Jeremiah E. Rankin, 1828-1904
A song that has touched many a burdened heart, written by the author of “God be with you till we meet again.” For comments on Jeremiah E. Rankin, see [Hymn 365].
MUSIC. TELL IT TO JESUS. For comments on the composer, E. S. Lorenz, see [Hymn 439].
477. Yield not to temptation
Horatio R. Palmer, 1834-1907
A song that has been a source of strength to many in time of temptation.
The words and tune are by Horatio Richmond Palmer, Mus. Doc., an American musician born at Sherburne, New York. He studied music in Berlin and Florence and became the director of the Rushford Academy of Music, New York, in 1857. In 1884, he took charge of the Church Choral Union in New York, an organization which grew to a membership of 4,000 singers devoted to the improvement of church music. He was dean, for a time, of the school of music at Chautauqua, N. Y., and compiled a number of popular choral collections. He is the author of A Theory of Music and A Manual for Teachers.
Concerning the composition of this hymn and tune, Dr. Palmer wrote:
This song is an inspiration. I was at work on the dry subject of “Theory” when the complete idea flashed upon me, and I laid aside the theoretical work and hurriedly penned both words and music as fast as I could write them. I submitted them to the criticism of a friend afterward, and some changes were made in the third stanza, but the first two are exactly as they came to me. The music was first written in A flat; but I soon saw that B flat was better, and for many years it has appeared in that key. I am reverently thankful it has been a power for good.
MUSIC. YIELD NOT TO TEMPTATION. The tune, composed for the hymn by Dr. Palmer himself, appeared in Sabbath School Songs (1868). It is also named “Fortitude.”