Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1891-11-26
ABOUT MY LADY'S FURS.
wEFNCE THEY COME AND HOW
THEY ARE DRESSED.
I'll. Ar;..ocrn,ic seal Mast Undergo
-,ry Careful Prorc>'-Ihe EAST
Nies with tn West IN
supplying Thehi.

in the great fur mat At the chlet
of them. ri nj Novgorod, not so long
400 ore darlnm trader colnered the
market on Persian lamb buying the
whole pro luct at something like fifteen
cents the skin. Within year astrak
han was the rage. and the speculator
sold out at about 700 per cent profit.
The fur takes it name from the Prov
ince Of A,trazhan. in which huge
locks Of curly sheep are kept Wholly
for the So e OF their skins. Those OF
them that the furrier loves die young
in fifteen minutes of birth. Their
skins come in huge bales to the weird
eastern city that is tie largest entire
pot on earth for such un-avnry mer-
rhandise.
For there You get, too, gable, lynx.
otter, the rare blue ana silver fo:;.
Siberian wo,f not 10 mention dog and
goat skins. for rugs. Both the last
two animals are bred extensively
throughout Mantchooria. Indeed, dog
ranching is leading industry. a
Mantchoo bellies dowry is so many dogs
and bales of their skins.
Next to this source of supply comes
the Hudson Bay Company, says the
\. Y. Recorder. Afterward the agen-
cies scattered over the western and
northern United States. Though fur
bearing animals are plenty enough in
the south, their hair is not close and
fine enough to give the skins CONNER
cial value. American furs come chiefly
from the bear, otter lynx, mink,
beaver, skunk and muskrat. Opossum
and coon skins are likewise native.
but hardly worth mention among lead
ing sorts.
If America furnishes the raw ma
terial you must go to London for the
trimmings. The fresh skins. packed
in salt, all go there for finishing.
Whether owing TO trade secrets jeal-
ously guarded or some peculiar quail
ity of Thames water no man can say,
but the fact remains that sealskin
London dyed is unapproachable for
softness gloss good color and wear
ing quality.
TO secure all these is work of
time and patience. The short vel
vety pile is over grown sparsely with
long gray white hairs They are
plucked out one by one with tweezers.
Then the prepared skin is stretched.
fur side up. on n cloth board and dye
applied with u brush evenly over its
surface. Great care is necessary to
keep the coloring matter from reach
ing the skin-it would rot and ruin it.
fVhrae, &c 80 -, l-
rich tone known as seal brown, ="
! which is as unlike as possible to the
natural lightish brown gray. After
the last coat is dry the skin passes to
an especially skilled worker. who
looks it all over; if there are bad
spots, he cuts them out and deity
sets in a good bit in place of them,
and finally decides what manner of
garment will best come out of it; also
from what sections shall be cut par
ticular parts. The matching fur. as
it is called. is nice operation. In
all animals there is wide difference
| both OF growth, thickness and color
between the middle part which covers
. the backbone. and the edges. Hence
the wrong side of any fur garment
looks pretty much like war map, or
the plot of a new suburban town.
The right must match to hair, and
only thus can that result be brought
about.
Nearly all sorts OF skins 60 through
the same process. Presumably they
come into the dressers' hands dry and
hard. The first thing is to soak them
in warmish water till they are as soft
as the day they left their original &C.
| cupants. Then they are carefully
ileshed with a blunt knife. the edges
mined. and put by dozens into big
drum that steam keeps revolving at a
lively rate. Sawdust is packed thickly
over and through them as they go in.
For common furs oak or pine will do.
Fine ones get sawdust from cedar,
mahogany, rosewood, walnut. or box
! wood. The last is so high priced that
| it is reserved for sable and erminc,
For ten hours or more the wheels
so mcrrily round. skins and sawdust
churning about inside. Next as they
come out each pelt is rubbed literally
on the hair side with rancid butter
the stronger the better. After that it
is pulled many times diagonally over
u blunt knife fixed above the work.
mans head. This is to secure pliancy
and an even grain. The final curing
process is packing them in other re-
volving drums with -four instead of
sawdust for another ten hour dance.
Here. too. sable and ermine assert
their aristocratic supremacy They
are given bath of corn starch.
trmine edged the knights robe.
oordered the kings mantle and the
! queens robes OF state. For such pur-
poses it was spotted with small black
tails skillfully sewn in. Their num-
Der. as we'll as the width of band nj.
lowable, was strictly a matter for court
regulation.
The wherefore of this flour bath il
to remove superfuous grease. The
finished skins are shaken or beaten
Tree OF 1t and go on to those who cut
| and sew them.
Theirs should be well-paid occu.