The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1883-05-17
Tell John Andrew,
Tell John Andrew,
Tell John Andrew,

John Browns dead"
From this sprung the now famous song which
is, perhaps, the most popular of all the army
songs; and of the many versions that have been
made, the best lis from the pen of DR.. J. w.
Westmore:
See they come, see they come from the. mountain
and the plain,
noble band of patriots the Union to maintain,
And they never will return till the country
stands again
United firm and Free
Glory Hallelujah!" &c.
Henry Clay Work, Western bard, wrote and
composed the music of several of the best songs,
among which may be named Marching
Through Georgia" and that very capital and
favorite song with the soldiers, Kingdom
Coming" which has an additional charm from
being in the negro dialect:
Say, darkies hab you seen de massa
Wild de muffstash on his faee
Go long de road some time dis mornin'
Like he's goin' to leave de place?
He seen de smoke way up de ribber - 8.
Where de Lincum gunboats lay; :.
He took his hat and left berry sudden,
And spose he's runned away! =
De massa run. ha, hai
De darkey stay, ho no.
IL must be now de Kingdom comm,
An de var OBJ jnbilo.'
The air which accompanies these words is
very inspiriting one, and it makes capital
quiekstep.
George F. Root, who was some time music
teacher in this city, is the author and composer
OF Tramp, tramp tramp"
' In the prison cell sit,
Thinkis z mother, dear. of you
And our bright and happy home so far away,
And the tears they fill my eyes,
Spite of all that can do,
Though try to cheer my comrades and be gay.
Tramp, tramp, tramp, the boys are marching,"
Root is also 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 will rally from the hillside,
We'll 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 a little lamb" to it, with ludicrous
effect. AS, for instance:
Mary had a little lamb,
Its fleece was white snow,
Shouting the battle cry of freedom,
And every place that Mary went,
The lamb was sure to go,
Shouting the battle cry OF freedom
an so on. During the terrible fighting in the
Wilderness on the 9th of MAY, 1864 a brigade
of the Ninth Corps, having broke the enemy's
line by an assault, became exposed to a flank
attack and was driven back in disorder with
heavy loss. They retreated but few hundred
yards, however re- formed and again confronted
the enemy. just then some gallant fellows in
the ranks of the Forty fifth Pennsylvania began
to sing:
Wen 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 xth Mas
sachusetts next in line. There the grim ranks
stood at bay in the deadly thicket The air
was filled with the crackle and smoke of burn
-h f,,J 90
the rattle of musketry, and the shouts of COM
mand; but above all, answering the exultant
yelIs of the enemy, rose the inspiring chorus
!" The Union forever, hurrah, boys, hurrah
Down with the traitor and up with the starl
And We'll rally round the flag, boys,
Rally once again,
Shouting the battle cry of freedomP'
One OF the army songs which has become as
popular in England as it is in this country, is
published as having been written and composed
by Louis Lambert. This is non de pt,,ne for
p. 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
inform the public that
Well all drink stone blind
When Johnny comes marching home,'
but the tune is of the rollicking, deyil-may-
care order that is very catching. The fact is,
Gilmore built up his words to suit his air, on
thesame principle thatin Virginia they invaria-
bly, 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.
The Star Spangled Banner will ever rank
as the first of American war songs, and linked
with it will be Hail Columbia y "America . and
THE Red, White and Blue" We are not GER
| tain that this latter is an American song. 1t
has been claimed by the English under the
1 fifla py;f fhan nax Sc ~ mt,
| first person we ever heard sing it was the late
Edward L. Davenport, and he once informed us
that he got the song in the motherl land "Hail
Columbia" was set by its author, Judge Hop
| kinson, to the air of "The Presidents March, y
which somebody had composed in honor Of
Washington; but the words of "The Star
| Spangied Banner" are sung to an old English
! bacchanalian air, "To Anacreon in Heaven
while the Rev. Mr.. Smiths "My Country, tits
of Thee" goes to the air of "God Save the
! Queen" The National hymn, with appropri-
ate original music, is yet to be written Kel-
lers hymn does not fill the bill, nor indeed
does julius Eichberg's, or that ambitious pro-
duction which Gilmore gave to the country
| two or three years since.
We have touched but lightly on a few of the
soldiers songs. Did one go into the matter to
any great extent there certainly would not be
| sufiiciency Of space in this edition of the
| IrdUelter to accommodate us. While there was
plenty of enduring poetry written during the
war; the number of really meritorious songs
that were given birth to were few, indeed. On
the whole we are inclined to think that in
this respect the South was in advance of us. foi
we certainly {Mrs. Howe's noble effort aside
do not possess single song of the rebellion al
all comparable to Maryland, My Maryland y
and the air to which it is sung is well fitted to
the words. We remember once having heard
it sung under circumstances that for the time
made us fancy it was the sweetest thing we
ever listened to. We had reached Frederick
City In Maryland after distressing forced