Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1891-04-04
THE TREMOLO STOP.
BY ERNEST JARROLD.
TIE old mans smile was the sunniest


NJ, les
1t began with merry twinkle in his
YES, and ran dow his cheeks in ripples,
oftening the wri kles, and irradiating
mis- swart face as apple blossoms lightup
an orchard.
This sunny smile was an outward ex-
preston of a CHEEKY philosophy born of
varied fortunes.
In his youth the old man had sung i'll
the chorus of an opera company, and he
looked back through the 40 intervening
years with pleasure to the night when he
had been permitted to sing solo But
disease had injured the delicate music
box in his throat, and his hopes of be
coming famous tenor were crushed
Then he enlisted and fought with Carl
baldi and left leg on the batt,efi I'D.
On his Goth birthday he stood in the
shade of an lick tree in the city of
Naples, the possessor of a long gray
beard, wooden leg, and a barrel organ.
The organ was beautiful instrument,
rich in tone, and ornanented with giId-
ing. When the old man pulled aside
the red silken curtain which hung on a
brass rod in front of the organ, he
dis layed to the eyes of the children
number of little wooden figures. which
danced and curtsied with the grace of
courtiers. Wien he turned the handle
of the organ out came the miserere
song from La Trovatore,' followed by
the jocund hilarity of Rory O'More,'
the plaiutive sweetness of Annie
Laurie the inspiring strains of the
Watch on the Rhine the warlike
measures of Rule Britannia and, last,
that most cosmopolitan of airs, Home,
Sweet Home But the wonderful
thing about the organ was the tremolo
stop, which was m chanical con-
trivance of the old mans invention. 1t
was used only in connection with the
song of home, and when he touched
this stop it impaired a tremulous,
wavering movement to the music. The
old man found the tremolo stop to be
very profitable, because it made travel
ers feel homesck. and so the home
song brought him more pennies than
all the other tunes in his organ. But
aS the summer wore away and the
travellers became few in Naples, the
sunlight in his smile faded and left an
anxious look on the old mans face.
For he had been carefully saving his
pennies toward opening "a cafe.
He reasoned that it woud be easy to
dish out macaroni when he could no
longer carry around heavy organ.
One day two friends of his youth, who
had just returned from America with
what in his estimation We're snug for
tunes, met him. These friends were
bootbacks. They we're attracted by the
tremolo stop, and knowing that Ameri-
caus we're always in search of a novelty,
they advised the old man to go to
America and assured him that he could
return within a year with money enough
10 open cafe.
The old man listened eagerly to the
advice of his friends, but he hesitated
ont leaving his native land; besides,
he was growing Old, and all lie desired
was rest and comfort. But there was
no prospect of realizing his hopes in
Ilaly, and so. after counting his money
carefully, and finding that he had a
little more than enough to pay for his
passage. he resolved to go to America.
Landed at Castle Garden, he was dis.
appointed that his service with Carl
baldi did not bring him Il patriots vel
come among his countrymen. His sue
cess with his organ, however, was even
greater than lie had been led to expect.
The native dignity of the old man, his
injecting snile-into which as his for
tunes rose and rose tn, sunlight had
returned - and the tremolo stop,
attracted attention, and the PEN
nies came to him as easily as oats run
out of bin The aptness with which
the puppet who held out the little brass
plate Disseminated between pennies
and pieces of coal was marvellous to the
children, and their trials of its working
was profitable to the old man. He
frequented Mulberry street because
there were so many children there.
Once tall, handsome man put big
silver dollar on the plate of the man
nikin, who was so surprised at the
magnitude of the gift that he could
neither reject nor dump it into the box.
The old man boarded his money with
Jealous care, looking forward to the
return to his sunny land.
But the autumn passed away. and the
weather grew cold. The children were
kept indoors now; although he could
see their noses hattened against the
window panes, he missed their pennies.
To buy coal and wood he had to spend
the money he had laid away. Besides,
the gliding upon the organ had become
tarniShed, the red silken curtain was
faded and torn, the funny little figures
refused to dance and curtSey with their
old time ease. and the tremolo stop
failed to impart me alcholv sweet
NOS In tha hnna Snnr On hittar