THE
PSALTER
OF THE
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
OF
NORTH AMERICA
WITH MUSIC
PITTSBURGH:
UNITED PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF PUBLICATION,
53 AND 55 NINTH STREET
1887
PREFACE.
THE Committee appointed by the Board of Publication in obedience to a
direction of the General Assembly of 1884 to revise the Psalter, having completed their work, herewith present the results of their labors.
The following persons were appointed by the Board to assist the Committee in the work, by correspondence, viz.: Revs. D. A. Duff, W. A. McKenzle,
J. M. French, W. T. Meloy, D. D., S. G. Irvine, D. D., J. F. Hutchison, M. F.MeKirahan; Messrs. P. W. Hill and John M. Donaldson.
These gentlemen entered very zealously upon the work and performed a large amount of excellent labor, but for a variety of reasons--among which was
the fact that, having no opportunity to consult with each other, their work was unavoidably conflicting, each person presenting a different tune for each
selection--their labor was of less service to the Committee than it otherwise
would have been; and as the correspondence was quite laborious and somewhat expensive, it was by mutual consent discontinued.
The endeavor of the Committee has been to search the field of sacred music and to select only that which has highest merit and best adaptation to
the sentiment and to congregational use. Tunes which have received the widest
acceptance by the Church at large have been given the preference. Many of the tunes in the Psalter have been retained. Some have been transferred to
.other selections. Two hundred and twenty-one tunes have been added. They are all of acknowledged merit and it is believed will find general acceptance.
Where divisions of Psalms have been necessary, care has been taken to draw the lines where the sentiment clearly admits of them, but occasionally
arbitrary divisions have been necessitated, as no others were possible. Each selection
with its tune or tunes occupies a single page. For convenience in use each selection is numbered, and the number corresponds with the number of
the page.
A few chants, voluntaries and anthems are added. The utmost care has been taken by the Committee to give proper
credit and obtain proper permission for the use of tunes from those owning the
copyright, and thanks are due to the corresponding members and many others for
valuable suggestions and assistance; also to Dr. H. R. Palmer, Prof. W. A.
Lafferty and Judge C. C. Converse, for permission to use their valuable
compositions without compensation.
The revision has been a work of much labor, and is now submitted to the Church with the hope and prayer that it may contribute something to the
service of praise, and thereby to the glory of God.
W.J. ROBINSON, D. D.
D.S. THOMPSON
JAS. W. COLLINS
R. S. ROBB,
JOHN WHITE
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