Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-05-09

via 90 muHStRXh On his face,
60 long de road some time dis mornfn'
Like he g0in TO leave the place?
He seen de smoke way up de ribber
Where the Ltncum gunboats lay;
he took his hat and left berry sudden,
And spose he's ruined away!
De maSsa run, ha. hal
DE darky Stay, bo. hol
1t must be now de Kingdom comm,
An de var oh Jubilo"
The air which accompanies these words is a
very inspiriting one, and it makes a capital
quickstep.
George F. Foot. who was some time music
teacher in this city. is the author and composer
OF Tramp Tramp. Tramp"
SIN the prison cell 1 sit,
Thinking mother, dear. of you
And our bright and happy home so far away,
And the tears they nil my eyes,
spite or all that can do
Though try TO cheer my comrades and be gay.
Tramp, tramp, tramp,
The boys are marching" &c.
Root is also the author OF ''The Battle Cry of
Freedom"
Yes, wen rally round the flag. boys,
Well rally once again,
Shouting the battle-cry OF freedom
We viii rally from the hillside
Wen gather from the plain,
Shouting the battle-cry of freedom"
There is an adaptability to the air of this song
which makes it available to many words The
soldiers were fond of setting the words of
Mary Had Little Lamb to it. with ludicrOus
effect AS for instance:
'Mary had little lamb,
Its fleece was white as snow,
Shouting the batt!e-cry or freedom
And every place that Mary went.
The lamb was sure to go,
Shouting the battle-cry OF freedom"
and so on. During the terrible fighting in the
Wilderness on the 9th Of May 1854 a brigade of
the Ninth Corps. having broken the enemy's line
by an assault, became exposed to flank attack
and was driven back in disorder with heavy loss.
They retreated but few hundred yards, how
ever. reformed, and again confronted the enemy
Just then some gallant fellows in the ranks of
the Forty -ffth Pennsylvania began to sing:
"We1l rally round the flag boys
Rally once again,
Shouting the battle-cry of freedom"
The refrain was caught up instantly by the
entire regiment and by the Thirty-siXth Massa-
chusetts. next In line. There the grim ranks
stood at bay in the deadly thcket. The air was
filled with the crackie and smoke of burning
underbrush, the pitiful cries of the wounded,
the rattle Of nusketry, and the shouts of COM
mand; but above all. answering the exultant
yelis OF the enemy, rose the inspiring chorus:
1.-THE Union forever, hurrah boys, hurrah!
Down with the traitor and up with the star!
And Wen rally round The flag, boys.
Rally once again,
Shouting the battle CRY OF freedom!"
One Of the army songs, which has become as
popular in England as it is in this country ia
published as having been written and composed
by Louis Lambert. This is nom de plume for
7. S. Gilmore. TO be sure. the words do not
amount to much and there is something dis
agreeable to well regulated temperance mind
like our own in being obliged to melodiously in
form the public that
"We'n all drink stone blind.
When johnny comes marching home,"
but the tune is Of that rolickng. devl-may-
care order that is very catching. The fact is.
Gilmore built up his words to suit his air, on
the saIsse principle that in Virginia they build
the chimney first, and then erect the house
against it. The air was an inspiration, but the
words might be classified as rhymes without
reason.
Poor Miles o'Reflley Charles G. Halpine) set
to the Irish air Of 1.-THE Low Backed Carr the
words OF the humorous song of which we here
give the first verse, aud we have heard him sing
1t with fine effect:
ssSome tell US tits a,burnfnp shame
To make the naygurs fight,
An that the thrade OF being kilt
Belongs but to the white;
But as Tor ME, upon my SOuli
SO liberal are We here,
I'll let SambO be murdered In place OF mysalf
On every day In the year.
On every: day in the year, boys,
And every hour tn the day.
An dtvil word I'll say"
He was the life OF many a Camp Are was
Private Miles O'Reiiley. and much OF the best
and raciest literature Of the war came from his
gifted pen.
'The Star spangled Banner" will ever rank as
the first Of American war songs, and linked with
1t will be Hail, Columbia" America" and
The Red White and Blue" We are not Ger
tain that this latter is an American song Il
has been claimed BY the English under the tttle
Britannia, tho Gem Of the Ocean" The first
psrsen We ever heard sing It was tho late Ed
ward l.. Davenport, and he once informed IN
that ne got the song In the mother land. HAL.
Columbia" was set BY its author, Judge Hopkin-
son, to tho air Of 1.-The President's March, which
somebody had composed in honor Of Waahing-
ton: out the words OF 1.-THE Star 9pan&ied BAN
ner are sung TO an old English bacchanalian
an, ITO Ana0reon In Heaven" while tho Rev.
M Smith's my Country. TITS Of Thee, goes 70
the air Of God Save the Queen" The rational
hymn, with appropriate oEiginal muaic, Il yet
20 b written. Kaller's hymn does not i0il the
OIL, nor indeed does Julius Eichbergis, or that
ambitious production which Gilmore Savo 10 Tho
country some tive or thnee years sinoo.
We have touched hut lightly on . few Of tho
soidiers songs. Did one 90 into the matter TO
any great extent there certainly would not b.
sufnciency Of space In this edition of the
1roccQer to accommodate US. While there was
plenty Of enduring poetry written during the
NIAor nj