The Opelousas courier., 1883-08-04
FINGER DECORATORS
Something About Rings, Their u,...
How They Are Made aRg

AASA @ttStt hnh a.
circle or circular line, bearing a,roais
the same significance it does toa ,os
The practice of wearing finger and a aay
rings is a very ancient one. Roth 'st
mentioned in the earliest books oe aus
Bible, and tier u e seems to have ~, NO
very common. According to H Issa
dotus, they were popular ornan asls
with the people of Babylon, and Si !. /:
probable that from Asa the custom y
wearing them pas e | into Greece aas
in this manner extended over the r ras
of Europe. They were also eytensire oss
worn in ancient Egypt and ar, f.:
quently found represented in -.
sculptures and mentioned in tI0
hieroglyphic5, '
The Romans, who are said to how.
derived the use of rings from the :.
bines, wore them not alone for orna
ment but for use as s'gnets. onlr
free Romans had the right to wa.,
them, and in the earliest DAYS Of Nv
republic they were but sparingly used
but as the peopl became corrupt and
effeminate they wore more and mors
of these ornaments until their fingers
were crowded with them. Some -
the dudes of those days even had IN,
ferent sets Of rings for summer And
winter.
There have been various explan,.
tions of the use of the ring in connee.
ton with marriage. One of these i
that as the delivery of a signet ring Nv
the owner to another person was an
Indication of conlid nee, 81 the eiyino
Of a ring by a husband to his wife wan
a sign of his trust in an | esteem far
her. Another explanation is that the
ring being a circle. without beginning
or end, symbolizes eternity and con.
stancy, and that the left hani wa,
chosen to denote the wife's subieetion
to her husband, and the third finger was
selected because the ring was then sup.
posed to press a vein which communi.
Gated directly with the heart.
The gold used by manufacturing
jewellers is obtained from brokers who
purchase it in large quaint ties at the
United States assay Office. by which
means they are enabled to make about
one-third of one per cent. ly the opera
ton. The gold is then in the form Of
parallelogram-shaped bars weighing
from 400 to 500 pennyweights. and i
almost absolutely pure. When wanted
for use it is placed under powerful
rollers, which reduce it to a plate thin
enough to be cut by lever shears. II
is then pla:ed in crucibles and melted,
and the alloy, consisting Of silver and
copper, is added, the proportions Icing
varied accord ng to the quality Of gold
desired. In gold of eighteen carat
ineness, for instance, there are
eighteen parts of gold to six partsd
ALLOW. while in fourteen carat
gold, but fourteen parts Of gold
is used to ten parts of alleF.
The usual alloy is one-thlrd silver and
two. thirds copper, but these pfopar'
lions are changed to give a lighter q
darker color to the compo 5ition. When
the metal is completely fused it is run
into molds, from which it comes forth
in the shape of plate or wire ingdsI
the former being used in the manutae
ture of seal and diamond ring, while
of tho latter band and wedding rims
are made.
The process of MAILING plain riasl
is very simple. The wir3 ingets au
run between rollers, by which they as
reduced to the requisite thickness ad
shape, that is, fiat. half round aad
square. Then the wire is cut INTO
different lengths, each piece Is bent
into the form of a ring, the ends sa
soldered together, and the rings lss
into the hands of the polishers M
polishing is done with brushes com
posed of stiff bristles and others Of ieHt
and after this process is completed ths
ring is ready for market.
In the manufacture OF diamond aa
seal rings this process is more conplea'
as there are so many more parts y
quisite to their completeness and POI
lection. When a certain kind q rug
is to be manufactured, the dllleIeD.
parts of which it is composed, saea 9
shanks, settings, stones, etc. are gown
out by the foreman and given 70 W !.
ieweler who constructs the RIM. =
then goes to the polisher; mex y -
| engraver buck again to the poiisaa'
1t is then ready for the setter, VINO y.
serts the stone or gems, and thea "
the last time is returned to tne IT,
Usher. at whose hands il receiVeai y
final touches. II
The shanks and set ngs are ~
out of the gold plate by means o. Ss !.
dies, each pattern requiring a que q IT, y
own, and tne preparation Of these e. a ama
is a work that reluires great skli s s@s
an immense amount Of labor anu ~ !.
o9es have constantly to be mace, I,
fashions change in rings as w. =
everything else, and m~anuiaeluleas i i.
constantly looking out for nossi 8
vices. aross
Manufacturers are subject 70 g s,ss
loss yearly from the fact that 50 I'm 4
of the gold dust and filings y ~ sss I
the different processes, though g ,;.lIs
precaution is taken to render y y Wan W.,
as pos ible. The floors are sWfps I'm IA
and thoroughly, the aprons Zoe Y u
workmen are washed ON the pIs .as;sb
and the water, as well as that u a s,srl
they wash their hand, is draln ,'.t lis d
one receptacle into another ,1 VIZ y HI \.
foreign sub5tancs IS have setsle \ ,, y d
bottom, after which the water y ~ h.
off and the residuum :old 70 ~ Nh
finers, as is also the dirt sweep i lib
the fl ors and work bencIes. IA
refuse is burned by the REM s.tad