"
"Is it?"
I did not understand, but I was deeply impressed all the same. The
question bothered me all that evening. Finally I submitted it to my
mother: "Mamma, Naphtali says when you play on a fiddle it is not
the bow that makes the tune, but the fingers that are jumping
around. Is it true?"
She told me not to bother her with foolish questions, but the
retired soldier, who had overheard my query, volunteered to
answer it.
"Of course it is not the bow," he said
"But if you did not work the bow the strings would not play, would
they?" I urged.
"You could play a tune by pinching them," he answered. "But if
you just kept passing the bow up and down there would be no tune
at all."
I plied him with further questions and he answered them all,
patiently and fondly, illustrating his explanations with a thread for
a violin string, my mother looking from him to me beamingly
When we were through she questioned him: "Do you think he
understands it all?" "He certainly does. He has a good head," he
answered, with a wink.
Pages:
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44