The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1904-09-01
Why He pisImed "pIxie."


the regular army, whose civil war
service was brilliant, was seated on
the lawn in front of his Rhode Island
avenue home at Washington the other
evening. says the New York Sun, In
conversation with crony, when an
italian with a street piano stopped
in front of the house. 1t was a Wei
tuned street piano of the better sort.
and the old general enjoyed the mu-
sic so much that when, at the wind
up OF the second tune, the Italian en-
tered the yard, smirking and holding
out Lis hat, the veteran officer tossed
him = quarter.
The Italian went back to the tune
machine and began to grind out
Dixie"
Before half of the first measure of
"Dixie" had been played the retired
general rose from his bench, and,
without word to his crony, walked
into his house, through the hall and
to the backyard.
He did not return to the bench
seat beside his friend until the street
piano man had gone away down the
avenue, out of hearing. He didn't
make any explanation when he re-
sumed his lawn seat, either. But his
crony was curious.
"Old man." he said to the retired
general, 81 never knew before that
you were narrow and prejudiced
There's none of the old soreness left
in you, is there, that you run away
from 'Dixie?' Don't you know that
Dixie is tumultously applauded by
al. hands nowadays when it's played
~ theater orchestras in New York,
5nd even in Bostcn?"
That's all right" calmly replied
the old officer. I'm neither preju-
diced nor narrow-nobody less so.
But got the worst of the Dixie
tune a little matter of forty and odd
years ago, so that I've never been
able to listen TO Dixie since without
becoming sort Of restless.
when Gen. Fitzpatrick was operat-
ing down around Macon, tearing up
railroads and such like, was with
him. had charge of destroying the
tracks.
"The Johnnies were in front of us,
in plain sight, but they didn't bother
us any. They contented themselves
with falling back as we progressed
with the pulling up of the rails and
ties.
"They merely watched us across
the clearings and through the trees,
and never even popped at us. They
probably figured that it would be no
use, seeing how greatly we outnum-
bered them.
"One morning Gen. Fitzpatrick sent
for me to learn how | was making
out with the destruction of the rail
road. He wanted the work pushed
faster.
"1ll tell you what you do Gen.
Fitzpatrick said to me. The boys al
ways work faster and with better
will when there's music around You
take one of the mounted bands down
to where the gangs working and
give 'em some music. Thatll chirk
them up and we can get this job done
sooner.
so | took a mounted band to the
point which we had reached in the
tearing up of the railroad. and told
the leader to go ahead and pump
some of the patriotic airs.
"The music had the effect Gen.
Fitzpatrick had predicted. The boys
did twice as much work under the in
spring strains of Hail, Columbia.
The Star.Spangled Banner My
Country and so on. and the Johnnies
in front of us had to fall back a good
deal more rapidly than they had be-
fore the enthusiasm of the boys had
beer kiudjed by the band music.
when the band had run out of
patriotic airs the leader approached
ine and asked for suggestions as to
what the musicians should play then.
"'Well, | said TO the leader, those
poor devils Of rebs in front of us
have behaved pretty well. They
haven't even turned their sharpshoot-
ers loose upon as. They ought to be
rewarded. Suppose you just give
them Dixie for good luck?'"
At this point in his narrative the
old retired general paused for a min
ute or so. and looked thoughtful
'Well?" said his crony.
Well went on the veteran, "the
band hadn't wrung out more than six
bars OF that Dixie tune before our
ears were numbed by the confoundest
rebel yell you ever listened to in all
ycus born days. and inside of two
MINUTES those Johnnies in front we're
on ton of us and trouncing hell out
OF u.s."