The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-09-07
TOO MUCH "HIAWATHA"
ROBERT BACHMIER SAYS 1T Is DRIv.
ING HIM INTO INSANITY.
Popular Two-Step Has Destroyed All
His Love OF Music-The Reigning
Craze at New York.

NEW YORK. Sept. 6.-"Tweedle-deedle-
deedle-dee. Dub-a-dubi Dub-a-dubi Lis
ten. 1 can't get away from 1t anywhere"
Haggard and in wretched mood, Robert
Bachmier, a young German, sat in his
room at No. 26 West Twenty-ninth street.
In the street under the window a boy was
whistling "Hiawatha." The young man
thrust his fingers into his ears and strobe
about the room. The unceasing tune, he
says, is driving him mad.
On Thursday night he went TO Madison
square Park. hoping to rest his ears with
good music. and there the band played
"Hiawatha." Bachmier pleaded so euerget-
ically with the bandmaster TO "cut IL OUT
that a policeman took him to the station
house and the magistrate fined him S.
I'm no a lunatic; there's nothing wron9
with me at ALL" he said this evening, "bue
this decide, deedle-what you call him Hia-
watha, is a public nuisance Why don't
your Board OF Health shut him upg i go
in the street and the small boy whistles
'teedle. decide, decide dee I'm one ear and
the street organ gos ~'dub-a-dub, duo-a-duo'
In the other. i go into a theater and there
the orchestra gives me the same 'dub-s.
dub Everywhere it's .Hiawatha-' 1 get
In an elevator and they hum IL in my ears.
L groan and people say. the man is III:
send for an ambulance
81 stick my fingers in my ears and they
say, See. the man has bughouses.' / went
up in the Adirondacks. and there a bis
cricket got under my window every night
and sang Hiawatha.' Now i am going
down by the Atlantic ocean i suppose the
Goldfish will come up and sing him to me
sometimes"
Don't YOU think ii is really q pretty
air.? he was asked.
'Pretty!' he repeated slowly, his face
drawn as if he suffered great agony. May
be once, long ago, but-again the 'teedle,
deedle-deei'"
Floating from the street, and Bachmier
turned away. groaning as If the sound gave
Bachmier came to this country only q
short time ago, just about the time "Hia.
watha" got into the streets, and IL has had
a strong effect upon him. In his nenvS
country he was something of a musician,
played the violin and piano., but he declared
tonight that "Hiawatha" had destroyed
all the music in his nature.
The Sun saws: An interesting story was
told yesterday of how a theatrical company
rehearsing a melodrama broke up the pro-
ceedings in the new Twelfth District Munic.
ipal Court, scared two lawyers, frightened
a jury and resulted in the leading lady OF
the show being fined $40 for contempt OF
court.
The trouble occurred in the Boulevard
Lyceum building, at 2630 Broadway. near
Ninety-ninth street, the justice who I'M
| posed the fine was the Hon. william BEN
nett, and the actress I'm the case was Estna
Williams, wife OF Arthur c. Aston, the
manager of the company.
Mr.. Aston hired a hall IN the building on
Aug. Is to rehearse "The Old Cross Roads.
The hall is separated from the courtroom
by an airshaft four feet wide. Justice Ben
nett sits in the Broadway court only on
Tuesdays and Fridays, SO that he knew
nothing of the rehearsals until he was on
the bench on Wednesday last. At that time
all the windows of the courtroom overlook
ing the airshaft We're OPEN So were those
of the rehearsal hall.
Clerk McCarrick called the case OF Mead
VS.. McGibbon, and the court marshal
DroTgns b IN a ;u .ars Started tSe when lSMyf hs l wss inc IN.
terrupted by the shrieks OF a woman In the
hall below.
"Un-h-h-h-hand me. ~villain.' she ex-
claimed. Then came the noise OF a struggle
and the shouts OF a mob that a murder has
been committed. Court Officer Keimilno
shot into the hall to capture the murderer
followed by the court spectators, while the
Jurors peered dow the airshaft.
Justice Bennett sent an attendant to learn
what 1t all meant. The attendant came
back with the news that a theatrical COM
pany was rehearsing and that there had
been no blood spilled.
Again the case in court proceeded and
again a woman's voice was heard scream
ing till the lawyer for the plaintiff discov-
cred that the jury was paying no attention
to what he was aging
Justice Bennett then sent keimling TO tell
the theatrical folks to stop the rehearsal
while the court was in session. Keimling
returned with a report that a woman men,
Der of the company had replied to his order
with a request that Justice Bennett go to
the devil.
The noise, however. subsidized. and for the
third time the case in court was taken up.
Gentlemen of the jury" continued the
lawyer, but he got no further, for there
fioated in through the windows the strains
of 'Hiawatha." sung by a male quartet
in the hall below. Justice Bennett would
not stand for "Hiawatha."
Go downstairs and bring up that woman
who says she won't STOP" he commanded,
and Keimling hurried down to the rehearsal
hall. Again he returned TO make a report
TO the court.
Ssh had a dog whip and she chased me
out" replied Keimling. IT got a cop and
she is tussling with him in the hallway"
The policeman from the West One-hun-
dreth-street station who had been sum-
moned by the court attendant had sue
ceeded in getting the woman as far as the
hall. She broke away from him and ran
into a lawyers office on the second floor OF
the building. The lawyer volunteered &c
the woman upstairs and advised
her to apologize. When she got inside
however, she announced that she would
die in jail before she would offer an apol-
ogy.
The justice finally fined her SO for con-
tempt of court and she shouted that she
would not pay the fine. The justice then
ordered that she be committed TO Ludlow
street Jail. and the policeman was taking
her away when the lawyer succeeded in
convincing her that she would be foolish
to go to Jail. Then another member OF the
company paid her fine.