The Indianapolis journal., 1903-03-29
MOTHER OF PEARL.


New York Commercial.
Perhaps it is called mother of pearl
because in its tightly-locked bosom lies the
jewel snow drop that graces the delicate
throat of a queen. 1t is a plain sea shell.
The outside is rough-ribbed gray-the color
of a November twilight; the interior
marvellous prism that has stored the hues
of the rainbow.
The manufacture of mother of pearl is an
industry of no little magnitude in New
York and hereabouts. This city and New
ark are it's centers. Thousands of persons
make a livelihood converting the shells
into numerous useful and pretty articles OF
commerce. If we were asked what Is
mother of pearl used for, the reply would
probably be buttons. Thousands and thou
sands of buttons, of all sizes, are manu-
factured in New York annually. and the
process is exceedingly interesting. But
buttons not all Knife handles, UNI
brella handles, revolver handles, pen hold
ers, Jewelry and score Of additional pref
ty and useful articles are made from
mother OF pearl.
The finest shells come from the Austria
liam archipelago. They are white and eX-
tremely pretty. A dark-tinted shell is found
off the coast of Japan; these are from the
worlds great pearl fisheries. California
produces some, and the interior rivers OF
the United States have their pearl-produc-
ing shells. The pearl divers bring the shells
to the surface where q first search for
pearls is made. The shells are then shipped
to London, the worlds great clearing house
for mother OF pearl, where they are again
submitted to careful scrutiny Tor Jewels
The American manufacturer gets his sup
ply largely from London. In the factory,
as the shells are cut, another search for
pearls is made and not infrequently 1t Is
rewarded. Not all the pearls are found
loosely slowed in the closed apartment
where the soft mollusk reposes. Sometimes
they are Secreted in the hard casing of a
shell and are only brought to view by the
cutting saw. In q Canal-Street factory
the other day a workman sliced $500 pearl
into two beautiful sections and rendered
1t worthless before he realized what the
saw was doing.
The manufacture of mother of pearl has
steadily increased in the twenty-five years
since it was begun in this country. The
genius of the inventor has found no substi-
tute for the product of nature and the
shells are not so numerous as they were.
They cost the manufacturer an average of
| IS cents a pound. The finished product,
| therefore, is expensive and is likely to be
more so, as the demand is continually
growing for mother of pearl articles.
The shells are about eight inches wide
and weigh less than half pound. They
are shipped from London in S00-pound
| boxes. Workmen of skill in the mother of
| though American boys are being trained in
| the craft. The men are English, French
and BohemianS, who learned their trade
| abroad. In the factory the shell first goes
| to skillful operator, who saws off the
| rough edges, the bark 1t is then cut
| into strips, if it is a thick one, and certain
parts are selected for the heavier articles.
| The thin, fiat shells go to the button ma
| chine, where the discs are bored from it
very rapidly. These round segments are
| engraved on another machine; on another
| holes are bored or the brass eye for the
| thread Is pressed in, then a boy polishes
the outer surface of each one by mo-
| mentary touch on a carborundum wheel
| making 2,400 revolutions a minute. Arising
| from the saws and cutting and polishing
| machines is a fine white dust, that settles
| over the interior like flour in mill, but
| the wOrkmen are apparently robust and
| make no complaint of evil effects of breath
| ing il. While there is considerable waste
| material in each shell no portion of the
white mother of pearl is permitted to go to
| waste. Very small buttons, rosary beads
| etc, are made from the rejected fragments
| The larger. and better parts of the shell
| are carefully selected for ornamentation OF
| the articles heretofore mentioned. A very
| pretty watch fob for men is made of a
| piece of delicatey-tinted mother of pearl
4 artstically arranged in a flagree gold set
| ting.
From the Mississippi river along the bor-
| ders of Iowa, the greatest quantity of fresh
| water shells is obtained and it has become
| a profitable business. Useless portions are
sawed off there, and the entire product is
shipped to Eastern manufacturers.