tical pomp. Among them-and the most ancient one of those preserved-is the hymn of John of Damascus, quoted in the second chapter (p. 54). This was the proclamation-song in the watchassemblies, when exactly on the midnight moment at the shout of "Christos egerthe!" (Xplords nyéρon.) "Christ is risen!" thousands of torches were lit, bells and trumpets pealed, and (in the later centuries) salvos of cannon shook the air. Another favorite hymn of the Eastern Church was the "Salve, Beate Mane," "Welcome, Happy Morning," of Fortunatus. (Chap. 10, p. 357.) This poem furnished cantos for Easter hymns of the Middle Ages. Jerome of Prague sang stanzas of it on his way to the stake. An anonymous hymn, "Pone luctum, Magdelena,” in medieval Latin rhyme, is addressed to Mary Magdelene weeping at the empty sepulchre. The following are the 3d and 4th stanzas, with a translation by Prof. C. S. Harrington of Weslyan University: Gaude, plaude, Magdalena! Tumba Christus exiit! Tristis est peracta scena, Tolle vultum, Magdalena! Vide frons quam sit amœna, Quinque plagas inspice; Fulgent, sic ut margarita. Ornamenta novæ vitæ. Magdalena, shout for gladness! Death destroyed, He comes to save; Lift thine eyes, O Magdalena! Lo! thy Lord before thee stands; The hymnaries of the Christian Church for seventeen hundred years are so rich in Easter hallelujahs and hosannas that to introduce them all would swell a chapter to the size of an encyclopedia-and even to make a selection is a responsible task. Simple mention must suffice of Luther's— In the bonds of death He lay; -of Watts' He dies, the Friend of sinners dies; -of John Wesley's— Our Lord has gone up on high; -of C. F. Gellert's Christ is risen! Christ is risen! He hath burst His bonds in twain; -omining hundreds which have been helpful in psalmody, and are, perhaps, still in choir or congregational use. "CHRIST THE LORD IS RISEN TODAY Begins a hymn of Charles Wesley's and is also the first line of a hymn prepared for Sunday-school use by Mrs. Storrs, wife of the late Dr. Richard Salter Storrs of Brooklyn, N. Y. Wesley's hymn is sung-with or without the hallelujah interludes to "Telemann's Chant," (Zeuner), to an air of Mendelssohn, and to John Strainer's "Paschale Gaudium." Like the old New England "Easter Anthem" it appears to have been suggested by an anonymous translation of some more ancient (Latin) antiphony. This work of an amateur genius, with its rustic harmonies, suited the taste of colonial times, and no doubt the devout church-goers of that day found sincere worship and thanksgiving in its flamboyant music. "An Anthem for Easter," in A major by William Billings (1785) occupied several pages in the early collections of psalmody and "the sounding joy" was in it. Organs were scarce, but beyond the viols of the village choirs it needed no instrumental accessories. The language is borrowed from the New Testament and Young's Night Thoughts. The Lord is risen indeed! Hallelujah! The Lord is risen indeed! Following this triumphant overture, a recitative bass solo repeats 1 Cor. 15:20, and the chorus takes it up with crowning hallelujahs. Different parts, per fugam, inquire from clef to clef— And did He rise? And did He rise?— Hear [the answer], O ye nations! Hear it, O ye dead! Then duet, trio and chorus sing it, successively He rose! He rose! He rose! He burst the bars of death, And triumphed o'er the grave! The succeeding thirty-four bars-duet and chorus -take home the sacred gladness to the heart of humanity Then, then I rose, ** And seized eternal youth, Man all immortal, hail! Heaven's all the glory, man's the boundless bliss. "YES, THE REDEEMER ROSE." In the six-eight syllable verse once known as "hallelujah metre"-written by Dr. Doddridge to be sung after sermon on the text in 1st Corinthians noted in the above anthem Yes, the Redeemer rose, The Saviour left the dead, High raised His conquering head. Lewis Edson's "Lenox" (1782) is an old favorite among its musical interpreters. "O SHORT WAS HIS SLUMBER." This hymn for the song-service of the Ruggles St. Church, Boston, was written by Rev. Theron Brown. O short was His slumber; He woke from the dust; * Dear grave in the garden; hope smiled at its door |
