A hymn deeply sympathetic with the aspirations and needs of young Christians, and appealing to the heroism of youth.
Frank Fletcher was Head Master of Charterhouse School, Godalming, England, the first layman elected to such a position. He wrote these words in 1921, while on a motor drive between London and Charterhouse. After having been sung for some time in Charterhouse School, the poem was sent to a church newspaper, The Challenge, and from thence it found its way into the hymnals of England and America. The word “mate” in the last line comes from an explanation of the trinity given by a Bishop in answer to a working man’s question on that subject: “God our Father, God our Brother, God our Mate.” Fletcher heard the Bishop give this answer and the phrase stuck in his mind.
MUSIC. LONDONDERRY, the famous Irish traditional melody, is a tune which every congregation loves to sing. It rises gradually and skilfully to an effective climax near the end. The tune, unfortunately, has suffered at the hands of arrangers who have employed it, with various degrees of merit, for many different combinations of voices and instruments. Its appropriateness for church use is questioned only by those who have long associated it with secular words and occasions.
397. Lord in the fulness of my might
A consecration hymn for young people, much used in schools and colleges. It was written by Gill in 1855 and published in his Golden Chain of Praise, 1869, under the title, “Early Love. ‘How good it is to close with Christ betimes!’ Oliver Cromwell.” The original poem has eight stanzas.
For comments on Thomas Hornblower Gill see Hymn 385.
MUSIC. AZMON. For comments on this tune see Hymn 12.
398. Shepherd of eager youth
A hymn to Christ, based on a Greek poem attributed to Clement of Alexandria, beginning with the line
Στόμιον πώλων ἀδαῶν.
The poem is one of two which Clement attached to his book, The Tutor. Some say it is the earliest Christian hymn extant. (But see comments on Hymn 34).
Titus Flavius Clemens, known as St. Clement of Alexandria, c. 170-c. 220, remains something of an enigmatic figure in church history. It is not known where or exactly when he was born. He was a pagan philosopher in his younger days. After his conversion to Christianity, he became head of the Cathedral School at Alexandria, then the center of Christian scholarship. Here he remained until A.D. 203 when he was driven out by persecution under Septimus Severus. Clement then became a wanderer and nothing is known of his later life.
Henry Martyn Dexter was a graduate of Yale and Andover Theological Seminary, a Congregational minister and editor. He translated the text of Clement’s hymn into prose and then made a free rendering of it into verse, in 1846. The hymn was written for use in a service in Dexter’s church in which he preached on the text, Deut. 32:7: “Remember the days of old,” his sermon topic being, “Some Prominent Characteristics of the Early Christians.”
Hymnbook editors have made a few changes in the text: “eager youth” for “tender youth” in the first stanza; and “let all the holy throng” for “infants and the glad throng” in Stanza 4. The third stanza, omitted here, reads as follows:
Thou art the great High Priest;
Thou hast prepared the feast
Of holy love;
And in our mortal pain
None calls on Thee in vain;
Help Thou dost not disdain,
Help from above.
MUSIC. KIRBY BEDON was composed by Edward Bunnett, 1834-1923, a prominent English organist and composer of church music. The tune first appeared in The Congregational Hymnary of the Congregational Union of England and Wales.
399. Lead on, O King Eternal
Written upon request of the author’s classmates at Andover Theological Seminary, as a hymn for their graduation in 1887. It has come into wide use as a processional and a recessional on baccalaureate and other occasions.
Ernest W. Shurtleff, graduate of Harvard University and Andover Theological Seminary, held Congregational pastorates in Massachusetts and at Minneapolis, Minn. He then went to Frankfurt, Germany, where he did his finest work as founder and pastor of the American Church at that place. He also served as spiritual counselor to a large group of American students in Paris. During the first World War, he and his wife were active in relief work in Europe. Besides his gifts as preacher, and pastor, Shurtleff also possessed ability as musician and writer, and published several volumes of poetry.
MUSIC. LANCASHIRE. For comments on this tune see Hymn 115.
400. Give of your best to the Master
A challenge to youth to give heart and strength to the service of the Master.
The author, Howard B. Grose, was born in Millerton, N. Y. After graduating from the University of Rochester, he served successively as pastor of the First Baptist Church, Poughkeepsie, N. Y., the First Baptist Church, Pittsburgh, Pa.; president of the University of South Dakota; and teacher of history in the University of Chicago. In 1910 he became editor of the Baptist magazine, Missions. He was a leader in the Christian Endeavor movement and wrote this hymn for a Christian Endeavor hymnal that he was then editing.
MUSIC. BARNARD was composed by Charlotte A. (Mrs. Charles C.) Barnard, 1820-69, an Englishwoman who after her marriage in 1851 began composing songs and ballads under the pseudonym of “Claribel.” These were very popular in their day. She composed a hymn tune, “Brocklesbury,” which is widely used with the hymn, “Jesus, tender Shepherd, hear me.”
The descant was written by Professor W. H. Hohmann, head of the music department of Bethel College. The “descant” is an old variation in the use of tunes. It consists of a second melody over that of the tune and is to be sung by a few sopranos. It is only an embellishment and should be no more than audible, otherwise it will detract from the melody which should remain as the main center of interest.
401. Father in heav’n who lovest all
“The Children’s Hymn,” in Kipling’s Puck of Pook’s Hill, published in 1906. It was written for boys, but is suitable also for adults. Permission to use the hymn in the Hymnary was granted by Mrs. Kipling on condition that all eight stanzas, unaltered, be used.
Rudyard Kipling, famous English writer, was born in Bombay, India, and died in Sussex, England. After receiving his education in England, he returned to India to engage in journalism and became widely known for his short stories, novels, children’s books, histories, and books of travel. The Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded him in 1907, and he received honorary degrees from universities all over the world. His Jungle Book, Just-So Stories, Puck of Pook’s Hill, Rewards and Fairies made him beloved of all children. His writings extol the virtues of clean living and manly duty which make a nation great. However, his passionate patriotism made him pen the unfortunate lines:
“O East is East and West is West
And ne’er the twain shall meet”
a prophecy completely discredited by the world events of recent years.
MUSIC. HEBRON. For comments on Lowell Mason, the composer of this tune, see Hymn 12.
402. Lord, through changing days, unchanging
This hymn was written originally for the hymn book of the Hill School, of Pottstown, Pa., from which the author graduated as a boy in 1900, and where he afterward taught for a year. The motto of the school is “Whatsoever things are true” (Phil. 4:8). The hymn is built around that theme.
W. Russell Bowie was born in Richmond, Va. After taking an A.B. and an A.M. at Harvard and teaching for a year at the Hill School, he spent most of three years at the Theological Seminary of Virginia, near Alexandria, graduating with the B.D. degree in 1908. Part of his senior year was spent in special study at Union Theological Seminary in New York. For many years he was rector of Grace Church (Episcopal) in New York, a post he resigned in 1939 to become Jesup Graduate Professor of Practical Theology and Dean of Students at Union Seminary. He is the author of a number of books, the most widely known of which is the Story of the Bible, published by the Abingdon-Cokesbury Press. Among his other volumes are The Children’s Year, The Inescapable Christ, The Master: A Life of Christ (1928) and Which Way Ahead (1943). In the late 1920’s he was elected Bishop Coadjutor of Pennsylvania, but did not accept.
MUSIC. REGENT SQUARE. For comments on this tune see Hymn 81.
BOOK II
Hymns for Children
403. A gladsome hymn of praise we sing
Written by the pastor of the Lewin’s Mead Unitarian Church, Bristol, England, for use in a Sunday school anniversary, 1876, in his church. The hymn is suitable for adults as well as for children.
Ambrose N. Blatchford, born in Devonshire, England, was educated at Tavistock Grammar School and Manchester New College, London. After serving as assistant minister at Lewin’s Mead Unitarian Church for ten years, he took full charge in 1876 and continued until his retirement in 1915, an unusual record of nearly 50 years of service in one church. He was a man of sympathy with all classes of people, possessed unusual vitality, and was a trusted friend and pastor. Blatchford was interested in the life and progress of the community and became one of the most influential and most-loved men in the city.
MUSIC. CANAAN. The tune was taken from the Hymnary of the United Church of Canada. The composer is unknown. It is a good, fluent melody constructed on a straightforward melodic line which is repeated three times.
404. Children of Jerusalem
A children’s hymn of praise, based on Matthew 21:15-16:
And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the son of David; they were sore displeased, and said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye not read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?
The hymn was written by Rev. John Henley, an English Methodist minister, known widely for his deep spirituality and entire consecration to Christ. Henley gave much of his time and energy in behalf of the suffering and poor in his parishes.
MUSIC. INFANT PRAISE, also known as “Children of Jerusalem,” first appeared in John Curwen’s Tune Book to the Hymns and Chants for Sunday Schools, published in 1842. The hymn and tune appeared a year later in The Juvenile Harmonist: A Selection of Tunes and Pieces for Children, by Thomas Clark of Canterbury.
John Curwen, 1816-80, was a minister in the Independent Church in England, and an ardent advocate of congregational singing. He developed and promoted the Tonic Sol-Fa method of teaching to sing, using it in his own church and schools, and lecturing upon it in various parts of the country. Resigning his ministry on account of ill health, in 1867, he established a printing and publishing business and assisted in the founding of a Tonic Sol-Fa Association for the promotion of that method of singing. Curwen compiled and edited popular collections of songs for use in Sunday schools.
405. Around the throne of God in heaven
The author of this hymn was born on the Isle of Wight, the daughter of Rev. Edward H. Houlditch, a minister in the Church of England. In 1843 she married S. Saville Shepherd. The hymn, originally in five stanzas, is one of 64 hymns written by Mrs. Shepherd and published in 1836 under the title, Hymns Adapted to the Comprehension of Young Minds.
MUSIC. GLORY was published in England in Curwen’s Tune Book to the Hymns and Chants for Sunday Schools, 1842, with these words. The combination of hymn and tune has continued to the present.
NATURE
406. A little seed lay fast asleep
A song of growth under God’s daily care.
The lyric is a poetic description of the development of a seed from its first awakening to life under the touch of God’s sunshine, to the tall, fair plant with its golden ear of corn.
No biographical information is at hand concerning the author, Clara Writer.
MUSIC. KING’S LANGLEY. For comments on this tune see Hymn 385.
407. See the shining dewdrops
No information is at hand concerning the origin of this children’s poem on the theme, “God is good.”
MUSIC. The melody appeared anonymously in Kleiner Liederschatz, a small but useful book of songs for use in German schools and homes. The book was compiled and edited by several Kansas teachers and school friends who preferred to withhold their names. It was first published in 1901, Newton, Kansas.
The arrangement was made especially for the Hymnary, by E. Shippen Barnes, in 1939.
For comments on Barnes see Hymn 48.
408. God sees the little sparrow fall
A hymn of God’s love, based on Jesus’ teaching that God notes the fall of the sparrow and arrays the flowers in beauty and loveliness.
No information has been traced concerning the author, Maria Straub, or her contemporary, S. W. Straub, 1842-99, who composed the music.
409. Birds are singing, woods are ringing
A joyous song of praise. No information has been found concerning L. F. Cole, author of the words.
MUSIC. The tune, BIRDS ARE SINGING, is anonymous.
410. All things bright and beautiful
A nature song. It was written, as were Hymns 104, “There is a green hill far away,” and 412, “Once in royal David’s city,” to illustrate the Apostle’s Creed, the present being a comment on the phrase, “Maker of heaven and earth.” It is based on Gen. 1:31: “And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good.”
One of her stanzas,
The rich man in his castle
The poor man at his gate;
God made them high and lowly
And ordered their estate
is omitted in most hymn books because it is obviously not in keeping with Christian teachings concerning wealth and poverty. (Cf. the Parable of Dives and Lazarus). The author grew up in the wealthy atmosphere of an Irish estate where her father was a land agent.
For further comments on Mrs. Alexander see Hymn 104.
MUSIC. GREYSTONE. The first stanza, which serves as a “refrain,” is to be sung after each verse. The hymn is an interesting study in metre. In the refrain, the first line is trochaic (— -), but the second changes to the more common iambic (- —). The tune is written to take care of this. It owes its unique effect to this refrain, which keeps coming in with this change of metre accompanied by a change of key from C to G.
No information is at hand concerning the composer.
CHRISTMAS
411. The happy Christmas comes once more
A charmingly fresh Christmas hymn written by the greatest of Danish hymn writers. An omitted stanza reads:
O let us go with quiet mind,
The gentle Babe with shepherds find,
To gaze on him who gladdens them,
The loveliest flower of Jesse’s stem.
Nikolai F. S. Grundtvig was born in Udby, Denmark, 1783, the son of a Lutheran pastor. He lived in a day when rationalistic “new theology” had dried up the stream of spirituality in the church. The church worship had lost its evangelical glow, and the sermons had deteriorated into lectures on science and domestic economy. Young Grundtvig, in the course of his studies for the ministry, had come under the influence of this rationalism and for a time lost all interest in religion. Various influences opened his eyes to the spiritual poverty existing in the church, and he became an indefatigable worker for the dawn of a new day in the life of the people. His zeal sometimes led him into extravagances which put him at odds with his fellow ministers, but his preaching and writings, nevertheless, became a powerful influence in Denmark and resulted in fresh stirring of the Spirit in the church. His poems and hymns, entitled Hymns and Spiritual Songs, were published in five volumes.
MUSIC. The melody is found in a book, Children’s Voices, published by the Augsburg Press (Lutheran). No information is at hand regarding the composer, C. Belle. The arrangement was made by E. Shippen Barnes for the Hymnary.
For comments on Barnes see Hymn 48.
412. Once in royal David’s city
One of a series of children’s songs written by Mrs. Alexander to illustrate the Apostles’ Creed, this being a comment on the second clause, “And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary.” Others in the series are “There is a green hill far away” (No. 104) and “All things bright and beautiful” (No. 410).
MUSIC. IRBY was written for this hymn to be sung by voices in unison, with harmonized accompaniment. It has become one of the best-known hymn tunes for children, and is always associated with these words.
Henry John Gauntlett, 1805-76, the composer, was an English musician who gave up law in 1844 to devote himself to music. He became a noted organist and prolific composer, his tunes running into thousands. He was much in demand for editing the music of hymn books and made a notable contribution to the promotion of hymnody of the church. Mendelssohn said of him: “His literary attainments, his knowledge of the history of music, his acquaintance with acoustical laws, his marvelous memory, his philosophical turn of mind, as well as his practical experience, rendered him one of the most remarkable professors of the age.”
413. Come hither, ye children
A popular Christmas song which all children love to sing.
Christian Schmidt was born in Dinkelsbühl, the oldest son of the city clerk. In 1791, he was ordained to the ministry and given the headship of the school and made school inspector in Thannhausen at Mindel. His was a singularly fruitful ministry in which he devoted most of his talent to the benefit of the young people. He was in the habit of using the hours from four until eight in the morning in writing for young people, this being the only time of the day that he considered his own. As a child of ten years, he was greatly impressed with the nativity scenes which had been built in the corridors of the state church in Dinkelsbühl and which he saw daily during the Advent season. The vivid recollection of this childhood experience resulted in the composition of this beloved Christmas song for children:
Ihr Kinderlein, kommet, o kommet doch all’!
Zur Krippe her kommet, in Bethlehems Stall,
Und seht, was in dieser hoch-heiligen Nacht
Der Vater im Himmel für Freude uns macht.
O seht in der Krippe, im nächtlichen Stall,
Seht hier bei des Lichtleins hellglänzendem Strahl,
In reinlichen Windeln das himmlische Kind,
Viel schöner und holder als Engel es sind.
O betet: du liebes, du göttliches Kind,
Was leidest du Alles für unsere Sünd’!
Ach, hier in der Krippe schon Armut und Not,
Am Kreuze dort endlich den bitteren Tod!
Was geben wir Kinder, was schenken wir dir,
Du bestes und liebstes der Kinder, dafür?
Nichts willst du von Schätzen und Reichtum der Welt;
Ein Herz nur voll Demut allein dir gefällt.
Our translation, appearing anonymously, employs the first stanza and two others from the original not given here.
The poem first appeared in the second edition of Christliche Gesänge zur öffentlichen Gottesverehrung, Augsburg, 1811.
MUSIC. IHR KINDERLEIN KOMMET should be sung with lively tempo. No information is at hand concerning the composer of the tune.
414. Away in a manger
A beautiful Christmas carol which has long been ascribed to Martin Luther. However, many of our best hymnologists—among them Percy Dearmer, James Moffatt, and Robert McCutchan—hold that it has never been traced to any of Luther’s works, and that it does not resemble anything that Luther ever wrote. The words must, therefore, be classed “anonymous” until more information is forthcoming.
MUSIC. The music, too, is of unknown origin. The name of the composer, Carl Mueller, to whom it is attributed, is German and the tune is in the style of a German folk song. Other than this there seems to be no information regarding the composer or the tune.
EASTER
415. Joy dawned again on Easter Day
The Latin original of this hymn comprises stanzas 9, 10, and 11 of Aurora lucis rutilat, one of the most ancient Easter hymns in existence. It is found in the earliest monastic hymnaries of the sixth to the ninth centuries with a wide diffusion in continental as well as Anglo-Saxon and Celtic sources. Its authorship is unknown.
The Latin text may be found in Analecta Hymnica Medii Aevi, v. 51, p. 89; A. S. Walpole, Early Latin Hymns, Cambridge University Press, 1922, p. 356; or Hymns Ancient and Modern, Historical Edition, London: Clowes, 1909, p. 199.
Aurora lucis rutilat
Stanza 9.
Claro paschali gaudio
Sol mundo nitet radio,
Cum Christum iam apostoli
Visu cernunt corporeo.
10.
Ostensa sibi vulnera
In Christi carne fulgida
Resurexisse Dominum
Voce fatentur publica.
11.
Rex Christe clementissime,
Tu corda nostra posside,
Ut tibi laudes debitas
Reddamus omni tempore.
Doxology
Quaesumus, auctor omnium,
In hoc paschali gaudio
Ab omni mortis impetu
Tuum defendas populum.
Gloria tibi, Domine,
Qui surrexisti a mortuis,
Cum Patre et sancto Spiritu
In sempiterna saecula.
The full hymn was used at first as a morning hymn throughout the Easter season. Later it was broken up into parts for various services during the day, as follows: Aurora lucis rutilat, stanzas 1-4; Tristes erant apostoli, stanzas 5-8; Claro paschali gaudio, stanzas 9-11. A traditional double doxology of two stanzas which varies in form but which is always present, completes the third hymn. The subject matter follows the Biblical narrative of the events of Easter morning.
The entire hymn was translated by John Mason Neale, Collected Poems of John Mason Neale, London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1914, pp. 121-122, and published in The Hymnal Noted, in 1852. The full translation which has been greatly altered may also be found in Hymns Ancient and Modern, pp. 198-199, in a traditional form.
Those who sing this hymn at Eastertide may be assured that it has been in unbroken use for fourteen centuries, a universal expression of the season’s unchanging faith and joy.
MUSIC. PUER NOBIS. For comments on this tune see Hymn 87.
LOYALTY AND CONSECRATION
416. Hushed was the evening hymn
Based on the incident of the call of Samuel in I Samuel 3. The verses were published in The Evening Hymn, 1857, a small volume consisting of an original hymn and an original prayer for every evening of the month, by Burns when he was minister of the Hampstead Presbyterian Church, London. The hymn lends itself well to dramatization.
James Drummond Burns received his training for the ministry at the University of Edinburgh. When the Disruption took place in the Scottish Church, he followed his teacher, Dr. Chalmers, into the Free Church in 1843. For reasons of health he went to France and some years later, his health improved, he returned to London and built up a strong congregation at Hampstead where a church had been newly organized. His winsome character and broadmindedness, together with an especially beautiful voice, made his work unusually effective. He published several books and is the author of an article on “Hymns” in the eighth edition of the Encyclopaedia Brittanica.
MUSIC. SAMUEL was composed for this hymn, the original arrangement, made in 1874, being for treble voices in unison, with organ accompaniment. The composer later made the present four-part arrangement in which form it has come into many church hymnals.
For comments on Arthur Sullivan see Hymn 113.
417. In our work and our play
A beautiful prayer of consecration.
The author, Whitefield Glanville Wills, an Englishman, was born in Bristol. He published a small collection, Hymns for Occasional Use in 1881. The present hymn, entitled “Children of God,” was contributed by him to School Hymns, England, 1891.
MUSIC. ROSSLYN is an English melody taken from the Supplement to the Primitive Methodist Hymnal, 1912. The composer is not known.
418. The wise may bring their learning
A hymn setting forth the important lesson that children, however poor, may bring useful gifts to the King. It appeared anonymously in The Book of Praise for Children, published in England, 1881.
MUSIC. ELLON is a perfectly adapted tune for these words, though it was written originally for another hymn. The tune is popular with children and is sung with interest also by adults.
The composer, George F. Root, 1820-95, an American musician, studied music in Boston and then became a teacher and organist. In 1841, he became associated with Lowell Mason in teaching music in the public schools of Boston. Three years later he moved to New York, where he taught in various institutions, including Union Theological Seminary and the New York Institution for the Blind. In the latter place, the blind hymn writer, Fanny Crosby, was one of his pupils. Root organized and conducted many music institutes and joined his brother, E. T. Root, and C. M. Cady in the publishing of music in Chicago under the firm name, Root and Cady. He composed many tunes for religious and secular use, and during the Civil War wrote numerous “war songs” which became popular. He also wrote cantatas—Under the Palms, David, the Shepherd Boy, and others—which have been used by singing organizations all over America.
419. Tell me the stories of Jesus
A hymn for children on the life of Christ. It first appeared in The Sunday School Hymnary, published in England, 1885. It was written by William Henry Parker, a member of the General Baptist Church in England, a layman, interested especially in Sunday school work. He was a machinist by trade, working nearly all his life in a large lace-making plant in Nottingham. For many years he composed hymns for anniversary festivals in the Sunday school. These were published in 1882 in a volume entitled, The Princess Alice and Other Poems.
MUSIC. STORIES OF JESUS was written for these words and included in a volume published by the National Sunday School Union, London.
The composer, Frederic Arthur Challinor, was born in Staffordshire, England, 1866, the son of a miner. Poverty compelled him in childhood to seek employment to supplement the family income. At the age of ten he began working in a brick yard. Two years later he found employment in a coal mine and then in a china manufacturing plant. All the while he was interested in music and spent his spare time studying harmony. By hard work and perseverance, he finally won his Mus. Bac. degree in 1903. Challinor has composed several popular cantatas and published more than four hundred compositions for voices.
420. Jesus bids us shine
A hymn for small children, which first appeared, anonymously, in The Little Corporal, Chicago.
The author, Susan Warner, sister of Anna B. Warner (see Hymn 201), was the daughter of a reputable attorney in New York State. Her father fell into undeserved misfortune which left the daughters as the breadwinners of the household. This burden they fulfilled by writing stories and books. Susan’s first book, The Wide, Wide World, published in 1865 under the pseudonym of “Elizabeth Wetherall,” became one of the most widely read of American novels, second in popularity only to Uncle Tom’s Cabin. It was translated into French and German and became a best-seller on both sides of the Atlantic. She also wrote a number of definitely religious books for children. Like her sister, Anna, she was buried at West Point, where the two had conducted a Bible class for many years for the cadets of the U. S. Military Academy.
MUSIC. The tune is by Edwin O. Excell, 1851-1921, an American composer of Gospel song tunes. In England, the hymn is sung to “Lumetto,” a tune by Edward Arthur, composed in 1927.
421. Here we come with gladness
Intended to be sung as a collection march.
The author, Julia Harriette Johnston, born at Salineville, Ohio, was educated at Gettysburg and Peoria, Illinois, High School. She was much interested in missions and Sunday-school work and frequently contributed articles to magazines, on those subjects. Among her publications were The School of the Master, Bright Threads, and the Life of Adoniram Judson.
MUSIC. AUS DEM HIMMEL FERNE is a traditional German melody of unknown authorship. It appeared in the Gesangbuch mit Noten and in Kleiner Liederschatz, and is a well known children’s tune.
PRAYER
422. We thank Thee, O our Father
A prayer of thanksgiving, especially for the flowers which, growing in the most unlikely places, make the world so bright and fair and reveal the power and love of God.
Julian attributes the hymn to Catherine Mary McSorley but gives no information concerning her. The hymn appeared in the Appendix of the Irish Church Hymnal, 1891, and was published in Church Hymns, England, 1903.
MUSIC. ENDSLEIGH. For comments on this tune see Hymn 283.
423. Father, we thank Thee for the night
A morning prayer. The words were written by Rebecca J. Weston, about 1890, but no information concerning her has been traced. This seems to be her only hymn. It appeared in a music-book, The Tonic Sol-fa Course, published by the Oliver Ditson Company. The editor of that book was the Rev. D. Batchellor, who composed the tune. The hymn was included in Songs of Praise, London, 1933.
424. Savior, teach me, day by day
“Love’s sweet lesson” has never been presented more beautifully to the young than in this lyric from Miss Leeson’s Hymns and Scenes of Childhood, 1842, where it is entitled “Obedience.” The Scriptural basis is I John 4:19: “We love him because he first loved us.”
For comments on the author, Jane Eliza Leeson, see Hymn 298.
MUSIC. POSEN is a short, vigorous tune which children, as well as adults, love to sing. The bass is no less interesting than the melody.
The composer, George C. Strattner, 1650-1705, was an able German musician whose most important work consisted in editing the fifth edition of Joachim Neander’s Collected Hymns, with music, published 1691, in which POSEN first appeared.
425. Jesus, tender Shepherd, hear me
A beautiful evening prayer, written by the author for her own children.
Mrs. Mary Duncan was the daughter of Rev. Robert Lundie, minister at Kelso, England. In 1836, she married the Rev. William Wallace Duncan, minister of the Scottish parish of Cleish. Between July and December of 1839, the year before her death, she wrote a number of hymns for her small children. These were published in a Memoir by her mother and later issued separately—twenty-three in all—as Rhymes for My Children, 1842. Mrs. Duncan, whose life ended so prematurely, was a woman of fine intellect and lovable character, the memory of whom has been described as one of the “aids to the devout life” of Scotland in the last generation. Her sister married Dr. Horatius Bonar (Hymn 129), minister and hymn writer.
MUSIC. EVENING PRAYER. For comments on the composer, John Stainer, see Hymn 111. The tune was composed for this hymn in the first edition of The Church Hymnary, London.
426. Praise Him! Praise Him!
A simple song, of unknown origin, which tiny tots love to sing. The truth the song enforces—“God is love”—is one the child will carry into adulthood and into eternity.
The tune is an arrangement by Hubert P. Main, 1839-1925, American composer of popular Sunday school and evangelistic music, and editor of many hymn books. For sixty years, Main was connected with the Bigelow and Main publishing house in Chicago, now out of business. His private library of song and hymn books, consisting of over 7,000 volumes, is one of the largest of its kind to be found anywhere. Nearly one-half of it is in the Chicago Public Library where it is known as the “Main Collection.” Among his most popular tunes are: “We shall Meet Beyond the River,” “The Bright Forever,” and “In the Fadeless Springtime.”
427. I think when I read that sweet story
A hymn that has gone all over the world and has been learned by a countless number of children of many nations and races. Concerning its origin, Mrs. Luke has written:
I went one day on some missionary business to the little town of Wellington, five miles from Taunton, in a stage coach. It was a beautiful spring morning, it was an hour’s ride, and there was no other inside passenger. On the back of an old envelope I wrote in pencil the first two of the verses now so well known, in order to teach the tune to the village school supported by my stepmother, and which it was my province to visit. The third verse was added afterwards to make it a missionary hymn.
Jemima Luke was the daughter of Thomas Thompson, one of the founders of the British and Foreign Sailors’ Society and a “friend of every good cause.” She volunteered to do missionary work in India, but ill health made that impossible. All her life, however, she maintained an active interest in foreign missions. In 1843, she married the Rev. Samuel Luke, a Congregational minister in Clifton, England.
MUSIC. SWEET STORY is an arrangement by Wm. B. Bradbury (see Hymn 103) of a Greek tune known as “Salamis” or “Athens.” Mrs. Luke heard the melody (in its original form) used as a marching song by a group of children in a school near her home where she had gone to learn something of the teaching methods used. She was intrigued by the tune and wrote the words to fit it. The words and music are inseparably associated, the original form of the melody being used in England, and Bradbury’s adaptation (easier but less interesting) in America.