"To Anacreon in Heaven," referred to as written by Ralph Tomlinson, we copy in full from a book called the "English Musical Repository," published in London in 1807, but the words were written in England, about the year 1795, as a very close investigation has shown. "To Anacreon in Heaven, where he sat in full glee, A few sons of harmony sent a petition, That he their inspirer and patron would be; When this answer arrived from the jolly old Grecian : I'll lend you my name and inspire you to boot; "The news through Olympus immediately flew, And there with good fellows we'll learn to entwine "The yellow haired god and his nine fusty maids, Idalia will boast but of tenantless shades, And the biforked hill a mere desert will be. "Apollo rose up, and said, prythee ne'er quarrel, Good king of the gods with my votaries below; Then over each head my laurels I'll spread, So my sons from your crackers no mischief shall dread, While snug in ther club-room they jovially twine "Next Momus got up with his risible phiz, And swore with Apollo he'd cheerfully join- But the song, and the catch, and the laugh shall be mine. Cried Jove, we relent, since the truth you now tell us; "Ye sons of Anacreon, then join hand in hand; Himself a poet, the above must have been mere gingle in the cars of Anacreon, the great master of Bacchanalian song; and were it not for the historical interests clustering around it, no reprint would be found here, but our aid would be afforded to bury it forever in the caves of the Cyclops, no more to offend the ear and corrupt the heart of the more refined votaries of Bacchus in the present day. With respect to this song a Kentucky correspondent of the New York Ledger recently writes-"In the early part of the present century, "To Anacreon in Heaven' was a favorite convivial song, and well known. In my childhood I well remember having learned the air from hearing a political song which was set to it, and sung with great enthusiasm at a very large Federal dinner, given under an immense tent on or very near to Bush Hill, in the present northwestern part of Philadelphia. It was during the administration of Mr. Jefferson, when the struggle between Federalism and Democracy was most severe and bitter. The title of that song, I well remember, was, 'The Pilots whom Washington placed at the helm.' Though a striking composition, it has passed away with the circumstances which called it forth, and few probably are living who remember it. Your reference to 'Anacreon in Heaven' and its authorship, brought back vividly to my mind these recollections of my boyish days, and induced me to refer to a work in my library, called the 'Universal Songster, or Museum of Mirth,' published in London in 1825, containing some thousands of songs-English, Irish, Scotch and Welch. In this work I find the old song of "To Anacreon in Heaven' assigned to the authorship of Ralph Tomlinson. What else he may, have done in the literary way, I know not, the name being entirely unknown to me." The time when the words and the music of this song were written, as also the name of the composer of the music, remain undiscovered; but it is quite certain that both the air and the words were unknown in America at the end of the last year of Washington's presidency. No mention is made of the song in the newspapers and popular magazines of the United States prior to 1798. In this year it was sung as new, and the air was first nationalized by being set to the patriotic words of the Boston song before referred to—and it is quite certain also that no national song to this air was sung at Mount Vernon prior to 1799. In this year the Boston song was sung at the home and in the hearing of the Revolutionary Chief, and it is therefore a fact that Washington, in the last year of his life, heard the soul-stirring air of THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER of the Second War of Independence—an air that was destined to live in the hearts of the American people as long as his fame and his country endure. We now come to notice the invasion of Washington City by the British in 1814. On the 18th of June, 1812, the United States declared war against Great Britain, and on the 24th of August, 1814, the battle of Bladensburg was fought, which resulted the same day in the capture of Washington City by the British. "It is our painful duty," says a writer of the day, "to place on record the melancholy fact, that the capital of the United States has fallen into the hands of the enemy; and, what renders the circumstance the more mortifying to every American heart, by a force of only six or eight thousand men." "On the night of the 16th, the British fleet in the Chesapeake bay, at anchor off Point Lookout, were reinforced by thirty sail of vessels, five of which were transports, making their whole force amount to fifty-one sail. On the 17th they proceeded up the bay, and a detachment of the fleet ascended the Patuxent as high as Benedict, about twenty-two miles from Washington City, where they debarked their men. About the same time, it appears another body of men were landed from another detachment of the fleet, at a point on the Potomac. On the approach of the enemy, Com. Barney ordered his flotilla to be blown up, to prevent its falling into their hands. Our troops under Gen. Winder, advanced towards the enemy as far as Bladensburg, six miles from Washington, at which place a severe engagement took place.” "Upon the approach of the enemy, our artillery and infantry opened upon them with briskness, and did considerable execution, as numbers of them were seen to fall. The enemy marched steadily forward in close column, apparently disregarding the fire, and reserving their own, until our troops began to retreat, when they let drive at them. Our troops not being one-quarter equal to the enemy in number, received orders to retire, and fled in all directions, and the enemy pursued their course to Washington. Com. Barney, with his gallant flotilla crew, bravely disputed the entrance of the enemy into the city. The Baltimore troops, in the first instance, bore the brunt of the battle, and behaved with the utmost coolness and courage. Twice they bore so hard on the enemy as to stagger his progress. Gen. Stansbury, Com. Barney, Maj. Pinckney and Capt. Sterrett, are among the wounded; the brave Commodore very severely. The President of the United States, the Secretary of State, and the Secretary of War, were in view of the enemy when they advanced. The Navy Yard, frigate. Essex, and the sloop of war Argus, were burnt by our own troops previous to the enemy's arrival in the city. The enemy destroyed the capitol, the President's House, and all the other public buildings, except the Post Office, which they mistook for a private dwelling. A house belonging to Mr. Gallatin, and several others, were destroyed, in consequence of some men being secreted in them, who fired on the enemy and shot the horse from under Gen. Ross." "Having thus succeeded in his attack on Washington, the elated enemy directed his attention towards Baltimore, and began immediately to concentrate the various detachments of his fleet, and make arrangements for an attack on that city. The fleet destined against Baltimore consisted of nearly forty sail, several of them ships of the line, and on their approach to the mouth of the Patapsco, the alarm was promptly spread through the city and the adjoining country. The largest vessels anchored across the channel, and the troops intended for the land attack were debarked upon North Point, fourteen miles distant from the city by land, and about twelve by water. On the morning of September 12, 1814, between seven and eight thousand soldiers, sailors, and marines, had effected a landing, while sixteen bomb vessels and frigates proceeded up the river, and anchored within two miles and a half of Fort McHenry." "General Stricker," says Maj. Gen. Smith, "had been detached on Sunday evening with a portion of his brigade on the North Point road. Major Randall, of the Baltimore county militia, having under bis command a light corps of riflemen and musketry, taken from Gen. Stansbury's brigade and the Pennsylvania volunteers, was detached to the mouth of Bear Creek, with orders to co-operate with Gen. Stricker, and to check any landing which the enemy might attempt to make in that quarter. On Monday Gen. Stricker took a good position at the two roads leading from the city to North Point, having his right flanked by Bear Creek, and his left by a marsh. He here awaited the approach of the enemy, having sent on an advance corps under the command of Major Heath, of the fifth regiment. This advance was met by that of the enemy, and after some skirmishing it returned to the line, the main body of the enemy being at a short distance in the rear of their advance. Between two and three o'clock, the enemy's whole force came up and commenced the battle by some discharges of rockets, which were succeeded by the cannon from both sides, and soon after the action became general along the line. Gen. Stricker gallantly maintained his ground against a great superiority of numbers during the space of an hour and twenty minutes, when the regiment on his left giving way, he was under the necessity of retiring to the ground in his rear, where he had stationed one regiment as a reserve. He here formed his brigade; but the enemy not thinking it advisable to pursue, he, in compliance with previous arrangements, fell back and |