This song was originally written for piano and voice but is often performed with orchestral accompaniment. There are musical pictures of drums, banjos, and trumpet fanfares. Throughout, the texture is inventive and energetic. The musical curve of this work is similar to the flow of the church services in which Ives grew up. These services would dwell on the hopelessness of the human condition and how powerless everyone is. The last activity of the service would be the singing of an invitational hymn where everyone once again feels strength and rest. Much of Ives' music had this sense of drama. Dissonance and tension would build only to find rest in simplicity and strength. 

The poem by Vachel Lindsay is focuses on one of the founders of the Salvation Army, General William Booth. The text and melodic fragments from the hymn "Are You Washed in the Blood of the Lamb" becomes the refrain of this song and is used to rally the troops to protect the poor and oppressed. Another hymn, "Cleansing Fountain," becomes the march of strength at the end. There are suggestions in the score for a chorus to yell "Hallelujah!" as the music builds in intensity. The moments of excitement are balanced by tender statements of the hymn.