r- 'v:
HAVE you ever thought of how that
little bit of pearl, ivory, brass or
wood that holds our garments to
gether distinguishes us from the an
cionls? Without it tight-fitting cloth
ing would never have been introduced.
,Vo other article of which we know
today could take the place of what wc
call a button. Women might succeed
Ih pinning thoir gowns together but
what about the thicker garments of
the men? facing is all right for a shoo
or h rorsct but wholly impracticable
for coats and vests. Hooks and eyes
will answer on a dross lining but how
would thoy look on an overcoat? Any
way, hooks and eyes really belong to
tilio button family representing one of
the stages In Its evolution.
The button Is one of the very best
examples of tho importance of small
things. Read It out of existence in all
its forms and it would afreet our Na
tional life. Compelled to return to
the robes of our ancostors. many of
the greatest linos of modern industry
would bo handicapped. Imagine the
fireman of a locomotive clad In loose,
flowing garments, or the conductor of
n crowded trolley car making change
In a toga.
Dates Back lo Elizabeth.
The history of the button Industry
dates back only to the reign of Eliza
bath, which was from 155S to 1603.
Groat Britain lias been tho great button-making
center of the world for a
long time and Birmingham the seat of
manufacture. Buttons grew rapidly in
favor not only on account of their use
fulness but as ornaments. It became
a great fad to adorn one's clothing
with beautiful brass buttons so made
that a prismatic effect resulted as the
light shone upon tnem. Not only those
if high ofilclal rank wore beautiful
buttons, but the English dudes and
tradesmen as well, this fad reaching
Its zenith in the early part of the 19th
century. Then came buttons of metal
bearing the designs of animals and
these gave place to those of cloth
the invention of an Englishman named
Sanders. In 1S37, the silk-covered but
ton made its appearance and became at
-once so popular that 60 looms were
kept working overtime to fill the de
mand. Later linen buttons were Intro
duced for underclothing and then
glass buttons in Bohemia, porcelain In
France, and composition In Germany;
Our American Production.
Forty-two buttons each for every
man, woman and child In the United
States represents the annual produc
tion of the United States according
to a special report on buttons issued
by our Government in connection -with
the 12th census. I am informed, how
ever, that since this report thero Tiavc
been great changes in the making 'of
buttons In this country and also the
annual production has greatly in
creased. Our buttons In the United
States are made from bone, cloth, horn,
metals, vegetable Ivory, wood, cellu
loid, paper, pearl and several other
materials. Of these pearl buttons hold
first place in both value and numbers.
Twelve million gross of frcsn-water
pearl buttons are now being made in
this country each year and about one
fifth as many salt-water pearl buttons.
Since the last census report the pearl
buttons annually produced have nearly
doubled.
Fifteen years ago it was discovered that
the waters of the Illinois, Indiana. Iowa,
Tennessee and Arkansas produced pearl
excellently adapted to the making of but
tons. Up to that time all pearl buttons
made In the United States were from
salt-water shells, and the button indus
try was confined to cities on tho Eastern
coast. Since the discovers' of fresh-water
pearl, tho industry has spread well Into
the Central and "Western States. Hun
dreds of shellhunters, busy themselves
along tho rivers, and factories for the
making of button blanks have sprung up
on the banks.
The salt-water shells which come Into
tho United States for buttonse are
brought from the markets of London to
which they are shipped from Sydney,
Australia, from Bombay and elsewhere.
These shells arc sold by the pound and
their price depends upon their color and
clearness. Somo shells from which but
tons are sawed weigh five pounds. Tho
Sydney or Australian shell is the best
and sells for not less than 45 cents a
pound, and the Bombay shell for perhaps
23 cents a pound. The Sydney shell is
nearly al' white, while the Bombay shell
may be white only at the center, black
at the edges and yellow in between.
Fresh-water pearl is worth $15 a ton, or
three-fourths of a cent a pound, and
therefore the nahshed product is much
cheaper also.
Cutting Shells Into Button Blanks.
Tho first operation In the making of
a button is preparing and sawing of the
shell into button Masks of varieus sizes
and thicknesses. In oe of the accom
panying photographs a workman is .shewn
at a HHLcfaliie with a twe r three-peuad
THE SUNDAY OREGONIAN, PORTLAND, 3IAROH 11, 1906.
MAKE BUTTON:
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shell nearly ready to be turned Into
blanks. Fresh-water shells arc handled
In the same manner. The blanks. It will
be understood, are round and of the same
diameter as tho buttons Into which they
aro made. The varied thickness of the
shell give a variety of thicknesses to the
blanks Xs first sawed out, thus necessi
tating the slicing of them Into many ad
ditional blanks, all, of course, of the same
diameter. The available blanks having
been, thus mechanically cut from the shell,
the shell presents an odd appearance.
Indeed, not unlike a target shot full of
holes. If the blanks have been prepared
upon the banks of some river, they, are
shipped in sacks like so much grain "and
are thus received at the storeroom of the
button factory proper. These bags con
tain 203 pounds or more. A grading ma
chine automatically sorts bushels and
bushels of these blanks Into their respect
ive thicknesses.
Tho various sises of buttons at a but
ton factory and to the trade are described
by a number and th word "lines." Thero
arc ten-line buttons and 5-line buttons,
and some even larger. There arc 49 lines
to the lack, as when we speak of a if-
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P
my
line button it means that the diameter
of that button is one inch.
As soon as the shells have been turned
into blanks the work of shaping, facing
and drilling is begun. The placing of a
face upon a button was. In the early days
done by hand with the aid of some small
tools. Then came the button machines
which rest upon a bench and are operated
by belting. These In appearanco are not
unlike the bench lathes of a machinist.
Each button is put in a sort of socket
with one hand of the operator and with
the other hand the mechanical facing
tool is bnmckt In coaUcj, with it jyad. lht
I
power applied. The drilling of the holes
In the button Is done in the same way.
About three years ago, a marvelous
new invention made its appearance and
has revolutionized the Industry to no
small extent. In the making of fresh
water pearl buttons, one ot these ma
chines takes tho place of five girls under
the former plan, A girl seated at one
of these machines places the blanks one
after another Tapldly In position. On a
sort of belt-like arrangement these but
tons, as they are put in place, are car
ried first to the mechanism which shapes
and faces, and then a little further to the
point at which drills automatically op
erate In piercing holes. Carried on fur
ther, tho button Is delivered from the
machine into a receptacle and the part of
the machine which held It on its Jour
ney quickly comes round in front of the
operator again to be filled. These ma
chines were Invented in Iowa and were
first put into use by Mr. Watson, of Erie,
Pa. They aro ' now coming into auite
general use.
"Where buttons aro of large size and
arc to be mado in some fancy design., this.
jw k is dost upoa a. band machine. Tkese
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mm
buttons are of course more expensive.
Tho style of decoration in buttons does
not change greatly. After the buttons
are finished they go to the tables where
a force is engaged in picking out any
that may be in any way defective. In
another part of tho factory another force
of girls Is employed in fastening the but
tons onto cards ready for the market. A
large spool of thread'ls held in place upon
the center of the table and a quantity of
card-? lie beside each of the four girls
which surround the table. These girls
become very adept at this work and eas
ily sow on 40 gross a day each.
Buttons !From Vegetable Ivory.
Next in Importance, perhaps, to the but
tons of pearl are those used by tailors
and which are produced In great quanti
ties from vegetable ivory. Vegetable
Ivory Is picked from trees in South Amer
ica. It comes in the form of nuts and
tho tree which bears them resembles a
palm. These nuts are picked up by the
Indians and shipped to tho Isthmus of
Panama and from thence find their way
North. The nuts are dried and the outer
coat removed. Men at machines saw
these nuts Into slabs, the larger the nuts
the larger the pieces which they will ob
tain from It. Skilled operators hold the
slabs against whirling dies and cut the
button Into shape. The buttons are pure
whlto In color and it is difficult to tell
them from real ivory. A large portion of
them are next colored by dyes and they go
to make buttons for coats, cloaks,, trous
ers and vests.
Horn buttons are usually made from
the hoofs of cattle. The hoofs are first
boiled in large kettles and softened and
then cut. They are stamped into shape
under a hydraulic press and then the
holes are bored and they are polished.
Metal buttons are made from rolled
metal plate and shaped in dies,, there
often being two dies for one button, the
parts of the button being brought togeth
er before finishing. As to covered but
tons, they have been made in the "United
States for moro than threo-quarters, of a
century. At first the covering of Buttons
was done, as might be surmised, -'by-hand.
Now. thl3 work Is done by auto
matic machinery in many, places. The in
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side of a covered button may be either
metal or wood.
"W. FRANK McCLURE.
PERIL IN COLLEGE TRAINING
Medical Authority Points Out the
Dangers to American Youth.
American Medicine.
It Is wrong to put" any one In training
at any time, to create a physiologic car
diac enlargement which remains to
plague him in after life, but to place the
growing boy under this regimen Is noth
ing short of criminal. No college sport
should require "training. no matter how
much practice is needed, and no game
should alngle out a few very abnormal
men. Sports arc necessary parts of
youthful life, the essentials of child's
education, Indeed, and every one must
take part in them to educate the nerves,
not to deaden them.
Games are normal only when they cul
tivate perceptions to accuracy and quick
ness, but never should they put the tis
sues to their maximum allowable strain.
The only use. of the present game stems
to be to afford relaxation to those In' the
grand stand pale-faced boys who should
be at some game themselves instead of
rooting for the beef ot the college.. The
gambling and commercialism do not con
cern the medical side of the matter, but
are features having a distinctly perni
cious psychologic effect upon boya at the
very age they can be most Injured. We
hope that these dreadful Harvard revela
tions will be the final argument to con
vlncv educators and college faculties that
they must wake up to their duty to regu
late sport.
Play of animals and children Is really a
means of educating or exercising other
parts of tho nervous system than the
mere memory, which scms to be the main
thing drilled In our college youths,. If
some play is beneficial and there does
not seem to be any doubt on that point
then it must be utilized and encouraged
for every student and not so utterly ig
nored and allowed to degenerate, to a
form which Is Injurious.
If "3Tou Should Journey Back.
Margaret H. Garvin In Lipplncott'a
If you should journey back from death.
And suddenly should greet my gaze.
I would not waste one blissful breath
In any hesitant amaze;
My arms would have- you in their hold
Without one question or reply.
My very eyelids would Infold
The sight of you, lest It should fly!
My Hps, without a word, could well
Confess how lonely they had Seen;
And I would let the Joy-tears tell'
Of grief that, kept them locked wlt&ia.
The pressure of my hands would plead
With thine to never let them go;
My feet would follow in your lead
Without a wish the way to know.
If you to love should reappear ' -It
would not seem the mystery
Our parting was, nor each strangc'-yMr
Wherein you have tea Joet to
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