The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-08-01
GEORGE F. ROOT.
Chicago's Patriotic Singer. - His
Songs and Services During the
War.
BY HON. CLARK E. CARR.


FROM the address of Hon. Clark E.
Carr, at the Root Memorial Concert
at the Chicago Coliseum, July 4, we
make the following extract, copying
from the Galesburg Republican,
which prints the address in full:
One of the great men who has been
permitted to read and interpret and
express in song the emotions and as
pirations of the soul was George F.
Root. He came from the East and
located in Chicago during the late
SOS. Mr.. Root was plain, common
sense gentleman, whose life had been
devoted to music. He had been a
teacher and had written songs, and
some of his productions had attracted
general attention. His youth had
been passed in a rural village of New
England. To him there were no
charms like those of the field and
and farm, of flowers, of the fragrance
of new mown hay, of the laughter of
children, of the songs of birds, of the
lowing of cattle. They awakened
emotions in his soul that thrilled him
with rapture. Like all the people of
New England, he attended the village
church where voices in prayer and
song poured forth praises to God.
The nature of this man was so SEN
sitive thet all these influences left
their impress upon his soul, which
was so attuned to music that each in
spired him to break forth in melody,
and they were crystallized into song.
He gave to the world "The Flower
Queen" "The Haymakers" and sew
eral other productions, representing
the most charming rural incidents
and occupations. The music for the
hymn entitled, THE Shining Shore"
composed by him at that time, is ex-
quisitely beautiful. He composed
the song of "The Hazel DELL" which
in tenderness, is as sweet and express
sive as "Ben Bolt" When he travel
ed in Illinois and caught the sweet
ness of the prairie air, charmed by
the innocent mirth of our young
maidens, he wrote Resale, the Prai-
RE Flower" which interpreted and
wildly expressed the emotions of
every young man who had lived and
loved in the Northwest.
But there were more thrilling
scenes to be enacted. They who had
gathered wild flowers, and who had
sung in the village church, and who
had basked in the dalliance of sweet
Rosalies, were awakened to RESPONSE
bilities and dangers, to heroism and
glory.
There was a mighty convulsion in
the nation; civil war with all which
that portends. Apparently one-half
of the country was arrayed against
the other. A call was made for troops,
and men took their places in the
ranks and marched away.
Yet it was said that there would be
no real war. There were those who
believed that to enlist, was only to
take holiday, those who expected
the war to be only an agreeable out
ing. 1t was said by him upon whom
we had become accustomed to look
as our greatest statesman, that "the
war would not last sixty days"
This was dreadful delusion. In
stead of holiday we found and ex-
perienced all the horrors of RELENTLESS
war. Men who enlisted thinking
only of the tinsel and trappings of
war, thinking only of the admiration
of the populace, thinking only of the
blare of trumpets and the music of
brass bands, found Bull Run. 1t was
an awful crisis.
Then came another call for troops,
call for men for real war, a call for
men to march and to suffer, to shoot
and to kill, to fight and to die. 1t
was an awful crisis.
No one appreciated more keenly
the situation than did our author,
Mr. George F. Root. As in the days
of peace, he had interpreted the en-
otions of the peaceful villagers of
New England he now interpreted
the emotions of great people, awak-
ened to the awful responsibilities of
cruel war.
With that call for troops, it seemed
almost to be part of that call, come
ringing upon the air, come pealing
across the prairies, come resounding
through the valleys, come laundering
through the forests, grand diapason
which stirred the souls of men to
their depths. 1t was taken up by
every assembly, played by every
band, whistled by every school boy.
Before one had had time to learn a
Al L