The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1896-11-27
DYEl.o AAD DID-oi'UFFS.
The Mysterious Origin of a
Popular Art.
How 1t Was Transm tied from tho Hin.
docs to the Jews and from tho Lat
ter to the Rest of the World
Nineteenth Century Progress.


Results are sometimes so familiar In the
arts that we lose sight of the process, OBJ
serves the New York Sun. The same might
be said, Also of natural phenomena, with
the additional reflection that we would
often fail to understand the process BY
which results are produced were we to
study ever so inquiringly. Naturalists have
not yet learned TO give any satisfactory ex-
PLANTATION of the laws that paint the atmo-
sphere sky blue
Very little is popularity known Of the art
Of dyeing In truth it is an art that is con.
tinually becoming more and more special.
lied, the women of to-day who can rival the
butterfly in the delIcacy and splendor OF
their adornment not knowing nearly so
much CT the art of mixing indigo cochineal,
madden, logwood and the other natural dyes
rs their grandmothcr3 know. This decad.
ence of knowledge is natural The good
housewife 40 lon~cr turns the spinning
wheel nor drives IL; Shuttle, and she has
no occasion to know how L transform white
wool into the coiors CT hc rainbow.
But the art OF dycllg has always been
mystery, and the fact that it is less q
mystery now than it vas IN former ages is
due to the fact that &c cclcntific analyst is
becoming an .mpor, IL person, from whom
it is almost Impossible to withhold the Sc
cret of compounds. 1t is one of the Oldest
of arts. The art of constructing fabrics to
be dyed was necessarily its predecessor;
but the most ancient Of literature whether
sacred or secular, gives abundant testimony
that it must have been practlced soon after
the dawn of civilization. The Hindoos were
skillful in the art, according to the standard
of skill recognized in the earlier years of
the historic PERIOD and the Jews, who
probably learned the mystery from the
Hindoos, could dye a coat Of many colors.
But among the Western and Western ORR.
entail nations the Jews were for long
period the only people in possession of the
secret. They practiced the art exclusively
through the earlier and declining years Of
the Byzantine empire, and from the time Of
Pliny to the thirteenth century there is no
record OF dyers who were not Jews The
peculiar people seemed to be most peculiar
during this long period in the fact that they
had nearly all taken TO the art of coloring
fabrics, and made it their exclusive calling.
n traveller who ventured to Jerusalem in
the year 116O found only two hundred Jews
in the ancient capital of Judea, and they
WIZ GA I'll ooSCI LII VI clllS WOOL.
But this is the age Of color; and in nothing
else during the last thirty years has science
made such fcrclble impression on the
usages OF domestic life as it has made
through its contributions to the resources Of
the dyer. Go through the dry goods district
and observe the windows. Look into the
carpet Warc-room5, the furniture ware
rooms, or even into the gentlemen's fur
b1n ctr
seems to have been caught and reproduced
in fresh hues. The very lowers and fruits.
though still beautiful ANA attractive on ac-
count of their odor and flavor, have lost the
transcending superiority in tints for which
they were once noted, and must consent tn
become only common contributors to an
ocean of color, where every wave ia
translucent marvel According to NJ
Chevreul, the resources OF the DYER now
cover $4,000 chrom2tic shades. But after
counting 1859 shades it would have been
Just as well had this author stopped caIcu
latlng and pronounced the remainder inf,r.
tie in number
Inns sudden advance III the art of dyeiup
mas oeen due to the general cause that has
contributed so much to civilization during
INC last hundred years. 1t has been due K,
tne discoveries IN chemistry. Through all.
inc many centuries of history the worbl
hcginn;,,9 o ~ na'unel uyeS' ana down to tie
I'LL past the middle of this century it. xt;Il
Dusled itself with the discovery of new
natural agents. 1t had found indigo ,och.
meal, logwood, maddler, quercitron bark
sumach, Brazil wood, and other vegetable
or wood dives. and il learned nv, o. o.aoie
means to be moro or less successful, ~, th,
use of chemicals in q nrocose toll ~ ,no
known as mordanting in n,aI,;nrr
manent the colors n1o6,,ood h-s per
agents. But it had not learned r. s s;s:;1
color from the clements. It conf, . uao%,
only the boundaries of an cn,nire reach
not vet quite won =, Nv, ~ 0naC was
Unverdarben disoovo.>; o., :, q ciienllsb
chemical agent. IL, 90 purely
tar. This dlsco...., .- ~ iio1. coal
industrial rcvo ~ war lor an
even vet only N 49,. perhaps
ment. This hano .., Us 5 move
utility of the disco. D. but the
many years later ,r-.. 'tI unoi
1858 that the tint Know 'n., ' ., year
product of arI..nc. faro-. nao, pu.pie'
ward by aniiir1o red OF \ .,,,. ~ h aa.er
known Then the l4cy-7 ,ti., $500, GoGs'no
auSurdCeC, and since - .-.eo. l..'..l
L:u:I ~" oNon T>ip.d al. that is most
chen,;co, $3.50 'i IS crcolted to this new
IT. .,
h tno noa! OF the art remains I'm
the $50 !" h~. are techn,c. Known as