The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-05-14
0RS. SHNRTS SHORES Expert Specialists, 0' @ g.Ae

showed itself when he was a boy, in
Ireland.
At that time he used to save every
piece Of board he could find and in his
leisure moments he carved them into
the rude semblanCe Of viOlins.
Common Irvine formed the strings
. and stick with a cord stretched across
answered for a bow.
AT the age of IA he was apprenticed
to a cabinetmaker and this brought
him nearer TO the goal Of his ambition,
for it taught him the use Of tools.
His first two attempts at making real
vlolins resulted in dismal failures. but
he was not discouraged.
With seif-denial he saved enough
1 money to buy some sycamore wood and
completed another instrument. using
only two chisels, a few gauges and a
jack plane.
But his hopes were once more dashed
20 the ground.
A violinist laughed at his fiddle and
told him that the only wood that would
make a good instrument was curly
maple. and that he would have to 20
TO America TO get that
I didn't have any acuuaintances in
America to whom I could write for the
curly said Mr.. Gordon "Still I didn't
give up told my people was going
10 the states 10 secure a piece Of wood
with which to make a violin.
At length I got a coal passer's berth
on the steamer EtDa. and for sixteen
days labOred in the bunkers in a tenn
perature that took the flesh OF my
bones almost by the pound every four
hour watch.
when / set foot on American soil I
accosted the first man I met and asked
him where / could ind a timber yard.
Directions were given. and found
without difficulty the lumber yard.
THE first wood I saw was a great
block Of curly maple. / asked the pro-
prietor Of The yard if he had any curly
maple for sale,
Lots Oft. How much do ye want?'
he replied.
Only enough to make fiddle I
assured him.
" We don't keep any fiddle wood for
sale here, said the lumberman. turn
ing his back and refusing further in
formation
4 turned dejectedly away. but as I
went out Of the gate 1 saw a slab of
the longed-for curly maple lying in a
pool Of water as a stepping block. I
went back and asked the lumberman
what he'd charge me for piece Of the
stepping block, and the fellow was
grasping enough to reply that 1 could
have half of il for S1.75
For SL75 I got enough curly 10
make six fiddles. Two dollars was the
extent Of my worldly wealth. and was
obliged 10 trundle coal for fourteen
days TO secure passage to Belfast.
Home again, I worked for months on
the precious wood, confident that when
1 had fashioned a violin from the magic
timber 1 would have a fiddle as good as
an ancient Cremona-
When the last finishing touch was
put on / went with a heart beating
high with hope TO a professional vie
linist of the city and had him try my
instrument.
He gioomily advised me 20 find cut
something about graduations before
making another attempt. 1 was very
much discouraged.
Shortly afterward I packed up my
few belongings and started for the
United States 70 stay. I got a job ar
a patteTnmaker's in Hartford, and for
a couple Of years I put in all my spare
time tnkeTing on the violins fashioned
out Of all kinds of woods
They were uniformly bad I was
still unacquainted with most Of the de-
tails OF the real art Of making vioIins.
I was SC disappointed over my lack Of
success that felt a desire 10 rough il,
and Sc I gave up my job and went 10
Wyoming
For a quarter Of a century per-
formed the toughest kind Of frontier
work before my efforts finally began to
bear fruit and at length landed me on
my own ranch
During all this time 1 did not give
up trying to make the right kind Of a
violin.
Then. one day, L came across a book
on violin making.
Il went TO work on another fiddle
and when I had finished il. / shipped
it. unvarnished to a celebrated 30 ,tOn
maker Of viOlins.
THE maker sent me a letter saying
that my effort was superb for an anna
teur and advised me TO come % Boston
and perfect myself. II could afford it.
The violin maker received me kind
", although I was only a rough from
tiersman. I rented a six by eight room
ia an obscure corner OF Boston. and
every morning and evening walked sew
eral miles TO and from the violin max
ers establishment
4 lived on u cents a day. But I
learned how TO make violins. and before
/ left Boston 10 return TO my rough life
in Wyoming I had made one all or
myself that the Boston maker said
would scarcely be beaten for workman
ship and tone b. makers who had spent
their lives on the technique Of the bust
ness.
Il now have plenty Of leisure. most
Of which I devote To violin making. /
produce one instrument a year, giving
il 10 some friend who has a youngster
that has shown aptness in the study Of
the instrument"