Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1888-06-29
The Old Undertook.

the present day who have ever seen,
or even heard, of the old-fashioned
finder box and matches. Yet fifty
wears ago the friction match, now so
universally used had but just been
invented and did not come into gen.
eral use for many years.
Before the year 1886, or Whereabouts.
house keepers were obliged to use
matches of domestic manufacture.
These were small pieces of white pine
wood, perhaps twice the size of our
match, the ends of which had been
dipped in melted birthstone. A small
iron skillet in which to melt the brim
stone was once a common Kitchen
utensil in many families in New Eng
land, if not elsewhere.
The only way to light one of these
birthstone matches was to bring it in
contact with a spark of fire. For this
purpose there used to be kept in every
house a small tin box filled with burnt
rags, and this was called Undertook.
In order TO obtain light common
gun-flint was struck with considerable
force against piece of steel made OF
convenient size, which produced few
sparks; these lodging upon the burnt
rags. made sufficient fire TO enable one
to readily light the match.
These smouldering rags (for the
sparks thus obtained did not produce
a blaze) were afterwards eXtinguished
by round tin cover called damper.
To thus create fire required some ex-
perience especially in damp weather,
or with cold fingers on winter morn
ings. We have known people to make
"a bad piece of work with the flint
and steel and to succeed only with
great patience in striking light.
If one happened to be cross or nerv-
Gus the chances were that he could
not succeed at all; nor was 1t an In
frequent sight to see the good wife
of the house running across the street
with a shovel TO borrow a shoveltul
of live Goals" from u neighbor, the
chimnev-smoke of whose dwelling
proclaimed that she had a fire. The
change to the match of commerce
was one of the first of what we now
consider modern conveniences. In
many families it was one of the chill
dren's chores" to prepare wood for
the matches, and TO dip the ends in
melted birthstone. These matches
were somtimes to be bought in shops,
but New England economy more ire
quently led each family to prepare its
one. Still it was not uncommon for
poor children to make trifle OF mon
ey by selling punches of matches TO
their more fortunate neighbors
In sparsely settled neighborhoods
great care was exercised at night by
the head of the house to keep the
fire" He took precaution that there
should be a good bed of live Goals
at the hour of retiring; these he COW
cred with many shovelfuls of ashes to
prevent them from burning out The
next morning the Goals were usually
found to be live on raking open
the ashes, and served to start the
DAYS fire. 1t was not an impossible
feat to thus preserve the family lire
through the year, without recourse
to the Undertook and matches
The modern friction match was wei
coined by most housekeepers, al
though here and there some old peo-
pie objected TO it, considering 1t
dangerous article, as no doubt 1t Is
when carelessly used or left lying
about. The first friction match IN
vented required to be drawn across
piece of fine sand-paper in order to
produce light This was called a
lucifer, and was much safer, although
not so convenient, as the present
match. Then came the present patent
friction matches, which used to be
called ''loco-focosn There were no
fancy match boxes in ''old times and
the tinder-boX was not considered an
ornamental article, but was kept out
of sight in the cupboard or on the
kitchen mantel-piece.
We find in a Salem newspaper of
June 30, 1886, the following:
A WONDER.
Notwithstanding the convenience
of those dangerous little articles, fric-
ton matches, which are in almost
everybody's hands, but which with all
their charms bid fair TO prove heavy
curse to the community, we learn that
there is one man in Salem, a respecta-
BILE tradesman, who keeps a store
where we should generally expect to
find such things, but who has never
sold them, nor allowed them to be
used on his premises. At his house
and shop, he sticks to the oldfash
toned flint, steel and finder. He shows
his wisdom in so doing. How many
more can say as much?'
Envious young man Speaking of
favored rivaD-Yes, George is clever
and handsome, but he is so abomina-