447 One Is Kind Above All Others
Marianne Nunn, 1778-1847
A hymn on the love of Jesus, which has been used extensively as a song for children, especially in England. It was originally written to adapt John Newton’s hymn:
“One there is above all others,
Well deserves the name of friend,”
to the Welsh air, “Ar hyd y nos” (No. 35), and the hymn may well be sung to this tune.
Marianne Nunn was an English woman of refinement and culture. She is the author of The Benevolent Merchant, and of several hymns. The latter were published in Psalms and Hymns, 1817, a collection compiled by her brother, Rev. John Nunn, who also contributed some of his own hymns to the same volume.
MUSIC. CARITAS. No information has been traced concerning Richard W. Beaty, 1799-1883, composer of the tune. The editors of the Hymnary found the tune and words in the Hymnary of the United Church of Canada.