The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1899-08-06
BLINDNESS A BLESSING.
So Says the Famous Hymn Writer,
FANNY Crosby.

Did you think you would find me
grieving because l am blind?' Mrs.
Fanny Crosby, the sightless hymn
writer, asked, when l expressed sur
prise at finding her so different from
any picture my imagination had paint
ed. ''Ah, my dear, loss of sight is one
of my greatest blessings. But for my
blindness 1 should never have realized
so perfectly Gods mercies; L should
not have received so good an education,
nor should l have cultivated my men,
DRY to such an extent.
Il write my hymns, as a rule, six or
seven at a sitting. l mean by that
compose them and hold them in my
mind until 1 have six or seven
My memory is the storehouse of all
my knowledge; as you who retain your
sight go to the library and read a book
or consult dictionary to ascertain
facts, turn a leaf in my memory and
if it has ever been placed there, | find
it. Before / was nine years old | had
committed to memory the first four
gospels. as well as the first four books
of the Old Testament. II was my habit
in my childhood and early youth to
memorize five chapters a week, so now,
you see, / sit here with my hands
folded, and turn the pages of my men,
DRY bible as l compose my hymns.
How Some Hymns Were Written.
Hymn writing, in my opinion, re-
quires another talent beside that of
pOesy, for all great poets are not great
hymn writers, and of course the re-
verse is also true. My hymns are
written oftener from inner suggestions
than they are inspired by actual Incl
dents. Though some, and many of
them the public consider my best, have
been inspired directly by striking in
cidents. Now, you may remember hav-
ing heard Rescue the Perishing.' Well,
the words came TO me like a flash. You
know / teach in a Methodist mission
on Water street. and one night at
meeting, while 1 was leading. a poor
boy under Il years of age came forward
and asked our prayers. He had come
from the country TO New York in
search of work and had been led
astray. As l listened to his story, the
words of that hymn came TO me almost
if not exactly as they stand today.
Then, again, 1 had been very much
in need of money. and quite uneXpect-
eddy received just the sum I wished.
At once there welled up in my mind,
or my heart 1 cannot say which, the
words of All the Way My Savior
Leads Me- Again, Safe in the Arms
of Jesus was inspired by an incident
which touched very nearly my heart,
but about which | should prefer not to
speak just now. Another time L will
tell you, but not now.
"Oftenest, perhaps, my hymns have
been written to order. Don't DE sur
prised; hymn writing comes as natur-
ally to me as prose writing does to
YOU
The Prodigals Return was written
in just that manner. Mr.. Bradbury
came to me one day, saying, Fanny,
can't you write me hymn for this
tune?' and he hummed the tune-Joyl
joy, joy there is joy in heaven with
the angels; joy! joy joy for the prod
igaFs return spralg TO my lips as he
finished. and in a few minutes he had
the hymn as it stands TODAY.
Editorial Work
Now, besides hymn writing, my
work consists in going down several
times each week to the business place
of the large firm who publishes all my
hymns these days. and criticising the
work of other hymn writers. We have
many in this country who have done
and are still doing fine work. The man
uscripts, as they come in, are read 10
me and l criticise and often suggest
alterations for those which my pub
fishers purchase.
There is needed something more
imam HSIt JlilSlS VI NNAuS IA " 49,
to give a hymn an abiding life. There
must be something which appeals di-
rectly to the Christian consciousness
and coming forth from the experience
of the writer. So, few persons, even
though they have a talent for poetry,
can be successful hymn writers, l think
chiefly because they have never learned
to feel That is one of the blessings
produced by my loss of sight. | feel.
Rhyming comes as naturally to me as
breathing. indeed it is often an effort
to prevent myself from speaking in
RHYMES. But 1 cannot write prose:
every one laughs at it. 1t resembles,
more than anything else to me. man
wearing tight shoes. l never write.
line of it when it can be avoided"
LAFAYETTE MLAWS.