The Crittenden record. [volume] (Marion, Ky.) 1904-1907, 1906-08-03
MOUSE SANGL|KEB|R
TRANCE LIKING OF LITTLE
RODENTS FOR MUSIC.
(entucklan Tells OF Tuneful Melody
Which Issued from Throat Of His
Tiny Midnight Visitor
story Of an organlst.

1 Kansas City. Mo.-Seyeral years
5go singing mouse" lived In my "a.
hers library. said Dr. James Weir,
y greensboro, KY. recently It was
hy privilege 10 hear this little mu-
ticlan on several occasions. My IA
her was In the habit OF taking lunch
kbout II o'clock at night, and he
koud invariably throw the crumbs
D his tiny visitor. Shortly before
tlnch time the mouse would make It's
and. sitting erect on It's
launches. begin It's tuneful little song.
use the word tuneful adyisedly, for
here was great deal Of melody In
De- simple theme which made up this
Features musical effort,
4 fts song. In timbre. bore some re.
@rmblance TO that Of the canary.
There were. however. no cadenzas.
.hOugh noticed passages In which
here were both ascending and de.
Iccnd scales Of four notes There was
! $50 considerable trilllng. which made
De song the most birdlike In charac.
BE
Not long since a singing mouse took
ID It's abode beneath the mantelpiecc
ID my bedroom heard II sing on
numerous occasions. but Us song was
III No pleasing. nor was II 80 well
rendorcd as that OF my fathers little
0pngstcr.
Mice frequently show that they are
nnucnccd by music The orRanist OF
Dc First Presbyterian church Of
0wensboro. Ky. gave me remark
Die Instance of this fact In relating
} experience with a music loving
ousc. he said
when lived In Cuba. y Y. a
mDuse dwolt beneath bookcase In
~ mIsic room. and often performed
j following experiment Seating
sell at the piano. ! would begin im-
Uoyising softly In few moments
u mouse would come from beneath
"a bookcase. approach the center ri
~ room and. standing on its hind
listen intersly 90 the music 4
Dbl chord on the plano would send II
Eampcring away "a H. bone I
4puld then resume my pianissimo I'm.
rrovisation and the mouse would soon
wiurn In ~ former station near the
><ntcr ~ the room. only Ia vanish
pin "a soon AZ the LOUD chords werr
1lfuck
celebrated vlol!nist once told M,
Nm owing 10 his poverty he had
IN compelled. az one period oi his
-. 90 decll IN an old and dllapldated
|onse which fairly swarmci with rats
noticed that these animals we're
rculiarly susceptible 90 minor
@&ords or 10 competitions PLACED In
Don. and that adlck. lively music
Did BRING them forth from their
III ing places In great numbers \
- abrupt dissonant chords would
M riahlv. send them scurrying Ia
ne N holes.
siollnlsi Of Louisville Ky. Mr.
N ncncdik Informed mc that be
~ satcdly noticed that several mice.
Nh lived ln his ruom. we're inhu
c1c'd hy tho music Of his violin In
al efimcntlng with them h. dlscoy.
@<<d that when he played an nndantc
uoscmcnt planlssimo. they appeared
70 listen With pleasure. but when he
rI4,cd an allegro In quick tempo and
Iorte they would Immediately run
aray
Dc legend ~ the Pied Piper ~
H4nnclin" IL by no means confined TO
Europe II appears. In some form or
o<Hfr In the myths and folk lore tales
- certaln Aslatic races. Of the TaFlas
md Dyaks. and ~ several tribes ~
In Malayan archipelago. thus show
|1< that almost everywhere mice and
rats are found people have noticed
M they are Influenced by music