Scan 37
A Review Of Ancient And Modern Violin Making, 1899
4 lines. Read by computer on 23 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1been made, for it has been universally admitted that no one can make two violins of the same power and quality of tone, which indeed has been the case all down the years of violin work. If the maker does not know what his violin will be while under construction when using a well known quality of wood, what chance will there be to test a doubtful quality? If it is guesswork for the good wood, it must be the same for the poor. As it now stands, the results are not governed by design, but entirely by accident, and the poor wood has an equal chance of becoming the best violin.
3In numberless instances makers have used the greatest caution in selecting their wood. Their test of resonance, etc., was perfectly satisfactory and a pronounced success was confidently expected. The resultant failure did not shake their faith in the wood, or their confidence in themselves. They made no attempt to fathom the mystery, but went blindly on in the same dark path to renewed disappointments. When they had used a very ordinary class of wood and had blundered into making a fine violin, it caused no shadow of doubt as to the correctness of the good wood theory.
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