Democratic Sentinel, Volume 15, Number 25, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 10 July 1891 — They Make Jew’s-Harps. [ARTICLE]

They Make Jew’s-Harps.

The village of Bath-on-the-Hudson, though its manufacturing interests are few, can boast of possessing the only jew’s-harp factory in the United State's outside of New York City, says the Albany Journal. Simple as the jew’sharp is it requires, nevertheless, no little skill in construction. The proprietor of the factory at Bath is John Smith.' The faotorv is a small building situated a short distance off Third street, and although unpretentious contains every facility for the manufacture of jew’s-harps. Twenty years ago in England, Mr. Smith began his apprenticeship at the trade. Hearing from friends in this country that here would be found a better market for the sale of his specialty he determined to emigrate. Arriving in New York he failed to secure employment and, deciding to start into business for himself, he went to Troy and opened a factory there. He was but moderately successful in Troy, and after a short time moved to Bath, built a factory, and is perfectly satisfied with the location. The Smith jew sharp is sold principally to firms in New York, Boston, and Chicago. These firms sell the goods to retailers throughout the country. When the factory is running at Its fullest capacity over two gross a day are turned out. The busiest time of the year is just preceding the holidays. During this season the factory employs five people—the proprietor, his two sons, and two other Englishmen who live near the factory. The first work done on a jew’s-harp is to place the frame on a vise, file off the roughness, and taper do,wn the points, so that each side presents a sharp edge, between which the tongue is to vibrate. The most delicate work then begins. A piece of steel wire is cut from a coil, hammered flat at one end and left round at the other, and tempered with the greatest care. The flat end is then 6et in the arc of the frame, and then the two ends are carefully pressed and hammered until they come as close as possible to the tongue without touching. The round end of the tongue is then bent in the form of a rightaDgle, the point is turned over, and the harp is ready to be placed in the hands of a finisher. There are seven sizes and four kinds of finishing—the common, gold bronze, lacquered, and tin-plated. The harp can be toned to any pitch. To make the tone high the tongue is made small and pressed back toward the frame; to make the tone lower it is bent forward. Mr. Smith is not only a good maker of the harp, but can extract quite a little music from the little instrument. He can also play two at once, which he tunes so that they are in harmony by filing the frames.