The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-06-09
THE MAKING OF DEMUOHNS
SOME 100000 TURNED OUT
YEARLY IN THIS COUNTRY.
New YOrk's One Factory Hal Been at u
FIFTY ears Young Women Employed
10 do Most OF the Basket work
Handle Maker an Expert-Hand work.

20 DO Most or the Basket Work Tho
HandIe Maker an Expert-Hand work.
How do they ever get the bottle OF a
demijohn inside OF lis wicker covcrinEl
The basketwork is all in one piece and OF
! course much smaller at the top, around
the neck, than it Is around the body; how
do they ever squeeze the bottle into III
OF course, the answer is they don't squeeze
the bottle into the basket, but weave the
| basket around the bottle.
Some years ago q lot Of money was spent
in an effort to perfect a demijohn basket
weaving machine, but hemaonins cfe=:
prove as successful as expected and so
now demijohns are still, as they had been
before, covered by hand.
There is only one demijohn factory IN
| New York, this one being located In Brook"
lyn borough. Most Of the work ts lone
by young women. There are employed
some men, who put on the handles, though
there is here at work one blind man, VINO
! makes bottoms. but most OF the weaving
of the basket coverings around the bottles,
which includes the bulk OF the work. IN
! done by young women.
In making the wicker covering OF q demi'
iohn the work begins at the bottom. The
| We4NeTA FlI WIFI NlCll AVN w NAS "~ ~
two lines down the sides Of the factory
room facing the centre, while down the
middle OF the room, standing on the moor,
are long rows Of demiiohn bottles to be
covered. At the end Of each row OF basket
weavers sits a bottom maker.
The bottom maker picks up a sufficient
number of reeds or sticks Of length and
size suitable for the bottom OF the cover
To be made and these sticks he crosses
40 that their ends radiate like the points OF
a star and then he proceeds quickly TO
weave in and out over these radiatinR
sticks reeds to form the bottom, setting
the reed snugly in at the centre at the
start. and hen rapidly running the reed
around and around in and out Of the radiat-
ing sticks until he has brought the bottom
thus woven to the required dimensions.
Perhaps he tests this then with a wooden
gauge to see tina 1t is just right. as It is
more than likely to be. for he becomes
adept by long practice and he can tell
nretty accurately without measuring, and
then he ships of the projecting ends OF the
sticks and losses the bottom to a girl, who
puts in the uprights.
The upriehts are the reeds that form the
vertical framew ork Of the woven basket.
Thew are composed Of long reeds, and
shorter ones alternating all around. The
shorter reeds will go up the side OF the
bottle and over the shoulder to the bottom
OF the neck; the long reeds will 60 up the
side and over the shoulder and on up the
top OF the neck.
When the uprights have hui been placed
another girl takes the bottom and oenoS
the uprights up and weaves around among
them at the bend three courses Of reed.
~, 49, III A. ,,-xtcAka tn thair YalativQ
nositions. and the weaving thus done, makes
also A sort OF shallow cup Of basket work
deem enough to hold, the bottle in place
without shifting when it has been placed
within the skeleton framework and the
weaving of the complete basket is begun.
Supporting the bottle In her lap with its
neck to the front, the basket weave now
starts making the basket work o IT,
beeinning at the base; the reeds that are
to be woven In are all thoroughly soaked
before using to make them soft and phable
and easy o work and 30 that they can be
drawn and fitted snugiy. All the uprights
stick out around the bottle. long p
wavy toward the neck. and IL mlgnt
seem that 1t would be q difficult thing 70
get around them, to get the reeds she wesver
has a way Of bending the uprighta esioe
one after another as she comes 20 them
all the time steadily rotating the polite
as she runs the reed aroHno IL, ~ anu S1r Sus
back one after another as she passes on.
AS the weaver works thus deity ana
swiftly you see the basket work steedly
growing up the sides OF the oobtls ana en-
rights steadily growing shorter, When the
shoulder of the bottle is reached IL requires
care and skill TO keep the oasxee york
from creeping and separating on tne aI0PSs
there and keeps on 90 until the neck 10
reached. and then; withthat covered, az
cept a narrow space at its extreme top, the
covering of the bottle 10 completed. E1pert
With its cover completed the demijohn
now goes to the handle man TO nave iss
handle put on. The woven cover 10 mace
Of split reeds; the handle Ia OF whole reeo.
length Of reed, one enc Of which he tuoks
under the b~asketwork on one side, OF the
bottle just below the shoulder while ne
bends and tuoks the other END into tne
This reed is called a false bow; 10 really
serves as a core for and form on which
he will now build the handle.
He now takes, a reed Of some iengsnj
made for the purpose. he puts through
the demijohn covering alongeiae tnS loMe5
end of the false bow. Drawing the END
Of this reed we'll through from the
CONGTnR, LD6 nbuulo hldhoi oSeohS. ss,Nt
along the other end, and the reed thus
doubled he Winds with two or three turnh
around the false bow until he comes 70
the neck Of the bottle, around which he
turns it.
This gives the handle its SECURE hold
there, as running 1t through the cover
does below, and that turn around the neck.
with the double reed, also covers the raw
edge OF the weaving at the top and gives
the work a nice finish there. From around
the neck the handle maker brings the
double reed back 20 the handle n takes
it, with two or three turns, now down;
ward around that TO the bottom OF IT,, and
from that he runs one end OF the reed down
and through the. cover again and oaok
TO be run, out OF sight, with the handle.
This work Is all done 30 quickly, that
you have to keep your eyes on 1t closely
TO follow it; but quickly as it has been DONE
il is done 30 nicely that the completed
handle looks like an evenly stranded reed
rope. And now The demiiohn is hnished
and ready for delivery.
The head OF the New York city concern
that makes demijohns has been making
demijohns since 1851, or for more than hali
a century; and he is still actively engaged