE SW£rrLT ftOLKMN THOUGHT, , . $Z^
ON lORDAN'tTORlur BANCl,. ......... ,,..,«.«, ^ ».. * I4
ONtT « Ch{ EMS EREO, * ,,..♦.,.♦-♦.♦.*.*....-... 308
ON TK E FOUNTAIN TOP APPILARING 17%
ONWARD^ CHRIITlAtir SOLDlERB,. ,.,.««*****,,,*.,. 1B5, M
ONWARD JUDE IN TRIUMPH, JEllJSj.*...*^..^*. .,..,.,,, |8»
O PARADlSEf O PARADIlEt. p , . . . i .*.*> t^ * .^ * i < - $%$
o ¥ti^ricT Lovt, ..,...., ,.,,*,„,,,»..♦....,,..,. 504
0 SACRED HEAD^ NOW WODNDED,.^ . . . . .,* 8^
O SING TO ME OP HEAVENp..... .*««».*..... jSl
O THl CLANGING BELL9 OP TtME,, ,,.,*.....,.................. 449
O TH E lAUtif THE LOVING Ij%VBp, ,.,,,,», IJE
O THINK OP TH E BOMt OVER TH ERE,, ,,.,,.,„**♦,.♦.•..... 463
O THOU IN WHOS E PR ES ENCE HT SOUL,. .*,•«•.,.. iSl
0 TMOtJp MT 8t3Ut-^ FORGET HO M0R1». ,..,,,..... . , 4^
O THOU WHO 01 DST PR EPAREp. ,...,,«««**.*<■.*<*. - - . - 3^1
O THOU WHO ORt'sT TH E MOCJ^RNER'S TXARj^. *, . * ^ » , . . . . I44
O THOU WHOlt TENOIR MIHCT H EARS,- ,♦-.»♦,.♦,,*♦»♦,,,,. I jl
q TURN TE| O TURN TE| FOR WHY,. .,..,,. If I
OUR LORD HAS GONE Uf ON HIGH .^ . ^« ..««•..« . 473
0 WHC^ SHALL I ftXt JttVS, ,,.*, .,.,.*,...«..*•, ,,,hp ^. »p.. 1.1. *. ^ £76
0 WHERE SHALl REST BE FOUNSi,. , . .^ ■*•..* i <<«. > l^$
O WHY SHOULD THK SPIRIT OP MORTAL,...,**.^***.*...*,.*.,. ^jB
O WOMUIP TH R KING ALL GLORIOUS AEOVI, i ..... i .««.*.. . 13
FARTED MANT A TOIL-SPENT TEAR,. *.***,** 1^
FATtUfTLT KNDU RING,. . , , ,..,,.,...*., ^ ». ^ h» - * 443
PEACIi TROUBLED iOUL| WHOSE FLAtMTtVE, .,.••,,*,,,,.. 301
PEOPLE OF TH E UVmO GOO,. ... ,.. <i i ««...««•...,...* * 1 44
tlLCRlMi Wk ARK TO ElON ROUKII|, «,.*,,,.. .,,*•.>..««.* 4 ... i «. « iSt
562
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
VOtTAU or UORTy •••••••• 443
PIAItK OOD FROM WHOM ALL BLS88IlfG6» •••••••••• 1}
rULL FOR TBK 8HORC9 ••••• yf%
RZJOICB AND BE GLAD, ••••••••••• 4I5
BZaCUB THE PERISHIMOy 425
BEVIVBTHT WORK, O LORD, • 445
BItE, CBOWNED WITH UGHT, S3S
BItE, MT tOUL, AND STRETCH TBT WOTOS, 94
BOCK or ACES, CLETT rOB MB, ••••X37
tArS IN THE ABMt Or JEtUt, * 54O
SANcnrr, o lord, mt spirit, 405
•AVIOUR, UKE A SHEPHERD LEAD US, 3IO
•AVIOUR, THT DYING LOVE, I47
SCATTER SEEDS Or KINDNESS, 3I7
iCOTS WHA HAE WI WALLACE BLED, 335, 3p
«EE GENTLE PATIENCE SMILE ON PAIN, IC4
SEND THT SPIRIT, I BESEECH THEE, 406
SERVANT or COD, WELL DONE, 498
SHEPHERD or TENDER TOUTH, 293-196
SHOW PITT, LORD, O LORD PORGIVE, 44
SHRINKING PROM THE COLD HAND Or DEATH, 52O
SINCE JESUS TRULY DID APPEAR, 503
SISTER, THOU WAST MILD AND LOVELY, 498
SO FADES THE LOVELY, BLOOMING FLOWER, IO4, 1 98, 498
SOFTLY FADES THE TWIUGHT RAY, 484
SOFTLY NOW THE UGHT OF DAY, 483
SOON MAY THE LAST GLAD SONG ARISE, I73
SOUND THE LOUD TIMBREL, 326, 327
SPEAK, O SPEAK, THOU GENTLE JESUS, 386
SPEED AWAY, SPEED AWAY, 184
SPIRIT OF GRACE AND LOVE DIVINE, 4O3
stand! THE ground's YOUR OWN, 335
STAR-SPANGLED BANNER, 49, 333-335
STILL, STILL WITH THEE, 481
SUN OF MY SOUL, MY SAVIOUR DEAR, I59
SUNSET AND EVENING STAR, 535
SUR NOS CHEMINS LES RAMEAUX, 47O
SWEET HOUR OF PRAYER, 43!
SWEET IS THE DAY OF SACRED REST, 488
SWEET IS TH E LIGHT OF SABBATH EVE, 488
SWEET IS WORK, MY GOD, MY KING, 37
SWEET IS THE WORK, O LORD, 168
SWEET THE MOMENTS, RICH IN BLESSING, I27
TAKE ME AS I AM, O SAVIOUR, 384
TE DEI M LAUDAMUS, I
TELL ME NOT IN MOURNFUL NUMBERS, 248
TELL ME THE OLD, OLD STORY, 427
THE BANNER OP IMMANUEL, 188, 189
INDEX OF HYMNS. 563
«■£ BttD LET LOOtt fit XAtTltM tCXtSy 244
THE BBEADNO WAVCI [IA»U£J> BIOH> 323
THE chariot! the chaeiotI 178
THE DAT 13 FAST AND OOHC, 275
THE DAT or RESI VKB^cnOKf 54> 55
THE KDEN OE LOVE, 272
THE GLORT IS COMINGy GOD SAID IT, 4OO
THE GOD or AERAHAM PRAISE, iS
THE GOD or BARVr^t ^RArs E, 481
THE HARF THAT OKCE THiO TAAA*S HALL, 326, 328
THE a EK^HTS or TAi n ialem aicehded, 403
THE LORD DUCCHD ED fftOM ABOVE, I5
THE LORD INTO HIS GARDEN COMES, 277
THE LORD IS RISEN INDEED, 475
THE LORD OUR COD IS CLOTHED WITH MIGHT, 366
THE MORNINO UGHT IS BREAEING, I79, 180
THE OCEAN HATH NO DANGER,. 37I
THE PRIZE IS SET BEPORE US, 449
aHE sands or TIME ARE SINKING, 78
THE TURF IHALL B E MT rRAGRANT SHRINE, 244
THE WORLD IS VERT EVIL, 5IO
THERE ARE LONELT HEARTS TO CHERISH, 3I2
THERE IS A CALM TOR THOiE WHO WEEP, 499, 52I
THERE IS A GREEN HILL PAR AWAT, 4I4
THERE IS A HAPPT LAND, 3C4
THERE^S A LAND THAT IS PAIRER THAN DAT, 532
THERE*S A WIDENESS IN GOD*S MERCT, ^33» ^34
THERE WERE NtN£TT AND NINE, 422
TH ET THAT J^WEtL UPON THE DEEP, 353
THINE HARTHLT SABBATHS, LORD, WE LOVE, 488
THOU ART, O GOD, THE UPE AND UGHT, 244
THOU DEAR REDEEMER, DTING IAMB, I24
THOU LOVELT SOURCE Or TRUE DEUGHT, I98
THROW OUT THE UPE-UNE, 374'^77
*TIS PINISHEdI so the saviour CRIED, 24
*TIS REUGION THAT CAN GIVE, 3O3
TO CHRIJtT TH E LORD LET EVERT TONGUE, 25
TO GOD TH E rATHEKf GOD THE SON, I4
TO LEAVE MT DEAft rRrENDS, AND PROM NEIGHBORS, I46
TO THE WOBE| TO THE WORKI 438
TOO LATEt TOO late! 2^9
TRIUMPHANT EION, UPT TBT BEAD, 510
ULTIMA TRULE, 32O
UNDEB THE PALMS, 254
UNNUMBERED ARE THE MARVELS, 4O2
UNTO THT PRESENCE COMING 392
UNVEIL TH Y BOsOhI PAtthriTL TOMB, 44, 498
Vr AND AWAY UEE THE DEW, 308
VRBt tlOM AVUA»« 509, 51I
564
STORY OF THE HYMNS AND TUNES.
VKN1, BANCTE tFlKITUty • • 57» 5*
VVAZ.%CtL mCHT, DU HAUFLUN KLKIMt ts
VITALtTAItK or HEAVENLY FLAME, 5I5
WATCHUAir, TEU, Ul OT THE NXOBT9 I7O
mri; ARE ON out. JOUUTCT UOUE, 4I7
WtU'QUfc, DEUGUTrUL MOHN,, • •••• 4S8
WE rUOW TH £ TlZLtXl AND ICATTXft, •••••• 478
WE fhaiae t»eX| o god, rot tbe son, • 416
WE lAT DOWH AUD WEPT BY THE WATEU, 24I
WE SHALL MEET BEYOND THE RIVEB| 528
WE SPEAK or THE LAND OP THE BLEST, 307
WESTWARD THE COURSE OP EMPIRE, 324
WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE IN J fcSUIi. 425
WHAT SHALL A D YINC ^IPTNCR COj, 43
WHAT SHALL THE HARVEST BE, 434
WHAT VARIOUS HINDRANCES WE MEET, • . • • • • • • I3I
WHEN ALL THY MCftCI£S^ O MY GOD, II3
WHEN FOR ETERNAL WORLDS I STEER, 286
WHEN HE COMETH, WHEN HE COMETH, 3I4
WHEN I CAN READ MY TtTLE CLIAA, 43, 5I4
WHEN OATHERING CIjOUDtl AROUND VIEW, 212
WHEN ISRAEL or TME LOItD ^^LOVED 24O
WHEN I SURVEY THE WOIVDnOL'3 CROS» 42, IO9
WHEN LANGUOR AND DISEASE INT/DT^ , I37
WHEN VARSitALLEP Oti TKt NIGHTLY PLAIN, 364
WHEN MY FINAL FAREWELL TO THE WORLD, 441,442
WHEN OUR HEADS ARC BOWED WITH WO, 278
WHEN PEACE UEE A RIv KR, 44O
WHEN SHALL WE ALL MEET AGAIN, 265, 266
WHEN TWO OR THREE WITH SWEET ACCORD, 24
WHERE IS MY WAND'rING BOY TO-NICHT? 446
WHERE NOW ARi: THE HEBRT:W CHILDREN? 27O
WHILE JESUS WHISPERS TO YOU, 418
WHILE SHEPHERDS WATCHED THEIR FLOCKS, 465
WHILE THEE EEt:, PtlOTECTING POWER, 207
WHILE WITH CEASELESS COURSE THE SUN, 493
WHV SKCtLTID Wt START AND FEAR TO DIE, 5I2
WIDE, YE HEAVt^r Y CATCI UNTOLD, I^
WITH JOY WE HAIL THE JACRED DAY 168
WITH &Otifi% AND irONO^ft JtOt;!t/I>JNG LOUD, 479
WITH TEARFUL EYES LOOIC AROUND, 2I4
YE CHOIRa OF NEW JERUSALEM, 59> ^
YE CHRISTIAN HERALDS, GO PROCLAIM, I7I, 172
YE ri^RISTIAN MIEOES, WAKETO GLORY, 174
YE C.'HDIV l_*Mr?i OF HEAVEN, FAREWELL, 519
YE SF.RVANTS OF GOD, YOUR MASTER PROCLAIM, 204
YES, MY NATIVE LAND, I LOVE THEE, 180
YHS, THF. REDEEMER ROSE, 47^
YOUR HARPS, YE TREMBUNG SAINTS, 51?
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DATE DUE
niiRR-
1986
J
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ST/
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\NFORD, CAUFORNIA
94505
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BV 315 B9 .^..-,
BV
515
DATE DUE
AllfiR-
1986
1
STANFORD UNIVERSITY UBRARIES
STANFORD, CAUFORNIA
94505