Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1908-07-23

III LNe INDUSTRY.
To own a rug, a table cover or a curtain on
which the maker has expended his ideas and per.
-s0Gality is q pleasure quite distinct from gazing
al a nIaChiGG-made article which can be dupli-
Gated in any one of a dozen stores. And the fas-
clhaiion of fashioning things with the hands, es-
tecialIy essentials of the household or articles
Loat add a refining touch to a commonplace ser.
vI1!, has led many women to abandon china
patching and fancy work for the more active work
ri tts loom.
IhC:ah there are many amateurs in Massachu.
sets who make NJ attempt to market their wares
u good many have found weaving an attractive
commercial proposition. Many of these have en-
rolled themselves in the Arts and Crafts asso-
citation. For them, rag carpet weaving provides
the most direct method Of securing remunera.
ton for theil work. Rugs of this sort are always
IN demand, and there is ample room for the eX-
'erclse OF taste in developing simple patterns and
IN the variation Of colors.
Most OF the rugs are woven with a grayish back
ground, For the piazza and the summer home
fihere arc lighter patterns. soft blends which will
absorb the sunshine or brighten up the tedium Of
ii drizzly day. For these it is necessary to use
white new rags in the warp and alternating cords
of pink or blue.
The simplicity of these floor coverings affects
one with a strange sense of relief which may be
tneXplicable at first. 1t is the sense of contrast
with intricate machine-made designs which are
OllNi as NOlIlunlllB 10 TIE ldliIe q l. Llt SlpGl ten
tacled machines that made them.
Some Of these rugs are made in Boston, but
most Of them come from outside towns. Deer
field. Marblehead, bingham and Lynn are regular
stations of supply. In Central square, Cambridge,
the Massachusetts, commission for the blind has
an established factory where men weave rugs.
In 1904 the experiment of blind weavers was
first tried. They have proved in less than four
years that their work can rank with that done by
anyone. Without prejudice, buyers are agreed
10 this, and in many cases they insist that the
work 81 is not only as good, but superior. OF course
the rugs ae tlade under the supervision Of see
ing people, who select colors and distribute the
materials,
An expert supervisor with the use Of his eyes
first teaches the mechanism to the blind pupil,
VIII" memories everything by a numerical sys-
tenn. After he has mastered all the movements,
he soon can acquire the technicalities of pattern
weaving. r..
By numerical system Is meant the numbering
of each thread, as well as the arrangement of the
materials near the loom, so that once the position
is memorized no sight aid is required to locate
any color. From triangles and circles progress is
made TO the more intricate patterns. For some
of these a raised proof of the design is hung above
the loom. BY touching 1t with the fingers the
pattern is reproduced on the cloth.
The proficiency shown by the sightless weavers
has eliminated the question of their ability to
execute the work. The question remains: Where
shall they market their wares?
This problem is solving itself, for the number
of people who buy hand.wrought articles is rapid.
ly increasing. When Charles f.. Campbell, SUI.
perintendent of the industrial department of the
Massachusetts commission for the blind, was
asked where the department disposed of their
output. he turned up the label of the package he
was tying. 1t was addressed to Detroit, Mich.
we have shipped stuff to Duluth and San Fran.
cisco" he added; so you see the folks out west
aren't going to be distanced in this new twist