The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1880-06-24
EXIT THE DRUM.
History Of the Instrument Ahol-
ished by the French.

Drummers and their drums are
to be eliminated from the French
army by the reforming zeal of Gen.
Fare, and that the infantry soldier
will not march better in conse
quence of this latest innovation may
be safely predicted, for any attempt
he may have made hitherto to keep
step has been mainly due to the
rataplan. Comparatively little i'm
portance, however, is attached in
France to regularity of step, though
a regiment which makes any show
OF it is Invariably the most cheered
at reviews, this being one of the
Inconsistencies prevalent here which
it would be vain TO attempt explain
ing. I he minister of war explained
before the Budget Committee that
his reason for adopting the change
is because drummers are not com
batants, so he proposes to replace
them by trumpeters, who do come
under that category. Like the
white leather aprons Of the sappers,
which have disappeared for some
time, the little parchment-covered
cylinders are henceforth I oomed. j
do not know whether the origin of
the drum has ever been traced by
some patient inquirer. We have
been told that it comes to US from
The East, anu that the Moors first
brought it into Europe. Certain is
the fact that the most savage races
have always rejoiced in their tam
tams, and as the pleasure OF making
a noise is inherent in human nature,
perhaps this most effective way of
creating a din was invented by
Adams sons or gran sons. But
the urum does not appear to have
been used in the French army until
towards the close of the fourteenth
Gentry, and its introduction is at
tributed to the English invasion Tin
der Edward Ill; its general adop
ton by the infantry dates back to
the time of Louis XII, when the
Swiss element was largely infused
into the royal forces. The drum
az that epoch was a shapeless
instrument, and served more for
rallying the troops or for the con
veyance of the word of command
than for regulating the step, which
was far from being as measured as
1t is now. Each captain had a
drummer in his private livery, and
he employed him to carry his or
ders or his INSTRUCT ms as much a.
for beating the word OF command;
the drummer in those days appears
to have been q kind of abide camp.
The covering was usually made
from the hide of some animal-gen-
orally of an ass-though If it be
true that John Zisca, the avenger OF
Huss, bequeathed his skin to his
gallant companions in aims to form
the covering Of a drum which was
to summons them in case of danger,
material more noble was at least
once made to serve that purpose.
The drum was not used for drilling
infantry to keep step until the mid
die of the eighteenth century, and
the roll such as we now know it
was only regulated some hundred
years ago. The drumn1er's art then
become more difficult, and TO per-
tecG it regimental schools were es-
tablished, the master of which was
the drum-major, who IN recent time
was still such prominent and pop
ular parsonage in each French reg
iment. The period of his greatest
glory was the First Empire when
the drum-major of the GrenadIers
of the Guard had rank as a captain
and wore a uniform which cost Ma
poleon E12O. Under the Restora-
tion anu the Monarch of July drum
majors were given to the regiments
of fire men, and even to those of the
National Guards, but of late years
their prestige has diminished in a
great extent, and also their statue.
They are no longer such imposing
clothes horses, all lace and feathers,
towering above ordinary mortals;
the race has in fact been visibly de-
teriorating. Such as they are, how
ever, they will now disappear from
the head o: French regiments with
their drums Paris Cor. London
Morning Post. May 26.