308 EEPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



tion of each coat of dye, the length of time reciuired for both opera- 

 tions is six to eight weeks. The expense of this work in London is 

 about 14 shillings, while in New York, owing to the higher price for 

 labor and materials, it is about %5 for each skin. 



No matter how carefully the unhairing process is performed, a num- 

 ber of hairs are broken off near the surface of the fur, and there remain 

 many of young growth and not 3'et above the surface, detracting from 

 the beauty and softness of the fur, but adding thickness and durabilit}^, 

 owing to the protection afforded. In the early history of fur-dressing 

 in England and America these few hairs were left in, but when fur- 

 seal increased in fashion it became important to have the fur as free 

 from coarse hairs as possible. From 1870 to about 1882 the few hairs 

 remaining after the process of depilation were removed conmionly by 

 hand labor, a slow and expensive process. Most fur-manufacturers 

 emploj^ed girls to ' ' pick " the skins. Blowing open the soft fur with her 

 breath, the operator cut off the stiff, extended hairs with small shears, 

 requiring one to five days for one person to complete a single skin. 



Since 1883 most of this work has been done by complicated mechan- 

 ism which accomplishes the work as effectually and far more expedi- 

 tiously. In this process the skin is bent across the upper edge of a 

 vertical board and the soft fur blown aside and divided by a thin, wide 

 current of air from a bellows, when a pair of small knives descend 

 and cut off the stiff, upright hairs. The knives are raised, the skin 

 advanced the fraction of an inch, and the operation repeated until the 

 entire surface is gone over, requiring about one hour to complete an 

 average skin. This removal of the short hairs is invariably postponed 

 until after the dressing and d^^eing are completed. 



On the adoption of fur-seal as a fashionable material, about 1870, 

 and the great increase in price which quickly ensued, many substitutes 

 were introduced, and since then few furs have been so frequently imi- 

 tated. These were prepared from numerous cheajier furs, as otter, 

 beaver, nutria, amskrat, cony, and even sheep. The otter, beaver, 

 and muskrat imitations were fairly successful, espocialh^ for the man- 

 ufacture of caps, gloves, and trimmings. They were not satisfactory 

 for cloaks, the membrane being too thick and too weak to trim down 

 sufficiently thin. The garments looked well at first, but soon showed 

 wear, especially at the seams, and the dye faded. A large market was 

 developed on the continent of Europe, especially in Germany and 

 Russia, for fur-seal imitation prepared from muskrat pelts, this cheap 

 substitute greatly injuring the market for the genuine material. 

 Owing to the general dissatisfaction resulting from their use, these 

 imitations were gradual!}' al)andonod l)v reliable furriers, and with the 

 exception of that made from the French cony or rabbit, and known 

 as "electric seal,-' "coast seal," "China seal/' "Canadian seal," etc., 

 fur-seal is not frequently imitated at the present time, except, as before 

 stated, for tri nun i 110s and small article:^\ 



