The San Saba news. [volume] (San Saba, Tex.) 1873-1966, 1888-06-01
A BIG LAUNDRY.
CLEANING AND IDENTIFYING
MANY GARMENTS.
The Rapidly With whiehtbe Work
Is Done, and the Machinery
bsed for Washing. Starch
ing and Ironing.

The bundles were wrapped in brown
paper and each had a colored tcke
pinned on, which tod the owners namt
and the number Of pieces, writes Bos
ton HTrld reporter who recently invesG
gated the methods Of the biz steam laun
dry business With great rapidity the
young women took the bundles from
baskets on rollers that were showed
around by boy, opened them
counted the pieces and tailed them Will
the list. Next the name Of the ownei
Nas looked for IN a book, and, if it did
not appear there. an arbitrary number
xas assigned and each piece wa, marked
Wit, indelible ink.
The sorted clothes, having beer
marked. are thrown into a chute, down
which they 20 into the big baskets on
rollers, located in the region below.
Here over 100 women are hurryins
through their various tasks At breakncck
speed. some work by the piece, some
by the week. Picking ones way care
fully through ma hinery that exhibited a
yeafuing 10 take him in, the explorer
finds himself IN a dim corner, where half
dozen washing machines. that look
Ike insane sugar hogsheads in a cole,
revoive backward and forward upon an
AXIS running through their heads. These
are the rotary, reverse wa hers. These
washers accommodate 1875 shirts, weigh
1000 pounds, and occupy a floor space
GtKi feet. They consist Of an outside
cylinder, or barrel, inside which is a
smaller cylinder, perforated closely
Zach cylinder Is fitted with a hinged
door. Into these washers bald-headed
gentlemen pitches an assortment of
linen, Of various degrees Of dirtiness.
Then he turns on the cold water cock,
and after few minutes soaking, while
the Wa-her reyolyes al 100 revolutions a
minute. turns on the steam. Instantly
there j. a bubbling and the water rises 10
D very high temperature soap in fine
particles is added and the cover Of the
inner barrel is closed
The clothing Is contained in the inner
cylinder, the water being in the outer
and bubbling in through the perfora-
tons For fifteen minutes the boiling
goes on. when a river Of cold water Is
turned on. 10 b. alternated with another
boiling in steam aud hot wafer. Again
the hot water l. drawn of, cold water
tuned on and blueing added. The
process requires the use Of weak s1lu-
tion Of chloride OF lime and small pro
portions Of Oxalic and citnc acid, but
not sufficient. il is claimed, 10 in ure the
fabric. In these remarkable machines the
entire process Of washing accomplished.
A coal beavers shirt, black as his hat,
may 20 into the washer and after forty
FIVE minutes il comes out white as the
driven snow. SO high IS the tempera-
ture maintained that il Is impossible for
germs Of disease 10 survive the steam
laundry process
Neri comes the drying. The clothing
j. forkei out Of the washer and carried
IN baskets on rollers 10 the extractors, or
centrifugal Eringors The clothes are
dumped into an iron and copper machine
that looks like a great iron kettle stand
ing on three legs. underneath which are
3 iot II ogs, puilrys and thing, run by
q belt attached T. the shafting overhead
The centrifugal wringer is coffee pot
perforated with minute holes. Ii is open
- the top, and revolves 1900 revolutions
3 minute upon q universal joint. 1t Is
Z inside heavy iron pot, which stands
upon the three legs described. The
clothing is placed. just as it comes from
the washer, in this machine, and the
wringer set in mot on. In -four minutes
il IS stopped, when the clothes are found
clinging tighIs1 Hn..sIdes of the
wTinger, az Z, thousand
collars or tweS - be dried
in four minutes D 1lesfS Wonderful ma
chimes. The revolutions are so rapid that
almost every particle Of moisture is
squeezed out by the air. The old ST. le
Wringefs moved OF buttons like =
fhasher. In the extractor there IS
neither wear nor tear.
From the extractor the shirts, collars
and cuIs 20 % the stazching machine,
and napkins and tablecloths, sheets and
towels 10 the steam mangles. Starch is
boiled b. steam in 4 fcrty-gallon copper
hoi er and ladled into a starcher, which
j. a trough fitted with wooden cOgs that
reFolTe loosely, one upon another Col
bars and cuffs are passed back and forth
over these coes in 4 hath Of starch and
;hea carried 10 the starching tables,
where girls rub them thoroughly, so as to
drive the paste into every thread, slap
them. and finally rub of the starch
smoothly with large sponge. Collars
and cuffs are hung upon hooks arranged
on sticks four feet long, two dozen on
stick The collars and cuffs are hung
b. . buffouhOle The starcher has large
numbers on these sticks, stuck in holes in
The woodwork, 50 that she has a tier on
either hand The shirts are taken TO
1tlier tables. where the starch is rubbed
thoroughly into the bOsoms and neck
bands, and fhey are hung upon long
sticks rnn through the arms. six shirts
1n q siick. The shirts still hanging on
! siick. are carr "a 10 she steam dryer, as
re also the collars and cuffs. Here are
nnlmefAb'e racks, upon which the sticks
re placed. i is an apartment with a
.euperzfurc Of POO degrees. dry a. bone,
n which the starched clothes become as
M e. an aristocgat. wifhint wenty
uingtes Tie unsiarched clothing is
iriei aatuTally.
Tie neKt process is damping. This Is
ione iy placing the starched articles be-
Ecel sheets that are equally dampened,
I'D rolling them up. The clothes then
60 up Stair IL 81 elevator 70 the ironing
ulms Here are sfeam mangies, huge
.1lcerus thai will iron 4 sheet or hotel
riiIe cloth AZ one revolution, and shirt
aeon. collar and cut ironers. They
49, fhreagh three hands They first 90
q The bosom ironer. who presides over a
aiih heavy roller, heated by
a. The shirt j. placed upon a bosoW
.oari ard run under a roller II comes
,lf .ii-teaing ike glass, and is passed
70 the bend and Nristband ironer, who
las q machine cons sting Of a board upon
lhich o polishing iron j. held by an arm
90 = drawn down by a spring. Thus
q even pressure Il lity pounds Is main
aired. From these machines Tie shirts
= o. rhe women ifaners. who iron the
lodi-s in fhe good oid-fashioned man
i..r With -kiri board aud sad-iron. No
nnfhine has ever been invented 10
aiisfaetofi1v compete sith the sad-iroa
ar ironine SKIRTS and shirt bodies
ifaa- fffr women are constantly EN-
.l1rff 81 fhis work. Gollars aud cuifs
o. lruucd upol an oval bed,
yer shirh Guns a roller that Is
.eafeE b. gas The collar is aid on the
I'd. which j. covered with Can
ar faaui. AID ironed, turned ard
aHed sssir add Il is finished Turned
! aau c1ilars are fug through 3 growing
sr.s .-...az rIrrr4 7rs-r IA here