With the advent of the great industrial era at the beginning of the nineteenth century, the guild system became ineffective, but the furriers continued their work as heretofore. Up to about the middle of the nineteenth century, the furrier continued to be the only factor of any importance in the fur trade. There was no need for speed in his work, for the demands of the trade were not so urgent. The fact that the dressing of furs often occupied two to four weeks was no deterring factor in his business. However, with the great expansion of the fur trade about this time, it became impossible for the individual furrier to do everything himself, and keep up with the requirements of his customers. Specialization commenced, and establishments were set up solely for fur dressing. The traditional time- and labor-consuming processes were still used, but the efficiency of work on a large scale enabled the fur dressers successfully to fill their orders. But the fur trade continued to grow by leaps and bounds, and very soon the fur dressers were no longer able to meet the demands of the trade. It was then that the science of chemistry came to the aid of the fur dresser, and helped him meet the exigency. By devising dressing processes which were cheap and efficient, and which only required several hours, or at the most one or two days, as compared with as many weeks, the chemist brought the fur dresser out of his dilemma. And with the adoption of mechanical time- and labor-saving devices, the fur dressing industry has made wonderful progress.
CHAPTER IV
FUR DRESSING
Preliminary Operations
The fur dresser receives the skins in one of two shapes, flat or cased, depending on the manner in which they were removed from the animal. Flat skins, as for example, beaver, are obtained by cutting on the under side of the animal from the root of the tail to the chin, and along the inner side of the legs from the foot to the first cut. The skins are either fastened to boards or attached to wooden hoops slightly larger than the skins, so as to stretch them, and are then carefully dried, avoiding direct sunshine or artificial heat, as it is very easy to overheat the skins and thereby ruin them. The great majority of skins, however, are cased. The pelts are cut on the under side of the tail, and along the hind legs across the body, the skin being then removed by pulling it over the head off the body like a glove, trimming carefully about the ears and nose. The skin is thus obtained inside out, and is drawn over a stretching board or wire stretcher of suitable shape and dimensions, so as to allow the skin to dry without wrinkling. The pelts, after drying in a dry, airy place, are removed from the stretchers and are ready for the market. With some furs, as foxes, the skins are turned hair-side out while still somewhat moist, and then put on the stretcher again till fully dried. In most cases, however, skins are sold flesh-side out. Throughout the various dressing operations cased skins are kept intact, being turned flesh-side out or hair-side out according as the processes are directed to the respective sides. The pelts are only cut open if they have to be dyed, or after the manufacturer receives them, when they have to be worked into manufactured garments.
A distinction which is made by fur dressers and dyers, and also by the fur trade in general, divides furs into those derived from domestic animals, particularly the various kinds of sheep, including also the goat species, and those obtained from other animals by trapping. In fact, at one time, and to a certain extent even to-day, dressers were divided into two groups based on this distinction, one class dealing only with furs obtained from the sheep family, and the other working with other kinds of furs. This differentiation is not a simple arbitrary one, but has a rational justification. As mentioned before, the manner and habit of living of the animal are important factors in determining the nature and constitution of its skin, both leather and hair. The structure of the body being dependent primarily upon the nature of the food absorbed by the animal, it is only natural that herbivorous or vegetable-eating animals such as sheep and goats, should possess fur of a different sort from that of the carnivorous or meat-eating animals, such as the majority of fur-bearers are. It also seems clear that furs differing in their character and constitution should require somewhat different treatments, and accordingly the methods are modified when furs like lambs or goats are dressed. To a great extent, however, the fundamental operations are similar for all furs, regardless of nature or origin, and these will be discussed briefly.
Inasmuch as the first great purpose of fur dressing is to render the skins more or less permanently immune from the processes of decay, it is necessary to prepare the pelts so as to be most fit to receive the preserving treatment. The skins as they are delivered to the fur dresser have, in the majority of cases, been stretched and dried to preserve them temporarily, while in some instances, especially with the larger furs like bears and seals, they are salted and kept moist. The flesh-side of the pelt still has considerable fleshy and fatty tissues adhering to it, and the hair is generally soiled and occasionally blood-stained. In order to get the pelts into such a condition that they can be worked and manipulated, they first have to be made soft and flexible. Very greasy skins are scraped raw in order to remove as much as possible of the attached fat, the operation being known as beaming or scraping. The typical beam, shown in [Fig. 3], consists of a sloping table usually made of some hard wood, and placed at an angle of about 45°. It is generally flat, although in some instances convex beams are also used, about a yard long, 8 to 10 inches wide, and firmly supported at the upper end. The skin is placed on the beam, flesh-side up, and is scraped with a two-handled knife ([Fig. 4]), always in a downward direction.
Fig. 3. Beam.
Fig. 4. Knives Used in Fur Dressing.