Fairhaven herald. [volume] (Fairhaven, Wash.) 1890-????, 1892-05-26
OLD COMBS.
The Proprietor of St. Louis 4danufac'
tory the Census Men Didn't Find.


The Proprietor of st. Louis idanufsc-
tory the Census Men Didn't Find.
There exists in St. Louis at least one
establishment which was overlooked by
Census Superintendent Porter in his
enumeration of the city's manufactures
It is the comb factory of Mr.. Anton Engel-
kraut This factory has been IN existence
nearly forty years. It's present output is
about two dozen combs a week, and Mr.
Engelkraut is not only its sole proprietor,
Int the only operator. He is one of the
curious characters of St. Louis He is
known to every barber in the city, though
none of them know his name. Even Mr..
Engelkraut had to think twice when asked
by the reporter what his name was. He is
known as 'Old Combs" and is so called by
his wife and children as well as by all of
his acquaintance,
Engelkraut devotes himself principally
to the manufacture of BARRIERS combs.
The process of making combs by hand is
extremely tedious, and would exhaust
the patience of any one but steady
German like Mr.. Engelkraut. To begin
with. he buys the horns of cattle at
the different boneyards of st. Louis, pay
ing four cents pound for them. Then he
boils them for twentyfour hours, after
which he fattens them out Next the
pieces are sorted for only about one-third
are of good enough quality to make into
combs. The good pieces are then sawed
by hand into pieces from which combs can
be cut and the size of the combs is marked
out. Then filing commences, and it lasts
until each comb is worked into shape.
The teeth are next made by means Of
very fine saws and files. This is difficult
operation and occupies much time Ole
Combs is so expert at it, however, that hi
never makes a miscut, and always makes
every tooth as regular as if cut by machln
cry. After this the combs are rubbed will
sandpaper, and then they are polished by
means of bath brick and the bare palms
This constitutes the process of combmak
ing by hand, simple of description, but a
difficult and ingenious a trade as was eve
undertaken, and one which has been al
most entirely obliterated by machinery.
When the horns are prepared and saves
into convenient pieces Engelkraut ca
make a dozen combs day; but as muc
time is consumed in preparing the mater
al, two dozen combs a week are all that b
can make, or three dozen on a rush. Thes
: he sells at twenty cents and twenty-hv
cents each at retail, or $l.25 dozen q
wholesale. The earnings of the factor
may thus be figured at about four dollars
week. Every Monday Old Combs start
, out as a salesman
The old man has customers at all OF III
0 big establishments, and his Monday trip e.
t tends from Grand avenue to Carondele
IT, after visiting all Of his barber custom
1 ers, with his cigar box Of handmade coml
under his arm, he has dozen left, he go'
q to one of the BARRIERS supply houses al
sells them.
s Engelkraut came to St. Louis from &c
g many in 1851. He was then twentyfo'
b years of age. He learned the combmakiI
,, trade in Germany, and when he first can
y here he used to make good money at
Until about 1860 he used to get fro
seventy-fve cents to one dollar for ea
BARRIERS comb, and from $3.50 to two d.
: lars for each family comb. But since tn
II rubber and celluloid combs have becor
i more and more common, until now
le dozen large family combs can be had
10 the price of one of Engelkraut's chol
Is ones. st. Louis Globe Democrat