Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1925-12-09
CHRISTMASH HYMN.
"SILENT NIGHT"
A CENTURY OLD.
Was Written in Germany
in 1824-Sung in Many
Languages.

On Christmas eve, 1924, Silent
Night completed century as one of
the worlds bestowed Christmas
hymns For 100 years no birthday
of the Holy Child has been celebrated
without the simple words rising,
Joined to the powerful air that suits
them so exactly.
The beautiful hymn was composed
in 1918 by Franz Gruber and Joseph
Mohr, organist and priest in the lit
tie town of Arnsdorf, in Salzburg,
district of Upper Austria, west of the
Tyrol Arnsdorf was like Bethlehem,
a cluster of homes of the poor. Hills
were outside the village. Instead Of
a khan, on the hill was an old castle.
For six years the song remained
the property of the little town. Then
in 1924 the world adopted it and af-
ter that no celebration of Christmas
eve was complete without Silent
Night.
AS is true of nearly all master
pieces, there is contradictory trad1-
ton concerning the composition OF
the Christmas hymn. A musical en-
cyclopedia says that being together
on Christmas eve, at the request of
Joseph Mohr, assistant priest of St.
Nicholas church in Oberndorf, Franz
Gruber wrote the music. 1t was
sung for the first time by the church
choir at the Christmas service to the
rapture of the assembled company"
The story as related by Karl Kro-
bath is more dramatic. 1t pictures
the home of Franz Gruber, village
school master and church arganist, a
poor little cottage around which the
wind swept to beat against the brok-
en- panes. In the darkness before
the dawn a single candle burned in
an upper room where pale woman
lay, her weak arms clasping a gold
en- haired child. Beside the bed the
weary organist watched, his face
showing the lines that told of hard
ship and sleepless nights.
He bent his head over her hand,
sobbing With difficulty she raised
her hand, just touched his hair.
"Tell me-" the sick woman asked,
attempting to put strength and cheer
into her voice, "has Father Mohr
been here? 1t seemed I heard his
voice as in a dream"
Eyes, he was here"
How good he is"
"He left a little poem. 1 am to
make music for it."
"How nice, read it to me"
The organist read.
Silent night, Holy night
All is calm, all is bright,
Round yon virgin mother and child
cit is wonderfully beautiful-per-
fect-it excites me-" The sick wo-
mans breath came rapidly
The organist read the rest of the
verse:
''Holy infant, so tender and mild,
Sleep in heavenly peace,
Sleep in heavenly peace"
He walked to the window. What
was in store for his family? Both
need and sorrow were knocking at
their door. Much work, little pay.
And now the doctor refused to come.
Bread and medicine were necessary.
The clock struck The organist
drew his hand across his eyes, and
bent to kiss his wife. Goodbye,
Mitzi, I must go and ring the bell.
I will try to set the words to music
since they please you so much"
But at the organ he could find no
melody suitable to the Christmas
song. Playing the mass he kept
thinking, trying to find some strain
that should suggest an air, sufficient
ly promising Suddenly just as the
first rays of the sun streamed in the
windows, he seemed to hear angel
voices, faint, sweet, disappearing.
And in the corner appeared a rudy
light, like the Alpine glow Slowly
the shape took form. Pale lips, its
fact pallid, its features tranquil.
Marie" he cried, cit is thou!"
And now minor tones came from
the keyes his fingers touched, of
melodies, full of sorrow and fear.
Hope, too, was in their song.
The storm had died He walked
through the quiet streets to his home.
AS he expected, his wife's hand was
cold, her parted lips pallid.
He wrote out the hymn he had
heard angel voices sing in the
church. 1t came to him clear and
strong, the very air that his thrilled
millions since.
Because the world outside Arms
dorf did not at once take the song to
it's heart, the two composers resolved
to teach the song to others. With
the choir boys they travelled from
village to village, from church to
church, singing