Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1885-04-30
MODEL MAKERS.
One Business That Is at a Standstill and
Exhibits No improvement.

one Business That Is at a Standstill and
Exhibits No Improvement.
''Ihere are not more than twenty
shops in the city of New York devoted
to the making of patterns or the build
ing of models" said pattern-maker
to reporter, as he stood at his lathe
turning piece of wood. THE bust
ness does not seem to grow like other
trades, and / must confess l am some
what at loss to discover the reason.
You certainly would suppose that in a
great metropolis like this inventors
would be so plenty that pattern and
model-makers would be kept busy ali
the time working out their ideas in
wood. Inventors are. however, not
quite SO plenty as that. There are
plenty of men who are always on the
point of making a great invention, but
somehow they never reach the success
full issue.
Il have been in this shop thirteen
years and during that time have en-
ployed a great many different work
men. Ny experience has convinced me
that there has been no improvement
whatever in the machinery used in my
business over that of a quarter of
century ago. We use exactly the same
tools as we did then, and do our work
in the same manner. This, l suppose,
sounds somewhat strange to you, but it
is nevertheless an undisputed fact
do you have any trouble in getting
good apprentices?
.sYes, we do. The young men who
come to learn the trade are usually ig-
norant fellows who have received but
little or no education. They are faith
full in their work, and seem to want to
learn, but their ignorance of the slight
est mechanical principles is a serious
draw back to their advancement. l have
often wondered why it is that more of
the bright boys who graduate from our
public schools do not take up the skilled
trades. There is a good field here for
such workmen as they would make.
Somehow the boys all prefer to become
clerks in dry goods stores or horse-car
conductors instead. The period of APP
premiership, while nominally three
years, is really unlimited. A workman
is learning something new all the time.
There is no limit to the variety of work
we are called upon to perform. A man
comes in here and explains to me what
he desires to construct. He has. per-
haps, made no drawings or measure
ments, but he expects me, after listen
ing to his descriptions, to 60 to work
and make the pattern. or model,
whichever it may be- without any fur
Their assistance from him. If we were
called upon to construct the same pat
tern quite often, why then we might be
able to improve our machines and
tools. AS it is now, we can never tell
what we will make during the next
twenty-four hours. OF course, great
many of our orders come from manu-
facturers. These are accompanied by
the drawings and measurements, and
are therefore more easily filled. Occa-
sionally a crank comes in with a queer
machine which he desires me to model
1 usually tell such individuals that /
have no time to do their work, and
recommend them to some one whom l
think will perhaps humor the crank's
VIII ms. Do we get good prices for our
work? l have received as high as 500
for model. 1t depends in great
measure upon the intrlcacy of the ma
chine to be constructed. We pay our
workmen from three dollars to five
dollars a day. ~. Y. Mail and Er-
press.