The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-10-23
4 SEATTLE TANNERY.
Qualities of Washington Hem
lock Put to A Test.
QUITE A CONSIDERABLE PLANT.
Washington Hides 70 Be Made Into
Leather With Washington Tan
min b. an Expert Tanner.

Among local industries the active opera
ton CT tannery Of some pretensioas ard
large possibilities Is the latest 20 be an.
ncHnced. II is owned b. the n. G. Bene-
dict Leather Company. and is located
near fszysana. Il turned out its first Ieath-
er yesterday afternoon. but Of It's quality
i IS TOO early to make any definite state
msnf- Several attempts have been made
here Al manufacturing leather. as il is
patent 10 every one that no better local
fty could BE- found for obtaining the raw
material caeapiy. which is the first point.
and IN the second place Seattle and its
neigh5orhood afford an excellent market.
Hides are now shipped from this port IN
vast numbers 10 San Francisco for tan
ming, and then shipped back here az
leather, freights being paid both WAYS. OF
course This = what is called hide cen
ter. There are half dozen large ship
pers, and one alone sent 1000 hides &c
San Francisco last year In addition 70
these hides which are returned as leather.
the tanneries Of Milwaukee. Boston and
other csnters OF the tanning industry are
called upon TO help supply Seattle
Various reasons are given why the at
tempts at tanning here have been unsuc-
cesSfui. such general business de-
preston, old methods and machinery, the
lack Of skilled vorkmen and so on, but
the most common explanation was that
suited for the business.
Experiment With Washington Bark.
W. G. Benedict, whose new leather
representative of the st-Tnteiligencer
was inspecting yesterday. was asked for
his expert testimony on the value or the
henlock bark of this state.
Il am not yet prepared to say" was
his reply "All nv watts are new and
therefore absorb a great deal Of the tan
IT, ia he NzC h
ington bark IS not good. but you can give
a guess at my opinion on the subject by
taking z look at our preparations for ex-
perimenting."
Mr. Benedict who is an expert tanner
from HeriSimer county. y. Y. then show
ed his visitor over the new 'tannery. IL is
a short distance from Ravenna station.
on the Seattle, Lake Shore & Eastern
railroad There the company has pur-
chased seven and one-half acres OF land,
and has already erected a number or
large buildings. II has side track On
the railroad 10 its bark house. which Is
great harm now. nearly filed with bark
The hide room where the skins are
sorted and made into packs for the beam
house and soaks is 35xeo feet. The beam
house IS 40x45 feet and has thirteen watts
for the soaking lining and cleaning or the
skins with the most modern drums ana
wheels and appliances. In the tan mousse
under the same roof. there are al present
fhirtv-six watts. These are not the usual
hoy yats but are what are known In the
trade as Buffalo watts. which are connect
ed by tubes to permit the tanning liquor
TO flow from one 70 the other.
Across a lanyard of 4ixs0 feet, the
leach house is reached, building S-x0o
feet and % feet high. The bark mill Is on
the ground floor. and an elevator carries
the bark as IL is ground TO the third moor,
where are six teaches, or watts, Tor max
ing the decoction from the bark THESE
teaches are on what is called the press
leach system. and each one VIII hold SIX
cords OF ground bark. The pure decoctlon
runs from these presses into watts on the
ground floor and there il is tested ana
r,,n IN pjpes into the tanning.vats. There
are two f7rry-horse-power boilers ana a
aftv-horse power engine IN the engine
hoilse and on the other side Is a drying
loft. 3sxe0 feet. not quite comNeted YET
Here the skins will be finished ana Mf-
paneaIct estimates that IL VIII need
driving room double the size when the ian
merry gets into fun working operation
seattle Leather nv November.
The skins Mr. Benedict took out yester-
aav had been in the watts but thirty days
en5 vet had the appearance of being salts
factorIlv tanned By November ne hopes
ia have Seattle leather on the market ant
e., connpesition with that Of the East lot
the home trade. His experiment In
buildings and machinery alone IS about
$1,000.
AS 10 the unpleasantness OF a tanneTy
70 the Immediate neighborhood, there does
not seem TO he any possibility or bad
smells about this new tannery- MI behe-
.4tct saws there Is none In connection VITA
,ha modern tannery. II properly run The
-onnanv has built one residence and IS
10 build two more on the tannery prop
ertv. and Mr.. Benedict says no one pass
Ing on the railroad a few feet away VII
know there is tannery there by the
eersa oF smell