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You might not think of the musical instrument industry as “cutthroat.” But in 19th century Paris a new invention caused a uproar involving nefarious plots, incendiary devices, and attempted murder. You may not recognize the name Adolphe Sax, but you almost certainly recognize his most famous invention.
During the civil war, the manufacture of powder and explosives was often handled by the most vulnerable, young women and children, whose labor was needed when so many men had been sent off to war. On March 13, 1863, the confederacy experienced a munitions disaster, in the confederate capitol of Richmond.
The appeal of one strange object, which achieved dizzying popularity in my lifetime, and today lives on mostly for nostalgia, is not so difficult to explain. All you need to do is turn one on and wait.
