Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1884-08-28

stantly increases that the demand
threatens to exceed the supply of the
metal. Sheets of platinum are bought
| by chemists, who have them convert
ed into crucibles and other FORMS"
The reporters curiosity was
awakened by Mr. Bakers mention of
the old lady who made those very fine
draw plates, and on his return to the
city he hunted her up. Mrs Francis
A. Jeannot, the lady ip question, was
found Ia neat apartments in hand
some flat IL West Fifty first street,
Age has silvered her hair, but her
eyes are still bright, and her move
ments indicate elasticity and strength
She IS native Of Neufchatel, Switzer-
land, and speaks English with little
difficulty, but whenever the reporters
English was little hard for her a
very pretty girl with brilliant eyes
ana crinkly jet-black hair, who subse-
quently proved to be daughter of
Mrs. Jeannot. came to the rescue.
With the girls occasional aid, the old
ladys story was as follows:
Il have been in this business for
thirty years Learned it when | was
a girl in Switzerland Very few in
this country know anything correctly
about it. Numbers of people endea-
vor to find it out, and they experiment
to learn it, especially TO do it by ma
chinery, but without success. But
ah, me! 1t is no longer a business
that is worth anything. Thirty years
ago many stone draw plates were
wanted, for then there was a great
deal done IN filagree gold j.welry.
Then the plates were worth from 50 so
up to as high az. SIS, according to the
magnitude of the stones and the size
Of the holes | bored in them.
Now, however, all that good time is
past. Nobody wants filagree gold
Jewelry any more, and there is so lit
tie demand for fine wire of the prec-
iOus metals that few draw plates are
desired. The prices now are no more
than from $l.25 up to say IS, but it is
very rare that one is required, the cost
of which is more than 81. And of
that a very large part must go to the
lapidary to pay for the stone and for
his work III cutting 1T to an even round
disk. Then, what get for the long
and hard work of boring the stone by
hand is very little. BY hand2' Oh,
yes. That must always be the good
way. The work of the machine is not
perfect. 1t never produces such good
plates as are made by the hand and
eye of the trained artisan. How are
they bored? All, sir you rS ust excuse
me that | do not tell you that. It is
simple, but there is just little of it
that is a secret and that little makes
the vast difference between prod ucing
work which is good and that which IS
not. 1t has cost me n @ little to learn
it, and while it is worth very little just
now, perhaps fashion may change,
and plates may be wanted to make
gold wire again to an extent that may
be profitable. do not wish 10 tell
every body that which will deprive me
of the little advantage my knowledge
gives me. The stones@ Oh, we of
course do not use finely colored ones.
They are too valuable. But those that
we employ must be genuine sapphires
and rubies, sound and withoat flaws.
Hero are some. You see they look
like only irregular Jumps of muddy
tinted, broken glass. Here is finish
ed one"
The old lady exhibited piece of
solid brass about an inch long, three
quarters of an inch in width, and one
sixth in thickness. In its centre was
a small disk of stone with hole
through it, a hole that was very
smooth, wide on one side, and hardly
perceptible on the other The stone
was sunk deep into the brass and
bedded firmly in it. She went on:
''You will find, if you try thas you
can with difficulty push through that
hole a hair from your beard. But,
small as it is it must be perfectly
smooth, and of an accurate gauge. /
do not any longer myself set the
stones in the brass, as [ am not so
strong as I once was. Ny son does
that for me. But neither he nor my
daughter, nor anybody else in this
country, [ believe, can bore the holes
so we'll as [ can even yet. How
long does draw plate 'ast?' Ali
Practically forever. Except by
clumsy handling or accident, it does
not need to be replaced at least in one
lifetime. And there is another reason
why [ sell so few now. Those who
require them are supplied. Watch
jewels?' Yes, [ used to make them,
but do SO no longer. They can be
imported from Europe at the price of
81 a dozen, and at such figure one
could not earn bread in making them
here -