Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1893-05-26


pie things for ordinary use, which is
the crown of civilized arts and sciences,
says the Boston Traveller.
In South America and i'll Portugal,
where time may be had ut wholesale,
toothpickS with one end pointed and
the other wide and fiat, are made by
hand out of the firm white orange
wood How Ing they have been made
no one knows, probably toothpickS
like fingers, We're made before forks.
Like the quill pen, the quill toothpicl1
has had its day, which is not yet quite
closed.
Even the pin has been resorted to
with mounrful injury to enamel, but
the general fayorite is the wooden
tothpick. Explorers say that the shin
ing worries of the untransplanted
African are carefully polished with
Il bit of sharpened wood
But America is too hustling land
to allow any man the privilege of man
many years the orange wood picks
were imported and trey still are to
some extent. The imported supply is
reinforced by tiny, pin-shaped, Japan
csc picks OF some tough why fibre,
packed in gay colored straw boxes
In course of time the enterprsing
Yankee, in the person of Mr.. For
ster of Maine, while in South America,
was impressed with the possibilities of
establishing this industry in the United
States. After spending tens of thous-
ands of dollars in experimenting Oh
machines for the manufacture of the
small Instruments Of comfort, he at
length patented one in 1863, and set
up the first factory in the United States
at Dixfield, Me.
There are now factories in Michigan,
Pennsylvania and New York, and Il
new one is just ching established at
Deering, near Portland, Me.
The early toothpicks were sold for
% cents Il package. Now those manu-
featured in Maine can be delivered in
ST. Louis for 1 cent and Z mills Il
package. TO be sure, the doublepoint-
ed, round pick will Still be 10 cents
Il package, even with improved mach
inery instead Of its some what recent
price %
IniS reminds one of the evolution of
the .meotic toothpick, which started
with the Well-knoWn shape Oh the same
Widt from end to end, but on one side
view looking like /; very much elongat-
ed diamond.
This is still made i'll birch and in
poplar The poplar is Il soft wood,
but the birch is Il hard, fine grained
wood, the best adapted for this use Of
any American wood of this latitude
Maple is sometimes used as Il substitute
but betrays itself by the different col
ors that will shoW in Il boXful, while
the birch are uniform i'll tint.
Next is the round pick, tapering to
Il point at each end. New machinery,
OH the priciple of the lathe has been
invented by the Boston company for
making these, and Il patent has been
applied for.
Another kind is fiat, wide at one end
and tapering to Il point at the other.
This shape is sometimes scented and
called the aromatic" pick. Joseph G.
Bridgman, the manager of the new
one that was scented five years ago,
and whose sweet taste and fragrant
odor were still SO strong as to conjure
visions of spicy Indian isles into the
prosaic business hours.
There yet remains an evenly round
pick whitfield down concavely to make
fiat, wide ends.
This does not end the evolution, how
ever. AS science has gone in for the
microscope since the triumphs of the
telescope, so advertising has forsaken
the fronts of mountains and palisades
for the tiny side of the toOthpick.
This new company has also applied
for patent on q machine which will
cut 10000 picks q minute and brand
an inscription on the side of each. The
branding is doneby electricity to avoid
the use of ink, which might prove
objectional in the mouth. This is the
latest triumph of science for the tiny
fair will be exhorted in a small way
to Drink Blanks Root Beer at the
close of his dinner
Mr.. Bridgeman says that there is a
growing demand for the better quail
ties, not only here but also in England
and northern Europe, where they are
ebginning to import from this country
Quiluls have been the English favori- |
tes, and southern Europe still uses the |
handmade pick from Portugal
The new factory at Deering, Me-,
which is scarcely yet upder way is |
100X50 feet, and has 100 rse-power |
engine. It will employ from fifty to |
sixty hands.
The birch logs brought here are first |
sawed across, making sections the
length of a toothpick. Then these are
pared around and round under water,
turning off long continuous strip OF
veneer the thickness of a pick. This
is fed to the cutting and coranding
machine, which turns out the complete
article. An especially good piece Of
wood is put aside for the finer kinds
of picks.
The output Of one factory last year
was 9,5O0,0OO,OO0 picks, the result of
working 1000 cords of wood. The
new factory will use from to 8 or 10
cords of wood day, making from 112
to 200 cases a day, of which about II
cases will be extra good quality. This
means from 100000 to 4O,O0O,OOO
picks q day.