Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1905-07-23

eral secretary and the president OF the
board of directors will both leave the city
for several weeks and a number OF the
secretaries will be away on their vacations
number OF people have promised sub
scriptions promised to send them in. and
these are asked II possible, to send their
subscriptions by the last Of the month
that the accounts may be closed before
the departure OF the general secretary.
The committee expects to begin its cam
paign for its building in the fall.
Miss Jane Perkins. one Of the deconesses
who has been engaged in special work for
the First Methodist church, has given up
her work in Omaha for a time and gone
to the home of sister in Indiana. Miss
Perkins is one of the most widely known
deaconesses of the order for work among
the needy In all parts Of the city.
One OF the recent bulletins issued by the
United States bureau Of Labor tells the
following interesting story OF the work
Of the club women in assisting other less
fortunate women of obscure districts to
adopt or revive the art Of weaving as a
practical means of helping themselves
financially and fostering an industry that
promises to profit something more than
the monetary reward to it's followers:
Mrs. ]. Lindsey Johnson OF Rome, Ca.
mas long been interested in the encourage
ment of weaving among women residing in
the nearby mountains. Some coverlets have
been produced and some silk rag pOrtiers
and rag rugs have also been woven. Some
of the weavers have been induced to weave
publicly in the interstate fairs held at At
lanta. The products have been sold chiefly
through the art and crafts committee CT
the Georgia Federation of Women's Cluos
The later efforts of this committee have
been directed largely toward the lntroduc-
ton of weaving and other handicrafts in
the schools of the state, especially in che
State Normal school and in the model day
schools which have been established in
mountain districts through the federation s
initiative. Cornhusk hats, palmetto mats
and baskets are among the marketable
products of these schools sold by the COM
mittee.
OF the various rug making industries
which have grown out of Mrs. Albees pio-
neer efforts in New Hampshire, perhlps
the most important is that established
among the wives of fishermen on the Gran
bury Isles, opposite Northeast Harbor, Me.
Until the rug industry was introduced there
hese women rn0Hgh in it ger ana HIt
of life, had little to occupy their time dur
ing the winter and but little ready money.
church purposes and for building a wharf,
etc, and when they heard of the success
of the Abnakee rug industry a number Of
them were DESTROYS of undertaking similar
work. They were already familiar with the
process of hooking rugs, and they were
fortunate IN having the Denent OF the lnl-
tiative, moral support and financial back
ing of Mrs. Seth Low, Miss Miriam p. Rey-
nolds and one or two other New York
women whose summer homes are at North
east Harbor, as we'll as obtaining the aid
of capable designers. The industry was
started on a small scale in the autumn of
1901, under the supervision of Miss Amy
Mali Hicks, a designer identified with the
arts and crafts movement In New York
City, who designed the patterns and gave
Miss Hicks retired from the management
Of the enterprise, and was succeeded by
Miss Una A. Clark of Cambridge. Mass,
who is also a designer and had some ex-
perience in making rugs. During the first
winter six rugs were made which were ex-
| hibited the following summer at Northeas st
Harbor. The next winter the industry was
! developed on somewhat larger scale,
| twelve women working on the rugs reg
ularly as their household duties allowed.
averaging about two hours a day. In tho
summer comparatively little work is done.
| One woman stencils all the burlaps while
another dyes all the flannel. The dyestuffs
are obtained from Mrs. Albee, and are iden-
teal with those used in the Abnakee rugs:
but a somewhat firmer texture is obtained
! in the Cranbury island rugs by using two
yards of flannel to the square foot instead
| of one and one-fourth or one and one-half,
as at Pequaket The use OF the vegetable
dyes is now under consideration.
The Cranbury island rugs are distin-
guished by the monogram CIR worked IN
one corner or on the selvage at the back.
Several designs have been used, with differ
| ent arrangements of colors and from time
/ to time new patterns are prepared Most of
| the designs are original and striking eff
! fective use being made of a somewhat CON
| ventionalized pine tree and other natural
| forms: but the patterns Of old-time samplers
have also been adapted for use in bedroom
! rugs. The rugs have been sold about as
| fast as they could be made, in most cases
! being made to order. They are used chiefly
/ in summer cottages I'm Maine and in the
! vicinity of New York. An exhibit was sent
! to New York City arts and crafts exhi-
| bition in the spring of 1903. and all the rugs
| sent were sold. The industry is now firmly
established on a self-supporting basis
! The Woman's club of Plainhed. N H.
among other eXpedients for raising money
| for clubhouse. Initiated a r'Ig industr,- in
the winter and sp ing of 1902 Rags were
| accumulated ana sewn together during me
winter, and were woven according to color
| designs by Mrs. Frances Huston of Boston
and Mrs. II. o. Walker OF New York pres
| ident OF the club Twenty rugs were made
| and at an art exhibition held in August all
| OF these were sold and orders taken for
| now formed with the name Mothers and
Daughters Industry" with Mrs. G. S. Rug
giles as manager, and a trademark was
adopted consisting of a distaff and the let
| tiers M ID |" in the corner. Instead of
| using old cloth for rags. white outing fan
| mel is now bought and dyed the desired
/ color. Many OF the rugs have white CEN
! tiers with dashes of color, and borders at
| each end in stripes and notified effects Or
4 ders are taken by city members of the club
/ VINO nave taken rugs home with them and
EXHIBITS have been sent to. various arts and
| made in year now runs into hundreds and
| the number Of yards of material used into
| thousands. Six looms are in operation and
| altogether there are more than twenty-five
workers. the weaving of curtains bed
spreads etc. having been added to the in