O! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand Between their loved homes and the war's desolation Blessed with victory and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land Praise the power that hath made and preserved us a nation. Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, And this be our motto--"In God is our trust"; And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave. --_Francis Scott Key_, 1814. _The Star Spangled Banner_ was written in 1814 by Francis Scott Key at the time of the bombardment of Fort McHenry, near Baltimore, by the British. Key had been sent to the British squadron to negotiate the release of an American prisoner-of-war, and was detained there by the British during the engagement for fear he might reveal their plans. The bombardment lasted all through the night. In his joy the following morning at seeing the American flag still flying over Fort McHenry, Key wrote the first stanza of the _Star Spangled Banner_ on the back of an old letter, which he drew from his pocket. He finished the poem later in the day after he had been allowed to land. The poem was first printed as a handbill enclosed in a fancy border; but one of Key's friends, Judge Nicholson, of Baltimore, saw that the tune of _Anacreon in Heaven_, an old English drinking song, fitted the words, and the two were quickly united with astonishing success. The old flag which prompted the poem is still in existence; it was made by Mrs. Mary Pickersgill. "America" My country, 'tis of thee, Sweet land of liberty, Of thee I sing; Land where my fathers died, Land of the Pilgrims' pride, From every mountain side Let freedom ring. My native country, thee, Land of the noble free, Thy name I love; I love thy rocks and rills, Thy woods and templed hills; My heart with rapture thrills Like that above. Let music swell the breeze, And ring from all the trees Sweet freedom's song; Let mortal tongues awake, Let all that breathe partake, Let rocks their silence break, The sound prolong! Our father's God, to Thee, Author of liberty, To Thee we sing: Long may our land be bright With freedom's holy light; Protect us by Thy might, Great God, our King. --Samuel F. Smith, 1832. "America" was written in 1832 by Samuel Francis Smith, a graduate of Harvard, at that time studying for the ministry at Andover, Mass. The circumstances attending the writing of this hymn are told by the author in the following letter: Newton Centre, Mass., June 5, 1887. Mr. J. H. Johnson: