White Rabbit Egg Dye for Easter Eggs

Since 1888, White Rabbit has been competing with Paas (founded 1880) packaged egg dyes.  The White Rabbit advertising included colorful graphics and lovely paper dye sheets. These 1899 ads are more colorful than Paas Egg Dye Co's advertising. Their web site is just as colorful and creative.

The current advertising includes the fun website.  In addition to pictures of an old display and packets, there is a clever dropping of the tablets.  The company is new to me, but it is family owned and non-toxic, so next year...  website  HERE Click on pictures to enlarge.

A description of their 1899 advertising materials in The National Druggist, Feb. 1899  -

The German Version of the Easter Egg.

The German myth, familiar to all the kinder, that the white rabbit is responsible for the Easter egg, is very, very old. With other things peculiar to child lore which we Americans have adopted from our large and jolly German population is this rabbit story, a curious and interesting one for the children, as early on Easter morn they hunt the beautiful colored Easter eggs that are found in nests all about the garden (if there be one) or in out-of-the-way corners of the yard or house.

The origin of this myth is lost in antiquity, but its latest development is the use of this myth of German child lore by the enterprising and progresive St. Louis firm, the Donnell Manufacturing Company, who have brought Bunny and the Easter egg into succesful combinations. The company did this by getting out very elaborate, beautiful and expensive eight-colored lithographs in which four white rabbits and eight handsomely-colored Easter eggs were the features, and adopted that trade-mark for their White Rabbit Egg Dye. For their White Rabbit Paper Dye they adopted the same trade-mark with the addition of four little girls in white Kate Greenway dresses, and sixteen eggs showing the sixteen color designs, for five cents, and spent a large amount of money in advertising and introducing the White Rabbit Dyes to the trade. 

This idea, so beautifully carried out in the White Rabbit Egg Dyes, at once caught the attention and admiration of the trade and became very popular with the children. Please examine the two-page eight-colored insert in this issue of this journal and see the effect produced by this trade-mark when printed in colors, and be sure that the same eight-colored lithographed trade-mark is on the box labels, window hangers, window streamers and White Rabbit easel cards. A little care will prevent you from being imposed upon. 

The White Rabbit Egg Dye is not stuck together with gum. There are no such adulterations in the White Rabbit Egg Dyes. Gum interferes with the solubility of the dye and with its action upon the eggshell. White Rabbit Egg Dye, therefore, is soluble in any kind of water, hard or soft, and colors the egg instantaneously, a bright, even, brilliant, beautiful color. The White Rabbit Egg Dye excels and leads all others in beauty, brilliancy and in the number of colors for five cents. The only dye that gives eight beautiful colors for five cents. The dealer can make some profit and yet give the children eight beautiful colors for five cents, out of which they can make one hundred shades. 

The White Rabbit Paper Dye leads and excels all other paper dyes in the number of novel, artistic, beautiful color designs for five cents. The only paper dye that gives the children sixteen beautiful color designs, no two alike, for five cents. Just think, sixteen novel, beautiful and brilliant color designs, in picture and marble effects, for decorating Easter eggs in all the colors of the rainbow and only costs a nickle. Surely this should make any child happy. If you want an up-to-date egg dye, buy the White Rabbit Egg Dye—the handsomest put-up egg dye, the best advertised dye, the best egg dye in every way.

The new feature for the season of 1899 is the large amount of free advertising for the retail dealer, consisting of White Rabbit Easel Cards, White Rabbit Window Hangers, White Rabbit Window Streamers and beautiful White Rabbit Pictures for the dealer to give the children to interest them and, thereby, increase the sales of the dye. Do not lay in your stock of Egg Dye until you see what White Rabbit does for you. The best seller and gives the best profits. See two page Insert in this issue."

Here is the Paas advertisement in the same publication -

©2020 Patricia Bixler Reber
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