The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1881-12-01
LORENA's LOVER.
HISTORY OF THE SONG THAT CARRIED
ALL HEARTS TWENTY YEARS AGO.
TRcsfop Sfar1

HISTORY OF THE SONG THAT CARRIED
ALL HEARTS TWENTY YEARS AGO.
boston Star.I
About the year 1853 there appeared
in the musical circles of the West
song, which, for twelve years had run
rarely attained by popular melodies.
The music had a peculiar charm, the
words were singularly touching. and
their length, extending to eight long
verses, suggested to the reader a stery
back Of them. In fact, the extreme
pathos of the words contributed as
much, perhaps, as the music to give
the composition its wonderful success.
1t was sung everywhere, in parlors,
in concerts, on the street, and in the
camps of the cOntending armies. In
the Northern army il was immensely
popular, and found its way South
through Louisville and Cincinnati, and
during the rebellion it was the only
piece sung in Southern homes, and,
excepting martial airs, about the only
one sung in the Confederate camp
Everywhere was "LOrena." A steam
er on the Ohio was named Lorena. en-
gines on the Western roads were call
ed LOrena, and a person now some
times meets in society young ladies
twenty years ago. That the song had
story, nearly everyone familiar with
it supposed, and supposed correctly,
and it may not be uninteresting at
this late day, to give admirers of the
famous melody the facts in the love
affair.
The author of the words was Rev.
II. d. L. Webster. lie studied in the
Columbus Academical and Collegiate
Institute, and was editOrOf the college
paper. In the year IS4S, being then
| twenty-fGur years of age, and full of
poetry and romance, he was enjoying
his first pastOrate at GAINESVILLE, Ohio.
His leading parisher was a wealthy
manufact urer, whose residence was
upon one of the many hills which sur
round that smokey town. The house
! was about half mile out, and the
eininence upon which it was seated
was the one referred to in his song:
Twas fiowery May,
When up the hilly slope we climbed
| To watch the dying of the day,
And hear the distant church bells chimed.
There lived in this family younger
/ sister of his wife, who was the leading
] singer in the choir. She was nineteen
4 years of age, small of stature, had
y
was as fair as a lily. She was not
only a sweet singer, but she was as
| full of poetry and romance as her pas
| tor, and they soon became very much
| attached. Their loving did not, how
/ 5ver, "prOsper WELL" for the family
were proud and aristOcratic, and "had
/ higher notions of the girls future than
/ to sanction her marriage with poor
! preacher" As she was dependent
| upon them for a home, she was forced
| to yield to their cOunsel-Mr. Webster
! says he now thinks it wise counsel
and they were obliged to give each
other up. 1t was, however, the strong
will and the proud spirit of the sister,
more than the opposition Of the broth
| er-in-law, that separated them, or
rather kept Lorena from him. Lorena
seems to have been passive, indecisive
in character, and submissive in the
hands of her strong-willed sister.
Mr.. Webster saw her for the last
time at her home, learned of the sis
ter's uncOnquerable opposition, heard
his fate, and took a quiet but painful
farewell, very little being said. That
night she wrote him last letter, in
which she used the words, so well re-
membered by those familiar with the
| song: ''If we try we may forget" 1t
was eight years after that he wrote:
For ''If we try we may forget
Were words Of thine long years ago.
Yes, these were words of thine Lorena,
They turn within my memory yet,
They touch some tender chords, Lorena,
which thrill and tremble with regret
There is future OH thank God,
OF life this is so small a part,
! 'Tis dust to dust beneath the sod,
But there, up there, tits heart to heart.
The effect of the separation was to
| crush the young man, and writing to
a friend five years ago, twenty-siX
years after the occurrence, he SAYS
Il doubt if all dark lines are erased
from my heart yet" He resigned his
pastorate and sought another field,
smothering his pain by hard study
and work. And the only sign of that
pain the world ever saw was the heart
/ cry in the song of "LOrena." In 1856
he was residing in Racine, Wisconsin,,
where he met j. Z. Webster, the COM
poser, who, though of the same name,
is no relation to him. They soon be-
came very intimate. J. p. Webster
was writing song music, and was
{. oubled to find appropriate words.
| Rev. Mr.. Webster told him that he
would write a song, and in two days
he produced it, entitled Bertha" a
mere fancy name. When the COM
poser came to set it to music he want
ed a name of three syllables, accented
on the second, aid the author then
made up the name of "LoFena."
The young lady's name was not LO-
rena, however, nor Bertha, but Ella.
1t is said that she lost her vivacity and
I sunny, Witching ways after they part
ed, and never regained them, and that
she is now a sad sickly, woman, past
the prime Of life. When last heard
from, however, several months ago,
she was travelling in Europe. Her
proud and naughty sister had long
since passed over the river, where 'tis
heart to heart instead Of dollar TO dol
lar" He brOther-in-law died ouly a
few weeks ago. Mr.. Webster, also
past the prime of life, is married, and
lives in Neenah, Wisconsin, minister
and the editor Of local paper.
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