Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1896-08-27
Saint Maru's Beacon
HIGH PRICED MteHs.
Art In Meal Work as Applied Now .
Boiiders Hardware.

Art In Meal Work as Applied NoW 20
BniiderS Hardware.
twenty-five dollaws for the knob
and plate OF a 'front.' door may seem
to be bit Of extravaganza, but In
these days of high art in furnishing
q good deal more than that can be
spent for hand chased and gold plat
ed bronze knobs from special de-
signs. There are hundreds Of pat
terms of high priced door fittings,
and it Is very easy 10 select knobs,
hinges, lifts, escutcheons and other
fittings Of the doors and windows of
a single story to cost from $3.50 to
$500. Some of the patterns are 30
costly that dealers do not pretend 10
keep the articles in stock, and manu-
facturers require time for filing
some orders for articles sold by sam
Piles or Photographic reproductions
of patterns. II the articles are to be
made from the special designs of an
architect for particular purpose,
the cost can easily extend to thou
sands of dollars.
The development of art in metal
work, as applied to the regular trade
Of builders hardware, has been
gradual. Some of the old time work
ers in iron and brass produced pa
tient1y and laboriously large and
deliberately designed hinges, knock
ers, locks and latches that were ar
tistio and are valued today by collect
ors of antiques. The present work
ers can cast and finish In q few
hours many deliberately designed
knobs, plates and hinges, and artists
are employed to design dainty grace
full and appropriate patterns or to
copy and apply the best and most
practicable designs that art has pro-
duoed so that the ornamentation of
n knob and plate may be artistic and
refined.
The demand for knobs and plates
has run through plain finished brass
and wrought iron to brass and
bronze, with varied finishing. Ok
idized copper finish seems to. be
preferred now for articles OF modefI
ate cost, but silver plated brass0nd
bronze. gold plated bronze and bronze
with oxidized silver finish or verd
antique finish are used in tbs most
costly houses. The demand for csst
iron, wrought iron and steel, with
dull black finish, has Increased to
some extent, but they are tAe only
methods that can be used sppxopri.
ately in some instances. nEigns
that are in harmony with che COLO
NAL style of architecture have been
produced, and they are severely
plain when alongside some of the
designs from the French school.
Polishing and hand chasing make
tho cost of hardware mount up, but
the niceties of casting have been de-
veloped SO much in recent years
that some plates and other articles
need only to be cleaned with sand
and touched In spots with files and
emery paper. The process used In
finishing some of the metal is,
through the fumes of acids, danger.
Gus for tho workmen, but in the
foundries and machine shops the
smiths and machinists may work fol
many years without loss of health.
In one foundry in Connecticut are
smiths who are robust and skillful
at 60 years of age, and in the ma.
chine shops adjoining are many old
workmen, some of whom have made
such valuable improvements on ma
chimes for making locks that the at
taohments or devices have not been
patented owing to tho fear of having
them stolen or copied. The company
and the faithful old workmen keep
the secrets.-New York Times.