2. Look down upon the battle field, Oh, Thou our Heavenly Friend! Have mercy on our sinful souls! The soldiers cried, “Amen!” For gathered ’round a little group, Each brave man knelt and cried. |: They listened to the drummer boy Who prayed before he died. :|
3. “Oh, mother,” said the dying boy, “Look down from Heaven on me, Receive me to thy fond embrace Oh, take me home to thee. I’ve loved my country as my God; To serve them both I’ve tried.” |: He smiled, shook hands—death seized the boy Who prayed before he died. :|
4. Each soldier wept, then, like a child, Stout hearts were they, and brave; The flag his winding sheet, God’s Book The key unto his grave. They wrote upon a simple board These words: “This is a guide |: To those who’d mourn the drummer boy Who prayed before he died.” :|
5. Ye angels ’round the Throne of Grace, Look down upon the braves Who fought and died on Shiloh’s plain, Now slumb’ring in their graves! How many homes made desolate? How many hearts have sighed? |: How many, like that drummer boy, Who prayed before they died. :|
Samuel J. Muscroft’s play _The Drummer Boy of Shiloh_, written in 1870, was apparently based upon “what might have been” rather than facts. The play—a pleasing mixture of drama, pathos, and comedy—was staged in cities and towns all over the Northern States for almost 40 years. It was ordinarily staged as a home-town production rather than by professional actors and actresses—a factor which tended to increase its popularity. In fact, contemporary accounts say that the play was second in popularity only to _Uncle Tom’s Cabin_.
Numerous poems about Shiloh were of immediate, if not lasting, popularity. Herman Melville, author of _Moby Dick_ and _Typee_, attracted by the multitude of inviting subjects presented by the Civil War, turned to Shiloh for inspiration. “Shiloh,” published 4 years after the battle, is one of his most famous poems of the War Between the States era.
“The Men of the West” by Richard Coe; “Our Boys who Fell at Shiloh” and “General Albert Sidney Johnston” by H. Pleasants McDaniel; and “The Old Sergeant” by Forceythe Willson are typical examples of the trend in poetry immediately following Shiloh.
Song writers of the period also looked to Shiloh for the themes of their melodies. The most successful endeavor in this field was made by Will S. Hays in “The Drummer Boy of Shiloh.” Like the play by that name, the song is undoubtedly based upon fancy rather than facts. The title was chosen because of its certain musical quality and not because of its connection with any incident of the engagement. Hays, a correspondent of the _Louisville Democrat_, wrote the song in 1862 while the story of the battle was still news rather than history. It is not known whether he was at the battle of Shiloh or whether his sympathies were with the North or the South. However, his song immediately became famous throughout the country and remained popular for a number of years.