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Show MAY BE A BUTTON FAMINE. H ShortnRfl lttnnrtFil In llm I'rnilncllon of jH Vrsrlnlilp Ivory. IH The production of vegetablo Ivory H during the past season has been very H small aud very heavy purchases of tH the available Mipply hnvc been mndo H by Germany, the result ot tho two jH combined Influences being that tho J price of this product has been ad- H vnnced from twenty-live to thirty per H cent, during the last ninety days. H Thoimh perhaps not one person In a H thousand is nvwit-c ot the fact,' nearly H every 1.1.111 and boy In the United H Stntes Is dally wearing vegctublo H Ivory, ns the greater part of the coat H nnd vest button supply ot the world fll Is made from this product. The nuts jl from which It Is made grow wild In Hl the forests of Colombia and Ecuador '1 and aro Imported into tlio United r!H States In quantities varying from S.ooo.ooo to 10.ooo.ouo pounds a year. 91 Each pound makes several hundred . gross of buttons, which nro dyed to finBH match the color of the cloth with HBI Which they nro to he used, liBI The nuts grow upon n tree somowlmt ll stmllnr to the palm, the fruit growing 9H In n pod, larger than n coeoanut, which W contains a large number of nuts, from 191 the milky Inside of which Is produced ! the hard substance used In making JH buttons. The nuts are gathered by tho jH South American Indians nnd taken In II boats to the nearest transportation MBS point. The mnrket price here is from Vl two nud u halt to four nnd a half SbB cents a peund. , H |
