THE MARSEILLAISE.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 10921, 21 May 1898, Page 5

THE MARSEILLAISE.

The melody of OVra-ra boom-de-ay was reproduced from a solemn deathsong, 'Pestal.' In the Vatican librarj there aro eighty volumes of masses conetructed upon popular tunes bj compoeera of various nations. The oomposer of 'Old Dan Tucker' dis« covered that melody in ' Old Hundred,' by playiDg the Bolcmn old bymn at a rattling pace ; and by the same process he turned other hymn-tuneo into minstrel eongs such as ' Luoy Long,' ' Ober de Mountain,' and 'Buffalo Gals.' 'W Won't Go Home Till Morning/ in an adaptation from the old national song of France, ' Malbrouok a'en va-t-en guorre,' and the tune of that other national French song, 'Li Camagnole, was in medieval times a Provenoal dance tune. These and many other interesting facts about songs appeared in Mr G. J. Adair t'jtz - Gerald's new book 'Stories of Famous Songs,' Qae ot the best; of the stories is the following concerning the origin of the present national sotig of Prance :— ' Rouget de Lisle was greatly esteemed among his friends for his poetical in d nmeioal gifts, and was a partioalar friend of the family of the Baron de Dietrioh, a noble Alsatian, then mayor of Straasburg. ' One night during the winter of 1792 the young officer was seated a.t the table ot bis family. The hospitable (are of the baron bad been so reduoed by the calamities and necessities of war that nothing,' says M&dame Fanny Raymond Ritte, 'oould be provided for dinner that day except garrison bread and a few slices o| ham. Dietrioh smiled sadly at his friend, and lamenting the poverty of his fare he had to offer, declaring he would laprifloe the last bottle of Rhine wine in his cellar, if he thought it would aid de Lisle's poetic invention, and in* spire bin) to compose a patrlotio song for the publio ceremonies shortly to lake plaoe In Strasßburg. The ladies ap» iroved, and sent for the laa.t bottle of wine of whioh the house oould boast.' After dinner Qe Jjilo sought his room, and, though it was bitterly cold, he at enee sat down at the piano, and between reoltlng and playing and sinslng eventually composed 'h? HajaeiHaisei 1 and thorgushlj exhausted, fell asleep with his head on his desk, la the morning be was able to leoall every note of the song, immediately wrote it down, and carried it to his friend Baron Dietrioh. Every one was enohanted with the song, whioh roused the greatest enthusiasm. A few flays later it wbb publioly glvea in Strassburg, and thence it was oonveyed by the multitude to the insurgents of Marseilles and of its after popularity we know. Da Lisle's mother waa a most devoted Eoyalist, and asked, ' What do people mean by associating our name with the revolutionary bymn whioh these brig*

ands siog P Do Lisle himself, proscribed bb a Royalist, when flying for bis life In the Jura Mountains, heard it as a monaea of deatb.and recognising the welUbnowa air, asked his guide what it was called. It had been ohilstened the ' MaiseUlalN Hymn.'