The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1886-07-24

IuIH0u DdtS III luOSO udJS. DdJS WcIc
never used but in cricket playing, and
wagon-spoke or club made of the best
cedar, blocked out with an axe and
finished on a shaving horse with a
drawing knife, took the place of the
finely turned bats of these days.
A contrast of the baseball world of
long ago with that of to-day is very
| striking, and some real idea of the
strong hold this exciting sport has
taken on the popular mind is gained
from the fact that the quantity of base
| balls manufactured and sent broadcast
last year numbered between seven and
eight millions. OF this number less
| than four thousand were used by the
three leading professional clubs. The
manufacture of this enormous number
of balls forms no small industry, and is
! the means of furnishing employment
to many thousands in Boston, New
York and several other principal cities.
Philadelphia and Chicago, however,
are generally admitted as being the
great centers of this industry, and it is
estimated that fully two-thirds of all
the balls used are manufactured at these
two places.
The variety of balls made is numer-
Gus, all of which are designated by
well-known brands. The chief of base
balls is the professional or dead ball,
that being the one adopted and used by
the Association and League Clubs.
The manufacture of this ballrepresents
the acme of baseball making. Every
thing about it is of the best quality. Its
nucleus is an imported vulcanized
India rubber ball, and the yarn of
which it is wholly wrapped is the best
wooden. The cover, which is sewed
with thread made of Irish flax, is
alum-tanned horse hide. There are
three kinds of yarn used-a heavy four
ply blue, a finer white yarn, and an
other blue, three-ply, but not so coarse,
and of lighter shade than the first.
Until quite recently these yarns were
wrapped entirely by hand. A windiag
machine has now been invented and is
being successfully operated, which
wraps the first two yarns tighter and
better than could be done by hand and
which economies much time and
labor. The rubber ball is placed in the
machine, which somewhat resembles a
large coffee mill, and wrapped with
three ounces of the heavy blue yarn.
This yarn is wrapped very compactly
and solidly and gives strong, solid
body to the ball. The small blue ball
which this forms is then enwrapped
with the white yarn, half ounce of
which is put on by the same machine.
This brings the ball up to little more
than half its regular size. The opera
ton of this machine is one of the
trade and is known ouly to those who
are Immediately engaged in that
branch of the making.
After being machine-wrapped the
balls are dipped into a patent rubber
cement, very sticky substance, re-
sembling mucilage, which renders them
almost as hard as rock. This cement
when hardened forms solid protec-
ton to the ball inside, and to it is due
the fact that, no matter how hard
batted, this ball will not lose its shape.
After cementing-it requires but few
minutes to dry-the ball is ready for
''the wrapper" These wrappers are
made by boys about fourteen to sixteen
years of age. They sit on low chairs
or stools, and in old soap or other boxes
beside them lay the long fleeces of
worsted from which they wind. Be
meath their nimble fingers, which are
protected from chafing by leather
thumbstalls, the ball rapidly attains its
full proportions. The single thread
of blue which they wind is swiftly
carried around and around in the ordi-
nary way of winding, but the rapidity.
evenness and finish with which it is
done is surprising. During this wrap
ping the ball is continually pounded
thwacked by heavy wooden bat re-
sembling a cricket bat in shape, but
considerably smaller. This is done for
the purpose of preserving the shape of
the ball and of making it as tightly
compressed as possible. Enough of
this yarn is used to make the ball weigh
four and one-half ounces, and every ball
is weighed. With the exception of a
few turns of a strong white Irvine, done
by different set of boys, called fill
ing out, the body of the ball is com
plete and ready for covering.
1t is not generally known that the
horse, as well as the sheep, contributes
to the making of this favorite article,
but. as mentioned, the covers of the
professional bali are all made of horse
hide. In tine case of the cheaper balls
sheepskin is used altogether for that
purpose. Almost all of the horsehides
tanned are made into baseball covers,
and the horses that yearly pay tribute
to this purpose number far into the
thousands. The hides are tanned in
alum and to this is due their bright,
white appearance. A cover consists of
two pieces of exact shape and dimen-
sions, resembling somewhat the soles
of shoes, which are cut with die in
precisely the same way. The die is
placed over the leather and struck with
heavy mallet, each half cover being
cut separately. Before the covers are
cut the leather is stretched on asstak-
ing machine, which is nothing more
than firm, upright plank, in the end
of which is held a dull blade, over
which the leather is faulty drawn back
and forth.
The covers of the ball just described
are stitched by men. The cover is first
tackled by four stitches so placed as to
hold it in shape. While being stitched
it is firmly held in the jaws of an ordi-
nary harncss-maker' horse. Holes are
made in the cover with an awl and the