Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1874-11-20
Street Musicians
SOMETHING ABOUT THEM AND THEIR BUSINESS.
From the Herald and Torcalight.

From the Herald and ToIchli ght.
Tia ud-organ grinders, bag-pipe players and
street musicians, generally, are not such q
poorly paid set as people imagine. Toey
mana re to pick up a good many dollars in
the course of their wanderings, and as their
expen ses are small, it is not hard for them to
save money. The organ grinders who make
the ,ost money are those respectable looking
soldiers in their spotleSs uniforms, who car
~ tn cir fs lse limbs on their organs and their
discharge papers, neatly framed in front of
them Those ex-brayes always excite the
sympathy of the elderly ladies from the
the coun thy, who put on their spectacles and
rummag in their little bags until they find
a bright D., new penny which they give TO the
poor fel lows, together with their blessing.
| have noticed, as a rule, that it Is always
the poo rer class who give the organ grind
ers- 7 erhaps it is because they know well
what I is to be poor. The paradise of
organ grinders appears to be on Fourteenth
street, from Broadway to Sixth avenue in
feet, tt at is regular beggers headquarters,
/ was walking along that way the other day.
and vas greatly amused by the placard
hangi ng around a boys neck. The lad was
about fifteen years old, and evidently for
eigne :. His placard was quite an elaborate
one, and there we're two pictures painted
upon it. Number one was happy family,
a faith ,r, mother and four children, dressed in
bright colors, seated about table in neat
" fnis thed room. Number two presented
burnin house, a mother and her four child |
rem, W. ringing their hands, and their father |
absent. The accompanying text explained |
that g This POI VI woman was left a widow |
with our small 'hildren, and all she owned |
was DESTROYED BY fire" etc. The boy not |
under standing Eng lsh had in all probabii-
ty borrowed this pla card from his mother, or
some one equally ig1 Grant OF the language
in which it was writ ten. At any rate it
answered his purpose better than another
would have done, for e, cry one who read it
enjoyed good laugh, an d was sure to drop
lew pennies into the boy - c.o.
know of an organ grh 1t Ter who used to
nave his stand in front of Trinity church,
md who made enough MONEY to retire from
business and take cosy little house in he
country: On any great holi&a or fair day
le Will bring out his organ znt pick up a
ew dollars for the take of old til mes was
pending Fourth of July in the country, a
ouple of years ago, when two italian bag
PS ,.hayee stopped IN 'front.' OF the house
'he'-e was visiting. One of the guests in =
10 house spoke Italian fuently, and got
y % conversation with the men, The Y were
} pleased to find a person who could speak =
heir native language that they opened their
carts at once. They said that they had been j
n this country three months, thty would
tay about nine more and then 70 home.
BUSINESS. they would say, had been fine. bey
lade as much as $50 day, and , as they W. re
leir own masters, owned all they made. Mo, Vt
these strolling musicians are hired by men
no own the organs an6 other instruments
I'd they are compelled to pay in all thew
axe. Some gentlemen of my acquaintance
ct an organ grinder trudging home from
5 days work one night, when one Of them
id, BY way of joke d" Will you take $40
: what you have made to-day, nv good VI
ln2" mo, l WON'T" he replied, "but .
will take s45." Seeing tina: they were NJ
ntlemen, and would not harm him. the
IN told them that he had taken in s43
1t day, and he proved what he said. N
ch rich harvests are, Of course, exception
bus that they are reapsd at all is aston =
ing. -