Where Quill Toothpicks are Made.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XXIV, Issue 1813, 18 July 1891, Page 2 (Supplement)

Where Quill Toothpicks are Made.

It is well known that a bunoh of quill picks can be purchased at a drug store for cd., and there the popular knowledge ends. A reporter started out to find the fountain head of quill toothpicks. The retail druggist eaid that he bought them of the wholesale dealer in drugs and notions. The reporter made a tour of the wholesale drug houaes, and at every one he was informed that they purchased them in the oity or imported them from Eranoe and Germany, and that was all they knew about it. The feather dealers had little or no light to throw on the subject. Tho manufacturers of feather dusters were ignorant regarding the quill piok industry. Finally a gentleman, who is the buyer for a large drug house, was found, who had seen a factory where the quill pioka were made. When asked the question, he said, — "I do not know of any factory in this country where quill toothpicks are made. Wa buy ours from a broker in Paris, who obtains them from a large manufactory near that city. M. Bardin, at Joinville le Pont, near Paris, had the largest manufactory in the world engaged in the quill industry. Ho has two million geese, and produces annually twenty million quills. Formerly thiß factory made quill pens, but when these went out of general use the quills were used to make brushes for artists and toothpicks. The picks are made by machinery, and are put up in bundles of ten eaoh, and these are in packages containing one thousand. Tbe price is so low that there is very little margin of profit in the business. The wooden toothpick has taken the plaoe of the quill. They come one thousand in a box, and cost but 3d. per box to the oonsumer. The quill piok costs 3d. per bunoh of ten, but they are far better than the wooden ones. Brush factories use the quills for camels' hair ponoils.