Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1890-10-08
MAKING CLAY PIPES
CrrRIOUS PROCESS TREY ARE PUT
THROUGH.
There Are About $50 Kinds and Styles
of Pipes.


Nearly all the clay used in the manu-
facture of clay pipes is obtained at
Woodbridge and Amboy, y. j., where
there are immense beds and mines,
some open and others reached only by
deep shafts, where clay is mined in
the same manner as coal. Three kinds
of clay are mixed together TO give the
required properties. One kind when
mined is nearly as black as coal. This
has very fine grain and gives the pipe
the smooth finish. Another kind has
an altogether different appearance in
the rough state. Ii is quite white and
resembles piece of cheese. This kind
furnishes the tenacity. Without tins
second kind the other two would not
be able TO hold together, but woRIG
crumble as they dried.
The third kind is brown when damp.
and stands the burning process well.
These three kinds of clay. without any
one of which the composition would be
incomplete, are the only ingredients of
a clay pipe. The clay is brought TO this
city by canal boat and stored away in
the cellar. In preparing the clay for
the workshop it is first put into a huge
vat to soak. About equal parts of the
three kinds are used. This is allowed
10 stand from twelve to twenty hours,
according TO the length of time the clay
has been exposed to the air and
hardened. When it has been soaked
enough il is shovelled into a huge pug
uiil. The pug-mill looks like an old
fashioned churn. \ horse is hitched
to the end of a bar, while the other
end is set into a pivot in the
centre of a huge upright cylinder. To
the pivot, which revolves as the horse
Is driven around in a circle, are at
tached twelve heavy knives about
three inches broad. These knives are
slightly turned up, and, as they pass
around through the mass, mix the diff
ferent kinds OF clay and force it down
and out a four by six inch hole at tho
bottom.
The clay ooZing from the bottom Is
cut into huge bricks called babbitts,
and stored away until wanted. Great
care must be taken not to let these
babbitts dry too much, or they will
have to be soaked and ground over
sgain. These babbitts or bricks of
the prepared clay, which look like
black loaves of bread, are taken TO the
moulding room and there soaked again
u bring il back to the proper mould
ing temper. Then comes the part of
the labor that would delight a child.
\ workman takes knife and cuts the
babbitts into pieces about an inch
square and six or eight inches long.
These he works and rolls them on Il
board with his hands, and ending up
with deNterous clip, turns out a roll
of soft, pliable clay with knob at one
end, like a pipe bowl. These rolls are
laid out on rack and partly dried
again. They are again soaked and
passed 10 the moulding machines
The moulder holds a medium-siZed
piece of wire in his right hand, and
sticking the point into the small end of
/ the roll. with his left he works the
I ciav on the wire, after the manner of
drawing on a glove.
The roll with the wire still sticking
T out Of the smaller end is put into an
iron mould of the required shape and
/ the two sides of the mould snapped
/ together. The mould is then put into
/ the machine with the top of the knob,
soon to be the bowl, up. A lever
I i pulled down, and the smooth, round
end of an iron rod forced into the
mass, forming the bowl. As the lever
i let go, it flies up of its own weight
and a spring knife passes across the
large end of the mould cutting of the
waste clay that remains on the top OF
the bowl The mould is opened inn
mediately, the wire drawn out and the
| pipe placed on rack TO dry. These
half-tinished pipes are allowed to stand
just long enough to dry the oil with
which the mould is fabricated, and are
then passed to a girl, who trims of
the seams where the two halves of the
mould come together. The soft, damp
pipes are then allowed to dry thor
oughly.
The burning kiln is about eight fee
in diameter and ten feet high and bull
of fire brick. The pipes are carefully
packed in heavy earthern sagers abou
ten inches in diameter and ten o.
twelve inches deep, and these sager
are piled up in tiers with hot air fiue
between each tier. About S25 gros
of pipes are burned at time. Tn
burning process requires white hea
and it must be maintained from tel
to fourteen hours. About thirty-sil
hours are required to cool the furnace
After the pipe has become thorough.
cool the small end is dipped into
solution, the composition of which is
secret, to glaze the mouthpiece, other
wise, until the pipe had been use,
some time, the lips would stick to
unpleasantly. The pipes are packe,
in one. two, and three gross boXe
with shavings TO prevent breakaSe am
shipped 10 the wholesaler. There ar
about 40 different styles of pipes an
a. rule ten different kinds are pack
ed in a box.