The Arkansaw traveler., 1886-04-03

Are you from America?" the little boy asked in French.
 Yes, answered one of the party
 Oh, then, surely you must know my father?"
 - The strangers laughed heartily, but one of them asked, pleasantly, Who Is your father?"
 Carl TaSso, and he lives in Virginia
 In Riohmond?'
 Yes in Richmond
 We'll, We do know him, We are from Richmond. The homesick Jose was de lighted. He refused to part company with them. and at last accompanied them home when they returned, and rejoined his parents at Richmond Ioung TasSo was now a lad of fifteen, as handsome youth as one often sees, and of wonderful skill with the violin He soon found himself at Baltimore, where he Was offered the first violin in the Gay Street theatre. by Manager la Trolle he who afterwards married the famous Madame Placide Here Tasso learned to speak English, as he sat lit erally under the words of such actors as Warren and Wood and Jefferson as they appeared in Shakespeare trage- dies and the dignitied dramas of those days He stayed at Baltimore some years, and was paid what was regarded as the muniiicent sums of SIS and later $25 d week for his work, aS leader of the orchestra
 In 1890 Tas>o made his first visit to Cincinnati His step-mother-to by this time his mother had died and his father had made his fifth matrimonial contest-had a brother living here and the family decided to visit the west. They came to Pittsburg. bought family tlat-boat and started to float down the river on April 70, reaching Cincinnati July l There was warm welcome for all the voyagers especially to the young Vioiinist For some time he enjoyed himself alternately at Cincinnati and Louisville. It was on one of his trips to the latter place that he met Il pretty black-eyed girl, the daughter of Louis ! D Arcambal, then consul general from France to the United States. It was on both sides case of love at first sight Tasso was one of the handsomcst of young men, of fine figure and dark eyes that either spoke of love or overtlowed with joyous laughter. The girls grand father had been French nobleman and her aunts maids of honor to the queen. Her father, himself was n proud and honorable man. who seems not to have objected to his daughter youthful lovcr-hc was not vet nineteen. But Ta>so the elder, forgetful of his own example strovc to smother his son first tender passion Too young, toe young, Jose You'll meet plenty black. eyed girls, besides But Jose answered No; this is the girl and shall marry next month. Very we'll marry if you will You can have the black-cyed girl. but none of my money. Both kept their word fine young man married and the old one disinhcrited him, turned his back on him went of to Mexico. and they never met again.
 Jose was now alone and without money. for share in his mothers for tune, which had been left him in bank of Cadiz, Spain, had been lost by th" failure of the bank But h" hung out in Louisville his shinglc as maitrt d. m4- S'q''s and got plenty of pupils In N21 he moved to Cincinnati, and her, for nearly sixty years h. has lived In month he had thirty-two scholars led the choir at St. Xavier church on sun day, and the orchestra at the only thea tre in the city on week days He va, the only professor of music in the place the nearest approach to it was a singing master, who was a carpenter in the daytime, and made d heroic but futile attempt at teaching singing after early candle lighting
 Tasso soon became leader in society He knew every body and was welcomed everywhere When the beaux of that day wanted ball, Tasso was invariably both master of arrangements and leader of the music As leader of the orchcs tra. he knew all the actors and actresses who were in turn delighted with his n- comparable playing. Forrest was one of his earliest and staunchest of friends, and never came to Cincinnati without paying him a long and cordial visit To him Tasso dedicated one of hi- best pieces "f music: The Grey old Sycamore, much to the tragedian.