The Washburn leader., 1899-08-12
LOOKING GLASSES
;MlRRoRssAr EVERY TURN WE
SEE.
rhsy Nsvsr wsr. as Plenty or as chssp
silver Backing Instead Of Mercury
4 one sscrst-Another u In tho
GLASS. a,

-O0vo1 0e0k1n& 4n1tOo0 OF A0xCuxy
= One ssorst-Anothsr Il In the
Glass. q
''Where one mirror was in use IL
years ago there are 200 today" says q
man who makes them. But this vast
increase In the use Of rejecting sur
faces has been gained somewhat at the
expense Of accuracy. brilliancy and
permanence. In the old days when q
housewife bought bit Of looking
glass 1t was esteemed precious treas
ure, to be cherished like her rosewood
cabinet and her best china teapot, and
the glass on its part gave faithful
image of all that passed before it and
lost nothing Of Its clear luster as time
passed. A pier mirror was an index
of luxury. It came from France, with
costly furniture and feminine finery.
But it went out of fashion when the
cheaper article made it's way every
where. The old mirrors were coated
with mercury, and that is why, unless
they were broken, they retained their
pristine excellence year in and year
out. Now there is only one manufac-
turer in New York who uses mercury,
and he does not do an extensive busi-
ness. It doesn't pay any longer to
make them in that way. Silver has
grown so cheap and is applied so cas-
lily that it has replaced mercury. The
New York assay Office sells large guam
titles of silver in the form of bricks to
chemists who convert it into nitrate Of
silver and sell it to the manufacturers
of mirrors. They combine with the
nitrate certain chemicals, these vary
ing with the different manufacturers.
the composition used by each consti-
tuting his trade secret. But in all
cases nitrate Of silver is the founda-
tion. Mercury costs about two and a
half times as much as the silver nj
trate, but it is always sure. II you
buy glass coated with quicksilver it
will last you seventY-five years, but Of
even the most expensive glass treated
with the silver nitrate one can never
be quite certain. Two pieces may be
taken out Of the same solution at the
same time, under identical conditions.
and one may wear satisfactorily while
the other in a little while will begin
to speck and show flaws, and no expert
can explain the reason
FOR 1t. There is almost no importation
Of mirrors into this country in these
days. We still speak of French and
German mirrors, but these words do
not denote the locality in which they
are made, but are merely trade terms.
French mirrors meaning all in which
The thickness Of the glass is 3-16 of an
nch or more, and German mirrors re-
lerring to the quality Of the glass
Used, It being blown and not cast in
plates, as in the case Of the French
mirrors. This thin glass came into
with the folding bed. in
ended to represent q sideboard or . |
case. Its lightness made It
peculiarly desirable for such purposes.
Now It Is used for as many purposes
q the cabinet-maker. has styles Of fur
,iture. Although French mirrors are
lot imported to any extent the glass
rom which the best plate mirrors are
made is imported from France. the |
french glass being softer than the Am
rican and consequently easier to bevel
ind to make into the unique designs
70 much in vogue. IF were going TO
elect mirror for my own house."
aid one of the largest manufacturers.
I should get the best possible quality
4 glass made In America for the pur-
nose. It is not so likely to turn yell
ow by exposure to the air as the
french plate mirrors often do" The
lnest plate mirrors cost only about
lalf what they did little more than
decade ago, and Of the cheaper
;rades there has been an indefinite In
rease in the quantity and in the re-
Iuction Of prices. No fiat house Is 80
tinted in style and finish but that it
las plenty Of mirrors. There may be
10 closets in the house. but there are
ure to be advertised cabinet mantels
With beveled plate mirrors" The
valls may be rent with great cracks,
ut compensation Is offered in "a yes
lbule faced with fine mosaic work and
late glass mirrors" In the higher
rades Of apartment houses the mir
ors are multiplied. They are set In.
athroom walls, sideboard and closet
oors. They are cunningly placed.
10Th, for ornamental purposes and TO-
roduce enlarged effects in small
ooms. Private houses have mirrors
n every available space.
aKlumpsn CIubs.'e
or all the novel things to be seen IN