The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1885-10-09
MARKED WITH INDIA INK,
a MAN WHO MAKES A LIVING By
TATTooING PEOPLE.
Many Women with Tattoo 1Iar1ts-
The FavOritc Designs that are
ChOscn-Tdcntifying Bodies.

inc taNOr1tC DesignS mat arc
ChOscn-TdentjTyipg Bodies.
A favorte rendezvous for New York
'longshoremen and others connected with
the seafarng life is at a corner in front
of a brick building at the lower part of
South street. At almost any time of the
day crowd of from a dozen to twenty
men is found here, standing about in an
aimless manner or seated on the steps of
narrow stairway telling yarns. To
scarcely sailor of the city is the spot
unknown, and the reason for this was
ascertaned by a reporter for the New
York Mail and Express to be the fact
that the building contains the rooms of
professor Thomas, who for many years
has been the favorite "tattooing man"
of New York sailors. The Professor"
a middle-aged man, was found in a
scantily furnished room on the third floor
On chair without a back at his side
were several we'll. handled books contain
ing highly colored pictures of goddesscs
of liberty, anchors, etc., two small china
cups, one full of red paint and the other
with liquid India ink, and a small, sin
gle bladed knife.
"Do many women have these marks
and designs put upon themselvesf' asked
the reporter.
"More than you would suppose" was
| the reply. 81 have marked over / 200
women in this way since | have been in
the business, and there are hundreds of
women in this city who, if they had the
! money, would come here and give me all
the work | could do. The work is by
no means confined to sailors as most peo-
pie suppose. In fact have more lands
men than sailors among my customers
now DAYS; it seems to be mania of
the human race to be marked in this
! way"
care there many tattoocd women in
the countryW
Il know of only six, two Of whom l
marked. They are Nora Hidebrand, age
twenty-cight; Ida Woodruff, age twenty
two; Annie Grace, age twenty-three
Ida May, age twenty one; Mary Baum
age twenty four, and California woman.
The homes of Hildebrand, Woodruff and
Baum are in this city; Annie Grace be-
longs in Philadelphia, and Ida May in
st. Louis. The cost to be marked as
they are is 5000. Bat they can always
command $25 and more a week at a
show. You will be surprised when l tell
has over 200 different figures worked in
colors on her body. l got them from a
regular book of designs, and she took
every design in the book. 1t took me
six weeks to complete the work. She
was preparing for circus and was to get
$40 a week. She stood it well, allowing
me to mark her for as long as seven
hours a day often, and we did not STOP
for Sundays either. They do not feel il
much, for their top skin is only touched.
1t never gets sore if the work is properly
done. We have now got up an acid
which takes all the feeling out. Ida May
whom ! also tattooed has an equally
large number of designs on her body
Among them are a crucitX, beehive
American coat of arms, young America
on a shield with flag On her back sht
has picture called the Sailors Return
1t represents, beside the more prominent
figures of the picture, large fleet O.
ships and an island. Another picture
that she has is of Hope, representing {
woman, an anchor, an American flag
and ship. She has also number o
Masonic and other secret society EN-
blems."
"Do you put many religious design
on people"
"Yes, a great many on both men anC
women. a man in here from Newbur!
the other day had four religious piece
put on him. lie was very religion
man. Many OF the women whom mari
first send me postal card and | 20 t.
their homes and mark them. But hay
frequently had fine ladies in front of m
place here in their coaches to have pri
vate marks, initials or names put Of
their arms or neck. While in Chicago
recently, tattooing q person, the girl
there got the idea in their heads that
little India ink spot on the side of tn
chin was the fashion, and l began t
think it was going to be a mania witt
them. Why | marked over fifty girls i
this way while | was there. They callet
it beauty spot 1t was dot Of Glue
in the center of which was the leas
spcck of red. Only these two colors ar
used in the work. They are never poison
: Gus, and you could actually eat ther
without injury"
"Do not people bring their own de
signs"
. 'Yes, very often, and they frequentl
refer TO late generals For instance
soon after Grants death, one man had
design marked on himself of Gran
being crowned by angels, and have pu
on the chest and back Of several person
r pictures of Grant Now there is begin
| ming to be call for pictures of tn
Statue of Liberty. \ curious part {
the business is the number of person
who want names marked on their arms
Why, not a week passes on which
not have twenty or thirty such custom
ers. Sailors and others have til
, names of sweetheart or wife, tesid
: often their own initials The chief idc
). seems to be identity after death. At III
time of Charlie Ross Disappearance,
f great numbers of women were hel
} every day bringing their children to i
t marked with their names. Since the
= marking children in this way has bee
| very general It's good thing too fC
} there are cases every day of bodies bein
, identified by means of these marks.
: remember case in California where I'll
8 body of a man was found whom n,
q body knew or could identify But |