The sun., 1916-01-28
MUSIC AND MR.. MOLLIFER.

When Mollifer was boy he could play
tewsharp with the most extraordi-
nary virtuosity; everybody remarked
upon II and as with set teeth he twangel
soulfully. the small girls proceeding
homeward, school book laden, giggled
from the far side Of Main street. In the
effect upon them of Mollifer's music
there was something remarkably pro-
phetic. For years afterward no one ever
heard Mollifer attempt the utterance OF
melodious sounds without betraying emo
ton. usually Of an ambiguous sort.
In fact, as Mollifer grew up he re-
vealed no musical gift. 1t would not be
! correct to say that he did not know one
note from another. lie did but he re-
mained callous to their relations to each
other SO long as these relations were
reasonably correct and conventional. II
he had encountered. as he did not. such
| a liaison as & and G. sharp. Of which GER
| tain musical moderns think nothing, he
would have been troubled by the sense
that all was not well but the feeling
of a public scandal would not for a mo-
ment have turned his thoughts from the
business Of making living. selling
those shares In the gas company and
buying trolley stock instead. voting the
Republocrat ticket and getting Mrs Moi
| lfer new fur coat before the really
cold weather set In.
When Mrs. Moll!fer played the piano
In the hesitant way OF IA woman with "A
house to administer and no time to prac-
| tise scales. Mollifer would turn the pages
! OF sheet music for her and at intervals
Lift up that perplexing voice OF his in
old fashioned cong At other times he
was likely to make fun OF the neglected
upright In the corner. Friends In the
city having sold their things and moved
away, and Mrs. Mollifer having pur-
chased a cabinet thing that she hitched
| TO the pianos keyboard. Mollifer spent q
whole day and incurred expense taking
the mechanism Of the player device
apart only TO find that he could not put
! 1t together again without breaking 1t.
For some time after this experience
Mr. Mollifer let the darned contraption
severely alone. 1t gathered dust, which
is not good for plano playing devices.
| Mrs. Mollifer didn't like the pedal pump
| ing. which seemed 10 her laborious. so
| Mollfer grudgingly got In the habit OF
operating the player for her Setting the
tempo at fixed and lively point he
ground out remorselessly the syncopa-
tons of the day.
When was II that a strange music roll
entered the house? Mollifer cannot re-
member. one evening he picked up an
oblong box. shook out the spool OF per-
! forated tissue, hooked 1t In place and
began the rite. Unfamiliar sounds came
/ forth. A proud, pathetic melody with an
oscillating rhythm tafterward Moll.fer
heard IT called rubato) issued from the
strings OF the pianoforte. Mollifer felt
something quicken In MIN. He looked at
the label beethoven, Sonata, Opus"
Mollifer played i through and then
played II over He even asked Mrs. Mol
lifer casually where she got the piece.
His wife said that they were selling
rolls cheap, and SO she had bought The
Girl In Green: Selections" "Nalse
jaune," "ia-ha. Papa two Chaminade
pieces and then had picked one at ran
dom TO make the half dozen necessary
TO get a reduced rate. Rather pretty in
an odd way, didn't he think?
Molifer said yes and the next night
came honfe with half dozen more pieces
by the same man. One Of them was a
symphony No. 6 Pastoral: First Move
ment. Transcribed by +. Liszt." On a
single cool bass chord Mollfer heard, at
the outset, the charming accents OF a
shepherds pipe. There was delightful
freshness and simplicity In the gentle
weaving OF melodies that had been tran
scribed by Liszt.
II was curious luow absorbing Mollifer
found this new kind of music. He began
to buy books about music and for n long
time never got over his stupefaction at
learning that when Ludwig van Bee
thoven wrote his Sixth symphony he was
too deaf to hear a note Of 1t. Gould a
man paint after he became blind? Could
a sculptor carve with the touch Of his
fingers alone? What lot there was in
these old fellows. after all
Mollifer does not get time TO go to
concerts and reCitals. His symphonies
are devoid Of instrumental color his
arias are sung only by celestial voices
his knowledge Of counterpo'nt Is rudi.
mentary the reighbors take no JOY of
his nightly pedallings which are achieved
without the waving hair and the pounc-
ing fingers Of Nirtuoso IL is 10 be
feared that there is not enough nuanCs
in Molifer's playing Mrs. Mollifer
though she shares his new tastes. IS
sometimes u shade Jealous because she
does not plumb the depths Of her hus-
bands pleasure, Certainly he feels n
quiet glow Of satisfaction not 20 be ex.
pained by the exercise of pumping Mrs
Mollfer does not revel that way In the
operation of sewing machine.
Vet as Mrs. Mollifer rapidly moves the
cloth under the vertical needle her
thoughts are often colored with warm
love Of the boy and the girl for whom
she s making the small garments. With
both her and Molifer. as with all man
kind the Joy IL In the doing, In utility
IN beauty. and chiefest In having a share
in the good thoughts and the good feel
ncs ~ all time.
ppnEpEccyUE pTNTS