Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1886-11-01

and DurabD ty.
An olive-cunplexioned son of Italy, his
hat, clothing, and particularly his shoes, evil
denCiug long service and hard usage, strug-
gled up the two flights of steep stairs that led
TO the factory of one Of the most prominent
manufacturers of street organs in this city
the other day, and shifting from his neck the
greasy leathern strap that supported an organ
0n his Lack he placed the instrument on the
foor with evident relief Taking his hat off,
he gave nod OF recognition to the proprietor
of the establishment and proceeded TO mop
the great beads of perspiraiion from his low
forehead with very dirty and ragged silk
handkerchief that might in its PALMER days
have been orange coiored This operation
finished he said, pointing to the rusty looking
box before him with an expression of the
most absolute disgust and with voice full of
feeling:
mo good"
What is the matter with it!r asked the
proprietor Of the place
dc instrument no play good tune No
make a money 1t IL too a zad, too zlow
Pull out ze old tune. Make play quick
muzica. Put in zat new tune, Pop Goes ze
Weasel
Having been assured that the instrument
would be enlivened forthwith, and that he
might call for it in u few days, the Italian
gave parting look at the picture of Genoa
III the front panel and shambled off When
he had disappeared a reporter who happened
to be present during the above dialogue said
to the fat, jOyial-loOkmg organ maker and re
pairpr, whose cOuntenance bore an amused
smile:
HARD QUESTION TO ANSWER.
~What is the latest agony in hand organ
music or, in other words, what are TO be the
tunes that viii set all New York crazy this
fallf"
That Is pretty hard question TO answer
be replied, "as it depends very largely upon
the taste and fancy of the respective musi-
clans Some of them know what they want
and some don't. But as most Of them leave
it 10 me to make the selections for them, why
of course, | have TO keep upwith all the latest
music, and put in such tunes as think will
be most popular. That man who just went
out uf here is a fair illustration of how ignor-
ant some of these men are. His organ was
too sentimental for his gay nature, and he
wanted lively air or two to substitute for
Old Hundred or The Heart Bowed Down
Now, some one has told him that Pop Goes
the Weasel is the right thing. OF course that
is played out long ago, and / shall have to
give him something Of the same nature that
is not quite 50 ancient
do they come i'll often to have new tunes
substituted
"Oh. yes; about every six months, some
times oftener. You see it costs about 81 or
s. to get new tune put in. They generally
l,a In.,a of An
organ plays six or eight airs, and they keep
changing them until they get what they like,
and then very likely they will run along on
The same barrel for quite a while Some OF
the latest songs that will probably run this
winter are Rocking the Baby White
Wings, and the Cricket on the Hearth
Then there is the Lullaby and When Love
Is Young from that new comic opera 'Er-
Dsinie' We get great many songs that are
popular from England Sweet Dreamland
Faces Going to Market Tit for Tat have
taken very well and will, no doubt, run for
some time Yet. Harrigan hasn't got out any
thing new as Vet, but we will probably hear
from him soon. In the meantime Baxter
Avenue Denny Gradys Hack 1t Showered
Again. and Put on Your Bridal Veil will
still remain on the barrels Scanlans new
songs, expect, will take well, and l will
probably put his Rose Song and Gather the
Myrtle with Mary into some of these organs
you see here. The 'Mikado' is beginning to
get played out, and will have to take rest.
We VIII run the 'Gipsy Baron and Little
Tycoon for some time yet
THE RUN OF NEW TUNES
"Do old tunes revivel"
"Yes, indeed. We generally give the new
tunes a run for about a year, and then hang
them up for a while. If they are very popu-
lar they are sure 20 be wanted again"
rs the hand organ business on the declineF-
"No, sir. There are more street organs
about to-day than ever before, although YOU
may not notice so many-the city has grown
so large. The business is too good not TO
have plenty of recruits. A good player can
always make money at il. He knows that, if
he goes into a fashionable neighborhood, he
will be regarded as public nuisance and be
paid to move on, while in the tenement dis
tricts he is welcome and gets all the spare
pennies about to remain. So, you see, in
both cases be makes money"
There are several establishments In New
York and vicinity that supply hand organs to
the itinerant grinder, and whether they are
llulCIdDle VI IlOb "a puDllC udlS1IlCSS Is QueS-
ton which the suffering public has refrained
from testing. Most of the followers of this
profession own their organs but many of
them rent them. A street organ is worth
from $50 TO 500, and weighs from twenty to
seventy pounds The average weight, how
ever, is about thirty pounds. They will last,
if properly made and handled, in the neigh
borhood of twenty years, and can be repaired
so often in the meantime that very little of
the original instrument will remain in the
end. There is the greatest difference between
players, and it does not follow that two men
will, with the same organ, make the same
amount of money. A poor player will col
lect barely sixty or seventy cents for days
work, while a good, bright performer, with
plenty of expression. will gather in 81 or s.
between sunrise and sunset. The business
yields on an average $3.50 or s. a day-New
York Star.