The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1884-02-28
Money in Songs.
10 -secret- of s-ccess IN the world de-

=
Who catch the spirit of the hour fri
amph. Thus it is that ephemerals
zrow rich and notable while giant
minds are starving in obscurity. We
need not 60 far for an illustration OF
ibis anomalous condition If one Will
contrast the success of a certain class
If song-writers with the unsuccess OF
composers Of grand melodies and the
builders of noble verse there will be
seen in bold front the difference be-
tween qualification and education I'D
the matter of taste.
! There are several young men in the
country, bright. observing, but not very
/ intellectual fellows, who devote a
small fraction of their time to the max
mo of light-favored songs that appeal
:entimentally to the heart, the music
icing little more than jingle Of notes,
with an occasional melOdiOus strain.
Being written to catch the. masses, and
not to delight the sense of the unsteady
refined, these fugitive pieces are de-
scrj5ed as craze songs. and the uni
verealitv of welcome given to many of
them iustities the term. These are the
tunes that, heard from the stage. are
picked up readily and hummed by
every one, are whistled in the street
and sung in the parlor until they are
familiar with all conditions of people,
from galnin to belle. And these songs
are mostly musical tricks. The writers
,hrewdly take up some common emo
ion and play upon it, nothing being
more characteristic of these songs than
their nursery flavor, their childhood
sieInents. -.-.
In one of the most popular there Is
an insignifcance of ideas, a tlatness OF
verse, a schoolgirl quality of rhyme
and an insipidity of musical character,
get there have been over 100000 copies
of it sold, and the fortunate author has
already received $4,000 in royalties.
This is the song entitled ''Peek-a-BOo, ="
written b. a bright young IriShman
1amed Seaman. This Young man, who
Is but twenty-five years of age. has
written several of these ''craZe" songs,
among them, He Never Went Back on
The Poor" Terry Joined the Gang, "
s.Bv-by. Baby. By-by,' from which he
has received something more than S25.-
900, and now calculates his income
from continued royalties about $4,000 q
month.
The sentimental "Silver Threads
Among the Cold is still selling, after
800, 900 copies Of it have been put upon
The public put Me in My Little Bed"
and "Mv Grandfather Clock have
reached 400, 900 copies each, and are
out of demand There are a score or
more of these craze" songs that have
been sold 'phenomenally, and they are
being turned OF inceSSantly, each sea-
son having born 10 it from one to 9
dozen. OF course a great many write
who ret no returns, but that is because
they have neither the tact nor the
means of Introducing them to the pub
lie. not because they can possibly write
ANYTHING too idiotic to win favor. We
cannot imagine any one writing less
sensible things than the popular
catches,
I never drink behind the bar.
Though may smoke a mild cigar,
"Babies on Our Block" or Are YC
There, Moriarity?" The profits on such
soncs range between -, 200 and Sl5,'
900
There is another field in which trash
tells against worth in the conquest OF
public favor in Astonishing proportion.
Among the most popular plays now are
those that some years ago would have
been denied admission to the stage.
They are made up of the most direct
appeals to the sympathetic emotions as
distinguished from the reasoning facul
ties. usually being such affairs as the
Indictment condemns, while the sentt
ment, easily affected, approves. \
successful play yields its proprietor
anywhere from $4,000 to 9lOO,0OO
J wear, though the latter figures, o.
course, cover the. very rare exceptions
Profits of $4,000 = Year on theatre
enterprises are not uncommon. ltwil
not do to say that good plays and gool
, attractions do not succeed, for as mat
| ter of fact they make, in the long run
the most money. But the phenomena
successes are the plays that, like .th'
adroitly-timed songs, become a craze,
either for their striking novelty or hc
: cause of some Fictitious eircumstarc'
!. attending their production, The re
ceipts from the performances o
Hazel Kirke.' for example, hav'
} so far considerably exceeded $1,000,
600, and it is vet BY no means Wort
] out. Mr.. BARLEY Campbell received
in one wear from two OF his play
the sum of $4,000. He perhaps re
ceives more than that now. Otherplay
writers sell their works outright, whcI
the terms range from 5000 TO $40, on
! for play. This year Mr.. DAILY, OF NeV
York. gets $4,000 for merely renting
? two of his old plays for a season
: thirty weeks to Mr.. John Stetson. Their
is still a cheaper class of plays, 10
j which the terms are 500 to $500 for
play perhaps the work of three weeks
With these figures to encourage tn
: aspirant for wealth and fame, it is small
wonder so many rush into attempte'
| competition with successful sOng-wT1ter
g and dramatists. But alas for credulou
! human nature. The successes are a
one to myriad of failures. The Tor
4; tunes OF the few is the ignus fatus Q
1 the many There are musical genluse
1 whose songs will never be sung, an
} prodigieS of plavmakers whose writing
4 will never be read. They may be NOR
entitled to the forward place than thos
who pet there: but the. battle Is no
always to the strong nor the race to tn
swift. They who succeed are twic
2 fortunate fortunate in the chance an
I fortunate in happily aTailing themseive
l Fof it.-csncinnaS Commercial Gdzcttt