The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-11-13
AN IMPRESARIO'S STORY
OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN TELLS OF HIS
RISE FROM AN IMMIGRANT.
Landed IN America with Only IA Blan-
kct, and Two Years Ago Built the
Neutrality-suspicious. Olympia.

Oscar Hammerstein, in New York Journal.
1 was born in Berlin, Germany, 1S47; was
ordered by my parents to learn Greek,
Latin, Hebrew, English, French and sun
dry other living and dead languages; also
architecture, engineering and music. The
latter was divided into lessons on violin,
flute and piano. Some time in 1868 my
father beat me numerically for having
gone skating instead of reading Homer and
Socrates l bled badly That settled Homer
and Socrates. That very night sold my
violin for So thalers and took a train to
Hamburg then a steamer to Hull, caught
the old Black Ball line emigrant sailing YES
sci Isaac Webb; after six weeks on the
water we saw land. 1t was Ireland. The
old tub evidently couldn't tear herself
away from the old country. Six weeks
more and we saw America. When 1 left
my bunk in the Storage l was in posses
sion Of the old clothes on my back, lots of
Vermin and a wooden blanket. One of the
| historic emgrant boarding houses
Greenwich street sheltered me for the
night, the proprietor accepting the blanket
as collateral.
In German paper saw an advertise
ment to the effect that some one in Pearl
street wanted young men to learn cigar
making, promising 81 a week for pay. L
learned how to make cigars and earned the
81. / would make them now being at pres
ent fearless of consequences. Gradually L
became an artist in the line and my fame
as an expert cigar maker is still held in
reverence with all the old firms in this city.
My evenings 1 devoted to playing the piano
in some of the wine, women and song en-
poriums that graced the Bowery in those
rs cents a night. For reasons best known
to myself, never smoked the cigars that
1 personally made. One day 1 bought one
in store on Third avenue, near Fifty-third
street; a young woman was behind the
counter; liked the cigar and the woman.
She is now my dear wife. While at my
work making cigars 1 studied and observed
the nature, ingredients and peculiaritieS of
the leaves of tobacco, and concluded that 1t
was possible to substitute machinery for
labor in the manufacture OF cigars. My
parliamentary visions in engineering when
boy here aided me.
One of my living rooms 1 turned into
experimental machine shop, working IL my
leisure hours on lathe and wise. To be
closer associated with the tobacco industry
1870, started the United States Tobacco
Journal, and for fifteen years was it's edi-
tor. During those years l labored at my
experiments In my little shop using up
every dollar of my earnings. Just when /
began to look upon my efforts as an in
ventor a failure, and my expenditures
having brought me to almost uncomfortable
poverty, strikes broke out in the trade. My
invention became of Importance to the cigar
and tobacco manufacturers
"A scramble for my patents followed. My
first venture, a machine for making cigars
by compressed air. brought in lump sum
of $4,000. The Newark cigar manufacture
with several New York firms, became the
owner of the same; another invention Of
mine-a tobacco stripping and booking ma
chine-brought me $68, 900; still another in
Vention, an alr-suction cigar and cigarette
making machine l sold to j. Falk & Bros,
of this city. for $4,000. In one year alone
realized over 100000 on my various inven-
lions applicable to the tobacco industry.
, All of the machines invented by me are
and are earning for their purchasers mill
lions of dollars. -Four years ago the Amer
lean Tobacco Manufacturers Association
gave q banquet in my honor at belmont
cos, and there rendered me set of resolu-
tons, enumerating and lauding the services
l had rendered to the industry by my in
ventions. In the meantime l obtained pat
entS on many other inventions of mine re-
ferring to the cloth industry iron industry
and others. My patent attorneys, Messrs.
Briesen & Knauth, of this CITY, took out no
less than fifty-six patents on my Inventions
during the past fifteen years 1t was dur
ing these times that 1 became associated
with the theatrical profession. My first as
ISOLATION dates back twenty-five years,
when l entered into business relations with
Mr.. Neuendorff-at that time manager of
the Stadt Theater, on the Bowery. For a
time / assumed the management myself.
A sad but interesting episode ended my
career. l had secured a great European
or at least, German, success 1t was a
burleSque on knight errantry, called spell
Slow Der Geschundene Raubritter." There
was a scene in which an imprisoned knight
was condemned to die of hunger. The au-
pain and cry for food.
AS a progressive and inventive and artistic
manager l intended to make the scene APP
Mailing and. realistic. / hired fOrlOrn how
placed him in company with a basket of
oranges, apples and peanuts in an upper
at the hungry knight the moment he began
to shout for food. The terrible moment ar
rived but no peanuts came. | rushed into
the box and found the boy just finishing
the last of the fruit. This ended the show
In 1885 / wrote a comedy in German. called
Solo CO., which was produced by Mr..
Neuendorf. 1t was followed by two others
theatricals. 1 built the Harlem Opera
House. 1t was a failure at the start but
believing in the future of Harlem and fear
ing that if the Harlem Opera House should
would arise, | took time by the forelock
and built the Columbus Theater on the east
side of the same street. This house was
Then l erected the Harlem Music Hall.
Then, coming into the field down town, |
built the Manhattan Opera House, in Thir-
ty-fourth street. Beer seemed destined to
be the moving spirit in this establishment
opened it with Mrs. Bernard Beer(e): then
trleQ opera, WITH a IOnuneSS Tor MeNerDeeE,
and at last installed lager beer, with Kos
ter and Bal as partners.
And now approached the achievement of
my life the realization of the dreaming and
planning of many long years. | alude to
Olympia AS all the world knows this great
emporium of art and amusement was
opened to the public Nov "a, 1895. All of
these places of amusement named in my
story managed myself as long as l owned
them, and as a pastime / composed over
one hundred pieces of music published by
Fisher, Ditson and others in this city. and
wrote the operas Marguerite" and Santa
Maria" In these twenty-five years / have
come TO like-to love-the people of the
stage. / do not care to withdraw from the
scenes where 1 can meet people congenial
TO me, where good cheer and good hearted
ness permeates every nook and corner III
my health permits It, y shall stay among
them. If not, viii take with me the men,