Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1889-06-15
OLD BONES.
Their Value and Many Uses to
Which They Are Put.

A Brooklyn Eagle reporter, who visited
one of the big sugar refneries in the
eastern district not long ago, was amazed
to see what an important part animal
char or bone black plays in sugar puri-
fcation. Tons and tons of the stuff are
in constant use, being burned over and
over in huge ovens. The thought oc-
CURED to him that very few people asso-
ciated the awful smells which float over
the Manhattan beach track from Barren
Island with the white, sweet crystalliza-
ton, which is in daily use upon their
tables. He, therefore, determined to
utilize the first opportunity he had to
find out something about bones and what
uses they are put to. The chance came
one day last week when he met down at
Bay Ridge man who had formerly been
foreman of a bone boiling establish
ment.
''The best bones," said the authority,
''are the fresh ones from the slaughter
houses and butcher shops, and bone
boilers make special effort to collect
such. The best quality of bones are
shins, thighs and forelegs, and these are
rendered out to free them from fat and
flesh and sold for manufacturing pur-
poses. Shins, properly cleaned, will
bring $40 ton, while thighs are worth
$50 ton. Forelegs are cheap at $50 o
ton. The makers of knife, umbrella and
parasol handles, collar buttons, tooth
brushes, hairbrushes, buttons, and all
kinds of things in which bone can be
used buy all of these that they can get.
TOothbrushes are mostly made from
thigh bones, while the bones used for
buttons and parasol handles are as
general thing shipped to Europe to be
made up. Sheep bones make excellent
fancy parasol handles, and ivory fans,
which society bellies languidly swing,
were once more intimately connected
with mutton than one would think. In
fact the leg bone of o sheep will take a
finer polish and is less brittle than that
of COW or steer"
"What bones are used for making
animal charl"
''The odds and ends that are worth
less for other purposes, such as shin
bones, knuckles, skulls and the smaller
joints of the animals. Nearly all of tie
bone black made from these is sold to
the sugar refneries, and through their
calcined remains the syrup is filtered"
"Where do you get bones2"
Gas have said, We make q business
of collecting from local establishments,
but the amount thus obtained wouldn't
keep us going very long, SO we have
them sent in from all over the country.
The western slaughter houses supply
the greatest quantity, as so much OF the
cattle killing of the country is now done
out there. Bones for fertilizing We boil
in open kettles, but those for comeback
are put in air tight tanks and boiled
under pressure, for by this process the
nitrogen is eliminated, and carbon, the
part wanted, is left"
''Do you get anything else from the
bones besides bone black and material
for manufacture p
''Oh, yes; neatsfoot oil is extracted
from the shins and hoofs and hoofs of
cattle, and the liquor which is left over
after boiling makes good sizing glue for
the paper manufacturers. The best
bears grease, too, is made from the mar
row of fresh bones"
'Do the rag-pickers supply You with
many bones 2"
''0 course we take stuff they fish out,
put naturally it is of inferior quality and
doesn't kegin to compare with the fresh
stock"