is covered with felt, are
black-leaded. When a key squeaks and goes down reluctantly, the
trouble can usually be traced to these places; especially to the
wooden capstan, the black lead having worn away. Use powdered black
lead on these parts.

There are many things in this kind of work that require only the
exercise of "common sense." These we have omitted to mention, treating
only of those things the student does not know intuitively.

QUESTIONS ON LESSON VI.

1. When a key snaps or clicks at the instant it is let up, give
two or more conditions that might cause it.

2. When a key simply rattles, what parts of the action would you
examine for the trouble?

3. When a key is struck and there is no response, what may be the
cause?

4. Give two causes for defective damping in a square piano.

5. Give cause of and remedy for a squeaking key.

LESSON VII.

~THE STUDY AND PRACTICE OF PIANO TUNING.~

Before commencing the systematic study of piano tuning, we want to
impress the student with a few important facts that underlie the great
principles of scale building and general details of the art.

If you have followed the suggestions, and thoroughly mastered the work
up to this point you should now have some idea of the natural and
artificial phenomena of musical tones; you should have a clear
knowledge at least of the fundamental principles of harmony and the
technical terms by which we designate intervals and their relation to
each other; a knowledge of the general and specific construction of
the different types of pianos and their actions, and the methods
employed to put them in perfect working condition mechanically. This
admitted, we are ready to consider the art of tuning--one, the
appreciation of which is in direct proportion to the understanding of
it. Let us now view this art for a moment in its past, present and
future phases.

You may be a little surprised at what we are about to tell you, but it
is a fact, gleaned from long experience in traveling and observation,
that many, verily, the majority of pretending tuners have not so much
practical knowledge of a piano as you should now have. We have no
doubt that you, if you have a musical ear, could, without further
instruction, improve an instrument that was extremely out of tune. You
could detect and improve a tone which you should find extremely sharp
or flat; you could detect and improve a unison that might