The times., 1897-05-02

| Further, the designs from which the lace
| is made are the property OF the middlemen,
| none OF the villagers possessing patterns OF
| their own; nor could they well afford to
| buy them, for each individual design is
worth five francs, no matter whether it be
| OF q handkerchief, butterfly, floUnoe, etc.
| and five francs is "A matter of grave i'm
| portance TO the peasant folks.
These designs are traced in innumerable
| small holes on q certain sort of glazedpaper
| thispricked paperis kept by the nIiddleman,
whose copyright 1t is, and he supplies his
workers with specimens as they are wanted
When a copy is TO be take n the glazed paper
is spread over q sheet OF thick dark blue
paper, and powdered chalk crushed through
the minute holes OF the former by means OF
a wad. When the whole design has in this
way been gone over, the original pattern
is removed, and underneath clearly traced
in lines Of white chalk on the blue surface
appears the pattern required This is gone
over with pen and ink, and the design is
ready for the worker. BY this method
hundreds of copies may be taken from the
original design, and the five francs fee
seems less exorbitant than at firstappeared
10 be the case. The composing of new
designs is a recognized trade, and q much
more li ifffcuit olet hancan wei beimag gined
for it reuqireS a good deal OF knowledge,
combined with taste, TO design something
that, while considering the claims OF
grace and free dom, does not ignore those of
well balanced proportion The patterns
once designed and sold must never be
passed on to some one else; they are gone
forever.
several men who worked for various firms
just as orders arrived, sending here today
and there tomorrow, but it was found that
the temptation to palm off the same design
on two people was well nigh irresistible,
and a good deal of unpleasantness arose in
consequence. Nowadays each middleman
has his own designer attached TO the es-
Establishment, and the restrictions laid upon
the workers as to the selling of work to
any one else are equally the lot OF the
designer, says the Queen.
When the workers receive their designs
they fasten down the small piece of blue
paper on to their cushions, and In working
the lace place the pins along the broadink
lines. An expert hand will use the same
paper six times, but the novice finds it
torn beyond hope after the second bit Of
lace has been worked This is because the
latter has not learned to judge where the
pins should be inserted, and consequently
on going over the design the second time,
does not place the wee pins in the holes
made before, but, making fresh set, de-
stroys the paper. When the pattern gets
torn IL has To be thrown away, otherwise
minute fragments of blue paper work In
among the threads and give the lace a
BLUSH tinge when finished, which greatly
depreciates both appearance and value.
Neither by any chance does worker re-
eeive the entire pattern of anything, Each
design is arranged to form several bits,
and the fragments distributed among the
women in different villages. The precau-
ton is generally taken when. by the ma
ture of the design, it is easy to see how
the fragments fit together. In the more
complicated work the four or five bits that
go to make up the whole are merely givey
out in the one village Ali the bits are
brought into BRUSSELS to the employers
house, where they are joined up into their
respective shapes by one good worker, who
often is compelled to live Qn the premises,
and who is given the complete design to
Judge from with regard to how the pieces
dovetaI into one another.
The lace workers day begins about a.
M, summer and winter, and only ends to
ward nidnig after long evening of work
directly under the rays of strong lamp
1t might be imagined that such protracted
toll would ruin the eyesight in a great
measure, but, as matter of fact, good
worker depends more upon her fingers to
guide her than the eyes. With practice
she can work away with both speed and
accuracy, just taking in the general ap-
pearance Of the lace, but relying on her
sense of touch to keep her right In little
particulars So much for the pillow lace
workers. For those who make point lace
with needle and thread it is quite another
thing.
In their case there are no friendly bob
bins, and the strain on the eyes Is terrible.
often leaving them half blind at two or
three and twenty. After that age point