THE STORY OF THE HYMNS AND THEIR WRITERS 419
Hymn 821. In age and feebleness extreme.
CHARLES WESLEY (i). Lines dictated on his death-bed ; Works, viii. 432.
This is Charles Wesley s swan-song. A few days before his death he called his wife, and asked her to write down the lines. The Rev. Richard Green has Mrs. Charles Wesley s hymn-book, which contains an entry in her own writing. The following lines I wrote from Mr. Charles Wesley s repeating, a few days before he departed y life. In age and feebleness extream. They are his legacy to Methodism. He died as he lived ; prizing above all else a smile from Christ. Mr. Prothero says that on his death-bed the train of thought suggested by Ps. Ixxiii. 25 ("My flesh and my heart faileth ; but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever ") took shape in verse. It was the last exercise of his wonderful gift. The Last Wish has brought sunlight to many a Methodist death-bed.
In editing the music for 77ic Methodist Hymn-Book, 1904, Sir Frederick Bridge was quick to discern the significance of this precious relic. The Tune-Book Committee looked on it rather as an interesting and pathetic historical memento, than a verse for congregational use. Many of them had never heard it sung, and felt that it could be sung only under very special circum stances. But Sir Frederick Bridge, to our intense astonishment, took an entirely different view. " This," said he, " is one of your treasures. Any Church might be proud to possess a little hymn with such a history, and in itself so beautiful. Let me ask my friend, Sir Hubert H. Parry, to compose a tune for it. It is just such a hymn as will appeal to his genius." Mr. Curnock adds, When, some little time afterwards, the tune was for warded from the Royal College of Music to the Committee, we all felt thankful that our editor had been so insistent. It is one of those hymn-anthems that now and then a congregation may be glad to hear, especially when rendered by an organist and choir who have made a careful study of the twin souls the soul of the dying poet s hymn, and the soul in the great musician s tune. One competent critic, after playing the tune several times, made the remark, "You can see the old man leaning on his staff. " Sir F. Bridge said in a short paper in the Methodist Recorder (June 2, 1904), I should particularly like to mention
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