The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1907-06-30

proprate environment. AS regards Its
English origin, President Lincoln's words
about Dixie" hold good here also: I'VE
have fairly captured it, and may consider
it our own by right Of conquest
The story of "The Star.Spnngled Ban.
ner" Is as romantic MS itsgwords are thrill
ing 1t was born In the battles stress
and storm, out Of q patriots proud heart.
1t brcathes the martial spirit of liberty,
the confident hope in the triumph of right
OF MI the worlds national airs, there are
three that never fail to stir the pulse and
warm the blood--the 'Marseillatse," tie
Watch on the Rhine" and THE Star
Spanglcd Banner;" all three are chants
of defiance to tyranny and oppression, and
were written in the hour Of the nations
peril 1.-THE Star.Spangled Banner" was
composed during the war of 1872. and that
war would have been worth wh;so had it
gained for US nothing but this sonorous
poem.
When the British invaders had burned
the capitol ut Washington, they turned
their eyes toward Baltimore. General
Ross boosted that he would make that
rich city his winter quarters, and he
didn't care Il 1t rained militia" mus.
ket bull from one Of the despised militia
put an end to the vainglorious generals
life few days later. Meantime the Brit
ish fleet under Admiral Cochrane had
l. blocked the Patupsco, an arm of the
| Chesapeake, bit could not get past Fort
| AcIIcnry TO shell The city. SO 1t was de
| cided to reduce the fort, and lombard
| ment began which lasted all day and far
into the night OF September A., 1911.
| Conceived in the Hour or Battle.
| Francis Scott Key, u young lawyer of
! Georgetown, had rowed out to the British
| feet, before the bombnrdment began, to
| secure the parole OF friend who was a
| prisoner of war The British kept Key on
4 board one of their ships all night while
, the bombardment was going on. Anxious,
1 ~ he watched the banner OF the fort, lit
by "the rockets red glare. and bombs
bursting III air. and when with the
dawn he saw that "the flag was still
4 there" heswrote his trumphal poem on
the back OF an old letter as the dscom.
! hted BntoNs set sail for home.
I. The poem was first printed in The
| Maryland Journal. now the Baltimore
American, on September IS, under the
title, Defense Of Fort McHenry." 1t
was sung for the Nrst time by Ferdi.
nand Dnrnngr standing on q cane, pottomel
chair In Il tavern near the Holiday Street
Theatcr In Baltimore, Though It is tho
only poem OF the collection published In
1857, fourteen years after Ills death, which
Is remembered today, 1t viii make Keys
name endure even longer than the nonu.
ment IN Golden Gate Park, for which
James Lick gave 100000, and which. WA
liam Wetnore Story hewed out of the
came material used for the Colosseum and
ST, Peters At Rome
Richard Grant White, that captions
critic who was the Harry Thurston Peck
OF n generation Ugo found fault with "Thc
starSpangled Banner" because 1t IS a
descriptive poem, Mr.. White MAS hard to
please, like thar National Hymn Commit.
tee which, az the beginning OF the civil
war, offered prize OF $500 for II suitable
patriotic song, but failed toSGnd one In
100 that were submitted The committee
lad use wash-baskets fun OF rejected
manuscripts,
n HoDkinAon's "iail Columbian"
>r>Ilefe have been fully I'VE wash,basGe,s
fun Of pGtriotie songs written since our
nation wps born The Oldest of these
which stu enjoy favor Is s'HnIl Golun
pia'N wnlten BY Joseph llopkinson. a
{ 1 g. r.