The Repairing & Restoration of Violins Part 5

The first proceeding was to clear out all the useless fragments of the spoiled rib, search every corner and see that there were no splinters left, and remove projecting particles of glue. All edges that were to come in contact with the fresh rib were washed, and where permissible, the surfaces made even by a slight levelling, finely shaving them with a sharp tool. The fresh rib was then tried, and being of full size and requiring more than the least pressure to get it placed, some little shaving down here and there was found necessary, and when done it was tried again carefully and repeated perhaps three or four times, when all parts seemed to fit sufficiently well. Each time the rib was inserted there was, of course, nothing projecting whereby it might be withdrawn; to accomplish this, a bent wire of sufficient strength pa.s.sed through the most distant of the two sound holes gave it a push out again. When the piece was found to fit with accuracy, little remained to do beyond glueing the edges that were to come together, and after seeing that every part was in right position, the screw cramps were applied with sufficient force and no more, the superfluous glue wiped away and the whole left to itself. When sufficient time had been allowed for drying, the cramps were removed, a little cleaning of parts effected and the fresh work varnished in a manner so as to match nearly as possible with the rest of the instrument, and there you have your violin with a fresh rib inserted without removing anything but the damaged part. It was really, as you may have perceived, the easiest way of working the thing, there being no secondary process to be gone through, nothing but cramping down, varnis.h.i.+ng and finis.h.i.+ng off.

Another instance comes to my mind of what can be done in the way of alteration of the interior without removing the upper table. It came within my own experience many years back, and the violin was one owned by myself at the time. It had got into a condition not unfrequently seen after bad repairing, that of the fingerboard sinking down too near the table through absence of proper support or sufficient grip of the end of the table where the neck is inserted. Being unable to attend to the matter myself at the time, I sought the aid of a friend living close by, a clever amateur violin maker and mechanical constructor of other things beside. He was not very long setting matters right, and my violin seemed in no danger of further getting into disorder from the same cause. I asked him how he had managed the rectification of the matter; did he take the upper table off? "Oh no, without that. I simply opened or loosened the left side of the table about and above the upper corner, then, having cut and glued a slight thin wedge-shaped piece of wood, through the narrow opening caused by the loosening of the table, I pa.s.sed it on a thin knife long enough to reach to the upper block, between which and the part of the upper table which was not holding I carefully thrust it and tucked it in, finally glueing and cramping again the part of the table that I had purposely loosened."

This was a clever operation, successful but very risky, and not to be lightly undertaken by anyone without much experience and even natural ability for mechanical adaptation of means to an end. There was much danger, from the narrowness of the approach to the work from the side opening, of missing the mark and dropping the piece of wood with great difficulty of recovery, and, further, the chance of cracking the upper table by straining the opening for the admission of knife and wedge of wood. I heard of the violin but a few days since, and have no reason to suppose there has been occasion to have any further repairs done.

Among other mishaps occurring at times, and which from their position seem difficult to remedy, is that of the lower rib becoming detached, or losing its hold on the block; this is more liable to take place when there is a join running up and past the tail pin hole. Both sides may be loose or one only. When, as in a great many of the old Italian violins, the rib is continuous, it very seldom gets detached. Here the advantage of simplicity of construction is made evident. The rib being of one piece running round the lower end right past the tail pin was not, as too often supposed, done for a saving of time by one operation, but for strength and neatness. When in two parts, sometimes with a piece of purfling inserted--each side is subject to damage either by the tampering with the tail pin, the nut above, or during repeated removals of the upper table. Exposure to damp will, as a matter of course, affect the original glueing of these parts as soon as any other. The detachment from the block may remain unnoticed for some length of time, until getting worse by degrees one part may be seen to be lifted or warped away from the join. If without this appearance suspicion is aroused in some way as to looseness, it can be verified or not with little trouble by tapping with a felt-headed piano-hammer, when the sound, which should be quite solid, will, on the contrary, be rattling.

Seemingly the repair of this part is an awkward matter from the absence of any purchase for pressing the parts and retaining them in position when freshly glued. The difficulty is more apparent than real, as there are several ways of overcoming this obstacle. To begin with one. The tail pin will, of course, be removed; if fitting rather tightly and of good length, use may be made of it.

As usual all the parts to be glued must be cleansed by a brush and clean water, sopping up the moisture after each application, pressing repeatedly the loose parts until they seem to be clean enough. A piece of soft pine or poplar will now be cut that will be just wide enough to go easily over the parts lying over the block and which of course cover all the loose parts that require fixing: it may be a trifle under a quarter of an inch in thickness. One side must be shaped to fit the parts over the block when pressed against them and should be a sort of mould. A hole will now be pierced to admit the cylindrical part of the tail pin, or if not long enough, a made subst.i.tute with a similar rim. It should be tried by pa.s.sing it through to the tail pin hole, and if it fits tight enough to sustain itself against some pulling we can proceed. The fit should be close enough so that when the peg is pa.s.sed through the hole in the mould and the latter pressed by this means against the rib or the two parts on to the block, all should be held firmly in position. Taking them apart again, strong glue should be applied by a brush to the surfaces that will meet or be worked in as when the cleansing was going on. The peg and the mould--with a piece of paper on its face to prevent adhesion--may then be pressed in to hold tight until hard and dry. The same method may be pursued with the exception that in place of the peg a screw--if one is to hand large enough--may be inserted. In this case it should be a very loose fit to the hole, the grip will be obtained by rolling up a piece of paper and inserting it in the tail pin hole, the screw can then be used against this inside without damaging the block.

Another way of accomplis.h.i.+ng the desired result will be by a stout leather strap and buckle pa.s.sed round over all the ribs of the instrument; the same sort of mould will be used and applied in the same manner. The strap will need holding in position at the upper or neck end over the b.u.t.ton, a string over the fingerboard will be sufficient; at the other end over the mould a wedge of soft wood according to size will enable the pressure towards the block to be regulated. Another contrivance with the same mould, for this must always be used, is by getting a wire with a turned or screwed end fitted with a head or nut, the other end can be bent to right angles, but not too much length used or it will not go through the tail pin hole. When in position, having been pa.s.sed through the hole in the mould, the right angled or bent end will catch against the inner surface of the block, the head or nut being then screwed round will tighten and press the mould towards the block with enough grip for the purpose if all the rest is in proper order.

Should these contrivances not be to hand or are found inconvenient, yet another method is that of using the screw-cramp. A portion of mill-board or cork being placed to protect the parts of the upper and lower table between which the end block is situated, the screw can be turned tight enough to allow of a wedge of wood being inserted between the back of the cramp and the mould without risk of s.h.i.+fting; it can then be left until dry and hard.

Occasionally there will be not only the detachment from the block, but there will be the accompaniment of a split in the rib. There will be in this instance a preliminary cleansing of the split and joining together before proceeding with the other part. The reason for doing this is that the pressure on towards the block is apt to widen instead of closing the crack. The most usual way of mending a crack, or there may be more than one, is by the use of a small hand vice. A piece of stout card placed between the teeth of the vice to prevent an imprint, the part to be joined will, after cleaning and glueing, be brought closely as possible together and the vice screwed up. For this process the help of another person will be almost absolutely necessary, as two hands will be required for holding the parts together while the second person holds the vice and turns the screw to order. When dry and unscrewed the parts joined will require a little sc.r.a.ping of the superfluous glue, was.h.i.+ng away at a thin part as this is would be dangerous; if brought together neatly the rib can then be pressed on the block in the manner before explained.

The same process will be gone through when a portion of fresh rib has to be inserted at this part, owing to loss of a piece through violence or the ravages of the worm. In the latter case searching inquiry should be made with a pointed wire or pin and the direction of the boring operations ascertained, as it may be necessary to insert a larger piece than was originally intended to avoid a large smash or general collapse at the part where the greatest strength should be. There is often too great a tendency shown in repairing, especially in preparation for the market, as, for instance, when an old master has been unearthed in some farmhouse or out of the way place on the Continent, to make a clean sweep of a somewhat riddled part, the repairer trusting too much to his imitative powers on new wood with new varnish, and we may say with new ideas on old facts; it is seldom that the result is far from hideous.

Better trace the tortuous course of a whole family of worms and fill up with a cement or plugging than, as is too often the case, cut a huge slice away, for if so the instrument according to the extent begins to a.s.sume a composite character, it may be ten out of twelve parts gem of an old master and two parts modern trash, hateful to the eye of the connoisseur.

While touching upon the subject of worm-holes, a few words more may not be out of place when contemplating the ravages of these voracious creatures. Almost all devotees to the "gentle art" of fiddling have a great horror of the possible presence or the ungauged depths of the mysterious tunnellings the entrance or exit to which will cause a start of dismay in a searcher after the beautiful, when, in an otherwise perfectly preserved specimen of art by one of the giants of old, his eye alights upon that sharply defined circular hole, cut with no uncertainty of purpose, but with a ruinous intent, for it is business with the boring party to consume the whole, if possible, at its leisure and in quietude. This last is an important item in the consideration of the circ.u.mstances under which the "gem of art, old master, Cremona, real Strad," or whatever t.i.tle the wooden structure may have been sailing under. Those who have suffered much from the Italian fiddle-hunting mania--a condition mostly chronic or quite incurable--but who may have kept their "considerating cap" well poised on their head, will know that the worm-eaten fiddles are often devoid of evidence of usage, sometimes even in the absolute sense of the term.

Such a one we may suppose before us now; after lying neglected for generations, or since the time when it was bought by one of our periwigged ancestors from the maker, perhaps after a little haggling about the price, which most likely was one hundredth part of its commercial value at present. It was placed many years since in its present comfortable case, after being taken out of the old ragged leather covered one, with the bra.s.s nails along its side. Tradition has it that in long bye-gone days it used to hang suspended from a nail in the oak panelling of the "old house at home," but that during a more recent generation and less musical one, it was placed aside in the old case, as being somewhat interesting from having been brought over to England from some place in Italy during the reign of James II. Later on it was taken from this old case, and placed in one of modern construction, and occasionally was taken out for musical people to see, some of whom expressed their admiration for its elegant form, others for the singular transparency of its varnish. None had come forward with the request to hear what it had to say for itself or what its tone was. But the day came round at last when someone more inquisitive than usual, by nature as well as by training, having inquired as to the possibility of seeing the antiquity, was afforded the rare opportunity and treat of seeing a perfectly preserved Cremona, nearly as possible untouched; the connoisseur was informed that no one had been known to have played upon it. The case is brought forward and opened, the violin, with perhaps one very brown string dangling from it, is taken gently up, the left hand encircling the neck, while the forefingers and thumb of the right, hold the lower part near the tail-piece.

The violin is turned first one way, then the other, and sideways for viewing the ribs and the beautiful play of light through the varnish, the fine curl of the maple with the slightest movement, almost giving an impression of hastily s.h.i.+fting from one row to another, in fact, looking as if the wood were gifted with life. Steadily turning it about, the connoisseur at last breaks out with the exclamation, this is the most wonderful thing I have met with in my life, it is almost perfect, practically new, looks, perhaps, but a dozen years old. What a beautiful design, what colour, and splendid wood, both the pine and maple, the workmans.h.i.+p, too, having that wonderful freedom of handling which moderns find so impa.s.sable a barrier to success with their "imitations of the antique!" Lost in admiration for some minutes, the connoisseur's critical faculties after a while begin to a.s.sert themselves, and he is on the look out for flaws or defects that may mar the completeness of the whole; it might be a little more this or that with advantage, not quite so fine in one respect, although perhaps better in another than the one owned by his friend Smith; but oh! a wormhole! that settles it, done for! perhaps the thing is riddled, or even "honeycombed" in parts. The delight at finding a work of art in apparently so perfect condition is succeeded by a more than counterbalancing sense of frustrated hopes, schemes for acquisition of the gem being dissipated at once by that small circular opening just at the under part of the edging there near the corner. Our friend takes his departure, but cannot help talking of the "find" to the dealer and repairer of whom he purchases his strings. This person takes another view of the affair, and resolves to see the thing and perhaps acquire possession, so that like his customer, he gets permission to inspect the violin. It is brought out as in the other instance and he turns it about, gives it a sly pinch here and there, looks for any light coloured dust or powder inside and does not see any, a shake or two with the same result. The subject of parting with the instrument at a fair price is at length broached to the owner, who would like to know what Mr. ---- would be prepared to give for it, but this party means business and not valuation gratis for the owner; he therefore dilates upon the difficulties attending the keeping of a large stock of such articles, besides the thing having been bored so much by worms can never take its place again among prominent examples of the maker, and it would want a lot of playing upon even if possibly well restored. Mr. ---- finally departs as owner of a finely preserved Cremona violin, not exactly for a "mere song," but a few judiciously selected sentences and fewer pounds. Out of the house his steps are lighter and swifter as he gets nearer his premises. When arrived he takes it to the repairing room; removing it from the case he again examines it, and with a smile says to his chief repairing help--here, what d'ye think of that? This workman, who has not studied as an enthusiastic connoisseur during the many years of his working on the premises, takes it up, looks it well over, and then observes--"well, at first I thought it was a good modern copy, but now if I don't think it's a real one!

Well, I never! it is, too! look at that stuff all over it." This was his manner of criticising varnish when it seemed to him of good quality.

"I would like to have some of that! a worm-hole though. Don't know how far that goes." "We'll soon see," says the other. After a few turns over again amidst remarks of admiration expressed in different ways, the fiddle is brought into a good light and preparations made for opening it. "Why, I don't think it's ever been opened before," says one. "Certainly not," says the other. "Now," says the dealer, "you had better do it," and the workman proceeds thus--first removing the tailpiece and with a "post setter" lifting the sound post out carefully through the right sound hole, he removes the tail pin, and holding the instrument to let as much light as possible into the interior, looks through the pin hole and observes--"No patch in this, Mr. ----, fresh as a new-laid egg--original bar too,--however, let's go ahead." The fiddle is then laid face downwards on a cus.h.i.+on or soft pad and held in position with the extended palm of the hand. The operator then takes what has been once in use as a table knife, but is now thin and smooth with wear, keeping the left hand firmly in position and the knife in the other, he casts his eye round for any portion that may seem looser or more lightly glued than the rest. It has been very neatly done however, and one part seems as good as another. "Stop a moment," says his companion, "let's have another look inside, maybe we shall see how the worms have been going about by the light pa.s.sing through."

It is taken again to a window; the sun fortunately is streaming in and so enables master and man to proceed under favourable conditions. The dealer patiently turns the violin about so that the rays of the sun may penetrate wherever possible through the material; after a while he hands the violin to his workman--"you have a look, James, I cannot see any traces--I don't think the worm has gone very far, seemingly only a short distance from the opening." James looking again, and coming to the same conclusion, the violin is again taken to the operating table and the knife taken in hand.

CHAPTER X.

WAYS OF REMOVING THE UPPER TABLE AND THE NECK--CLEANSING THE INTERIOR--PRESERVATION OF THE ORIGINAL LABEL--CLOSING OF CRACKS IN UPPER TABLE.

I recollect many years back, when in company with a violinist of some note, we were talking over various details in connection with the reparation and regulation of violins of a high cla.s.s, particularly those of the great masters. The fact of so many fine instruments having fractures of the same kind and in the same position was remarked as being curious, why so numerous as to form a very large majority? Well, said the professor, at one time cracks were really fas.h.i.+onable, and an instrument well endowed with them was thought to emit its tone more freely, especially if it had been somewhat stiff before. This might account for some, but not so many coming from all parts, I observed, from their similarity I am inclined to their being due to one princ.i.p.al cause, that of carelessness on the part of repairers in former times and some even of the present. It is through hurry or want of method in removing the upper table, should it be necessary. A repairer once confessed to me that he had sometimes caused these fractures in his impetuousness while going through this preliminary; his excuse was one frequently made for all sorts of bad work, clumsiness and want of judgment, that people would not pay for proper time and care being expended, and so when he cracked the front while taking it off, he glued it up again.

As generally is the case, more than one method can be pursued for removal of the upper table. A somewhat original one was recommended to me once as being very successful and causing the table to part from the rest beautifully without risk of fracture, and that was, firstly to obtain some vessel holding boiling water and with a suitable pipe attached for throwing a fine jet of steam against the glued parts requiring separation. Not having seen this done, or tried it myself, I am unable to speak for or against this process, but there appears to be some risk of damaging the varnish in the vicinity while the steam is forced against the small s.p.a.ce for operating upon. I was a.s.sured that this was an excellent mode of separation, there being no tearing about or splintering of the wood. It might be a good method where there is perceptibly much impasto of glue, and which, while almost readily yielding to the penetrative power of steam, is a great nuisance under ordinary circ.u.mstances. Another method would be that of getting some lengths of soft cotton rag or other substance that would retain moisture well when wetted; these could be laid all round, tucked closely against the junction of the upper table and ribs and left for a reasonable time or kept wetted in dry weather. This, if not quite causing a disjunction, would facilitate the operation of the knife in the usual way. I think, however, that any departure from the rule of using the knife is very rare indeed, any other means necessarily taking time and taxing the patience.

We will now return to the dealer and his a.s.sistant or repairer. The matter in hand with them is business, and therefore a regular routine is gone through when the instrument is worthy of first cla.s.s repair, and everything conducive to the best results in up-to-date regulation has to be calculated and carried out in minute detail. Searching eyes will go over all the fresh parts, looking for any possible inaccuracy, any slip of the tool or ruggedness where a fine, even surface ought to be. In order that all may be conveniently attended to, the first proceeding will be that of sawing off the head and neck, this is done rather close to the body of the instrument. Under present circ.u.mstances, more care than usual with modern violins has to be exercised, as the repairer knows that it was customary with the old Italian makers to secure the neck to the upper block by one, two, or at times even three nails. They were driven in from the interior before the final closing up or fixing of the upper table. Sometimes a screw is found in the same place instead of nails. These arrangements point to a want of confidence in glue by these old masters, notwithstanding the evidence we have of their using the finest quality only. In separating the neck from the body, it will obviously be wise to act in a very cautious manner, or the saw may come suddenly upon the nails or screw, and there will be a grating of teeth, and perhaps upsetting of the temper of the performer. It will therefore be a consideration for the repairer whether the instrument has been previously opened, or is in that very rare condition, as the maker left it. Economy of time and labour always more or less being a desideratum, in the supposed instance before us, that of an untouched old master, our repairer having had experience with many Italian violins of different degrees of merit, first proceeds by removing the old fingerboard. This being short and less ma.s.sive than the modern kind, presents but little difficulty. The cus.h.i.+on filled with sawdust or sand, is now called into requisition. Placing the violin on its back and tilting it up so that the b.u.t.ton and the back of the scroll press equally on the yielding surface, it is held in position with some degree of firmness, the fingers of the right hand being placed underneath the wide end of the fingerboard, a sudden pull upward causes the fingerboard in most instances to part with a snap.

Should it refuse to do so, other means must be resorted to. The fingerboard may be one of the old inlaid kind, or veneered pine, and worth keeping as a curiosity, in which case the saw must be applied to any part of the neck for removing wood that will not be required again, piece-meal, until the board is free, when it can be further cleared at leisure.

Our repairer, not finding in the fingerboard under his hands any particular merit, it being besides worn into ruts near the nut by performers of the early schools, who used but little more than the first position, moreover, coming away with ease, proceeds to the sawing process. The presence of nails or screw he believes to be fairly certain, therefore instead of sawing down close and even as possible with the ribs, the saw line is made at an angle downward and outward toward the head, or say at an angle of some forty-five degrees, beginning at about a quarter of an inch away from the borders of the upper table. The cut thus made would be free from any nail or screw, unless of extraordinary dimensions. (Diag. 35.)

[Ill.u.s.tration: DIAGRAM 35.]

In the case of a modern violin, the saw cut could be made close to the border and downward to within a short distance of the b.u.t.ton, where another cut at right angles and parallel to the surface of it will free the neck completely. The violin, now as before, is placed front downwards on the cus.h.i.+on or pad, some repairers would hold it on their knees, but only in the absence of either means. In the present instance, being a prize and sure to eventually pay for any amount of trouble and skill expended, the violin is treated in a manner that long experience and judgment dictate as safest. Opening the instrument has been agreed to as being absolutely necessary, the old short bar would certainly prove inadequate to withstand the pressure from above if the violin and its fittings were to be subjected to modern regulation under present conditions. Everything being ready, the operator with steady hands inserts the knife with a sudden push at the under part of the edging--from the position of the violin the knife would now be above it--at the lower quarter of the instrument, this having the largest curve and therefore being weakest in resistance to the plunge of the knife. As the thin bladed knife is worked along, there is a tendency to stick occasionally. This is counteracted by running along, or slightly wiping the surface of the knife, a cotton rag, with the smallest touch of oil upon it; this will enable the knife to go quite smoothly. Great care is exercised that the knife is held on an exact level with the plane of the pine table, or there will be great risk of running the knife into the pine instead of lifting it away from the joint. Evidence of bad judgment in this respect is not infrequently to be met with on otherwise well repaired instruments. A series of sharp cracking sounds come forth as the knife works its way in. It is worked along in either direction until near the corner block or near the nut.

At this part, the violin being in the original state as fresh from the hand of its maker at Cremona, the treatment will be slightly different to what it would be after modern regulation.

The knife will come to a full stop here, and be taken out for proceeding with the release of the table on the opposite side. It will be as a matter of course, necessary to place the violin the other end foremost, the larger end being furthest from the operator; the knife, as before, being inserted at the large curve in the same manner and for the same reason, finally stopping as before at each end. The princ.i.p.al reason for stopping at the end is that with most of the old Italian violins there is a short wooden pin, probably used for temporarily securing the table in position before the final glueing down. These wooden pins of hard or tough consistency being driven in firmly, offer considerable resistance to the pa.s.sage of the knife if the latter is forced through.

Most of the violins having these pins originally, give evidence of the exertions of the repairer to press the knife through these obstacles at the risk, ofttimes with certainty, of breaking up or smas.h.i.+ng the fibres of the surrounding portion of the pine. Of a dozen old Italians, perhaps on an average ten will be found with this part broken, jagged, or having a portion of fresh wood inserted where ruffianly treatment has bruised the threads of the pine past remedy. Our professional repairers, being men of experience, further, both having a natural disposition and qualification for their calling, know better than to use much violence in this part of their work, so taking the knife away, the operator cleanses it from all glue or resinous particles, and when perfectly dry, pa.s.ses the slightly oiled rag again over both surfaces.

The knife being inserted again and again, is pressed round about the pin and thrust forward so that the increasing thickness of the blade may act as a long wedge, this gradually lifts the table away, leaving the pin standing.

The lower end will require the same treatment for easing the upper table round the pin. In original condition most of the old Italian violins would not give further trouble, but some later or middle period ones, instead of the small piece of ebony or other hard substance slightly inserted or laid half way through the table, have an ebony nut going quite through and down in a triangular form nearly to the tailpin. In these instances a small knife held vertically and pressed along between the parts of the ebony touching the pine will enable the table to come away gradually in the manner indicated. We now may suppose ourselves again in the presence of the repairers, operator and master; the upper table has been successfully and cleanly released from the blocks and along the upper edging of the ribs, very few splinters here and there are left, giving double evidence of neat glueing on the part of the maker and systematic care on that of the modern repairer.

Being now quite free and gently lifted off, the table is turned about for a moment and attention is directed to the interior. The two men look at all the parts with very different eyes. One with eager expectancy, critical eye and much experience, sees at a glance much that intensely interests him, confirms certain views of the old methods of working, whether the wood was white and new when the violin was constructed, how a little of the precious material enveloping the whole structure had dropped through the sound holes during the process of varnis.h.i.+ng; watches the form of the drops whether they indicate a thin or a thick solution of the resinous particles, whether these have cracked or blistered in the Milanese or Venetian manner, whether they show signs of having set at once or remained soft and running for a time; the corner and end blocks, their material, and whether the same as those linings let into the middle ones and their being finished off before or after the placing in position. The joint of the back too, and if there remained any evidence of system in working different to what we moderns would do? These and other queries pa.s.sed rapidly through the mind of the dealer and connoisseur, more of the latter than the former, and that is why he was not more successful by many degrees than any others of the fraternity. To be a dealer in the strictly business sense of the term, a number of valuable violins must to him be no more than potatoes in a basket to a greengrocer, _i.e._, what they appear worth.

His a.s.sistant--a good accurate mechanic in almost all respects, sees in this unearthed "old master," "gem of antiquity," or _chef d'oeuvre_ of Italian art, nothing but the interior of a dirty brown box with a rolling ball of fluff resting in one of the corners.

There are perhaps few things more disappointing than the interior of a violin when opened for the purpose of repairing. Be it a matchless gem of Cremona's art or an old and common Tyrolese worth but a few s.h.i.+llings, the difference to an ordinary observer is so slight as to be uninteresting, indeed to connoisseurs of experience there is not the variation sufficient to excite curiosity to the extent of opening the instrument on that ground solely. The raw and unvarnished wood, with the parts between the threads swollen from damp, begrimed and repeatedly washed by repairers, presents anything but a pleasing spectacle even when the interior of a fine "Strad" or Joseph is laid bare. Many years ago a friend owning a fine Cremonese viola asked me to open it and find out the cause of some buzzing or rattling within that had not been evident till that time. After an examination, finding that opening it would be absolutely necessary, I asked him whether he would like to see the interior of what he had paid so much for; it might not prove an enjoyable sight from the roughness and dirt of ages in combination with clumsily executed repairs while in unskilful hands; being unaccustomed to such sights he wisely restrained his curiosity and waited till all was placed right again.

But to our dealer and workman again; the former, taking up the two portions alternately, at last makes the remark, "Clean work, James, inside as well as out, good tool work, they had some steel in those days, plenty of gla.s.s-papering here apparently, unlike some others made at the same period, time seems to have been no object. Possibly the maker was well paid for his work, if not he ought to have been."

To these observations the workman only gives a sniff in reply. He thinks that all this can be quite equalled at the present day, if a fellow is really well paid; but this is reckoning with only a part of the subject. A further exclamation of admiration comes from his chief--"Think, James, what a wonderful draughtsman this old Italian was; mind you, this is not a copy, traced from something else as we should do now-a-days, but a first idea, an original design; it is in some respects a departure from the man's best known patterns, good as them, however, although differing; look at the way those lines run from point to point, what ease! the tenderness with which the sound holes are drawn, the lightness and freedom! that man was a born artist if ever there was one!" Another sniff from James, who doesn't believe in born anything, but that good work comes with good tools and a reasonable prospect ahead of good remuneration for extra trouble. "Don't see, sir, why we can't put a bit of purfling round as clean as that! some of those French copies are as cleanly purfled as any part of this!" He is released from the necessity of further ill.u.s.tration by his chief interposing: "Quite true, James, and if these mechanical copyists had put as much energy into efforts at truly original and artistic designs as they have in copying that which seems to have been laid down for their guidance, they would have advanced very many steps further than they have done in the essentials of the art--in the highest sense of the term--of making violins. But we must get to work, there are lots of repairs of all sorts for us to get through the next fortnight, and as there is comparatively little anxious work about this job we will get it out of hand!"

The violin is now subjected to another and final inspection before the active treatment is commenced. "How about that wormhole, James, that we were worrying over before the separation of the upper table?"

"That's just what I've been looking at, sir, and as it doesn't go more than a quarter of an inch into the wood--I've tried it with this bit of wire--the maker must have cut this bit of pine from a worm-eaten log, perhaps because it was old and likely to give a good tone!" "There you're wrong, James!" the chief interposes--he is rather inclined to snub his a.s.sistant when that essentially practical man gives any indication of a flight of fancy--"the 'worm' is no sign of age, I have known it to affect wood that has been cut but a year before its discovery, and do you think those old Italians were such fools as to make fiddles that would be only fit to be heard when tried by their descendants two hundred years after they died?" James collapses, and getting a basin with some warm water, a cloth and a piece of sponge, proceeds to smear the latter up and down and round the sides of the instrument. The sponge and water soon show signs of the work in hand. "Very dirty, sir, hasn't been washed for a hundred years, I should think! There's a ticket, too, but I can't make out much of it. I'll wash it over a bit." He then begins to try the deciphering, taking one letter at a time. "There's a large H at one part, the next is A or O and then U or N, and next to it there's R or D; its either London or perhaps its one of those we came across the other day, Laurentius something." "It's neither one nor the other,"

his chief almost roars, while rapidly striding across the room to his a.s.sistant, who hastily hands over the portion of the violin, glad to leave the regions of speculation. "There's nothing about that fiddle having any connection with any place but Cremona," and the chief b.u.mps down into a chair to further study the mysterious ticket. "You have not improved that ticket by was.h.i.+ng it, the date has gone and the greater part of the print; you should never wash a ticket, that is how the very large majority of even well preserved ones have lost the date or part of it written with ink in which gum has been one of the ingredients and which is easily dissolved, the best way after dusting it is to get some bread and rub gently over the surface, and if that does not bring out the letters or figures you may mostly consider them past recovery."

James does not think much of this attempt at instilling wise maxims into his prosaic const.i.tution, and replies "I don't think you could have seen more letters before I washed the ticket than after, sir, the plainest were what I read out, which looked more like London than anything else. There was another word underneath which I think was alum, that's English, isn't it?" This is intended as a kind of parting shot in a contest during which he has been slightly uncomfortable. The chief answers rather snappishly, "No! that's Latin. I must tell you that at the time so many of the finest fiddles were made the use of Latin was very fas.h.i.+onable, being used much on monumental decorations, signatures to works of art generally, down to the prescriptions of doctors, which we have not got rid of yet; that is the former, the latter are always with us and will be. But stop! why, after all, this is not the original ticket, I think it is one pasted over another! hand me that camel hair brush and the water." This being done, the wetted brush is repeatedly pa.s.sed over the ticket so as to keep it moist till the water has soaked through and dissolved sufficiently the glue or gum that held it close. After a while, the corner is gently lifted up with the aid of a pointed knife, the end caught hold of and pulled; by degrees the whole of the upper ticket is lifted off, leaving to the pleased eyes of the chief the original ticket in all the better preservation for being covered up. "Yes, there it is! I knew I was right, a fine Nicolas Amati! I believe that top one is the remains of a Laurentius Guadagnini Alumnus Stradivarius, which some wiseacre thought a more appropriate t.i.tle."

The Guadagnini ticket is laid by till dry and then placed in a small drawer in which are a number of others of various makers and nationalities; it may emerge from its obscurity some day and become of use so far as the condition or its legibility will allow.

The upper table is taken in hand again by the chief, turned over repeatedly and both sides of the border carefully examined for the presence of any cracks, long or short, old or new, the latter being scarcely expected, as the a.s.sistant is of a sufficiently cautious disposition naturally and as yet has not been debited with any charge of injury to his work from over haste or carelessness. "There is a very small crack at the lower right side about one inch from the centre, I think, but let us be certain, have you got your glue in good order?"

"Quite," is the reply, "fresh and strong too, sir." "Just see if that mark is really a crack or not." The a.s.sistant takes the portion in hand, holds it to the light, examines it from different angles of vision, and finally resolves to test it in the following way; holding the plate of pine carefully with the left hand, with the right holding a "camel hair" dipped in clear water, he pa.s.ses it over the possible crack, then taking the plate again in both hands, with the thumbs placed on each side of the mark, the fingers being underneath, it is very gently bent backward and forward, and the wetted part closely watched. Presently, the water is observed to gradually disappear, having worked its way into the crack. "It is one, sir, but quite clean as if newly done."

By this time, the slight bending, or what is really the case, the opening and shutting of the crack by the movement, causes some minute white bubbles to appear along the course, these give an indication of the extent of the fracture, which is something over an inch in length.

"I think it is the result of the contraction of the wood from being kept in such a dry place, it is not a repairer's crack, which would have extended further into the centre," so the chief observes, "get the hand vice ready with the paper, and I will hold the parts together."

At this time, the fresh warm glue is being applied in a similar way to that of the clear water, the latter enables the glue to work in or follow the course of the moisture, and similar, but whiter, small bubbles are seen along the direction of the crack under the manipulation as before described. The small hand-vice, having several layers of stout white paper or card inserted at the opening or between the teeth, is slackened to receive the part of the border to be held together. The chief, holding the plate with the fractured part furthest from him, and consequently in front of his a.s.sistant, it is held in position firmly by both hands. "One moment, James!" he exclaims, "this border has had little or no wear, and the surface is so fresh, that if we use card or paper alone we shall leave a mark of the pressure, hand over those thin pieces of cork and let us put them between the paper and the metal of the vice, there, that will be better for standing the pressure, more elastic you see." The vice under the fresh conditions is now applied, the parts of the table or plate are brought together accurately and held tightly in position by the fingers, the glue exuding from the crack where it can be seen just beyond the reach of the paper, the screw is turned tightly by the a.s.sistant, and with the remark, "that will do," the whole is left to him for placing aside while drying.

CHAPTER XI.

GETTING PARTS TOGETHER THAT APPARENTLY DO NOT FIT--THE USE OF BENZINE OR TURPENTINE--TREATMENT OF WARPED OR TWISTED LOWER TABLES.

"We will now," says the chief, "have a look at that old Brescian violin that I bought last week, it is in that set of drawers by the bench there, the third from the top." The a.s.sistant gives a look in the direction that would strike a spectator as expressive of doubt whether a violin could be even squeezed by hard pressure into any of the drawers.

Nevertheless he obeys, opens the drawer, and seeing only a brown paper parcel tied with thin string, takes it out and holding it up says, "do you mean this paper bag, sir?" "Yes, that is it." The paper bag is brought to the table at which the chief is sitting and who undoes the string and paper, letting loose a number of begrimed pieces of veneer-like wood, some of these fractured, the upper and lower tables comprising three parts, a head that some modern makers would think ugly enough to cause a nightmare, with its short heavy neck as left by the maker about three hundred years back. The condition of the whole concern was suggestive of its having been raked up from some out of the way dust heap that had, after the oblivion of a century, at last caught the eye of a modern sanitary inspector. There was only one sort of person to whom it would be at all inviting, that of our chief above mentioned. "Now that is what I call a bargain, James," he begins, when turning over the pieces one by one; "all perfect, not a part lost. I bought it of a dealer in the country who said he could not get the parts together, they would not fit, and he was glad to get rid of the lot with as little loss as possible." James at this moment has been placing the two tables of the violin together and remarks, "I don't think these belong, sir, the back is nearly a quarter of an inch shorter than the front and narrower too." "Never mind that," is the answer, "the style is the same, the purfling, the work and the varnish are the same, it was all together at one time and looked well enough, and it will have to go together again and possibly look much better, and you will have to do it under my instruction, as you proceed, it will repay for all the trouble and time spent upon it by its appearance and tone. The man who sold it to me said that its former owner told him he had a good try at getting it together and failed. This is the direction in which they have both made their mistake, they treated the unmechanical old Italian work as they would a modern copy of a Cremonese maker, and which had been built upon a machine cut block that served for ever so many warehouse fiddles; these old Italians had to use the hand bow saw, which was not adapted, unless great care was taken, for getting very true upright sides, hence the upper and lower tables are as often as not differing in size, sometimes the upper is largest, at others the lower.

Occasionally the length may be the same with the width differing. Now you had better set to work and wash all that muck from the pieces, be careful not to separate any parts that may be fairly well fixed. I want you to do this cleaning in my manner, not that which you were accustomed to before coming here. I know the too frequently pursued method of putting the whole collection of parts in a tub of water and there letting them float about until the glue has dissolved and left the wood, but the following is preferable. Firstly, get some hot water sufficient for your requirements as you proceed, renewing it occasionally. Your piece of sponge you always have ready, and your cotton cloth as usual.

I have cut down a hog hair brush of half-an-inch in width, you can use other sizes according to convenience. Being cut abruptly across, they can be used as small scrubbing brushes after dipping in the hot water.

The advantage is that of your being enabled to leave untouched or even dry, certain parts which you are not desirous of interfering with. The occasional sopping up with the sponge and cloth will show the progress that is made. The dark, dirty glue of the modern fiddle tinker will gradually wash off, leaving frequently the ancient, light coloured stuff in quite a fresh state and sharply defined, further, it will sometimes give you a hint as to the exact position which the adjacent pieces held originally. There will not be any necessity for scrubbing very hard with the cut-down brushes; if this is done the surface of the wood will suffer; a little patience as one part after another is cleansed and the whole completely denuded of its covering of dirty glue and grime, and it will be perceptible that there is method in this, and consequently the most rapid real progress.

"Occasionally there will be found in and about old repairings or tinkerings lumps of pitch-like substances, hard or soft as the occasion has seemed to the workman to require, or possibly the only stuff obtainable, if not with the idea of a damp resisting material. These, as you know, will be treated in your usual manner, that is, removing with a blunt knife for a large piece and a piece of fine flannel wetted with some pure benzine, which having a strong affinity for any oily particles, absorbs them rapidly and leaves a clean surface. Spirit of turpentine will also answer the purpose, but is less rapid in its action and does not evaporate so completely, leaving a slight residuum of resin. Alcohol of any degree of strength must be kept quite away from the work, as even supposing it specially adapted as a solvent for removing the objectionable material that may be found clinging anywhere, it has such destructive action upon the old Italian varnishes that the slightest drop on the surface will cause irreparable injury.

Keep it quite clear of your repairing work, it is not absolutely necessary under any circ.u.mstances, although it is very tempting to a slovenly repairer."