Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1894-03-13
THESAWING OFONYX
HoH The Precious Stone From U.ah
Lake is Worked in this City.
ABIG YARD AND FINE MACHINERY.
Hugo Rough Block. Converted into
Smooth aud Ulistening slabs for
the joint Building.

Tho onyx Industry Of Utah promises
TO become great one. Few person,
are aware OF the lmmeusl amount of
development work that is now being
done much less DO they suspect that
that precious stone Is bslng shipped to
this city In car load lots.
a representative u the News was
last evening shown over ami about the
dig stone yard Of Watson Bros. on
Sixth West stree, between North and
South Temple streets, aud was very
muchauFprised aud pleased At what ho
saw there.
Tue yard IA connected with the Rio
Gnnio Western by means Of a private
switch uni has upon It one Of the beat
II not tho very best stone working
plants ives. Of Chicago. What at.
tfacIed the attention OF tho Newspaper
man most was the m, lb0d OF sawing,
rubbing AMI polishing tho huge blocks
VI onyx from the beds OF Inc Utah
Mexican onyx company. The most OF
llis material will be- used 10 Il. the
company's contract ia furnishing the
ohyA Tor tho Joint city ami county
bulllinc though the owners and opef.
aluis have NUMEROUS minor contracts
10 MI and new orders arc being TO-
cciNcd IN satisfactory numbers. The
company las apparently got "a bonanza
anu ~ not SLOW " appreciate that fact,
IL was very Interesting to note how
easily n car could be unloade1 10y one
man. By means oi powerful and deli.
cate movable cranes one man Il able TO
iiii slouo weighing ten tons from the
car aud convey II 10 any part OF the
yard that IN desired. Twenty OF thirty
tons eau rhsiiy be unloaued by single
man IN w many minutes.
Tue blocks o. onyx are very crude
nnd rough aH they come from tho
quarry and at fifsI glance the impr,s.
SION L. created that tons OF stone are IN
this account shipped AT loss. The
onyx being one ~ the hardest OF stones,
cguaijrraole difficulty IL encountered
m saving u iu,O slabs, aud the process
IL a very slow and laborious one, re.
curing tue most palient anu vigilsnt
watohcAre on ths part OF ths wofkmen.
Ihe Dig blocks are first swung on to
an elevated platform OF enormous
strength, directly underA large nup.
Der OF saws Of the iiuest metal which
/ parallel each other anu which are
about an inch apart. These are nd.
Unstable 60 that the slab can DO cut into
any desirable thickness. They arc
operated by a steam engine aud are
Kept constantly cold aud wet by sprays
Of water which arc automatically dls.
tftbuled over them, whilu the grooves
that the saws slowly wear are made
deeper by the combined use OF the
/ water ana clein, snup river SAINT.
| When the statement ia made that
these powerful saws, which are about
thirteen feet Ia length only sink Into
the stone At the rate " threo-quarlsfs
u an Inch an hour when driven 10
lholr utmost capacity tho tediouanesH
| VI the work ocOmts apparent.
Alter thu blocks are uawn into slabs
they are conveyed 10 a large cylindTi.
cal rubbing machine, when " also
operated by steam. THIS device IL n
very line one, anu was m ado In this
city by Silver Bros. al u Clst, said Mr..
Watson, cheaper than II would have
been possible 10 Import II. rhe polish.
ing II another Interesting process, Tut
this work ~ mostly done by hand At the
present time.
Tue orOakUrs who have 40 often said
that Uah onyx oanuot be found la
large tlwluas slabs should visit Wat.
sJn BrIH.'yarIs and there see fJr them.
selves specimens ten aud twelve feet In
length, nHu i've anu Hlx feet In width,
with, VI crack ~ marx 10 Ia any way
mar their beautiful surface.