The Portland daily press., 1890-01-10
THE WICKER WORKERS.
An Ancient Art Older than the Ro-
mans.
Detroit News

Wicker work is world wide and of an
Client date. The Romans found wicker
boats covered with skins in use among
The ancient natives of Britain. Round
boats Of wicker work, covered with btu
men or skins, were used on the Tigris
and Euphrates in the time of Herodotus,
and similar boats are still used there. In
India boats of q similar form and con-
struction are still in use for crossing
rapid rivers; they are made Of bamboo
and skins and require only few hours
labor.
The ancient Britons manufactured
wicker vessels with extraordinary skill
and ingenuity. Their costly and elegant
baskets are mentioned by Juvenal in
speaking Of the extravaganza of the
Romans in his time. The natives of
South America made baskets of rushes
so closely woven as to hold liquids. The
natives of Tasmania wove similar water
tight vessels of leaves.
The Kaffers and Hottentots are skilled
in weaving the roots of certain plants.
Shields, in ancient times, were con-
structed of wicker work, plain or COW
cred with hides, and are still in use
among certain savage tribes. Wicker
work is now largely used for the bodies
of light carriages. In different parts of
the world, houses, luts, gates, fences,
sledges and shoes are formed by this
ancient and universal art
In the construction of the rudest kind
Of basket the twigs or rods are assorted
according to their size and use and left
considerably longer than the work to be
woven. They are laid on the floor in
pairs parallel to each other and at small
intervals apart and in the direction of
the long diameter of the basket. Two
large rows are laid across the parallel
rods with their thick ends toward the
workman, who is oput his foot on them
and weave them one at time alter
nately over and under those first laid
down, continuing them in their places.
This forms the foundation of the basket
and is technically called the slat or slate.
Then the long end Of enc of these two
rods is woven over and under the pairs
of short ends all round the bottom till
the whole is woven in. The same is
done with the other rod, and then addi-
tional long ones are woven in till the
bottom of the basket is of sufficient size.
The sides are formed by sharpening the
large ends of enough stout rods to form
the ribs, and plating or forcing the
sharpened ends into the bottom of the
basket from the circumference toward
the center, then raising the rods in the
direction the sides of the basket are to
have and weaving other rods between
them till the basket is Of the required
depth. The brim is formed by bending
down and fastening the perpendicular
sides of the ribs, whereby the whole is
firmly and compactly united. A handle
is fitted to the basket by forcing two or
three sharpened rods of the right length
down the weaving of the sides close to
each other and pinning them fast about
two inches below the brim, so that the
handle may retain its position when COM
pleted. The ends Of the rods are then
bound or plated in any way the work
men may choose.
There are twelve firms of basket MAX
ers In Detroit, employing about 100 per-
sons, mostly men and boys. 1t is seldom
that girl is employed in this business,
and there are no women. The reason
assigned is that the only thing they
could do would be to plat, and there is
so much bending over In the work.
Besides this the cutting Of splints
and bands is very heavy work. The
men and boys work ten hours day
when they do not work by the piece, and
the average wages are from $5to $40 per
week. Piece workers sometimes average
s1S per week, but that is when the has,
ket maker is especially skillful.
The basket principally manufactured
in the city is the splint. the splints being
shavings cut from Norway pine and In a
large variety of sizes, some covered and
some open, from a quart to bushel and
half. The largest sized covered baskets
are used extensively by florists in which
TO convey cut flowers, and are packed in
the delivery wagons. Travelling lunch
baskets are made of the Norway splints,
and are used generally for the festive
picnic and for travelling purposes where
cold lunch is the comfortable and eco
nomical idea. The splints are woven in
diamond shape, and the market baskets
Of this material are called diamond bas-
kets.
Other market baskets are made of the
osier willow, the osiers coming from
various parts of Michigan. Of the willow
baskets, there is the clothes hamper, the
clothes basket and open and covered
market baskets varying in size, but all
having a special form.
The willows are prepared by the boil
ing process for the purpose of peeling
them. They are then allowed to cool,
and are tied up in bundles for future use.
They are split as they are needed for use
by passing them through small knife,
set in block. A great many wild will
lows are used, but only in rough baskets,
such as open market baskets. Cultivated
willows are used for the finer qualities of
baskets and willow chairs and cradles,
and the tops of children's carriages. The
willows are grown in swampy places that
cannot be utilized for other purposes
without draining.
The fancy baskets are principally i'm
ported from Germany. The gaudily
stained Indian basket is made on Wal
pole island, but there is not near SO many
made on that island as heretofore. The
wood, principally black ash and latterly
rock elm. has been exhausted, and they
have got to get their material in Canada.
Mostly market baskets are made by the
Indians. 81
The general condition of those who are
engaged in the manufacture of baskets
and wicker work generally is one of fair
living, with close economy, since the
business is one which is not of a nature
to develop great establishments and con-