Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1874-02-12

>. as love and fragrant as roses" with
i; which the stationers' windows burst
! radiance 10 the depth of winter, prop
4 erly speaking ought not to be manu-
+ featured at all. They ought TO be The
e creation of some magic wand, or al
d least should be the work Of fairy
hands, and should be imported from
region of moon lit groves, pale fl Nv.
ers, periamed fountains, and @riaI
Tyres.
This. however is not precisely the
. origin of valentines
! The inquisitive explorer who visits
) the premises of tho manufacturer OF
these fancy goods just now, FIR the
purpose of seeing The process from
beginning to end, may perhaps be
! conducted, in the first place, into a
barely furnished apartment occupi
ed By five or six silent individuals,
who might as reasonably invoke the
inspiration of Venus as Sophocles
might that of Melpomene.
These are the artists of the estab-
Iishment, and this somewhat cheer
| 1850 npPnl GtHOul Is Lu6 lUuuLalu~ u6du
Of pictorial sentiment.
They are not particularly senti-
meDtal-looking group either. It is,
of course, impossible to cay what
silent raptures may be trembling be-
meath those white blouses of theirs !;
but viewed from the outside, these
artists have decidedly sedate and
matter-offact aspect, and, apart from
special inspiration, might be suppos-
ed to have outlived the tender pas
sion. At least one of them clearly
has done so, and is devoting the ex.
perienc of gray hairs to the castiga
ton of youthful follies by means of
ourlesques.
He has a sheet Of white paper and
a stick of charcoal, and is engaged in
producing the rough draft of very
large young lady, with very small
bonnet, 8 crinoIine, and an irfuitsi>
NAL dog.
Another is engaged upon very
clever little water color sketch of an
amorous subject, while third has
before him similar sketch which he
is lithographing-that is, drawing
| with ink or chalk on slab of stone,
preparatory TO it's being printed by
be photographic process.
La the next room this printing is
neing Carried on. Brawny armed
mechanics are turning out strat ge
medley of lovers and bowers, flowers,
olfds, hearts, and arrows, bachelors
.Dd plning spinsters.
Some of the sheets produced at the
| nrasao- - .h;a room are now cut M
into sections, and banded over to the
| superintendent vi thu vaiou i"~ .4-~L.
| rs Others have to be en- bOssed.
For this purpose the engraving OF
steel pia,e il necessary, and this Of
ten entails very serious expense.
1t is not by any means uUusual f r
plate. no larger than sheet of note
Daper, to cost twenty guineas. The
parts of the design to be brought out
IN relief are engraved in soft steel,
which is then hardened and thus fit
It'd to sustain pressure OF several
| tons
In the next apartment these plates
are being used. An operative sits IN
hole in be floor, beside very pow
erlul screw press, worked by means
of beam six or eight feet in length,
at the end of which are globular mas
ses of iron, designed to increase its
momentum. The picture to be en-
Dossed is laid upon The steel plate,
and placed in the bed beneath the
screw, which is then thought down
with terrible thump. There are
several Of these presses at work in
this room, one or two being engaged
in the EN- bossing of lace paper, which
enters largely into the composition
of valentines.
The lace paper, however. as it
leaves these pres ses, still requires to
be perforated, and the way in which
this is done is curious. This emboss-
ing plate is fixed upon bench
sheet of paper W hich has been impress
ed upon by it is laid upon it, and
car etulIy though expedilicusly adjust
ed, and is then utjscted TO q vIgor-
Qua rasping with large fiat file,
wrapped 10 sand paper. This rubs
away every portion OF the paper
which is SUI ported by the projections
in the plate beneath, and of course;
when the sheet is turned over. the
paris of the design which were mere
ly depressions have become holes.
Specimens of the entire produc.
tions of printers, EN- bossers, and per-
| q no r. i'm
por atoms in the shape of ribbons,
feathers, shells, and ornaments OF
various other kinds, are now spread
upon a table, presided over by one or
two clever young women,upon whom
devolves the duty of designing the
valentines.
The object they have to aim at is,
of course. the pr duction OF the great
est possible variety of striking and
pleasing effects by the com binauon OF
The materials before them, and the
I most successful are adopted as pat
terms fer the other hands.
Nothing, it is SAID, can be more
caprIcious and whims cal than the
selections OF he public 10 any matter
of taste. and in The case of valentines
this is especially observable. Very
frequent the particular designs
VIII CD the most experienced of man
ufaoturers would pronounce tn be
triumphs of taste and originality
prove utter failures in the market,
and the great bit of the season may
} be some production which barely es-
capped the VI asst bs sket.
J Only very rash and insxperi-
: enced maker, therefore. will produc
e any great amount of stock u0tii or
ders come 10. Travellers and their
i ample books are already abroad