The Penn's Grove record., 1888-11-17
~rHE DIVORCE MARCH,"
An Ex-wife Who Tells Her story on
the TelI-Taic Keyboard,

One fine morning the younger woman
was walking past the little house with
a roll of music in her band, when she
heard q melody from the piano coming
through the open window. Something
In the piece and the way the piano was
handled attracted the girls attention,
and she stopped and listened. She
grew so much interested that she be-
came bold enough to ask an old woman
standing in the door, who lived In the
house. who vas playing. A CONVERSE
ton followed, the result of which was
the young lady found herself in five
minutes In the parlor and talking with
the player at The piano.
please tell me-" she said, what
that piece WASP"
"Oh, 1t was nothing much. / often
improvise rs 1 play. My fingers follow
my fancy, as 1 suppose is the case with
everybody"
ii can't think that was improvised.
IL was too good"
swell, you mustn't laugh when 1
tell you that piece is really my own
composition, though not a note OF 1t
has ever been written down. l some
how fird myself playing it very often
l hardly know why, l call 1t the 'Di-
yorce March,"
..The divorce Marcfg' Heavens.
what a name for u piece of musicl"
Its a peculiar fancy, l know, but
it,, my own, Don't think badly Of me
for it,"
Il couldn't do that. It's very beau
tiful. PLAY il again.
Her long. sliapely fingers swept over
the keys in a delicious prelude, which
led up 10 the composition proper. 1t
was hard for the young girl, IN telling
about it afterwards, 10 describe what
she heard. The way she interpreted it
was this: Bars upon bars OF beautiful
descriptive passages seemed TO speak OF
beautiful spring weather, nature in her
finest dress, the trees full Of foliage,
flowers blooming, soft winds blowing,
ripping streams. and all that sort OF
thing. She fancied she could hear the
! song of birds in the boughs, and an
swers coming back. This vas youth
in full glow, and the tender, Joyous,
| and sometimes exuberant, dialogue
| that followed was surely two happy
| people talking and telling of things that
| lie mighty deep in these human natures
J of Ours, and which cannot lie found out
| by superficial examination. 1t was
something of love. The melody went
on, rippingly beautiful. now deeper,
now lighter in its go, changing occas
ionally in time anu key, with q notice
able Introduction here and there of
harsh bar or two, the memory of which
however, was swept out Of the mind by
the grand dialogues and duets that fol
lowed, tuli of harmony and life. Thost
people were happy. Further on, faint
ly at first. were fragments of sofI
marches, bits Of melody resembling TIL,
famous Mendelssohn and "Lohengrin'
l wedding marches, familiar TO every
body, but not exactly ike them. Herr
was Il wedding day. The characters
tic quality of the piece had been devel
! oping slowly. Now comes, in SLOW
time, one of the s~ofteSt, most moyin,
/ iuIlabys the girl had ever heard. Tn
pathos of the player, she said, was won
derful from tile first moment She touch
ed that lullaby. 1t thrilled her, bu
she could not describe it. She fanciet
all sorts Of things; the rocking of
cradle, the cooling of a babe, love ant
tears and anxiety of the mother mixed
sighs, infant smiles and what not
The march swept on, its distinguishin,
parts coming out clearer and clearer
crashes of discord, little quarrels an,
markings up, pleadings in the mlno
key, glorious bursts of sunshine an,
sudden downpour of storm, ending in
steady, solemn march Of separation
an impressive, gloomy thing. that die
away like the sound of the footsteps o
two people ~retreating sadly further an,
further from eacn other, never to com
together again. 1t seemed all done
when softly there arose out of the sad
ness that delicious lullaby, touching
pathetic, fearful. 1t went on a littl
and faded away in sweetness.
When it was finished and the player
hands dropped from the keys the tw
women ci;usped each other like childreI
about the neck and sobbed as if thel
hearts would break.
THAT'S tie story Of my life in on
shape SAID the older, '.and someho,
that's why l play 1t so often. 1 love
my husband, God knows. 1 wanted
cultivated man and 1 was disappointed
l could have borne everything for m
child's sake, but the court gave her t
him and l ana wretched. That lullab
Is my child's voice. The Judge said
couldn't take care of it. Pm so pool
you see. and lie is rich"
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