Idaho semi-weekly world., 1891-02-13
TIE ART OF DYEGNG.
eomerHING ABOUT WHICH Gut
LITTLE IS POPULARITY KNOWN.

Less Mystery NJ" A"''' "
/ An Advance In tho Art-Disooveries IN
! Chemistry - An Important Industry'
4 Colors.
Rnt This is the are of color, and In moth
,nr else during the last thirty years has
science made such forcible impression
on tbe usages of domestic life as 1t has
made through its contributions TO the
resources of the dyer Go through the
drv poods district and observe the win
dows Look into the carpet ware rooms,
the furniture ware rooms or even INTO
the qentemun's furnishing store Every
,,-boro +he rainbow seems to have been
caught and REPRODUCED in fresh hues. The
,,orv flowers and fruits, though still beau
+if,l and attractive on account OF thelr
odor and flavor. have lost the transcend
ino superiority in tints Tor when they
we're once noted, and must consent to be
come only common contributors TO an
econ of color, where every wave is a
Translucent marvel According to M
Cbeyrerl, the resources of the dyer now
cover IS 600 chromatic shades But alter
counting IA 900 shades it would have
been lust as well had this author stopped
calculating 4and pronounced the remainder
infinite in number.
Tbis sudden advance in the art of dye,
inc has been due to the general cause that
has contributed SO mEch to ciVlIlzation
during the last hundred years IL mas
been due to the discoveries in chemistry
Through all the many centuries OF history
the world knew only OF natural dyes ana
down to the beginning OF the present cen
turv, or rather till past the middle OF TINS
century. il still busted itself with the dis
covery of new natural agents IL nau
found indiro, cochineal logwood, madder.
ouercitron bark, sumach, Brazil wood,
and other vegetable or wood dyes, and 1t
learned by various means to be more or
less successful by the use of chemicals in
a process technically known as mordant.
ing. in making permanent the colors pro
dnced by these agents But it had not
learned to distill color from the elements
It could reach only the boundaries of an
empire that was not yet quite won.
Finally, the chemist Unverdarben discov'
cred aniline a purely chemical agent, tho
distillation from coal tar This discovery
opened the way for an industrial revola-
ton, which is perhaps even yet only in
the infancy of its movement. This hap
, pened in 1926. But the utility Of the dis
covery was not known until many years
later 1t was not until the year 1858 that
the tint known as Perkins purple, pro
duet of anilne, followed soon afterward
by aniline red or Magenta became known
Then the revolution was fairly inaugura
ted, and since this latter date the advance
has been rapid All that is most brilliant
( in color is credited to this new chemical
J agent.
But the body of the art remains un
changed. What are technically known as
: the wood dyes have more substance and
3 permanency than the airline dyes, indigo
= still forms the basis for blue. The scarlet
Y on the coats of the British soldiery, war
ranted not to run, is mainly produced
from cochincal; madder is the basis for
crimson red and Turkey red, and yellow is
| produced by fustic, quercitron bark, or its
3 concentrated extract called favine, and
from Aviguon or Persian berries. The
! mordants remain also unchanged. Chief
among them is the oxide of tin, called tin
4 spirits by the trade This fixes the scarlet
/ colors founded upon cochineal; but alum
, is used as a mOrdant for crimson red, ana
+, cherry red is produced with tin NOR
dant from anmoniacal cochineal Turkey
red is produced from madder ON an allilni-
, nous basis. Thus ran the formula in the
) ola arC OF ayelI8' ana tI'iS II runs slHl'
2 Anime IS rather reinforcement tAan an
: independent agent RUSSIAN Dlue' now
r ever Is purely a cAeulcal )Fouuct' ana lc'
discovery aAted@teu the discovery Oh am
hhe colors-
Dut aiIef lGe PRODUCTION OF lle Simple
: OF primary coloIS comes tle production o!
/ the minnie variety OF UNITS that so to
q MAKE up the total used IN the lhuustrlai
arts IN tniS WORK the process of the
oyer olIerS IfoEl Ihe process On the painter
raUner III tiio means OF execution than III
i the pf'hclp!es on Whlch he works Does
e J+ I1le oyer WISH 10 produce green fabrlcl
ne may iliA lnulBO NplueI WIN iustlc OF
:, q0ercltfoh PARK (yehoWl handling at the
salne tlnle tIe hloraalts III accordance
WY WIN tne .eaTHll'si9 oI tI4e pest experience
4 anu nl vac W result "ill De tme desired color
: DoeS ue want orange! Inc ayes that pro
q uuce !elio" alg reu VIII give nm an
:. o1ahSe noer' ana oy Ile same process OF
= colloiilaIloh ne may nave purple, violet
< ,IauHe' III d gray, ufaD, Diack' OF any one OF
j M SheVreul Io'oOo cnromatlc tints. But
= nc Snould oe man with trained eye
anu person VINO Is co'or bHnd vii
! hardly mako dyer,
, pyelng Is one OF our most important in
dustrles, employing in New York alone
aiI1iiy nI,y So 80 Hi'n' at wages aFefaSih ihe
go, HDGuv 90 "eeN' II UoeS not oeions
} strictly 10 Ine process OF manufacture
a a9 a Cot"Hi9Illy ~ supposed put II Is sePar
! ai ave HF': IL may oe easily seen too thai
.nero Is no 0lher industrial art where
enoo IN +lo -llo r,rJt 70 ~ q uarheu uIlier