Maud loved to play the piano and sing. She played no matter what her mood, when she was happy, melancholy or distressed. It is unknown as to whether Maud had received any formal instruction,but the Bailey family was very musical. When Uncle Floyd visited, he would play cords in "C" which was just fascinating to me.
About 1908 a tornado destroyed the home of George W. and Saphrona Bailey. This home was located on the near east side of Carleton, Nebraska. One of their worldly possessions, which survived the onslaught, was an upright piano. The reason for the piano's survival was that it was tipped over falling face down on a rug that cushioned the impact. The damage to the piano was minimal. This piano eventually came to be in Maud and Harry's home in Davenport and Maud coaxed many pretty tunes from this instrument.
Following are titles of some of the sheet music Maud had retained through the years:
Hindustan, Moonlight Bay, In the Gloaming, Some of These Days, Someone Else May Be There while I'm Gone, Alice Blue Gown, That NaughtyWaltz, If you Didn't have a Friend, I've Done My Work, and the Prayer Perfect.
Sitting on the top of the piano was a large stein. The decoration on the stein was that of a scene depicting a tree, the trunk being the handle, the roots going down into the base of the stein and the leafy branches shading a knight in silver armor and a lady by his side; with a bubbling stream in the foreground and a medieval castle in the background. Of the many songs that Maud would play and sing, one I liked, was called "Marble Halls" by M. W. Balfe. The song and stein seemed to complement each other.
I dreamt that suitors sought my hand, that knights upon bended knees,
And with vows no maiden heart could withstand, they pledged their faith to me.
And I dreamt that one of that noble host came forth my hand to claim.
But I also dreamt, which charmed me most, that you lov'd me still the same,
That you lov'd me, you lov'd me still the same, That you lov'd me you lov'd me still the same.