Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1888-03-15

CARE or PIANOS
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q ~ the Furnishings Of the house.
hold. the piano should b the last thing
to be neglected. yet. in most cases.
this article gets very little care.
Aside from busting it At the same
time. and - often as tho rest Of the
furniture. it Is generally left to take
care OF itself the remainder Of the
time. An instrument may b used for
years. providing II has been properly
cared for during the time. and have
every bit as good and sweet . tone
- when first purchased. and certainly
more mellow. than when new. It
may have very old-fashioned case,
and be lacking all the modern attach
ments. but it may not be any the
worse for that for many of the pianos.
nowadays are mostly case, and hardly
much of any thing else. To be sure.
a good-toned roseAood-cased piano is
q beautiful piece of furniture and a
pleasant companion in the home, but
an old-fashioned one that has been
cared for will be every bit as good .
companion. and though it may not be
quite Is handsome as one of more re-
cent date. it is always an attractive
article Of furniture wherever it may be.
One of the very first things. and the
greatest enemy to the piano. to look
out for. is dampness. Nothing will
more quickly ruin the tone of the piano
than this. 1t rusts the strings, caus-
ing then to snap or spoil the tone. and
also Injuries tho case. Never. if it can
be helped, have . piano placed across
. window. but if it is in this position
do not allow the window to be opened.
moro particularly on damp day. Do
not set it directly against an outer
wall but allow small space between
the piano and the wall. and it will not
be so likely to be injured by dampnesA
An oil-cloth cover is the best kind for
q piano. but as many do not like the
looks Of them. . wooden ono is next
best thing. For the exclusion of damp
ness there is nothing will equal the
oilcloth covers, and to . person of
quiet tastes they are more attractive
than the wooden. They are more
serviceable. for the dust can be
brushed off them. and not work
through like it does in some of the
felt covers They come. usually. lined
with wool, which makes q nice protec-
ton for the case against scratches.
Keep the piano closed when not in
use. where it is used frequently. but if
closed for any length of time. it should
be opened occasionally to let the light
get at the keys and prevent their turn
ing yellow. If the piano is kept closed
when not in use, there will be fewer
buttons, hairpins. pins, etc, on the
sounding board to causei,a jingling.
sound. When string
breaks have another one put in as soon
as convenient, but if you have to wait
for this. take out the old string: using
wire nippers to unwind it from the
peg. or you will be annoyed by dis
cordant jingle when playing. Keep
it in good tune and be sure the person
for this purpose is compe-
tentere allowed to touch it. A great
deal of harm can be done BY an in
competent tuner. A new instrument
will need to be tuned very often
for the first year. but after that at
much longer intervals In buying a
piano be sure and have q person with
you who understands the instrument
thoroughly, as the best-looking pianos
are not always the best toned. Never
get one Immediately from the factory
unless You want to spend a good part
Of your time hammering it down. 1t
is an established custom with most
piano firms never to sell 3 new
piano until It has been Hammered
down" by men employed for this pur-
pose. The action of q new piano Is
neces sarily stiff. consequently . new
must be played on great
deal at first to obviate this. and in
most places this is done in the sales
rooms by the tuners or statesmen. and
IN instrument is not allowed to leave
The room until tho action is IN good
order.
DO not have it in too cold q room
Or too near . stove. II it has been
IN . cold room for any length Of time.
be careful when bringing it into the
heat, or heating the room. to do it
gradually. or you may snap more
strings than you care to pay for.
Don't have tho top covered with mu-
tic and books These will iniure the
sound if allowed to remain when play
ng. To polish the case or remove
niger marks, rub with . very little |
warm linseed oil. afterward polishing
With . soft cloth. When busting have
soft cloth especially for this work. |
ind while wiping it over. shake out |
he cloth frequently. A piano cared