The Phonogram (II), Issue 32

THIRTY - SECOND NUMBER

continuance of the pub-
lication known as the
‘ ‘ Phonogram , M with this

The PHONOGRAM

VOL. VI

SUBSCRIPTION THIRTY CENTS A YEAR
SINGLE NUMBERS, FIVE CENTS

Published by HERBERT A. SHATTUCK
at Number 83 Chambers Street New York City

Printed Monthly for those interested in the Arts of Record
ing and Reproducing Sound ; also for those interested
in Animated Pictures . Official Handbook of The

Order of the Phonogram . ^ A -very

Special Department will be devoted to
all {Questions and Answers re-
lating to Phones , Graphs ,

Grams and Scopes. Cor-
respondence welcomed
, by the Editor

Notes .....

Bird Language

To My Phonograph . I,

Origin of Popular Songs
The Parrot and the Phonograph
New Edison Moulded Records
Not Slow, in Spite of His N ame
Peace on Earthy Good Will to Men
O For a Folding Pocket Phonograph
The Phonograph as an Aid to Dentists
The Phonograph as a Recruiting Agen

TO MY PHONOGRAPH

What is home without a Phonograph ?

It will make you cry, or laugh ;

When you’re lonely, or alone,

Wind it up, and hear the tone.

Hear the voices sweetly sing,

With the pleasure it will bring.

Any music you like or please

The “Phone” will play with the greatest ease.

Should a Friend come in to call, %

And the conversation fall ;

Just a little below the mark,

Start up the “ Phone,” it is like a spark
Of inspiration that comes in the dark.

’Tis a gleam of sunshine to.every one.

That is fond of music, and fond of fun ;

They learn to like it as well as you,

And ask every time, have you Records new ?

What a vote of thanks
We certainly owe,

Us Phonograph Cranks ”

To Edison, who .

Has given us such pleasure complete.

In the little machine, so compact and neat.

Which graces our homes and parlors so fine ;

Oh why should we roam abroad in a clime
Where Edison’s name has never been heard ?

When with us for years, it’s been a household word.
I’m sure. I’d be pleased to take him by the hand,
And try and convince him ; he would understand,
The pleasure we have all enjoyed so long,

t

THE PHONOGRAM

In Muse by Bands, solo, and song.

The “ Phones *’ are so perfect, the muse so rare
That if you don’t own one you’re certainly nowhere.

In this age of progression, keep up with the rest
Buy an Edison Phonograph, for they are the best
It helps to pass the hours quickly away,

I would not part with it for even one day.

Take my money, and part of my home
But please, do leave me, my Records and Phone.

“ Mkut Mac”

• , “ One of the Cranks.”

NOTES.

U “Mr. Openeer” said I the other day, “ what do you
know ? ” Now I never yet saw the time, no matter how
sudden my call for Phonograph facts, but Mr. Openeer had
some interesting information concealed about his person.
And this time was no exception. Drawing out his pocket-
book he replied, “Peace on kaktm 5 good will to men.”
Elsewhere in this issue I print the two news clipping he

handed

Boer

was proclaimed at Blenheim Palace in England, and the
other, a sarcastic account of the good toill existing between
two Jersey gentlemen, because of twelve strenuous talking
machines and a spite fence. Verily, it takes all kinds of
people and things to make this glad world of ours.

Editor Phonogeam :

Dear Sir : — Enclosed clipping 1
paper. I have occasion to pass the

•111

a recent Chicago
locality mentioned.

\

(

The machines are Disk machines Gramophones
Uncle Josh says : “There ain’t any word,” to d<
this class of machines.

Very truly yours,

W. E. Johnso

Here follows the clipping : This is the tale of woe

told by two Chicago citizens.

“ If something isn’t done to silence those talking
machines around our home,” said they at the police station
the other day, “ we’ll simply have to move.”

Both men looked red-eyed and weary.

“ The tortures of living in our neighborhood are simply
unbearable,” said one.

“ I haven’t slept in a week,” said the other. “ These
talking machines go night and day, gurgling and wheezing
speeches, rag-time songs and brass band blares. There is
a saloon next door to us. Fifty times a day the talking
machine in that places delivers a speech on the money
question. It sings every tune, from * Mr. Johnson Turn
Me Loose,’ to ‘A Bird in a Gilded Cage,’ especially
that infernal ‘ Ain’t it a Shame.’ I toss in my bed to
patriotic airs, selections from grand operas and imitations of
a band of crazy people. Every night I retire to the lively
strains of ‘ Who Done Spent Ma’ Quarter ?’ * I Eat My
Meals in Jig Time and Walk Around in Rag Time.’
The whole air is constantly full of the unholy sounds.

“ At night it seems as though my bed had caught the
infection and wanted to two-step. I have dreams of the
chairs dancingly wildly around my apartment and visions
of brass bands of many pieces perched upon the footboard
of my couch playing their very hardest are frequent.”

“ We ghall simply have to move,
** No,” said the Lieutenant, 4
that, to-morrow there will be a rah

It takes only Half an Eye to recognise the
superiority of genuine Edison Phonographs ;
they are made with accuracy and precision ,
to uphold the Fame of the Name of the
Man who stands behind them . — Ofenekr.

THE PARROT AND THE PHONOGRAPH

By W. H. Sedgwick

The family next door was the proud possessor of a parrot
of unusual intelligence, which had a marvelous aptitude in
learning popular songs, singing them at the most inoppor-
tune times and places. The parrot’s pet aversion was an
old Doctor, who called professionally at the house, and who
had a habit of blowing his nose like a trumpet’s blast in
front of Polly* s cage whenever he entered or left the house.
Polly stood the infliction patiently, as long as a self respect-
ing parrot could reasonably be expected to endure such
treatment, and then by the way of retaliation began to
make comments upon the old fellow’s style, manner, and
general appearance ; not at all complimentary you may be
sure, but showing great penetration on Polly’s part.

One morning, while making a call, on entering the
house the Doctor stopped in front of the cage and blew the
usual salute. Polly looked at him for a moment in disgust,
and then calmly said, ** You poor damfool, why don’t you
bore holes in your nose and play it like a flute.” It is
needless to say he did not torment the bird any more.

DECEMBER

9

In Polly's house resided a young lady. Polly's affections
centered on this member of the family j and when at liberty
during the day, usually to be found perched upon her
shoulder listening to the conversation. Whenever her
mistress, while playing the piano, chanced to strike up one
of Polly's favorite tunes, Polly would sing with all the airs
and graces of a boarding school miss at her first appearance.
Still, Polly fell into disgrace, all through the medium of
her too ready tongue. One evening the young lady's beau
called to see her and the parrot, as usual, occupied a prom-
inent place. It goes without saying that nothing escaped
her observation. The next morning at the breakfast table
Polly opened up the conversation by remarking, “ George,
you pull down the window shades, while I 'turn down the
light ; * * and while the family was speechless with horror
she went on, “ That's what Sarah said last night,* Ha,
Ha, Ha. Sarah is a bad girl."

The parrot was immediately banished from the family
circle and then tranferred her rather questionable friendship
to me. Regularly every morning she would fly over and
come in the window of the room I occupied (called my
Phonograph room ) and after making a survey of the apart-
ment would perch upon the back of a chair and wait
patiently until I noticed her. She was very fond of hearing
the Phonograph. The remarks she used to make were
laughable, interpolating the speech or song with side
remarks of her own, which made a very funny combina-
tion ; but I rather think she enjoyed talking to the machine
and then listening to her own voice better than all the
records I had in my possession. It was a sorry day for me
when I taught her the use of the Recorder, for, from that
foment my troubles be^an. I was in the habit of spend-

ing* most of my spare time in experimenting wiui me
Phonograph, making record alter record, trying to overcome
the obstacles which usually confront the beginner. W hether
the bird thought I was working for her benefit or was
actuated by a spirit of mischief I do not know, but she took
advantage of every opportunity to demonstrate her ability as
an artist in the record making line, until patience ceased to
be a virtue. I arose in my wrath and cast her out.
However, if I thought I was to have an easy victory I was
mistaken, for the bird came back into the lower part of the
house and made her way into the room, just as I was
finishing what afterwards proved to be an unusually fine
violin record of “The Holy City." As she flew on my
shoulder she yelled, “ O, Hell, you think you are smart,
don’t you, to put poor Polly out, pretty Poll." There it
is on the end of that Holy City record to this day — Poll’s
blasphemy, blended with Hosannahs. My first thought
was to wring her neck, then and there, but I could not help
being amused at her persi stance, so I compromised the
matter by hiring a small boy to take the parrot off to a
remote part of the city and lose her. Now peace reigns
once more in our neighborhood.

Modern times have not produced the equal
of the Phonograph for amusement and in-
struction . — Chapin .

THE PHONOGRAPH AS A RECRUITING AGENT

A sea captain who has just returned from a cruise to
Australia and the South Sea Islands tells of a clever way of
recruiting laborers from the Islands, to work on the plan-
tations. It seems a custom daring the early spring for the

natives of the Islands of the South Seas to gather on the
coast in large numbers 5 and vessels go there to recruit
laborers. The captain of one of the recruiting vessels
adopted a novel method of getting natives to enter into
contracts with him. He secured a Phonograph ; and
before leaving Queensland had a native, already engaged on
a plantation, talk into it, telling of the good time he was
having. This was taken to the native villages and turned
loose. The natives flocked to the recruiting ship. From
the Philadelphia Public Ledger.

The discovery of the Edison Phonograph
brought happiness to thousands . — Chapin.

THE PHONOGRAPH AS AN AID TO

DENTISTS.

A Paris dentist gives gas and music when extracting
teeth. Gas has the peculiar effect sometimes of filling the
mind of the immobile patient with horrid fantasies and
grotesque chimeras, in which sheeted ghosts, leering hob-
goblins and reptilian monsters play leading parts, and the
victim, on emerging from the anaesthetic trance, shrieks
and carries on. The polite Paris dentist cast about him
for a remedy and hit on the Phonograph. Connecting the
patient's ears with the machine and starting its strain of
he administered gas and pulled the offending tooth.
During the operation a look of beatitude illuminated the
the half-closed eyes of the patient, and it was with reluct-
anoe that he was aroused and left the chair, no doubt with
a complaint of losing the crescendo. Dr. Laborde was so
much impressed with the merit of the dentist's discovery
that he lectured on it before the Academy of Medicine
and recommended the use of the Phonograph in the oper-
ating room of hospitals. — New York Evening Sun.

music

PEACE ON EARTH 5 GOOD WILL TO MEN.

Phonograph Proclaims Peace.

y

London. — The news of peace was transmitted this
morning to the inhabitants of Blenheim Palace, the country
seat of the Duke of Marlborough, in a manner that had
considerable flavor of American progressiveness.

An immense Phonograph, with a monster horn attached,
had been hoisted to the top of the church tower. The
instrument was operated by the Rev. Aylmer Scott, the
local vicar, and it transmitted the peace dispatches, word
for word, so loudly that they could be heard in a radius of
half a mile from the tower.

When this had been done, the Union Jack was run up
on the tower flagstaff and the Phonograph sang the national
anthem, in which the entire neighborhood joined clamor-
ously. — From the Philadelphia North American .

Talking Machines Cause Spite Fence.

H. E. Patterson, a designer living in the hill section of
Passaic, has erected a spite fence on the line of his property
adjoining that of M. Bourmann, of the Botany mills.
Patterson objected to Bourmann* s children playing on the

ise their noise annoyed him. Soon after this,
bought a talking machine. Patterson called in
n and attempted to have his neighbor arrested as
person. Bourmann bought a dozen talking
and set them going all at one time. Patterson
the fence 1 5 feet high. He says he will add
ten reet more. Bourmann’ s children use the fence as a
back stop for baseball.

Editor* s Not*. — They say these were Disk Scratch-o-
phones. I don't blame Patterson. Bourmann ought to
have known better,

lawn becai
Bourmann

BIRD LANGUAGE.

Any boy can whistle, most people can sing — in a way ;
some can yodel, but only one man has been discovered up
to date who can warble. His name is Charles D. Kellogg.
He can warble like a thrush, canary, bobolink, oriole,
meadow lark, scarlet tanager, blackbird, mocking-bird and
many others, and he reproduces the various bird songs so
marvellously that even the birds themselves respond to his
calls, and it is no wonder that he can deceive human beings
when the birds themselves are fooled.

Mr. Kellogg possesses vocal abilities beyond^the range of
any other human being, for scientific tests have demons-
trated his ability to cover a range of vibratory tone of more
than nine and a half octaves.

Mr. Kellogg spends seven months each year in the woods
and fields, and has penetrated to the ends of the world to
study the birds in their natural haunts ; he has faced
adventures of every description to wrest the secret of then-
lives and habits from them, and this he does with his
camera and his Phonograph. To aid him in acquiring bird
language with entire accuracy, Mr. Kellogg uses a Recorder
specially prepared with a very sensitive diaphragm, usually
of onionskin paper, with which he records for future study
and analysis the most delicate bird notes — their cries of
surprise, distress and alarm, as well as songs of joy and love,
and calls to their young.

Mr. Kellogg* 8 lectures on bird life are not a scientific
analysi^of bird habits, but a series of personal anecdotes and
narratives, with all the delicacy and aroma of camp life,
superbly illustrated by photo-stereopticon views taken by
Mr. Kellogg in the homes and haunts of the birds them-
selves. Each series of photographs leads up to a song-bird

glide, made by color photography. As tUe bird in ail its
brilliancy of plumage flits across the scene, Mr. Kellogg
warbles its note, call and song, as he has previously recorded
it upon a Phonograph from the bird itself in the woods.

Truly, Mr. Kellogg is a marvel. He is to the feathered
kingdom what Ernest Thompson-Seton is to the animal
kingdom.

The Phonograph is always ready to amuse
your friends. -—Orwsm.

O FOR A FOLDING POCKET PHONOGRAPH !

One day last autumn Bennet Burleigh, the noted English
special war correspondent, was encountered a few miles
outside Pretoria by that volcanic rhetorician, General

money but simply to advertise his goods, and that he was
not responsible for the blockading of the sidewalk, and that
if they found it blocked it was their duty to clear it. Mr.
Crabb says he kept on playing till he got ready to close,
paying no attention to the order. — From the Columbus,
Ind. Daily Times.

The Phonograph is a good listener and a
perfect talker. — Openeer. *

ORIGIN OF POPULAR SONGS.

“ Billy Gray got his material for his famous song the
* V olunteer Organist * while attending church one Sunday
morning. It seems on that particular day the regular
organist was ill and the congregation was not informed of
this fact until late in the service. The preacher was in a
quandary and was about to give up in despair when a dilapi-
dated-looking fellow, much the worse for rum, entered the
church. He took a seat near the aisle and began to pray.
Then he staggered toward the organ and said to the preacher.

* ‘ Will you let me play on the organ for a few minutes ?
1 want you to hear a few songs.

‘ ‘ The parson was dumfounded, yet pleased. He turned
to the stranger and after critically sizing up his appearance
said : “Yes, my son, you can play. Our regular organist
is ill to-day and I will thank you very much if you will
volunteer.”

“ Well, the stranger knew his business and discoursed
some of the sweetest melodies Gray ever heard. Gray,
inside of two days, wrote a song around the incident and
published it himself. It had a big sale and he made thou-
sands of dollars out of it.

“ The originator of cake walk music is Fred Mills, who
writes under the name of Kerry Mills. One night about

six years ago Mills attended a cakewalk in Detroit. The
leader of the band, a negro, had considerable difficulty in
keeping the walkers in step. >Mills, who has just budding
out as a composer, approached the leader and said s

“ I notice that the walkers here to-night can’t keep in
step. I composed a march which I think will do. Try it.

It’s qalled 4 Rastus on Parade.’

«« The leader played it and the effect was magical. The
contestants were able to cakewalk without much trouble to
the time of the music. Although the leader tried to nng
in some other music the darkies insisted on 4 Rastus on
Parade* and it at once became popular. Mill# then
•osed ‘Georgia Campmeeting,* ‘Happy Days in Dixie’
Whistling Rufus, ’ from which he made a fortune.
John Kelly, who wrote and composed 4 The Girl I
Behind,* got his idea while starring with his company
out West years ago. One night the leading soubrette of
his show got into a row with another member of the troupe
and gave notice to Kelly that she would leave. Kelly was
much worried because he could not get another v/oman at
that time to fill her place. Kelly pleaded with her to
remain, but she refused and left the next night. About
two days later she repented and came back. Kelly gave
her old job, but planned at the same time to get even. So
at the next stand he paid her what was coming to her and
discharged her. Then gathering his entire company to-
gether he said : 4 See, that’s the girl I left behind. ’

44 1 could continue all night and tell you about the history
of hundreds of other popular songs, which would be equally

Dave Marion, who composed only 4 One

1 interesting

Girl In the World for Me,’ says that he got the theme of
this song from reading the Bible. He says that Adam said
to Eve 4 There’ s only one girl in the world for me.’ I
guess Dave meant to be funny, but he swears it is a solemn
fact. At any rate the song was the real thing whether the

the Bible inspired it or not. ”

NEW EDISON MOULDED RECORDS

♦

8246 Selection from A Country Girl

8247 U. S. Army Lancers, First Figure

8248 U. S. Army Lancers, Second Figure

8249 U. S. Army Lancers, Third Figure

8250 U. S. Army Lancers,

1st Half of Last Figure, Orchestra P

8251 U. S. Army Lancers, 2nd Half of Last

Figure Orchestra P

Not*. — The U. S. Army Lancers is re-
corded on five cylinders and consists of the
first,second, third and fifth figures complete.

The prompting is given and the music is
played in the regular dancing tempo. 8248,
introduces Mr. Nightingale in his whistling
specialty. 8249, introduces Squire Hawkins
in a Rube monologue. 8250, introduces
Mr. Nightingale and Mr. Hightone in their
singing and whistling duet. 8251, con-
cludes with a two-step finale .

8252 In Old Judea

Sacred song with violin obligato McDonough

8253 Carnival of Venice with variations .

Cornet Bohumir Kryl

8254 Answer Cornet Bohumir Kryl

8255 They were all do jig; the same

Comic male duet Co & Har

8256 O that we two were Maying,

Contralto and Basso duet Morgan & Stanley

8257 My Particular Friend Comic song from IVeber

& Fields' Tioirly fVhirly Quinn

8258 The Heavens are Telling - i ^

from Haydn s “ The Creation ” Band E

8259 I’ll wed you in the golden summertime

Sentimental song Har

Orchestra P
Orchestra P
Orchestra P
Orchestra P

Tell me pretty maiden

Sextette from Florodora Sextette E
Don’t be cross waltz v

from the Master Miner Band E

Concluded fr

Edison Moulded

I’m unlucky Comte male dm

Let the k>jver lights be burning
Talmage on Miracle* , Talking )

Mandy won’t you let me be your beau

Wallace

u* merry birds
Contralto and ,

duet Morgan Sc Stanley
love song McDonough
moiSrnnd bells Watson

8270 Santa Claus song nvith
8*71 When the troupe comes ba

Comic song from So
817a At the bottom of the deep

old Illinois

Sentime 1
March

8*77 Our United ]

8278 Pretty Molly

8279 Con Cbncy’i

McDonough

pencer

North

«28o Alice
8281 Ne$<
12733 Dash

Muench

Muench

12734 V **

12735 p*

12736 Ein

NATIONAL PHONOGRAPH * COMPANY

ORANGE, N.J., U.S. A.

New You, 83 Chambers Street
Chicago, 144 Wabash Avenue ^ , -2

Sam Francisco, 933 Market Street
Antwerp, 32 Rempart St. Gorges