Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1911-07-01
Able and Spirited Reply to an
EditOriaiin Louisville
Times.
Weak Response From Man who
Wrote OF Treason rnd
Plots.


That scion of the house Of
Disraeli who writes leading ed.
ltorials for the Louisville Evenins
Times, who insults Irish, Americans
and Catholics whenever he has an
| opportunity, took occasion on last
Saturday to flaunt God Save the
King" in the faces of g free Ameri-
can people. To the housetops he
shouted his knowledge of Ber-
mondesley and Whiteehapel. Pos
sibly he is more familiar with those
districts than with music. God
Save the King" is really an adapta-
ton from old Irish music. The
Times editorial was one to catch the
unwary, but there was one upon the
watch tower. The Rev. Father
Patrick Walsh, pastor of the Sacred
Heart church, answered the Times,
and his answer was published in that
paper on Wednesday afternoon.
Father Walsh said:
Editor Times: The leading ed
torial in last Saturdays Times at
first filled me with hope that its
brilliant and versatile editor had dis
covered some new evidence of the
origin of the air known as the Eng
lish national anthem, but on further
perusal | found none. In place of
any new evidence, there was the sup
preston or exclusion of an historical
development of facts recently
brought out by Dr. Grattan Flood.
THE first public performance of
God Save the King is stated to have
been at dinner in 1740, when it is
said to have been sung by Henry
Carey, as his own composition, both
words and music.
"The fact that Henry Carey was
the author of both (words and mu-
sic) is testified to by ]. Christopher
Smith, Handel's amanuensis, and by
DR.. Harrington" Groves Dictionary
of Music, vol. H., page 1873. And
this is now further confirmed by the
recent researches of w. H. Grattan
Flood, Mus. D., embodied in his
work, "A History of Irish Music"
on page 272: Henry Carey, an
Anglo-Irishman, is best known for
his adaptation of an old Irish folk
song to God Save the King the
English National Anthem"
Along with the above said sup
preston, there are a few glaring
assumptions. so enevloped in a sweet
flow of language that an ordinary
reader would not notice them.
The first assumption is that the
origin of the air is mystery and
that it so continues. Another as
sumption of the editor is contained
in this strange passage: "If 1T is
really to be ascribed, in the form We
all know, to Henry Carey. who died
in 1743, we shall have to deny its
origin TO England, since it is positive
1t was a favorite in France century
before"
Who does not know that, II it is
really to be ascribed to Henry Carey,
we must deny its origin, not only to
England, but also to France. and
everybody else? Who does not see
in these words the assumption that
the air, in the form we all know, is
precisely the same as the one which
was a favorite in France a century
before? This is the very thing that
needs demonstration. Mere assertion
will not suffice The proof is the
thing; bring II forth; then and not
till shall concede one jot or little.
In the last paragraphs the editor
tells us that 1t is always difficult to
follow the genesis of national music,
that anthems are evolutions that
grow by accretion, so that no one
can say for certain the time and the
place they came into being.
Who does not know the wonders
that have been accomplished by hon
est research in recent years? Many
false claims have been traced to
their source and truth has come
forth triumphant.
A striking example of this APP
peared in Sundays Courier-Journal,
in the magnificent vindication OF the
character OF Webster by Henry
Watterson.
The editors favorlng the claim
of John Bull is best answered by
Encyclopedia Britannica "A claim
made on his behalf to the compost
tion OF the music of the national
anthem has given rise to much dis
cussion. but II seems now generally
agreed that the claim. is not well
founded" Vol. w., page 51s. The
same may be Justly said of the time
assigned by the editor for the COM
position of the words, the time Of
gunpc WIDER plots. treason. etc.
An answer like this would squelch
any ordinary man. Not so a son of
the house OF Dlsraeh. He answered
Father Walsh's argument in the
same edition OF the Louisvilel Times
by evading the question. Listen TO
this evasion:
THE Rev. Father Patrick Walsh
takes us TO task with respect to GER
tain speculations and assertions IN
recent editorial With the above
caption. AS TO one OF them touch
Ing on Henry Carey the musical
Anglo-lrlshman. whatever that Is.
we may join frankly and heartily In