St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1880-06-04
st. Johnsbury's Industries.
The Scale works.-Continued.


the end, where a multitude of things
seem to be coming to focus fast, and
need recognition at once, we are pain
fully sensible how many interesting
things we must pass by, that would be
pleasing and instructive to the general
reader. In going through great es
tablishment like this, instead of hurry
ing through it, one needs to linger
among the workmen, watching the va
rious movements until he can catch the
true idea then he can put this princi
pie and that together, making one COM
plete and uniform whole, as a mechan-
ic would take in pieces complicated
machinery, then put it together again
so it would run with its accustomed
regularity.
AS we enter the final departments,
going from room to room, down stairs,
up stairs, right and left, in the front
and rear, we begin to see all around US
the material that was almost without
form and void" gradually taking shape
We begin to behold the wonderful
Transformation of great masses of iron
and lumber into forms which were the
substances of human ideas. And these
forms have grown so perfectly, step by
step, under the direction of the human
will, that we believe stronger than ev-
or, and see more and more the truth
fulness and the beauty of the prophets
sentiment, that in the works of man
there really and truly exists "the spirit
of the living creature" Gaining an in
PRODUCTION to Mr.. Silas Mastin, who has
been here % years, and who has been
foreman 13 years, with hurried foot
steps we go through his several depart
ments. Mr.. Francis Bingham, the gen
eral foreman, who has grown gray in
the service of this industry, and who
has been here 40 years, stands in the
same relation to these various depart
ments that Mr.. Thomas Spooner does
to his. Mr. Bingham being absent at
the time of our visit, we did not have
the pleasure of a personal description
of the works fIom him. But with Mr..
Mastin, who seemed to know what he
was about, as good school master
would know his duties. we start for the
BOX SHOP,
under the charge of Mr.. DanfOrd Will
ley, who has labored here now for "a
years, and where lumber of all kinds is
cut up and dressed-planed, split,
matched, and made into boxes. This
room is very cOmmodious, and we no.
ticed several men engaged in the vari-
Gus Operations Of preparing lumber
that goes into the manufacture OF
scales, and into other things that help
to carry on this industry. The lumber
department is very important one,
which we shall speak of in another pa
per, and we will not stop to give statis-
tics here; but the boxes are of all sizes.
from those sufficient to hold the little
post-office and prescription scales, up
to the hay and heavy railroad scales.
We go from here to the
DRY ROOM,
where all the lumber of special uses and
Importance is thoroughly dried. We
saw here great stacks of hardwood
pieces, piled upon an open floor direct
ly over steam pipes, which is patent
process of heating; and for Il moment
it seemed that nothing in the world
would ever induce one to sit down here
all day with his overcoat on. But as
all earthly things have an ending, so
did our visit here end and we want to
say by way of parenthesis, that since
our visit to this room, our respect for
over hot places has not increased; but
lumber that goes through this patent
process of drying is in no way injured,
but retains all its native value, and
does not check as it will by almost ev-
cry other process. We not only see the
lumber in the actual process of drying,
but in an adjoining roem we see other
piles ready for the same operations. To
do this work properly it takes about two
weeks. Through some strategic move
ment-we can't tell ourselves now how
it was, but know it was through vari-
ons crooks and turns, we found our
selves in the
JAPAN ROOM,
where castings, from the smallest iron
weight up to the heavy, hollow iron
pillars, receive that thick coating of
hard, brilliant, black varnish, known as
Japan. After receiving this coating
the heavier castings are taken bv hand
and placed in large oven for drvinp
while the lighter ones are piled upon a
car in great numbers and run into the
oven upon track, where they remain
until this process is completed.
From here we are taken to the room
where hay and track scales are sealed,
which work is under the direction of
Delos ID. Jones, who has been here 81
years. We are now coming to a de-
fartment where the mathematical idea
OF the scale must be demonstrated
where the root and essence of scientific
fact must be made to appear. To de-
velop this fact, so as to render if ser
viceable to mankind, is the cause of the
long years of study of Sir Thaddeus
Fairbanks; it is the cause of the con-
timed persistency of this industry of