New-York tribune., 1907-12-22

LION LACE a Practical Handbook. BY f:liz-
T-ffon Tase; n 4 Co
.--,,sr knows where lace was first made or
: e-st made it, Both Venice and Flanders
-, IN have invented the exquisite art-for
* when at its best. The author Of the
'..,-icaI charters of this volume inclines to
,o,5 the claim of the darling Of the Adriatic
.a originator OF pillow lace in Europe. but
= also the strength OF the evidence that il
- - her from the Orient Much in the
=, ,a-+erns go TO sustain this opinion. AS
= tho first appearance OF pillow lace date
no assigned 10 it-there was no hint of il
4,,-,-,a before the end of the fifteenth CEN
ons not until the middle of the sixteenth
;. +1a rort-aits Of royalty begin to show the
.l,~ies Of this lace Queen Elizabeth wore it in
SOS F,lur Harry, her father, evidently knew
thing about it, but INDUCED himself in rich
,,-be and fr1rs We told that the earliest
p-sncb pc--rait showing lace is that of Henry
= IN q Zurich pattern book of 1850 there is
-s.-aa a quaint reason for the popularity of
.bs newly arrived decoration: When collarettes
-, the like were worked with gold and silk
r4ople were put TO great expense TO wash
.bs.n with soap; this is now saved, for all these
,.ces being Of fax thread can very well be
washed with lye-
n saxony the making of pillow lace is to-
s,r me Of the most important trades, as il was
8, the eighteenth century. There are actually
-Qeuty-eight state schools for teaching the art
sn5 4 v-enty-ninth in which pattern designing
IS taught:
!, tbe winter men work Torchon as well as
H. - - sr75 are supposed 10 make il better their
being usually tighter me IacS-rn2EerS
ave curious way OF amusing themselves by
eoatng ,,s.fe1 H85bard or the Zen Little Niger
FSrs" setting their pins by the rhythm or by
ne numbers N the rhyme. One is about the
-ackoo with thirty wives. and what they each
id another about the twelve geese who stole
= the number Of pins during the recital and
g whc has done most work III the time.
France. which has now nearly quarter mill
III OF Iace-makers. bought her first laces from
he Arvergre pe1Iers xllo wandered over the
mountain passes into Italy and brought back on
rbeir shoulders their packs full Of thready love
uness Il was with one of these humble deal
s IL lace that the boy Claude Lorraine went
down into Italy for the first time.
The lace industry in England fourished in
he sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and
some Of its product brought astonishing prices,
The fine Blandford lace brought something like
F5e. if We may believe Defoe, and $50 a yard
was the price Of Dorset and Devon lace. When
-an ceased 70 wear lace, and when in the late
sighteenth century women began 10 drape them
selves in classical garments of muslin and
sauze, the makers of pillow lace saw their live
hood departing both in France and England
+ is 10 the credit of Napoleon that as Emperor
he did great deal 10 revive important trade
The authors Of this book-which, by the way,
c0n:ains many chapters Of practical suggestions
md instruCIions-Vould like 10 see this delight
fl handicraft enthusiastically taken up in all
directions. Il is certainly a most picturesque
and becoming occupation for fair hands, as
Caspar Netscher's charming picture shows