Daily Los Angeles herald., 1882-01-11
L0RENA'S LOVER.
The Song that Carried all Hearts Twenty
Years Ago.

The Song that Carried all Hearts Twenty
Years Ago.
Boston star.)
About the year 1858 there ap-
peared in the musical circles OF the
West q song which for twelve
years had run rarely attained by
popular melodies. Tse music had
. peculiar charm; the words were
singularly touching and their
length, extending TO eight long
verses, suggested to the reader
story back of them. In fact, the
extreme pathos Of the words con-
tributed as much, perhaps, as the
music to give the composition its
wonderful success. 1t was sung
every where, In parlors, lin con-
certs, in the streets and in the
camps of the contending armies.
In the Northern army iG was i'm
mensely popular, and found its
way South through Louisville and
Cincinnati, and during the rebel.
lion it was the only piece sung in
Southern homes, aud, excepting
martial airs, about the only one
sung in the Confederate camp.
Everywhere was "Lorena.n "A
steamer on the Ohio was named
L0rena; engines on Western roads
were called L0rena, and u person
now sometimes meets in society
young ladies named Lorena, called
that by mothers twenty years ago.
That the song had story, nearly
every one familiar with il suppos-
ed, and supposed correctly, and 1t.
may not bs 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. He studied In
the Columbus Academical and
Collegiate Institute, and was edi-
tor of the college paper In the
year 1S4S, being then "a years of
age and full of pee ry and romance,
he was enjoying his first pastorate
in GAINESVILLE, o. His leading par
ishioner was a wealthy manufsc.
turer, whose residence was upon
one OF the many hills which sur.
round that smoky town. The
house was about half mile out,
and the eminence upon which it
was seated was the one referred to
In the song:
Twas howery May,
When up the hill y slope we cllmbed
To watch the dying Of the day,
And hear the distant church bells chimed.
There lived In this family a
young sister of his wife, who was
the leading singer of the choir.
She was 10 years of age, small of
statue, had blue eyes and light
brown hair, and was as fair as
lily. She was not only sweet
singer, but she was as full of poetry
and romance as her pastor, and
they soon became very much at.
tached. Their loving did not, how
ever, "prosper WE'LL" for the fami.
ly were proud and aristOcratic, and
"had higher notions of the girls
future than to sanction her mar
riage with a poor preacher.r AS
upon them fnr a home,
she was forced to yield to their
counsei-Mr. Webster says that he
now thinks 1t wise counsel-and
they were obliged to give each
other up. It was, however. the
strong will and the proud spirit of
the sister, more than the opposi-
ton of the brother-in.law, that
separated them, or rather kept
Lorena from him. Lorena seems
to have been passive, iudecisive ia
character, and submissive In the
hands of her strong Nilled sister.
Mr.. Webster saw her for the last
at her hume, learned of the SISTERS
unconquerable opposition, heard
his fate, and took quiet but pain
fni farewell, very little being said.
That night che wrote him last
letter, In which she used the words,
80 we'll remembered by those fami-
liar with tho song: "If we try we
may forget" 1t was eight years
after that he wrote.
For eff we try we may forget
We're words Of thine long years ago.
Yes, these wore words OF thine, Lorena,
They burn within my memory yet,
Ihey touch some tender cords, Lore ma,
Which thrill and tremble with regret.
There is future. Obi thank God,
OF life this is SO small a part,
Ills dust TO dust beneath the sod,
But there, up there, tits heart to heart.
The effect of this separation was
TO crush the young man, and writ.
Ing to q friend five or six wears
ago, twenty-six years after the
occurrence, he says: 81 doubt if
Gil the 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 I,or.
ena." In 1858 be was residing in
Racine, Wis, where he met ]. p.
Webster, the composer, who, al
though Of the same name, is no
relation to him. They soon be.
came very Intimate. J. p. Web
ster was writing some music, and
was troubled to fiDd appropriate
words. Rev. Mr.. Webster told
him that he would write q cong,
And In two days he produced it,
untitled "Bertha,u mere fancy
name. When the com poser ca me
70 set 1t 10 music he wanted a name
Oh three syllables, accented on the
second, and the author made nm
tne name of ssLorena.u
Tne yoang lady's name was not |
Lorena, however, nor Bsrtha bnt
Ella. 1t 10 said that she lost her
and sunny, witchinr ways |