The Washington herald., 1913-07-28
MERRY SCENES
AS bland PLAYS
Girls and Youths Attempt the
Latest Trots on the
Grass.
PROGRAMS ARE VARIED
Concerts in the Parks Are Popular,
and On Pleasant Evenings Large
Crowds Are Attracted.
PROGRAMS ARE VARIEI

Swinging, swaying, their fingers snap
ping in chorus. they circle slowly around
the park. Girls put their arms around
each other and attempt to turkey rot.
with the grass as a dance floor. The
young men-those who are Of that sort
paste their cigarettes carefully to their
lower lips 80 that their hands and arms
will be free to follow the rhythmic
heavings of their shoulders. 1t looks.
in the uncertain light Of the gasoline
lamps. to be a composite rehearsal of
several musical comedies.
The swaying stops The young girls
cease their sporadic ''trots" and laugh
to conceal the fact that they are blush
ing. They toss their heads At the young
men, who remove their cigarettes from
their mouths and smile cynically, really
thinking. mind you, that they are hiding
from the girls the indisputable Increase
in the number of beats per second Of
their hearts.
Everyone settles down. Little groups
form. There is much chattering and
laughing. much of II suppressed. but a
little unrestrained. sounding rather I'M
canny in the half-quiet.
Something again has attracted the at
tention Of the crowd. The thoughts Of
the girls turn to homes. There are
visions OF cosy firesides and cracking
log fires. with a family scene. of which
they are. individually. the central figure.
This in anticipation OF a two-room fiat
with a six-burner. double-oven gas
range. And, oh. yes. We forgot the
laundry tubs. The young men. tickle.
inconstant creatures OF alternate senti-
ment and buster, think Of the girls with
whom their souls are in accord and whom
they hope to marry when they become
properly appreciated by their employers.
or when that imaginary rich relative Of
whom they dream in the early mornings
and late evenings considerably dies and
leaves behind him or her that sl00o, COO
But not for long.
This is little OF what happens at a
band concert, such as We have almost
every evening in widely scattered sec
tons of the city.
Bands that Are Heard.
Principal among the bands that change
for an hour or two the spirit OF their
audiences are the Marine Band, the king
Of its kind: the band of the Soldiers
Home. the Engineer Band. the Fifteenth
Cavalry Band. and the Naval Battalion
Band.
Al the concerts OF the Marine Band,
usually given at the Marine Barracks on
Monday, the Capitol on Wednesday, and
the White House on Saturday. there is
little of the swaying. Mostly the senti-
ment leads to thoughts OF home or of a
canoe ride and to mountaineering or
charges up a hill. The names OF famous
composers are prominent Wagner, Bee
thoven, List, and many more that do
not occur in a moments thought to one
ignorant OF music make up most OF the
program.
In the concerts of the Soldiers Home
Band there are airs from popular operas
and occasional musical efforts from the
typewriter OF Irving Berlin (who. IL men,
DRY serves, wrote "Alexander's Rag Time
Band and .Everybody's DOM It"), or
from some other writer of popular songs.
This. too. is the case with the Engineer
Band and the Naval Battalion Band. OF
course, there are many classical airs, but
as popular-see observation-disclosures are
the exceptions in these band concerts,
they deserve mention.
The Soldiers Home Band usually plays
on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, at
the Soldiers Home. The Engineer Band
and the Cavalry Band give concerts at
different parks in the city, and the Naval
Battalion Band plays at the pier leading
to their armory below the steamboat
wharves.
All of the concerts are popular. Most
OF them attract residents of all parts OF
the District. and there is extreme disap-
pointment when rain prevents a sched-
uled concert.
The concerts continue through the sum-
mer and part OF autumn.