Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1890-02-14
ssville's Cigarette GiriA-


ssvilis's Cigarette Giria-
Ono Of the sights of Seville which ne
tourist misses is the cigar factory, in
which the government employs about
5000 women and girls. The showing
about Of visitors is accordingly looked
upon as . regular source Of income by
the porter and the matrons.
After getting permission to enter. you
are placed in charge Of q matron, who
shows you through her own department
and then passes you on to another, and
50 on. until your stock Of pesetas and
half pesetas put aside for fees is ex-
hausted.
These matrons accompany the visitors
not in order to prevent the girls from
flirting with them (nothing could do
that, but to see that no tobacco or bun
dies Of cigarettes may disappear.
Before entering each room bell is
rung to warn the girls, who are i'll great
deshabille ON account of the heat. to put
on their wrappers, and as the door opens
scores of round arms and pretty shout
ders are seen disappearing, while several
hundred p:irs Of coal black eyes are
fastened on you.
The passages are lined with cradles.
and the poor young girl mothers To
whom they belong implore us with eyes
and hands for penny for the Murillos
Of the future lying in them.
These girls are more frank than subtle
in their flirtations. There is not one in
the crowd who will not be immediately
conscious of o mans gaze fixed upon
her. nor will she be the first to turn her
eyes away.
Some will wink, and even throw kiss
from a distant corner at the rich lnglese
(all foreigners are supposed to be wealthy
Engiishmen,.
They are q merry lot, on the whole,
these poor girls. the cleverest of whom
make only twOa pesetas, or forty cents a
day, for which they have TO toll twelve
or fourteen hours in a tobacco reeking
atmosphere Not that they object to the
tobacco at all.
They are allowed TO smoke If they wish
and make use of this privilege. They are
remarkably deft at rolling the cigarettes,
but not all seem eager to make as many
Is possible; for some are idling, and
others are asleep; but no one cares, as
each is paid according to the number sh,
rolls.-Henry 7. Finck in Scribner.
where the Nickel Comes Prom.
In the Copper Cliff mine, near Sud
bury, Canada, it is said more nickel 10
being produced than the entire market
Of the world calls for at current prices.
A little branch off the main line Of the
Canadian Pacific railway, four miles in
length, leads out to the mine. which
opens into the face Of q crag Of the brown,
oxidixed Laurentian rock, characteristic
Of this region. The miners are now at
work at depth Of about 800 feet below
the surface Al fast as the nickel and
copper bearing rock is hoisted out, it is
broken up and piled upon long beds, or
ricks, Of pine wood, to be calcined or
roasted, for the purpose of driving out
the sulphur which it contains. The roast
ing process is of the nature of lime kiln
ing or charcoal burning. Each great bed
| Of ore requires from one to two months
70 roast. When roasted the rock goes to
the principal smelter, a powerful blast
furnace "iacketed'-in mining phrase
with running water, to enable it to sus-
tain the great heat requisite to reduce
the crude, obdurate mineral to fuidity.
The dross Of the molten mass is first
allowed to flow of, and afterward the
nearly pure nickel and copper, blended
together In an alloy called the mat" or
matte, is drawn of at the base Of the
furnace into the barrow pots and wheeled
away, still liquid and fiery hot, to cool
in the yard Of the smelter. The mat con-
tains about 70 per cent Of nickel, the re-
naming 80 per cent. being mainly cop
per. When cold, the conical pot loaves
Of mat can easily be cracked in pieces
BY means Of heavy hammers, The frag
ments are then packed In barrels and
shipped to Swansea, in Wales. and to
Germany, where the two constituent
metals are separated and refined by secret
processes, which are very jealously
guarded BY the manufacturers.
So jealousy Is the secret kept that no
one In America has yet been able to learn
the process, although one young metal
lurgist spent three Year, in Swansea as a
common laborer in the factories in order
TO obtain it. At present there are pro
duced daily at the Copper Cliff mine
about ninety pot loaves Of mat, each
weighing near $50 pounds, an output
which yields an aggregate Of more than
1000 tons Of nickel Q year.-Manufac-