The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1871-11-02
ing to tell of departed and forgotten

The first mills used in the needle
trade were horse mills, one being estab-
lished at Studley very early in the last
century. These mills were used for
securing and pointing needles, super.
seding the primitive method Of wrap
ping up the needles in Buckram with
emery dust and olive oil, and rolling
to and fro by the movement of the
workman's foot. The earliest needles
made in this district were "square.
eyed" a shape most readily produced.
1t was with square eyed needles that
Mary, Queen Of Scots, wrought those
beautiful tapestries for the wallis Of her
prison cell. After many fruitIess at
tempts, drilled eyed needles were sue
cessfdlly brought out in 1926, and two
years later, the Furnishing machine,
which gave a beautiful finish to the eye,
was introduced. In this latter process,
as now carried out, the needles are
threaded on steel wires which have been
roughed" with file and hardened
The ends of these wires are then at
tached TO u steam machine by whicl, the
needles are made to revolve ut an enor-
moss speed with an oscillating motion
round the wires.
Previous to the year l84O, needles
were hardened in water. during which
process the majority became crooked,
aud Strengthening the crooks was, in
consequence, an occupation for consid
erable number Of work-people. In the
year mentioned. however, a Redditch
manufacturer revived the practice of
hardening in oil, and the result was
that crooked needles were the exception
instead of being the rule. This SO exas-
perated the crook straighteners that
they mobbed the enterprising manufac-
turer out Of the town, and for some time
great tumult prevailed. Eventually.
however the revived process came to
be generally adopted. A pointing ma
chine is the last invention of import
ance in the needle trade. On this in
venticn. Messrs. Bartlett and Wood
ward-two excellent authorities-thus
reported little while since.
The needle pointing machine is an
English invention, though it is not gen
orally supposed to be so, and its fore
runner, which, though not perfect, ap
preached so nearly to perfection as to
alarm the pointers, was some years ago
purchased bv them and broken to pieces
on Rsdditch Church Green. The
needle pointing machine is as yet only
partially used in this district. A
grooved grindstone, revolving at great
speed, is employed to grind the end OF
each wire into the desired shape. To
this grindstone the wires are applied for
an inclined plane, on which a number
| are placed ready to cut to the length re-
quired, BY means of disc, surrounded
with caoutchouc, revolving slowly in a
direction transverse to the grindstone, a
continuous supply of wires rapidly
revolving in succession is supplied to
the stone, and the same disc causes the
wires to revolve whilst being pointed.
needle. making now employs something
| like 500 work-peop.e, considerable
portion of whom are females. The
earnings considerably vary, those Of
women S.. to los, aud men l2s. to 4os.
per week.
\ needle has to pass through seventy
pairs Of hands before it is considered to
vision of labor to which may be attrib-
u,ed the combination of excellence and
cheapness in the production of these
| articles. The variety of needles made
III these days is marvellous, the surgeon,
tailor, harness maker, book binder, felt
worker, sail maker, saddler. glover,
embroderer and housewife, each le
quirng needles of shapes, sizes and
lengths almost infinite. Redditch, and
the immediate district. may be regarded
as the only important centre of the
needle trade in the three kiugdoh.s.
| The principal seat of the industry on
the Continent is Aix-la Chapelle, but at
! Lyon. and one or two towns in Nor
mandy tho common qualities are also
largely made.
/ The Chinese supply their own re.
/ quiraments in the needle way, and it is
thought that the craft is more ancient in
the Celestial Empire than in Europe.
! Certain it is that round eyed needles
were made In China long before the
in England. There is nothing new un.
der the sun !-Mechanics' Magazine.