Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1884-08-23
THE NEW MEAT-JUICE WORKS,
VALENTINES BIO ENTERPRISE.
Description or His Buildings on s'1sn an"
Cary sueets-Perfsst Mechanical Arrange
ments-Growth OF the Produes In fopaiAr


ments-Grow,h Of the Produss In Popular
| Favor.
The ne,gbborbood OF Sixth and Cary
streets has recently become nest OF I'M.
| provements. Among the most suDstantni
| Of these improvements are Naen'ines
new meat-works, which are al once tne out
| growth OF a necessity thai mas arisen ior 'ne
| fourth time for increased accommodations
| for Mr.. Valentines enterprise, and
| n provision for any future extension
Of his business. The buildings front
| 7s feet on Cary street, and run back
| 100 feet along the line OF Sixth street to an
| alley. The main building Is 1Sx50 feet,
| embraces four stories aud basement, and is
| bdilt OF brick, with iron front aud granite
| foundation.
ENTERING THE MAIN BUILDING
from Cary street by the door nearest Sixth,
! the visitor finds himself in wide hall. fin
| ished in oiled and vanished heart-pine. and
ornamtnted with pilasters. TO the right OF
| .he hall are three large rooms, separated
from each other by glass.doors and sash
| partitions. The first OF these rooms Is
! the main business Office. the second a
| private office, and the third is lunch
room, the latter being a necessity owing 10
| the fact that the process OF making the meat
| iuice reauires such close attention that
those in charge Of the different depart
ments cannot leave the building for meals.
| These rooms are also finished in oiled and
vanished heait-pine. and ornameuted with
pllasters, which. with the mantels, are
| gracefully carved. From the hall wind
| ing staircase, with mahogany foot post and
walnut banster, leads TO the floor above,
while under the staircase is n large fire
| ,1 ocf Nar1t n tho loft af tba
hal and communicating with II by large
door IL a hIgh-ptched room 2jXj0 feet,
| used as u stock and packing-room.
From the rear OF the stock-room short
flight OF steps leads the visitor down into
the "TREATMENT DEPARTMENT"
which is an annex to the main building,
45x50 feet, with pitch OF 25 feet, and is
well lighted and ventilated both from the
sides and the roof. This room is IN charge
OF Mr.. ira W. Blunt, who has as an assist
! ant Hr. +. :. Valentine, the latter having
| succeeded MIR. b. B. Valentine, VINO in turn
| succeeded Mr.. G. q. Valentine. These two
| last.namcd gentlemen now assist Mr.. Mann
:. Valentine, The proprietor. in his general
SunCryiSiOn Of the works, and have
charge Of certain departments OF the
oflice-work, such as conducting the
corrcspondence, &c. They have in a sense.
however, served regular apprenticeship
in all departments OF the works. In the
treatment-room begins and ends the pro-
cess proper Of extracting the meat-iuice.
There the meat-wbIch Is slaughtered for
the works by '. & W. liechler, on TWEEN
ty.seyenth street and the Nlne-Miie road.
and must come up 20 certain standard--is
delivered. There are situated the huge
vacuum-pan and pump. the hydraulic
a. r.,n gtn1 f1a LII infr do
vices. and there the silence is almost un-
broken. In the nature OF The work
NO CONVERSATION IS ADMISSIBLE,
and so reriect is the machinery (nOst Of
which Is built after Mr.. Valentines own
designs) that il makes but little noise. Each
DAYS supply Of beef must be worked up
within a given time. and everything lite
rally move. by clOck-YOrk. Each man in
| the "treatment-rOom" is intent upon the
part Of the process upon which he Is en-
gagged. and watches nothing but thai and
the clock. and steam and y1cuum.gua
bvdTomettr. thermometer. cOoler-1oat or
stop-cocks that may he attached ~ his par
ticuar piece OF machinery. On this floor
slope there are seventy eight water, steam,-
and vacuum-cocks and valves. II is not,
however, until tie cellar under the treat
mcnt-room il inspected that an adequate
idea of the extent and perfection OF the ma
cbinery is formed. This cellar il Il maze OF
piping, pumps, stop-cOcks, syphOns, &c,
ali OF which are the result Oi careful study
and experiments; and, with TIE stOp-cocks,
&c, above. require the most careful manip-
ulation. Mr. Valentine la, offered
A STANDING PRIzE
for anv improvement in the appliances oil
the works ly any OF his operatives which
will save labor. The power which
drives the machinery is supplied from a
large boiler, which is situated in another
annex TO the main building, corresponding
TO the treatmcnt-roOm, aud which with II
forms large court. Attached TO the
boiler is every appliance in the way
! OF danger signals. The works are
connected with the city water main,
but It is essential to Mr. Valentine:
process that he should have large
. supply Of watei Of even temperature. lie
. has, therefore, sunk four wells on the
: premises. The llrgest OF these il under
= the treatment-roOm, and is connected
: with The other three by iorce-pump, ant
= svphons through which it drains them o.
such Of their contents a. srenot used IN th'
1 washinc-tanks ahd coolers during the dav
+. These wells 20 down to the granite, ant
are also supplied with pumps that force
tie water 70 any point at which II may be
needed; yet, with all the piping. stop
cocks. pumps. &C.. We have mentioned
from the treatmcnt-rOom
TRAINED BARS AND EYES
- can tell in an instant IL everything is work
ing smoothly throughout the works.
= Passing from the cellar Of the "treat
: ment-room," the visitor enters the base
ment Of the main building, which is $3.50
/, and which is used Tor general storage
washing bottles, cleaning tanks. coolers
' &c. This department is provided viii
stationary washing-ianks, receives its Wa
, tcr.supply either from the wells or ~
cifv main. and has every convenience io
=" the uses TO which it is put. As soon A. Ia
c meai.iuicc Is ready 10 leave the " treat
mont-room" it Is taken 5y the elevators t
., the waiting-room. This is large room
situated on the second floor. There Oh
u Juice waits in bulk long enough to pas
= the
p ATMOSPHERIC TEST;
p after which it Is taken to the floor ,bov
f and bottled and corked.
20 The bottles are filed by machinery
Thi. last-naned process il rapid, interes
ing. and exact. Adjoining the waiting
+ room aud Immediately over the stock-roo!
VI are two rooms, one OF which Is the priyal
~. library ard map.room. and the Other q
laboratory Of the proprietor. Although II
IN chemicals are employed in the manufactuI
OF the ment-uice, this last department is on
: OF tie most important connected with tn
works. In the laboratory samples OF eae
- days product are subjected to the severe
and most delicate tests. Before the day
product is bottled it must be rel
n. dered certain that ii conforms
ut q fixed standard OF density, purity. an
"a cearnes-in short, il must be proved th
ys Il is meat-juice; that 1t holds IN solution =
NJ the nutritive elements OF beef, and has al
ga sarded all elements that would inteife
C. with its rapid assimilation by the most del
cate stomach. A failure to conform TO u
standard in a single particular eondeim
the product. The process OF testing Is u
result Of years OF experience on the part
Mr.. Valentine. This floor is also reach'
by blind stairway.
The third floor OF the main buildlng
NJ used. as before stated, for bottline ana as
" labelling and kIddiDg-roOm and Tor fol
or ing circulars, and the fourth moor II
ng storing wooden and pspsr-boXes ana HI
ye- teria.