Evening star., 1915-06-05
HYMN SUPPLANTS
LIVELY T|PPERARY
"OnWard, Christian Soldiers"
Now Sung by British Troops
at Front.
GRAVITY MORE MARKED
AND SMILES SCARCER
War No Longer Summer Picnic.
L. * of Efficient Officers
Is Marked.
""p. rilnt. ,a,5. >, s.rn~rt Curey !.

ST OMER. France. May la big
corporal stood at the turn in the main
street OF St O,ner His duty was TO
wave baton at the drivers of the
ambulances and show them where to
ia lie their loads. Why he carried
baton instead of rife-ths being in
war time-is something that no man
knows. it is one of the ways the Eng
lish have of being different from the
rest of the world. He eyed US curious
ly as we took snapshots of each other
it being forbidden under pains ana
penalties to photograph back OF the
English lines anything that any one
would ever desire to see. He wanted
to know what American papers these
photographs would appear in. He said
he'd like to have set for himself.
why" we asked. incuriously.
Because you're the first correspond
ents I have ever seen." said he. Il don't
believe any others have ever reached
headquarters"
1t f1attered US. even though we doubt
ed the value of his Information. We
began to make conversation. ENentu-
ally, having discovered there were some
questions he would not answer. some
sang at their camps a night.
Not very much" said he, soberly.
Not now"
Not even Tipperary'
Question Is Answered.
No, they didn't even sing "Tipperary.
He didn't know just what they did
sing. He shuffled about in embarrassed
fashion when the query was pressed
and we let it drop. Later that night 1t
was answered for us. Our car stop
ped on the shoulder of high hill. IN
the valley beneath. white patch toid
of the presence of British tents. Ine
sound OF singing came to US on the
chill breeze, but for a time we couid
not distinguish the air. Then the wind
died down The chorus rose from be-
low, clear and strong.
Onward. Christian Soldiers
That unimportant little incident made
clear to me the change in the mental
attitude of the English soldier as com
pared with those l had seen in the hrst
weeks of the war. He Is much more
quiet today. the EnShshman. ne
doesn't smile so much. He is very
grave and very earnest and very de-
termned. He knows the magnitude
of the job that is ahead of him, ana ne
proposes to do that job. and he knows
he will pay the price. War isn't
sport in spite of the folly of the Eng
lish papers in insisting upon his sport
ing turn of mind. 1t is the bitterest,
grimmest most sorrowful thing in the
world. 1t isn't Likely that he prays--
many of him. Perhaps he doesn't
know how But away down inside him
he feels the need of acknowledging
his reliance upon a higher power. He
can sing with less embarrassment than
he can take to his knees Then. too,
Onward. Christian Soldiers" is fight
ing mans song. 1t is the song of the
man who believes in his cause.
There Owing to Convictions.
Somehow. one doesn't feel very far
away from the Roundheads when one
is in an English camp. No doubt.
Cromwelrs men were not as godly as
they have been painted Perhaps they
sang psalms in the tack of more tune
full airs These English fighting men are
not saints. Motif you will pardon
a. double meaning-by a jugful. But
they have that same tight-lipped air
Of being on the Lords service that the
men who made up England's profess
sional army may have enlisted because
of the promise of sport or because
the squire had determined to cut down
his stable, or because it was hard
scrabbling in whitechapel. That army
In good part died at Mons and on the
Marne and along the Ypres. The man
Of today enlisted because of a convic-
tion. That's why he sings Onward.
Christian Soldiers.
I cannot resist a further depression
from this story of a trip along the
same need for divine aid. Not in forty
wears have there been so few people