The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-08-16
HOW COTTON TIES ARE MADE
The New Mill at Rome Turning Out
Ten Tons Day.

The New Mill at Rome Turning Out
Ten Tons Day.
The new rolling mill at Rome is turning
out ten tons Of cotton ties a day.
At this rate it will make enough to band
one-twelfth of the cotton crop. and by run
ming night and day it will supply one-sixth
of the whole demand
This is one Of the results of the Rome
boom two years ago, aud the active work
of the business men to bring new industries
there Mr. Nevegold, the president Of the
rolling MILL is a Pennsylvania, who was
raised in the manufacture Of hoop iron and
knows all the details of management by
which the business is made profitable.
As we stood looking at the rolls through
which the billets We're passing. the white,
hot iron came out of the next to the la st
roll long. thin, incandscent hoop, which
might nave been compared b tirery SER
pent.
Instead of pulling it straight out and
sending it back through the last roll by the
reverse motion the boy who stood there
siezed the end with pair of tongs as soon
1t appeared and bent it round him to the
last roll, which sliced it and carried it
through in a second. Meantime he was
standing inside the firery circle that
whipped by his legs 50 fast shat he seemed
calves burned Off
THAT was the secret of my fathers sue
cess" said Mr.. Nevegold when | was a
boy | started that method more from lazi-
ness than anything else, and | became SO
expert at it that 1t was regularly adopted
w g found that we could run it through the
rolls quicker, and getter better results tnat
way, so We have used that plan ever since
at IS not nece ssary, however, for the boy
to stand there and bond the hot hoop abou5
his legs. | have guide btx which leads lc
round TO the last roll and dispeuses with
the boy altogether. | will put that on by
and by"
This mill first takes pig iron of the vari-
GUS grades used to make the tough COMPOST
ton for cotton ties anG puddles it, Then it
is hammered INTO blooms, which are re-
heated and rolled down into small billets
The billets are.cut into short pieces and
heated again. Passing through a number
of rolls they come out at last one thirty
second Of an inch thick and forty-six feet
long. They are then run through smooth
ing machine and trimmed at the ends to a
length of forty-fOur feet. This is cut into
four pieces and the ties made All that re-
mains is to put them up in bundles of
thirty, with thirty buckles strung on one of
the ties. The thirty ties are placed in a
long fiat box just wide enough for two lay
ers of fifteen TO lie side by side. The buckles
are put on one of the inside ties, and the
whole pile is doubled over and bound with
short pieces Of hoop iron. The process of
bundling usually takes two minutes, and an
expert can put IN a bundle in one minute.
1t takes 400 bundles to make the days out
put of ten tons, and one hand can about
keep up with the ties as they como out of
the cutting machine
the pudding is done at night to avoid
the heat. A singular fact in this connec-
ton is that the puddlers don't suffer from
heat as much here as they do in Pennsyl-
vania.
81 don't know why it isl said Mr..
Nevegold, but they do not seem to get
overheated so easily. 1t is not such an over
powering heat here as in the north-noU so
sutfocating'
Possibly tins is due to greater humidity
in Pennsylvania Whatever it is, the
men feel the difference very greatly and are
better able to stand up to their work in hot
weather.
The financial affairs of the mill are under
the management of c. II. Cothran. a young
business man who grew up and got his
training at Rome. He says the product of
the mill is largely sold ahead, and they are
now working fifty hands with weekly pay
roll of $500.