The Brookhaven ledger. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1875-1883, 1879-01-30


prayer to be made better woaan-to
be made able to servo the Maker Of 80
wonderful world in the way that she
should. We all uncovered our heads az
she knelt there. and thing I am the
better man for that memory.
I'VE had been together then for
neatly q month. I had Miss Lind and
fher party as passengers from New Or.
/ leans to Louisville. The trip dowr 1
lhad carried hundreds Of the hrst people
|of the South to hear her sing in New
Orleans. They had come all the way
from Memphis and Little Rock and
vioksburg. but when they got to New
Orleans there was hardly a seat to bs
had foe lore OF money. Sos many oi
them came back with me unsatisficd-
they had rather be On the same boat
with Jenny Lind-than to stay for the
Mardi Gras aud ell that in New Or
leans. When We we're fairly on onl
way up the river. one Of the LADIES'
she WAS great belle in her day, the
daughter OF o Senator, and afterwa1de
the wife of one of our foreign Minis
ters-came to me and asked whether il
was really true that Miss Lind meant to
keep her stateioom all the way te
Memphis.
"'Of course not, said I, Every body
comes to dinner on my boat.
Those we're simple times. The C.p'
tain Of Mississippi steamboat VAS g
person of more consequence, even. thar
the commander Of an ocean steamer il
today, and Captain Thomasson was the
most noted Of all the Capteins on the
Father of Waters.
-'"Of course not. She'll be at din.
nsr to-day Then I went to Barnum-
Bsrnum, the Snowman. who was manag'
ing Miss Lind.
'Bsrnum,' said I. 'is Miss Lind get
ting ready Tor dinnerr
"Bsrnun los,ked up, surprised. 'Whj
no, said he. Miss Lind eats her meals
in her ROOM
"'Not on my boat said 1; for yor
see / didn't want to disappoint the Ia
dies. Well. Barnum and argued il
awhile, and then I agreed to talk tt
MISS Lind myself about it. I knocked
at the door OF her stateroorn.
'The pleasantest voice ever heard
said, Come in.'
"'Miss Lind, said I, 4 am the Car
tain of this boat. There are twenty la'
dies on board-ladies of the first sta
tion in America-whom I had brough,
anywhere from two to six hundred milei
down to New Orleans to hear and to SCI
son. They could pot sosu~-u to tbs doc
tof yonr concert room for the crowd. 81
they took passage on my boat agair
with no other hope than just to see you
They didn's mean to be rude-neithe
do 1; but do hope you will gratif.
them and not seclude yourself all thu
long trip
MY denr Capitaine. said she. Al
pleasantly as could be. 4 don't mean t.
hide myself. Why should 1? But wha
would you have me do?'
Come aud sit at my right hand a
dinner said I. Its nearly time TO
the bell to ring
"'Wiz ze greatest plazure, snid th'
great lady. and when dinner was read,
che came ont of her stats>room smiling
ana bowed to every body IN the ladie
cabin. sud sat down by my side.
I Twill you not do me 70 honaire tc
Introduce me to the ladies' she SAID
and introduced her to all the lad,
passengers that we're at my table-al
latlies, mind you. It was the mos
pleasant dinner ever had. Miss Lint
was curious about everything. and es
Ipecially about plantation life. Sh,
and Miss to be great friends
and the lady afterward visited Mrs
0oldschmidt, after her marrisge to th,
pianist. at her home in London.
"After dinner the tables were cleared
away, and Miss Lind sat down on tn,
sofa at the end of the cabin
I went forward 10 where Barnum Wal
sitting near the clerks office. Bar,
mum, said I, won't Miss Lind sing
something for the ladies7'
Captain, said he turning on me
1 are you gone raving mad2 Miss Limo
sing in public place like thisl Why
man. you make me laugh. Miss Limo
gets thousand dollars for every sons
she sings. Perhaps you've got thou
said dollors to spare about you? Ohel
her that-and then she'll tell you to &c
about your business
".All right, Bsrnum" eaid /, well
see.'
"Well, then, I went into the pantry
and got my nigger band together
There WAS one likely young boy among
'em, who had such voice as ycu never
heard. was younger then by con-
siderable, than am now, but / could
never hear tina. boy sing one Of his
plantation songs without the tears com
ing into my eyes. But l thought I'd
| tn him first. So one of the boys KEEP,
time on his banjo, and the fellow sang
over his song. II was about . yellow
rirl who had been sold of into slavery
from her Louisians home into Goorgia
/ always thought the boy made it ur
himssif. I never heard the words o.
the music before or since. The words
didn't exactly rhyme, nor the music
wasn't such as you hear in the opera
but / knew it would do. So I got the
boys together in the cabin, and aftel
they had played while the boy SANG
his song. Miss Lind listened from first
10 last, and there were tears in her eyes
Too, when IL Was through. don't ex.
actiy know hcw it was, but five min
utes afterward she was st the piano
land sang first the music OF that song al
iuell:ns She could remember it, and ther
song after song Of hAgs own. And moi
only that evening either. bat every
evening she was on the boat. The pi'
anist Of her troupe played too. and the
older members Of the company sang o.
played, and my ladies also, and suot
concerts there never were in Americs
before nor since.
1--WE got to be great friends. and
when We reached Louisville and my
AooS Il: 80 ~, anoonrk - kha Zoe ahs