Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1922-04-13
OLD GLORY OF
KEYS SONG is
MUSEUM RELIC
BY FREDERIC 7. HAsKIN.

By FREDERIC j. HASk1N.
Washington, April 10 .--Probably
the most interesting flag in the
world to Americans is on exhibi-
ton in the National Museum in
this city-the original Star Span
gled Banner" the bit Of bunting
which inspired Francis scott Key
to pen the immortal lines now pop
ularly accepted as the national an
them of the United States.
The old battle flag. ripped and
frayed, is being carefully pre-
served for the eyes of Americans of
today and generations to come.
An emblem of the many struggles
through which this young country
had to &c, any visitor to Washing
ton who fails to go to see this in
spring flag. now over a hundred
years old, is making regrettable
mistake.
The way in which Key happened
to write the hymn is interesting.
Under flag of truce, young Key
visited the British fleet lying off
| Baltimore to discuss certain fen
lures Of law affecting a proposed
exchange of prisoners. The Ameri-
can emissary went aboard the
"Minden,'' flagship of the British
admiral Cockburn.
AS it happened, the British bat.
tie plans called for a bombardment
of Baltimore, the time for the
opening set for shortly after the
time Francis Key came aboard
the vessel. For obvious reasons
the British naval commander decid-
ed it would be better to keep Key
aboard the ''Minden" during the
engagement virtually q prisoner.
| According to the British plan,
the bombardment began at sun
down on September 10, 1914, and
lasted until o'clock in the morn
ing of the following day. During
the time this was going on the
patriotic young Key was forced to
] watch his own compatriots under
fire in Fort McHenry and Balti-
more.
! All through the night Key was
, unable to tell which way the for
tunes of war veered. The night
was a rainy. dark one, and the
flashes of guns from the ships and
shore batteries bore no indication
!, of whether the British attackers or
the American defenders were get
ting the worst of the engagement.
, But wit hthe long awaited and
prayed for dawn. Key, in the un-
certain light, saw the Stars and
Stripes still floating proudly over
Fort McHenry and knew that his
comrades were undefeated.
The experience of waiting
through the long. wet night for the
news of the outcome of the bonn
bardment, and the rush of jos
when his eyes saw, across the
stretch of water in the first faint
; light of early morning, the Amer
lean flag still waving over the
fort, were the inspiration for the
! poem which is known by heart to-
day by every school child through
out the land.
Soon after the cessation of the
bombardment, Key was conducted
ashore, under a flag of truce, and
Immediately, while the glow of in
spiration was still fresh in his
mind, penned the immortal words
of 1.-THE Star Spangled Banner. 60
At the very time that Key was put
NihD t'Siit oIi P"PtI al SOCh"
burn ordered anchors aweigh, and
the British fleet headed down
Chesapeake bay, away from Balti-
more, as fast as possible.
Key sent a copy of his poem TO
a printer in Baltimore, Captain
Benjamin Edes. Captain Edes was
instructed to have the poem printed
and copies distributed about the
streets to the citizens of Baltimore.
One Ferdinand Durang, young
man, first sang the song when it
was just off the press. The tune
put to it was that of "Anacreon in
He" ven"
C,!ptain Edes, who had won con-
siderable reputation as a soldier,
took one of the first copies off the
press, and dashed with it in his
hand to little tavern kept by a
Miss Berling. Here the soldier
printer found Captains Warner and
Long, Major Frailey, young Durang
and other rrienGs or his.
First of all Captain Edes read
the printed poem aloud, his friends
cheering Justify at the end of each
verse. Then it was suggested that
Durang, who enjoyed considerable
local reputation as. a singer, be
called upon.
Durang, who was possessed of
none of that false modesty which
afflicts many who verge on being
vocal artists, mounted chair and
put his heart into singing THE Star
Spangled Banner" for the first
time. After he had sung it once,
everybody in the little tavern sang
the song under his leadership. This
singing was kept up for severa,
hours, SO great was the enthusiasm
and patriotic fervor moving the
people of Baltimore because of the
recent repulse of the enemy fleet
of British ships
The little tavern owned by Mrs.
Berling, which was the setting for
this hist ,rical scene, was right next
door to the Holiday Street theater,
When the theater opened for the
season, the song was made a part
of every performance. However,
instead Of playing the anthem just
before the beginning Of the per-
Torrance, as was the custom in all
American theaters during the world
war, the song was rendered after
ward, 1t was not merely orches.
trail. the entire company of actors
leading all of the audience in
shouting the immortal words %
the very heavens. One Paddy
Mcfarland was the leading man of
the theatrical company then play
ing at the Holiday Street theater.
and he it was who led the singing.
The tattered old flag now in the
national museum here was careful
| ly preserved, chiefly because it was
the inspiration of the famous an
them. Probably 1t would have been
kept somewhere as a treasured re-
minder of the repulse of the Brit
ish at Baltimore, but the whole ma
ton took an interest in this battle
Scared bit of bunting because Of