St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-10-02
OTHERS RUN L1KEA ooNrAGroN
Wars Have Been Provoked by
Ballads, and Disaster Has
lowered Over the Hand-Organ
Some Of the Favorite Tunes
That Have Driven People Fran
tic by Their Oft Federation.

tolerated by civilized nations. 1t Is
fact which cannot be controverted that
thousands of men were urged on to the
lannon's mouth during the Napoleon
regime by the inspiring strains of the
above-named battle hymn. 1t is we'll
known fact that rhythm in music has a
remarkable effect upon the nerves of
men about to engage in the work of
numbering each other, and many a
regiment would have been routed be-
fore firing a shot had not the music of a
patriotic song or hymn inspired them
with renewed courage.
There are many songs in the history
OF music which are especially adapted
to arouse men to deeds of valor. In
stances of these we find during the late
rebellion in this country. Who can tell
Tor how many untlmely deaths ''Rally
Round the Flag, BOYS" is responsible?
Beyond doubt. the song which has
stirred up more sectional hatred than
any other is Dixie" 1t conserved
more fully the thoughts of Southern
paruSanShlp than any other air. Even
today Stumbering memories are awak-
ened by this apparently simple. crude
combination of words and music.
TITS A CURIOUS FACT
that while a popular song is apt to
create favorable impression when
heard for the first time, when it is re-
peated day after day on all manners of
instruments 1t becomes not only burden
some, but positively unbearabIe. What
is more common than to hear a dis
gusted man eXclaiming: when are
they ever going to stop playing that
Internal tune?" Where is the metro
politan who would not utter an express
sion of satisfaction on now hearing
Annie Rooney" OF ''Down Went
McGinty" Even "Ta-ra-ra-Boom-d
ay," which has scarcely reached its Sec
ond birthday, is now so thoroughly
obnoxious that it is no longer played
even by hand organs, and My Sweet
hearts the Man in the Moon" has
Joined its WORKOUT popular comrades
In musical grave.
But while there may be some reason
able excuse in the minds of men for The
existence of sO-called patriotic songs.
the constant repetition in times of
peace Of a senseless and hackneyed air
certainly can have no eXtenuatlng
reason for its existence. Consequently,
while murders have been committed by
. men made savage by the unceasing rep
etltlOn OF an iuane air, there are thou
sands of men and women who, while
not eXcusing the crime, still feel GER
tain degree OF sympathy for the guilty
man. 1t will be remembered that only
few months ago murder was COM
mitted in Brooklyn by man who Is
awaiting trial in Raymond street Jail. 1t
may not be generally known, however,
to the public, that the direct incentive
Tor the murder was the singing of a
song, as was shown in the preliminary
examination in the police court. The
murder was perpetrated on Sunday
morning. Two laDorers. jeremiah Long
and George Woods, had been carOuSing
all night long. and were still in their
cups at daybreak. They had been
drinking and singing for several hours,
Woods perSiSting in singing the song
Comrades" while Long wished him to
CHANGE THE DRONING MELODY
to some other tune, but Woods was
either too drunk or too careless to heed
the constant warning Of his companion.
At last, in burst of insane rage, Long
exclaimed:
'Stop, stop, stop singing that song, or
Pll cut your throat"
His comrade persisted. a knife lay
upon the table, which had been used by
the men in making cheese sandwiches.
Long. who is a one-legged man. seized
the knife in his tTenZied grasp, hoped
suddenly to his foot, grabbed Woods by
the hair, threw back his head and drew
the keen blade of the knife across his
throat, servering the windpipe and the
jugular vein. Woods was dead III less
than two minutes. Long was too drunk
to make his escape, and even had he
tried he could not have escaped on &C
count of his wooden leg. 1t was proved
beyond a doubt in the preliminary eX-
animation by the police that the direct
cause of the crime was the singing of
the song referred TO above.
The latest popular craze, "After the
Ball" is responsible for an assault in
Williamsburg only last week, which
will probably also end in death. This
also eXemplities what a terrible passion
may be produced by the continual rep
etition Of an air which has attained an
ephemeral popularity. The incident
referred to is TO the effect that Daniel
keenan, was coming down Union ave-
nue. in the afternoon when the strains of
the tune alluded TO saluted his ears.
A LITTLE GERMAN BAND
was standing at the corner OF Union
avenue and Holt street filling the air
with the hackneyed melody. Keenan,
stopped and glared about him. He
raised his arms about his head in silent
protest. Then ne began to swear, and
his oaths were both frequent and eX-
pressiYe. Then he removed his hat
and coat and threw them on the side
walk. With howl that filed all the
windows IN the vicinity. ne charged
down upon the band like a raving
maniac. The fat trombone player
stopped blowing his instrument, the
second cOrnet ran across the street, the
man with the big horn fed preeipi-
lately, but the little cornet player held
his ground. He was unconscious OF
the fate awaiting him, and he calmly
kept on playing ''After the Ball" The
enraged keenan, leaped upon him.
seized him by the throat, tore the
cornet from his grasp and began to
whack the unfortunate player with his
own instrument. When Keenan, was
through belaboring the cornetist the
latter was PROSTATE upon the ground, the
blood streaming from many wounds
upon his head, while his instrument lay
ensanguined in Its owners blood on the
sidewalk. The cornet was ruined for
all musical purposes. BY this time the
comrades of the cornetiSt had recovered
their courage and making bold and
united dash. they rescued their IN
fortunate fellow musician. and he was
carried to the hospital in an ambulance
in a diving condition. But keenan, was
not vet satisfied. Still animated by
intense anger, he went into A. q.
Doremus' saloon on the corner and
asked the proprietor why he permitted
such q song to be played in front of his
house. Doremus objected to being adj
dressed in such forciOle fashion, and
vigorously resented Keenan's uncalled-
for interference. He came out from the
bar, threw down the bungstarter for fear
of losing his temper and killing his man,
and tackled Keenan, rough-andtum-
ble The two men became tangled up,
and they rolled over and over each other
upon the floor, striking and biting one
another like fiends. and when they were
at last separated by the police keenan,
was so severely injured as to necessi-
tate his removal to the Eastern district
b hospital.
These capital crimes within the past
few months as far as heard from COM
OriSa the avTrnmps IN winch Soma man