davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

yer and other coast towns, and il has
its annual games for supremacy.
Among the most enthusiastic of the
ball players are the Indians. Some of
the tribes have their own mines. which
come long distances to compete with
the whites. Last July ball team
came from the Pelly river. several hun
dred miles away. to Dawson to play
the team there. The Indians were cop
per-colored, long-haired, lusty braves.
and they ran like deer, playing in moe
casins.
Tennis is another game which is com
mon throughout the northwest. Every
town has its courts and its tourna-
ments. The Dawson Lawn Tennis Club
has membership of forty, and it
owns two fine courts which were built
at cost of $1,000. The courts are
usually fioored with boards, and this
Is especially so along the coast where
the moist air makes the ground unfit
for games. There are tennis courts and
base ball fields at many of the mining
camps. and at Dominion Creek in the
klondike mining district, the people
celebrate Empire day. Dominion day
and the Fourth of July with Caledonia
games. races and ball matches. The
Yukon territory has SO many Ameri-
of July as we'll as the Canadian holi-
days. The people of the two countries
are very friendly. and in business and
play they go hand in hand.
In this connection, / am surprised at
the ignorance which prevails through
out the United States as to this part of
the world. Many of our people evil
IDENTIFY think that the Klondike belongs
to Alaska and that Dawson Is one of
its cities. This ignorance even extends
to some of the government officials at
Washington. Not long ago one of the
high officers of our Post Office Depa TT
hent sent a letter of censure to the
postmaster at Dawson, because he had
not been submitting his reports to the
department at Washington. He told
him that ne must report regularly, and
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

was laid out with large public parks,
and there are to be tennis courts and
amusement grounds.
So far ] have to visit any town of
size in Alaska that has not its base
1all field. Owing to the topography of
he town, which is built upon hills,
rising almost straight up from the
water. the diamond at Ketchikan is
necessarily confined to the beach. 1t
is situated in a cove or bay which is
flooded when the tide comes in and 1t
is possible to play ball only between
tides The wharves on great piles
come close to the ball ground, and
the people sit there with their feet
hanging and watch the game going on
below.
The base ball ground at Prince Ru-
pert, over the way, could not be laid
out on the beach. The water there is
deep and there is no space clear at
low tide. Nevertheless the town has
its diamond. It is on the top of a cone
like hill, which was sliced off for the
purpose 1t cost twenty-five or thirty
thousand dollars to blast the rocks and
level the ground. The field is now
smooth and has an amphitheater of
hills as it's grandstand. Prince Rupert
has tennis court fioored with boards
and its people are fond of sports of all
kinds.
One of the Fourth of July events at
Ketchikan consists of fishing matches
in which the halibut fishermen contend
as to who can cast his line the most
quickly and draw it in again without
tangling The men are wonderfully
expert. The lines are several miles
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

the poets OF the theatrical corps had been try
ing to accomplish 1t. but had not succeeded. I
told him that I would try what | could do for
him. He the next afternoon, and the
song. such II is, ready for him. Such
is the history of the song. which has endured
infinitely beyond the expectation of the author.
The young man was Gilbert Fox. and
the new song was thus advertised in
the Philadelphia Porcupine Gazette
April "a, 1913:
Mr.. Fo1's night On Wednesday evening. April
-. BY Desire will be presented flor the second
time in America Play interspersed with
Songs, in three Acts. called The Italian Monk
ten by Citizen OF Philadelphia TO the tune of
the presidents March," will be sung by Mr.
Fox; accompanied by the full band and the fol-
lowing grand chorus:
Firm united let he,
Rallying round our Liberty
As a band of brothers joind.
Peace and Safety we shall find.
The song met with immediate success
and was repeated again and again,
no entertainment of the day was con-
sidered complete without it.
Such is the popularity of the song"
said writer of the time, that very
frequently has Mr.. Dillingham;, leader
of the band, been forced to come to a
full stop in the foreign music he had
arranged for the evening by the deaf
ening calls for this march, or the song
to this march," and already the title
had been changed from the clumsy
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02
Doodle Hail Columbia National

written by Rev. Samuel F. Smith, who
lived until 1925. and has himself writ
ten luminously upon the subject. FROM
Boston he wrote to Admiral Preble
September u, 1872:
The origin Of my hymn My Country, lis Of
The, is briefly told In the year lsSl Mr.
bringing quantity of German music books.
which he passed 10 Lowell Mason. Mr..
Mason. with whom | was terms Of friend
ship, one day turned them over to me. knowing
that l was in the habit of reading German
works. saving. Here; l can't read these but
they contain good music, which j should he glad
TO use. Turn the leaves and if you find
ANYTHING particularly good, give me trans i,
inal song-anything, so I can use it,
Accordingly, one leisure afternoon. ] was
tune Of God Save the King" and al once took
up my pen and wrote the piece in question. II
was struck ont at sitting without the slightest
idea that it would ever attain the popularity II
has since enjoyed. The first time it was publicly
Sung children celebration of American
Independence at the Park Street Church, Boston
future of it. doubtless l would have taken more
pains with ii. Such as il is, | am glad 70 have
contributed this mite to the cause Of American
freedom.
Mr.. sonneck had this to say regard
ing the use of an English tune to the
words of America:
The main objection raised against
America has been the union of the
words with that foreign air of cosmo-
politan usage. God Save the King.
Yet there is this difference, which
should never be overlooked; If the
Danes or the Prussians use God Save
the King they have deliberately bor
rowed it from the British. Not so with
US. God Save the King was. before
1875, as much our national anthem as
that of the motherland. Being Brit
ish air. it belonged TO the British col
onists just as much as it did to the
Britons at home.
Yankee Doodle is sometimes called
national song-incorrectly SO. be-
text. or texts. 1t is hardly ever sung,
but merely played as an instrumental
piece. Though no longer a national
song. it is still a national air and sec
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

olson, who seems to have acted as
press agent in the matter of placing
the song before the public, found that
the lines fitted this air. already used
Others say that Mr.. Key wrote his
lines to At this popular tune, otherwise
1t could not SO perfectly have followed
its peculiar meter.
This Is still an open question, but
Mr.. Sonneck has run down the facts
of the creation of the tune now ia
miliar to practically every man. woman
and child In the United States to an
almost certain point. which is that 1t
was most probably composed by John
STAFFORD Smith. an English musician
who lived between the dates OF 1850
and 1888.
Anacreon, the old Greek poet who
sang the praise Of wine and beauty.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

-
Along the same line of ignorance was
a letter received at Juneau from
Philadelphia merchant in response 10
an order for certain goods to be sent
q q u The letter stated that the
Philadelphia firm could not send goods
c. O. ID. to foreign countries.
Among other instances of this kind are
those which relate to the climate oil AIRS
ka. which is different IN different sections
of the country. One OF the chief mer-
chants of Cordova told me how he once
ordered some wooden goods from Minne-
sofa mill through an agent in Seattle
The goods should have arrived WITHIN.
thirty days Upon their failure to come.
the agent wrote the Minnesota firm and
received the reply that the order had not
been filed, as navigation was already
closed and there was no use in making
any shipment to Alaska at that time OF
the year. The truth is that Cordova Is
right on the Pacific ocean, and the shlps
call there every week the year round.
Chicago man recently SAID TO an
Alaskan who was telling stories about
his country: 81 can believe everything
but what you say about the mosquitoes
There can be no mosquitoes in land
Any one who has travelled in Alaska in
summer knows that the country abounds
in mosquitoes and that at times II is
impossible to go anywhere in the woods
without every bit Of ones skin is pro-
tected.
Most of the summer tourists who come
to Alaska bring A great supply of I'M
necessary clothing. They load up with
furs and overcoats. only to find that the
interior OF the country is roasting, and
that the children are going about with
bare feet. A party which went down the
Yukon this season had nothing but heavy
woolens along. This steamer ran
aground on one of the islands and they
were stranded for five days with the
thermometer at 90 degrees in the shade.
The same ignorance prevails as to the
food of the country. The multiaillion-
are president of a GOLD dredging company
of the Klondike brought a load of fresh
meats and vegetables with him to Dawson
for fear he would suffer. When he got
there, he found at the hotel everything
he had on his ship.
FRANK CARPENTER.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

prizes from $3.50 to $1,000. There was
a fifty-yard dash for girls OF from
younger girls ranging down to those
under eight years. the prizes being
from $3.50 to So. The rope-climbing
contest was open to all. as was also
was limited to men of over one hun
bred and fifty pounds weight. and the
first man in received a prize of s12.
There were four entries for the angle
worm race, and its prize was $40
And then there were bicycle races Of
various distances for men, boys and
girls and swimming races of one hum
bred yards with prizes of from ten
dollars to twenty.
On the second day the ladies were
among the runners. There were OBJ
stacle races for boys and girls, egg
and spoon races for girls under tour
teen. and a potato race for boys under
twelve. There was a pie-eating con-
test for boys, and a doughnut-eatins
contest for girls. the prize in each
case being $3.50 for the one who ate
fastest and most. Another feature was
a sack race for boys under twelve. and
another a three-legged race. in which
each contestant consisted of two boys
with one leg of each tied to leg
of the other.
Among the evening events-it is as
l1ght as Gay up TO ml0nlSnl tne + oui III
of July everywhere in Alaska-there
were ladies' races a ladies' nail-driv-
ing contest and a tug-of-war. The
amount of prizes given in this way
was more than one thousand dollars
and it was contributed by the citizens,
all of whom went out in force to the
sports.
The Fourth of July came on Sunday
last year. 1t was celebrated at Juneau
that day by a baseball game between
the Juneau and Treadwell teams at the
Juneau Recreation Park. The diamond
there has been cut out or built upon
gravel which was formerly placer
mine, and l doubt not the dust raised
had still a sprinkling of gold in it.
The Treadwell ball park is made up OF
the tailings that have come from the
great mines which have already pro-
duced more than sixty million dollars
worth of gold. These tailings have
been run down into the channel, and
have built up on its shore an area
contested for at Juneau was $3.50.
On Monday, July 8, the day opened
with an industrial parade, with prizes
for the best decorated floats; and in
the afternoon there were races like
those at Fairbanks. The prizes were
about the same, ranging from 81 to
SIS, and every one was expected to
compete. One of the events was the
climbing of a creased pole. the best
climber receiving a prize of $40. And
then there was the fat mans race.
every contestant in which weighed over
200 pounds. The old mems race was
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

title. Defense of Fort McHenry." with
the following int-oA-'"'~ry remarks, writ
ten by Judge Nicholson: All
The annexed song composed under the
following circumstance: A gentleman had left
Baltimore in a Gag Of truce for the purpose Of
getting released from the British feet friend
Of his who had been captured at Marlborough
He went far the mouth Of the Patuxent
and was not permitted TO return lest the in
tended attack Baltimore should be disclosed
He was therefore brought up the bay TO the
mouth OF the Patapsco, where the nag vessel
was kept under the guns of frigate. and he
was compelled to witness the bomba rdment Of
Fort McHenry, which the admiral had boosted
that he could carry in few hours and that
tn ~'tr must fall. He watched the nag of
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

was the patron saint Of the Anacreon-
tic Society of London, which held us
convivial meetings first at Ludgate Hill
and later at the Crown and Anchor
tavern in old England's capital. Ralph
Tomlnson. first president of the so
ciety. wrote the words of the song
about the year 1915. at about which
time also the music was composed by
John Stafford Smith.
The first verse of ITO Anacreon in
Heaven, or. as 1t was quite as "a
miiiarly known. The Anacreontic
Song" is as follows. and the words
give a clue as to what follows:
To Anacreon in heav'u. where he sat in full glee,
A few Of Harmony sent petition
That h. their Inspirer and Patron would be.
When this answer arrived from the jolly old
Grecian:
Voice. Fiddle and Flute.
No longer be mute
III lend you my name and inspire you TO boot;
And besides III instruct you like me to entwine
The Myrtle of Venus with Bachus' Vine.
The tune became very popular in Eng
land and the musical intercourse between
the two countries was too lively in those
days to permit such a well known air to
remain barred from our shores: A Co
lumbar Anacreontic Society," founded in
New York in 1895, in imitation of the
London club, undoubtedly did its part in
familiarizng the tune.
1t was perhaps first used in this coun
try in connection with patriotic words
when IL was sung to the verses entitled
adams and Liberty written by Robert
Treat Paine in 1898. The stirring words.
of course. referred to the second Presi-
dent of the United States. The first lines
as follows
Ye Of Columbia. who bravely have fought
For those rights, which unstained from your
sires had descended,
May you long taste the blessings your valor has
brought
And your sons reap the soil which your fathers
defended.
Other patriotic words carried the same
air at later periods and it was familiar
to the American people when it was
welded to The Star Spangled Banner"
for all time.
Hail Columbia" is a pure product of
American soil in regard to both words
and music, and was written in 1898 by
Joseph Hopkins. prominent jurist. who
lived from 1870 to 1912. The poet him.
to the writing Of the words as follows:
Hail Columbia" was written in the summer
Of 1898. when war with France was thought to
be inevitable Congress was then IN session IN
Philadelphia. debating upon that important sub
place. The contest between England and France
was raging, and the people Of the United states
were divided into parties for one side or the
quired us to espouse the cause of republican
France, as she was called, while others were
Tor rss thsstse' with T., England r ctv
young man belonging to 1t. whose talent was
high q: a singer was about to take benefit.
! had known him when he was at school. On
this acquaintance he called on me one Saturday
afternoon. his benefit being announced for the
Mond a., s h. edsa very
q patriotic song adapted to The President's
March he did not doubt Of a full house; that
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02
The Sting.
SENATOR was talking ,hou.

n SENATOR was talking about the
ia last German note.
1t had a sting in it's TAIL" he said
Ihat part about our neutrality had
certainly sting. But it accepted our
terms-that's the main thing, Ell?
But the sting was pretty nearly q.
bad as in the case of the girl who
said to old Gobsa Codes heiress, the
aging Lolita: N"o
Your fiance, darling, is going round
telling everybody that you're worth
your weight in gold
The foolish boy" said the elderly
heiress, blushing for pleasure Who
does he tell 1t to, do you know"
why said the other girl, to ali
his creditors, of course!"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

ond only TO Dixie in patriotic popu-
larity. For $50 years Yankee Doodle
has appealed to our people, and the
tune shows no sign of passing into
Oblivion. Surely a tune of so much
vivaCfty must have some redeeming
features. Critics, pedantic or f1ippant.
have overlooked the fact that every
nation has its humorous, even bur-
lesque. patriotic airs, and that these
are just natural and useful as
solemn airs-indeed more so occa-
sionally. As a specimen of burlesque,
even 'slangy.' musical humor, Yankee
Doodle may safely hold its own
against any other patriotic air.
But why apologize or explain, since
the matter was summed up so neatly
many years aGo-at least as early as
the SonGster's Museum. Hartford,
1876, in the lines:
Yankee Doodle is the tune
Americans delight in;
Twill do 10 whistle. sing or play
And just the Thing for fighting"
Many words have been spent in dis
cussing the origin of the title of this
song, and at least sixteen separate
and distinct derivations of the words
have been seriously set before the
public. The earliest dated reference
to the tune appears in the first Aneri-
can ballad opera The Disappoint-
nent," Philadelphia, 1857. 1t was
played in America as early as 1865.
for in the Journal of Transe ctions in
Boston, September IS, 1868, we read:
The fleet was brought to anchor near
Castle William; that evening there
was throwing of skyrockets, and those
passing in boats observed great re-
joicing and that the Yankee Doodle
song was the capital piece in the band
of music"
The earliest appearance in print of
Yankee Doodle" in Europe has been
traced to James Ards "A Selection of
scotch, English. Irish and Foreign
airs published in Glasgow about
100. Mr.. Sonneck asserts that Yankee
Doodle did not appear in print in
America until Benjamin Carr's Fed
eral overture. a medley of patriotic
songs. including Yankee Doodle" and
composed in 1894, was pubIished
Adapted for the pianoforte" hy %
Carr, New York, In January I7a5
Since then some interesting and now
rare renderings of the piece have been
issued. oee"
Yankee Doodle" says Mr.. SON.
neck, whatever its original forn,
might have been, passed through MAN.
hands before it became fixed in tbs
popular mind in its present form"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02
copyrighted. 1916. by Frank C. Carpenter.)


SKAGWAY.
- KAGWAY is already preparing for
its Fourth of July celebration.
M Flags are floating from the pub
" lie buildings, and great stream
ers hang across the streets. Excur-
sions are expected fom White Horse
and elsewhere. and the Indians will
come in from miles around. There will
be a tennis tournament and base ball
games. Last Fourth one of the events
was a tug-of-war between rival Indian
tribes. The contest took place on the
street car tracks in the heart of the
town, and the men pulled and tugged
at a rope two inches thick.
Juneau will have a great Fourth this
year. and the day will be celebrated in
every town of Alaska. There is no
doubt about the patriotism of this part
of the world. | saw more American
flags on my trip from ketchikan to
Anchorage than in the whole journey
from Washington to San Francisco and
northward to Seattle. Every town had
American flags floating from the
houses, and a village of twenty log
cabins is sure to have two or three
flags flung out TO the breeze. These
people celebrate the Fourth and
Christmas a the two great days of the
wear. Every town collects money for
the Fourth by popular subscription, and
the sports often last for two or three
days.
Last year Fairbanks. in the very
heart of the territory, had two-day
program. A copy of it lies before me.
The first day began with literary exer
cises. including a speech and the read
ing of the Declaration of Independ
ence. This was followed by base ball
game at Exposition Park In the aft
ernoon there were competitive sports,
and later in the day motor boat races
and a swimming race. In the evening
there was a dance, with music by the
town band. On the second day there
was another base ball game. and sports
features of the latter was a chariot
race, in which the best teams of the
city took part. Each chariot consisted
of the front wheels of a wagon on
which a platform had been laid. The
horses went on the gallop.
1t is interesting to look at the list
of sports in which prizes are given.
The official program. bearing the
American flag on its cover, shows
races by boys and men, and even by
girls. The first prize for the fifty
yard dash for boys of from twelve to
fourteen was So and the second 81.
Boys of ten and twelve ran fifty yards
for prize of So. and boys under eight
years for a prize of sl.50. The hum
dred-yard dash for men and boys had
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

the fort through the whole day with anxiety
that can better be felt than described, until the
night prevented him from seeing IL. In the
night he watched the bomb shells and at early
dawn his eye was again greeted by the proudly
waving nag Of his country.
In regard to the tune Of the star
Spangled Banner" much has been said
and .vritten. over the first appear
ance of the poem in print were the
words. "Tune-Anacreon in Heaven"
The question as to who set Keys
words to this air is yet unsettled. Some
friends OF the descendants Of the poet
declare that Key was tone deaf and
could neither sing nor recognize a
tune. and that his friend, Judge Mich
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-07-02

in length and there are hum
dreds of hooks on one line. The
lines must be dropped so that the
hooks rest on the bed of the sea. Last
Fourth of July the men caught five
dollars worth of halibut while throw
ing their lines, and that notwithstand
ing the contest was not to see who
could catch fish, but who could cast the
line quickest
Many of the sports of Alaska are
held in the evening. This is SO in
every part of the country, and espe-
cially In the interior. 1t is also
in the klondike, where, the 21st of
June. a base ball game is held at mid
night to celebrate the time when
Dawson has twenty-four hours of
daylight. Photogra phs are taken by the
light of the midnight sun, and the
playing continues until the wee hours
of the morning.
The Dawson base ball park was made
at a cost of $4,000. 1t is the scene of
many international contests. Teams
go from Juneau and other parts of our
territory to play the Canadians. and
last year Dawson sent team to Fair
banks. seven hundred miles away, to
compete for the international cham
pionship north of latitude So" White
Horse, Canada. belongs to a base ball
league which also includes Skagway.
Juneau and Douglas Island. This league
imports players from Seattle, Vancou-