Organ grinders, barber poles, civilization

As with beauty, what constituted a mark of civilization in south Louisiana in days past appears to have been in the eye of the beholder. For example, the Lake Charles Commercial carried a little item in 1882, noting that, “the first organ grinder who ever came to Lake Charles .., made his appearance. … We are approaching civilization.” They were not there yet, in the editor’s estimate, but the g…