User:Edison/Curfew must not ring tonight

"Curfew must not ring to-night"is a poem written by Rose Hartwick Thorpe(July 18, 1850-1939) in 1867. It was a popular poem for recitation, and was widely published. It tells of a young woman, Bessie, whose Cavalier lover, Basil Underwood was sentenced to be hanged as a spy by Cromwell's forces in the evening when the curfew bell was rung by the sexton at the church. The girls tries to appeal to Cromwell, but he is not scheduled to return until after curfew. She appeals to the old, deaf sexton not to ring the bell, but he rejects her appeal. Finally, she climbs to the bell loft and holds on to the metal clapper of the swinging bell to keep it from sounding, badly injuring her hands. The sexton, being deaf, does not know the difference. The execution is delayed, giving her a chance to appeal to Cromwell and obtain a pardon. The poem's title is a recurring line.

Background of the poem
The basis for the events in the poem came from a romantic story "Love and loyalty," which she read in Peterson's Magazine from September, 1865. It generally corresponds to the events depicted in the poem. The historical basis for the story was said to be in Chertsey, England, 20 miles from London. The Chertsey bell, which still hung in the abbey until the early 20th century, was dated 1310.

Publication history
She wrote a great deal of poetry by age 11, but the family's poverty made it hard to obtain paper. She initially wrote "Curfew must not ring to-night" on a long strip of paper around which ribbon had been wrapped. She later transcribed the poem to a blank book and dated it April 5, 1867.The poem was first published by the Detroit Commercial Advertiser in 1870, which had published some of her work before. As payment for her continuing submissions of poetry, the author was given a subscription to thee paper, then worth $1.50. Newspapers across the United States reprinted the poem and it became a popular piece for public recitation. It was published as a small illustrated book in 1882, whereafter it became one of the most popular pieces for memorization and recitation. She had no idea about copyright or the financial rewards to be gained from a successful piece of writing, so in giving permission to a company in 1882 to publish her poem as a book, she gave received no payment. The publisher charged her for copies she later obtained. It was published as a cantata for solos and chorus with piano accompaniment in 1891. The poem became so well known that it was widely parodied. Other parodies changed the recurring line to humorous form such as "The rooster must not crow tonight." Parodies of the poem written for humorous public performance include "Charlie must not ring to-night," about an English girl with two gentleman callers. The poem was prominently featured in the 1957 film Desk Set, starring Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn. When a powerful new computer is asked about Corfu, it gets stuck printing out the "Curfew" poem, whichle Hepburn's character delightedly recites the poem's recurring line "The curfew must not sound!"

Rose Hartwick Thorpe
Rose Alnora Hartwick was born in Mishawaka, Indiana July 18, 1850. Her parents were She was the second oldest of two girls and two boys. Her father, a tailor, went bankrupt after guaranteeing a note for a loan to another businessman. The family moved out west to Kansas, where a severe drought brought on continued financial hardship. Her relative helped them relocate to Michigan. She graduated from high school in Litchfield, Michigan in 1868. She married Edmund Carson Thorpe in 1871. "Curfew" and several of her other poems were published in the book "Waifs, and their authors," in 1879. The couple moved to San Diego, California in 1887. Thorpe wrote a dozen books and numerous magazine articles, but had no successes to compare to "Curfew must not ring to-night." Her husband died in San Diego in 1916. Thorpe died in 1939.