The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-06-30

Oh the OHlteu states army give the music
and significance of more than sixty trum-
pet signals-calls of warning, or of assem-
bly,, of alarm of service, with such names
as guard mounting" drill stable"
ito arms" fire" retreat" Church
fatigue" attention" forward" quick
time" double time" charge" '1ie down.
rise" ETC., besides dozen or more drum
and fife signals, all of which must be
known to the soldiers, to whom they are
definite language, in the sense of Wag-
merriam Leit-motive. Every one is familiar
with such expressions as "drummed up
recruits" drumming out deserters," and
so on.
Besides it's Importance for signalling pur-
poses, there are no fewer than five other
for music in the army. A few words about
each of these must suffice. Zoller, the At
rican traveller, says that among all saw
age and half civilized races song and dance
are considered as indispensable aids TO mill
tary training, as drilling and drumming in
our armies.
The marvellous precision with which these
primitive races execute their war songs and
dances has been commented upon by many
admring explorers and as the value of
perfect drill and co-opefat ton is well under
stood, music which SUPPLIES the regularity
of rhythm, is seen to be of paramount i'm
portance. When our armies parade they
always do so to the measured beat of mill
tary band or drum and fife.
Another very curious use Of music IN
war is suggested by the word panic"
The historian Rowbotham says that "an
panic is derivable from the trumpet-like
sound, if we may trust the derivation of
the word, which refers the first panic TO
the time when the great god Pan put to
fight an army by a sudden shout" Many
sayages use wild songs and shouts or
drums and horns, TO inspire terror and to
create a panic In the enemy's ranks. So
horrible is the sound of this music, both
in itself and by its bloody associations,
that il is caid the Spanish settlers in some
parts of South America to this day can
not bear the awful trumpets of The In
dams without being frightened.
1t is interesting 10 note that Homer rep
resents the Trojans as going 20 battle with
bowling war cries, while the Greeks are
silent, and thai Thucyddes makes Brasi-
das say: "They are towards who think
they can brighten us by their loud shout
ing" thus indicating that the more civil
lied Greeks did not resort to this method
Of creating a panic. IL is believed that
one cause of the defeat of the Chinese
in their last war was that they at first
relied too much on the effect of their war
songs to brighten away the japanese.
A military writer says that the drum in
the army is used especially for inspiring
the soldiers under the fatigue of march or
battle" This function of military music
reminds one of the primitive custom OF
singing In order to facilitate work. IL is
recognized by the greatest authorities,
Field Marshal Lord Wolseley, for instance,
wrote not long ago in the preface to the
Soldiers Song Book" that
hat Gtf as
not only reach their destination more
quickly and in better fighting condition
than those who march in silence, but in
spired by the music and words of national
songs, will feel that self-conhdence which
is the mother of victory"
The German army includes more than
10000 military musicians, able-bodied men
who might as well be soldiers. We may
feel sure that the great and shrewd COM
manders of the German army would not
employ in times of war such an enormous
number of musicians unless they believed
that in this way these players could do
more good than an equal number of fight
ing men. In other words, the generals
fully appreciate and indorse the utility of
music. Even In times of peace there is a
use for these musicians for they make
excellent bands, which, at their daily pa
rades and weekly concerts, not only edify
the military men, but entertain the popu-
lace, who thus get some return for the
taxes they have to pay to support the
army.
Summing up the evolution of war music,
we see that its original function of inspir-
ing terror and creating panic was grad
ually abandoned, while its usefulness as an
aid in drilling, in tactics, in signalling in
arousing courage and patriotic enthusiasm
in sustaining Tagging energies and in pro-
viding entertainment in times of war and
peace, is now more fully acknowledged
than ever