Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1871-12-07

then started, and every man leaves the
place The door is shut, and the machine
ry left to do its terrible work alone. When
it has run long enough, the mill is stop
ped. and the men come back. This opera
ton leaves the powder in hard Jumps, or
cakes. Z
The next house is where these cakes are
broken up into grains, and, of course, is
quite as dangerous as the last one. But
the men can't go away from this, they are
obliged to attend to it every moment and
you may be sure no laugh OF joke is ever
heard within its walls. Every one who
goes in has to take off his boots, and put
on rubbers, because one grain of the dan
explode the whole in an instant a
s The floor of this house is covered with
leather, and is made perfectly black by
the dust of the gahpowder. 1t contains
a set of sleeves, each one smaller than the
last, through which the powder is. sifted,
and an immense groaning and laborIng
mill, where it is ground up, while men
shovel it in with wooden shoyels. The
machinery makes great deal OF noise,
but the men are silent, as IN the other
houses. The reckless crashing of the
machinery even seems to give greater
horror, and one is very glad to get out of
that house.
The Clearinghouse comes next. Glazing
is done by mixing black lead with the
powder. to give it a black and shining
look. The powder is put into barrels,
which revolve for several hours. That
polishes the grains by their rubbing to-
gether The black lead is put with them,
and they revolve several hours more. OF
course, the dust flies from all these opera
=. eiIax,t llya ba
rest, look like very black negroes, work
ing in the blacklist of powder, in a room
whose walls and floors are blacker than
the rest, if possible has very singu-
lar look to a stranger, and, added TO the
horrible silence, makes one feel that the
whole world has gone into mourning.
Often, the gunpowder, revolving so rap
idly in the barrels, gets very hot; so this,
toe, is a dangerous operation. ~
The stoving house is the next on the
Hist, and there the gunpowder is heated
on wooded trays 1t is very hot and no
workmen stay there. From there it goes
to the packing house, and is put up in
barrels, kegs and canisters.
Safely through all these houses, it goes
at last to the storehouse. One feels ike
drawing long breath to see the fearful
stuff safely packed away, out of the hands
/ u
You've heard of things being dry as a
powder house, but you wouldn' think
this house very dry. 1t is almost i'm
| bedded in water The roof is one big
tank, kept full of water. Did you ever
| hear of WATERPROOF before Instead OF
steps to go in, there are, shallow tanks of
! water, through which every one must
! walk to the door. 4 EaE42t
In none of these powder houses is any
light ever allowed except sunlight. The
wages are good, the days work is short,
ending always at three or four o'clock.
But the men have a serious look that
makes one think every moment of the
/ danger and glad to get away.
Though curiosity may take man once
to visit powder mill, he has no desire to
go the second time; and he feels, all the
rest of his life, that for once he has been
JIs1ery near DEATH - --a-A- ---A-