The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-06-26
INTERESTING STATEMENTS FROM
AN EXPERT HANDLER OF THE
SHARKS TOOTH.
More Popular Than Ever Its
Uses, Abuses and Signifi-
canoe as Understood in
Many Countries of
the Globe.

I
On his person. somewhere. 1t is In
don't you see, in case OF acct
dent or for deaf and dumb people"
"The art will need many artistsT
suggested the reporter.
"True, but where are they to come
from. 1t is something that can't be
learned. 1t is gift of nature. 1t came
so to me-"
"Why can't 1t be learned"
"That's more than I'm able TO say.
I've attempted to teach several am
bilious young fellows how TO put the
ink in. l gave them great deal of
time and patience, but it was useless.
They couldn't learn. One of these |
students was an excellent man with |
the pencil. He drew well enough,
but when he began to work the sketch
in he failed utterly. All large or
complicated pictures are outlined In
pencil first, and on larger scale than
they are expected to appear, for the
cuticle is stretched to the highest pos,
sible tension during the entire work.
AIADY ARTIST.
ais it painful operation I?
"Ouite SO, at first. But the flesh
becomes benumbed and at the end OF
a quarter of an hour. l have sixteen
pieces Of work on various parts OF my
BODY. The only really interesting
amateur that have ever had work at
me was the young lady who put her
name on the fleshy part OF my arm,
saving which Mr.. TreVis rolled up his
sleeve and exhibited, in dainty char
acters, of old English vermllilon, col
ored with blue shading, the word
| Mamie"
"In what country are the best work
men found ?"
Here in America; no other country
furnishes such experts with the bod
kin. Englishmen do not belong to an
artistic race. They only tattoo flags,
leaves or flowers; they can't do a
figure. To be sure, they havn't the
Goddess of Liberty on their list of di-
whites, and Brittania is such a f1atu-
lent old bag that any body can sketch
her. The French don't do much. A
flag. laid on fiat, or liberty cap is
about their best. 1t is the Sandwich
Islands that the best artists are found
outside of America. The Kenakas
use indigo and cinabar, all vegetable
matter, A sharks tooth or a fish
bone is used. They accomplish excel
lent results. The bone is set in 8
stick and then the tention Is put on the
flesh with their feet, as they beat the
picture in, bit by bit. Snakes, fish ant
alligaters are their strong points. Tit
Japanese and Chinese are experts, af'
ter a fashion. They draw only Chi
nese or Japanese pictures and general
ly put the name of the object uDdel
what they portray. Turks and Rus
SLAMS know absolutely nothing ab1u
| it. though I've seen sailors of both na
tionalities who were tattooed. 1t is
an unknown practice in Africa" ant
Mr.. Tevis smiled geographically, "be
cause the people are all pretty wei
colored already. suppose"
NOMADS OF THE PROFESSION.
allow does the art migrate ?"
"The American sailors are the no
MAIDS of the profession. They go from
port to port and some Of them are 81
well known that they have customer
awaiting their arrival in nearly ever,
harbor they enter. Take the Spanish
or italian cities. for instance. Their
, is always a floating population in thos,
r seaports and Jack gathers in gooC
pesetas and silver seudi. In the Eds
! Indian ports, especially Bombay, he i
i in great demand among the Lascar
: and nght-colored Hindoos. The lat
q ter are very partial to vermillion-
r which is red oxyde of mercury anC
r therefore makes the flesh very sore
f Often the subject gets quite i'll from
a tie effects on the system. There ar
} only two colors that can be worked in
> to the fiesh-black and red. You don
r know, perhaps, that the black Indi
t ink turns blue? There is no blue ink
t 1t is mystery which science has new
e er solved. The change in color is du
to some action of the blood doubtless
: Another interesting fact Is that Ii,
two sticks OF India ink produce tn
same color in the same flesh. 1t i
equally true that one stick OF ink pro
duces different shades of blue in diff
q ferent persons. If we take lamp-blacl
: or SCOT, or charcoal, or black Leaf
, from the pencil you write with, ant
work it into the human body 1T reap
= pears dark blue, not black? Ism
. it curious? If the vermillion il
worked in heavily it leaves raiset
: welt on the flesh. l used great eau
! ton about that, because it is evidenc,
of bad workmanship"
TATTOOED EGGS.
did you ever put mans coat-of.
arms on his body?"
Eyes, indeed. There Is a young
man about here who has the seal O.
Virginia on his breast. 1t covers hi!
entire chest and required two and {
: half hours to work it under the skin
1t is my masterpiece. There is no.
thing like it in this country. No,
havn't had any applications yet to put
the arms of the State of Maine OF
any body. but probably shall before
the campaign gets warm"
There are other branches of the art
are there not?"
Eyes, tattoo eggs for Easter. ]
color the eggs and then carve away
part of the color on the shell, produc-
ing work like canoes. / have great
many regular orders for this kind
of work. One family on West Wal
nut street gives me commission reg
ularly every year for three dozen eggs
to be delivered on Easter morning.
L boil the eggs very hard, color them,
engrave them and then heat them
with dry steam just before delivery.
get one dollar each for the eggs and
could sell several eundred. But l am
the only person / know who has a
hand steady enough to carve an egg
Shell. Even break one out of every
three. Several hours are required for
each egg aud the price is quite low
enough when you remember the acct
dents, for these generally occur when
the work is nearly finished. An egg
is something that cannot be put to-
gether. Once spoiled by knife
thrust, it becomes the perquisite of
my Office boy or my assistant"
THE HEIGHTS OF ART.
What is scrimpschon
81 was about to speak of that" an
swered Mr.. Tevis. 'Scrimpschon' is
an art in itself-more refined, more
exquisite than tattooing the body. It
is the art of engraving on ivory or
sharks teeth. Pictures are traced
with very sharp pointed instrument
and the lines colored. have engrav-
ed several sets af billiard balls In that
way. Carving-knife handles are also
embellished in the same manner"
What are the uses of tattooing ?"
MANY and various. Every man
has his name on him feels new sense |
OF security from the morgue and the |
desecting table. You have no idea,
young fellow, the risks you run, wan