The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1892-08-06
LAeg MAKING REVIVED
Undor the Patro"ayc Of Queen Mnrgh,rita
of Itn!y

LACE MAKING REVIVED
Undor the Patro"agc 0f Quacn Mnrgh 1rita
Of Italy.
In the shaiqow lagoon between Venice
and Torcello * ,hc small island OF Bu.
rano; an island that = few years ago
was the abode of the most squalid mis-
cry, owing to the decay of It's fisheries;
an island that was spoken of in old
Venetian documents four hundred years
ago as the poorest among the republics
possessions, although It had given its
name to beautiful lace, point de Bu-
rano Whosoever vista the island to-
day will see that it no longer presents
such q miserable aspect; that work is
going on there, especially among the
women and girls, and that the island
can no longer be pronounced desojste
and INDECENT The revival of Buranos
prosperity is due to the lace manufac.
tory opened fifteen years ago by Signor
Fambri, deputy for Venice to the Italian
parliament, which owes its success to
the fact that the queen of Italy fell in
with his scheme, supporting it with
money and patronage and setting the
example to her country women of wear
ing once more the laces the produce of
Italian workers.
The old industry had fallen into de-
cay, and when Signor Fambri desired
TO see whether the women of Burano
could revive it he failed at first to hear
of any woman who knew the art.
Cencia Scarpaiola was mentioned to
him. but he was told also that she was
half blind and seventy years old. He
hunted her up, finding a neat, bright
old woman, at first rather confused at
the honor of his visit, but quite clear
headed. She said she would be glad to
work, though her eyes soon tired, and
would teach girls as much as she knew,
Tor she had never been one of the best
workers.
Fambri started a subscription. When
materials were to be purchased Fambri
addressed himself to the Countess Mar
cello and the Princess Chigi- -Giovanelli.
BY their aid the school was started with
six scholars. 1t has now more than
three hundred, and from small room
on the ground floor has migrated to
large one on the first. Queen Margharita,
then Princess of Piedmont, appealed to
by Countess Marcello to aid the work,
accepted the honorary presidency OF
the institution, gave large subscrip-
tion, and left at the school the magnifi-
cent specimen of lace work that adorned
the pontifcal mantle of his Holiness
Clement Kill 1t had been made by
the nuns of $. Zaccaria in 1862, and is
now the property of the royal house of
Italy.
From photographs and from study of
the original the school of Burano un-
| dertoolt to reproduce it, and, working
nine months and thirteen Gays, seven
| teen pupils of the school, had the dis
tinction of reproducing exactly three
meters of it. So closely was it initiated
that it could not be distinguished from
the antique work. For that piece OF
work the school received gold medal
at the Paris exhibition of 1873 The
lace was bought by the Duchess of
Hamilton for five hundred dollars the
meter. Every bit of the lace is made by
hand and formed of careful and accur-
ately placed stitches, put in one after
the other by different movements of the
hand. The bobbin lace making becomes
mechanical in movement after a time,
the needle point never can.
The island of Burano has changed its
character since the establishment of the
lace school. Once miserable and melan-
choly, it is now full of life, animation
and work. Morality and decency are
on the increase. The director in o
pamphlet issued recently, inveighs much
against the women for losing so much
of their time in religious observances, a
custom that is great annoyance to en-
ployers of labor in Catholic Italy, where
every day of the year is a saints day OF
some kind. The patrons of the school
have had the satisfaction of seeing the
lost art of Venetian point resuscitated
to such perfection that since the foun-
dation of the school at Burano twelve
premiums have been received at various
exhibitions Y. Sun.