They were far more “sharey” in the 90’s. That’s the 1890’s, of course.
We stumbled across this photo the other day but we don’t know much about it. It’s apparently a group of listeners trying out the new fangled phonograph on headphones, treating it like a sort of communal ipod. We think this was probably a way of promoting the new invention to a wider audience but we are not sure. So please, if you know anything more about these people and what they are up to please get in touch.
Whatever they are doing, they don’t look very happy do they? Probably listening to Joy Division or The Smiths…..
Sound Of The Hound 
I have just been reading Fred Gaisberg’s “Music on Record” where he describes one of the first applications of the gramophone, one that saved Berliner’s company from financial ruin early on in fact, was carnival vendors selling turns listening to the gramophone to multiple carnival goers via “ear tubes”. It took me a while to work out in my head what he was talking about. I think these may be the “ear tubes” in question although it looks like they are hooked up to an Edison Phonograph.