The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-10-02
USE FOR BROKEN GLASS.
Much of It Sold to Theaters For Win
dow Crashing Scenes.

Did you ever think of what becomes
OF all the glass broken in a glass fac
tory! asked the man with the cigaret
as he filled one of his pockets with
matches from the safe ON the table.
The remark was made apropos to moth
ing, and theepeaker waited as if he ex-
pected some one to~ask him about it.
But no one did and he continued:
l was passing glass factory on
Clark avenue yesterday, when / saw
several barrels filled with Broken glass
being loaded into a wagon. The pieces
ranged from the size OF mans hand
down to fragments no larger than
dime. Perhaps l wouldn't have MOTTO
ed 1t at all had not heard the driver
say to the man who was rolling the
barrel into the vehicle, BE careful
there, and don't break that all to
pieces. This struck me as queer, con-
sidering the fact that the glass was
apparently useless, and curiosity took
me inside the factory, where / asked
fellow about it. And do you know
the factory gets a pretty good price
per barrel for these fragments, a big
price when you think that 1t would be
thrown away If you were running the
factory and didn't know your bust
ness.
Yes, he says to me, trade in
broken glass in pretty good just now.
1Ou oGe all lllG lnGdteIS dTe opening
up and they have a supply on hand all
the time. What for? Why, don't you
know no farce comedy Is complete I'M
less some one jumps through a win
dow? A play without that in it would
MT take at all, it would be in direct
violation of stage tradition. And when
the villain or the hero, or the Irish COM
edian jumps through the oiled paper
window Danes and you hear the sound
Of breaking lass, don't you ever figure
out where the glass that is broken
| comes from?'
well, do you know, gentlemen, the
way the fellow put that question to
me 1 actually felt ashamed Of my ig-
norance. He asked me if I thought the
stage hands broke plate-glass mirrors
seven nights week with three matt
nees. l wilted, and then ne took pity
| on me. 1t seems that all the broken
| glass Is sold to the theatres. The va
riety houses have to have a big sup
| ply, for nearly every week some one
| is supposed to fall through window
| with a glass breaking accompaniment
The society dramas don't have so much
of this and it doesn't take much to sup
ply them, but where the burlesque
| fiourishes it's a poor show that doesn't
| use up q dozen barrels q week with
| daily matinees. The glass is taken to
| the theatre and stored In the cellar.
When 1t is required it is shoveled into
! a box and taken to the stage. Different
theatres have different ways of break
| ing the glass, but the best is that in
use in two of the best houses in this
| city. They have a big box, with an
| iron plate about a foot above the bats
! tom of it, sort of false bottom, as
| it We're. This is to prevent a dead
| break. AS the time when the window
is to be broken approaches stage
! hand with a shovelful of glass stanlss
ready for the cue. 1t comes and the
glass is thrown into the box with as
much force as possible. II the work
is well done the effect. as heard by
! the audience, is similar to that pro-
duced by window being broken. Now
of course the sound is not the same
but you notice that when l tap this
empty glass an entirely different sound
| is heard than when r.
But some one asked him If he
wouldn't prefer to experiment with a
full glass; and he stopped talking.-St.
| Louis Globe Democrat.