Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1886-10-28
TUNEFUL "CHEsTNUTs."
Origin Of the Sweet ballads which Never
Grow Old.

Grow Old.
John Browns Body" is an old Meth
odist camp-meeting tune, and the words
were adapted to it by glee club of Bos-
ton. it was first published at Charles
town, Mass. Captain James Greenleaf,
an organist of the Harvard Church, set
the notes for music. and Massachusetts
regiment made them first noted by sing
ing them in Fort Warren in 1861.
The author of Maryland, My Mary
land" lives at Washington, and you
may see him in the press galleries of
Congress almost any day during the
session. He writes gossipy letters to the
Atlanta Chronicle. His name is James
r. Randall.
america" was written by Rev. Sam
uel Francis Smith, in 1885, and it was
first sung in Boston on the Fourth of
July of that year. Like the Battle
Hymn of the Republic" it was inspired
by great tune, viz: God Save the
King" This tune is used in nearly
every country, and has been ascribed to
Handel. The writer Of the words still
lives in Massachusetts, and he says that
he wrote the song at n sitting. He is
now rs years old.
John Howard Payne's Home, Sweet
Home" was written for an opera, and
he never got anything for it but his
tombstone in Oak Hill Cemetery. 1t was
first sung in the Covent Garden Theater
in London, and made big hit
Foster got $4,000 for writing "Old
Folks at Home;" Charles Dibdin netted
several weeks board for writing "Poor
Jack" while his publishers made S15,-
OOO out OF it. Crouch, the writer of
kathleen Mavourneen." received S25
for the production and afterward be-
came q begging tramp, while its pub
fishers could have built brown-stone
front out of its sales George P. Morris
wrote "Woodman, Spare That Tree"
because the purchaser of a friends
estate wanted to cut down tree which
his grandfather had planted. His friend
paid the purchaser $40 to spare it Nor
ris was touched by the story and wrote
the song.
Hail Columbia" was written by
Joseph Hopkinson in the Summer Of
1898, and it was first called the .Presi-
dents March," 1t was always sung
when Washington came into the theater,
and one of the objects of its writing was
the cultivation of n patriotic spirit
among the people of the republic.
Joseph Hopkinson was % years old
when he wrote it. 1t was first set to
music by q German, ut Philadelphia,
named Roth.
THE Star Spangled Banner" was
written by Francis Scott Key while
watching the bombardment of Fort Nc
Henry. He was in small vessel among
the British ships, and he saw mis- coun-
trymen win the victory. All through
the fight he watched anxiously to see if
the flag was still standing; looking for
it at night by the flash of the bombshells,
and anxiously awaiting the dawning.
The song was printed in the Baltimore
american eight days after the battle,
under the title of "The Defense of Fort
Many people will be surprised to know
that Yankee DOODLE is not of Ameri-
can origin. Even the words date back
beyond the days of Queen Anne, and
the tune is still older. In the wars of
the Roundheads, says Commodore
Preble in his book on the flag of the
United States, to which, by the way,
am indebted for much of this informa-
ion, yankee Doodle was applied in
terision to Cromwell, and Professor
a prominent physician of
london, wrote the song directed at
Cromwell under this title. The Jingle
If these two songs is about the same,
md the words are not much different.
DR.. Schuchburg first introduced the
'ong into this country in 1875, and this
vas also in contempt of the ragged
colonial soldiers. At Concord and Lex
ngton the British, when advancing to
ight bravely played God Save the
Aing," and after they were defeated the
Yankees, as they watched their retreat,
truck up yankee Doodle"
Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean,"
vas written by Thomas a'Becket, an
Inglish actor, who in 1889 was teacher.
f music at Philadelphia.
"The Blue and the Gray" was written !
y Francis Miles Finch, and delivered
efore a reunion of the army of the Po-
omac 1t was drawn out by the fact |
hat the women of Columbus, Miss,
trewed flowers on the graves of Con-
sderate and Union soldiers alike. 1t
Tas published in the atlantic MontbLy,
eptember, 1867.
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