The record-union., 1896-06-07

It runs in human nature to desire
something soft, and man who is not
looking for that something is not to be
trusted. Though his lot may have
fallen in stony places, and he follows
the old Scriptural injunction and earns
his bread by the sweat Of his brow, he
still finds time for recreation and rest
and when the time comes he naturally
wants to work it for all it is worth.
While a few men travel almost con-
tinually, the majority live domestic
lives, and a trip back to the States" is
q luxury which comes too seldom not to
be thoroughly enjoyed. It is upon oc-
casioas of this kind that the majority
hook for a soft thing" and owing to the
skill and ingenuity of the upholsterers
IN the Upholstery Department OF the
Southern Pacific car-shops, they find
just what they have been looking for.
In the car into which they are ush-
cred they are surrounded with all the
comforts of home, and good many not
to be found there. There are soft,
springy cushions-to be buffeted by
and upon which genuine re-
ural consequence; and there are quaint
embossed plates of glass, and elaborate
ly carved mirrors and soft, fluffy car
pets and rich curtains, and there are a
thousand other things conducive to
good, solid comfort, which makes the
traveller bury the skeleton of his life
deep out of sight and live only in the
present.
And when that same traveller has
hooked himself weary at objects Of in
terest along the route, he cuddles down
among snowy sheets spread upon mat
tresses and is rocked to sleep by the
easy motion Of fragile springs, and for
gets even his debts in a dreamless
sleep.
In this same Upholstery Department
the visitor will look and think he has
seen it all, and then will look again
and conclude he has seen nothing al
all. Something new unfolds before him
at each turn, and still something new;
and unless he understands that practi-
caily the upholsterery work for the en-
tire Southern Pacific system is done
here, he will become confused and Won
der what 1t can all be for.
Here he will see bolts of the finest
plush made in the world being cut and
shipped and stitched and stretched over
masses of crimped and curled hair,
which. once upon a time, formed the
names and tails of the ponies that
roamed the pampas Of South America:
the hair, in its turn, covering spiral
springs which give and take upon the
least pressure.
Here, too, may be seen rolls Of the
finest and softest carpets. and men
studying the ground-floor plan of cars
while cutting and stitching the carpets
to match them And there are men
who do nothing but drive tacks all
day long, and others who work pom
derous sewing machines.
And there are piles and piles OF
blankets of the finest wool, and stacks
of the whitest linen and heavy bro
caded curtains, and the thousands OF
other things which enter into the fur
nishing of a sleeper or frst-class
passenger coach.
These, and many other things. a Wis
stor would see, and the longer he
stayed the more clearly would he COM
prehend the vastness Of the department
he had entered.
When cars arrive in the shops for re-
pairs, an inventory is Immediately
taken of all equipments, including seat
and back cushions, head and shoulder
rests, carpets, mattresses. pillows
berth curtains, supplementary berth
curtains and window curtains, drap-
cry of all kinds, and every other NOV
able article is taken charge of by the
upholstery department and convened
no the first floor, where they all un-
uergo a thorough examination after
the inventory has been completed.
In the meantime the cushions are
taken to the third floor, where the plush
Is removed and sorted, the better part
peing atterward renovated and washed
Tor future use, while that which is
much worn is laid aside for covering
engine cab or conductors seats, kept
Tor patchwork or laid away, to be used
as packing waste.
The lining is stripped off and the
hair removed to an upper story. where
1t is run through hair-picking ma
chine, which reminds one of a thresh-
ing-machine cylinder with the teeth
set close together, and which picks the
matted hair to pieces, and at the same
0AA IlAA anu Btu
leaving it as bright and clear
and springy as when first used. The
amount OF work which may be done by
this hair-picSing machine is practi-
caIly inealculable, and it is to be
counted as one of the first labor and
materfal-saving machines in use a-
the shops
AFTER the woodwork has been over
hauied by the ca.binet-makers. 1t Is re-
turned to the upholstery shop, where the
springs are repaired, and those worn
out replaced with new ones.
In the meantime. all the plush /,
taken IN hand by dyers, and the dive.
room being contiguous 10 the uphol.
stery shop, proper. there is neither de.
lay nor confusion in the transmission
when once in the dyero0m the plush
as mas been said, is thoroughly reno.
waited and washed before being dyed
but the process deserves notice. Tc
begin with the plush Is stretched owe,
q broad board made for the purpose
and IS then held over a boiler unit
thoroughly steamed 1t is then leaned
against a wall and compressed al,
nose is brought into play, by means O.
when the cloth is dried and ever,
vestige Of grit and dirt removed by tn,
force OF the air. If the piece is mucf