The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1871-06-15
Aistsllantous.
How window Glass i Made.

Is
III you ever visit Pittsburg, in Penn
sylvauia. you must 80 into the windos
glass factories there you will find them
very curious. Their farnace, 10 the
first place, is built 10 the an sient style
it has 90 chimney, and the smoke from
the bituminous coal they burn pours
ont 10 cloud into the room There
are openings 10 the roof for il to escape
through, aud continual drought Of air
from the doors carries il upward, so that
it is not so bad for abe wurkmen:as as one
would think Besides, they do not begin
to blow until the smoke Is all burnt off,
There are five pots 90 each side Of
the furnace and you viii see FIVE men
10 a row, blowing all at once, with the
regularity Of file Of soldiers exercis-
ing. Each gathers thirty or forty
pounds Of metal Oh his pipe, which Is
very long and strong. They stand on
platforms, to get room TO swing the glass
as they bloM it. The FIVE men begin to
blow aud swing all together, Each
blows a great globe Of glass, which il
stretched out gradually BY the swing
ing motion into cylinder, or roller, as
it is called, FIVE feet long. Then Eve
rollers aft swung up towards the fur
mace holes and Eve soldiers spring for
ward with their guns, (which i'd this
case are iron bars that they set upright
under the five blowing pipes 10 support
them while the rollers are being reheat.
ed 10 the neck Of the pots. The blow
ers blow in the necks Of the pipes with
all their might, then clap their thumbs
over the holes 10 prevent the air from
rushing o1t again; in the meanwhile
the end of the roller is softened, so that
at last the air, forced in and expanded
by the heat, bursts il outwards. It Is
then cylinder, open at one end. 1t is
whirled in the heat until the edges be-
come true, then brought away, the fiyc
iron supports dropping to the ground
with simultaneous clang: The cylind-
crs are laid on tables, where the imper.
feet sphcricaleEd about the blowiug.pipe
is cracked off from EAe rest by strip
Of melted glass drawn around it. The
cylinder is cracked from end 10 end on
one side by means ofa red hot iron pas
sed through IT,
In an adjoining building is what is
| cilled the fiattening oven. TRecylinders
brought there are lifted on the end Of a
lever. passed 10 through circular opeu-
ing, just largo enough to admit them,
and on fattcning stones on the even
bottom, with the crack uppermost. The
oven bottom is circular, aud It reyolses
horizontally. As the glass softens, it
separates ut the crack, aud lays itself
down gently ahd,gradnallt on the stones.
The long cylinder is then fat sheet
three feet wide apd nearly iivs feet in
length. There arc four openings around
the sides Of the oven At one the glass
is put Ia, through another workman
smootlis. il down with . block as il comes
around to him, and fourth, At the last
opening, which is close to the one at
which il was put in, lifts the sheet
par ly cooled 6Y this time --upon car
riags in the oven This he does b.
means Of a lever furnished with sharp,
broad blades at the end, which he
works in under the glass. <Whcn the
carriage is fdll, il is run through an
anneaIing oysn beyond.
"Thc opposite end Of the anncaling
oven opens into the cutting room. There
the carriages are pushed along the cen
trail truck, aisd unloaded at tho stalls of
the cutters. The cuttor has n table Il l.