CHAPTER VIII.

INCREASE OF THE HYMNAL FACULTY.

WE are now nearing a period on which the coming glory of hymnody begins to cast its light. Foregleams of the hymn-singing ages now become visible. Of this period, George MacDonald, in his "England's Antiphon," says:"We find ourselves now in the zone of hymn-writing. From this period, that is, from toward the close of the seventeenth century, a large amount of the fervour of the country finds vent in hymns: they are innumerable." John Mason, who died in 1694, is, perhaps, the first Englishman who set himself, with success, to produce hymns for actual use in worship. They were probably the first to be used in congregational worship in England. He wrote thirty-four songs of praise, six penitential hymns, and a version of the 86th Psalm. To these were added "Penitential Cries," chiefly by the Rev. Thomas Shepherd, an Independent minister, of Braintree. These, and the hymns included in W. Barton's "Psalms and Hymns" (1681), and his "Six Centuries of Select Hymns" (1688), formed the thin end of the wedge by means of which, at last, hymn singing found its way into the services of the Independents, who, therefore, are the true pioneers of hymn singing in England; but, at the

same time, the first real hymn writer of merit belongs to the Established Church, for John Mason is a writer of great merit. This is evident from the fact that, although William Barton preceded him, none of Barton's hymns have established themselves in the favour of the Church. Mr. Enoch Watts, in a letter urging his brother to publish his hymns, rests his plea on the ground that "Mason now reduces this kind of writing to a sort of yawning indifference, and honest Barton chimes us asleep." The Church of later times has endorsed the second part of this plea by rejecting Barton's hymns, but it has repudiated the first part by retaining the finest of Mason's hymns, which are clearly growing in popularity. There are those in our day who prefer Mason to Watts himself. George MacDonald says of Mason's hymns :-"Dr. Watts was very fond of them; would that he had written with similar modesty of style!" Their popularity, even in those times, is seen in the fact that they passed through twenty editions. Montgomery says of his hymns:"The style is a middle tint between the raw colouring of Quarles and the day-light clearness of Watts." Speaking of both Mason and Shepherd, George MacDonald says:"In the writings of both we recognise a straightforwardness of expression equal to that of Wither, and a quaint simplicity of thought and form like that of Herrick; while the very charm of some of the best lines is their spontaneity. The men have just enough mysticism to afford them homeliest figures for deepest feelings." It seems to me that John Mason's style is best accounted for by two influences; one derived from George Herbert, whose poems, it is clear, he knew and loved, and the other from the fact that his purpose in writing his

hymns was that they should be sung.

The first accounts

for his method of thought; the second for his style of verse. Deeper than both these influences, of course, was the devout and thoughtful nature of the man himself, To all these combined we owe his fine hymns, so increasingly prized, and which are fast recovering the place from which they were pushed by the hymns of Dr. Watts (which for so long held exclusive possession of the Independent Church). Rarely did Watts rise to the height of thought and beauty of expression which are found in Mason's hymns. Here are specimens :

Now from the altar of our hearts

Let incense-flames arise.

Assist us, Lord, to offer up

Our evening sacrifice.

Awake! our love; awake! our joy,
Awake! our heart and tongue;
Sleep not when mercies loudly call;
Break forth into a song.

Minutes and mercies multiplied
Have made up all this day;

Minutes came quick, but mercies were
More fleet and free than they.

New time, new favours, and new joys
Do a new song require:

Till we shall praise Thee as we would,
Accept our hearts' desire

Lord of our time, whose hand hath set
New time upon our score;

Thee may we praise for all our time,

When time shall be no more.

and what is, perhaps, his finest hymn, of which I quote

the first three verses :

Thou wast, O God, and Thou wast blest,

Before the world began ;

Of Thine eternity possest

Before time's hour glass ran.

'Thou needest none Thy praise to sing.
As if Thy joy could fade;

Couldst Thou have needed anything,
Thou couldst have nothing made.

Great and good God, it pleased Thee
Thy Godhead to declare;

And what Thy goodness did decree,
Thy greatness did prepare;

Thou spak'st, and heaven and earth appeared
And answered to Thy call;

As if their Maker's voice they heard,

Which is the creature's all.

To whom, Lord, should I sing, but Thee,
The Maker of my tongue!

Lo, other lords would seize on me,

But I to Thee belong.

As waters haste into their sea,
And earth unto its earth,

So let my soul return to Thee,
From whom it had its birth.

So good a judge as George MacDonald regards this as one of the very finest hymns in the language. I once quoted the lines

To whom, Lord, should I sing but Thee,

The Maker of my tongue,

to Mr. T. H. Gill, the well known hymnist, and shall never forget his ecstatic delight. The influence George Herbert exerted over Mason is seen in the hymn, "Blest day of God, most calm, most bright," which is clearly an echo of Herbert's "O day most calm, most bright." The influence of Herbert over Mason is as evident as that exerted by Mason over Watts. Had Mason's lot been cast in a later and hymn singing age, he would probably have reached a more perfect hymnic style. The compactness of his thoughts would then have taken on more lyric forms. But still, he deserves lasting honour as one of the very few who wrote fine hymns in English before the hymn singing era really began.

Thomas Shepherd (1665-1739), belongs to a somewhat later period, but should, perhaps, be mentioned here, both

because he belongs to the same school, and because his hymns were so closely associated with those of Mason. He wrote twenty "Penitential Psalms." His style is like that of Mason, but his verses lack his vigour and insight. He was originally a clergyman in Buckinghamshire, but joined the Independents, and became pastor of the church in which another great hymnist, Doddridge, afterwards ministered, at Northampton. His finest hymn contains the following verses

Alas! my God, that we should be

Such strangers to each other!
O that as friends we might agree,
And walk and talk together!

Thou know'st my soul doth dearly love,
The place of Thine abode;

No music drops so sweet a sound

As these two words, My God.

If Henry Vaughan (1621-1695), the "Silurist's" lot had been cast in a hymn-singing age, he would have been almost sure to have written noble hymns, but there was then no musician waiting to wed his words to music, nor choir ready to sing them when thus wedded, and so he wrote only for men to read. Still, there is a rich mine of sacred ideas in his poetry, which only need setting by the skilful hymnist to shine in the crown of worship. Both Vaughan, and his predecessor, Herbert, with whom he has so much in common, might be to hymnists what Spenser is to the poets. Two of Vaughan's hymns have found their way into modern collections, viz.: "My soul, there is a countrie," and "Bright Queen of Heaven, God's Virgin Spouse," whilst his version of Psalm 121, beginning "Up to those bright and gladsome hills," has been included in several public school hymnals.

Samuel Crossman (1624-1683), has given us nine