Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1897-05-01
0. 7. MARSH: WOODSTOCK
Elder DOW, IS COSTLY.
but LOCO Pounds II Year Used. and the
Cheapest Costs SO IL Pound.

EIOCH DOWN 10 W. ".
but 1000 Pounds IL Year Used. and the
Cheapest Costs $40 IL Pound.
"There are only about 1000
pounds of elder down l:red in this
country in Il year, said il veteran
down importer of this city when
asked about the quality of cider
down used III quilt, .old for SIS "a
S6. There arc three grades, and
the range in price is so, sig and
SIS pound.
1.-The down Is imported chiefly
from Greenland and Iceland, where
it is gathered by the natives. When
the ducks build their nests, they
line them with down plucked from
their own breasts. This first lining
is the finest quality Of down. After
a nest is robbed the ducks line it the
second and third times, each time
the grade of down becoming poorer,
as there are IL greater number OF
small feathers mixed in. After the
third robbing the ducks quit the
nest and do not build again until
the next season.
Elder down is about twice as
bulky as tho finest goose down.
that is, one pound of elder down will
serve as Il filing where two Of the
best goose down would be necessary y.
Owing to its scarcity and costliuess
it is used only in filling the most
expensive cushions and quilts. 1t
can be used to Il greater advantage
and is really the only satisfactory
filling for elegant smoking Jackets,
muff beds, womens skirts and ba
bies' clothing.
"rhe next quality of down is
goose down, which is produced in
the United States, the larger part
coming from the western and south
ern states. There are three grades
of it SO, 81 and $50 pound.
The first grade is tho pure down,
plucked from the breast of the live
goose. The other two grades are ex-
tracted by machinery from the
feathers of poultry plucked for the
market. The feathers are sold IN
bulk, unso1ted, and have to be sep
arated by special machines, The on
ly goose down imported comes from
China. 1t is white, but not so fluffy
as tho American, and consequently
used only for cheaper filling.
Duck down is iml orted almost
exclusiv ely from China in feathers
There arc about three grades. The
best OF pure down sells for $1.25
and is used III making fair quality
of quilts, Innings, pillows, etc. The
other two grades, bringing 81 and
IS cents a Eourd, are made by leav-
ing Il certain pei cent of feathers in
the down. These feathers, as i'm
ported from China, arc exceedingly
dirty, and the cleaning and separat-
ing, which are done by machinery,
are very expensive, The yield of
down is about 10 or IL per cent; of
dirt, 30 to 40 PEP cent; tho rest is
feathers. These feathers are n little
better, when thoroughly steamed
and cleaned, than our native chick
ell feathers, which, as all house
keepers should know, arc the cheap
est feathers.
"This Chinese down is from the
ducks which the Chinese consume
in great quantities. As rice is their
chief eadstutf, ducks are their
chief meat. One duck will furnish q
meal for 20 Cinnamon. The fowl is
boiled until the flesh drops from the
bones. 1t is then hashed very fine,
and with its gravy used to season
boiled rice enough for about 20 men,
OF course a number of these ducks
are reared and consumed in China,
and as the thinaman makes no pap
ticular use of the feathers these ar6
shipped to this country and Europe.
There arc aLCrt 1000, COO pounds of
feathers imported to tho United
States each year from China, while
from Austria and Germany come
several hundred thousand pounds of
down, extracted from Chinese feath=
erS.
Chicken feathers, which have no
life in them, are chiefly used in
cheapening down, and cheaper
grades arc made by mixing in cat
tails, light cotton or rabbit hair.
There last three may always be de-
tected by lcating the ARTICLE, as ths
cattails and rabbit hair will inva-
Tiably silt through and the cotton
will lump. Good down may always
be judged by its feeling and its pow
er to rebound. a cushion well filled
with cider on the next best thing,
American goose dow Il, when press
ed will reshalc itself almost as
quickly as an india rubber ball. y
New York SIM.