The Peril of the Fur Coat 



By A. M. Jungman 



DT D you ever see a rosy-faced child with 

 a pretty white fur piece around its 

 neck and its hands thrust deep into 

 the comforting warmth of a white fur 



been discovered by the physicians of the 

 Occupational Clinic of the Department 

 of Health of the City of New York. 

 With a view toward obviating- many of 

 the hazards which sur- 

 round the fur garment 

 makers, an exhaustive 

 study has been made of 

 the fur and allied trades 

 in this city. 



In the garment mak- 

 ers' trade the workers 

 have better surroimd- 

 ings than do the hatters' 

 fur workers. Their per- 

 ils are to be found in 

 the making of childrens' 

 sets. These are made of 

 angora skins and other 

 pelts. The angora skins 

 are brought from China, 

 and when they reach 



The new method of 

 beating fur. The ma- 

 chine is designed on 

 the principle of a vac- 

 uum cleaner. A rat- 

 tan beater inside the 

 machine beats the fur 

 and the particles of 

 dust and fur are sucked 

 up into the bag in- 

 stead of filling the air 

 about the workman as 

 was the case with the 

 old method 



mufif? An altogether in- 

 nocent and charming 

 sight, you would think. 

 It is rather a disillusion- 

 ment to find that death 

 and disease lurk around 

 that snowy fur. Not for 

 the child, to be sure, but 

 constantly, from the 

 m i n u t e that fur was opened in the 

 garment furmaker's shop to the minute 

 when it is placed around the little one's 

 neck, at least one person's health was in 

 danger because of it. 



That this particularly dangerous trade 

 may be made comparatively safe has 



A fur worker 

 not protected 



beating fur by hand. The workman is 

 from the particles of fur and dust which 

 are raised by his beating 



the factory they are more or less 

 curly. The hair is combed to straighten 

 it and to give it an appearance of uni- 

 form flufifiness. For this purpose a 

 combing machine is used. This means 

 tliat a man holds the skin under a re- 

 volving cylinder on which are set fine 



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