Hopkinsville Kentuckian., 1900-03-20

It nae Developed IN Rapid Strides in
Recant YeaIa


drawings for cigar labels command
the fancy salaries Of that class Of me-
chanical work One Of the largest
photographers Of this city says that the
variety Of designs ON cigar labels far
exceeds that Of any other branch Of
the trade. "There is an ever chang
ing demand for cigar labels" said this
manufactures, "and it is something
new, something new every hour ofthe
day. And better art is wanted The
Americans buy an article on its looks.
| I know one manufacturer alone who
has ] 1858 shapes Of cigars, made to
catch the eye.
"Not many years ago cigar manu-
facturers were willing to pay any
| price for a label in six eolors, and the
kind turned ont then was shabby
when compared with the production
cf these days. "A moderate price for
The commonest was between S65 and
8S5 a thousand. Then labels had to
be attractive rather than artistic.
Each manufacturer now requires
from 100 to $50 brands, and while he
insists that they must be nice, he
leaves the lithographcr to walk the
floor so far as the conception and
execution are concerned. Artists in
dheo old days did well to get S25 5aweek.
1t is now pretty hard to get a first
class man for less than $50 Some Of
my best men get S75aweek and mag
inc that theyare being imposed upon
at that. Increase Of work and compe-
tition has resulted in the trade fur
nishing a high class Of work at less
than it used to charge for common
prints Many cigar manufacturers
Judge label by the number of colors
it is said to contain. But that has lit
tie to do with the artistic effect.
Sometimes six-color label costs
more than one having ten solors. A
good artist can produce better results
with four colors than an inexpert can
with six.
"Here is a pretty design as sam
pie. Tt is in sepia tints, which are
cutie popular. The only color in it
is brown, butthere are six shades, and,
combined, they are a beautiful har-
mony. Here is another. If it were
anything but a cigar label it might
win a frame and be dearly priced as
an ornament 1t is equal in beauty TO
the best of the holiday and birthday
cards; vet the latter sell for 25 and so
cents, and the manufacturers think
| this Is dear at five or six cents Many
come in here and say: SHOW me any
thing that hasn't the figure of wom-
an in it. Others go into raptures
over the female form. But the major
| ity do not know at first what they
want, and a most commonplace thing
| like dog in a label viii drive some of
them into raptures. For many years
the popular label was an American
beauty representing Connecticut
holding hands with Cuban maiden.
Frequently / have been expected
to explain the meaning of a phrase
chosen fora label. One recently given
us was Until Death DO Us Part
That was a stickler to the artist, and
he nearly went insane trying to
fathom its meaning. His only solu-
tion of the problem was that itmeant
poor, miserable wretch holding on
to a bad cigar | have frequently
studied personal characters in the
! purchasers of labels. The man who
| likes the turf wants a flying equine,
the athlete erevels in a Hercules throw
! ing a hammer as big as a 13-inch gun,
or a chap on the ciuder path, and the
devotee Of the prize ring wants the
latest star in the fstic sky Some
times a manufacturer, generally a
small one, shows his reflex by order
ing label containing picture.
@Comical labels? There is little or
no call for them They soon get to be
what are known as chestnuts, and are
seldom used outside Of bar rooms.
! Within the last year or so there has
been a popular craze for labels con-
tanning numerals, such as the I'll or
the 4-11-44.
'It is seldom that a label comes up
in excellence to the proof, The latter