The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1874-07-16
MAKING HAND-ORGANs.
Where she &areet-lHustcfams Buy
Their INSTRUMENTS samd Have
Them ngepafred-The
Mysteries Of the
Hamd-Orgam.



On the front of dingy brick building
at the head of Chatham street, weather
beaten and dim, hands the sign, Hand
| Organs" A reporter saw the sign yes
terday, and went in. Up two flights Of
stairs, through the low door to the left,
and he stood in the only hand-organ man.
ufactory In the United States. Standing
at benches, leaning over old organ boxes,
seated before little stands, FIVE men were
at work. In the middle of the room
stood several old hand-organs. On the
walls hung little patterns, numbered and
| diagrammed; in the further corner stood
a machine seven or eight feet high, looking
for all the world like a threshing ma
chine.
"Is the proprietor in?" asked the
reporter of the workman nearest the
door.
The workman turned, pointed toward
the other end of the room, and went on
cutting out long strips from great sheet
of pasteboard.
Sitting on low chair, with low table
before him, was a short, stout, jolly-faced
man, evidently German. On the other
bench in front of him, mounted on two
wooden rests, hung a wooden cylinder
fifteen inches long, perhaps; and five
inches in diameter. Behind the cylinder
was small case, Lilliputian type case,
containing thirty-six little boxes, and every
box full of little brass pins
"What do you charge for a common
sized organ?" asked the reporter.
NEW TUNES IN OLD INSTRUMENTS.
cit depends on the kind" answered
the proprietor; 81 can make you a flute
organ, with twenty-four keys, to play
nine tunes, with black walnut case, for
hundred dollars. Ifyou want an organ
to play ten tunes, can make it for you
for hundred and twenty dollars. An
organ of this size will weigh about twenty
five pounds. A parlor organ, with from
twenty-five to forty-six keys. will cost you
from hundred and fifty to two hundred
and fifty dollars. A side-show organ, to
play nine tunes, with sixty KEYS, thirty
five brass trumpets, large and small
drums, and triangles, | can make you for
two thousand dollars"
While he was talking, the jolly little
man sat pegging away at the cylinder
before him, driving pin here and peg
there, Strengthening them with a pair of
pinchers, and fattening them with little
light hammer.
"What are you driving those pegs in
there for?" asked the reporter.
''This is an old cylinder. 1t was made
twenty years ago" he answered; ''the
tunes that were all the 90 then, don't
draw out the pennies worth a cent now.
[ am putting new ones in it. | take the
cylinder out and paste sheet of clean,
white paper around it. Then I mark ii
for the tunes, and drive thesa little pinsin,
and the thing is DONE Its very easy to
do"
1t looked very easy. The cylinder was
some half an inch long, others scarcely
he knew where to draw the lines
The little man took a handful of
the little pins out of his apron on his lap,
took a few dozens more out of his
mouth, got up and began TO turn the
crank of dismantled organ that stood
near.
HAND ORGANS AND CHURCH ORGANS.
e'You see" said he, "a hand organ is
made like any common organ. 1t has a
bellows and pipes and keys. When you
want to play on church organ, you
push down on the keys; when you want
to play on hand-organ, you lift the keys.
You use your fingers to play on a church
organ; these little brass pins are the fingers
on a hand organ. You see these little
wires that hang down from the ends of
the keys? Well, every time one of those
wires strikes one of the brass pins, when
the cylinder is going round, the key is
raised and the note is sounded. If the
brass pin is one of those long, half inch
ones, the key stays up good while, and
the note is long one. If the pin is just
a little dot the key falls right back and the
note is short"
''But how do you know where to mark
the cylinder for the tunes?"
THAT'S secret of the trade" answered
the little man; "but | guess I'll show you.
You see, the cylinder is covered with
clean paper, and all ready; now hang it
in by the iron rod that sticks out at each
end. The tune want to mark it for
play on the keys, only press the keys
down instead of lifting them up, for l
know what noise they would make just as
well as if they did make it. Every time
der it makes a little dent. If | hold it
down for long note it makes long
mark, for short note it makes just dot
Then go over the marks with pen to
make them plain. When one tune is
marked 90 on with the next. When the
tunes are all marked l put the pins in, as
you see.
"How do the organ-grinders change
from one tune to another while they are
playing in the street," inquired the report
er.
every organ, responded the little
man, ''plays from seven to ten tunes.
This one / am working at plays eight.
Do you see these little grooves 2" and he
pointed TO one. end of the cylinder, where
a piece of the wood had been left, about
two inches long and an inch and half
in diameter. There were eight little
grooves around the projection. ''When
the organ-grinder wants to change the
tune he lifts that little spring and shoves
the cylinder in or out one groove and the
tune is changed
A CUSTOMER.
els my organ done YETI"
The proprietor turned round. The
voice was from a long, slim, hungry
looking man, dressed in army blue, with
pair of dark-green spectacles hiding his
eyes, who had come in SO quietly that no
body had noticed him.
mo, it's not done yet" said the little
man; ''I'm at work at it now. guess by
this time tomorrow it'll be all ready for
YOU"
The man in blue turned slowly
round, felt his way with long stick,
found the door, and CROPPED down the dark
stairs.