Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-11-07
BURNT CORK.
How it Is Manufactured and How i,
Is Put on the Face.
From the San Francisco Call

From the San Francisco Call
The popular impression about the application
OF burnt cork by minstrel performers, which
every man has absorbed from his own child
hoods experience in the minstrelsy business
when the barn loft served as a theater ia that it
Is rubbed on the face and hands OF the performer
from cork whose end is charred in conyen-
lent gas-jet or candle flame; but this like most
popular impressions, is incorrect To supply
the burnt cork used by the minstrel performers
of this city occupies the entire time and earnest
attention OF one interesting character. A little
man whose place of business is on the curbstone
on the north side Of Pine street. halfway be-
tween kearny and Dupont. and whose head
reaches only little way above the top Of the
barrel in which much Of his work is done has.
Tor fifteen Years. been preparing burnt cork and
dong nothing else. His personality has absorbed
so much from hs business that he does not look
entirely unlike huge cork which. if tossed on
the bay. would bob about with the tide in a
pleasant sort of way. He is rather grimy too,
like haii-burnt cork
Tine business" he explained to a Cal re-
porter who Chatted with him az he worked. is
not what it used TO be- There is more burnt
cork talent to be supplied. but where | used to
get a dollar and half pound for the article
make only get halt dollar now. What is the
process of making it? Well. you see. | first
gather my corks. | get them from the big bot
ting houses mostly. who buy lots of bottles
many of them with corks that wouldn't keep
the ar out OF wine or beer paw four cents
pound there but sometimes make ten-strike
IN the suburbs. where find a saloon or rest au-
rant with barrel of corks they are glad to get
rid OF for two cents pound When am ready
to burn, put the corkS in those three wash
boilers yOu see there with holes punched in
their sides and bottom. sprinkle alcohol over
them. and set them adre Then fill one of
these muslin sacks with the charred cork and
knead the sack in this barrel of water That
forces the powdered charcoal through the sack
into the water ain troubled nowadays with
the tin that lots of beer bottlers put on the top
OF their corks. and the wire from wine bot
ties. sometimes they get into this sack and
tear 1t. and must look out tor that. When
have worked all my charred cOrks through this
sack into the water. drain the water through
a close canvas sack you see in that frame there
and what remains in the canvas sack is ready
for the artists. put it up in One-pOund tins.
and they use it out of that. When performer
isrrady to ''back up" rs they call it. he takes
little Of this black paste in his hands and
washes his face, neck aud hands in it, and he is
BACKED as yOu see him on the stage"
AS the reporter saw the manufactured article
1t was blue-back paste of consistency of
tooth paste.
"Emersou's Minstres use about pound a
night OF the CORK, and COPYRIGHT Il Hawkins
nearly as much. The BACKED performers of the
Adelphi and Bella Union each have to buy his
own cork. but the minstrel managers furnish it
to the performers. The cellars (dives) use about
pound week each Sometimes snide show
tries to beat me out of my pay, but always get
even with them. How? Why just put little
oil of turpentine in the cork paste and they
have hard time getting it off. Once one of
those ten-cent minstrel shows that gave per
forrnances In Union Hall tried to beat me.
put turpentine in their cork, and performer
who had to wash UP to do a Dutch act couldn't
get the cork off his face and he had to do his
Dutch act IN black. This was enough fun for
me. 1t don't hurt the skin a bit to put it on.
but some OF the performers put on glycerine
and vaSseline to protect their skins. That is
what gives the shiny look to their faces you Sc -.
on some performers 1t don't do them any good
and makes it harder to wash the cork Off"