, 1879-05-11

has been found. It is newspaper whic
sees nothing funny in "Pinafore." A
might have been expected, it is St. Loui
newpaper, and its nameis the Globe Democrat
It doesn't "tackle kindly" to s'Pinafore." I
has "nevar," not even s'hardly ever" seol
anything funny in it,-neither its editor no
- his sisterB, his cousins, and his aunts." I
does not think it's greatly to the credit " O
the American people that they have enjoyed
it SO much. It afirms that its extraordinar,
success is IA satire upon our boosted prog
| ress in music" that 1.-THE best airs ara moi
| above the level Of the catoh-tunes played by
hand-organs in the lowest quarters Of Lon.
don, and the choral parts are better suited
to village~fair than q cultivated audience. II
"There is but a modicum of wit, the
faintest scintillation of humor, aud after all
its repetitions there is not an air which is or
deserves to be more popular than sWilikins
and His Dinah,' 'AIy Mary Ann or
SThe Rat-Catcher's Daughter" This is sad,
and it is sadder still for the people to be in
formed that s'they have been making fools
OF themselves" =.
There are two ways Of accounting for this
aggravated and deadly assault upon the pop
ular favorite, One Of them involves the stu
pldlty and the other the afectation of those
very singular and very uncomfortable people
who}iye in St. Louis. They belong to the same
class us the testy Scotohman who became so
wroth with CHARLES LAa1B at the BURNS Fes-
ttival, when he said in his speech that, if
BURNS were living, he would undoubtedly
have enjoyed tue occasion, aud angr11y asked
how he could be present when he was dead;
or to tho same genus as famous publicist Of
our own day, who completely sque}ched ABRA-
HAM L1Sco1S's illustration Of the Mississippi
steamers running where it was q little
damp, by declaring that they could
not do it, and offering to prove it. Besides
this, the devotion to good music, which this
attack would seem to argue, is an atfactation
and hollow humbug. There is not d mu-
slcian of any note who can earn his salt
there. Some Of our Chicago musicians have
gone down there and tried it, but left as |
soon Us they could get rcmittances from
home. The opera always loses money there. |
Symphony concerts arc unknown. Its |
are always making application
sor positions in Chicago. It got away one
# our numerous conductors, but he speedily
eft in disgust. It still holds another, who.
7ill get away as soon as hs can raise the
money. It has one music store, whose busi-
less is heavily in plantation melodies, and
me so-callad Conservatory, that teaches the !
udimonts to children, Musical refugees
rom there report that the + only man
q st. Louis who knows anything ABOUT
ausic lives outside the city. They have |;
ne Society,". however, which. has made
ome progress Il will do the "Flower
!ueeu F." next season.: and mny reach
Esther in 1880, provided it can import the |;
'loists. The. trouble, therefore, is not SO
'uch with "Piuafore" as with the people. /,
hey are not up to it yet. They need edu- 4
stion. They: want musical missionaries.
hey are too practical. II can hardly f.
> expected that a city which has :
} support the bridge and compile +
lot directory can give tho requisite | !
me and thought TO appreciate 'sPinafore." j.
the Glo6e-Den1ocrat, instead of abusing
Pinafore, would devote itself more assidu- ii
'sly to its pet scheme Of anne1;ng St. Louis a
Illinois, and carry the project, it would =
en- feel the musical influences of Chicago, H.
ID would have no difficulty in mastering =
Pinafore +" I i