The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
LACQUER Manufaciu es Of Japan.

Japan, as they are made In enlna' anu
the Japanese themselves assert that
the industry was Originally imported
from Corea. The tree frum which the
vegetable extract that forms the basis
of lacquer is obtained (the Rhus YER
nicifera) is found on the Asiatic CON
tinent, hut is said to flourish best in
japan. The tree is dipciOus, and wax
is extracted from it's seed, as well as
those of the Rhus s~uccelanea. The
quality of the lacquer depends in some
degree on the nature OF the soil IN
which the tree grows. Inclslons are
made in the stem, the punctures being
repeated every fourth day at success
lively higher parts of the tree. The
juice which oozes out is soraped off by
a flat iron tool. When the tree has
been thus tapped to the topmost
branches, it is felled. The lop is cut
into lengths, which are tied into fag-
gots, and stepped in water for from
ten to twenty days, after which the
lark is picrced, and the oozing lacquer
is collected in the anne way as from
the stem. One or two plants beside
the true cultivated lacquer tree also
produce both lacquer and veg table
WaX.
The juice thus collected is a
tenacious fluid of a graylsh-broWn
color. 1t is allowed to stand and
settle when first obtained.> A kind OF
skin forms over the surface; the
better quality rises to the top, and the
impurities sink to the bottom. 1t is
thus easy to separate the finest from
the inferior qualities, and the former
are strained through cotton OF porous
paper. By stirring in the OPP N air the
lacquer partially dries, absorbs oxygen
and gains a brilliant dark color. In
the fluid state it is highly corrosive,
and if a drop falls on the skin it will
produce a sore, often eating its way to
the bone. There is even said to be a
particular kind of fever caught in the
lacquer manufactures. Not, however,
that any special buildings are used for
the purpose of this industry, which
Doctor Dresser tells us is carried on in
ordinary houses. The lac uer workers
kneel on the usual matted floors, and
the chief care taken is to keep the
apartments clean and free from dust.
The lacquer is spread on the sub
stratum employed, which is almost
invariably wood, in coats of success
sively increasing iineness; the first
coat usually being mixed with pow
dered earth. Each coat when dry is
rubbed down with a cutting stone.
In an object intended to be of excel
lent quality, as many as eleven coats
are thus laid on before the decoration
is commenced. After the appli' alton
of the last coat the surface is ground
down with Jumps of hard charcoal,
which are kept wet, and the final
polish is given by the ashes of deer's
horns.
The pattern to be borne by the object
is sketched in outline in lacquer upon
fbrous elastic paper; the paper is
warme | and fitted to the surface to be
decorated, and the pressure of the
hand is enough to transform the pat
tern, after which the paper is removed.
If the ratterni is to be in gold, the out
line is then followed by a fine hair
pencil, dipped in lacquer, which is in
tended'to act as a size. When this has
so far dried as to be sticky, fine gold
dust is shaken on it from a spoon. The
gold dust looks gray at first, but its
yellow color is brought out by bur
nishing. In addition to gold dust,
minute squares of gold of about the
thickness of writing paper are pre-
pared and placed in their proper posi-
tions in the pattern by means of a
pointed stick. AS an illustration Of
the almost infinite minuteness Of this
kind of work, DR.. Dresser describes a
little medicine case, three and a quar-
ter inches long, two AMI a quarter
inches wide, and seven-eighths of an
inch in greatest thi, kness, which is
decorated with ffty-nine heads of
! flowers, each of which is half an inch
in length and three-siXteenths of an
inch in width. On each eighth of an
inch square of these flower heals are
about one hundred and twenty dis
tinct pieces of gold, making six hum
dred tessere for each head, or, above
thirty-fve thousand on the box. In
addition to these flowers, tho little
heads of grass on the case are also
tipped with thelittle golden squares
Edtn 5urgh Recieac.