The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-01-10

day reported BY Representative Rockwell.
A Valuable Mine Developed and New
Industry Established.
Within the last few months an entirely
new industry has sprung into existence
near Seattle. Following upon the discov-
cry of mine of sewer pipe clay and fire
clay near Black Diamond, factory for the
use of these products has been established
at Van Asselt's, and the mine and factory
together are employing about eighty men
About year and . half ago Joseph
SAINTS, formerly Of New Brighton, Pa. dis
covered in a bluff on the bank of Green
river, two miles from Black Diamond. a
body of ire clay and sewer pipe clay side
by side with deposit of serni-anthracite
coal. Being manufacturer of sewer pipes
and FIRE brick, he saw the value Of his d nd
at once The several strata are tilted Cd
on edge on the river bank, so that they
can be traced with the naked eve. There
is a mass Of sewer pipe clay eighty feet
thick and 40 feet high. There are two
veins of fire clay, one Of plastic, ten feet
thick, the other Of flint, thirty feet thick
There are also five veins of coal, ranging
from three to seven feet in thickness. All
these strata extend from the base TO the
top Of the HILL
SIR. SAINTS secured 30 acres of the min
eral land and then organized q company TO
develop it. This Is the Puget Sound Fire
Clay Company, which has capital stock
of $4,000, fully paid The officers are
Senator w. r. Forrest, president; Charles
r. Phmpton, vice-president; George w
Hummer. secretary and treasurer; Joseph
SAINTS, general manager.
N1.k -, -. L. -
A branch of the Columbus tS Puget Sound
railroad was built 10 the mine and down
600foot incline TO its mouth Drifts we're
run into the sewer pipe vein. the fire clay
vein and the seyen-foot coal vein and have
now penetrated q considerable distance
The railroad cars descend the incline 10
the north OF the mine and are hauled up
BY double engines placed at the top. The
mine cars are delivered to automatic
dumps or bunkers of loo tons capacify
from which the railroad cars are loaded
The mine employs forty-two men, who
live in tenement houses built by the com
pany for their convenience. The coal is
mined only for the use Of the company
From the mine the clay Is hauled 10 the
works at Van Asself's station, into which
q switch runs. The main building Of the
factory IS s0x1JO feet, with an L 56xs5 feet.
and is three stories high. There are black
smith and machine shops at both the mine
There are four kilns for sewer pipe, thirty
feet in diameter, q fifth is now being built,
and the number will be increased to
twelve. The works have a Turner,
Vaughan & Taylor sewer pipe press, on
which pipe can be made from two to twen-
ty-four inches in diameter.
The prices of manufacture Is an interest
ing one. The rock first goes into the
crusher which breaks il I'D in dry pan
with four-ton wheels. Ii is then carried
by elevator cups on an endless belt 10 the
second floor and discharged into large
hopper, under which two wet pans are
placed on the first floor. II is then drawn
by small shute into the wet pans. where
i Is mixed with water and tempered TO
the proper consistency. Ii is now carried
by another elevator TO the second ioor,
where the clay drops in the form OF balls
into trough, in which an endless belt
rms. carrying II TO smaller feed trough
at the mouth of the press In this
Is another belt, travelling very
rapidly, which shoots the cIay
night into the press. At given signal the
pressman, who is on the door below, pulls
lever which lets loose steam cylinder
of forty tons pressure. This sends a
plunger down, which forces the Claw
through the die, which makes pipe Of
any size, according TO the die in use From
the press the pipe is taken TO the drying
door and carried by steam elevators from
one door to another and left there until it
Is dry enough. lie next goes into the kilpS.
where II IS burned 10 white heat, taking
1--WE or six days burning 10 kiln. When
the pipe Is burned so that the PARTICLES are
all thoroughly knit together and is at a
high degree of heat. the fire-hoies are fed
with salt instead of coal, which produces
salt glaze on the pipe, making ii
imperolous to sewer gases and giving ii
smooth body so that the sewage viii flow
freely without iuterruption
There are also fire. brick machine with
capacity of 80 90 brick daily and repress-
ing machines for brick
The works have Cooper-Corliss engine
OF l15 horsepower and about 1900 feet of
steam pipe run through the building for
drying purposes. There is a Worthington
pump which draws water direct from the
Duwamish river through Hve-inch pipe
TO I,olbarreI tank, elevated eighteen
feet above the ground Hose Is run
all through the factory. and the thirty
i've employees are all trained for
fire protection. There are switches
from both the Northern Pacific and the
Columbia & Puget Sound railroads into
the yard. and slip to the DuwarniSh
rlver. which washes the west shore Of the
property.
The company has supplied the pipe for
the falThayen sewer system, and a guam
iity OF llinch pipe, which was used to
turn the White river at 0sBrien Other
pipe has been sold TO various points in
this section. In test made by ]. f. Boy
den, OF the Washington Iron Works. this
pipe stood a pressure ranging from $50 70
20 pounds. \ sale OF 31o.0oo Iire brick has
been made In San Diego. Terra Gotta and
paving brick are also made
md of much interest TO biologists was
made IN the sewer pipe mine Two long,
curved strips OF clay, as hard as rock, were
found lying side by side in the miRe one
OF them was shattered by the blast. but
the other lies in the office at Commercial
and Jackson streets It's about three feet
nine inches long, and tapers from a width
OF six inches at one end 10 two inches at
the other end. IL is about two inches
thick in the middle, and tapers TO sharp
edge At both sides. IL has proved puzzle
% biologists. Some think Ii Is either the
rib of a v hale, the ms of some Ilsh or the
iusk OF some antesiiiisvian animal Others
think il was formed BY an impression on
the banks Of the stream by the action of
the water. Petrined muSsel shells have
also been found in the CLAW