Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1857-05-08
miscellaneous.
THE FAIRBANKS GREAT SCALE
WORKS AT ST. JOHNSBURY.
Sr. JouNsprRy. VI. April ts. 81

England village should visit st. JOhnsbury.
The place is situated at the present terminus
of the Connecticut and Passumpsic Railroad.
! say present terminus. because it is in con-
temptation 20 extend the line next fall TO Bar
ton, twcnty-seven miles northward, and ulti-
mately to carry it 70 the Canada line, whore
10 may before long connect with a direct line
TO Montreal.
Freshness. neatness, and a quiet air of
thrift arc the characteristics of the Vermont
villages. The Town Hall is large and
handsome brick building the churches are
neat specimens of Ecclesiastical architecture
there are two excellent hotels, and fine hall
for lectures and concerts. In short. St.
Johnsbury is q model village and its inhabi-
tants rank high i'm the intellectual scale. They
arc lecture going people. and few more disc
criminativo audiences age TO be found. There
is, too, Choral Society, which is well sup
ported.
But the. great feature Of St. Johnsbury-
the heart of the place, and the centre of the
business--is the extensive and world-known
Scale Mandatory of the Mcssrs Fairbanks.
TO this establishment ! recently paid visit,
and imagining that a pcn-and-ink sketch OF
what there saw might ba interesting 20 the
readers of the Traveller, lot me iot down my
experiences among the soao-meker.
The firm consists of Erastus Fairbanks,
seinor partner. Thaddeus Fairbanks. tho in-
vcntor, and Horace, Charles and Franklin
Fairbanks sons of the senior partner. All
of them are actively engaged i'm the manuac-
fure Of scales, or in the general management
of the business, either at headquarters. or at
the several agencies in the larger cities in the
Union.
The Mandatory of the Fairbanks scales Is
situated in sort of valley or hollow. about
half a mile from the railway depot 10 was a
BRIGHT Uint~v m,rnioy when trudred to-
wards it. along the snow-coyered road. I.aay-
inc tbo main street inst bevond the Town
nan and turnin, to- tho 15bt. passed be-
ty.eon birb b,rts nm rrbiA stood several
goc dveilip houses. owned bv members of
n,e firm or tboir em,loyeo. Tho road de-
.coudad I'm n -entlo ,7oic until reached the
works which Inv lttlo t5 tbe left ofit.
There was nothin, very imposing i'm the ex-
formal aDnearance of the factory. Ii consist
ed of an irregular cluster of buildings. ono
mart bavipy baen built ON to another. as addi-
ditional bnsiness facilities reouired On en-
tsrir, IN, pr,piscs offices and a store appoar-
ed ON the rjgbt hand and in order TO obtain
permission TO see the factory. I aDplied to
orpor Fairbanla who at once offered me ev-
ery facility and placed me under the care of
an INTELLIGENT conductor. bv whom was pilot
ed through the place.
Asit would he quite imDossible to recount
I'm detail the various processes of the scale
manufacture without the aid of illustrative
l;ayrams. shall not attemDt more than a
general description. Keeping this in mind
let the reader accompany me as / wander
through the dcnartments. commencing with
the Foundry.
And busy scene it is which is here pre-
sented. About fifty men are employed in
moulding the various portions of a scale
Here an the small work is done, and the a-
mount Of this "smau" work may be Judged
Of bv the fact that from to 9 tons of iron
are melted daily in the furnace which stands
ON one side of the Foundry The Company
makes its own brass. Passing through tho
Brass Foundry and the Vitrioling Room, w,
reach the Casting cleaners room. where the
operations Of filing, DC, are incessantly 90
ing on. Leaving this, we enter the Tophe
of the cstablishment-the Blacksmitbs Shop
whore upwards Of forty fires are blazing and
roaring, and as many swart Vulcans are beat
ing the white-hot metal into shape
The Machine Shop is next roached and
here are upwards of twenty Lever llers, bust
ly employed in filing piyots, &c; othor arti
sans are working az the Lathcs and as pass
along notice a gentlcman who has iron-gra,
hair. a very thoughtful countonance, and whc
Is engaged in quiet but earnest conversation
with one of the operatives. Although / an
q stranger there, he sees but takes not th'
slightest notice of the intruder until ! am in
troduccd to him by my guide, and then h'
salutes me very gnyoly. and without The
ghost Of a smile on his face. lie is absorbe,
in thoughts there is no mistake about that
and no wonder, for II we could mentally dis
sect the brain which underlies those gra
hairs, we should see there as many organs o
contrivance and invention as might be sup
posed to exist in the cerebum of Mr.. Danio
Dovce whom we read of in Dickens "Littl
Dorrit'
Mr. Thaddeus Fairbanks is indeed the in
yentive genius of the Fairbanks establish
mont and when | was told by one of tn
firm the story of bis finding out how TO brin
the scales to their present point Of perfection
looked ON that serious-h faced gentleman wit
very great interest indeed. it seems that th
firm commenced business in lS3l-l mean a
scalc-makers, for since 1925 some of the Fair