Year: 1872

noble and valuable etc. / was thrown
on my own resources. My organ pro
gressed but slowly; my work, from being
initiative, became tentative; and often.
times l fitted twenty different pieces of
wood in a given place before | got il
right. Week after week toiled away la.
boriously, with q patience worthy of a
better cause. ! chafed good deal AT my
constant obstacles, and twice did attempt
to make 1t up with the organist. But il
was no use.


mo, sir" he said, peremptorily; "there
will be no more damage done to the organ
by you again, IL | can help It,"


BY this time had finished the key.ac.
tion, bellows, sound.board, and wind.
chest. The pipe.work, so far as 1t was
metal, did not attempt. This portion
OF my organ was supplied by an organ.
builder in London. The stop.work was
also finished, and was now engaged in
putting on some compositlon.p pedals. In
this there were one or two intricacies
which could not solve, and at last de.
termined that l would attempt furtiyely
to get into the chapel organ and examine
the composition. pedals there. But al
this | was staggered by the difficulty of
the project To get the keys of the organ
was impossible To force an entrance
was, of course, out of the question. NV
only chance was to watch an opportunity
when the organ should be left open, and
the organist absent. For this combina.
tion of circumstances watched and wait.
ed In vain for nearly three weeks. At
last, one Sunday morning, was late for
chapel, and passing up the antc.chapel |
found the choir.gates closed, and the SER
vice well advanced. had nothing par.
ticular to do, so | thought | would sit
down in the ante.chapel to hear the an.
them. So / made myself comfortable
near the screen, looking up every now
and then to the "noble and valuable" old
instrument above me Towards the end
of the Psalms q frightful ciphering took
place, or lin untechnical language) several
notes struck down inside the organ, and
sounded various and discordant pipes
whetherthe organist liked IL or no. This
" "ciphering" at once perceived was on
the swell. In second heard hand.
ful OF swell'stops pushed hastily in, and
the Psalms were finished on the Great
and Choir When the anthem began,
the first few chords told me plainly
enough, that the swell was now all right
the ciphering had been cured. Now
knew thet, in all probability, the organist
must have got at the key.action to effect
this, and | also knew that, in that clumsi
ly.arranged instrument, he could not do
this without going inside. At once it
struck me-had he left the little side.door
openp If he had, now was my oppor-
tunity. | slipped up the winding stair
case, and crept cautiously along the top
OF the screen till l hid myself behind the
70 tal, g.. Al. Il!


door was near the bellows.handle, and so
long as the man who blew sat near could
do nothing. However, as this was SER
mon Sunday, had plenty of time; so
kept still in my hiding-place, and bided
my time. The bellows. blower, might 90
to sleep, or he might leave the organ loft
The Dean gave out his text, and COM
menced one of his dreary and lengthy
compositions. cannot say l was very
attentive. was too fully occupied in
watching my man. Slowly and ponder.
ouslY the learned Dean got through his
introduction and the first of his three
heads. Just as he proceeded with
Secondly" the bellows. blower, to
my great joy, softly left the organ.
loft, while the organist was all right
in front, listening hard it is to be
hoped, to the Deans sermon. In a
moment l slipped round, when l found
the coast was clear, and came upon the
little side.door open l doubled myself
up and got in. / went cautiously on
hands and knees across the top of the
bellows, and after several hairbreadth.
escapes, reached the rods of the great
organ stops, with the composition rollers
working above and below. | softly got
off the bellows at the side farthest from
the side door, and here | had to place
myself into the most uncomfortable posi-
ton it is possible to conceive. l had just
room for my two legs, but none for the
upper part of my body. A large beam
projected just into the very spot where
my shoulders ought to have been so
had to bend my head forward over the
top of the reservoir-bellows, with row
of sharp wire screw-ends above, lying
across the nape of my neck The COM
position pedal-work was now in front
of me nearly, and, pulling out q
small rule, Immediately commenced my
investigation and measurement Mean
while, could hear tho heavy theological
Dean droning out his interminable
sermon. For the first time in my life
admired his prolixity, for every additional
subdivision of his subject gave me so
much more time for my work. / knew
full well that, when the sermon came to
an end, my little excursion must also
terminate, for the organist would then
commence his concluding voluntary.
heard faint sound at the back
of the organ, of which, however, l did
not take much notice. l supposed (and
rightly that 1t was the blower returning
to his post, and naturally calculated the
small gratuity which would suffice to buy
his silence when made my exit through
the dark little door opposite. How far
the Dean had advanced in his sermon
could not tell exactly, but knew he was
deep in Thirdly" and thought to my.
self 1t was nearly time for me to get out.
| had Just resolved uron this, and was
folding up my two-foot rule and my paper
of memoranda, when my attention was
attracted by subdued creaking sound.
l looked around, and, by the dusty twi-
light which prev allied inside the organ, l
just saw enough TO suspect that the bel
lows.blower had begun to put in the
wind. In the greatest CONSERVATION put
my hand upon the top of the reservoir
bellows just before me. Yes, II was too
true; the wind was being put in, ready
for the concluding voluntary. 1t must
be remembered that my head was of ne
cessity bent forward, that my face was
looking down upon the top of the bellows,
Sand that | was 80 securely wedged into
this position that IL was only by scramb.
ling across the top of the bellows could
possibly get out; and this was only posi-.
Bile when the wind was out and the bel
lows at its lowest level. Immediately.
when | saw the difficulty, endeavored
to get one leg upon the bellows, in
the hope might be able to scramble over
II to the other side before 1t rose much
higher But II had already risen too high
for this. Every movement of the handle,
worked by the man outside, raised the
large moving surface an additional inch
or so. IL was now breast-high, within
two inches p6 mY face, To raise my head
was impoS;:ssAaslss IA ] before remarked,
row of sharp So %cSpds technically
called ''tapped wires WI directly over
the nape Of my neck. All this time,
though II was but few seconds, | was
acutely conscious Of the steady progress
of the sermon. can even now remem'


ber every word of the sonorous Deans
peroration. A sudden thought flashed
across my mindi "What afool | ami why