The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-02-02

ration Of hymnal OF which the guid-
ing principle should be unity BY in
clusion and not by exclusion, ana that
In such q hymnal as THE Book of Com
mon Praise all churchmen might unite
upon the broad and catholic lines OF
the Book OF Common Prayer" It
was the object OF the committee that
In the selection Of hymns and tunes
the book be representative as posi-
BILE OF all legitimate schools Of thought
and taste within the church !"
The book will contain, IL carried out
as now planned. 1888 hymns, but Il may
come to an even 500 or it may drop as
low as 750, for there are several tunes
that are only included tentatively. It
will be quite a surprise. however TO
learn of some OF the famous old tunes
that have been put into this tenta-.
tive list.
Among these are look Ye Saints.
The Sight is Glorious." Calm on the
Listening Ear OF Might Sweet is the
Work, My God. My King" 1t is gem
orally felt that there should be no hes
itating about including these standard
hymns. Another of Bonar's. when
the Weary. Seeking Rest" Is put down
for selection from its six stanzss.
Every one of them could be included.
Among other notable omissions are
five hymns included in the list of the
best hundred made by the votes OF $500
people in 1887. These are Miss War
ing's Father Know That All My
Life Bonar's, ST Was a Wandering
sheen" "Robinson.s Come Thou Fount
Of Every Blessing Millions Let Us
with a Gladstone Mind" and Cowper's
sometimes a Light Surprises" There
will be many a regret that these are
left out. And Addison's "The Spacious
ornament on High" might well have
found a place.
There are some hymns which have
become a part of the consciousness of
Christendom and any tampering with
them will be considered little short of
a scandal. Such an act is the addition
Of a stanza to Newman's Lead, Kind
iv Light" Fortunately the present
compiiers have not been guilty OF this
offense, but they have of one quite as
strocious. Matheson's 40 Love That
VIII Not Let Ne Co." is shorn of its
last and most perfect stanza. 1t Is to
be noted, however. that the first line
Of each stanza Is in the second person.
In the first line ''wilt" has been altered
to will" This hymn, probably the
most notable OF the last generation.
could well be left as its sanity author
wrote it. 4
In Neale version Of the old Greek
strain, "Fierce Was the Wild Biltow.
the line in the second stanza, wall
of Euroclydon." is ALTERED after the
United States fashion to wall Of the
Tempest Wind" Canadians are INTEL
ligent and cultured enough not to lose
the magnificent force OF the original.
The hymn, Nearer My God to Thee"
is one Of the most widely known in
existence, II. indeed, IL is not the best
known to the masses Of the people.
II 10 King Edwards favorte hymn, but
the compilers have seen At to curtail
IL Of its last stanza with the express
sion Of confident Immortality to which
IL owes most Of its popularity.
Lyte's "Abide With Me- is, Of course,
included. the five stanzas usually print
ed being given, but the equally famil
lar shall We Gather at the River?"
Is given in such form that in the
"HymnaI Companion" version It had
better be omitted. Ere We Reach the
Shining River" is converted into But
Before we Reach the River" the poetry
into prose. Nothing tends to repei a
stranger in any church so much as to
fnd that his favorite and familiar
hymns have been tinkered with. The
result is TO set up a jarring note Of
discord which affects all the impressions
formed of the service.
The selection of tunes appears to be
fairly complete, but DR.. Chip Is not
represented, as he might well be In his
axu,iIsite setting of It'll He Comes"
The fine old time Jackson" quite the
aotIal Of ST. Anne or Irish, is not used.
where all is so good. there Is no rea-
aor, II should not be better, and a few
changes would make the collection al
most perfect. "A