The times., 1897-03-25
THE MORNING. TIMES. THURSDAY, MARCH a5 1897.

| 1t was impossible for such q person
| to escape the notice of his neighbors,
but 1 was surprised to find how little
!! was known about him. He was looked
| upon as miser. He lived with old
colored woman, who did his work and
had lived in this dreary little house
for a great many years. His name was
Lands, but it was not known that he
| did anything but play on his organ and
pianos 1T was said he had very many
| pianos That was all the information
| | could get.
l made it point, after the rainy
night, when | first heard him play, al
ways to pass his house going to and
| from my rooms, and now and then when
would hear his organ, would stop
and listen to the march. 1t seemed to
| be the only piece the old man ever
played. Being but newly come to the
city, l had few acquaintances, and for
that reason if for none other, l de-
rived considerable satisfaction from the
powerful piece.
One afternoon, it must have been about
six months after first heard him play,
was passing through his street whistling
the middle part OF the march when sud-
denly looked up at his windows and saw
the old man looking ut me. stopped short
in my whistling and was ashamed OF my
eifbecause had an indefinite idea thatthe
march belonged entirely to him and that
was doing wrong to whistle ft, especially
when he could hear me. But he looked at
me SO pleasantly that l smiled back and
bowed to him, and he also nodded his
head few DAYS later he was standing on
his steps as j was passing, and l nodded
to him again. | should have gone on, but
he looked as though he wished to speak to
me, and / paused as / reached his steps.
You like my march," he asked.
] said / did, very much, and wondered
how he knew that l had heard hin play.
Como in,'' lie said, after looking me
over keenly
Il hope I'fn not disturbing you,' L
said, apologetically, but I've heard your
march several times from the outside and
l felt that / must know the man who
played it,
Yes he said. and then led the way
to the parlor, for the organ was built up
to within ten feet of the windows
Take chair he said. pointing TO
the only one in the room, and he sat upon
the organ bench and eyed me critically.
You, too, have sorrow. / knew you
would come! l saw you under the tree
in the storm. But why didn't you come
sooner?''
You knew would eomel' exclaimed.
Eyes, of course; they all do. They find
a crazy old miser, and then they forget the
march,
He laughed a low laugh at my astonish
,o.pt that n Ind Sepn mo I stu,Iif.I him
curiously He was very old, not in years,
perhaps, but in misery and sorrow. bis
skin was wax-like, and seemed transparent;
almost Thought that could see his skull
through it. But the eye-there was the
mani the body vanished. IT seemed that
the soul was eating up the body. What
does a body amount To when one has a
soul? i forgot that I was sitting in front
OF him and was wondering why he was
miser when realized that he was talking.
''They do not know what love or sor-
row is; everything is earth to them. They
looked at my house and my body and said
am fool, an d they went away. Myname's
Lands, What's yours"
told him.
Perhaps you may understand" BE
sAung around on the bench and started
to play his divine march. be straight
ened up and seemed to fill out the clothes
that hung loosely on him before; his arms
seemed strong and active. The player and
the emaciated old man were two separate
and distinct beings
When he stopped playing and softly
pushed in the stops, the spell was not
broken the spirit of the march was still
in the room, and when he swung round on
the bench again, his face seemed to be
encircled in a halo of light. / forgot that
was i'll a dingy, little apartment, con-
tanning no furniture hut one chair and q
stool, with one old engraving decorating
the walls, the paper on which was stained
and peelug off.
'.Can you blame me for starving for that"
he asked, softly when the time for speak
ing came.
"No,'' said, II do OF blame you.
There was another silence W hich he |
disturbed by crossing the floor and throw
ing the shutters wide open. letting the |
sunlight into the room. / reused myself |
and tried to say something in praise OF |
his playing, but he cut me off by laugh |
ing aloud, his face beaming, reminding |