The Beaver herald. [volume] (Beaver, O.T. [Okla.]) 1895-1923, 1906-08-02
AMERICANS ARE PAINT USERS


both in the aggregate and per capita,
than any other people in the world.
In a recently published article on the
subject it was figured that our yearly
consumption is over 100,000,000 gal
Ions Of paints of all kinds, Of which
over one-half is used In the paintings
of houses.
The reason for. this great consump-
ton is twofold: a large proportion
of our buildings, especially in small
towns and rural districts, are. con-
structed Of wood, and we, as people,
are given to neatness and cleanliness.
For, take it all in all, there is moth
ing so cleanly or so sanitary as paint.
Travel where we will throughout
the country. everywhere we find the
neat, cheerful painted dwelling, pro-
claiming at once the prosperity and
the selfrespect of our population.
Fifty years ago this was not so;
painted dwellings, while common III
| the larger cities and towns, were the
exception in the rural districts; be-
cause, on the one hand, large pro-
portion of those buildings were tenn
porary makeEhifts, and, on the other
hand, because paint was then a lux
ury, expensive and difficult to obtain
in the out-of-thc-way places, and re-
quiring special knowledge and much
preparation to fit 1t for use.
The introduction of ready mixed or
prepared paints, about 1860, changed
the entire aspect of affairs. AS the
Jack-of-all-trades told the Walking
Delegate in one of Octave Thanets
stories. Anyone can slather paint.
The insurmountable difficulty with
our predecessors was to get the paint
ready for "slathering." That the
country was ready for paint in con.
venient, popular form is shown by
the immediate success of the indus
try and its phenomenal growth in
so years from nothing to 6O,00O,OOO
gallons-the estimated output for
1900.
Some pretty severe things have
been written about and said against
this class of paints, especially by
painters and manufacturers of GER
tain kinds of paste paints. Doubtless
in many instances these structures
have been justified and some fearful
ly and wonderfully constructed mix
lures have in the past been worked
off on the guileless consumer in the
shape of prepared paint. But such
products have had their short Cay
and quickly disappeared, aud the too
enterprising manufacturers that pro
duced them have come to grief in
the bankruptcy courts or have
learned by costly experience that
honesty is the best policy and have
reformed their ways.
The chief exceptions to this rule
are some mail order houses who sci
direct to the country trade, at very
low price-frequently below thu
wholesale price of linseed oil. The
buyer of such goods, like the buye
of gold brick, has only himself t
blame if he finds his purchase worth
less. With gold selling at any banl
or mint at fixed price, owners o
gold do not sell it at discount; an,
with linseed oil quoted everywher
at 80 to 20 cents a gallon, manufac
turers do not sell pure linseed oi
paint at so or 80 cents a gallon.
The composition of prepared paint
differs because paint experts hav
not yet agreed as to the best pii
ments and because the daily result
of tests on large scale are constan
/. ly improving the formulas of mani
, facturers; but all have come to tn
, conclusion that the essentials OF goo
paint are pure linseed oil, fine grinC
ing and thorough incorporation, an
in these particulars all the product
of reputable manufacturers corr,
! spond; all first-class prepared paint
, are thoroughly mixed and ground an
the liquid base is almost exclusivel
pure linseed oil, the necessary vol;
tile "thinners" and Japan dryers.
The painters opposition to sue
,, products is based largely on self-il
terest. He wants to mix the pair
himself and to be paid for doing i
= and to a certain class of painters
is no recommendation for paint {
say that it will last five or ten year
. The longer q paint lasts the longC
he will have to wait for the job
repainting. The latter considerable
: has no weight with the consume
. and the former is a false idea {
economy. Hand labo- can never
as cheap or as efficient as machin
work, and every time the painte
mixes paint, did he but know it, b
is losing money, because he can bu
: a better paint than he can mix {
7 less than it costs him to mix it.
I Prepared paints have won, not onl
: on their actual merits, but on the
5 convenience and economy. They al
y comparatively cheap and they are Il
: comparably handy. But when all
y said, the experienced painter is th
proper person to apply even a read
= mixed paint. He knows better tina
anyone else the when" and ''how
) and the difference between paintin
, and "slatherlng" is much create
than it appears TO a novice. Ever,
one to his trade, and after all pain
: ing is the painters trade and not IL
! hnpcabO11oric