Evening star., 1938-03-13

Everybody stand where you are!
Don't move or you may step on an
airplane!"
Jules Charbneau had dropped a
pin. The pinhead was a landing
field That is he thought it was
landing field until he retrieved the
pin to find the plane missing.
The scene of the 'crash" was the
third floor of the Palais Royal, where
Mr.. Charbneau was exhibiting his
worlds largest collection of smallest
curiosities."
The transport plane involved in the
tragedy" (Mr Charbneau would have
omitted the quotes) was one item in
the collection of 25,800 smallest ar
ticles," and was made by a Wash
ingtonian. Arthur j. Dettmers. jr., %,
of 1901 Wisconsin avenue NV.
The tiny curio had been taken from
display case for use in photo
graph with its maker and owner. Mr..
Charbneau had taken it from the glass
tube he uses to protect the intricate
and delicate makeup, when suddenly
it fell from the palm of his hand on
the floor in the way of couple of
dozen pairs of feet of the several hun
dred pairs conveying their owners
around the semi-circle of exhibit cases
at the time
"Shucks, you'll never find it." said
Mr. Dettmers when he. too, closely in
spected the pin head to find the plane
missing.
"Oh, yes We will" said the owner,
beads of perspiration popping from
his forehead.
Flashlights were put into play and
for 10 minutes the two were on their
hands and knees, their noses close to
the floor, before the shiny dot was
found. ut was carved from gold and
silver.)
Mr.. Dettmers said he made it with
out the aid Of microscope. His only
tool was file. similar to those used
by his father in his engraving busi-
ness. Mr.. Dettmer's handiwork also
is represented in the collection in the
form of another pin-head article.
In this case he went the chair-on-
a-pin-head. pictured in weekly news
picture magazine last week. one bet
ter by placing table and two chairs
atop a pin This dining suite was
made from silver blocks. The articles
are stuck to the pin head with honey,
Mr.. Dettmers explained.
Il simply take the file happen to
be working with and move my hand
about over the tiny silver block where
think it should be moved and hope"
he said.
The table and chairs were made
Thursday evening when he had "a
few hours to spare and added to Mr.
Charbneau's collection Friday. Mr.
Dettmers says his work with minia-
lures is not exactly a hobby CHe
works at a downtown shoe store) It
seems he turns out the tiny articles
only when there is demand for
them from collectors.
Mr. ~Charbneau began his collec-
ton 38 years ago, when he purchased
a minute jeweled bird in Paris Since
that time he has made a number of
round-the-world trips to add to his
display, which he began exhibiting
publicly about eight years ago. What
started out to be hobby reached
business proportions at the Worlds
Fair in Chicago in 1884, when his
collection drew international atten-
ton.
Model ships in nutshells abound in
the mass of curios More than 5,O00,-
900 persons in all parts of the world
have peered through a microscope to
read the Lords Prayer carved on a
pin head and walked along the dis
play cases to look on such items as:
A group of workable electrical kitch-
en- appliances one could put in pint
milk bottle, 5000 gold spoons in
hazelnut shell, 10000 screws In
thimble, a yacht (Which he plans to
present to the President) built in a
bottle about IL inches in diameter
with a 14-inch neck, roller skates
that roll, no larger than a peanut
kernel; camera which takes pictures
the size of the average little-finger
nail Che has pictures to prove it,,
IA spools Of genuine thread in a small
thimble, to mention only few of the
more than $4,000.
Nj. Charbneau, whose home is in
Seattle, Wash, plans to leave for
Europe within the next few weeks to
add to his collections before putting
it on display this summer in Radio
City, New York.
He carries with him a thick auto
graph book for signatures and COM
ments Of many inspectors of his COL
lection. The comments are varied.
Small in size but a great monu-
ment to perseverance," wrote the pres.
ident of large university on the
West Coast.
Too, too divine" penned q young
woman from Wilmington, Del, add
ing her telephone number as q post
script.
Mr.. Charbneau will sail for Europe
aboard the Normandie, a model of
which he has comfortably nestled In
walnut she'll