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!
He succeeded, however, in obtaining the contract for a new organ for the Roman Catholic Cathedral in Dublin, Ireland, and it was arranged that he should receive a certain sum in advance, and a monthly allowance up to the amount of the estimated cost of the instrument. He seems to have had trouble in obtaining expert workmen and only succeeded in getting a motley crowd of Frenchmen, Germans, Dutch and Americans. They spoke so many different languages that a Babel-like confusion resulted. Hilborne Roosevelt, the great American organ-builder, was at that time in Europe, and in response to Barker's earnest entreaty, came to Dublin _incognito_, so as not to detract from Barker's reputation as the builder. Roosevelt's direction and advice were most invaluable, being moreover given in the most chivalrous and generous spirit; but, notwithstanding this and the excellent material of which the organ was constructed, the result was anything but an artistic or financial success.
Barker built an organ for the Roman Catholic Cathedral at Cork, which was no better, and this was his last work. These misfortunes culminated in an appeal to his countrymen for subscriptions on his behalf in the musical papers. In his old age he had married the eighteen-year-old daughter of M. Ougby, his late foreman. He died at Maidstone, Eng., November 26, 1879.
This sketch of Barker's career is taken partly from Grove's Dictionary of Music, from Hopkins and Rimbault's History, and from Dr. Hinton's "Story of the Electric Organ." The paragraphs within quotation marks are verbatim from this book by kind permission of Dr. Hinton, whom we have to thank also for the portrait of Barker which appears on another page.
The following sketch of the life of this eminent artist is taken from Dr. Bédart's forthcoming book on "Cavaillé-Coll and His Times," and from Le Monde Musical, of Paris, October 30, 1899, translated by Mr. Robert F. Miller, of Boston. The portrait is from the same magazine.