The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1886-09-18
POPULAR SONGS.
Gems of Melody Composed by Men No
Known to Fame or Fortune,

Gems of Melody Composed by Men Not
Known to Fame or Fortune,
1t would seem that by some strange
fatality the writer's of popular songs
never participate in the occasionally
enormous profits derived by publishers
from their works. A newspaper para
graph went the rounds during Titiens'
last tour in America describing how
Couch, the composer of "Kathleen
Mavourneen," came to the great artist
and thanked her for the feeling and the
skill with which she had sung the song
at concert in Baltimore. where he was
then residing. He mentioned at the
time that he had sold his composition
long years before for rs. H. +. Danks,
very prolific song-writer, disposed OF
his ''Silver Threads Among the Gold"
for 1926. For year he had failed to in
duce various publishers to take hold of
it and make some business arrangement
with him. At last he found printer
who agreed to share the expense of
setting it up for one-half of the result
ing profits, if there were any. The ex-
pense of printing song is considerable
The plates cost about $15, and copies of
lit may be turned out for something like
y cents apiece. The supposed advan-
tagc of having song published by
well-known publisher is not so much
that he bears the expense of publishing
as that he has facilities for circulating
through the trade, and thus having a
way for its introduction to the
public. 1t is supposed advantage,
for songs are introduced to the public
by man or woman on the stage singing
them, and not by q music clerk behind
a counter inducing seminary girls and
young theologians with musical tastes to
purchase copy here and there. How
ever, Mr.. Danks and his printer got the
song up in shape for puplic sale, and
did what they could to presentit to pub
lie attention. They made little sue
cess the first year, but the impotuous
and creative spirit of Mr.. banks was
not satisfied. 1t was going too slowly
for him, and he finally sold out to his
partner for the amount mentioned
above. ''Silver Threads Among the
Gold' steadily grew into popularity; it
made its way to England, and in point of
sales easily ranks with any song ever
published. Tho share which Mr.. Danks
sold for S25 would have yielded him
perhaps So, 900 in the two or three sub
seguent years. j. p. Skelly, the COM
poser of ''My Pretty Red Rose," and
many other successful songs whose sales
have reached four and sometimes five
figures, has never protited by these suc-
ccsses. He invai ably sells his compo-
sitions to publishers outright, and is so
prolific that he makes living from this
work. He sells songs all the way from
So to s25 apiece and writes rs many us
half dozen week. From some of
his compositions tho publishers never
got any return; from Others the returns
arc very large. Mr.. Henry p. Work,
who died in 1885, and who was without
any doubt the most successful among
the writer's OF modern popular songs, Is
the exception which proves the rule il
Illustrated above.
"Mr. Work never sold song to
music publisher for fixed sum-, re-
cently said Willis Woodward. who knew
MIR. Work intimately. ale was a
printer by trade, and when he started In
to writo songs, as u pastime for leisure
hours, he determined that he would
never publish his works save on royalty.
Tho result was that he died worth over
800, QUO, and his songs are still profit
abe to his heirs. Babylon Is Fallen
and Marching Through Georgia were