The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1891-12-25
THE UNMUSICAL PIANO.
And How 1t Was That 1t Ceased
to Annoy.
Why lFsthrtic Ar--Jimpsou- No Longer
Objects to His Lonely. sad Neigh
boris Musical ETorts-In
Pathetic Key.

Had a queer experience the other
day" said Jimpson at the club, slipping
his coffee. The after-dinncr convcrsa-
tien had drifted into a discussion rs to
whether the piano was cursc or a
blessing TO modern life. The opinions
seemed to he about evenly divided
-'Ccrtainly il cannot bc said of the
piano, a. of other instruments. that its
Music arose wita its voluptuous swell.
soft eyes looked love TO eyes which spake
again.
For Byron wrote that At time when
the piano was as yet practically I'M
known. Nor did Wordsworth have ref
crence To the piano when he remarked:
''.WhcTc music dweIIs,
Lingering. and wandering on ~ loa;h to lie.
Like thoughts, whose very sweetness yielded
proof
That they were born for immortality
No, no; it has been amply stated
that music hath charms TO soothc the
savage breast, but not piano music
That line was pcnncd at a much earlier
period,
'''Whcn Music. heavenly maid. was young
While yet in early Greece she suns
And. therefore. We brethren of the
quill, ] have to east my vote against
the further continuance of this instru-
nent of torture auricuiar ani mental
tho piano"
This harangue had been delivered l,v
Simpson, the recognized authority on
the poets, a man who was always
-sH0c5ter an BlDf0, J0rti,eF ia ;-c and whose
voice. therefore, was rather potent 1t
was in reply To him that JimJ,son had
said:
Had Il queer experience the other
day"
And 10 tins a chorus had responded
with: Then by all means let Us have
it,
We'll said Jimpson, ',you know
have lived in fat since last May It's
cozy, containing every kind of improve
ment that heart can wish. and for
about month felt real comfortable
in it But one evening, just about
dusk, as I was lolling in my easy chair
] heard music overhead in the upper
fiat 1t was piano music. That in
itself was nothing TO get angry about,
but the kind of music il was, Played
by somebody who has never been
properly taught, who hacks away and
makes each note snriclI and howl, who
has no conception of harmony. meas
ure and time. the haczneyed pieces
which filtered down to me through the
ceiling in unasthetic chunks by no
means promoted my post-prandial di-
gestion. Next morning l inquired as
to the identity of this modern Torque-
mada- l was teld by the janitor il was
a young widowcr. who had lost his
wife but recently, quiet, unobtrusive.
otherwise well-behavcd man. Next
evening, as ! sat at my desk. painfully
seeking for proper dcnouement in
the plot of nay new novcl-the hero
having gotten himself into an awful
hole, from which it was very hard TO
extricate him-the music overhead be-
gan again. The same music, same
pieces AHd it was played as eXas-
peratingly as ever. by clumsy fingers
and with . touch that " ould have done
honor to a wood-chopper. felt sick
at heart. In spite of all nv efforts to
ignore this tantalizing music, l could
not Every bar hit my sensitive ear
like trip-hammer. ] was unable to
continue work. And that night in my
sleep heard as an endless refrain the
trills and frills of 10 Anderson, Nv
Jo.' 'Comin' Thro' the Rye Annie
Laurie and Nancy Lee. 1t was
regular nightmare. Walking and
sleeping, those over-ripe tunes followed
me about-ate with me, drank with
me, slept with me and prevented me
from work. Thus a fortnight passed
and l was just about on the brink of
lunacy-
Last "Wednesday evening, as the
piano fiend above was again racking
my soul and body, | became desperate.
OF course, | knew / had no legal right
to interfere, nor to tell him to stop his
internal playing. But an Unsuitable
desire To see what this fiend in human
shape looked like, and whether, per-
haps, by bulldozing or by skillful flat
terry ! might prevail upon him to let up
on me, had taken possession of me.
had wasted away to shadow during
that fortnight, and / thought he might
possibly take pity on me if threats or
diplomacy should not prevail. So l
climbed up that flight of stairs and
touched the electric button. Instantly
the playing ceased Slow, heavy steps.
as of one tired out, came. and the door
was opened / was invited in.
''When had sat down in his dining
room i hurricdly took an inventory
There was but the lighted piano lamp.
and that shed a rather dim ard uncer-
tain light over the rest of the room
But noticed all sorts of "reminiscences
of his dead wife. There were pretty
embroidered tides on the sofa and
chairs; there were several tiny paint
ings-quitc evidently the work OF a
female amateur; and there was por-
trait of the deceased herself, draped IN
Grape, and in one corner of the frame
stuck faded. dried bunch of flowers
The picture showed a pretty young face,
whose dark eyes seemed - look upon