The St. Johns herald., 1893-08-03
A FAMOUS SONG.
The Marseillaise" and It's Inter-
 esting History.
For a Long Time the RaIlying Song of Europe-Written by Young Officer ir Single
 Night.

There is an interesting account in Music of the circumstances under which the 'Marseillaise" was written, together with short sketch of Rouget de Lisle, the author of this famous na- tional air. On the 24th day of April, l792, the mayor of Strassbourg, Diet rich, gave banquet to a company of volunteers who were about to join the army. Four days earlier France had declared war on Austria and Prussia. and in consequence the prevailing sen timent was one of intense patriotism. One of the participants of the banquet was the captain of engineers. Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle at that time was thirty-two years old. He was born on May 10, 17G0, at Lons le Saul nier. The young officer was known as a successful amateur musician and poet. Mayor Dietrich asked him if he could not undertake to write war song for the departing volunteers. Rougct de Lisle answered yes and went home. That whole night he sat at his desk, and when the morning of April 9 dawned the ''Marseillaise" was finished It was the result of one nights work. The author had called it Chant du Guerre de FArmee du Rhin." The northern wing of the French army brought the song with them to the seat of war, and copies of it were quickly scattered over the whole of Alsace. In Paris it remained unknown for some time. First it must pass through Marseilles. In June, 1792, the council Of Marseilles had, on the ap- peal of Barbaroux, collected a number of volunteers ''who understood how to die" and whose moral worth was such as to deserve death. These 'brave Marseilleans'' were feasted by their fel- low citizens on June 9. A citizen by the name of Mireaux, from Montpel- Her, rendered Rouget de Lisle's song.
 The enthusiasm it created was tre- nendous, and on the following day the Journal des Departments Meridionaux printed the song in its columns under the title, Chant de Guerre aux Armees des Frontieres. This was it's second title. The soldiers of Marseilles who went to Paris brought copies of the song with them. It was sung during their entrance into Paris on July 13, and again on August 10, while the Tuil- ieries were storIned, it resounded from the lips of the whole populace. Short 1y afterward its author was imprisoned on account of his moderate opinions" and was only liberated after the fall of Robespierre. In Paris, where the his tory of the song was unknown, it was called ''IIymne des MarSeillaise." as the volunteers of Marseilles had brought it with them. This became it's final name. As La Marscillaise" it is not alone the patriotic song of the French republic, but the song of liber- ty, or rather of revolution, for the whole world. That Rouget de Lisle composed the melody of the "Marseil- laisc" is hardly credible. The latest researches would show that it is taken from an oratorio called Esther" com posed by Grison, of St. Ome, and thus of French origin. During the first em- pire and the restoration the "Marseil- laise" was prohibited. With the revo- lution of July it came into fame once more, and its author was offered pen sion of six thousand francs, which. however, was refused. Rouget de Lisle died in 1886, at Choisy le Roi, where later statue was erected to his mem- ory. Last year the "Marseillaise" eel ebrated it's ninety-ninth anniversary by being played before the ear in kronstadt harbor, an occurrence the author could not have dreamed of when he wrote it, almost a hundred years previously, as a war song against despots. It would be difficult to point out any other song which has reached the masses in the same manner as has the ''Marseillaise. In Europe at least there must be few who have not heard it and cannot hum the melody. Its only competitor for popularity is it's abso- lute contrast-the English God Save the Queen" On these two melodies lie l hidden great part of the history of the nineteenth century,