The Portland daily press., 1868-01-20
Lime and Pa.sn. Lime Kiln..

! have heSitated fifteen minutes, my dear
sir, whether it were not presumptuous to offer
few lines on the above-named topic, for the
reason that most of the aforesaid kilus are
inst here in Maine, not in far-distant Cam
pania or Sitka, and that there is really much
less of intrinsically and practically valuable
knowledge to be acquired in the consideration
of our domestic industrial processes than from
reports about open polar seas. On the other
hand, 1t Is evident, from the columns of your
excellent daily, from the number OF those
who are willing to fritter away precious time
in writing you of what different parts of oul
State are doing and how they do it and from
your apparent willingness to publish matters
which Interest only US, it is also evident that
many of our people will spend hours in con.
templating things within their reach: things
unmagniied by misty distance. must con.
fess, Mr.. Editor, to a domestic and national
pride,-to feeling, for instance, that wouldn't
be anything but an American and native
American, especially in case l should visit
England. am proud, too, of any trade which
we eau monopolize, and OF the place, country
town Or city, where it is monopolized; and
like to write you of such trade.
I The right we have to monopolize lime traf.
fic comes of our might to do so; and the procl
OF our might is to be seen in Southern and
Northern storehouses, or mile from our own
coast in that exhaustless rib of blue rock which
is forever being taken from Adam 1.-THE earth
during = the deep sleep" which falls upon ev.
erything else but limestone guarrying, lime
stone carrying, lime burning and lime mar
keting.
The rock, dug out OF the quarries which
sink deeper year by year-so deep thai
in some places engines to pump are as
necessary as axes TO cleaye-is constantly
brought in on teams throughout the twelve
month, rock as blue as the lips of the patient
teamster. 1t comes in Jumps as large as
Morrissey's fist or as large as Andy's head
and quite as hard. The hands that handle it
are shod in leather, not in leather gloves but
ia "palms," which term signifies all OF the
glove but the back; and the palms are sus-
pended by cord to the wrist, so as easily to
be cast off or put on. This limerick, says
Chemistry, contains carbonic acid which
must be, expelled by the heat of ardent
flames, when oxygen attacks the rock with
the zeal Of proselyter and converts it into
tine protoxide of calcium. 1t Is of course q
very simple matter to heat rock; but very
Yankee genius was required to devise the
best and quickest method of heating large
quantities. Our old-fashoned forefalhels
didn't realize so fully as we do the difference
between the expectation of life in Methuse-
lah's time and in ours, for we have more in
surance companies. Hence they were patient
to reach given result in days-we count the
seconds. A man who has done nothing but
burn lime knows this. Fourteen years ago
the best place to build a lime kiln was on a
steep slope, for the pit could be dug down be-
low the surface Of the ground and wall
erected at one end, affording convenient COM
municatiOn between the woodpie and the
furnace. The wood was put in at the mouth
of the furnace, rock piled in from above and
when time enough had been allowed for tn or
ou2h burning, the fires were let go out, the
lime became cool and was removed. Nov,
this was very well for men fourteen years ago,
because they couldn't do better. Bnt it has
been found that the fires may keep ON pretty
busily at work while the lime is removed.
The patent kilns are, should judge, eigh-
teen feet square and twenty feet high. They
are built of any durable stone, with walls
three or four feet thick and are covered on
the top with wooden roofs. Dark blue smoke
arises night and day and eolors the roof and
corrects the atmosphere. At least, it is be
lieyed that the mortality of the city is much
less than it would be II we had fewer lime
kilns and pooier physicians. The lime must
still be thrown into the kilns and fires kindled
beneath. But the fire once kndled need not
be allowed TO go out, until the owner fails OF
his wood gives out.
The owner ofsome OF our kilns has In
formed me that he kindled his fires February
second, 1867, and that they have kept burn
ing ever since. l don't think this is a. very
rare case. The sheds which reach away from
the kiln cover third or a half of an acre o
ground, unless there are two or more kims
connected in which case the sheds are larger
At the end of the shed nearest the kiln
wood is corded; at the farther end, casks o
lime. On each side of the kiln is door open
ing into large furnace, where cordwood i:
converted into heat, and you may look in. il
you keep far enough aloof to save your eye
lashes from beirg singed. One can be easily
persuaded, when he finds himself very neal
the furnace door, that "the fame of the fir,
slew those men who took up" the thre,
worthless at Nebuchadnezzar's command
These arches are made of fire bricks, fo
nothing else will stand the intense heat
From the furnace escape is made through
flues in different directions, SO that the two
fires will penetrate with their influence ever
part OF the whole mass OF rock. A little low
er than the furnaces and on the front side o
the kiln is what is called the hopper, which
our photographers, had they seen the lint
kiln, would not have defined-' place for fuel
This hopper is the reservoir OF the burned
| lime. So long as the hopper is full OF lime,
| the fire acts upon the stratum above. When
| six hours from the last drawing have been
tolled, the door of the hopper is thrown open
mot by "clock-lock') and the drawing COM
| mences, that's, a man with long handled
shovel draws ont the burned lime lump by
hump and throws it upon stone foor around
him and at some distance. He throws il
some distance, for the natural reason that il
would be decidedly unpleasant to be neal
such red-hot masses, for the Jumps look
more like burning summer than blue. Noyem.
ber. The stratum above the one which is
being removed Keeps its place submissiyely
being expanded so by heat as to be unable to
force its way downward, like an eager
crowd at the door of a lecture room. When
the lime has been removed and more rock
added above, this stratum tumbles to the bot
tom, no doubt, for ii is there punctual!y at
the end OF six hours.
What was blue rock, is now red-hot lime
and will soon be cold for barreling. There is
skill displayed in barreling. The employee
catches up shoveLfull, gives II a toss In mid