Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1894-02-15
oelclN OF DANCES,
France r.oisss. nee: y. waits. =, rnsusA Q

france Produced the waltz, Though Oct~
many ifns Always Claimed H.
The ''contrednnsc" Is nothing more
nor less than the old English country
dance, which was imported into France
at the epoch OF the regency during the
minority OF Louis XIV. 10 Is true that
the French, while they admit the inn
portation OF this dance from perfidious
Albion, maintain that II was brought
into England shortly after the Norman
conquest, and that IL rapidly spread
from our shores TO Italy, to Germany
and even 20 Holland, the las. assertion
being demonstrated by the fact that a
collection OF Dutch country dances
was published at Amsterdam in 1888
The lively Gaul, when he did adopt the
dance, proceeded to elaborate and re-
fine it. dividing il into four special
figures, called respectively the 'panta-
lon," "rEte," the ''poule," the pastor
ellie" or "trenitz," aId ths finale"
which sometimes took the form Of q
galop
The "Lancers, again, IL unquestion-
ably British dance of comparatively
modern invention, and was not intro
duced into France until late in the
reign OF Louis Philippe, at which period
our English 'lancers" had temporarily
fallen into desuetude, but this most
charming item in the code Of Terpsich-
ore has, within recent years, regained
its former popularity in its native land.
The gavotte, on the other hand, is
purely French dance. and takes its
name from a district called the Pays
des Gavotes," near Gap, In Provence.
One hundred and twenty years ago the
gavotte was only danced in theatrical
ballets in France, and by photographic
artists of the highest standing. II pre-
sented many points of resemblance to
the minuet, or ''menuet," being a slid
ing, slow-posturing figure, full Of state
illness, but just little stiff and stand
offish" in movement In fact IL was
known among French connoisseurs as
the dignifed but somewhat too cere-
monious daughter of the queen-lilxe
minuet, which owed its name of "men-
uet de la cour" TO the fascinatingly
graceful manner in which It was exc
cuted by the young Queen Marie An
toinette. That unfortunate sovereign
society, where, oddly enough, IL had
for time formidable rival in a dance
entitled ia Cosaque." All these
pretty and amiable varieties of the
poetry of motion were destined 70 be
swept into temporary ruin and Oblivion
by the atrocious "Carmagnole," the
bloodthirsty saraband of the furies of
the guillotine.
II will thus be obvious that, although
the Germans are passionately fond of
dancing and in many cases are more
accomplished experts on the light fan
tastic toe than the French, they can
scarcely lay claim TO having invented
any dance of exceptional beauty or in.
genuity or of universal acceptance.
This statement will naturally be i'm
mediately traversed by sympathizers Of
the Fatherland, who will not all TO al
lege that the very word waltz" is an
abbreviation of the German ''walzed," :"
from ''walzen," TO roll, akin to our
''welter." II may at once be admitted
that the waltz has long been a rational
dance in Germany, and it is said on
very doubtful authority TO have origi-
mated in Bohemia, and to have thence
been brought into the Fatherland;
still, on the other hand, there exists a
great body of evidence to show that It
is neither Teutonic nor Czech dance,
and that in the twelfth century it was
familiarly known in the south of
France under the name Of VOLTA" lit
orally signifying In the provincial dia-
lect what we should vulgarly term a
''wheel-about" OF ''merry-go round" A"
The volta" was danced to vocal music,
the songs sung while the couples
gyrated being called "bafladas. In
the reign Of Louis VII. it was brought
into Paris, and II remained favorite
until 'ate in the sixteenth century. II
was then taken up by the Germans,
who, by a happy coincidence, found
that their tongue contained in tho
word waller a term which could at
once be made convertible with the pro-
vincial "volta." The enormous popu-
larity of the waltz beyond the Rhine
was probably due TO the circumstance
of the Germans being not only a mu-
steal people but more learnedly and
mathematically musical than any other
nation.-London Telegraph.