The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-05-28
MUSIC OF WAR DAYS.
The Soldiers Songs and How
They We're Sung.
JOLLY TIMES m THE CAMP.


JOLLY TIMES m THE CAMP.
Gen. Hosasio c. King says Familiarity
With Death Breeds Contempt-soms
Of the FavorIte Melodies.
The impression that the constant men
ace Of danger makes soldiers life one Of
care and anxiety is erroneous. On the
contrary. familiarity with danger breeds
contempt. Beside. the soldier had more
to fear from inactivity, which bred dis
ease, than from cannon shot and flying
bullets, so that all sorts OF devices were
resorted to TO stsve of ennui and divert
the mind after the arcuous duties Of camp
and field. In every regiment. and. in
deed. at nearly every headquarters, there
were bright young fellows whose versa
tility was constantly called into play, and
picket and police duty were diversified
with songs around the camp fire. amateur
theassicals, horse races and athletic games.
The most common Of these were inn
promptu concerts when We recalled the
memories Of home with familiar folk songs
or made the air resound with the catching
popular war melodies of Root, Work,
Lambert, Sep Winner, kittredge and 9TH
ers which the war evoked or brought into
prominence.
My memory goes back especially to the
Shenandoah valley and to my old COM
rades Of the First cavalry division. with
whom my fortunes were cast in the clos
ing year Of the war. The cavalry, unlike
the infantry, were not permitted the lux
ury Of uninterrupted winter quarters. and
although the winter of 1864 and 1865 was
unusually cold for that section. we were
kept on the move with reconnoisances to
stir up the animals and raids to break up
the rendezvous and destroy the supplies of
Mosby and his exasperating band OF guer.
rillas.
1t was at one Of our impromptu musicals
that first heard Bayard Taylor's beauti-
full song Of the camp admirably rendered
by Gen. Charles L. Fitzburgh, then COM
manding the Second brigade ofour division.
The song, it is known to many, was based
upon an incident in the Crimean war.
While the allied English and French
armies were entrenched before Sebastopoi.
il is related that in the stiffness of star
lit night group in the regiment began to
sing "Annie Laurie" The words and
melody touched a responsive chord in the
heart Of every British soldier, and soon
the strain was carried from regiment to
regiment and from camp to camp.
They sang of love ana not fame,
Forgot was Britsin's glory,
Each heart recalled different name,
But all sang Annie Laurie.
Charley Fitzhugh had a fine baritone
nd M nj
touched when We thought of home and
friends and the Girl l Left Behind Me-"
Dear girl, her name he dared not speak.
But ~ the song grew louder,
Something upon the soldiers cheek
Washed out the stains of powder.
After the war made Intellectual endeav-
ors to find the music to this song, and so
wrote it myself from memory and had it
published. 1t was some years after that
some ofthe survivors Of the Army of the
Potomac were on the boat en- route to
Providence to the annual reunion of the
society of which was and am still record
ing secretary. Bayard Taylor, who had
among the guests at a round table dinner
given in the forward cabin. Reference was
made to this exquisite ballad. and the
writer sang the music, which the distin-
pushed poet then heard for the first time
A somewhat feeble imitation of this in
cident has been produced. said to have
been based upon an occurrence while the
Union and Confederate armies con-
fronted each other at Fredericksburg.
the two camps being separated only
by the narrow Rappahannock river. The
story goes that a company of Union SOL
diers struck up the Star Spangled Ban
ner" and the Confederates responded with
the Bonnie Blue Flag" and alternately
eech sang America" and Dixie and
other Union and Confederate melodies
until. rs if by inspiration. Home Sweet
Home" rang out upon the sill night air,
and all with common impulse united jim
the song which brought tender memories
of home. and for a time political differ
ences were forgotten IN the touch of ma
ture which makes the whole world kim"
The incident is not we'll authenticated and
l Imagine the author drew as wildly on
his inventive genius rs the small boy who
said he had made fiddle ali out of his
own head and had wood enough left to
make another.
One of the favorite songs which had \
ringing chorus Was the weird composition
OF an English officer IN India. at time
when the plague was hourly sweeping of
his companions. and he himself did not
long survive his seputchrai production. 1t
is called the ''Revelry of the Dying" and
is sung 10 the tune, Away With Melan.
choly." The first and last verses read:
We meet meath tie sounding rsfters,
And the waits around are bare:
As they shout 20 our peals of daughter,
II seems thai the dead are There;
Bat stand 10 your glasses, steady!
We drink "a our comrades ey=s.
QGaif cup to the dead already,
And hnrrah for the next that dies
Cut Of from the land ,ha, bore us,
Betrayed by the land No fild,
Where The brightest have zone before u,
And the daiiest remain behind
Siaua' Stand 10 your glasses. steady.
It's all We have lef. 90 prixa,
cup 10 the dead already.
And hurraa Tor the next ,hat dies,
have before me some crude imrromptu
verses which were sung AZ = social gather
ing at our headquarters. about three miles
from Winchester, in the spring of ls65,
and give them:
On the morn of each bloody hattie,
Neithe. caring 20 i've aor die.
10 The music oi the car b. ne's rattle,
Ger the dead and dying VIC fly.
brave Buiords spirit Fingers.
Ana Lo~eis fair hands on the cup.
Here's host o. herovs with tAsm
10 drink en- shs last drcgs up
Then turFsa, Tor the war and It's dangers.
Ia aonors, IT. harvest o: death,
Three cheers io- The tirs, snrtil bu!ie.
Thar stops couasa te's breath.
The first verse was hy Lieut.. Wieyiu,
and the last nv Co.! Bean. both OF whom
survived the war bat since have gone
over To tae majority Gen. John Bufori
and tol. Lowell. Of TIE First Na,sa-
chusetis cavalry, were in the iirst division.
i ne ioginer died III i>.I, from EXPOSURE
and the latter was killed n: Cedar Greek.
In one o' our recouDcissances 10 md
out the position ~. the enemy NE ,naIa