A Mother's Prayer for Her Boy Out There

"A Mother's Prayer for Her Boy Out There"
Sheet music cover
Song
Released	1918
Composer(s)	Arthur Lange
Lyricist(s)	Andrew B. Sterling
Producer(s)	Joe Morris Music Co.

A Mother's Prayer for Her Boy Out There is a World War I era song released in 1918. Andrew B. Sterling wrote the lyrics. Arthur Lange composed the music.^[1] It was written for voice and piano.^[2] The song was published by Joe Morris Music Co. of New York, New York. On the cover is a woman kneeling down to pray. A picture of a soldier hangs on the wall behind her.^[3]

The lyrics tell the story of a mother who is struggling with the fact that her son is fighting in war. The only way she can find solace is through prayer. It is told in from the third-person point of view. The chorus is as follows: ^[1]

Just a little prayer

When shadows are stealing

Just a little prayer,

A voice appealing;

To a baby shoe she's clinging

While the Angelus is ringing,

Come the words that start

From an aching heart:

"May angels guard him tenderly

Tonight and send my baby back to me."

That's a mother's prayer

For her boy "out there."

The sheet music can be found at the Library of Congress and Pritzker Military Museum & Library.^[4]

References

1. Vogel, Frederick G. (1995). World War I Songs: A History and Dictionary of Popular American Patriotic Tunes with Over 300 Complete Lyrics. Jefferson: McFarland & Company, Inc. pp. 210, 346. ISBN 0-89950-952-5.
2. "A mother's prayer for her boy out there". Library of Congress. Library of Congress. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
3. Parker, Bernard S. (2007). World War I Sheet Music. 1. Jefferson: McFarland & Company, Inc. p. 426. ISBN 978-0-7864-2798-7.
4. "A mother's prayer for her boy out there". OCLC WorldCat. OCLC WorldCat. Retrieved 20 January 2016.