The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1882-12-10
DOOR KNOBS.
Iuteresting and Novel Things that an Ex pers
Finds TO Say About Them.

Interesting aud Novel Things that an Ex pert
Finds to shy About Them.
There Is hardly any object that everybody
handles 80 frequently finds so necessary and
yet thinks so little about. rs the door knob
The time when they. rs 1t were glue them-
selves on to attention and compel earnest con-
sideration is when they pull of their spindle
or Mt least come or so easily that II seems ne
II they did it thcmselves-and in hurried
attempts to jam them on again the spindle is
accidentally punched through the lock out OF
reach. and considerable. sympathetic wife
looking on snys. How stupidr' or still more
exasperatingly. What are you going to do
now?" But SO long rs the door knob sticks In
place 1t Ia inofrensivc. never lodges out OF tho
way rs keyholcs sometimes will. never banks
ones shins like q rocking chair. never howls
when touched, rs bedstcads are wont to. is In
brief unobtrusive. handy. and. like most simply
useful things. Ia likely to be little thought Of
But there is good deal to be said about door
knobs A gentleman who has all his life kcnt
up an intimate business acquaintance with
door knobs said recently concerning them:
were made of wood or cast iron. big. solid.
heavy h1g and for time the American
IRE active in, the combination Of ,the useful and
commenced to make our own door knobs. upon,
tho old English plans At ,irst but ere long With
mont in form and color. beginning a progress
sive course of Improvement that already puts,
OF the world in, The production Of goods TINT
are at once beautiful. durable. and cheap
enough on si to that Ss pGRR S "o9q' a
knobs from clay was commenced in this
country Clays that would change their
cOors in baking wore selected and m!XcU
Cd into mQplds, baked to what f teehnleanll,
compound called glaze and rebaked at SUI
clsnt heat to melt the s glaze and give
and sold for as high as SIS dozen pairs, They
worth now only eighty cents dozen pairs.
the cheapest made Door kpGbf by Tie NAY
fe d oaeyn you sou viii i @ that
dozen pairs. Porcelain door knobs-whte
SSy ox h Sysns m nSdS Fl naa
treated like those already spoken of, and are only
tbd little EnpSb came Thirty wos ssS
compounded OF clay sand feIdspar silex, rcd
do not now remember. You may occasi onally
come across them yet in some exceptionally
scarce. Indeed. very few of them were ever
made There was too much uncertainty about
never possible to in advance how they would
come ont Of the kiln. 1 knew one gentleman
who burned very large KIN iui OF them aili
knob in the Whole lot 1t was exceedingly
hands2me while all the others rs made r"h, in sx
marked, That Knob has cost aslG0o ana
straightwny gave up the business. the next stop
in this line of manufactures vas in the produc-
ton of what were known as lava knobs; They
the same materials that the old -fashioncd
Gass we're made eoo oan
charminsiy I'M moulded. 3D. The hemacie knobs
made Of spwdust and blood, and little Bos-
ten ten Ps S %4 mSch P so R s2yn + En
d GSs st and Garsry Dozen
knob manufacture was taken IN 1873 or 1874
by Metallic Compression Casting Company.
posed of nine parts of copper and one of tin.
Tho moulds prepared for y are made with such
t6a they niss' delicate as the
yeinings of tiny leafet, and the molten metal
# forced into then by while
Giles made in this way are known rs compression
bronze goods. and variety OF claims to superb
them. the principal Of which. rs far as the pub
lie is concerned, is their beauty. Some Of them
Yer, or silver and gold in various combinations.
The most expensive are those with combined
no Sa tas Gapds
fiowers and lilies on them and nor aesthetic
ones witt much prettier flowers. monographs.
lions on forms that are round. square. heXn-
gon. fiat. convex. concave. oval. and the makers
only know what all else are very plenty.
A pretty novelty lately introduced is the
highly polished. sometimes fire gilt. smooth
brass door knob In the shape OF an egg. Mono
grams and seals are put on to order and they
make the knobs cost only little more. merely
the expense OF changing the centre of "a pat
some clubs and insurance companies have
their knobs thus ornamental. The Treasury
seal Is cast on all the door knobs Of the Treas
ury building in Washington. and on those of
the Post Office buildings Of New York and Bos-
ton. The War and Naval Departments at
Washington also hnve their knobs ornamcnted
with their respective seals. But the most
beautiful door knobs in Washington are in the
East Room OF the White House. When it was
redecorated seven or eight years ago. under
Architect Mullet's supervision, new knobs
ings. and shutters. all eXquisitely enamelled
The dominant color in the onamelling is blue
and harmoniZes well with the other adorn-
ments OF the apartment.
Not great while ago. arich banker in Port
land Oregon, sent all the way here to New York
for the door knobs for a magnificent mansion
he was building. He wanted dozens OF knobs
but the highest number OF any one kind OF the
same size was three. In each room however
the design selected for 1t was carried through
large and small sizes wherever u knob wac
used. He also had the taste to select the three
shades Of bronze In which fine knobs are made
so as to harmonize with the prevailing hue OF
the woods or decorations Of the apartments
for which they were severay designed.
In some old European castles and palaces
one sees door knobs of silver. and silver nlad
with gold. but such things are rarely il ever
made now never in this country"