The Olneyville tribune. (Providence, R.I.) 1893-189?, 1894-06-30
THE FIDDLER.


The f1ddler-I could not tell you
his real name, but prefer TO keep TO
that ly which he was most familiar
~ known-was first violin in small
theater He was tall pale, and sick
ly looking, with jet black ST aggling
hair that hung down over his o e.
head. Refined in speech, and OF
loving and gentle disposition, he was
liked by all he came IN contact with.
late had dealt harshly with him.
He had come OF good family and
had learned music under the best
maste But on the death OF his
father. who had speculated unwise.y,
he und himself almost destitute.
He went TO LONDON, expecting that
his talent would re at once iecog
nized. and that he should vey soon
make a 70 tune. But he was sadly
disappointed, for there he found
more musicians than could be en-
ployed.
Finally, te" months o. weary
waiting, and when he was on the
We ge o: trying some othe way OF
d XIV ah ShHokO-
ment in one o. the small theaters.
True 1t was W etched enume a.
tion, but IL was commencement
and he never entirely lost hope OF
something bette tn. ming up.
At the end six months his apDli.
cation at one OF the larger and better
class theate was success ul. 1t was
only change of places, but instead
o! thirty he rece we'd sixty shillings
week.
\ey soon ate that he ma ried,
and in the following year his daugh-
ter Helen was born.
Five years terwa great mis-
for une came to him. His poo wi G
died. and he was left widower with
his little girl
Mis- ortunes, as a rule, do not come
singly, and so it proved in this case
The fiddler like most OF mis- class,
was at the mercy o. circumstances,
and through no fault OF his own he
lost his engagement
Then and only then, did he thor
oughly regret that he was musician.
For almost twelve months he did
nothing. No matter how hard he
tried, he could not get an engage
ment He was not the only unfor-
tunate he was only one among
many.
When the little money he had
saved was almost exhausted, he was
taken on again at the theater where
he first commenced.
The fiddler lived with his daugh-
ter in room above public house in
poor ard noisy neighborhood. The
freQuentcrs OF the palace below were
not as a rule, noisy, and the sound
from the great thorOughfare reached
the place only as kind OF murmur.
Helen was sweet little creature,
the imagine OF her mother in feature
and expression, but her complexion
resembled her fathers, She was not
very strong and was often troubled
with a wearisome cough
In the evenings, before he went TO
the theater, the fiddler smoked his
long German pipe, which Helen al
ways filed. Then she would sit
down at his feet and watch him In
silence. She loved TO see the blue
smoke curl up in clouds round about
him.
But there came a time when the
fiddler could not smoke IN the room,
for it affected Helens throat, and
made her cough worse.
Then he would take his fiddle and
converse for hours with some OF the
old masters He would become un
conscious OF Helen's presence and
play as IL inspired.
You never heard such music In
your life. lie would play little mel.
odes which brought the tears we'll
ing TO your eyes. The notes seemed
10 pierce you through and through.
They went straight TO your heart
50 I. tender notes-that recalled tc
your mind all that you had cherished
and lost
one evening the spell was rudely
broken The people from the place
downstairs sent up AK ng him tC
play something lively and gay, "a his
solemn, church music was making
every body miserable.
The enchantment was broken. The
fddler pr. the instrument away with
heavy heart and he played nc
more that night
Helen grew worse and worse; the
cough became more hollow and pain
ful: her eyes were very bright and
skin like alanaster. with flush or
the cheeks When she began To put
her hand 10 her chest when coughing
the father called in a doctor
The poor child had teen Ill for {