The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1885-01-01
IN A cANpLE MANuFAoToRY.
Those Who Think Candles Are Little
Used Are Much Mistaken.
Chicago Herald.1


Searching for more light, the scribe
accosted the representative of a Chicago
candle manufactory and asked him ii he
could say anything about candles that
would prove of interest to our readers.
Il suppose" said the gentleman, that
many people think candles are not much
used nowadays, but they are mistaken
about it. There are twelve factories in
the United States. A very large export
business is done chiefly to the West In
dies and Central America. Our own
sales are made principally in the west
ern states and territories. The mining
regions take large quantities, for no
light but candles IS used in gold and sill
yer mining Candles are used for church
purposes, at country hotels, in railroad
ears, in mining, and to some extent il
families.
.'Many of the foreign population of
this city use candles in preference to
coal oil, being accustomed to candles
and afraid of the oil Most families use
a candle for going about the house with
or for some temporary purpose where 4
lamp might not be safe. But among
Americans candles are not now used for
Illuminating purposes, except among
the utterly utter and too too eStheto
and high faShionables Many of these
light their parlors with variegated can
dies, and it is getting to be quite com
mon at dinner parties. The effect is
much more beautiful than that produced
by any other light. Gas is hot and
glaring, and electricity is titful, but can
die light, sas candles are made now, IS
soft and beautiful In London and
Paris candles are used in private houses
almost entirely on account of the great
prejudice against gas.
No branch of industry has under
gone the change that candle making has
In the last thirty years. Formerly it
was merely a mechanical occupation.
Anybody could make candles of GER
tain sort, and almost everybody did
Now 1t is scientific industry, bringing
TO its aid the resources of chemistry
Formerly candle-was greasy, noisome
thing that one usually handled with dis
gust; now it is artistic and refined and
IAN be handled without the least offense.
The wick is so prepared that the COM
bustion is complete, and snuffers have
long been banished. An ancient candle
maker could only work with materials
already provided by nature, so that he
had to use fats with all their impur-
titles. The modern candle maker
by chemical processes removes the i'm
purities, which leaves him nothing but
the hard and white fat for his candles.
Fat changed by this process is called
stearine, and from this materialwe make
what are called star and stearie wax
candles. These are extremely hard and
are sometimes called adamantine, do
not grease the hands, and give a soft
and pleasing light. Spermaceti and wax
are also used, but not with us.
''The candle is tne unit of light. You
sometimes hear of light, say gas, being
of twenty-five candle power. The
standard is a spermaceti candle burning
at the rate of 120 grains of sperm per
hour. Candles are also made from par
affine, l>ut no candles are used so ex-
tensiYely as the star or stearine.
''The great improvement in the manu-
facture of candles dates from the in
Chevreul, who, by the way, has just
celebrated his Doth birthday. He dis
covered that the fat of tallow was
separable from the oil, and the result of
the process was two valuable products,
stearine and glycerine. l have said that
our largest exports of candles was to the
West Indies and Central America In
former days a merchant would as soon
have thought of exporting skates OF
warming pans to Havana as a cargo OF
tallow candles; they would have al
melted into an uptistinguishable mass
going across the gulf of Mexico. But
such candles as are made now can be
used in the hot test climate in the
world"