North Coast history buffs might find another Titanic tidbit in the news of interest: One of the musicians playing on the deck as the ship went down was WALLACE HARTLEY, pictured inset, and a story in the Washington (D.C.) Times reports that his VIOLIN, pictured, has turned up (http://tinyurl.com/foundfiddle).

The article says: The violin had been placed on Hartleys life jacket with his clothes inside the valise. A letter from his mother was found in a coat pocket, barely damp. Experts also found a corroded silver plate screwed to the bottom of the violin, assuring scientists it was the authentic article.

The instrument was returned to his fiancee. When she died after never marrying her sister (having no idea of its significance) gave the violin to a Salvation Army major, who gave it to a violin teacher. The teacher gave it to an amateur musician, whose son found it in her attic in 2006. And, as Paul Harvey used to say, Now you know the rest of the story.

Elleda Wilson