The daily chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Ind. Ter. [Okla.]) 1898-1902, 1899-05-05
MAKING GLASS EYES.
More of Them In Use Now Than Ever i'a
fore.


"The demand for artificial eyes
said tho proprietor of a glass
factory in New York to a writer
Gently. was larger during tLu
two years than ! have ever li.C' p
it to be, and have been engag, 4 "a
the manufacture of the article IN
question for the past quarter Of a
century. Last year we sold IS.
artificial eyes, or an increase of
1000 over the previous year Prior
to that our sales would not exceed
10000 annually. The recent demand
indicates that more people are wear
ing glass eyes than formerly, and
one of the chief reasons for this is
that the false articles are sold cheap
er and are made to resemble the
natural organs more perfectly now
than ever before. Hence the poor
who are compelled to wear glass
eyes have little difficulty in obtain
ing them, and rich people are less
sensitive about wearing the artifi-
cal product when necessary Ten
years ago an ordinary glass eye cost
from Sc to 81, while those made to
order with the pupil and the cornea
carefully colored, sold anywhr re
from s12 to $50. Competition has
out these prices down, until now an
ordinary eye sells for S. and the
finer grades are worth from SO to
$50, according to finish.
More gray eyes are manufactur-
ed than any other color, then conhs
the blue and next the brown g, =
The call for black eyes is quite n; =.
They are only made to orGT aud
are seldom if ever kept iii stock.
Ophthalmia hospitals are the lsl t
consumers of false eyes. These a.
stitutions buy in quantities, and
naturally obtain their supply at r.
duced rates. They generally pur-
chase the ready made eyes, which
are used on poor patients who are
not in a financial position to be fas-
tidious either as to the quality CT
finish of the article We have hun
dreds of customers scattered all over
the country, for all of whom we
keep duplicates, ready to ship when
ordered. The best glass eyes do not
last for more than year, owing 10
the action of such moisture as the
tear, the acids of which affect tie
enamel, roughen the edges of the
surface, and very often cause pain
full irritation of the eyelids.
1.-The process of manufacture is
interesting. In its initial stage the
eye is a long, slender stick of en-
amel, made of perfectly transparent
and fusible flint glass. This is put
into a crucible and exposed to great
heat. Now the globemaker places
the enamel over blowpipe supplied
with air, which is pumped by a
machine into huge cylinder and
stored under water pressure. Then
under the careful manipulation of
the workman the enamel tube is
formed into an oblong globe, just
the size and shape of the human
eye. Next it passes into the coloring
room, where a correct tint is ap-
piled to the summit of the globe,
and this is gently heated by small
flame and continuously rotated.
When it has assumed the correct
form of the iris, more coloring
matter is added to represent the pu-
pill, and it is then covered by a thick
layer of crystal to form the cornea.
This done, the eye is cooled and
sent to the cutting room, where it
is formed into a small hollow oval,
with irregular edges. These edges
are again heated and the eye allow
ed to cool slowly This tempeTing
process toughens the enamel and
renders it less liable to break. The
finish work consists in polishing the
eye, and when this has been com
uleted it is ready for the market. >
The Thief TraclerS