The Abbeville messenger. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1884-1887, 1885-12-15
MAKING WOODEN IMAGES.
One OF New York's Peculiar
Industries.
A Studio Where Many Statues of Native
Americans are Made.

In Canal street., u BOWery
and Broadway, there is a low, dingy
building with a wide door. The inte-
rior, as seen through this opening, sug-
gest a masquerade ball. Figures in
Ill conceivable styles of gaudy cos
tunes are crowded together; some
ranged demurely along the wall. others
standing nose to nose and Sinking in
each others faces rs though talking in
a low tone and maliciously criticising
their neighbors, while occasionally
there is seen standing with dignity
apart an imposing swell, with his dra-
perry wrapped majestically about his
shoulders. Peeping Jul him at a
simpering dude, with hat On the back
of the head and hand up at the little
downy yellow moustache, may be seen
a wickedly roguish young lady, with
utterly unpermissible bangs. and attir-
ed in raiment whereof the astounding
variety of brilliant colors would, by
comparison, have made Joseph's gor-
geous attire quite a sombre garment.
The variety Of costume among these
people is only equalled by the variety
Of emotions which seem to be inspir-
ing them. Some are in a towering
rage, with arms uplifted threateningly,
while others are mischievous, or Sc
date, or clipper, but tho majority seem
to be either cheerfully or sadly idiotic.
They fill nearly all the standing space
in the little room, and even swarm out
upon the sidewalk, where people gath
err to stare at them curiously from
time to time.
Though nearly all these queer speci-
mems differ in complexion and costume,
they all had a common origin in the
butt end of ships: masts. and their
common mission in life is to stand in
front Of shops and p~erpetually offer
bogus cigars to passing multitudes. A
Jolly young gentleman was in an inner
room of this tobacco image menagerie,
and whistled softly as he with gentle
touches put a perfect blaze of crimson
bushes upon the cheeks of a young
lady who was brazenly flirting and
smoking a cigarette as she did 1t.
THE image business in New York."
he said, 'is not quite what it was a
Few years ago, because we have lost
old Daddy Brooks. All, old Daddy
was the boss carver, and he taught
about all the carvers we have here.
That's why We call him Daddy. He
used to be down in West Broadway
somewhere. Now he is in Chicago,
and he took a lot of the boys out with
him-that is, he took three or four.
There never was over q dozen carvers
here in New York at one time. There
are not over six here now. They are
al Yankees. The foreigners don't
catch on, somehow, but the Yankees
take to chopping out wooden images
Just as they do TO whiting a pine
single.
1--WE so down to the ship yards and
buy the butt ends of masts. Some are
six or seven feet long. and some not
over two or three. and We make big
figures or little figures accordingly.
Out of a seven foot stick you can get
a good $40 figure. We take the stick
out in that back room first, where we
have a dirt floor. Here we hew them
into something like a General outline
Then we hoist them up stairs, where
we chip them down until we get to
the fine touches and sand paper; then
they come down to me and I fix them
out with a stunning coat of colors on
their wooden clothes, put them on roll
!ers and trundle them out among the
rest Of the gang out there, where they
wait until they make a mash and are
carried away. I also take battered
and weathered- stained figures, and put
On an a here and a nose there, or
paint a blind eye into life again, rig
Them out in a brand new suit of
clothes, and there they are. get any
where from $40 to $40 for the images
rarely over $40. There are only
;wo or three other shops, and we send
Images all over the country.
"Oh, of course styles change. but the
genuine old rowing redskin with a bad
eye and an ugly looking tomahawk in
his hand Is the stand by-that is. in