National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-09-25
NatiunaI grpabltta,
GRASSHOPPER CAYYTBALLSL


Grace Greenwood, in letter to the New
York Times, tells this story of the Colorado
grasshoppers:
'Colorado Springs is now the capital Of FL
Paso county, so it will have the county fair
this fall. They have inclosed more than q
hundred acres for the grounds. It was eE-
pected that we should have fine exhibition of
farm and garden products, but imam proposes
and the grasshopper disposes.' He has dis
posed of everything green, and now, asthough
acting on the Scriptural assertion that IAN
flesh is grass has taken to RECALLING himself
on his brother hopper. 1t is shocking to dis
cover what remorseless cannibals these small
creatures are. If one becomes disabled in the
slightest degree, his friends and relatives rally
around him in his extremity and generally help
themselves to whatever is eatable. They gen
orally go first for the brain, as the daintiest
mOrsel, cunningly abstracting it from its cells,
and yet he somehow lives on for time, aRd
hardly seems to miss that rather important
organ. The younger ones seem the most yorA-
cious and rapacious, but while they make 4
fatal charge, graye-loOking elders viii stand
about, watching their old friends demise,
evidently specializing as to how he will cut
up They are in no haste, but are always in
at the death. The other day whfled away 3
half hour in one of the summer-houses near
the springs in watching the proceedings of a
set of these small rufisns toward a disabled
comrade. He had lost leg-hOw need not
state; thou eanst not say 1 did iE'-though if
forithe sake of scientific investigation brought
myself to perform that little surgical opera
ton, what harml It is surprising to
h1,r- ,-sTv-
detached. 1t seems always TO be a semi-de-
tached member. The creature don't seem to
mind the loss much, and will go on eating as
though grasshoppers' legs grew on. every
bushp This one evidently did not realize his
misfortune till he was attacked and found he
could neither walk nor fly. How he was beset,
to be sure! First brisk young fellow, with
the cool, business air of a surgeon, began tap
ping his rather distended stomach; another
pro6ed him about the joint whence the leg
had been removed; third set himself to dis
sect the amputated limb. One slim starr cling
began browsing on the tips of his wings; then
big, bustling old wretch stepped forward aud
interviewed him by deliberately boring into his
brain; next yellow jacket settled on him and
stung and sucked here and there, while, to add
insult to injury, two spiteful black ants pierced
through the joints Of his cuirass and worked
their way into his yitals. He fought braYely-
it was astonishing to see how pluekily he stood
up against his fierce assailants, like NINA
ture Moulton. He kicked furiously with his
one sound hind leg against the pricks' of
the wasp. He struck out and gesticulated
wildly with his arms or forelegs-his moustache
or sntenne bristled with defance-but the
great congregation of his foes was too much
for him, though he did not cease to struggle
while anything remained to struggle with
They did not leave him till he was reduced to
the mere shell of grasshopper."
ORGANLSTS AND ORGANPLAYLYG.
The influence of a good organist and organ
on church singing can scarcely be oyeresti-
mated. If the clergyman is not musical and
has good common sense, the organist viii be
supreme in the musical portion Of the services.
It is, therefore, of far greater Importance than
is usually supposed, that the Organist should
be something more than a mere musical ma
chine. There are two pulpits in every church.
The pastor breaches from one, and the organist
or choir director CASUALLY the same) from the
other. The most ferYent expression of the
clerical pulpit may be weakened or absolutely
destroyed by the frivolous performance Of the
musical pastor. We doubt if this fact has
ever fully impressed the majority Of our read
ers, and yet scarcely one has not felt that the
impression, for instance, of an excellent ser
mon has been obliterated from the mind before
he has reached the outer door of the church.
He cannot tell why; but the Organist could, if
he would recall that the most solemn utter
ances of the pastor have been followed by
some frivolous and utterly inappropriate organ
performance.
This is not mere surmise on our part We
have repeatedly seen this result in the past
twenty-five years. The average Organist has
evidently had no more sympathy with the
| church than with paying the national debt.
His business was simply to play vOlunta airy,
support the choir in singing, and dance the
congregation out Of the church to any tune
which struck his fancy, or which he may have
selected or prepared for performance days be-
fore. II is this Appropriateness with which
we think Organists are especially chargeable.
What would we think Of a clergyman who in
dulged in levity at a funerals And yet we
have heard Organists, after a sermon which
excited to the utmost solemn reflections, am
bic gaily into selections from 'Martha,"
"Traviata,' and Git is pity to write it) Often
bach. Hands all around and down the mid
die" is too often suggested by these careless
performances.
Inc LuuuclGc VI buGu duOE8dulbL Ou the CHOIR
Is in the highest degree demOraliZing. The
fiippancy which characterizes the organ per-
Torrance will inevitably creep into the singing.
1t has, in fact, developed a school of sO-called
sacred compositions whose weak sentimental
ity and faulty construction would have exaspe-
rated Handel almost to homicide, and hurried
HAYDN to q premature grave. Modern COM
posers too often diyerge as far as possible from
these noble models. The sole effort seems to
be to please the ear and tickle the fancy. There
is no attempt at q wOrshipful style. They are
usually as defective in sanctity and reverence
as in grammatical construction. The simplest
rules Of harmony are disregarded in order to
produce striking effects. The choir loft is con
.verted to an arena for the exhibition of vocal
gymnasts. There are ground and lofty tumb-
hngs by the solo soprano, acrObatic feats of
strength by the bass, ambitious and exciting
efforts TO attain the attenuated, wiry high G,
and more or less side-shOw business by the
alto, organist and all concerned. But this is a
topic that cannot be disposed of in brief par
agraph. 1t needs careful diagnosis and a
sound remedy. We doubt if it can be cured
by homeopathic doses-that is, by inefficient
church music eommittees-but requires the
most heroic treatment by the congregations
themselves. ChOirs often sing such stuff,
either because they think the people like it. or
are too indOlent to enter protest against it.
Congregations are lOng-suffering, but we earn
estly hope and confidently believe that the
judgment day for this Sacred bOsh and also
for Ofienbachian Organists is fast approaching.
-AltliRe for October.
PROBABLY THE OLDEST TIMER IN
THE WORLD.
Probably the Oldest timber in the world
which has been subjected to the use of man
is that found in the ancient temple of Egypt
in connection with the stone-work, which is
known to be, at least 900 years old. This,
the only wood used in the construction of the
temple, is in the form of ties, holding the end