Morning journal and courier., 1882-11-08

valuinp over $15O Such skins are very fine and of great length, being often as much as to feet long and so precious are they that a skin would be looked upon damaged if single hair were plucked from it. For the last five or six years no sables have been impo1 ted direct to New York, but few have found their way into the market from Russia by way of China and San Francisco. Since sealskin became the fashion there has been literally no demand for sable-it is entirely and completely out of date. The reason for this lies, perhaps, in the fact that it is much heavier than sealskin, and sacque lined with sable or mink is somewhat clumsy. sable sacque would cost as much as $1, POO to $1 800, and then not have so fine an appear ance as one of seal. From South America the trade receives skin known as Nutria, which is very similar to beaver and is very expensive It is principally used for making the finest felt for mems hats. Perslanas and Astrakhans are becoming very fashionable for trimmings, and are very scarce. For some six or seven years they have scarcely been imported at all, but as this season they are to be worn they are again in the market, valuing from $6 to $S 8 yard. Furs used for making garments are called fancy furs, and pay duty of 35 per cent. Only one or two houses, however, import them, for most of the fur garments worn by American wo- meet their taste. Fur garments of French make little too dressy, and are often overtrimmed, while those made in England are somewhat clumsy and heavy. The Ameri- can manufacturers have succeeded in pro ducing article which is 8 happy medium between the two.
 When we come to consideration of what are called hatters' furs, skins used for gen. temens hats, we find they are almost invari- ably French, and are mainly rabbit skins. It is true that hare skins are also used, and these come from Frankfort-on-the- Main. A few English cony or rabbit skins are import ed, but the number of these lessens every year. not because there is any scarcity of skins, but because the cutting of furs is now successfully accomplished here. But furs pay duty of 20 per cent, and as they can be cut here at cost of only 10 per cent. more than in London 10 per cent is gained by preparing them here. During the past few years number of factories have been established in this country for the cutting of furs, and as @ result the importation of hat ters' prepared furs has been comparatively light. The large number of rabbit and hare skins imported in 8 natural state are convert ed into hatters' furs. Before being cut the jected to chemical process for eliminating the grease from the fur and thus converting it into felt. Every cutter has his own secret method of carroting.
 Domestic furs are but little in favor. Among them are the minx, fox, raccoon, muskrat, skunk and opossum. They, too, are>shipped to Leipsic to be sold at the fairs, and thence they find their way to Russia and the cold countries of northren Europe. They are very cheap this season, muskrat skins costing but 20 cents each, fox from $1 to $2, skunk $1 to $3, while raccoon is also low priced. though not sufficiently so to serve as currency or to offer as it formerly did an equivalent for drink out west. There is no longer any monopoly in the Canadian fur trade. Such wealthy corporations the Northwest Fur company or the Hudson Bay company are now either extinct or shorn of their power and prestige; their armies of trappers, voyageurs, coure~rs de bots and boatmen have disappeared before the advance of civilization, like the animals they hunted and the savage foes they feared. The fur trade employs large numbers of persons, and the hands engaged in the dressing, dyeing and general preparation of skins realize high wages Good hands are scarce however, and at this time of year especially one sees a constant notice at the furriers' stores that fur workers are wanted. And yet there is much to recommend such employment; it is healthful and constant, for although the fur merchant has but short and uncertain sea son the preparation of skins for the market goes on all the year round. The furrier might complain of the precarious nature of his business reasonably as the hotel-keeper in fashionable resort-more so, indeed, for the only time in the year when he can con- fidently look forward to business of sale is from the 1st of November to the Ist of Feb ruary. Although fashion does much to pro- mote demand, more will depend upon the weather, for the multitude cannot afford the unnecessary expense of fur garments in an unpleasant mild winter. He must be always hoping and praying for severe weather. In March or April the manufacturing becomes active, and so continues until the 1st of this month, when everything is in the market and h0u hau$ &1 1oT> tain the much coveted furs. All the labor of preparation must be gone through without the immediate return of a single dollar; it Is all outlay and expense until the season opens Great numbers of hands are employed in this city, as the demand for furs seems steadily to increase. It would be impossible to attempt an account of the imitation furs which abound Some are so good and the result of so much ingenuity ln preparation that they are almost as costly as those that are gen uine; others again are genuine, but are not sold under their own name if it happens not to be fashionable at any particular season. Of ermine one hears little nowadays. It is essentially royal fur, and trims the long trained mantles and gowns that figure at court ceremonials, but is now rarely met with, as 1t was years ago, as the lining oi l silk cloaks in the form of shoulder tip | pets
 The preservation of furs is always a matte, | of some difficulty Camphor would appear
 after all, to be the most disagreeable thing l to offer to the parasites which infest skins
 Some people use red pepper, but on expert
 ence it has been proved useless. Large re
 tail fur houses have special repositories fol
 preserving them, generally in rooms built fol
 the purpose-dark and in the basement they
 use no preservative against moth, but tht
 skins are regular taken up and beaten ever, l few days. Private persona who have expen
 sive furs send them for storage to such re
 &ok I and insured by the furriers.
 It seems rather a stretch of fancy to con
 meet furs with hair brushes, but none tn
 less badgers skins, which are unquestiona ply furs, brought to this country iron
 Germany to serve as bristles for brushes | kl, which comes from Russia and Is smsl
 variety of weasel. The tail only is made us
 of for tue purpose, and they now value abou l 40 marks timber.
 Every lady knows the difficulty of selectin
 furs practice only can make anyone & com
 petent judge of price and quality, for ther
 are such infinite varieties in almost all kind
 that it is necessary to be familiar with then
 all. Large, heavy muffs are no longer fasf
 ionable. Costumes are usually matchsd il
 brocaded silk or velvet. from which muh
 are made and trimmed with fur, so that
 lady of fashion nowadays may possess on
 for every suit she wears. Shoulder cape
 are to be had in every variety, seal and bea
 yer being the most sought after. AS fc
 price it varies from few dollars up to a fe
 hundred, and there is no reason why anyor should shiver for want of fur, man cheap kinds are now to be seen at the store , Children's cloaks this winter are to be ger erally fur trimmed, but as yet fur lined ga , ments are exclusively made for adults. I
 the extreme north of Germany and in Ru , sia hoods trimmed and lined with fur are un I versally worn by children, and a mitigate form of the same fashion is seen here in th 3 fur cared caps.worn by the boys. One vel F singular fact appears inseparable from u 3 wearing of furs, and that is the difficult people who have once worn them find ? giving them up, even when warmth of c mate makes them superfuous Russia . visiting the baths of southern Germany W s wear as many if they were 20 miles nor . of Moscow, and nothing will be seen of the ; but their noses, and illustration of t !, same peos&iarity is evident every sprir v when elderly ladies who have worn fur ii s pets all the winter cannot be induced to @ them aside even when the April sun giy e them foretaste of midsummer. Su s creafursS of habit are all Fur eaps he