The weekly Placer herald., 1853-08-20
The MarseiIlais Hymn,

my mind with the city of Marselles; and
surprising it was written here, | made
some inquiry in reference to it, AS ma
linnal song it had prodiyinus influence du.
ring the revo ution; aud so often has il
been sung, with joy, by terrorists, Jaco-
bins, and revoIutionists; and heard, with
paleness and trembling, by the friends of
monarchy and legitimacy, that it is en-
graved on the very soul Of France. Its
awful chorus,
Aux armes, citoyens! formez vos battalions
Marchous! qu'un sang impur abreuve nos sill.
Ions!
has often caused the hood of the man in
b ouse to boil over and that of the aristo-
crnI TO freeze. Its history is in this wise :
Early in the revolution, R0uget de
Lis e, native of The Jura mountains, was
"a young officer Of the garrison at Stras
burg. lie was musician, Il poet, Il so =
der. He was often the inmate there of
the family of one Dietrich, with whose
daughters 10 became Il f&v0rite The
family was poor but patriorir. "i have
one bottle of wine left" said Dietrlck one
evening" L" Ills 'i""zhtcr-; 'sbring if, and
we will drink to liberty and our country
Our city is going 10 have patriotic rpre
nIonv, and De Lis must compose n hvmn
for the OCCASION" The bottle was hro't
and exhausted De Li>le retired at md
night, his whole soul inf ln,ed He spent
the nighu hlnmlng and fhyming, rhynlng
and hunning. he doZrd. Rising with
the day, he wrote the hymn and The tune.
He called the fani of Dietrich together,
and "A few other friends. They were al
musicians anil loved poetry. They sang;
they wept; they rpjnced together The
NATIONAL song of France was written 1t
few from club to club--from city 10 CITY,
1t was sung at the opening of al the G tlbS
of Marspillps. A baud Of young men,
called "the Confpderates of Mar-ellps -
marched to Paris To aid the consprtors
there. These rouipderates received the
name Of MarseilIais; and singing the
hv'nn as they went, it spread over France
Iik" lightning. Hence its name, t'rhe
llarSeilIaiS Hymn" The language and
the tune are perulinr y exciting; aud when
sung in full chorus is said to n>Eirit even
horse for the bait e. Its singing was
forbidden hy thu BourbonS; bur in the
revolution of 1880 it became again the
national song.
But the history Of this famous hymn is
not enned. Dietrich, whose wine aud ex
hortaton inspired the poet to write it,
was marched 10 The Scnffo Il to the sound
of the notes first sung in his own house
by the aid of his fami and few friends I!
Nor is this all The author hin>e f Was
prescribed, and fled. In passing along
the wild gorgeS of the a pS, he heard It's
wild notes rising aroun him, and he
Shuddpred. "Wh"t do they call thar
hynnr;" he asked the guide. "Ihe Mar
sellaiS,'' WIS the reply. He himself
called it"An offering to Liberty" It was
thus he fir,t knew the name under " hirh
his hymn is destined to immortality. 1t
is right To add that Louis Philippe, on
ascending the throne of France, found out
Rouget de Ll>lp, who WAS then seventy
wears old, and granted him pension of
500 francs from his own private purse
European Cores. N. Y. Observer.
CRoNoLoGIcAL OR ARiTHMETICAI Co
INcIDnNcEs.-A Fren"hnnn lately com
muncated tie following rather curious
calculations to an English friend:
Fall # Rohesplerre, 1894
Repeat 1894 in single figures, |
aud add the whole 7