Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-07-16
TENNIS BALLS FROM GERMANY.
There IL Where They are Made Best
Tennis In Europe.

Hamburg Correspondence Boston Herald
Within few miles Of this populous and
thriving city is the manufacturing town of
Harburg, from whence all the tennis balls, or
rather their rubber Enclosures, are exported to
England and America. There are very many
rubber balls made elsewhere, to be sure, but
the accepted balls-those recognized as the
best by the lawn tennis experts Of the world
and the national associations of the United
States and Great Britain and Ireland-are made
at Hsrburg. Why it is that in America with
all its rubber companies and rubber factories,
and its vast imports Of crude caoutchouc, a
simple little ball cannot be made to suit the
fastidious tastes and expert play Of lawn tennis
opponents l cannot say; but the fact remains
that Harburg is the home Of the tennis ball
now in popular use. By invitation of Boston |
joined in a tour Of inspection Of the works, and
ness of its resources.
The concern is known as the Harburg and
Vienna manufacturing company, and Is man.
aged by two directors. The making of tennis
balls is only a small part Of the business, how
ever, as every conceivable article in the line of
rubber goods is made, and hundreds of thou
sands Of dollars worth are shipped to Boston
dealers every year. About 1000 laborers are
employed, of whom 800 are females. The
works were erected in 1856, and have steadily
grown in importance until now the annual pro-
duction is nearly S2,O00000 in value. The
company has another factory at Vienna.
The championship lawn tennis ball Of Great
Britain and ireland is that of Ayres, and that
Of America is Wright Ditson's. It has been
found that the complete tennis ball suffers
very materially by shipment across the ocean,
and is not SO good for play in America as when
the Ayres ball and that of Wright & Ditson is
that while the ''gray bali" of rubber supplied
to both dealers is exactly the same, Ayres has
not yet discovered the secret of covering the
rubber ball SO as to make it perfect In the mat
ter of elasticity and correct fight, and, the
secret being known to the Harburg and Vienna
company, they cover the gray balls with cloth,
leaving only the stitching of the seams to be
done by Ayres The American ball il the out
come Of experiments made by Mr.. Jas. Dwight
of Boston and Mr.. Ditson of the manufacturing
firm mentioned, and large amount of money
was spent before the experiment proved sue
cess. Rubber balls in great variety, made in
America, were also experimental with before
the Harburg-Vienna ball was secured. The
great secret in covering appears to be in the
cement with which the outside cover is at
tached to the rubber ball. the idea being to SO
connect the two that the cover cannot possibly
get loose, and thus kill the correct fight Of the
ball
The Harburg-vienna company have the
secret, and guard it well, and Mr.. Ditson, with
the aid Of Mr.. Dwight. has evolved a method
of covering which is fully equal to the German
field Of tennis courts. The rubber or gray
ball" is made in four pieces, deity united to-
gether by skilled female hands in a few seconds
while the rubber is still warm. The balls are
then taken in huge baskets to the mems de-
partmeut, but before removal thither each ball
is weighed in a delicately adjusted scale, and il
one of them is found to vary in the slightest
from the regulation weight il is thrown out
and the rubber is worked over for some other
purpose. On being taken to the mems depart
ment each ball is subjected to an air pressure.
1t is punctured by needie-poinsed
tool on q sort of lathe, and while the needle is
inside the ball the air pressure is applied.
While the needle is being removed sort of
rubber cement is applied to the very small
opening made by the needle, and the rubber
ball is then complete, with an elasticity which
makes it bound from 10 to Is feet. Nearly
250, 900 OF these balls will have been shipped to
Wright Ditson before the season Of 1889
closes.
It il rather singular fact that, while north
ern Germany il the home OF the tennis ball, the
game of tennis 10 almost unknown there. Ger
tainly il IL not played anywhere in Hamburg
or Harburg that could learn about. Mr..
Louis Hof, Of the company, contemplates in
augurating, however, q movement In that part
Of Germany for the development Of the pas
time. In other parts Of Europe the game il
than ever.
Mr.. Hibread-"What do you suppose the
bard referred 10 when he wrote Of the slippered
pAntaloon?'
Mrs. Slapdash-"Rsall have no idea"
Little Robbie-'I bet you ! know"
Mrs. R-"1y son, you were not spoken to-
TSuA.
Didn't like the game $50 he kicked you.
did hep
R;-.Yes, he did that very thing"