The Red Cloud chief., 1888-04-13
O TOOTHPIcKS.


WOODEN TOO1hPlCkS.
Little Machine That Makes Sic Million,
q Then Every Day.
As he stood beside a little machine
that was sending out a perfect cyclone
Of tOothpicks. some 10000 Of them q
minute. Mr.. E 7. Eigecomb. the title
member of the firm. related his expert
cncc in the tOothpick business:
81 was formerly a mechanical expert
in the employ of the Haverhold Ma
chine Company. 1 was with that con-
Germ a number of years. mastering
many details and ideas about ma
chinery. for which l hold a most de-
ciied taste. In fact. it is my hobby. A
few years ago l left my position with the
Haverhold company and went to Me.
chanic Falls. where l formed a machine
company. Later l went into the tooth.
pick business with Mr.. Harry ID. Creigh-
ton. of Philadelphia. As my partner.
We succeeded pretty well in Our venture.
till all Of a sudden we found that the
toothpick combination had frozen us
out This combination practically con-
trolled all the toothpick business Of the
United States. and when it refused to
supply us with toothpicks We found
ourselves in a bad position. We had q
large number of orders to fill. and not
a pick to fill them with. In this ex-
tremity l went to work to get up II
toothpick machine Of mi own. and You
See the result of my labor before You.
This machine manufactures about six
million picks per day. AMI they are
about rs good picks as there are in the
market"
He took up \ handful Of picks from
the bin into which they were being
poured from the mouth of the machine.
and handed n tn the reporter for ex-
animation. They are the flat pick with
the end sharpened of like a chisel.
very good picks indeed the reporter
thought. and his view is evidently the
public mind. to judge from the fact
that the factory has orders ahead for
its entire production of tine next five
years
But You wished to know how \
tUo,hpick was made. Well. let's begin
at the first stage of the process.
'sThe wood we use ia birch and ma
pie. 1t must be green. clear and straight
grained. We get it from all along the
line of the Main Central. 1t comes in
four-foot logs. which we saw into six
and = quarter inch pieces. These are
put into barrels in the stcaming room.
where they remain for about three
hours. coming out IS soft as leather.
He picked up a piece Of thin veneer
and exhibited its Pliability by twisting
it carele,>ly in the way one would q
strip of ribbon.
THE charging of the wood with
steam drives out all the sap. and then
IL is ready for the vcnecr machine. the
bark having been removed. Here is
the venecr machine in operation" and
he indicated a piece of mechanism
much like y lathe. similar to the veneer
machine placed in this instrument and
Out Soti'cS S"O IOuS oct pcutS Va Scucet
or ribbons of wood. the grain running
across the strips which are allowed to
squirm around on the floor till after the
operation is complete.
They are then wound up on large
spools, each spool carrying about a
hundred feet or SO of vencer. The reels
are the ammunition with which the
t%OO.fpick machine is loaded. The end
of the veneer is placed in the Calling
gun-like apparatus. and shoot out at
the mMZzle in u scattering voilev. A
small boy picks them up into drying
boxes. with wire bottoms. They are
placed on \ hot air drauSht. famed by
= blower. and in twenty minutes they
are dry rs a bone.
'.In the boxing a half-dozen
girls stand AT tables and put up about
five cases a day. one hundred boxes in
4 case. for which they are paid eighteen
cents a ease. The work is not hard.
and an expert cal make good wages"
-LcDist0n. me. JoMrna..