The Red Cloud chief., 1891-10-02

bring him forth until Faraneli came
and discoursed music for three or four
days to him. On the fourth day he
looked up. and wept. and rejoiced, and
the windows were thrown open, and
that which all the splendors of the
court could not do. the power Of song
accomplished. If you have anxieties
and WORKINGS, try this heavenly charm
upon them.
DO not SIT down on the bank Of tho
hymn, but plunge in that the devil Of
care may be brought out of you II
also arouses TO action A singing
church is always triumphant church!
IL a congregation Is silent during the
exercise, or partially silent il is the ST.
lence of death II, when the hymn il
given out you hear the faint hum Of
here and there a father and mother in
Israel. while the vast majority are ST.
lent, that minister of Christ who Is
presiding needs TO have q very strong
chills He needs not only the grace of
God, but nerves like w~balebone. II is
amazing how ON people. who have
voice enough to discharge all their
duties in the world, when they come
n the house Of God have no voice TO
discharge this duty. / really believe
that If the church OF Christ could rise
up and sing that where We have a hun
dred souls brought into the kingdom Of
Christ there would be a thousand
But ] must now speak Of some of the
obstacles in the way of the advance
ment of this sacred music; and the first
is that il has been impressed into the
service of superstition am far from
believing that music ought always TO
toe positively religious. Refined art has
opened places where music has been
s~ecularized, and lawfully so. The
drawing room, the musical club. the
orchestra, the concert, by the gratifica-
ton of pure taste, and the production
of harmless amusement and the i'm
provement of talent have become
great forces in the advancement of our
civilization. Music has as much right
to laugh in Surrey gardens as it has 70
pray in St Paul's In the kingdom of
nature, we have the glad fling of the
wind as well a. the long meter psalm
of the thunder.
False religions have depended more
upon the hymning Of their congrega-
tons than upon the pulpit proclama-
ton of their dogmas. Tartini, the
musical composer, dreamed one night
that Satan snatched from his hand an
instrument aud played upon it some
thing very sweet-a dream that has
often been fulfilled in our day. the
voice and the instrument that ought TO
have been devoted to Christ captured
from the church and applied to pur-
poses of superstition
Another obstacle has been an in
ordinate fear of criticism. The vast
majority of people, singing in church,
never want any body else TO neal them
sing. Everybody is waiting for every
body else to do his duty. IL we all
sang, then the inaccuracies that are
evident when only a few sing would
not Toe heard at all; they would be
drowned out God only asks you TO do
as well as you can, and then, if you
get the wrong pitch, or keep wrong
time, He will forgive any deficiency of
the ear and imperfection of the voice.
Angels viii not laugh IL you should
lose your place in the musical scale or
come in at the close a bar behind.
There are three schools of singing, !
am told-the German school, the Italian
school, and the French school of sing
ing. Now. l would like to add a fourth
school, and hat is the school of Christ
The voice IF a contritc, broken heart,
although it nay not Toe able 70 stand
human criticism, makes better music
to Gods ear than the most artistic per
| Torrance when the heart is wanting.
! know il is easier 10 preach on this
thar il il TO practice; but ] sing for two
reasons-first because ] like IL, and
next, because want tn encourage those
who do not know how. ! have but
very little faculty in hat direction. yet
| am resolved To sing, God has com
manded il, and dare not bc silent He
calls on the beasts, on the cattle. on the
dragons. to praise Him, and we ought
not to Toe behind the cattle and the
dragons.
Another obstacle hat has been in
the way of the advancement of this
holy art has been the fact that there
has been so much angry discussion on
the subject of music. There are those
who would nave this exercise conduct
same church there are those who do
not like musical instruments, and So it
is organ and no organ, and there is a
fight In another church il is a ques-
ton whether the music shall be con
Quoted 10y a prccentor or 10y a drilled
choir. Some want drilled choi and
some want a ~precentor. and there is a
fight Then there are those who would
like in the church 10 have the organ
way, while there are others who
would have it wreathed in fan
TASTES, branching out in Jets
and spangles of sound, rolling
ana tossing in marvellous convolutions
as when in p~yrotechnic display after
you think a piece Is exhausted il breaks
out in wheels, rockets blue lights and
serpentine demonstrations Some
would have the organ played in almost
/ auautllpit SNtGNItSS anu tNutES Wpulu
have il full of staccato passages that
make the audience jump, with great
eyes and hair on end, as though by n
vision of the witch of Endor. And he
who tries 20 please all will fail in
everything. Nevertheless you are to
admit the fact that this contest which
is going on. not in hundreds hut in
thousands of the churches of the United
States to-day is n mighty hindrance 20
the advancement of this art In this
way scores and scores of churches are
entirely crippled As 70 all influence. and
the music is a damage rather than n
praise.
Another obstacle in the advancement
of this ar; has been the no
ton that this part OF the service could
he conducted by delegation Churches
have said: % what an easy time we
shall have. This minister will do the
preaching. the choir will 10 the singing
and we will have nothing TO do" And
You know as well As ! that there is a
great multitude of churches all through
this and where the people are not ex-