Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1864-03-31
PROGRESS OF INVENTION.
A Thing that Interests Coopers, Pack
a ers, Distillers, &c. aa
From the Chicago Tribune

al industry that has made SO little prog
ress in the last century as the Cooper's
art. Except in producing tubs. pals. and
a few other articles of like description. the
cooper to-day goes through the same slow,
dull process to produce pork. wine.
whisky, or any other tight barrel. as he
dill fifty, perhaps hundred years ago.
Many attempts at progress have been
made, but they have always practically
proved failures from various causes; one
in particular of which was, the prejudice.
first by coopers, then by packers, distillcrs,
&c against their use We think now the
time has come. and the means provided,
for new era in this branch of industry.
partly from the law ofsupply and demand;
and more certainly from an invention
which experience has proved will surely
and most satisfactorily answer the pur-
pose. We refer to Hurlburt's Tight Stave
Saving and Dressing Machine.
This machine was patented on the Sd of
July. 1860, by j. B. & w. w. Hurlburt.
of our city. and first introduced to public
observation at the Chicago Mechanics
Fair, in the Wigwam. in the autumn Of
the same year. or course, the machine
thus exhibited. from its very novelty, was
imperfect and incomplete in many respects,
com ared with the one we saw in opera
tion at Plymouth, Indiana. last week. 1t
was the rough pioneer Of now ncarly
perfect piece of mechanism. which per-
forms its work with q skill and perfection
which almost eclipscs the manipulations
Of human hands. Since the period ofits
first exhibition. the inventors have been
busy, sparing neither time, labor nor ex-
pense in developing and perfecting the
machine, and now that its perfect success
is assured, we accord high need Of praise
for the mechanical genius and skill they
have displayed. a
We have said that the prejudices ol
coor ers, packers and distillers were some
of the most serious obstacles which this
invention has had to encounter. This ras
! SO. but il is SO no longer. 1t has. by Its
real and established merit. conquered the
preiudices Of the classes we havo named,
and they are now loulest in praise of the
staves made by this machine; and the ex.
| perience of many of our largest packers
has thoroughly convinced them that the
barrels made from the machine slaves are
superior to those made from rived staves.
so much superior that they are willing to
pay higher price for them. sen
Z Messrs. uurlburt, Bros. d Go. establish
ed their stave factory in Plymouth. Ind,
adjoining the track Of the Pittsburg and
Fort Wayne Road. in November, 1861,
and have since sold in Chicago about two
millions of slaves per year. made exelu'
sively by their machines. They ere now
turning out, with two machines. from six
to eight thousand finished slaves per dsy,
consuming within the same period from
eight to ten cords of white oak bolts
Those bolts are purchased from the farm.
ers in the ncigheerhood at e5. 90 per cord,
delivered st the factory. The cost Of man
ufactusing the slaves from the bolts i
%, 90 per thousand. and the transPorta-
ton to Chicago o.. 90 more per thousand
A cord Of bolts 3 will make about SOC
slaves, end these will sell ct from &25 tc
$50 per thousand. It IT,, thereiore. very
evident that their business pays well--ir
fact. enormously. Thers 4 is one featurt
which gives the stsves' sfsads BY this ma.
chine . decided advsatege over rived
staves. Very much Of the oak grown in
this part Of the ucountry i wevy or OF N
interlockiug nature. The experience o
Messrs. Hurlburt, Bros- 4 Co. during shs
past two years, has satis6ed thems snd
shey think they can demonstr.te the fec
to the satisfaction Of othsFss tat take oai
forests together and. average thems ,therl
are eve trees that will produce good asr
chsutsbls iutayes, made by this machine