By Steve Browne 

“O say, can you see, by the dawn’s early light / What so proudly we hailed at the twilight’s last gleaming?”
During the night of Sept. 13-14, 1814, a 35-year-old American lawyer and amateur poet stood on the deck of the Royal Navy ship HMS Tonnant as it helped bombard Fort McHenry in the Baltimore harbor.
Francis Scott Key was moved to write the poem that was to become “The Star Spangled Banner,” our national anthem.
In 1812, the United States declared war against Great Britain which, still smarting under the humiliation of losing half its North American empire, had been blockading U.S. trade with its enemy France, impressing American seamen into the Royal Navy and supporting Native Americans on the Northwest frontier who were attacking American settlements.
The British felt keenly that America had betrayed their common kinship by aiding the French ruler Napoleon Bonaparte, the greatest threat to England in centuries.
“Now that the tyrant Bonaparte has been consigned to infamy, there is no public feeling in this country stronger than indignation against the Americans,” declared the London Times, demanding Britain to “not only chastise the savages into present peace, but make a lasting impression on their fears.”
Key was aboard the Tonnant to negotiate the release of a prisoner, William Beanes of Upper Marlboro, Md.
Beanes, a part-time sheriff, was taken prisoner after arresting some rowdy British stragglers who, according to some accounts, were caught robbing a chicken coop. After receiving testimonials that the British prisoners were well-treated, Maj. Gen. Robert Ross and Adm. Alexander Cochrane agreed to release Beanes. But because the delegation had seen the strength of the naval forces ready to besiege Baltimore from the sea, they were detained through the night, though treated as guests.
The naval bombardment began in coordination with a British land attack on the city, flushed with success after invading and burning Washington, D.C., almost unopposed. The Royal Navy had to attack at night when the tide was full, and sail out of the harbor shortly after dawn, or be left stranded and vulnerable in the shallows at low tide.
Key and the others could do nothing but watch the bombardment by naval guns and rockets.
In the morning as the smoke cleared, and one has to have some experience with black powder firearms to appreciate how much smoke they generate, Key could see an American flag waving from the battlements of the fort.
Key wrote the poem on the back of a letter. It was later set to the music of a popular English drinking song, “To Anacreon in Heaven.” Why that particular tune is anyone’s guess.
It is very difficult to sing, as it goes higher and lower than most people’s vocal range. It actually works better as a poem in the later verses, which are so little known to Americans that author Isaac Asimov once wrote a humorous short story about catching a German spy by getting him to reveal that he actually knew the third verse!
Key died in 1843 after a long and distinguished career in the law. Ironically, his grandson was interned in Fort McHenry during the Civil War for pro-Southern sympathies.
In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson ordered “The Star-Spangled Banner” be played at official occasions, but it was not actually declared the national anthem until a law was signed by President Herbert Hoover in 1931.
It beat out “America the Beautiful” for the honor, which still has its advocates among the squeamish, who feel “The Star Spangled Banner” is embarrassingly warlike.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just, / And this be our motto: ‘In God is our trust.’ / And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave / O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!”

Browne is a reporter and columnist for the Times-Record.
His column appears Fridays.

By Carla Kelly 

I wasn’t going to write another column because I hate saying goodbye.
We’re packing now and on July 10, will be gone like the wild goose in winter. The yard sale is scheduled for tomorrow. Our house is full of boxes, and I don’t have time to write a column.
But hey, about a month ago, I saw an article in The Forum about a lefse plant opening in Minnesota. So help me, all I could think was, “Lefse grows on a plant? How convenient. If I were still writing a column, that’d be it.”
Of course, the article referred to a new factory that produces lefse, but my mind was already imagining a plant with big ol’ lefse leaves. Just pull off a frond, slather on some butter, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, roll up, and stuff in face.
I’ll admit it; I won’t really miss lefse. What I will miss are the steely-eyed, determined women who stand in hot kitchens making it, and the equally competent men who – I swear it – this winter, just waited around for my car to get stuck so they could dig me out. I never even had to ask for help.
People up here just do what needs to be done and that’s it. Thank them, by all means, but don’t you dare insult them by offering to pay for an emergency dig-out. They’ll just leap back as though they had stumbled against an electric fence, and look horrified. They’re just being neighborly, and they want you to survive. That’s about it. Life doesn’t get much simpler.
It’s not so easy to say goodbye to such a wonderful community as Valley City. True, the town’s looking a mite bedraggled this summer and dusty, and it’s hard to overlook a sewer pipe running across Main Street, but that’s temporary. Valley City will perk up and snap back and reclaim its title – in my heart – as North Dakota’s prettiest town, this feisty little City of Bridges.
We’re bailing out of Valley City for two reasons: we have sweet little grandchildren living just west of Salt Lake City, Utah, and (I confess) we can’t quite hack another six and a half month winter. We’re moving to a small town in east central Utah.
It’s in Carbon County, where Utah mines coal. You might remember the Crandall Canyon Mine cave-in two years ago, where six miners were trapped, and three more died trying to rescue them. The rescuers were just being neighborly, and wanted their fellow workers to survive. That’s about 20 miles from where we’ll be living.
So you can see we’ll be living among people much like you here in North Dakota: people who care about their neighbors. That’s all we ever want of a community. We have it here in Valley City, and we’re hoping to find that in Wellington.
North Dakota has ruined us forever from wanting to play bumper car on crowded highways, or live in houses six inches apart, or breathe air that smells like factory fumes. The scenery will be different, though – high desert, no river running through town, buttes, mesas, mountains, narrow canyon passes, humidity low enough to crack sidewalks, probably. I suppose those pesky mountains will block the view, but we’ll get used to them.
This move will put us about two hours through a winding canyon and congested highways from our grandkids: close enough to visit, but not too close to meddle. It’ll give us a first frost in November, and last one in March. Cold, yes, but not as cold as here; snow, yes, but ditto.
We’ve bought a house that is a work in progress, so we’ll be busy fixing it. Martin will garden and write and I’ll keep writing. We’ll probably go to the annual Greek festival in nearby Price, and gawk at the petroglyphs and pictographs in nearby Nine Mile Canyon – the mysterious remains of long-ago societies. We’ll be tourists until we turn into friends and neighbors, ourselves.
We’ll miss our excellent neighbors: BJ and Jerry Edwardson, Peggy and Mickey Kvien, Carmen and Hannah Sorenson. Thanks to all of you for all the articles and interviews. I met many of you that way, and it was sweet, indeed. It’s been a privilege to live in North Dakota. Take good care of this best-kept secret, O.K.?

By Julee Russell
Sheyenne Valley Friends of Animals

The Sheyenne Valley Friends of Animals volunteers have been very active in our area recently.
Over the past few weeks several dogs and a cat have been rescued and placed in foster care. While these pets have been saved and are awaiting adoption, more foster homes are needed.  
Foster homes provide a valuable service to the pets and the organization by providing love, patience, and a second chance for dogs and cats.  If you can take in a foster pet, please stop by the Rosebud Visitor Center or go to www.svfanimals.org for a foster home application.

Available for Adoption

I’m Tuffy, a 3-year-old black lab. I’m small for my breed. I have had an interesting life, fathering several litters of puppies, but those days are over. I’m just ready to settle down and be loved by kids and adults. I enjoy being petted, rides in cars, and playing.

Hey! I’m Axel, a round snuggly puppy that loves to play and learns quickly. You can see my dad and one of my brothers here too. Dad is a small lab, well-mannered. I intend to follow his friendly example. If you’d like me to join your family, just contact svfanimals .org.
Wow! Am I ever cute! At least that’s what everyone says. I am Axel’s brother. We came from Tuffy’s litter, and as Spike said, it’s time for us to be finding our own ‘forever’ homes.  I’m rolly-polly and playful. I’m learning to be house-trained. I’m too young to be fixed (10 weeks), but when the time comes, I’m ready and SVFA will help with the costs if I am fixed here in Valley City.
Meow!  My name is Nebo, and I’m a friendly, young, American shorthair.  I sure am ready for a permanent home.

If you want to make any of these pets part of your family, please go to the Rosebud Visitor Center or  www.svfanimals.org for a pre-adoption form.  
As always, be responsible: ID and spay/neuter your pet.

By JON R. CAMERON

What a winter and spring we had in Valley City!  
Near record snow fall followed by record flooding made for a very busy year for the employees of the City and all of you. Now that those events are behind us, with some flood related clean-up still ahead, it is time to remember get out the lawnmower and weed-eater to spruce up your property.
Valley City has ordinances dealing with property maintenance, including cutting and/or removal of grass and weeds. This includes grass and weeds around the foundations of buildings, as well as through cracks in sidewalks and parking lots.  Lets all work together to help keep Valley City beautiful.
As you work to maintain the beauty of your property, please make sure that all grass clippings are properly disposed of. The City offers a free glass clipping disposal site that is open seven days a week at the old mill location near the southeast corner of Fourth St. S.E. and Fourth Ave. S.E. The clay around the site is gone and it is now open again.  
Only grass clippings may be deposited at the site. There are dumpsters for the disposal of the emptied plastic trash bags, but no other refuse is allowed to be disposed of at this location. If you want to take your clippings and other yard waste to the landfill, there is also no charge to residents of Valley City for disposal of those items. Summer hours at the landfill are Monday – Friday, 7 a.m. to 4:40 p.m. and Saturday, 7:30 a.m.–3 p.m. The landfill is closed on Sundays and holidays.     
Do not dispose of your grass clippings in the river or on the river bank. Grass clippings add nutrients to the river such as nitrogen and phosphorus, which in turn cause uncontrolled growth of algae and aquatic weeds. This can cause treatment disruptions, add undesirable tastes and odors to the water, resulting in additional disinfectant dosages and increased treatment costs. Piles of grass on the riverbank are also unsightly and detract from the beauty of the river and the city.  
In addition to the concerns of the City, the North Dakota Department of Health has expressed similar concerns regarding the dumping of grass clippings and other material into the river or along the river bank.  Let’s all work together to protect the water quality of the Sheyenne River and the beauty of our city.