Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-10-10

you SO now as he softly thrums some
old Venetian love song, with one eye
individual be suddenly seized with
mania for something livelier. He has
almost forgotten the serenades, the noe
turnes. the glorious. crashing harmonies
OF Wagner and the elf1n strains Of the
Moonlight Sonata"
Yet this same man believes today-and
has believed for fifteen years-that in a
few days better luck will come to him.
He doesn't know what 1t is he expects.
Perhaps his ambition suggests the &C
companist in a fve-piece orchestra May
be he would like to compose. He. with
his lost technique. with his failing men,
DRY. thinks today that in little while
he will be free OF his present dreary life.
That Ia the slogan of all of the MEM
bers Of this irregular society.
I'm a few days" they say. we intend
quitting this business for good. We've
been in 1t quite a while, but just to keep
going-thats all. Tomorrow, or at the
latest. the day after. we'll begin on the
outside with an orchestra
Tomorrow very, very rarely comes to
them. for they are known by the present.
Optimism takes a boom in stock once In
ever SO often. A well known tenor sing
er. who once delighted the proprietor's
patrons, has gone on the stage. The other
musicians talk about It.
well. WELL" you hear them say. lit
won't be so long before we're there. Glad
a lucky fellow. Oh. no; we won't get on
the stage the way he did Wen get in On
our merit
And they continue playing day after
day and living-as even the humblest art
list does-in the flimsy rose-colored clouds
OF the magic. mysterious future.
One very remarkable case is that of
man who is now the author of a popular
song which for months has been on
everybody's lips. Before he wrote the song
he had wandered pretty much all over
creation. He was the creator OF several
minor successes unsteady. although moth
ing extraordinary financially, and he was
a man who knew everything movable
about a piano.
He arrived in Washington and straight
away offered his services to the propre-
tor Of a hosiery. There every night he
held forth. tearing the mortal life out OF
various rags and incidentally making a
host OF friends.
Seems funny that a fellow like that
would take to playing in q gin MILL re-
marked many Of his hearers.
Poor fellows probably down and out
said the wise ones.
But the poor fellow was not down and
out. as he effectually demonstrated some
months later. when his first big success
came out.
Though the men who play In the NOV
ing picture houses and cafes lead siren
uous and perhaps thankless lives Of toll,
they are sometimes rewarded In one
moving picture house ip town a young
man grinds out mechanical melody to a
more or less Indifferent crowd Of patrons.
but few Of whom know that he has been
honored above other virtuosi whose
names frequently appear in print
This young man has played for Presi
dent Taft-an honor sought by every
musician who achieves any pretensions to
fame. Not only has he played before the
President but he has played whatever
he felt like playing for nearly half an
hour, and has enjoyed executive applause
at the finish Of his selections.
When certain roll Of Aims. portraying
the President. was to be produced for
the first time the enterprising manager
invited Mr.. TAFT to drop in and take
look at himself. Mr.. Taft did, accompa-
MED by HIS unofficial stan. They march
ed In to the thunderous crash Of Hail
to the Chief" and Mr.. Taft smiled hap
PLY. Then dear old care-free Dixie
was rendered in good oldfashioned style.