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44 A CENTURY OF BALLADS |
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of Admiral Byng, who was shot, as the Frenchman so wittily put it, pour encourager les autres ; for which service, he says, Mallet received a pension, and adds that he was "a purloiner of other people's wares." The point is one that must apparently be left wrapped in obscurity. It may be noted in passing that the original version ran " Britannia rule the waves," rules being a corruption that has crept in later.
In 1745 Arne was engaged as composer at Vauxhall Gardens, for which he wrote a very successful pastoral dialogue entitled " Colin and Phcebe." Of his settings of Shakespeare songs perhaps the best remembered is his " Where the bee sucks," a song of real and delicate beauty. He also composed a setting to Sir John Suckling's "Why so pale and wan, fond lover?" a lyric that has tempted many composers since his day.
Another song of his which attained a fair measure of popularity was "When forced from dear Hebe to part," the words of which were by Shenstone. A sort of answer to this song, entitled "Fair Hebe," was written by Lord Cante-lupe, the words being sung at different times to two distinct old melodies, the second of which was popularly supposed to have been composed by Dr. Arne or his son.
"The lass with the delicate air " is a song that |
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