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 FROM THE LIBRARY OF 
 REV. LOUIS FITZGERALD BENSON, D. D. 
 
 BEQUEATHED BY HIM TO 
 
 THE LIBRARY OF 
 
 PRINCETON THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 
 
 
4 
 
 PAPERS 
 
 KiCAD BEFORE 
 
 THE PRESBYTERIAN 
 
 Sabbath-School Superintendents' Association, 
 
 ON 
 
 Sabbath-School Hymn and Tune Book, 
 
 BY 
 
 William H. Castle, William H. Scott, 
 Francis B. Reeves. 
 
A Paper on 
 " Music and Music Books for Sabbath Schools," 
 
 Read at the meeting of the Presbyterian Sabbath-School Superintend- 
 ents* Association, Monday evenings November 2/ sf, /SSj. 
 
 By WILLIAM H. CASTLE. 
 
 In view of the fact, that of the making of Hymn and Time Books 
 there is no end, one might charge that the title of our ' ' Tea Table 
 Talk " to-night was hypercritical, but where is the Sunday-school Su- 
 perintendent who finds all he wants in any of these hymn and tune 
 books ? Therefore, I propose to outline such a book as experience 
 shows that the Sunday-school needs ; not that there are no good 
 books, far from it ; but the trouble is, that these books are not com- 
 prehensive enough. 
 
 The Gospel hymn books served a good purpose, but they were 
 not designed for the school-room, but for the prayer meeting, al- 
 though some of the hymns are suitable for our use and do good ser- 
 vice ; newer and much better is the Westminster Hymnal, for the 
 Sunday-schools — probably the best book in our denomination for this 
 purpose ; and as a foundation, enlarged and with a complete index 
 of subjects, it would serve for a long time. For the regular Sabbath 
 sen-ices in the church, a carefully selected and thoroughly prepared 
 collection of hymns is made that is expected and does last for years, 
 but the Sunday-school is apparently expected to use a book for a 
 
short time only, and then a new book is published for its use, to be 
 followed by other new books ; an excellent arrangement for music 
 publishers, but not for the Sundaj'-schools, for the music and often 
 the words of most of these new books verge on mediocrity — a few 
 good hymns and tunes worthy of use, the remainder either old or in- 
 differently poor — whereas we should teach children the purest and 
 sublimest Christian poetry, set to the best music obtainable. 
 
 The Westminster Hymnal in these respects deserves praise. 
 Many of its hymns are taken from the best collections of church 
 music, notably such as ' ' Saviour, again to Thy dear name ; " " The 
 Son of God goes forth to war ; " " Hark ! what mean those holy 
 voices ; " but many others equally good, such as " O come, all ye 
 faithful," "All glory, laud, and honor," "Alleluia, thanks and 
 glory," are omitted. The Sunday School Hymnal and Service Book 
 used by the Protestant Episcopal Schools is an excellent work, con- 
 taining some three hundred and fifty hymns and one hundred and 
 fifty chants. This book has many Christmas carols and hymns, Eas- 
 ter and Anniversary exercises, but it does not have any of the grand 
 German chorals ; a few of these would be of service in the Tune and 
 Hymn Book I am indicating. 
 
 It may be said that children cannot appreciate such hymns, and 
 that the music is too difficult for them to learn ; but we must remem- 
 ber that their minds are singularly receptive, and what they learn in 
 their early years is remembered. We desire to teach them the truths 
 of God's word, so that their minds may be settled in the truth, and 
 to this end we use the best methods we can get, the clearest defini- 
 tions of the Commentaries ; so we should teach them to sing these 
 same truths in the best forms that can be had. I want to give the 
 scholars each Sunday a hymn that will come back to them all through 
 the week, the melody coming out unconsciously as they work or pla3% 
 as it does so frequently with us, and in this way displacing the trashy 
 songs they hear and learn in the streets. I hold that the best is not 
 
too good to give them ; and, after thoroughly Learning a good hymn, 
 they appear to enjoy the singing of it as much as they do some of the 
 easy marching tunes that they pick up after once hearing. 
 
 To specify the faults I find in the Westminster Hymnal : first, the 
 indexing is not full enough ; second, there arc not enough lessou 
 hymns, distinctively ; and third, the selections for our special services, 
 such as Christmas or Anniversaries, are not full enough. In this last 
 respect it is like most of these books, as we all probably can testify. 
 
 If these views meet your approval, it is hoped a request to the 
 Board of Publication may induce them to bring out a Hymn and 
 Tunc Book free from the defects indicated, and that shall for years 
 supply all our wants of music for the Sunday-school. 
 
A Paper on 
 
 "A Suitable Hymn and Tune Book for the 
 
 Sabbath-school." 
 
 Read at the meeting of the Presbyterian Sabbath-school Superintend- 
 ents* Association, Monday evening, January 16th, 1888, 
 
 By WILLIAM H. SCOTT. 
 
 The President of the Association has asked me to open the dis- 
 cussion this evening upon the subject, "A Suitable Hymn and Tune 
 Book for the Sabbath-school." I listened with great interest to the 
 remarks upon " Music and Music Books for Sabbath-schools" at our 
 last meeting, and especially to the paper read by Brother Castle. 
 Four years ago, just after the Westminster Hymnal was issued, we had 
 this same subject for our tea-table talk, and I remember the prevail- 
 ing sentiment of the meeting was, that the Westminster Hymnal was 
 weak and not of a high standard. The meeting in November last 
 convinced me that a change had come over the minds of many 
 superintendents, and that Brother Castle's paper expressed the views 
 of most of the members, that while the Westminster Hymnal has 
 faults (and all hymn books have), it is a suitable hymn and tune 
 book for the Sabbath-school after all. 
 
 This question cannot be discussed in a more practical way than 
 by my answering the question, What influenced the Eastside Pres- 
 byterian Sabbath-school of Germantown, born on the first day of 
 January this year, and of which I have the honor of being the 
 
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superintendent, to select, as the most suitable hymn and tune book 
 for the Sabbath-school, the Westminster Hymnal? 
 
 While the tea-table talk at the November meeting and the paper 
 of Brother Castle had their influence, the first reason I will give is, 
 its use in the Home School for four years, the Market Square, and 
 the Mt. Airy School for the same period. If the proof of the pud- 
 ding is the eating of it, the proof of a hymn book is the using of 
 it. The lamented Dr. Dulles, so long superintendent of this school 
 (The Walnut Street, West Philadelphia), and one of the compilers 
 of the Westminster Hymnal, wrote, in the introduction : "It aims 
 to give as to both hymns and tunes : (i) What our young people 
 can sing ; (2) what they will sing ; and (3) what they ought to 
 sing. ' ' After four years' experience with the book I find that the 
 young can and will sing the hymns and tunes found therein, and if 
 the compilers committed any wrong in the matter of what ought to 
 be sung, they are rather sins of omission than of commission. We 
 adopted it, therefore, because it was a tried book. 
 
 A second reason influencing us in the choice of the Westminster 
 Hymnal was, that it compared favorably with other books we examined. 
 Not that we examined all, or even many, for Brother Castle says in 
 his paper, ' ' of the making of hymn and tune books there is no 
 end." Personally, not being a musician, I sat in judgment on the 
 hymns rather than on the tunes, except where the tunes were famil- 
 iar to me, and I must say that ' ' Songs of Worship for the Sunday- 
 school," edited by Waldo S. Pratt and published by the Century 
 Company only a few months ago, is a very superior book and better, 
 in my judgment, than the Westminster Hymnal in two particulars : 
 first, in its "get up," and by this I mean the composition, paper, 
 press-work, and binding ; and secondly, the first twenty-nine hymns 
 in the book are "songs of the L,ord's day," whereas the Hymnal 
 has but three hymns bearing on the sacred day of rest. In com- 
 paring the two books, however, I found that some of the best hymns 
 
were in both books, and that, while the Century Company's book has 
 
 numbers and the Westminster Hymnal 258, about one-quarter 
 
 of the hymns are the same in both books. Admitting that they are 
 
 both equally good, or that one is a little better than the other, we 
 
 were led to the selection of the Westminster Hymnal, 
 
 Thirdly, Because of loyalty to the Presbyterian Church and her 
 
 publications. The General Assembly saw the need of a Sabbath - 
 SChool hymn book and reeomniended its preparation. Rev. Dr. 
 
 Dulles and Mr. Seward undertook the work. Dr. Dulles, at 
 least, knew what hymns ought to be used, and Mr. Seward, at 
 least, knew to what tunes they ought to be sung. Xo doubt 
 there are those in the church who think the}- could have done the 
 work better, but I doubt if others had been appointed to compile the 
 book it would have been any freer from faults than we now have- 
 it. We therefore adopted it because it was issued by the Presby- 
 terian Board of Publication. I think the only way to meet entirely 
 this question of suitable music in the Sabbath-school is the way in 
 which we acted as regards our library. Loyalty to the Presbyterian 
 Church and confidence in the Committee appointed by the Board 
 to supervise its publications, led us to place in the library, nearly all 
 of our own books, and now we are prepared to build on this solid 
 foundation other publications — the gold and the silver, we trust, of 
 Sabbath-sehool literature, and not the wood, the hay, and the stub- 
 ble. Such, I think, is the way we can meet this question of music 
 for the Sabbath-school. Xow that we have the Westminster Hymnal, 
 if on certain occasions we require other hymns not found in the book, 
 it is easy to have these printed on slips for the use of the school, and 
 thus supplement this valuable publication. In this way Brother 
 Castle's third fault to the Westminster Hymnal, — that " the selections 
 for our special services are not full enough," — is partially removed. 
 As to the first fault he finds, — " the indexing," — let me suggest, until 
 this is corrected, that each superintendent prepare an index of his 
 
own, and in this way he will become as familiar with the hymns and 
 their numbers as a bookkeeper indexing his ledger becomes familiar 
 with the accounts, and can often turn to an account without refer- 
 ence to the index. As to Brother Castle's second fault, — "there 
 are not enough lesson hymns, distinctively," — while this is some- 
 times true, yet yesterday was an exception, for it would be hard to 
 find three more appropriate hymns on the lesson of ' ' Jesus Walking 
 on the Sea," than " 'Tis I, Be Not Afraid," "Out Amid the Waves 
 
 of Ocean." 
 
 "Jesus, lover of my soul, 
 Let me to thy bosom fly, 
 While the billows near me roll, 
 While the tempest still is high." 
 
 Often the fault is with the selections. Sometimes the most ap- 
 propriate hymns are overlooked and the numbers not put on the 
 lesson papers, and, again, the same hymn is given for two successive 
 Sabbaths. I must say there is a change for the better, thus far, in 
 this particular, in the Board's publications for this year. Now, while 
 I believe in loyalty to the Presbyterian Church and her publications, 
 I also believe the Board of Publication ought to be wide awake to 
 the demands of the Church and Sabbath-school, and quickly make 
 all improvements. 
 
 I consider that we now have a suitable hymn and tune book for 
 the Sabbath-school ; but, if about fifty hymns were added, and the 
 index made more complete, we will have the very best book pub- 
 lished. 
 
U A Suitable Hymn and Tune Book por our 
 Sunday-Schools." 
 
 Read at the meeting of the Presbyterian Sabbath-school Superintend- 
 ents 1 Association^ Monday evening \ January rdth, t888. 
 
 By FRANCIS H. REEVES. 
 
 What is its name if it exists, and how can it be produced if not yet 
 published ? The Presbyterian Sunday-school Superintendents' As- 
 sociation rightly regards this question as of enough importance to 
 carry it through two of their tea-table talks, possibly to bear fruit 
 later on. It is an old, old question, settled many a time and revived 
 again with the birth of each succeeding production. Hymn books 
 come and hymn books go, but the call for another and a better rolls on 
 forever. 
 
 I would suggest, first, that there may be a distinction between a 
 " suitable " book and the best book for our Sunday-schools. Unhap- 
 pily the highest standard of merit, whether as to hymns or tunes, is 
 not precisely the standard which the schools themselves would re- 
 gard as "suitable." Excellent books are in existence that are not 
 popular because the compilers were not willing to go far enough in 
 the compromise demanded of their personal judgment to meet the 
 popular taste. 
 
 The Westminster Sunday-school Hymnal has been referred to 
 most favorably by Brothers Castle and Scott, and is well worthy of 
 
 (9) 
 
IO 
 
 their kindly criticisms. Its selections are quite good enough as far 
 as they go, but no book of 250 hymns can meet every demand made 
 upon it. The book for which we are looking should contain more 
 than double that number. The Board of Publication in its introduc- 
 tion confesses to the difficulty of ' ' packing any more into the book 
 without increasing its size and cost," but later achievements have 
 shown us that the size may now be increased while the cost is re- 
 duced. The good conscience brought to bear by the late lamented 
 Dr. Dulles and Mr. Seward in the compilation of the ' ' Westminster ' ' 
 is conspicuous in the high tone of the hymns selected, and by their 
 declaration in the preface that they " have aimed to give as to both 
 hymns and tunes : 1st. What our young people can sing. 2d. 
 What they will sing. 3d. What they ought to sing." 
 
 We may know what ought to be regarded as suitable hymns and 
 tunes for our schools, but we may find not only that the popular ver- 
 dict does not sustain our views, but that our own schools may require 
 a spiritual awakening before they shall come to appreciate and love the 
 very best of our selections. It is because it has been thought that the 
 supph' must be of a character adapted to meet the demand that the mar- 
 ket is well nigh flooded with good Sundaj^-school hymn books upon 
 which popular favor was lavishly bestowed for a very brief season. 
 All have been launched, however, with the utmost confidence in their 
 staying qualities upon the part of their publishers. 
 
 Twelve years ago the American Sunda} r School Union issued 
 " Calvary Songs," edited by Rev. Dr. Charles S. Robinson and Theo- 
 dore B. Perkins, in the preface to which I find their fond hope of long 
 life thus expressed : " It is hoped that this book will be sufficient for 
 the real use of any ordinary Sunday-school for at least twenty years ; 
 only let there be enterprise in learning to sing the pieces, so as to 
 bring them all into service. ' ' It was better than the average book, but 
 we found its chief editor issuing ' ' Spiritual Songs for the Sunday- 
 school," only five years afterwards, and now the American Sunday 
 
1 1 
 
 School Union is out with the new "People's Hymn and Tune Book." 
 After five years' use of "Spiritual for the Sunday-school" in 
 
 Wakefield Sunday-school, I can testify to its admirable wearing qual- 
 ities ; nevertheless it is lacking in sonic important elements of a 
 " suitable " book. We sometimes long for hymns not to be found in 
 its list of 273 carefully chosen songs. "The People's Hymn and 
 Tune Book," to which I have referred, may be commended for both 
 quality and cheapness. Three hundred and fifty hymns, with music 
 enough for all of them, in board covers, all for fifteen cents, marks a 
 welcome reform in the line of reduced taxation for school and church 
 expenses, a matter often standing in the way of making a needed 
 change of hymn books. Concerning the merit of the compilation 
 it may be said of it, as of the majority, it contains some hymns and 
 tunes that we have no further use for, while some we wish for 
 are among the missing. At the price of it, it will go upon a wide 
 and a useful mission in and out of the Sunday-school. 
 
 The makers of a new and suitable book for our schools will prob- 
 ably recognize two great facts, and try to reconcile them. First, the 
 vService of Song for the Sunday-school must be devotional, reverential, 
 serious, solid. Second, the Sen-ice of Song for the Sunday-school 
 must be light, bright, cheerful, " taking," so much so that the effect 
 of the singing will be as Brother Castle desires, " to come back to the 
 scholars all through the week, the melod)- coming out unconsciously 
 as they work or play." 
 
 I would wish to see the bars all down, so that no copyright should 
 deprive the makers of the next book from using everything good in 
 everybody else's collection, but this, I suppose, is impossible. Then 
 I would have a committee of musical Sunday-school workers to go at 
 them, settle down upon about five hundred of the most suitable, and 
 have the collection so put together that it could be furnished to 
 Sunday-schools, in board covers, at twenty-five cents each by the 
 hundred. It would contain the serious strains of William Cowper, 
 
12 
 
 " O for a closer walk with God," and " God moves in a mysterious 
 way his wonders to perform ;" and the heart- warming songs of Charles 
 Wesley, "Jesus lover of my soul " being named as an example only, 
 and this we would have entire, just as it was composed. It would 
 find places for Loplady's " Rock of Ages," Perronet's " All hail the 
 power of Jesus' name," for Bishop Heber's " By cool Siloam's shady 
 rill" and " Bread of the world in mercy broken," for Watts' " When 
 I survey the wondrous cross," Anne Steele's "Father, whate'er of 
 earthly bliss thy sovereign will desires," for Bishop Kerr's " Glory to 
 thee my God this night," for Grigg's "Jesus and shall it ever be," 
 and for that grand eighth century hymn of St. Stephen the Sabbaite, 
 " Art thou weary, art thou languid? " and it will give place, too, for 
 all the more modern hymns of the character of Lyte's precious inspira- 
 tion, "Abide with me, fast falls the eventide," Charlotte Elliott's 
 "Just as I am," Mrs. Adams' " Nearer my God to Thee," Muhlen- 
 berg's "Saviour who thy flock art feeding," Bonar's " I heard the 
 voice of Jesus say," and Whittier's " We may not climb the heavenly 
 steeps to bring the Lord Christ down. ' ' To all such as these they will 
 add the spiritual verses of Bliss, Sweney, Hastings, Fannie Crosby, 
 and Lydia Baxter. Enough have been written both of hymns and 
 tunes. The best book will be the best collection from the gems 
 already discovered, every one discarded that has not developed either 
 spiritual power or musical excellence, none retained that are lacking 
 in these essential elements of suitableness, however they may once 
 have risen, mushroom-like, overloaded with tenderness of sentiment, 
 into a fancied popularity in Sunday-school and Gospel meetings. 
 
 Such a book would find its way speedily to our social and prayer 
 meetings and even into many of our churches, and thus serve as a 
 helper in the search for the longed-for missing link between the Sun- 
 day-school and the church. 
 
Gay/ord Bros. 
 
 Makors 
 Syracuse. N V 
 
 wr. inn. ii. ins