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FAMOUS SONGS |
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CHAPTER VIII
THE " STAR-SPANGLED BANNER," " YANKEE DOODLE," AND OTHER AMERICAN" SONGS
UP to the present America, apart from the fact that she has not produced any great composer or even song writer of note, has not succeeded in inventing any national anthem worthy of her eminence and power. Minor songs of a more or less negro blend have been turned out in thousands, and have grown into favour with the general public of most nations. But as yet only the " Star-Spangled Banner," " Columbia, the Gem of the Ocean," " Hail, Columbia," and " America" have appeared as national produc-tions, neither of which is in any way admirable. The eccentric " Yankee Doodle," of which I shall speak in detail later, seems to be more universal than any of the purely American pieces, and that is not American at all. In a national air worthy of the grandeur of a great nation, simplicity and strength should be domi-nant features, but neither of the pieces I have mentioned exhibits these qualities, in fact they
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