Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1885-04-10
PAWN . SHOP STOCK.

cal Relics of the War.
There are seventy-onc pawnbrokers
in Philadelphia and one hundred and
ten secondhand clothes-dealcrs. In
the window of every one of these stores
are displayed one or more banjo vio-
Inns and cornets. Besides these musi-
cal instruments no pawnbroker's or
secondhand clothes-dealer's store
window appears to bo complete without
an accordion, large family-bible and
two or three boxes of mathematical in
struments. None of these articles are
ever of the best material or workman
ship, and they all appear to be new, or
nearly so. "Where do they all come
fromP" said reporter to Winfield
Radeliff yesterday. He replied:
al can tell you something about the
corncts and the banjos. The cornets
are relics of the war. No; they were
not pick d up on the field of battle; in
deed, 1t ia probable that they were nov-
or favored with powder and never got
nearer to call to arms or an order ~
fix bayonets and charge than hall
over some saloon in the city. This is
how it was During the war every man
who could play an instrument was i'm
bued with the idea of forming band to
lead conquering Northern regiment
tn 'ough the South. One-fifth of these
patriots went out, and others didn't.
Their corne.s and other wind instr
ments were left on their hands, and be-
ing only of cheap description origi
nally, they could only find n market in
the pawn shop. Not that the things
were.bought. by the brokers. We don't
buy things of that sort. They were lett
and never redeemed, because the would
be trumpeters did not mean to redeem
them. The banjos come to us in sim
liar way. At certain period in the life
of nearly every young man the desire
to be a variety actor or minstrel
comes on very strong. The banjo is
supposed to be the appropriate instru-
ment to start with.
Two or three months is sufficient
to drive all the neighbors mad and to
cure the variety stage struck youth of
his mania. The pawnbroker offers the
only way of getting rid of the now OBJ.
noxious banjo OF course it is never
redeemed. There has been craze for
boxing-gloves among the young men OF
this city for the past two or three years
that is, ever since John L. Sullivan
made such reputation. These young
fellows have Il bout or two, get severe
ly punched in the face two or three
times, and grow tired of the mittens.
Uncle comes in useful again, and
numerous pairs of the padded sparring
apparatus appear in the window OF
the pawnbrokers' stores.
with the violins it is different
These instruments are made wholesale.
They are turned out of factories by the
dozen, made ON regular pattern, all
alike. Sometimes there happens to be
fairly good one among them, and it is
placed in the store of music-dealer;
the others are left with pawnbrokers
and secondhand dealers, who receive a
commission on their sale. There is
large factory of these yiolins on Edge
ware road, London, Eng. don know
the name of the firm, but they turn out
thousands annually and send large mum.
bers over to this country. Dyes, there
are such firms in this country. One
way by which these musical instruments
come into our hands is by our buying
up bankrupt stocks. l don't see mulch
use of doing so, however, for they only
represent capital invested and interest
lost. We very seldom get rid of them
except at the auction sales, when we sell
our unredeemed pledges. Then they
60 into the country. and if every pur-
chaser of a banjo, cornet, or accordion
learns to play the number of budding
musicians in the United States must be
unaccountable. Lots of them must be
like the violin, born to blush unsees
and waste its sweetness on the deser,
air.
"How do the secondhand stores get
hold of the Instruments"
"Oh, they buy them at our sales oi
stock to them, but they serve to orna.
ment a window and attract passers-by.
/ dare say they manage to sell some OF
them, too. Sailors are great people for
buying musical instruments. When
Jack is starting ON cruise he will buy
banjo or an ACCORDION to play in his
leisure hours.
~ never heard n sailor play any
thing, but bet they get some fun out
of their purchases. Farm laborers
have great notion of being musical
geniuses, too. Market days are good
days to get rid of the snide banjos and
violins. But there is an instrument
which has become great favorite OF
late years, which imagine has sounded
the death-note of the cheap banjo and
ACCORDION. i mean the orguinette.
Anybody can play that. 1t requires no
learning and is not very expensive. All
that you have to do is to slip in y per-
forated sheet of paper, something like a
weaver's pattern-card, turn n handle
and there you are. The harmonium
was great enemy to the banjo, but ii
cost too much money and required n
lot of carting about"
"Well, how about the big family Bi-
blesp What does q pawnbroker want
with themp"
You'd be astonished at the number
sold. A wave of revival meetings is
all that is necessary to create regular
boom in family Bibles. They are opened
half dozen times, the name and birth
days of the family inscribed in them,
and back they come to u.s. From us
they always go to the secondhand
dealer or the junk shop. What becomes
of them afterward can not say. l
guess the small grocers and function
shops get them for wrapping paper.
Mathematical instruments are a drug
in the market. We have more of them
than we know what to do with. They
are generally bought from bankrupt
stocks, and sometimes are merely put
on sale in pawnbrokers' windows for a
commission. Then there is another
source from which all these articles
come in great abundance mock
auciioneer or Cheap jack These gen
try get rid of their wares in the same
ratio as their wit enables them to per
suade people to buy. 1t is not long be.
fore the real value of the goods is dis
covered, and then they are taken direct
to the abode of n good and loving
uncle, who never refuses to lend dol,
lar or two upon anything. .-fhitadel'
phia Times.
| In several South American conn.