STEPHEN FOSTER AND SHERMAN’S FORCES

STEPHEN FOSTER AND SHERMAN’S FORCES
A decisive battle was to take place on a hot summer’s day outside Atlanta in 1864. General Sherman was there with his troops and it stood to be one of the most awesome skirmishes in the dreaded war between the states. The battle was to begin when the sun was at it’s highest point in the sky, at the strike of noon. The two armies lined up across the field from each other as the privileged class of Georgia came out dressed in their finery or parasols and top hats, to watch the fray from the security of the surrounding hilltops. The two armies squared towards each other and lifted their swords and cannons to strike lethal blows at the signal from the generals. But just as that signal was to have been given, some courageous soldier from one of the sides, no one knows which, began to sing a familiar tune of Stephan Collins Foster (1826-64), I dream of Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair. For some reason, the battle did not begin. What unseen force stayed the hands of the executioners? Could a song literally change the course of the history of the war. I believe it can. I have seen similar moments in my own life which we will examine at a later point. If it is your belief that music is simply an entertainment, you need to look deeper into the subject!