The Recent Revolution in Organ Building: Being an Account of Modern Developments
John Stuart Mill · en
The story of Dr. Peschard's invention has been already set forth in
this book (see page 37). Barker seems to have been somewhat jealous of
him and always described the action as "Pneumato-electrique," objecting
to the term "Electro-pneumatic," although this was putting the cart
before the horse. Dr. Hinton says: "Though I was much in touch with
Barker during part of his brief period of activity in electric work,
Peschard's name was rarely mentioned and carried little meaning to me.
I did not know if Peschard were a living or a dead scientist, and if I
(a mere youth at the time) ever thought of him, it was as being some
kind of bogie Barker had to conciliate."
Bryceson Brothers, of London, exhibited an organ at the Paris
Exposition Universelle in the Champ de Mars in 1867, on which daily
recitals were given by Mons. A. L. Tamplin, who induced Mr. Henry
Bryceson to visit the electric organ then being erected in the Church
of St. Augustin. Mr. Bryceson, being convinced that this was the
action of the future, lost no time in investigating the system
thoroughly, and arranged with Barker for the concession of the sole
rights of his invention as soon as he should obtain his English patent,
which he got in the following year. Barker, however, repented him of
his bargain, and the exclusive rights were eventually waived by the
Brycesons, although they retained the right to use the patent
themselves. They made considerable improvements on Barker's action,
the chief defects of which seem to have been the resistance of the
pallets (which had to be plucked from their seats; he did not even use
the split pallet) and the cost of maintenance of the batteries, which
rapidly deteriorated from the action of the powerful acids employed. A
full description and drawing of Peschard's and Barker's action will be
found in Dr. Hinton's "Story of the Electric Organ."
This same Paris Exposition of 1867 is also responsible for the
introduction of tubular-pneumatic action into England by Henry Willis.
He there saw the organ by Fermis which induced him to take up that
mechanism and develop it to its present perfection.
The Franco-Prussian War of 1870 drove Barker from Paris, his factory
was destroyed in the bombardment, and thus at the age of 64 he was
again cast adrift. He came to England and found, on attempting to take
out a patent for his pneumatic lever, that all the organ-builders were
using what they had formerly despised!