New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-03-11
Patent Roofing Tile Company.


sickIy enterprises simply because they are
gotten up in our midst. The old cry of
"patronize home production has had its
day; it served neither to gain the support
of the native ultra Southerner or the i'm
ported brother. Now, an enterprise or an
industry for success must depend upon its
own resources and the management OF its
officials for it's appreciation in this market.
Business will not allow itself to be invaded
by sentiment, and only under the pressure
of social opinion will the pocket-bOo ever
open where profit is not plainly discernible.
This is right, and the banker, merchant
and capitalist can afford to be charitable
only when they have amassed the means by
proper investments to enable them to be SO.
These remarks are prompted by visit
which We yesterday paid to one of our
home manufactures. The evidences of
thrift and certain profit there set forth
have III some measure, perhaps, induced
these thoughts. For the institution whose
name heads this article appeals to the self
interest OF capitalists and merchants, and
not merely to local sentiment or falsely.
styled patriotism. The Patent Roofing Tile
Company has been in existence two years.
During that time they have accomplished
great work in the face of most serious OBJ.
stacles. Commencing on but small capital,
the company has been compelled to restrict
its efforts to the simple development Of re.
sources near at hand.
The factory OF workshop Of che company
Is located at the corner of Upperline and
Water streets. The company own all the
batture property, come 500 feet front, the
entire square on which the buildings are
situated, the square of ground directly in
rear, extending to TchOupitoulas street,
and tho adjoining lot, in all some five acres
Of ground. The improvements comprise
series OF sheds and racks, three fine kilns.
a main office, the pottery loft and drying
yard. Most of the machinery is driven by
steam, but the making of piping and pottery
is necessarily by hand.
The factory turns out some of the best
work in the line of fire bricks, jugs. flower
pots. tiles, paving tiles, furnaces. spittoons
and household earthenware ever seen an
this market. The material used in the
making of these articles is obtained chiefly
from Ellis Cliffs, near Natchez, the back
bay of Biloxi and the batture clay in front
of the factory.
We note briefly the process Of making
the roofing tiles. The crude clay, which
has been brought from Ellis cliff. is mixed
with small portion of batture clay. and
thrown into the first mixing machine, called
"'pug." 1t is there ground up. and
saturated with rain water to proper de.
gree. This mass is then thrown on one side
in heap, and left to mature or sweat, as It
is technically styled. This termenting pro.
cess takes abou: eight days. The stuf, is
then passed through second 'prg." and
by an ingenious contrfvance is measured
out to the feeders in accurate sizes for mould
ing. The Jumps thus cut are pressed on to
the title machine by the feeders and are
turned out ready for drying at the rate of
1900 tiles per day. The tiles are then laid
away In racks to be dried. The drying pro.
cess takes about eight or nine days. At the
expiration of this time they are placed In
the kilns and the fire applied. The encaus.
tic process only takes some thirty-six hours,
as the kilns are of the latest pattern OF the
style known as lateral and downward draft.
1t was our fortune yesterday to see two Dt
these kilns in operation. Standing on top
of one Of them and looking down through
the aperture left by the removal Of the ccpo
ing stone. it was wonderful to note how
little heat escaped. The downward draf.
was so perfect that the heat was all pre-
served and the, hand could be held quite
close to The aperture without :hs sEghtes:
Inconvenience.
AS we have stated above. the presen:
capacity ior turning out these tiles is $500
per day, or say, making allowance for other
branches of manufacture. 81 1000 per month
The profit realzeds even upon wholesale
contracts, is forty-ive per cente in other
branches of this arts foP art 1t may be
called, the profit Is even greater. and yet
the factory rs able to updersell all competi.
tors. So much for the price of the work.
AS to ,ts quality visit to the works will
convince any one. even the most skeptical,
1t may be asked. then, why has not the
enterprise paid handsomely We reply
that it was begun at a critical period, that
it was commenced on small capital, and
that to bring it to its present successful con-
dition, many costly and Iaborious expert
holders have invested some S60,000 in the
enterprise, but they have reduced their
stocks so that it only rates at $50 per share
full paid to aggregate $36.500. They now
propose to increase the stock to 100000, so
as to extend the operations of the company,
and to purchase additional machinery.
The value of the batture property,
buildings, machinery and grounds now
owned by the company may be roughly
estimated at $4,000. And all this property
is yearly accruing value. AS an enterprise
possessing selid basis of the most prac-
teal nature, the roofing company can not
be too highly commended to capitalists. 1t
only needs to be brought to their notice to
claim the favorable consideration of in
vestors. We quote from the report of the
secretary showing the present working
capacity per month of the factory, as re-
duced to figures in dollars and cents:
Cost of manufactures capable of being sup
plltu 1-J'v
Selling price of manufactures capable Of be-
ing supplied. d................... ...........- STR
Net gain per month th.....................S25G S25G2
With the proposed increase ID capital by
placing more stock, these figures will be
increased two fold. This with the maxi
mum estimate for outlay, cost of material,
etc, could not fail to yield return Of
fifteen to twenty per cent per annum on