The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-04-29
Musician in Great De.
mand at Arizona
Ranches.
Observation-Disclosures"
UnIque Idea Of . FrontIsr'man Who
Handles ne Bow and Has Dislike
)os Waltz QuadriIIes.

oRAKER's RANCH, Grant
County. N. NJ, April 1o.-"Fid-
Ia ding Dave" stopped at the
ranch last night on his way
from Silver City to Gold Hill.
where he Is due to play for the
psvboy dance next Thursday night.
urr;t ask who Fiddling Dave is unless
~nnt 10 air your profound ignorance
n thA best parsonage In this terri
ss,v Of New Mexico. not barring Gov.
0trro For q quarter of q century Fid-
SIins Dave has furnished the music for
ccvnunchers' and miners dances on every
ranss and in every camp In this section
Of the country. The little school house
a the ella river has many time re-
seupded with the festive notes from his
scarred instrument; the Red Onion sa-
loon In Silver City has heard its dulcet
toneo: the miners at the Mogollon camp,
ninety miles back In the mountains. have
ktcked their hob-naied shoes to its in
ep1r1pr voice--indeed, from Phoenix to
Dsming and from Mule creek to Lords
burg Dave and his fiddle are household
words and a. welcome az a cocktail In
the morning.
This il why all the punchers on the
ranch were glad when Fiddling Dave and
his little old bronco. "AIkali." hitched to
Z ramshackis blackboard. drove up to the
corral yesterday afternoon and announc-
the night. And I don't guess there
won't be no strenuous objections neither"
Dave remarked. as he led Alkali to
bunch of scrub oak and told him to eat
his fill thereof Next to his fiddle. Dave
thinks more Of Alkali than anything else
on earth. though he declares Alkali IL
''ths all-nredest animal that ever went
anywheres."
Owns . "skadaverous.v
This nddle Ii worth a hundred II it's
worth . dobe dollar" began Dave. as he
tenderly lifted the instrument from the
box and began to tune It in front of the
big fireplace. IT'S q Skadaverous, or
whatever you cali that feller's name back
East who was top hand making fiddles.
] got II from Red Whisky Bill over at
Aogoilon. Bill he got II In q decker for
. saloon. and the minute I seen II Just
naturally wanted II. told BIZ I'd play
three nights In the saloon for II. and he
says the instrument Is yourn. There amt
. nddle outside of Silver City. or maybe
Phoenix, that's its equal.
This here music store throws me and
gets my rope tangled up!' exclaimed
Dave. a. he selected two-step from his
assortment Of sheet music and began to
practice II. Nobody down here knows
how to dance to It. A professor down on
the Ola river Is trying to teach the
schoolmam and other heightened girls to
rastle with II. but. generally speaking. It
atn's we'll known hereabouts. l played
one the other night down on the Mangus
and the punchers didn't know what was
the matter. Dan McMillan-you know
Dan. OF tho Whitehills ranch--weii. he
said had been taking too much and the
hddls was gettin' away from me. All the
punchers quit dancing and left for tho
bar. It's tho time what beats me: some
of Il 10 90 and some 6-s. The girls sort o.
like II. but the punchers shy at Il and
you couldn't keep 'em on tho floor II you
hobbled en-" And Dave and his fiddle
then began n hank movement on the two
step that meant defeat for the music.
An UnknOwn Art.
''Music Amt much developed down
around here. generally speakin'." spoke
up Dave. as he wiped the beads OF per-
SEPARATION from his face and placed the
sheet OF two-step back In the pile. He
had had a hard tussle with II and needed
rest. ''There Amt but two ndders In all
these ranges and camps what can play
by note and they are Musical Smith, of
etocktons ranch on Mule creek and old
Dad Russell. Musical Smith gets $500 a
year for teaching Stockton's children
what he knows about music. and he's
overpaid at that. allow. ! play by note
but as couldn't keep up with fiddler
who plays by ear had TO learn the banjo
for accompaniment And sometimes we
don't hitch then. Now. suppose the fiddle
plays In thu key of c. Well my banjo Is
keyed In A. which Is all right as long as
the hddis will stay In c. We can go
ahead In anything from roundup quad
rifle to . brandin' poiky. But it's STAN
pede II the hddier drifts away from c. I
cant play In anything but A, and from
the minute the strayin' begins our or
chestry makes some OF the oneriest
noises ever heard outside OF a saw fac
tory. IL crates right smart on my re-
Ansd ear. but tho nddler an the dancers
DON'T know that snythin' unusual Is oe.
eurrin'.
when ! nrst struck this ella district
hsfore I broke my wrist. l could play the
nddis I'm all kinds Of keys: but now l