The Story of the Hymns and Tunes Part 72

--and even without that added word the impoverished congregation evidently enough had received a message from heaven. They took heart of grace, overcame all difficulties, and in good time replaced their ruined Sabbath-home with the n.o.ble house in which they wors.h.i.+p today.[46]

[Footnote 46: The story is told by Rev. William E. Barton D.D. of Oak Park, Ill.]

If the "New England Church" of Chicago did not sing this hymn at the dedication of their new temple it was for some other reason than lack of grat.i.tude--not to say reverence.

_THE SABBATH_.

The very essence of all song-wors.h.i.+p pitched on this key-note is the ringing hymn of Watts--

Sweet is the day of sacred rest, No mortal cares disturb my breast, etc.

--but it has vanished from the hymnals with its tune. Is it because profane people or thoughtless youth made a travesty of the two next lines--

O may my heart in tune be found Like David's harp of solemn sound?

_THE TUNE._

Old "Portland" by Abraham Maxim, a fugue tune in F major of the canon style, expressed all the joy that a choir could put into music, though with more sound than skill. The choral is a relic among relics now, but it is a favorite one.

"Sweet is the Light of Sabbath Eve" by Edmeston; Stennett's "Another Six Days' Work is Done," sung to "Spohr," the joint tune of Louis Spohr and J.E. Gould; and Doddridge's "Thine Earthly Sabbath, Lord, We Love"

retain a feeble hold among some congregations. And Hayward's "Welcome Delightful Morn," to the impossible tune of "Lischer," survived unaccountably long in spite of its handicap. But special Sabbath hymns are out of fas.h.i.+on, those cla.s.sed under that t.i.tle taking an incidental place under the general head of "Wors.h.i.+p."

_COMMUNION._

"BREAD OF HEAVEN, ON THEE WE FEED."

This hymn of Josiah Conder, copying the physical metaphors of the 6th of John, is still occasionally used at the Lord's Supper.

Vine of Heaven, Thy blood supplies This blest cup of sacrifice, Lord, Thy wounds our healing give, To Thy Cross we look and live.

The hymn is notable for the felicity with which it combines imagery and reality. Figure and fact are always in sight of each other.

Josiah Conder was born in London, September 17, 1789. He edited the _Eclectic Review_, and was the author of numerous prose works on historic and religious subjects. Rev. Garrett Horder says that more of his hymns are in common use now than those of any other except Watts and Doddridge. More _in proportion to the relative number_ may be nearer the truth. In his lifetime Conder wrote about sixty hymns. He died Dec. 27, 1855.

_THE TUNE._

The tune "Corsica" sometimes sung to the words, though written by the famous Von Gluck, shows no sign of the genius of its author. Born at Weissenw.a.n.g, near New Markt, Prussia, July 2, 1714, he spent his life in the service of operatic art, and is called "the father of the lyric drama," but he paid little attention to sacred music. Queen Marie Antoinette was for a while his pupil. Died Nov. 25, 1787.

"Wilmot," (from Von Weber) one of Mason's popular hymn-tune arrangements, is a melody with which the hymn is well acquainted. It has a fireside rhythm which old and young of the same circles take up naturally in song.

"HERE, O MY LORD, I SEE THEE FACE TO FACE."

Written in October, 1855, by Dr. Horatius Bonar. James Bonar, brother of the poet-preacher, just after the communion for that month, asked him to furnish a hymn for the communion record. It was the church custom to print a memorandum of each service at the Lord's table, with an appropriate hymn attached, and an original one would be thrice welcome.

Horatius in a day or two sent this hymn:

Here, O my Lord, I see Thee face to face, Here would I touch and handle things unseen Here grasp with firmer hand th' eternal grace And all my weariness upon Thee lean.

Too soon we rise; the symbols disappear; The feast, though not the love, is past and gone; The bread and wine remove, but Thou art here Nearer than ever--still my s.h.i.+eld and Sun.

_THE TUNE._

"Morecambe" is an anonymous composition printed with the words by the _Plymouth Hymnal_ editors. "Berlin" by Mendelssohn is better. The metre of Bonar's hymn is unusual, and melodies to fit it are not numerous, but for a meditative service it is worth a tune of its own.

"O THOU MY SOUL, FORGET NO MORE."

The author of this hymn found in the Baptist hymnals, and often sung at the sacramental seasons of that denomination, was the first Hindoo convert to Christianity.

Krishna Pal, a native carpenter, in consequence of an accident, came under the care of Mr. Thomas, a missionary who had been a surgeon in the East Indies and was now an a.s.sociate worker with William Carey. Mr.

Thomas set the man's broken arm, and talked of Jesus to him and the surrounding crowd with so much tact and loving kindness that Krishna Pal was touched. He became a pupil of the missionaries; embraced Christ, and influenced his wife and daughter and his brother to accept his new faith.

He alone, however, dared the bitter persecution of his caste, and presented himself for church-members.h.i.+p. He and Carey's son were baptized in the Ganges by Dr. Carey, Dec. 28, 1800, in the presence of the English Governor and an immense concourse of people representing four or five different religions.

Krishna Pal wrote several hymns. The one here noted was translated from the Bengalee by Dr. Marshman.

O thou, my soul, forget no more The Friend who all thy sorrows bore; Let every idol be forgot; But, O my soul, forget him not.

Renounce thy works and ways, with grief, And fly to this divine relief; Nor Him forget, who left His throne, And for thy life gave up His own.

Eternal truth and mercy s.h.i.+ne In Him, and He Himself is thine: And canst thou then, with sin beset, Such charms, such matchless charms forget?

Oh, no; till life itself depart, His name shall cheer and warm my heart; And lisping this, from earth I'll rise, And join the chorus of the skies.

_THE TUNE._

There is no scarcity of good long-metre tunes to suit the sentiment of this hymn. More commonly in the Baptist manuals its vocal mate is Bradbury's "Rolland" or the sweet and serious Scotch melody of "Ward,"

arranged by Mason. Best of all is "Hursley," the beautiful Ritter-Monk choral set to "Sun of My Soul."

_NEW YEAR._

Two representative hymns of this cla.s.s are John Newton's--

While with ceaseless course the sun,

--and Charles Wesley's--