A Fine Compliment

1895

And It Was Paid to a Famous Ballad Singer by General Grant.

A lot of show people were sitting around one evening swapping experiences.

"The finest compliment I ever had paid me," said a famous ballad singer, "was by General Grant. You know, he was not very fond of music, and once, when we happened to be stopping in the same hotel for a night, and after the performance, I was asked to sing for him. I did not feel very much like complying. In fact, I refused him at first because I had heard that music bored him dreadfully, and he only agreed to hear me because the committee that was entertaining him included me in the attractions.

"About midnight, in the parlor of the hotel, I met the general, and shortly afterward I sat down to the piano to play my own accompaniment to a simple ballad I had selected. The general sat near the piano, and I kept my eye on him so that I could see if he were going to be tired, and if so I was going to quit as short as I could reasonably do. As I sang, however, I became interested in the melody and forgot the general and sang straight through to the end. Then, as the last strain died away, the general rose suddenly, and as he brushed his hand across his eyes he said, 'Confound your music' and walked away. It was not quite what I expected, but it was the greatest compliment he could have paid me, and I told him so when later he came and apologized for having spoken as he did." — Detroit Free Press.