Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-06-19
SUPPLY IS FALLING OFF
hot Enough Ivory IN Sight 70 Meet the
Demand.
Many Uses to which This Valuable
Elephants Annually.

Few people," said New York ivor,
merchant to a writer for The Star. "havt
any Idea what an enormous amount OF
ivory Is used In the manufacture Of such
articles IS billiard balls, buttons, brush
backs. knife. cane and umbrella handles
fans. piano and organ keys. The annual
COZ sumption Of ivory for all such purposes
In Europe and America is roughly esd-
mated to be 3.0OO.0O0 pounds. The demand
for the material during the last twenty-five
years has been largely in excess of the
supply. and the wholesale price for the ar
ticle, which. at present, is from 81 to s.
per pound, is just double what it used to be
a quarter Of century ago.
The principal cause assigned for the
falling OF in the supply Is that of late
years the demand for ivory has been so
great that an extraordinary stimulus has
feen given to elephant hunting, and these
animals ere now almost extinct in regions
where they formerly abounded. In Guinea,
at one time known as the ivory country.
elephants are now as scarce as they were
formerly numerous. and the same is said
to be the case in Cape Colony, Ceylon, Ben
gal and other ivory districts.
THE sources from which nearly all the
ivory that now comes into the market. is
obtained are Zanzibar and Malta, the Cape
Colony, and the east coast of Africa. The
largest proportion of the supply is obtain
SPECIES yielding comparatively small
que Gritty. Zanzibar and the east coast
ivory are the varieties most highly valued
in commerce. and the African variety at
alt times constitutes the bulk Of the i'm
portations.
Nearly 60 per cent of all the ivory i'm
ported from the producing countries goes
10 the greatest of all ivory markets, Lon
don. where quarterly sales are held of the
material. 1t Is estimated that 10000 ele-
plants have to be killed annually to fur
nish the demands of the English market
alcIe.
In addition to the supply sent to London
tHere are also the exports to the minor
markets OF Europe ara this country and
the quantities consumed in the producing
countries themselves. Where some of the
nnest and heaviest teeth are retained by
the chiefs as trophies of the chase or orna-
ments to their temples, houses or tombs
The annual importation of ivory into this
country Is about 10000 tusks whose aver
age weight will not exceed fifty pounds.
Difference in Quality.
Does ivory differ much in quality?'
1T differs from something like $3.50 for
an East African tusk to the value of so
many cents. and often nothing, for an In
dian elephants tusk. East African ivory
IS easily distinguished from the Indian or
West African article. The East African
material Is known in the trade as soft or
white ivory. and is the product of East
Africa from Egypt down to the CAPE This
ivory Is particularly well adapted for use
In the manufacture Of pianoforte keys
billiard balls and combs. Hard or trans
parent ivory is nearly all imported from
the west coast of Africa, the Gaboop and
Ambriz districts yielding the best quality
while shipments from Lagos and Angola
show coarser texture. The clear va
rieties OF ivory which come from these
sEd umbrella handles, while the finer nor
tions are used for prayer book covers, the
backs OF brushes and fans. Carvings ard
statuettes are usually formed from West
African ivory, its rosy transparency rem
dering 1t especially adapted to the repre-
sentation Of flesh tfnts
The tusks Of the elephant, which make
their appearance soon after the loss of the
milk teeth. are hollow at the base, the
the extremity of the tooth extends q mass
Of solid ivory. The usual length of a full
grown tusk is from six to seven feet. and
their average weight is from fifty to one
however, they have been known to weigh
from one hundred and fifty to one hundred
and seventy pounds, and to measure from
eight to nine feet in length.
Economy in Cutting.
Owing to the scarcity CT ivory. and the
consequent high price of the article, the
greatest economy Is nowadays exercised
IN ivory factories in cutting up the tusks
The hollow at the base of the tusks is first
cut off. and is used for cylinders and rings.
The balance of the tusk Is carefully cut
into blocks with fine saw. The dust and
scraps which result from the saving are
saved. the latter being converted into
buttons. tips, &C., while the former is
used in making the ivory block for copper
plate printing. When sold, ivory scraps
and dust realize from 10 cents to 500 per
pound.
The ivory used in the manufacture of
billiard balls is taken from the solid part
of the tusks Of suitable size. 1t is only.
however. from certain kinds of tusks that
billiard-ball ivory can be obtained, and
these tuSks rank high in point of CONNER
ctal value. In order to be suitable for this
purpose, 1t is necessary that the tusks have
sufficient circumference to afford the two
required dIameters of the bali. When the
elephant tusks arrive at the factory they
are first cut up into blocks Of the requisite
dimensions and turned roughly in lathe
After the balls have been partially turn
ed by the cutters, and before the final cut
ting and polishing. 1t Is indispensable, ow-
Ing 10 the tendency of ivory to shrink that
the balls should undergo careful seasoning.
without which they are liable to lose
in canvas lag and hung up to become
thoroughly seasoned. Then when an order
comes for one or a dozen sets of balls they
are taken from the bags, reground and
polished for the table.
''The use to which ivory Is most largely
put in the United States Is in the manu-
facture Of piano and organ keys. Over So
Oo0 pianos ard as many more harmoni-
ums and organs are annually manufac-
tured In this country, and a large amount
of ivory of the best quality Is consumed in
making keys for these Instruments Re-
peatet efforts have been made to supplant
ivory for use in pianoforte and organ
keys by employing alabaster and porcelain
Both of these and many other cheaper
substitutes which have been tried have
however. utterly failed to satisfactorily re-
place ivory, and no really good substitute
has as yet been discovered. Most Of the
pianoforte manufacturers buy the raw ma
terial from the importing firms. and turn
their own keys. The importing business in
this country is In the hands of about a
dozen firms There are several large Ivory
turning establishments In New York city
and Connecticut, and the trade gives en-
ployment to several thousand skilled work.
men,"
Heard q Baby Cry Three Hundred