The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1896-07-01
EXPERTS IGNORE FACTORIES
Finest Swiss Watches Are Made IN Little
COtfanss.

Finest Swiss Watches Are Made IN Little
Cottages 4,
II is most interesting 70 compare the
different methods by means CT which
the highest grade of mechanical perfec-
ton IS attained IN various countries.
Notwithstanding the high character OF
American watches, for example, the
finest Swiss watches still maintain their
great reputation. The Swiss workman
receives the parts from the manufacture
RI in the rough. takes them to his home,
puts his best individual skin into tho
finishing and assembling. and briggs
the completed watches to his EN-
ployer. The latter inspects the work,
and out Of batch of. say, 80 watches.
he selects five or six as worthy Of his
own attention, and puts the Others into
his regular trade under some general
trade name. The selected watches ha
readjusts, working them over for days,
weeks, and months, before he considers
them worthy to bear his own name, aud
Ii is these watches which go 70 those
who not only have the money TO buy,
but also the petience TO wait.
A prominent firm OF American jewel
ers, chatting under the inconveniences of
this old world method OF doing things.
sought to introduce American methods,
and see il the highest grade of Swiss
watches could not be made more me-
thodically. A factory was built, en-
ticing rates of wages were offered To
the most sl1illful worlmen, and the ca
pertinent was tried. But, alas! The
Swiss workman soon found that no
regular wages could pay him for his
loss OF liberty. To DO on hand when the
whistle blew IN the morning. 10 have
his stated hour for dinner. and his hxed
hour for quitting at night-these re-
Etrictions he could nos long stand.
Formerly he had worked when he felt
like II and stopped when II pleased him.
and when he was paid for one Job he
took his time to begin the next, general
" waiting until his funds ran low. The
factory plan did not work for long, and
the idle building now bears silent testi-
rnony 10 the Swiss love for indepeHd-
ence, which is as much factor IN pres
ent life as it has been in past history.
The fact that much of the work of tho
Swiss watchmakers and instrmusn.
makers is done in this primitive manner
does not in the least detrRct from its
high quality, but rather adds to its per
fiction by embOdying In eooh article
the individual sldIl of the workman
The writer desired 70 procure one of the
famous Goldschmidt sneroid baromet-
ers, and only after some difficulty and
many inquiries did he succeed In find
Ing the whereabogts of the maker at all.
At last he was directed to the quaint
street IN the quarter Of the city OF
Enrich known as the ''TTittigasse" tthe
street of the little steps,. There he
found gate in a wall bearing the de-
sired number, but no name or sign Of
any description to indicate what was
within. Knocking TO obtain admission,
be was finally let into garden, over
another wall and MP q picturesque set of
steps, and ushered into little room in
which was work of the finest deScrip-
ton.
A few men and boys, a eoups OF
women-this was the working force.
but here were products which surpassed
the finest instruments of any he bad
ever seen. Each article was shown and
handled as II il had been a personal pet,
hardly 70 be parted with, and IL was In
deed interesting 70 see how every
instrument was calibercd and tested
and recorded in o manner which could
not but prove that for suoh work In
dividualism had its advantages over col
lectivism. The articles wero indeed
manufactured" in the true etymologic'
al sense Of the term, hand made" and
head made, too, for that matter. and al
this in little out-buildlng accessible
only after diligsnt search and many
northumberland Magazine