The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-07-17
UNION TO TAKE IN ALMOST ALL
 BANDMEN SOON
Departure of Olympic Band
 Leaves More Demand For Musicians Services.

The departure of members of the Olympic band with the Tenth Militia Field artillery means not only the dis banding of that organization here but it means also that the Coast Artillery, the Wheeler & Wilson, Remington Arms and the Marine band will share the concerts in the public parks which the Olympic band was to have filled. Members of the band who did not enlist will probably affiliate with other bands or musical organizations.
 Members of the Olympic band had filed protest with the park commis- sioners and with dhe Bridgeport Musical union against allowing tue Marine band to play park concerts be- cause the members of this band were not members of the union. One of the national vice-presidents quietly visited this city two weeks ago and looked over the situation. Then the other bands were told that unless the Marine band men Joined the union 1t could have all the park concerts or none at all. In other words the bandmen were instructed to lay the matter before the proper authorities and explain that unless the Marine bandmen were members of the union byl certain date none of the other bands would play in the park con- certs.
 Yesterday all the members of the Marine band had filed applications in the Musical union and they were elected to membership. so that now there is not a non-union band in the town, although the Olympic band is practically disorganied by the fact rnat most of its members have joined the field artillery. The band has been sent to Tobyhanna. Pa., for training with tho Connecticut field batteries. They will be taught there to play their instruments while riding horseback. Unless there is war with Mexico and the band goes into active service with the artillery regiment it will return when the regiment is ordered home again. The plan is then to disband the organization and form a new one. Whether the new band will be located in New Haven were four of the bat teries are stationed or whether it will be located in Bridgeport has not been settled.
 The band men have been given to understand that the band will be in Bridgeport but this has not been de- cided. The majority of it's members at present are from Bridgeport but musicians from Stamford and from New Haven have also joined. A. S. Lee of Stamford is now the leader. John J. Broadbrook who has been manager of the band will not go with l it into service. Neither will Albert Sykes who has been the director of the band for several months.
 The members of the band received a | little taste of what military discipline
 means last Saturday. They had been | ordered to report at New Haven at 2 o'clock Saturday afternoon. About a
 dozen left town for New Haven short | ly before that hour while several
 stayed at the Bridgeport Musical un-
 ion rooms debating whether to go or
 not.
 1 In the meantime Leader Lee un- der orders of Lieut.. Col. R. M. Dan- forth, commanding the regiment came here looking for the men who failed to report. He found the group
 at, the Musical Union rooms and or dered them to make tracks for the
 railroad station and get aboard the
 next train for New Haven at once
 They demurred but he told them ii
 was either obedience or they would be locked up. They went. Next he went to the Park theatre and there arrested Frank Zeit, drummer of the
 band who had failed to report. It de-
 veloped later that zeit had not taken
 the Federal oath and that he is not
 of age so he was released. It is said the plan is to reorganize fhe hand with members from Rrfdgo. port, New Haven and Stamford.