The morning call., 1892-12-29

y
"Ihere Is a good deal of feeling aud beauty
fn those songs aud lore them"
be just that way. Lots Of them were de-
veloped at the big corn shuckings. One
planter would get ready for a corn shucking
and all the negroes on neighbor's planta-
tion would be invited over in the evening.
The master would provide whisky, a fine
supper of 'possum. hot cake, COFFEE, etc., to
be eaten about II o'clock. All, how those
people used to shuck corn. My, my! -Four
or FIVE hundred men. women and children
together in a great big barn, making the
yellow ears fly into great big bins and as
Jolly as they could be with drinking and
singing. Somebody would start with verse
of something Perhaps he'd improyise the
tune. Then somebody else would take il
up with another verse that he knew or
would make up. and so ii would 60 on.
remember once my auntie asked me, 'Bov,
yo' gwine git to the con shuckin' to-nightg
and / said I'd have 10 stay in the house and
pick cotton. My little sister and | had to do
that nearly every night until 10 o'clock. My
mistress used 10 send Inc out TO slip around
the barn and see what my master was
doing in there, and once or twice
be caught me at 1t and threatened 10
sell me, but my mistress wouldn't let him.
Just before the war an old peddler came
along and told my auntie that The Yankees
were coming South TO give US our freedom
and auntie told me. Next year the same
pedder came along and said the Yankees
were coming sure. Pretty soon about forty
slaves got ready TO run away to the Union
lines and | was told TO get out Of the house
at night and meet them at a certain place.
was ten years old then. In the evening |
told my mistress / was going outdoors for
minute and she told me to come right In.
When got out crawed under fence and
maybe l didn't run two miles and q half.
After few nights, travel we got to the
Union lines, near Yorktown. and a captain
took me for servant at once. / have
never seen or heard of anybody or the old
plan tation since that day.
''Well, about 1871 Fiske University in
Tennessee and the Central Tennessee Col
Iege at Nashville, established by the Free
mems Aid Society of the NJ. E. Church, got
the idea Of raising funds by sending out
troupe Of colored people to sing old negro
melodies. A musician from Boston went
down there and with the assistance of
professor the music and words Of a lot of
songs were written down as coored people
there who knew them would sing them.
That was ths first time, as far as | know.
that many well-known plantation melodies
were Put on record.
"Those first jubee-singers made a tre-
mendous hit all over the country, and all
over Europe. too. The FIske institution
netted over 100000. and the one at Nash
vile nearly as much. The Hampton
Students started out about the game time,
and then the Harpers Ferry Students. and
they made so much money that before a
great while there were twenty troupes in
the field singing plantation melodies. There
are probably fifty. little and big. in the
country now, but the business has been run
into the ground.
Il sang for fifteen years with the Orig
inal Tennesseeans and with Donavan's
Tennesseeans. that succeeded them.
Then l went to Boston and taught
music. and worked for six months as head
waiter in the fremont House. while / at
tended the New England Conservatory of
Music.
Then l went on the road again. About
two years ego l went to the Yellowstone
National Park as head waiter, and then
went 10 Helena. where l drilled Sunday
schools and sang for while.
II heard that two or three OF the old Ten
. nesseeans were here. ard came out here
last January to see if / couldn't do some
thing.
Il got little troupe together and got up
number of concerts in churches, but they
don't pay very we'll. The churches generally
want 30 per cent of the receipts and that
a..
for us.
"We sang at the ChautauQua meeting at
Pacific Grove last summer, and now. If we
can make enough money tonight, we're
going south to try our luck.
Now to get back to negro melodies
again." said Professor Coleman. do you
know that the colOred people out here do
not sing them and are rather opposed to
anybody singing them? They are too high
toned and they are ashamed OF them. Up
at the Zion Colored Methodist Episcopal
| Church l just told them that l wasn't
| ashamed OF what was mina and while ]
| could sing both liked to sing the songs my
| own people had made. It's the same way
| among the colcred people of the North
| generally. You don't hear those religious
melodies among them except at revivals
sometimes. The white people are the ones
| that sing them here. Yes, in the South the
| colored people sing them yet. There is
| great deal of feeling and beauty in those
songs and i love them. One of my favor
| ties is:
| Swing low, sweet chariot.
Swing low, sweet chariot -
| Swing low, sweet chariot
| Coming for to carry me home.
And the stranded minstrel sang the charm
| ing melody in a sweet low voice that in
vested ii with wondrous beauty.
When be finished he said good-by ant
started out to hustle for his concert il
Young Mems Christian Association Hall to
night Anybody of his race who can charm
ears and hearts with the sweet, simple
melodies Of the Southern plantation:
accompanied by the manner and dialec
that are to them what scenery and costume
are to drama, ougntto succeed In the worl,
somehow.
Ii Professor Coleman's final effort In tn
concert line results ia disaster may he ge
the best walters job in California.
|
Graham's Lead Dollar.
Henry Graham, mattress-maker, wa