Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1894-08-05
cORKS AND BUNCS.
an Important Article That Almost Livery
body. Even the Poorest, Uses

Chicago Daily Inter-Ocean)
There is no country where so much
lockwood is used as In America Az
rough estimate It Is probable that over
100 900 bales are annually imported. The
leading purpose for which II Is used Is TOT
forming bungs and shoppers for bottles
and other vessels containing liquids. but
great deal IS also employed In the manu-
facture of life-preservers. cork Jackets'
and belts, and In the construction OF NE
boats. On account of its lightncss "
often used for the soles OF shoes and for
hat Innings. Artificial legs and arms are
made Of 1t, bicycle handles, and pommels
in leather dressing Cork was not used
for stopping bottles until the end OF the
seventeenth century, though Horace
speaks of the Romans using 1t as a stop
per for their wine vessels.
All the cork-wood imported into Amer
lea comes from Spain and Portugal There
are cork groves In South America but
they have not been under culture as long
as the European ones, and the WOOD is
consequently coarse and inferior In quail
~. Algiers has fine cork-wood, but the
cost OF transporting II such a tremendous
distance renders it practically unavaila-
bic for the American market.
The climate of the United States is per-
fectly adapted 10 the growth OF corkwood.
and large plantations have been started
In Florida and California, but tree at
tans the age Of twenty years before the
first cutting takes place. and then the
yield Is rough, uneven. and coarse In tex
ture. 1t can be used only for rustic work,
or as a tanning substance. At the Sc
cond stripping of the trees the bark Is
still SO coarse as 10 be only III for making
floats for nets. SC. As the operation OF
strIppjng the trees occurs only once In
every ten years. It will probably be at
least forty years before the American cork
groves are of any practical use. In the
mean time the United States will have 70
depend on the cork groves OF Spain ana
Portugal.
Cork is brought from Spain by vessels
which return with grain, and thus d.
minish the price of transportation. The
corkwood 1t put up in bales weighing from
80 pounds TO $50 pounds. The pieces are
cut varying from a half inch TO two and
a half inches in thickness. The stripping
OF the trees takes place in July and All
gust. Two cuts are made around the
stem. one a little above the ground, and
the other Immediately under the spring
Of the main branches. Then four longf-
tudinal incisions are made, the utmost
care being taken not to injure the inner
bark. The cork IS afterward removed IN
the sections into which ii Is cut by IN
sorting under il the wedge-shaped handles
Of the instruments used in making the
fncjsions. After the outer surface has
been scrapcd and cleaned the pieces are
fattened by heating them over IRE
and submitting them TO pressure on nat
surface. In the heating the surface II
charred. and this closes up the pores. ana
what is called nerve Is given TO the
wood.
The quality of the lockwood improves
with each successive stripping, and the
trees thrive under the operation for about
$50 years The trees reaches an average
height Of 80 feet.
In a cork factory the first work that Is
done Is asserting the wood according Il
the diameter: the wood is then taken to
the boring machine. where the instru'
ment which bores tho c0rks revolves "a
times within second. The cutting ol
corks by machinery has been found to b'
| a matter Of much difficulty, owing to th'
| cutting edges becoming blunt and th'
| necessity of keeping them sharp a grea'
| deal OF the work IS still done by haho
| labor hut a Scotch firm introduced y
machine which cuts corks and pungs
| Of any diameter up to three ana halt
| inches either parallel or tapered, by tn'
! aid of which a man can turn or sly
gross Of corks per hour. The taperht
machine IS often run by little girls a.
! IL Is very easily managed. "A small spri'is
forces the corks up under a CIRCULAR
knife which runs on n level, then drop
| them into a basket below. -.e giris arr
| employed to feed the machines. In eish
| rours sixty or seventy-ilye gross OF corh'
| can be tapered
| ,rbev ara then carried to the Sorting
,enches and graded rs TO quality. The
hest ouali;y are used for prescription
corks great deal Of judgment Is re
cnlred for sorting. and girls are not gene
rariv mt at this work until they haV'
had five years training at the tapering
machines. The corks are next put 10 y
| Gve-r-ross packages for the trade, and
| range In price from cents 10 s. gross
M hoes that the corks are pu; up In are
| generally made in the factory by I'M
Girls muslin and buriap being bought oS
the case and bale for that purpose. Ih'
| bacs vary in size from inches TO Zee
| sonaro The largest cork-factory in th'
/ I-nited states IS in Pittsburg, the mex
largest is in Lancaster. Ia.
| All corlts. except pickle mustard ana
| sauce-corlls, are cut across the grain o
| the wood. so as to prevent the pores
| heinc exposed TO the air. Large corks
! ouch as pickles. mustard, &C.. have TO b'
| emf the other way OF the WOOD on sc
| count of their size but wo1 Is geEeraif,
used in fastening the corks In these bot
ties. "