The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-05-19
HE BUYS THE FRAMES.
COIOred Barber Strikes n business
That Pays Him Wei.
From the Chicago Tribune.

From the Chicago Tribune
'"The wire frames in two-thirds of the
floral designs that are placed on graves in
the Chicago cemeteries have been used on
graves before, and some of them ten times
before
This statment was made to a reporter
for the Tribune yesterday by a wholesale
manufacturer of these frames. He then
gave the following account of a singular
industry that has sprung up in this city:
some years ago there was a cOlored bar
Der who had a shop al ROsehill. Business
was dull and he began to look for a new
job. In his ramble through the cemetery
ne struck with the number of floral offer
1ngS placed on the graves, and also with
the faot that after they were withered
they We're gathered UP by the workmen
and thrown into pile as useless rubbish.
1t occurred to him that the wire frames
of these designs were nearly as good as
ever and ought to be worth a good deal
of money. He inquired of some one en-
ployed about the place on what terms he
could get possession of this rubbish. and it
was not long before he had made a con-
tract to take 1t all the year round at So
a WagOnlOad. The barber then gave up his
barbershop and rented a. place on Division
street, where he established a depot for
the storing, renovation, and sale of these
goods In some cases the moss is retained
in the frames and sold with them But it
is always necessary to paint the wire
whether Vt has been painted before or not.
After being reVampCd they are haWked
around and sold to the small florist estab-
Eshments for probably one-fourth as much
as new frames would cost
The BARRIERS new trade is not now con-
fined to Rosehill but takes in all the large
cemeteries in the city, the rates being diff
ferent at different cemeteries One of them
charges five cents for each design, large or
small. When you understand that these
wire frames cost all the way from a few
cents up to SIS you win easily see that this
may be profitable business. In fact it is
profitable and the barber is getting rich.
Up to the present time, so l am informed
he has a monopoly of the business. Mean
while his business is death to mine. l sup
pose if Il were not for this barber and the
cemetery employees who stand in with him
my business and the business of the other
manufacturers of these goods would be
three times as large as it Is. But, you see,
frames that l made a year ago have been
in use on first enc grave and then another
ever since / made them.
Now for the objections to this fellows
business. OF course. they are rhajnly SEN
timental. but they are not all So Who
would like to place floral design on the
grave of his wife the frame OF which had
made the tour of the cemetery and had
been on dozen graves of all sorts of peo-
pie? But, still worse. who would like to
have floral designs like these displayed at
his daughter wedding! Yet, this is like
lv to happen, too, as some of these pieces,
like stars, or, crowns, or doves, are as APP
propriate on enc occasion as another. But
This is not the worst. These frames with
the moss in them may, for all know, car
~ disease They are kept moist and set
near the corpse during the funeral. They
are placed on the coffin and finally laid on
w Where the person died of scarlet fever
dinhtheria or any other sort OF contag
ieus disease it seems TO me possible the
Germs Of disease may be carried in these
moss-flled frames.
In view of all these facts my opinion Is
the trade ought to be broken up. nave no
idea who the people are at the cemeteries
who are responsible for Ii. But 1t is easy
to point out who could stop IT,