The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1883-09-21
precleas Hog Bristles.

sis not as easy as it used to be when
Invent into it forty years ago. Then
the requirements of the public were
simple and easily supplied. and it was
comparatively easy to keep a good
stock. Now brush-dealer must have
an almost endless list of brushes, of all
STYLES and materials. and must lay out
ten times the capital he used to need.
At that time there were only three kinds
of scrubbing- brushes; now l can show
YOU forty, and every year new ones
come into vogue and must be placed on
nv shelves. There is scarcely any
business where more dead stock has to
be carried than in ours. Still. we must
be up with the times, no matter what it
costs.
The old-time scrubbing-brush was
made of strong American bristles, and
in three styles They are still in limited
use. and other materials. cheaper and
more enduring. are used. The cocoa
fiber is largely employed. and makes a
good scrubber; the palmetto fiber. when
well put into the frame, is also excel
lent, and many brushes are made of
Tarnpico hemp.
Where do you get your bristles?"
Most of them are imported. The
best bristles are white. and the breed of
hogs that produces white bristles is be-
coming rarer and rarer in this country
every day. In the south and west the
hogs are running largely into dark
coiors. and that lessons the value of
their bristles. We get the best from
hn do -
a very large one. Probably the best in
use come from kamschatka. They are
called Okataka. from the name of the
province where they are produced.
They sometimes reach the length OF
nine and one-half inches. and are al
WAYS over six inches long. In price
these bristles range from sixty cents to
$3.50 pound. There is a barrel of
them which cost me tritle over $1,000.
We also import bristles from Siberia
and Germany. Those from Russia come
in black. gray and white. 1t is a sin
gular fact that the American bristle.
while it has run down in quality, has
more than doubled in price. The grade
that used to sell at thirty-tive cents a
pound now brings ninety cents.
Are there not many materials that
take the place Of bristles?'
There are several that have come
into general use of late years. but they
are bv no means equal in quality or in
durability to the bristles. There is the
Tampico hemp, for instance. 1t is very
cheap and easy to make up. but it won't
last and it is not rs good for the scalp.
L., Of nj
that wholesale for 81 a dozen. but you
can easily conceive that they are not
very grateful to tender scalp. Tampico
hemp is tit only for scrubbing and
other hard brushes. but still there is 4
class that demands cheapneSs in spite
of quality. and we must cater for them
aS well as for more sensible people.
The wire brush has a tendency to pull
the hair out bv the roots and is respon-
sible for thousands of bald heads. 1t
will always pay TO buy a brush of first
quality bristles. for no good substitute
for them has vet been discovered.
.'Brush-makers generally work bv
the piece and make from 80 to $40 4
week. The frame. having been pre-
pared. is bored BY a machine that works
the holes to receive the bristles at the
rate of about 10 per minute. Efforts
have been made repeatedly to get up a
machine to insert and fasten the bristles
in the hole. but thus far none have
proved altogether successful. and hand
work is generally preferred. The
operator, fixing the pierced wooden
frame in wise, places 4 tuft of the
bristles in each hole and secures il at
the back with wire. The wire is con-
tinuous and rs the pierced frame is all
ways covered there is no danger of its
breaking. A hair-brush passes through
the hands of six workmen before il is
ready for the market. Women are en-
ploved in drawing the bristles (put-
ting them into the holes and securing
them). and a good hand can make from
Sc to $40 n week. The same woman.
working twelve hours day and work
ing hard. on shirts for the general trade,
could hardly make % week. so YOU
see that if the pay be small it is much
better than that given to the mass of
women workers. Some operators Ge-
come very rapid and earn good wages"
How are other brushes made?'
We'll, there's flesh-brushes, and
tooth-brushes. and engine-brssheS. and
whitewash-bruShes. and paste-brushes.
and host of Others. Here's some cir
cIs-bill FASTING brushes that made for
Barnum. You see how large they are
aud WHIST long bristleS they have. They
cost forty-eight dollars dozen. and
will paste the whole side of fence in
no time. Flesh-brushes are often or
dered of peculiar style. and We make
4 .scratcher' with which You can reach
any part of Your back. 1t has little
tuft of white hristles on the end. that
impart untold pleasure For busters
we use horse-hair imported from
France. Hat-brushes are also of horse
hair orof goat-hair, which is very fine
Aretail dealer whose trade is in hair
brushes and tooth-brusheS mainly, said:
The business is a good one. and we
generally have all the trade we need;
but some of our customers-women
principally-are very hard to suit.
There's a couple sitting at the lower
counter now. They have been there
over an hour. and all to select a single
hair-brush. Ny salesman has already
shown them two hundred. and they
have not vet made up their minds.
They are the sort of people who will
look at the whole stock in dry-goodS
store. and then buy q paper of pins.
Hello. they've bought brush. Now
I'll see what they are paying for it.
In moment the dealer returned and
said: They bought sixty-five-cen.
brush. Now III count up my profit:
that brush cost me forty-five cents and
has been in stock a long time. Myrent
is $1,000 a year, and 1 pay the sales |
man $1,000 year. Say that two hours