Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1905-06-26
BASKETS MADE BY GERMANS.
They Are Manufactured by Hand and
Are Superior Product.


Baskets are a specially of the east
side In New York City, more partcu-
larry Of the German quarter. 1t IS the
ambition Of every woman in the quar-
ter to have handsome and commo-
d1ous market basket, and you may see
hundreds of such baskets on the arms
of men and women in Avenue A and
the nelghboring streets. Basket shops
are more numerous in the German
quarter than anywhere else in town,
and the baskets bought and sold there
are the very best to be had.
Ordinary willow and split baskets
sold In the quarter are made in this
country, many of them right in the
shops where they are exhibited for
sale; but the finer baskets are mostly
imported from Germany These bas-
kets are made of fine straw, sea grass,
shredded palm leaf and some other
| materials. The best of them are hand
some In form and attractive In color
Ing. In fact, there Is evidently an ex-
cellent tradition among the German
| basket makers, for an Informed or
crudely colored basket is rarely seen
among the imported wares.
Those baskets made of fine straw,
together with sea grass, are the most
beautiful in coloring. The coors are
pale-g green and warm yellow. In form
the baskets are not quite rectangular,
with double lids and strong handles.
They look soft and pliable, but are
rigid and strong. Sometimes the han
die is strengthened with strap of
steel. The lids are secured by catch
Of straw strongly woven or sometimes
hook of metal
Handsomest of all the imported bas-
kets are those Of shredded palmleaf.
They are rectangular roomy beautiful
ly woven with little rectangular inter
stlceS, ivory white in color and ex-
tremely strong and rigid. The lids, of
the same material, are securely hinged
| and provided with metallic catches.
These baskets are in two or three sizes,
Of which the largest is big enough for
market basket Other baskets from
Germany are fishing baskets big
enough for hearty luncheon, baskets
with domed lids suitable for carrying
light bulky articles, work baskets for
German housewives, cMldren's gayly
decorated lunch baskets and a variety
Of vartously formed baskets for special
uses. Few Of the baskets are merely
ornamental; most are designed to serve
some useful purpose and none is so del
icately wrought that 1t will not long
serve the user
| The German baskets are relatively
cheap, say the New York Times, being
made largely by women. children and
superannuated men, whose time would
be otherwise almost valueless. A Ger
man basket that sells here for $3.50,
the price Of the finest imported bas-
kets, could not be made in New York
for half as much again. They are all
handmade, and they cannot be profit
ably produced in this country until ma
chinery can be applied to the manufac-
ture. The German housewife Of the
quarter counts her baskets as among her
treasures. She buys only the best and
has them for all uses, but they last
her half a lifetime and are repaired
again and again by the sklllful basket
weavers of the quarters. These beau
tiful baskets are handled with the ut
most care, are not loaded with what
they are not intended to carry and
kept scrupulously clean and dry.