The Somerset reporter. [volume] (Skowhegan, Me.) 1868-1909, 1893-02-23
MAKING LACE PAPER,
MINNEAPOLIS HAS THE ONLY FAC
T0RY OF The KIND HERE


Size Nork For Women.
Minneapolis can claim monopoly in
nj least one industry. There i, nom like
II in the country Germany is the near
est competitor The lace lsipor factory
here is the only one IN the country. How
the industry cane To br established
here and the development of certain
possibilities IN regard L. II maxi quite
an original story
\ certain business uau tolerably we'll
known in Minneapolis Once upon a time
loaned some money and material Ia a
Russian immigrant who Wa trying to
start greenhouse IN ST. Paul. The flo
rist was very grateful for the help. hut at
the end Of six months had not repaid any
of the loan The business man hunted
him up and inquired wherefore this neg
hgcnce The florist explained his Difficult
ties al some length. and surrowfullN
aycrred that in addition II other bur
dens he had to support his brother
WHY doesn't your brother 20 10
work
Pardon, sir He Is honest and indus
trious. but can find no work at his tradc.
What trade can that be.
He Is a lace paper maker and therc
are are no factorie. Of that sort here. and
he has not much chance at other trades
where he has no skill.
An interview with the paper maker re-
vealed some interesting facts, and after
some investigation several Minneapolis
capitalists concluded To start a factory
to evolve the dainty contections that
modern ingenuity says may he made
from paper The industry Is still So new
that its present condition may he re
gardcd as only an earnest OF the future
The fad for fancy lamp shades makes
n special department which was not at
first contemplated. Grape paper devel-
ops in all the soft, dainty sheen of silk.
Women are specially good at this branch
of the industry, "a 1t requires patience
and that peculiar "knacka which no man
ever had. and the woman who possesses
it is lucber than if She had beauty
though she never thinks SO herself
Now. this business of making lamp
shades and flower pots and paper flowers
and dolls is light, clean work and pays
well if woman has the bent for that
kind of work.
The prettiest lamp shades ever saw
were being made at the factory. The
tobacco leaf forms the latest model
Two contrasting shades Of Grape paper
form the leaf, 1t is cut in the proper
shape, and a delicate wire forms the mid
rib of the leaf and makes the shade sub
stantial enough to stand wear. Four
long leaves and four shorter ones droop
from common center and make thu
daNtiest shade imaginable. | saw "A tiny
one of this same pattern for an mean
descent light The red leaves We're lined
with pale yellow, and how the electric
light did glow through the blended col
ors! A skillful workwoman can only
construct four or five of these shades Il
day. Their price consequently doesn't
exactly bring them within the reach of
all, but they promise to largely take the
place of silk and illusion. The operative
earns from So to $40 week in the shade
department
Lace paper for lining the edges Of
boxes really forms the important part
of this industry Look at IA bit Of this
dainty paper and see how faithfully it
reproduces every thread of the lace from
which it is copied. When people are
told that these delicate patterns ARE
stamped from engraved metal plates,
they are apt to look inerednlous sill
that is the process.
For many years Germany has con
trolled this industry. The consul at
Berlin i'll his last annual report states
that 1000 600 pounds of lace paper are
exported annually to the United States
One fine day good fortune befell the
industry. A man came in and asked for
employment. He was designer and
cngraver of plates from Germany. He
declined to give any information as to
how he knew the factory was in Mime
apolis or why he came He simply said
they could try his work, and if they were
satisfied he would stay. He has re-
manned ever since. ! saw him several
times and didn't wonder that there was
some hesitancy about engaging him. He
weighs about 1926 pounds. The face is
intelligent and refined, but the bushy
beard and long hair, combined with the
muscular frame, give the man the APP
pearance of one used to vigorous manual
labor. Appearances are deceptive in this
case, for he is an artist as well as an en-
graver, and knows every detail of the
business.
He first sketches the design on paper,
then takes a block Of lead composition,
similar to that used for newspaper cuts,
and draws the exact pattern with a sharp
steel point. Then, with finely graded
chisels, he hammers out every little de
tail so exact that the tiniest thread of the
finest lace pattern is visible.
To see the workman hammering ont
an intricate pattern one would think it
an endless task 1t is not, however,
nearly so tedious as it looks. This en-
grayer will make plate 20 inches long
by > inches wide in four days All the
edges of the pattern have to be made in
sharp relief instead of being cut into the
plate, as in ordinary engraving This
has to be done go that the sharp edges
will perforate the paper when the cylin
der passes over the plate.
Lace paper has ITS styles just the same
as the real article. The young lady who
gets her daily box of bonbons from the
confectioner wants the lace edged holder
to be in the latest mode She can also
select torchon, valenciennes, spanish.
p1lipnrp breton or any other Stylp in