Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1888-08-25
DECLINE or MIMsrnllsy.


The Negro cf Ante-Bouum Days Gone
from, the Amussansnt Stage.
How many readers remember the old
Christie ninstrels, which created such .
furore during tho year succeeding the
war7 II there are many. and OF course
there Is no doubt that therc are, they will
remember the old plantation scenes. the
genuine negro Of tho south, wise In 9
crude way. full Of humor and mirth, and
in spite of his rags and plain food. They
gavc us the diaiect Of tic southern plan.
tation. with all the local coloring and GUS
toms. They sang us the negro songs,
which lingor In the brain as delightful
"Reminiscences Of true melody. II Ia pity
that they are no moro.
The negro Of the south In the ante-war
days has disappeared from the amuse-
ment stage We have now in negro min
strelsy an entirely different kind Of burnt
cork artist. He Is dressed up In garb so
fantastic as 10 put TO shame the tailor's
flights Of imagination. II he ever has any.
Hc talks jargon which Is no more tho
language Of the cotton picking slave than
10 is Of Greece. He acts boisterously and
his fun Is Of the noisy kind; tho moro
noise he can create the better It seems to
bo. We have our minstrels dressed like
courticrs in the timc when court cos.
tume was carried TO the extreme. We
have them dressed In apparel that sccms
TO be cross between today and yester-
day, the present and the past. Some.
tunes the cork is unceremoniously left of
and wo have our negro minstrels In
whitei
There is hardly trace in tho present
minstrelsy Of tho good. old fashioned
negro minstrel OF twenty years ago. BY
a process of evolution he has come out q
being which Christie and Baclus and the
rest Of the pioneers ON the minstrel stage
would never recognize. He Is lusus ma.
ture Of minstrelsy Negro minstrels In
those days was study, Tho negro OF
the south during the time preceding tho
war was peculiar institution. He was
indigenous TO the soil. He was study
and there was somo delight In studying
him. The present relic Of the minstrel Is
a purely modern invention, brought into
being 60 satisfy the everlasting desire on
the part OF the public for change and
novelty. We do not criticise the man
ayers Of the minstrelsy Of today for this
radical innovation. They want to make
money and they cater TO the prevailing
taste to get 1t.
Another regret that one feels who looks
back upon the minstrelsy Of the days Of
Christie Is caused by the music The
present minstrel il q ballad singer. So
was tho MINSTREL Of the past. But now
he sings ballads Of q lot Of mushroom
composers who exist solely for the pur-
pose of writing ballads to be sung by the
minstrel performers. There is no indi-
viduality about tho music. II Is senti.
mental, sometimes slckly sentimental,
and no more. An Infinite variety of ten
der subjects Is covered and drawn upon.
II America ever had class Of music
which can be strictly called American. 10
Is the muaic that Stephen q. Foster COM
posed. He was the author Of my Old
Kentucky Home" Ellen Bayne," ""Wsy
Down Upon the Suwanee River, 'fWillie.
We Have Missed You." .'Hard Times" /"
"oh. Susanna" Nancy Till" and hosts
of others. Fosters melodies were an IL
lustration Of slave life. They were not
only cast in the best mold Of purc melody,
hut they were, with their words. full Of
pathos and tho healthiest kind Of senti-
ment. Fosters music ought TO be pre-
served because 1t is SO distinctly Ameri.
can music. The tunes covered variety
OF styles. Some were rollicking In their
rhythmic effects. Some were perfect
idyls. Some wero love songs which mover
have and never can be excelled. Tho
charm of simplicity and innocence hung
over them all. II Is q pity that We have
lost this music as feature Of our min
strelsy OF TODAY. .--Detro,t Free Prasa-