The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1904-11-10
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In the ''wee short hours ayont the
Fa1 one morning recently half a
pzen newspaper men gathered, as
as their custom, in one OF Bread
Rys restaurants to do justice, at
nat would be called an unseemly
our by the New York day worker, to
q square" meal. After dining wisely
#e OF them remarked that Eugene
'#eld had stirred more latent SYM
thy IN the hearts of the reading
u bile with his Little Boy Blue" than
" newspaper man he knew, and this
81 to the telling Of an incident that
occurred the day before to J. The
Dry was told to j. by a friend, who
d hastily jotted down the facts:
Tonic Salvatore, organ grinder.
is is the name and occupation OF
who has disturbed my daytime
ep, has tortured my overstrung
ives when awake, and has sent roll
s through my brain a confused and
sasing tumble Of sounds, vc1g I'M
ical at times, from The Little
dow Dunn to a distorted creation
Les Rameaux' by some hand-organ
der who sought sound rather than
of composition. You night work
Who even in sleep have teeth on
and blue pencil poised ready to
Eek the weakling reporters contri-
ion to the daily paper, nave per-
IS heard and cursed Tonic Saliva
fer grinding out his dlscordant
an notes, have turned restlessly on
r pillows, or made feint to grasp
thing within reach and hurl it at
unsuspecting disturber OF your
and then calmly pulled your bed
Ines over your heads, to sink again
your restless sleep, with beats
city editors and news editors chas-
one another through your ever act
brains. Hear my story of Tonic,
perhaps you will say. Such a
g as that organ grinder carrying
faded photograph of a dead daugh-
on the cover of his organ never
red my head
Tcnio Salvatore and HIS wife are
ians of the better class, with a son
daughter religieuses in Italy. Ton
~ years old, and his wife is 10.
ertunes occur under the Italian
ONE as under the American gray
I, Sc, e. Il
Ter of 16 years, chose to seek a
fe here. For an old Italian, with
rtist sense Of music, sculpture
irving, there are few oppcrtuni-
New York, and mental posi-
are not always open to an Ital-
batriarchal in appearance and with
knowledge of English. The organ,
bryan his new found friends sug-
id as a means to earn his liveli-
meagre though the income be
the daily trudging up and down
across New York's busy streets,
50 that little Battista and her
er might retain the shelter pro-
for them with the money
hit from home and now exhausted,
procured, by paying small dali
ntal for it, an old time organ,
hoarse and diScCrdant of tCle,
with Battista assisting him in
ng the barrow on which the or
ested, he started on the path from
Victory was sidetracked, and
nd of which was the Grave Of
TIA.
NV the saiveringe1ppio and Bat
asst November in the street in
I live, she with a thin plaid
drawn around her attenuated
and Tonic grinding away, with
CIV looking up at the windows
chance contributions of lovers
music, or of haters of it, who,
wave of one hand and the close
pped penny thrown by the other
circling in the air, demanded
move to another house or an
street, and then looking loving
8attista as she ran to pick the
from the street and hand it to
- times Tonic gave searching
at his daughter and dropped
d until the stubby gray beard
bn his breast, then quietly lifted
ld which held the organ up
flowing the instrument to rest
body, and placed it on the girls
r. smoothing the plaid shawl
aiming on her with his dark
eyes.
rday, on Broome street, west OF
cry. I saw Tonic. Battista was
b him. and he was trudging
bulling his barrow and organ
Ter of the organ next to him
a red patch over it to cover
IA the cloth, thought. Organ
row seemed to me to have
in weight. judging by his bent
tense muscles. He stopped
his instrument, but gave nc
eing interested in anything
&round him. His head was
II his chin rested on his