From the Juvenile Instructor, 1 July 1905 —
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For the sake of search engines:
Peace to thee, little one, Gone from our fold;
Quickly thy race was run, Thy story told.
Peace to the hearts that mourn,
Sadly bereft and torn,
Christ hath all sorrows borne —
God’s will be done.
Let not our hearts remain, ‘Neath the cold sod,
Where thy fair form is lain; Leads unto God,
Where thy pure spirit bright,
Basks in eternal light,
Where there is no more night,
No death nor pain.
Though from thy mother’s breast, Death carries thee,
By angel arms carress’d, Now thou art free,
In glory like the sun —
God’s loving will be done,
Peace to thee, little one;
Rest, darling, rest.
This is beautiful. It made me curious about the author. Her three daughters died, two in infancy. I hope writing this really did give her comfort.
Oh, Carol! I hadn’t looked for her background. Thanks for that. (See? Reader comments are so often what make the posts.)
The idea the music for mourning the death of a child was so frequently needed that it would be published in the Juvenile Instructor really paints a grim picture of the past. I kind of wish it hadn’t all gone away so thoroughly. Of course, it’s *fantastic* that children don’t die nearly so often anymore. It’s just that when it does happen, it’s so unthinkable that it’s hard to have any idea of how to respond.
I remember reading somewhere that Eliza R. Snow wrote a new poem for anyone she knew whose child died. Now I wish I knew where I read that. It was a long time ago so I’m not sure any more.
I was told in a Sacrament Talk by Naomi Randall’s son in law gave several years ago, that the first performance of I am a child of God was at a child’s funeral, I believe it was his daughter who had passed away, but time pays tricks on your memory sometimes. I have often thought of that bright and bouyant hymn as an anthem of hope and faith. This one seems so much more of a song of the bereft, but equally a song of hope and faith.
May God watch over all the children, the living and the dead, and for all those like this mother who suffered so much loss.
What is the copyright status of that music? I’m the music chair in my ward, I get consulted frequently on music for funerals, and I can imagine suggesting that one next time we have a funeral for an infant or little child.
… yes, I know they’re rare, but we’ve had one already during my current tenure.
It’s well into the public domain, Kent, even by the most conservative standards of assuming that the copyright was renewed (anything pre-1923 is safe even without checking the details.)
Thank you, eric. Amen.