The sun., 1905-09-03
ODD CRAFTS THEY BRING HERE
what the Foreign worker Adds to 'no
Varied Afe of the City.

Varied lAfe of the City
New York IL holding these days the
roishtisst OF industrial exhibitions, and the
daily occupations Of her inhabitants anu
moro especially Of .he newcopers, as seen
In street and workshop, constitute the
greatest show on earth. In oil the traces
that bear close relction to the nne ar's
the Italians are foremost. Iney lay tne
mosaic pavements that floor many build
ings Of public resort. Two or three OF these
deft mechanics sitting together before the
doorway Of a building look as II they were
playing with dice or with Jumps Of sugar as
they handle the shining white oubes OF
stone. When pavements in many colors
and OF intricate pattern are to be laid the
workmen now use covering Of stretched
linen upon which the pattern Ia drawn IN
oolors. This muslin Is laid down In pieces
OF moderate size and covered with . light
glue to which the stones will stick. When
a piece Of the pattern of suitable area has
been Laid, and tho glue has sti6ened the
whole thing q turned upside down, the
stones settle into their bed, and when the
bit Of pavement is firm In tho mortar the
muslin Is moistened and hted. When the
whole pavement has been thus laid tho
surface is washed clean and the whole is
brought to single plano by means OF an
implement that has taken the place OF the
old laborious hand polishing.
For charm OF color and beauty combined
with utility no product surpasses that OF
the ooppersmith. The brass spinnsrs and
their brethren, tho ooppersmiths. ply their
trades much in Centre street. But they are
found elsewhere, In both the eastern and
the western downtown italian quarters.
and In the new French quarter, which has
never quite recovered, by the way, from
the rude uprooting that IT suffered when the
Italians crowded 1t out Of It's snug little nest
just below Washington square. The brass
spinner work in fairly large factories,
and their spick and span product. accurate
to hair line with all the exactness that
machinery can give 1t, and all aglitter with
laquered polish, Is exhibited In big windows
or in locked and glazed cases or the side
walk below the factory.
The coppersmiths however. still work
mainly in little shops Of their own, dingy
dusky places where the 'rioh, quiet luster
of their wares shines out with subdued
splendor by contrast. There Ii copper
smith UP In the new French quarter whose
shop, Just as II stands, would make q SUBJ
ject for one OF those old Dutch or Flemish
painters who loved dim and homely interiors
lit with the gleam Of old copper vessels or
ruddy with the glow Of forge. This cop
persmith's unwashed window is numbered
with strange vessels and the rearward gloom
Of his shopis lit by scant sun rays that fall
through enorusted paues In the first three
hours of the morning.
In Mulberry street is an italian copper
smith skilled in making kitchen utensils.
His window is oiled with strange coffee
pots, rich in color, with copper measures,
great and small, some Of them gay with
a narrow binding OF warm light brass. He
is a man proud OF his handcraft, and his
dim little shop Ia adorned with one Of those
characteristic creations Of skilled European
mechanics an elaborate testimonial to his
skill and knowledge and patience. 1t
takes the form Of battleship wrought in
copper. a great big object with guns
lanterns and davits and all the details such
as ship should have. Within is gasoline
contrivance which serves to light the whole
ship and to give 1t the sembance Of life an d
motion. Days and days has the copper
smith put upon this creation which he
cannot sell and which he does not commonly
exhibit.
Among the mason sculptors and NOR
tuary sculptors Of tn 9 town are men who
have come to America armed with the
education Of artists and with no mean
skill. The immense demand for sculpture
on buildings. public and private. has at.
tracted struggling artists in Europe. Some
Of them find profitable employment. A
few set up studios where they execute
other than purely commercial work. Some
on the other hand, cannot find employment
even as mort,ary soulptors in the marble
yards and J. o, their rank as skilled men
On that borderland between the fine arts
and the crafts there l. an increasing host OF
the newcomers, mostly men. few women
There are miniature painters who have
been driven to all sorts Of odd occupations
to earn their bread. Some who come
armed with little skill In the use Of brush
or pencil earn a scant living in designing
postal card pictures. while others with some
skill in music get their dinners by playing
upon piano or violin in cheap restaurants
frequented by their compatriots. The
ablebodled laborer who earns his dollar
and a quarter day with pick or shovel
almost as soon as he lands is lucky by
comparison with these practitioners Of the
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