The Dickinson press., 1890-10-18
SONGS WE USED TO SING.
some OLD MELODIES AND THEIR
LOCAL ASSOCIATIONS.

How and from Whom Came ''The Old
Oaken Bucket,' Life on the Ocean
wave'' and Other Familiar Verses.
Little Compensation for the Authors.
In a small and old fashioned but coy
chop house, way down town, two veri-
table Bohemians sat the other afternoon,
and over their pipes exchanged recollec-
tions. Their talk after a while touched
upon old familiar songs. many of which
possess peculiarly interesting local asso-
Citations,
Nov there's The Old Oaken Bucket,
said one of the Bohemians; that song
had its birth up here in Duane street in
1917. Samuel Woodwork, a gifted but
cratic printer. was living there at the
time. One hot summers day he went
into his house and drank a glass of
water, remarking, that tastes good, but
how | wish that l could drink just at
on my fathers farm. Woodworth's
wife remarked sympathetically, What
a poem could be written on that
thoughtr The printer pondered for a
minute. and sitting down at the nearest
table began to write. Soon the touching
verses beginning How dear to this heart
are the scenes of my childhood were
written. Soon afterward the words
were coupled with a melody composed
by Hallmark for 'Araby's Daughter.
and were sung far and wide"
naWO01mon Npurn That Troo , 10 ,
other famous song. based IN a local in
cident," said the second Bohemian.
THE words We're written by George p.
Morris, who lived in New York almost
oil his life and died here in 1864. When
he was Il boy his home was on a farm
not far from Bloominydale. He was
wont to play there under an old tree
planted by his grandfather
MANY years after he had left the
farm and the property had passed out of
the hands Of his family he happened in
that neighborhood one day, and saw a
man about to cut down the old familiar
tree. He begged the mar to desist. and
received the gruf response that the tree
would bring $40 for firewood. He gave
the man the money and took IL bond for
the safe protection of the tree. Soon
afterward he wrote the noted song,
which was set to music by Henry Rus
SELL"
You have heard how "A Life on the
Ocean Wave came to be written, | SUD
poser quer1ed the first speaker, us lie
molstened his lips. MOI Well. it was
this way Epes Sargent was walking
along the edge of the Battery one bright
morning when the numerous craft, dane
ing on the glistening water, brought to
7 his mind a suggestion made to him some
time before by his friend, Henry Russell.
that he write a marine song He wrote
the words Of "A Life on the Ocean Wave,
and showed them to George p. Morris.
who remarked that they made a nice lit
tie. poem. but they would not do for a
song.
Soon afterward Russell met Sargent
and asked him for the verses. Taking
them to a music store at Broadway and
Park Place. Russell went into a little
back room, seated himself at piano and
in u few minutes composed the air of the
famous song. Sargent never received a
cen for it. although the sales of the song
were large.
"'Ben Bolt, you remember, wa u
noted song along about 1850" continued
the first Bohemian. 1.-The original words
of that song were written in l842 by DR..
Thomas Dunn English, of Philadelphia,
while on a visit to New York, and sent
as a gratuitous contribution to a maya
zine edited by his friend N. P. Willis.
Some years afteward the verses were re-
peated from memory to Nelson Kneass,
q New York Bohemian, who set them to
music. adapting an old German song.
The instantaneous success of Ben Bolt
made it a source of great profit to its
publishers. but Kneass died in poverty,
complaining that he only received a tritie
for his work So far us is known the
writerof the original verses got nothing"
But few writers of popular songs ever
ly remarked the second Bohemian.
There's the familiar case of John How
ard Payne. Il New York boy. who wrote
Hon" Swrrt Home while starving in
an at..c III PARIS The song was to be
st,lig u ,h,> opera llarl. the Maid of
Milan PAYNE never got anything for
ii and later IN his life he wrote to a
friend IN his city How often have l
been IN the heart of Paris. Berlin, Lon
don "r some other city, and have heard
persons singing or hand organs playing
Home. Sweet Home without having a
shllllu. tn buy myself the next meal or
HHDl . my head"
i~'ftNnn's case was a pathetic
SOD Bohemian No. 1, "but
-,u Instances where song
a great deal of money and
anw to keep it. Take the
,''Y' ..H ~, wmn Collins Foster, for
liz produced Old Kentucky
lh.sa~ old DOG Tray, old Folks at
.. Oid lncle Ned and scores Of
"tii,l popular songs for which he re-
ceived large u,n of money. 1t is a mat
ter of record that more than 1875, 900
copies of Old Dog Tray were sold in
eighteen months Foster was a reckless,
happy-yolucky fellow Some of his
most famous songs were written on
m""n wrapping paper in the back part
OF II downtown grocery in this city. He
v .. l;lSen SCR here and was conveyed
10 a hospital where he died ~penniless
Jan IL. 1854
Another man who received large
sums of money for his songs was Henry
e. Work, of this city, the author Of
Wake Nicodemus. Marching Through
Georgia and 'Grandfather's Clock The
sales of the last mentioned song were
enormous, and Work received S., 1000 in
royalties OF that alone."-New York
Tiraon
A Study in Philology.
Sumway-It is strange how one word
brings up another in the mind.
Mrs. Sumway-So it is.
Sumway-Now the word ~"sardines'
always suggests to me the word .com.
pact"