Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1922-02-25
An Art Threatened With Extinction
ny Frederic J. HSskin

Washington. Feb. 25.--Probably one
OF the most highly paid classes OF
workmen In the world are employed
In an industry OF which. the public
knows almost nothlng--that OF making
high grade jcwelry by hand.
Tho facts about this trade we're
brought out at n conference held by
the Jewelry Crafts Association In New
York. The leading topic of discussion
among the jewelers. present was the
enormous wages which their work.
men are demanding and receiving, and
the difficulty which they experience In
getting now men. Think OF work.
man making as high as $3.50 to 5000
n week. Yet some OF tho jcwelry
workers and diamond settlers get that
much, while weekly earnings of n
hundred or more are not uncommon.
A good workman gets about 81 an
hour, while an exceptional one may
make 50. The standard week Is A
houss. and time and half is paid for
overtime. AS there is always a short
age OF competent. most of the men
work overtime during a great part OF
the year, and so pile up their enviable
earnings.
During the war conditions were even
better for the workmen and worse for
their employers. Some of them dur
Ing that period were making as high
as So an hour and double time fol
overtime. The employers objected tc
the demands fer more money and less
working hours and n long strike tool
place. The result was tho establish
ment of the open shop principle. Thii
was not AS great victory for tn
employer as II usually Is. because tn
shortage of first class workmen en-
abled them still 20 successfully de
mand very high wages.
These men are interesting, not g
much on account of their spectacula
earnings as because upon them de
pends tho survival OF an ancient ar
, which in threatened with extermina
tion. or at least great injury. as or
so many other arts. by the moder
domination OF machinery.
Machine Made Jewelry Cheaper.
Certain lines OF machine-mad
: jewelry may be beautiful and ofte
are. Some materials can be worke
very successfully by machinery, an
Y of course machine-made tewelry
much cheaper than that made, h
hand, and so within the rench OF PEI
sons who could not otherwise affor
jewelry at ALL The place of machin'
q made jewelry is secure and not to
.a.f X.ast fnsA NJ
\. making as an art is In the hands
n those jewelers. and their worlSmen WI
q do fine hand work. This art
l. threatened by the scarcity Of worl
Q. men. In this country. especially, fe
Is young men dare 10 go into trade
which II takes 10 10 15 years 70 b
y come fairly proficient As result
N this. the United States has been ge
10 ting many of it's high grade jewele
y from Europe, preponderance OF the
n from Germany and France. Many
tho skilled workmen were killed
n disabled in the war. The restrictior
,r of tho new immigration law preve
ell others from coming 10 this countr
= Hence the difficulties OF tho modei
Is manufacturing 1eweler.
1f These makers OF hand-wroug
J. jewelry truly have behind them gre
10 artistic tradition The making
d jewelry has always been recogniz
RI as a high ert, and in tho italian Re
re aissance Il attained It's highest di
re nifty. jewelers. IN the italian cities
l. that period were often sculptors al
r. painters as well. and were often qui
d" as famous for their work in jewel
TO as for that in other arts. Bottice
lie heads a group Of such artists. Be
n, venuto Cellini Is another celebrat
,e Italian OF the sixteenth century W