The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1864-08-26
.s.r Meerschaum.
From the Journal Of Commerce.


From the Journal Of Commerce.
The manufacture of meerschaum pipes
and cigar-holders is now carried on to a
considerable extent in this city. The cary
ing will compare well with that of the inn
ported article. In the hands of good
artist this soft and friable material may be
CUT VITA the clear and finished outlines of
coral or cameo. Roses, lilies, punches of
grapes mounds, foxes, and all kinds Of
graceful quadrupeds, doves, swans, storks,
eagles,sand every variety of shapely bird.
the human face and figure, the beauty Of
Venus, the majesty Of Apollo. and. high
est of all, elaborate groups of men and
women, are subjects of his taste and skin
Meerschaum is expensive enough of itself.
1t is imported in boxes of forty pounds,
each valued at $1,000. But the carving
is the main point OF cost in the high
priced pipes. Two hundred pounds is not
an unusual price in England for some
masterpiece of meerschaum sculpture
like the battle of the Amazons, the Judg-
ment of Paris, or other ambitious study of
that kind-which costs frst-rate artist
six months or year of hard work.
American smokers have not yet arisen to
that height Of sumptuousness in the in
diligence of their favorite luxury; and one
hundred dollars is as much as our fumi-
eating virtuosi are willing to pay for their
reerschaums. Americans are extravagant
enough in some things; but it may be rea-
sonably doubted whether they will ever
put the price Of an eligible building lot or
a span of trotting horses into pipe.
Imitation meerschaum is made in the
same way as imitation ivory. That is, the
parings and scrapings OF the real article
are worked over, pressed and dried. There
seems to be no sure way of detecting
meerschaum prepared by this method. 1t
is generally heavier, but not always, than
the true meerschaum, whose specific gray
ity varies from 1.2 to 1G. Some speci-
mems Of the latter are heavier than the
former on account OF the presence OF solid
earth or chalky matter in the interior.
Some varieties, on the other hand, are so
light and porous that they feat Oh wa
ter. The workers prefer meerschaum
whose specific gravity is midway between
these extremes. The color of the real
meerschaum, like that of the composition,
Commonly called "massa") varies from q
SHOW white to deep brown, Though the
intermediate shades of yellow and red.
These tints are impaired by silieate of
iron. There is only one test by which the
composition can be told, with anything
like pOsitiveness. After meerschaum
has been smoked for some time, little blem-
ishes appear in the pure article, which no
amount Of smoking brings out in the imi
tation. AS this test cannot be applied
after the pipe has been bought and colored
by that hard pulling and sublime per-
severance which the smoker brings to his
task-there is no surety against the pur-
chase Of bogus pipes, except in selecting
your chunk of crude meerschaum, and hav-
ing it made up to order by an honest ar
fist. Magnificent specimens of massa
were exhibited at the Crystal Palace,
London, deceiving professional judges and
the very elect of smokers. The differ
ence between the two kinds is a matter of
fancy. Massa smokes, and colors, quite as
nicely as meerschaum
Meerschaum is not-as is now general
ly known-the coagulated foam OF the
sea, but a hydrato of magnesia and silica,
with trace of iron. 1t is supposed obe
a decomposed carbonate of magnesia It
is found in veins of serpentine in Greece,
in Spain near Madrid, in Sweden and Mo
ravia; but the commercial supply comes
chiefly from the peninsula of Natoli, Asia
Minor. At the last named place, near the
town Of Coniah, the meerschaum is taken
from a tissure, nearly six feet in width.
When first exposed to the air it is COM
paratively soft, and if rubbed up with wa
ter, gives OF lather like soap. Is is from
this fact and the neighborhood OF the vein
to the sea, that meerschaum probably de.
rived its poetical name. Before use, it is
boiled in mixture of oil, fat and wax,
without which preparation the heat and
smoke of the burning tobacco would not
give to the meerschaum that color for
which it is sohighly priced; and the pro
digious toll of the smoker would 60 unre-
warded.-Journ0i Of Commerce..