Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, December 09, 1906, HALF TONE SECTION, Image 30

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Art Glass
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PRKPA-KIXQ THE PATTEIiM.
1FTEEN men are employed nln
and a half hours a day, six da n a
week in Omaha making art gluts
windows. This may not seem a
largo force of men to be eiu,a,ed
In any occupation, but It must bo remem
btroU that the consumption of art glass Is
not as great as that of coat hod or gardi-n
rakes or soda crackers. An art glass win
dnw, when made. Is practically Indestruc
tible. It mny last for centuries, as many
of those in the cathedrals of Europe have
lasted. PcrliapH never before In history iiii
tiie art of making beautiful windows from
art kIohs, penetrated Into this territory
which Is now known as Nebraska. It U
Aery difficult to make any positive or Cef.
nlto statement on this point, for the art of
making these windows, and, indeed of mak
ing the glass Itself, has been found and
lost a number of times since history began,
and Its beginning or first discovery is Inst
In the shadowy period five or six thousand
years ago before history began. The an
cient Egyptians knew the art and handsome
epeciments of the glass they made are to
be found In some of the rains of earliest
date. Then for centuries the art was lost
until in the middle ages. The Venetians
picked It up. Under their monopoly It
flourished. The glaaa works of Venice were
the most famous the world has ever known.
The men who possessed the knowledge of
how to make glass moved to the Island
of Murano, where they guarded their secret
with the greatest Jealousy. The workmen
who, of necessity, had to know the secjret
were sworn to never reveal It. More than
one hapless fellow who went to the coun
tries northward and there tried to sell the
process was hounded down and found later
.i.i. ,.i . . . , .
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nobles of Venice gave their daughters in
marriage to the rich possessors of the great
secret and their descendants hold titles to
this day. But tho glass works of Venice
re no longer In their former glory.
Young In Omaha.
Art glass window making began ia
Omaha about four years ago. The men
who follow the occupation are ail skilled
workmen in a trade which demands a com
bination of an artistic mind with the nim
ble lingers and manual skill of the work
man. The principal or fundamental ma
terials used In this Industry are glass and
lead, zinc or copper "carnes" for the fiisteiv
lng together of the pieces which compo.iu
the windows. The glass is chiefly of the
opalescent kind. It is peculiar In many
ways. It is much harder than ordinary
window gluss; it is rough on one side and
smooth on the other; it is made in all tiie
hues of the rainbow and thousamls of hues
never t-een in the rainbow; many ot the
pieces contain several different hues in
the same piece. The pieces vary in
tranBlucenry. The genuine opalescent
glajiB Is manufactured by a secret process,
guarded Willi the most jealous care. It
Is a process which has come down from
ancient times, though through centuries it
was lost, for it possesses that same eluslve
nes which seems to be an intrinsic prop
erty of glass throughout the ages. Today
the opalescent glass commands from two
to four times the price of the baser Imita
tions of It which Yankee ingenuity has dis
covered. The price varies, strangely
enough, wilh the color, lied tints are
mora expensive than any other and the
blues are nearly as cheap In the genuine
as In the Imitation. The glass Is made In
great slabs, seven and a half feet long
Jul two and a half ftxat wide. It Is re
ceived here In this form from th glass
works In Indiana and Pennsylvania.
Dealgstr Heads the List.
An artiat-dcfclgner is at the head of the
work In Omaha. It is his duty to get the
orders. When he hears of a church about
to bo built he goes with his catalogue and
samples and shows the prospective cus
tomer Just what he can deliver. Of course,
the work is by no means confined to the
churches. Dwellings, stores, club houses,
theaters, and, in fact, nearly all types of
buildings, are apt to find art glass win
dows desirable. The order being received,
the design is placed in the hands of he
foreman of the works, who is an expert
draughtsman. He lays out the window
to the desired size on great sheets of pa-
per. The colors of glass to be used are
designated by numbers. There may be I.OOo
pines of glass in the window of fifty or
more different colors and of many different
shapes, but when the draughtsman gets
through with It everything is written
plainly on the sheet and it only remains
for the workmen to convert the instruc
tions of the paper into the complete win
dow, $
Birth of the Hrautifal Window.
After the completion of the design and
eolor scheme of the window by the head
draughtsman, an assistant makes an exact
copy of It on thicker paper. Then the
great design Is cut to pieces, the result
being an exact pattern of each piece of
glass that is to go to make up the window.
These little patterns are next handed to
the cutter who cuts all the glass. He uses
a diamond cutter, while a pair of sharp
pincers and a file are used to smooth off
the rough edgea The work 1 done with
Incredible swiftness. In spite of the hard
ness and brittleness of the glass, the cut
ter, with a few strokes, evolves a piece
of Intricate shape as easily as most people
would cut a pane of window glass. As
aoh little pattern contains its number, the
cutter. Is never in doubt as to the color of
glass to be used.
All tho pieces of glass are now reassem-
tiled by means of the original design and
Window
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Place1 on table In their respective places.
Then the wtirk of putting the puzzle to-
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carnes" are used. Thev are lone strlDS
of lead, zinc or copper, with grooves In
both sides. Most windows uru mado with
tho lead carnes, and the only tool used
by the man who puts the window together
Creighton
OLIERE'S comedy, "Le Bourgeois
M
Ckmtilhomuno." will be given next
Thursday evening at Crolghton
University hall. Twenty-filth and
Clfornia streets, by the students
i f tnat institution under the name of "The
Upstart." Moliere, whose real name was
Jean Baptists l'oyuelln, wrote "The Up
start" in 1070. He was a successful actor
as well as playwright. More than a cen
tury after his death the French academy,
which had iu his lifetime refused to admit
him as a member because of his profession
of ai tor, voted that his bust should be
placed In their chamber, with this In
scription: "For bis glory there U nothing
needed; he is needed for ours."
The play which the Crelghton students
will ativmpt next Thursday evening is
considered one of the best of Moliere's
comedies. It is expected to surpass all
other efforts of this dramatic association,
and much, time has been devoted to its
preparation. Everyone knows the story of
"Tiie Upstart;" how the tradesman tried
to rlee above his alaiiuu and what a
failure he made of the attempt. The
audience will have an opportunity to enjoy
the many ludicrous situations and appre-
elate the sarcasm, wit and humor ot the
comedy. The following prologue gives the
key to Uie pluy:
Our neighbors in olvillsed Europe, alast
Have to deal willi that inuiibut, a
privileged class,
A pmud aiibtocriicy, orenie do la creme,
I'uttiu all the Industrious classes to
phaiue.
Yel some of the latter a paltry ambition
Spurs 011 to attain to the former s position
A paluy ambition, lor naught would be
gained
Were even that tinsel advantage attained;
And no man of worth would Uetiro recogni
tion lit a elide resolved to refuse him admission.
The attempt is both loolinU and luuicrou.,
too,
And its failure iu our "Mr. Jordan" you
view.
Ohl lung may it be ere our free uallve
slioio
Pees a privileged clans to say "Come and
, adore I"
uui 11 ciuy rAeiutilves &JIOUIU pel'K Ulciu
selves up,
Nor ueifc-n uU their neighbors to dine or
to SUP,
Let us leave them aloue in thefr grandeur
to dwell,
And luugn at their eft oris at cutting a
swell.
This play was often produced by the
Jesuit students of Paris before Louis XIV
and hie court. So gorgeous were the plays
presented by the Purls students at that
time that tho general of the Society of
Jeusus, notwitlistanding they were patron
ised by royalty, forbade so much money to
be spent iu the costuming and staging.
Tne- Crelghton students are not likely to
.receive uch an order; nevertheless, no
trouble has been spurd to costume the
play suitably. Jourdain will appear as
the Jjai-kdaw In borrowed plmms and will
meet with a similar fate. There will be a
riot of color in the burlesque scene at the
end. whan monsieur U thoroughly dutwd
D m" acquaintances, who impersonate the
uu of tue ""Han of Turkey and his suite,
' order to carry out their practical Joke.
and where Jourdain lean.a that the very
finest kind of feathers does not make fine
birds.
The following Is tue complete vast, wnkh
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Making Latest of Thriving Industries for Omaha
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WORK ROOM OP THE FACTORY.
Is a knife with a heavy metal handle. The
knife is to cut the lead "carnes" and the
, , ... . ..... .
nails Into the table to hold each piece of
glass as It is put in until tho next plcco
Is added. But when tills process Is flu-
ished and the lUtle pieces of glass are all
fitted into the grooves the window is by
University Students in Annual Play:
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3. WALTER SCHOPP. 'T, AS THE PRO
FESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY.
appear on Thursday at the University hall
at 8:15 sharp:
Monsieur Jourdaln, ambitious to as
sociate with "persons of distinction"
William J. Donahue
Uncle Jourdain. a common sense uncle..
John A. McShane
Cleou, suitor for tho hand of Lucille,
cousin to Mon.sieur Jourdaln
Itaymond P. . Corriisau
Covioile. hi roimlah triMrnl ...
Charles J. McUratU
Dorimenes the marquis, a nobleman of
uuranio, a count in reduced circum
stances V. Harold Downey
Nicholas, a fat and saucy servant in
tho Jourdain family. ..Charles J. Thilen
Professor of Philosophy. .J. Waiter 8chopi
lrotVs.sor of Music John G. Jamli sun
Professur of lmiiemg. .Thomas W. ltnigan
Professor of Fencing John McCuriulck
Tailor..
..Michael buigno
Footmen
Pupils of the Pro
fessor of Dancing,
apprentices to the
Tailor
Turks, in disguise..
... j KuReiV! Noonan
I Cornelius Peacock
Hiich A. McWhorter
Gardner A. McWhorter
Robert K. Maglrl
George F. I.u.-diman
Klmer V. Heading
John H. O'Mallev
Dervishes I Hugh A. McWhorter
j Gardner A. McWhorter
Mufti J. Wallace Schopp
Muster of Ceremonies Michael Slagiio
Pages, in attendance on
Cleon as the sultan's David T Rourke
son Leo J. Rush
Reflections of a Bachelor
A man looks eligible to a girl either be
cause he has money or a handsome mus-
'at'16-
There is nothing tluit arouses a man's
ridicule so much for he fellow that wrote
them us the old love letters his wife keeps
until he finds they are his own.
a woman would like to bo a man if she
could wear her hair lone, have the same
kind of clothes she now has. and think
it was er.clting to go buggy riding with
ona.
when you try to kiss a girl In the dark
all1 nnd out that It Is her mother, the only
way yu can e,lUiire yourself U to pretend
that was the. very thing you meant to do.
New York Press.
-
rUTTINQ THB GLASS TOGETHER.
ft)
no means complete. It would not stand
.up alone. The next process is the soldering
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solder and an ordinary soldering iron,
When this is completed the window la
fairly strong. But it is not water Ueht
and, while it might be beautiful, would not
be very serviceable on a rainy day. It la
WILLIAM J. DONAHUE,
JOUUDAIN.
'OS, AS M.
Peculiar Yarns About the
1OCOMOTIVE engineers will tell
you that ot all pieces of ma-
chinery a locomotive comes near-
est to being a living thing.
It may be slow or it may be fa&t;
it may 1k a good puller or a poor puller,
These things are beyond the power of man-
To eet the best out of her to use the
pronoun that engineers employ customarily
In siaklnt of a locomotive she must bo
humored. Her engineer must know just
wli.it she can do and what is her limit, if
a strange engineer attempts to run her,
he naturally fails to get the best results
from her.
In former days the engine was a gor
geous ufTair, glittering with brass from one
end to the other. Some engineers showed
a flection for tho machine by spending hun
dreds of dollars on brasswork. But all that
Is changed In modern prai-tice on the big
railroads which makes the locomotive as
plain as possible.
The engineer studied his engine until he
knew every one of her points, both good
and bad. And it is right here that the lo
comotive becomes almost lumoii.
Build twenty of them along exactly the
same lines, and yet each machine win e
different from all the others. This is one
of the reasons why the engineer becomes
attached to his machine. He is the only one
who knows her, and ho can get from her
the best results,
The story is told of an engineer wiio said
he would almost rather run over a friend
" than reverse his engine. Reversing" an en
gine while moving at full tpeed has a ten
dency to shake her up some. The engineer
in unt that he would rather risk injuring- a
friend than his locomotive.
Down on the Missouri Pacific road was
an engine that had a record of disasti r. It
was a passenger engine of the most mod
ern worKiuansiiip, -ana Hem a iiieciianicai
point cf view had no superior.
Toe fireman had an easy Job in keeping
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PUTTING THE WINDOW TOGETHER.
therefore, given over to boys, who, with
big stiff brushes, rub a cement nmilo of
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the glass Is bedded. Then the window Is
water tight. It only remains to set it in
Its frame, clean It and add the braces, for,
with nothing but the lead "carnes" to hold
It, a hard wind would blow the window
JOHN A. M'SHANE,
JOURDAIN.
'07, AS
UNCLE
steam up on her, and it was said that the
engine could outrun and outpull any en-
glne of her build on the roud. But she was
unlucky.
She hud been in many smashups and
every engineer who had run her had been
killed. Yet the last engineer who got her
became so proud of her that he never
stopped talking about her good qualities,
To a friend he said one day, us he was
oiling ui:
. "I can't give this engine up. I have be
come so attached to her that I wouldn't
cure to run any other. And yet I feel that
she'll gut me one of these days."
"Well," replied his friend, "if you feel
like that you ought to quit runniug her
right away."
"I don't care," said the engineer,
I'm
going to stick to her anyway."
And he did.
And she got him. An empty car blew
out on the truck one night while he was
going at full speed, and when the engine
wus Jacked up the engineer was found
dead underneath.
Riding over the Illinois Central rail
road the oilier day in the cab of one of
the biggest passengar engines oil tiie road
a layman was told by the engineer:-
"This engine is 100 fast for this run.
It's too had we're not behind a little that
I eould show you what she could do.'
Just thu same this was the fastest run
between Chicago a id St. Ijuis on any of
the roads, and the engine at the time
her engineer spoke was traveling not
much less than a mile a minute.
"Watch her Jump now when I 'ie a
little of tho reserve power," continued
the proud engineer.
And then he pulled the long throttle
lever out to the limit wide open, In rail
road parlance.
Jump she did, and begun to move ut
almost redoubled speed.
"Why, this old girl should travel like
that right into t. iouis auu not turn a
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STRIPS.
In. The brace are strips of galvanized
iron an inch Wide and an eighth of an
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dow and their ends bedded in the frame,
When zinc or copper carnes are used the
braces are not needed, as these metals
havo sufficient rigridity in themselves to
withstand any wind pressure. It Is much
CHARLES J. THIELEN.
OLAS.
'08, AS NICH-
Locomotive
hair," affectionately said the engineer.
turning a proud and pleased face to his
passenger, after he hud pushed tho
throttle back to its normal position.
The engine might havo been too fast
for that particular run, but it wasn't
any too fast for him, that was very evl-
dent, and if anyone, had suggested taking
her off and substituting a smaller machine
that man would have been as much ag-
grieved as if one had 'sugsesteu his
separation from a near relative.
Of recent years on somo of the roads
there has been a change In the handling
of engines. Where lit former years eacli
engineer hud Ida own locomotive, which
he ran over a division of a hundred miles
or so and then took a rest, now t lie runs
havo lengthened to 150 and 200 miles,
find some of the engines have as many
us three engineers.
On still other roads there is a system
which is known us poollnrr tin) engines.
An engineer will huve charge of a 111a-
chine one day anil perhaps he won't get
aboard of her a.rahi for a mouth. A
new engineer takes her hack; still an
other brings her out again, and so it
goes on.
No oun tak'-s any special interest in
the machine, therefore. Under the old
system of one engineer to one enHine the
engineer will take so much Interest In
his charge that he spends hours of his
own time whipping the locomotive Into
shape, anxious to bring out the best she
ran do, for oho belongs to nl-n, and his
prlde is arousea. A goou engineers repu-
tatlon does not consist wholly In his util
ity to keep his schedule time, but much
of It rests upon lits being able to keep
his engine In good running order.
But t he pooling scheme has done away
wilh all this and 110 one can be held re
sponsible for tho poor working of an
engine. The moment the engineer flu-
lshes his run he is glad to quit work
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PARTLY COMPLETED WINDOW.
more difficult, however, to const ruct a win
4ow with these metals than with lead.
Besides opalescent glass, there are other
materials used In makin? art glasa win
dows. "Jewels" nre hemispherical objects
made of different colored glass and ucd
as ornaments In windows. They come from
Austria. "Spun roundles" are glass disks
which are made In Europe by a process of
rapid whirling of the moulten glass. When
pictures nre needed In the window theee
must be placed there by artists who work
with paint and brush. The work Is not as
simple, however, as painting on canvas, for
the paint must be fused Into the glass and
made a part of It. This is done by uslnt?
paint made of pulverized colored glnss
which Is fusible at a lower temperature
than the glass on which the painting Is
done. When tho artist has pnlnted the
picture the glass is pl iced In an oven, where
It la subjected to a very great heat and
the paint Is fused and burned into the
Itlass. None of this work Is done In Omaha,
though windows nre made containing pic
tures. The artistio work is done else
where, sent here, and the picture Is In
corporated into the window In this city.
Tricks of Window Glass.
The making of prism glass windows and
bevel plate glass windows Is a department
In Itself. Prism glass is used In stores and
dwellings where it is desirtd to divert the
rays of light into a dark corner or to make
the most of a small amount of light. It Is
used largely In stores above the plate glass
of the show windows where Its peculiar
properties for throwing- light make It use
ful. Bevel plate glass Is usee? largely In makr
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process of beveling is Interesting. It con-
slsts In merely grinding down the edges ot
the glass. This would not. In Itself, be
very difficult were it not for the fact that
after the grinding the glass Is left In an
oplque condition. It then has to bs
smoothed and polished to Its former trans-
parenry. The first grinding Is done on a
cast Iron disk, which revolves rapidly in
horizontal direction. On this disk sand
nd water are allowed to run. After the
main part of the grinding has been done
the glass is placed on a similar wheel,
where emery Is used instead of sand and
some of the roughness produced by the
sand Is removed. It is next placd on a
"Newcastle smoothing stone," which 'Is
much like a grandstone. The polishing Is
further done by a "wooden stone," which
Is made of a cross section of a poplar tree.
It revolves very rapidly in a vertical posi
tion. The final polish Is given by a hoel
which Is bound with felt and on this wheel
French rouge is used.
Making of Sllrrora.
Mirrors are also made in Omaha. They
are of the best quality, being made with
nitrate of silver, and their backs being
varnished and painted to protect them
against wearing out. In this work tin
glass is first polished with felt and Jewel
ere' rough, so tliat every scratch may be
removed. It Is next washed by letting roM
water run over It for a considerable time.
Then It Is placed on a rack over stea:u
pipes. The plate of glass must . be ht
fectly level. The workman then pours the
solution of nitrate of silver on tho glass,
which must lie perfectly level. In a Tew
moments, under the influence of the heat
from the steam pipes, the sliver la pre
cipitated to the gluss and later tho water Is
poured off. When the sliver Is dry it Is
protected with a coat of varnish and tl.is
is covered with a coat of paint. The re
sult Is a glass which will last fer yeur..
No glass will laet forever, as heat aril
other atmospheric conditions will cuuse It
to deteriorate.
i -
Olil-Knshlonert Ways Prevail,
Art glass window making Is one of the
industries unaffected by the modern eduea-
tlonal methods. There are. no gruduat
of colleges or technical schools there. A
visit to the shop shows apprentice bos
learning the trade In tlio old-fashioned way,
under tho masters of the craft, who, la
their turn, received their training In thu
same manner.
When a boy enters the bhop he S tint
put to work In applying the cement to the
finished windows a task that requires no
particular skill. As ho advances no learns
to put together simple windows, where.
niost of the pieces aro square or rectangu
lar. Then he is advanced to putting to
gether more intricate windows. Later U
barns the soldering work. Then he learns
llio difficult department of the cutting of
the glas and finally after mastering t!ie
designing department he Is proficient for
every branch of the craft.
The bevelin.- department has even m"ie
the appearance of the primitive kl.op.
No modern Invention has been discovei'il
to dispute the early methods of glMis
grinding. The ancient Egyptians may h ive
ground down their glaj thousands of years
ago In a shop looking much like tho mod-
ern B,op. The materials are simply sa;id
and emery and wood and felt. Thero is ii'j
delicate machinery anywhere. Tls" appri n-
t)ce ystem is followed here also.
The Industry of art glass window maki'B
has grown in Omaha sincii it was begun
four years ago ami promises to be one
of the leading businesses of the city. The
quality of work done here Is first-class.
Moot of the churches of the slate are sup
plied from Omaha. Many liandsome resi
dences, stores and other buildings have
t.rn equipped In Omalia and other Cities
and towns of the state.
1