The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1882-09-09
japanese Fans.

Yesterday morning a representative
OF the Tribune was riding down town
in street-car, and he noticed that sew
eral of his fellow-passenger were armed
with Japanese fans. The hot DAYS
when these are acceptable have been
few and far between this summer, and
the sight of so many of them were I'M
usual to the reporter, who began to put
in his time in contemplating the start
ling illustrations which some of them
bore. The fat man across the way was
vigorously working fan upon which
was depicted avery short-waisted Celes-
tial with blue hair and red eyes trying
to escape from number of variegated
snakes. Beneath the picture was tea
box inscription which probably stated
that the man was a victim of delirium
tremens. A woman who boarded the
cars at Fourteenth street exhibited a
fan bearing very pretty thing in ami
NAL life representing an impossible frog
teaching class of sawed-off frogs from
a cabbage-leaf. Another fan carried by
man in front of the scribe bore rep
resentation of group of small China
men performing an operation which
looked like the colored game of
craps" The study of these fans and
their curious designs aroused curiosity
in the powerful reportorial mind, and
he wished to find out where these arti-
cles were manufactured and how much
they were worth. .-'. sos ''fiA-
After some search he struck whole.
sale-house on Wabash avenue where
these goods are imported and sold, and
from a gentleman connected with the
house he found out what he wanted to
know. ''' -"N =. ?
u !" These fans" said the gentleman,
.'used to be manufactured solelyin China
andI Japan, and had toHbeiimp ported
Then they cost considerable, more then
they do now, as cost, of transportation
| was. greater, They used to, come in
large fancy boxes like tea boxes, care
fully packed in large lots. You did not
see so many of them and they were not
used much for advertising. ~ 9yl mid
what has occasioned the reduction
in pricesa''asked the reporter. D''
IILf'Well, you see, the IChinamen and
japanese began to come to this country,
making their headquarters in, San Fran
cisco, and there some of them started
factories for the manufacture of these
fans. They imported the material in
the rough from their old homes and
made fans up here much cheaper. The
demand for the. goods increased, and
now they are plenty and are sold at
from twenty to thirty cents per dozen.
''Are they much used for advertis-
ingp" Dan -4'b'-h''' 4'Hioor 't'
''"Oh, yes Why certain railroad
company sent an agent to Japan to see
if he could not get the initials Jof the
company printed ON all the fans manu-.
featured in that country during one
year. He. made the factories there
fabulous offer, but they declined. Now
the company has San Francisco house
do their work, and they give away
good article of fans. They are used
extensively by advertisers, and are good
advertising mediums, as they are pre-
served"
"How are they madeP'' a'' g
The wood is polished or Japanned
bamboo. For the open fans sticks of
hollow bamboo about two feetlong are
used. A little more than half the stick
is split into fibers which are spread out,
cut into the shape of the fan, and
bound with fine strong Irvine. A heav-
Ter cross-piece is put through the han
die to strengthen the fan, and the fine
paper, which has been printed in col
ored designs, is pasted over the frame
work. In the folding fans the same
material is used and they are made on
the plan of ordinary folding fans. Most
OF the work on them is handwork, and
Chinese labor is about as cheap as ma
chine labor"
The gentleman showed the reporter
several samples of these fans, both in
fine and coarse grades, and when he
went away he was in reality "a Japan
ese young man. - Chicago Tribune.