re I lay me down to sleep;
Bid Thy angels, pure and holy,
Round my bed their vigil keep.

It has already been pointed out (see _Choir_, February, 1912)
that this hymn appeared in the Christmas number of _Household
Words_ for 1856, in a story entitled _The Wreck of the Golden
Mary_. The chief authorities on the works of Dickens claim it
as his composition, and include it in his collected works. On
the other hand, Miller, in his _Our Hymns_ (1866), states that
Miss Harriet Parr informed him that the hymn, and the story
of _Poor Dick_, in which it occurs, were both her own. We may
add that when Dr. Allon applied for permission to include it
in his new hymn-book Dickens referred him to the authoress.

Dr. Julian takes this as authoritative, and has no hesitation
in ascribing the hymn to Miss Parr. On the other hand, Forster
records in his _Life of Dickens_ that a clergyman, the Rev.
R.H. Davies, had been struck by this hymn when it appeared in
_Household Words_, and wrote to thank him for it. 'I beg to
thank you,' Dickens answered (Christmas Eve, 1856), 'for your
very acceptable letter, not the less because I am myself the
writer you refer to.' Here Dickens seems to claim the authorship,
but it is possible he was referring to something else in the
magazine when he wrote these words, and not to the hymn.

[14] Dickens frequently uses the word in this sense.
Tom Pinch says, 'I shall punish the Boar's Head
tremendously.' It is also interesting to note that
Dickens uses the phrase 'I don't think' in its modern
slang meaning on at least two occasions. Tom Pinch
remarks 'I'm a nice man, I don't think, as John used
to say' (_M.C._ 6), and Sam Weller (_P.P._ 38) says
to Mr. Winkle 'you're a amiably-disposed young man,
sir, I don't think.' Mark Tapley uses the expression
'a pious fraud' (_M.C._ 13).

[15] 'Pet' (_L.D._ 2) was a frequent visitor to the Hospital.

[16] From the poem on _Industry_.

CHAPTER VI

SONGS AND SOME SINGERS

The numerous songs and vocal works referred to by Dickens
in his novels and other writings furnish perhaps the most
interesting, certainly the most instructive, branch of this
subject. His knowledge of song and ballad literature was
extraordinary, and he did not fail to make good use of it. Not
only are the quotations always well chosen and to the point,
but the use of them has greatly added to the interest of such
characters