The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1899-10-14

An industry for girls that is seldom
explained, but one whose results mil
lions OF people are daily testing. is the
putting OF leads into pencils. Al
though no implement is more familiar
lhan the pencil. few people know how
It ID made or where Its component
parts come from. The following In
teresting facts were given recently by
The managers of one OF the largest
pencil factories, says the New York
Tribune.
"The pine or cedar, the former for
cheap pencils, the latter for more ex-
pensive ones, arrives at the factory In
small blocks or slabs, little longer
than . pencil, q little wider than six
pencils, and of proper thickness. If
they are to be colored they are first
dyed. All are treated to process
which removes the essential oil, and
which seasons them perfectly.
1.-THE source of supply for the cedar
10 Florida, and so great inroads have
been made upon the forests for the
manufacture Of pencils that the wood
III
lead pencil is misnomer. and halls
from the sticks of lead which were
the primitive pencils. The lead is
Rraphite or plumbago, and comes from
the province of Quebec or from Ticon-
derosa, the latter having the largest
mines of the kind on this continent.
"One factory turns out 30.000.0 900 pen
ellis . year. The graphite is first re-
duced to an impalpable powder by
grinding. Water is then added, and
the substance IL then run through mix
ers in fluid state, in order to COM
bine with it whatever quantity Of clay
may be necessary to give 1t the grade
desired. The more clay. the harder
the lead, and vice versa. After this
mixing has been done, which is per-
formed entirely by machinery. the
mass 10 taken from the mixers and run
through filter presses in way to ex-
olude the water and reduce 1t to q
doughy consistency.
I'm order to make the mixing still
more thorough this doughty mass il
then passed through dies, by which is
meant plates with numerous . small
Derforations.. under great pressure.
from which the lead-as shall call 1t,
in dsference to common phraseology-
Issues in tiny rods or wires, In gen
eral appearance not unlike the lead
that IL put into the pencils. but. in
Stsad Of being dry and brittle, being
still In . moist or soft condition.
'"The material receives this treat
Apsrturss Of different dianstass. until
Aaal1y. whom the mixing las besA
satisfactorily completed and the mass
- In proper condition, II Il passed
through . ret of dies of the exact diam
etsr OF the lead that 10 to 70 into the
psacii. Deft fingers take the product
in this condition. straighten out the
leads and cut them to lengths Of about
three feet. At this stage 1T 10 still
oomparatively soft and pliable. After
being cut the leads are allowed to dry
and are then cut to the required pen
Oh lengths and packed in crucibles
and burned for several hours, in order
10 extract the last degree Of moisture
that remains. and to bring the lead
to ~ final condition. The leads are
now ready for inserting In the wooden
cases and are sent to the girls room.
The slabs Of wood are put through
machine Giving each six grooves. square
or round, and at the same time
smoothing the face Of the wood.
''The girls are seated IN groups of
three. with slabs. 'leads' and gloe pot.
before them. Tho hrst girl takss a
srooved strip in her right hand and
SIX leads spread fan shape In her left
and with one motion ans the ak
grooves. The next girl coats . grooved
strip with hot glue and hands 1t to
No. .. who takes the filed strip from
hsf other neighbor and lays the one
UPON the other. The filled and glued
strips are piled together and left in
2ress to dry. After that they are
svsned of under sandpapsr wheel
and cut into single pencils. when they
are shaped and Vanished ready for the
market"