A Mother's Prayer for Her Boy Out There is a

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

era song released in 1918.

Andrew B. Sterling Andrew B. Sterling (August 26, 1874 – August 11, 1955) was an American lyricist. Biography Born in New York City, after he graduated from high school, he began writing songs and vaudevilles. An important event was his meeting with the compo ...

wrote the lyrics and

Arthur Lange Arthur Lange (April 16, 1889 – December 7, 1956) was a United States bandleader and Tin Pan Alley composer of popular music. He composed music for over 120 films, including ''Grand Canary'' and ''Woman on the Run''. Lange shared an Oscar nomin ...

composed the music. It was written for voice and piano. The song was published by Joe Morris Music Co. of New York City. On the cover is a woman kneeling down to pray, with a picture of a soldier hanging on the wall behind her. 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: The sheet music can be found at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library is ...

and

Pritzker Military Museum & Library The Pritzker Military Museum & Library (formerly Pritzker Military Library) is a non-profit museum and a research library for the study of military history on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, Illinois. The institution was founded in 2003, and its spe ...

References

Songs about mothers Songs about soldiers 1918 songs Songs of World War I Songs with lyrics by Andrew B. Sterling Songs with music by Arthur Lange {{1910s-song-stub