Herald and news. [volume] (West Randolph, Vt.) 1878-1943, 1891-05-14
THE WARP AND wooF.
Many Curious Things That an Observing
boy OF Girl Would Find Interesting.

Many Curious Things That an Observing
Boy OF Girl Would Find Interesting.
In one of the halls of the National
Museum at Washington is an exhibit
which shows the process of weaving
from the bunch of rushes, reeds. or of
raw cotton or silk to the beautifully
colored and finely-woven goods that we
know; from the silk thread Just from
the cocoon to the piece of dress-silk that
is a picture in the blending of its colors.
We can see here step by step the MAX
ing of baskets, hats, trays and mat
tings, both by Indian and Mexican
from the rough reed or grass to that de-
light of every little girl, the perfectly
finished basket, so fine and dainty that
it seems to be made by the fairies The
mattings rival the silks in the fineness
and smoothness of texture The OBJ
serving girl or boy will be able to de-
tect the state of civilization, of intelli-
gence, that any tribe or people have
reached by the specimens of their work
found here.
There are bags woven in colored de-
signs by some of the Arizona Indians
that are marvellous when we remember
the work is all done by hand, from the
picking OF the grasses to the finished
bag, and that the tools are of the rudest
kind and that the dyes used were used
without any knowledge of chemistry
1t is interesting to trace the resem-
blances between the implements of war
of some of our Indian tribes and the
war implements of the Japanese.
There are specimens here of the shields
carried by warriors that are woven of
reeds; they are symmetrical. and ex-
ceedingly strong, and meet the re-
quirements of their use; they offer re-
sistance to the weapons turned against
them, but would have no power against
the weapons of modern warfare of civ
ilized peoples.
1t is sudden jump from the rude inn
plements of warfare to the making of
beautiful laces by the peasant women
of Europe, and yet we are still in the
realm of textiles. We can see the pat
tern on the piece of black paper laid
over several pieces of cotton cloth
traced out by the first threads. the
threads so fine that they seem like
spiders web. We can trace every step
in the making of that beautiful rose,
which buds and leaves so perfect that 1t
seems almost like skeletonized flower.
1t is finished TO applique on piece of
net on its way to form a center of
lady's bonnet or baby's cap. Laees
from France, Italy, Belgium, are here
borders for handlxerchiefs, lace for
f. all
all showing the wonderful skill and
patience of these people who have min
istered all unconsciously to the beauty
of life. 1t seems pity that the art of
lacemalxing has died in many countries
This is due to many causes Handmade
lace could be owned only by the wealthy;
age added to its value, and old lace was
worth more than new. The first cost
was so great-though lacemakers have
always received the lowest prices for
their labor-that lace never was
profitable investment 1t was perish
able and even subjected to the changes
Of fashion. so that it did not have per
manent or gradually advancing change
of value: machinery was invented that
could produce an almost perfect imita-
ton of the real lace, and at last ma
chinery made such beautiful lace that
its products were sold under their own
name, and had standard value. All
these canses have been slowly making
the hand-lace industry an industry of
the past. At different times govern
ments and individuals have endeavored
10 make certain kinds of lace fashion
able in order to revive the industry and
help the makers in certain districts, but
no permanent success has ever followed
these efforts, because they were forced
and unnatural.
The colorings of the textiles of the
most primitive people shows fine
sense of color, and when we compare
the later bold contrasts of color, the
crudeness in combinations, we realize
that when a people turn away from
nature to art for instruction, and see
color and form only through the eyes OF
others. they lose all true conception OF
color.
When we pass from case to case in
this alcove, and see what the uncivilized
neople knew how TO make to meet, not
only the needs of their lives, but to
crafty a sense of beauty, new respect
comes for the knowledge, the art. the
industry of the people who lived here
before we did, and from whom we have
taken all that meant freedom, and TO
whom we make no return.
Nature Was their storehouse OF raw
materials. and few crude tools, made
Inv themselves. their machinery; and yet
The result Of their work is beyond our
skill of eve and hand without years OF
training Union.
AN UNLEARNED LESSON.