Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1893-06-26
DIR. TALMAeE DELIVERS a SER
MON ON BIRDS.


well fitted TO he read under the trees and
has In It the health Of outdoor life. Text,
Psalms CIV. i2, by them shall the fowls Of
tho heaven have their habitatlon. which
sing among the branches"
There Is an Important and improving
subject 10 which most people have given
no thought, and concerning which this Is
the first pulpit discussion namely, THE
Song OF Birds fall that has been written
concerning music by human voice or about
music sounded on instrument by finger or
breath were put together, volume by the
side OF volume, il would ill a hundred nj
coves Of the national libraries. But about
the song OF birds there is as much silence
as though thousand years ago the last
lark had with his wing swept the door
latch OF heaven, and as though never a
whlppoorNHill had sung It's lullaby to a
Numbering forest at niphtfall We give a
passing smile TO the call Of u bobolink or
the chirp OF n canary but nbout the origin,
about the fiber about the meaning, about
the mirth, about the pathos, about the in
SEPARATION, about the religion in the song OF
birds, the most OF us arc either ignorant or
indifferent. A cayeat this morning file
In the high court of heaven against that al
most universal irreliglon,
FEATHERED Cfloms
Firgt-I remark that which will surprise
many, that the song Of birds Is q regulated
and systematic song, capableof being writ
ten out In note and staff aud bar and clef
"a much us anything that Wagner or Schu-
mann or Handel ever put on paper AS we
pass the grove where the 1ocks are holding
mutin or vespcr service, we areRpt to think
that the sounds are extemporiled. tho lis
ing or falling tone ~ mere accident, il is
flung mp md down by haphazard, the bird
did not know what it was doing, II did not
care whether it was Il long meter psalm or
madrigHl What a mistakel The must
clan never put on the music rack before
him Mcndelssohn's "Elijahn or Beetho-
VEINS Concerto" in e or Spohr's b fiat
symphony with more definite idea as to
what he was doing than every bird that can
sing at ali conilues himself to accurate and
predetermined rendering
The oratorios, the chants, the carols, the
overtnres, the interludes, the ballads, tho
canticles, that this morning were heard or
will this evening be heard in the forest have
rolled down through the ages without a
variation. Even the chipmunk's song was
ordained clear baek In the eternties Al
the gates Of paradise II sang in sounds like
the syllables "Kukw "ltukw "Kukr Just
as this morning in u Long Island orchard
II sang "Kuk" "Kul" "Kukw The
thrush OF the creation uttered sounds like
the word "Teachcrr' "Ieacher!n Teach
erl" M now It utters sounds like Teacher"
"Ienchcri" Teacher" In the summer OF
the year | the yellowhammer trilled that
which sounded like the word "lf,' IN
IN US In this summer Il trills "lfl' "lfl"
"Ifr' The Maryland ycllOwthroat inherits
and bequeaths the tune sounding like the
words pity me, pity me, pity met The
white sparrow's "TsCep, tsecp,n woke our
| -grandfnthers AS It will awaken our
great grandchildren The "1'ee-ka-tee- ka-
tee-ka' Of the birds IN the first century was
| the shmc ns the "Toe-ka-tee ka-tee. kun OF
the nineteenth century.
TAUGHT ms the CREATOR.
The goldhnch has Tor G,0OO years been
singing Decree dno.ee-rec.n But these
sounds, which we put in harsh words they
| put In eadenccs, rhythmic, soulful aud en-
rspturng Now, II there is this order and
systsmntizatiou aud rhythm all through
Gods creation, does II not imply that we
should have the same characteristics in the
| music we make or try to mnkei N II not u
wickedness that SO many parents give no OPP
| pOrtuntty Tor the culture OF their children
in the art Of sweet GoundS II God stoops to
educate every bluebird, oriole aud grosbealk
In song, how can parents he N indifferent
about the musical development Of tue i'm
mortals In their household While God
will accept our attempts to sing, though
II be only hum or drone, II
we can do no better, what shame
that in this last decade OF the
nineteenth century, when SO many or
chestrnl batons are waving, and 50 many
academies OF music are in full concert, and
/ IA m III 4.tt
ing to offer instruction, there are so many
people who cannot sing with any confidence
in the house OF God because they have had
no culture Ia this Aicrcd art, or while they
arr able to sing fautnsin ut u piano amid
the 1uttering fans OF social admirers never
theless feel utterly helpless when in church
the surges u an Ariel or an Antioch"
roll ever theml Tho old fashioned country
singing school, now much dcrided and
caricatured-and indced sometimes II wis
diverted from the real design into the
culture OF the soft emotions rather than
the voice nevertheless did admirable
work, and In our churches we need sing
ing schools to prepare our sabbath au-
diencss for prompt and spontaneous and
mulupctent psnlmody. This world needs
TO b. stormed with halleluiahs We want
hemisphere campaign of hosannahs.
| HNkkitT Nlik
Luther went home at 40 years Of ago to
write his first hymn In the autumn |
hope to have congregational singing
school here during the week. which shall
prepare the people for the songs Of the holy
Sabbath. II the church Of God universal
Ia going to take this werld for righteous
ness, there must be added hundpdfold OF
moreharmony rs well ~ hundredfold Of
more volume to sacred music.
THE DIVINE MELODY.
Further, notice 10 the song OF birds that
II is a diyinsly Taught song The rRrees
prima donna Of all the earth could not
teach the robin one musical note A king
fisher hJing over the roof OF temple
A-quAke with hArmonies would not catch
up ono melody. From the time that the
hrst birds throat was fashioned ON the
banks Of the Gihon aud Hiddekel until to
day on the Hudson or Rhine, the winged
creature has learned nothing from the hu
unAn race In the way OF carol or anthem
The featherod songsten learned all theii
music direct from God. lie gave them III,
art Ia nest Of straw or moss or sticks anc
taught them how 10 liz that song into th'
higher heavens and sprinkle the earth will
rs duloet enchantlnsnts God fashioned
God tnrsd, God launched, God lifted mu
sicl
And their "a kind Of uuaic that tn