The Glenwood post., 1912-06-01
UTAH MUSICIAN TELLS HOW
COWBOY BAND MADE BOW

CUtahl Second Volunteer cavalry, tells |
good story of the first appearance OF
his regimental band on horseback at
jacksonville camp at the opening of
the Spanish war, He says;
1.-The band was Jack Sinclair 5 Cow
boy band from Pueblo, Colo, an or
ganization that had made quite name
for itself in Rocky Mountain musical
annals. Sinclair had his men drawn
up in regulation order, the bass drum
mer having his big 'auricle teaser
perched in front of him on the pommct
of his saddle, his left hand firmly grip
ping the Chinese tintinabulator, whi!a
in his right pile driver poised the
chamois covered sheepskin fail Ev-
erybody was in readiness, all nature
seemed hushed, the cerulean crested
| fiamingoes halted in their lazy flight
from swamp to swamp, with bead like
eye intent upon the famous Pueblo
aggregation. while cattle in their pas
lures, for miles around, stood trans
! fixed with expanded ear waiting breath
lessly to catch the first irridescent note
from the famous Cowboy band. Even
swarms of yellow jack mosquitoes, aP-
proaching from the Tampa Cigar fac
tories, caught the infectious atmosphere
of innocuous desuetude, and waited IN
the neighboring trees for the concert
to commence.
"The entire regiment gathered
around as Sinclair raised his baton for
the band to 'whoop'er up with the
overture to Tampa Now this over
ture opens with fortssimo loud
enough to wake the dead, to say
nothing of the powers of resistance Of
the equine ear drum; and with the first
blast, there was a pantomime that put
the best efforts of the late George l..
Fox of Humpty Dumpty fame forever
in the shade The bass drummer sud
denly found himself perched upon the
top of his instrument of torture Ike
the author of all evil, where, however,
he remained but for the instant, for ere
he could articulate a second beat, he
beat it head first in the direction of
the setting sun, while his horse was eX-
ecuting Il figure eight of lO-acre lot
dimensions and in as many directions,
endeavoring frantiealy to kick loose
from the sad relic of what was once 4
fair bass drum ciinging lovingly to his
left heel. The slide trombone artist
next in position, took an impromptu
dive over his horses head, as the
equine heels shot toward the irmament
in protest against the overture to
Tampa while the mouthpiece OF the
trombone knocked out the trooper S
front beauty teeth, and doubled up the
instrument like a carpenter rule. Hg
was assisted with first aid to the
wounded
The stcel bearing the 200 pound
bassoou player, previous to Chat mo-
ment, stood the quiet incarnation ct
eternal peace, but the instant the whirl-
wind to Tampa broke loose, he went
stratg ght up in the air, as the bamboo
like instrument gave a squawk like THAI
of an expiring frog, as the music AN
rolled out of his saddle onto the ground
with his bassOon a dismantled wreck,
with the horse dashing off the field into
st, John s river. The four horses beas-
ing the coruet players made joint
break in the direction of the lieutenant
colonel, colliding with his horse and
knocking that dignfed and stately off
Ger off into swarm of mosquitoes
waiting to receive him. Every other
horse in the outfit ran away. tumbling
their precious charges into all sorts OF
heaps, and demolishing most of the in
| struments. Sinclair clung to his fiery
steed like death to a pale darkey.'
and was not thrown; but the horse ran
into widow woman 5 domicile, knock
ed over the tub where she was washing,
and was only brought to standstill in
her parlor by having its hind feet tan
ged up in the week s washing so it
could navigate no farther.
"There,' remarked Sergt. Macken-
zie, as he knocked the ashes from his
| pipe, 'that is a true, a painfully ac-
curate description of our bands first
rehearsal on horseback -
"And was the second like unto the
| frst?' was asked.
Indeed it was mott was the reply.
"The adiutant made us take the horses
down to the Jacksonville boiler works
where they were all tied up alongside
boiler undergoing repairs; and there
they stayed for week. By that time.