The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1870-12-17
NARsHILLB8.

and flourish, notwithstanding her firss and blow.
ups. This rising city is not to be suppressed BY
any series Of misfortunes, such a. would dis.
courage an ordinary town. and in that energy
and enterprise and substsntial and rapid pro-
gress, she stands a. living rebuke to her sleepy
neighbor Ottawa, who seems to be in prolonged
Rip Van Wrinkle sleep, from which she may one
day awaken, years hence, to rub her eyes and
look around to see her once little rival great
aud prosperous CITY, while she herself has
dwindled into second childhood, which she
will mistake for her youthful days!
Marseilles is growing, and every step is ground
permanently gained, As is attested by her many
solid brick buildings, and the many neat and
comfortable homes Of her citizens, all erected
within the last few months.
A few days ago We took hasty look around
the lower town, or "New Msrseilles," ss it is
called. Stopping q moment to look at her fine
hotel, the Beckwith House, kept in tip top style
by Beckwith & Pilling, and glarcing through
some of its many subperbly furnished rooms,
featuring establishments. North OF the water
power race, the first of the new buildings Is
large brick, known as the Illinois Agricultural
Works. VIM. Rickerd il president of the com.
pany, and VIM. NJ. Howell, secretary-cSpital
stock, $4,000. The machinery is not all in, but
enough to begin with They are manufacturing
the Mason Il Woodward cultivator, and will
soon be engaged in making all sorts Of farming
implements. Mex. west is the extensive ma.
chine shop and foundry of the Msrseilles Man
ufacturng Co., A. Adams. Pres, H. H. Tillot-
son, Sec. Capital, $4,000. The buildings are
of brick, and put up in the best possible manner,
as to durability and general convenience. The
foundry is 6Ox60, very lofty aud we'll lighted.
The machine shop adjoining, but in different
building, is 5Ox60, three stories high, we'll light.
ed and full Of all sorts of machinery adapted to
general iron work. The different stories are
reached by means of dummy" elevator, ca.
pable of raising 1000 lbs rapidly and safely.
The power running this establishment, as we'll
that of the former works above named, 10 located
on the south side of tho race, $50 feet away, and
communicated from the water wheel of the works
first named by shaft, and of the latter by end.
less wire rope cable, stretched across from the
machine shop to the saw mill of Adams & Sons
planning mill on the south. Westward stand, or
rather lie the ruins Of the celebrated wall paper
stainery, to be rebuilt, when? is the ques.
ton. Across the way is the cstton mill, with its
twenty thousand dollars in splendid brick
structure, and boxes, cases and barrels full! of
machinery, unopened or opened and the ma.
chinery scattered about. The concern is tied up
in law, bnried up in mechanics liens, and
swamped in claims inumersble, and thus stands
total lose, except in external appearance. The
cotton factory, except in name, is all that it will
probably ever amount to. Some one ought to
buy up the debts, which we imagine can be had
for little more than "a song" and turn the build
ing to some practical use, if nothing better than
a wooden nutmeg factory.
Farther to the east are the splendid Print
Paper Works of Mr.. Black. This is the fine
building which blew up last fall, with terrific
results. The building has been reconstructed
and the mills are in full operation. Notwith.
standing the disaster before, the explosion of a
rotary bleecher, Mr.. Blacks faith in them was
not shaken. He procured new one and it has
worked SO far, about two months, without acct
dent or any Indication Of "going back on him"
as the other did. This new monster boiler is
twenty-one feet long, six feet three inches in
diameter and made Of heavy plated boiler iron,
thick and strong. It's weight is tweuty.four
thousand pounds The new mill is very largo
and complete in all departments, and turns out
$500 to 1000 pounds of print paper every day,
employing 25 to 30 haLds Mr.. F. c. Face is the
superintendent, quiet gentleman, who does his
work promptly, and is courteous to visitors.
Mr.. J. Meader's Touring mill, next eastward,
is the biggest little mill We have ever seen. 1t
is only 25x35 feet, three stories high, and yet
employs three runs of stone, and turns out 60 to
20 barrels of -four per day.
South of these mills is Brown & Norton's new
print paper mill. A very large brick building
and it's machinery all bran new and of the best
kind. They arc making print and book paper,
and cannot quite supply the demand constantly
made upon them. They have also very largo
paper mill few hundred feet farther up the
stream, devoted to the manufacture of wrapping
paper.
Among the new brick stores are Preston &
Bro..s brick building. Clark's row, occupied BY
Messr.. Towle, dry goods, and Van Amin, gro.
ceres, and above them are stores occupied by
Mr. Lund, watch maker, Mooney, Of Ottawa. .
branch clothing store, Galloway, dry goods, 60.
and further on several small frames.