The Savannah morning news., 1900-12-31
MANUFACTURE OF SHOT.
MELTED LEAD. DROPPED FRoM 4
TOWER. SHAPES ITSELF.

-rriptlon OF the Famous Ola shot
Tower IN New ork-isong Drop u
onIy for the Purpose 90 HardentnE
the Pellets. which ran - Past
That They seen, like solid silN"ry
strcnms-MnkinE the Lead nritti"
With Ar.cnic-Not dangerous.
From the Sew York MaI ana Express
Standing on made ground over the ver}
spot where Robert Fulton sailed BIZ hrst
steamboat ls the celebrated shot tower
/ that has entered into tho romano, ana
tragedy 81 tb, great city FOR genera .ons.
| From ST. TOP one may look down into tle
court yard 70 the Tomhs prison. and years
ago. when murderers We're hanged there
I Newspaper mon were wont 90 watch from
/ the tower and signal the news of death %
other watchers posted on the roofs ~
I newspaper ofHccs on Park Row Many
I men have been KILLED hy the shot made
there. and millions o. rabbits ana state
ler game have become victims ot me
/ neshlois through its influence.
Every generation or 30 some crank
comes forward with scheme 10 make
small shot without a towcr-one has been
/ trying 10 ge, before the public recently
Every plan has been tried. but NOS en-
ounce OF small shot D. on the market eH-
cept what was made Ga tho old-fashioned
way. The largest shot that can he made
ir a tower is twenty -three-huudre1s 81 81
inch IN diameter Buckshot and all sizes
larger are nodded.
The process g. extremely simple-thc
/ shot forms itself and the hight 81 thc
tower has nothing 20 do with shtphs
/ the pellets Hight O. only necessary 20
| give them time 10 harden before th,y
come iu contact with anything that might
destroy their shape. The old tower on
Center street n 10 feet tall A. ~ hot
tom is we'll thirteen rect deep. hllod
/ with water. into which the hard. but hot.
/ shot fall An endless chain works a t'e
bottom with buckets. carrying The shot
up 90 a platform az fast az they reacn
| IN bottom Of the well. On working
| day twelve tons Of shot will b. ralhea
down from the giddy top into this wen
| ana the water will be kept Kissing Win
H. torrent nut chat Is a little detail %
the manufacture The real skill Is re-
aulrcd ia mixing the lead 20 be poured.
shortening" the Lead.
Melt pure Iead and pour u through enc
eolander al the top Of the tower and y
win b. taken from the water ia short
strines more ike crooked nails than
shot Te make the lead form pellets u
must h. shortened. or "Ehnrpaned just
rs housewife shorteus dough with lard
to make pie crust The shortening ior
lead is arsenic. Several years ago
genhfs who edited Sunday new paper
discovered that this arsenic In shot poia-
oned the game killed with q and render
Il unit 20 eat, but that was sunday
story
The amount OF arsenic used is 80 slight.
| ana 50 perfectly assimllatcd by the lead
| that II is harmless II "a mixed with the
lead thus: ON the bottom OF a great re-
/ tori is placed heap OF forty pounds Of
pure arsenic. over Il r. placed an iron
crown. which hts alright. on top Of
/ this II put ton OF cold Head The lead
H. then heated. The moment Il begins 10
| show red an attendant pluugs an iron
rod into q ana upsets the iron crown. or
bowl. that held the arsenic down. The
| poison is thus released at the bottom Of
/ the not lead II begins TO work its way
| up through the mass. but bv the time %
reachss the surface there is barely "a fumc
Of II left. the lead having absorbed a.
Lead thus treated s. az brittle as quick
silver and biz OF II dropped on the
/ noor will ~ in thousand directions and
/ come 20 rest In a myriad OF tiny pellets
u IS too brittle for shot II Is shot
stock" one hundred pounds Of this
stock Is melted with thousand pounds
/ o. pure lead and the resultant mixture
Is short enough for shot. and Is run OF
into bars OF 900 pounds weight each
The uain OF sIIvery shot.
! At the top Of the tower on sort Of
| dais Is a melting pot. The prepared lead
| Is hoisted To this on an elevator The
/ colander. which a. like those used IN arg
/ kitchen. 'nly vastly mora heavy. e. a foot
l Ia diameter. II a. placed over the center
OF wooden tube. three feet In diameter.
/ that stands IN the center or the tower.
scum from boiling lead g. powdered and
| the bottom OF the colauder g. covered
with II 10 the depth OF half an inch
ON TOP OF this the lead Is poured II per-
| colates through the powder ana lrops
| through the holes exactly as water
/ through "a Alter Each drop that leaves
| The suspended colsnier Is a perfectly
I rounded shot. It's form Is never changed
for the better. After the drops begin 10
! let so they fall 80 fast from the many
hohs that 20 the eye they seem Ike cold
streams Of lead. instead OF a succeHsiou
Of tiny globes. The rain OF metal CLEAN.
Ike silver and IS a pretty thing 20 look
At hut II one were TO thrust one 8 lad
into the shower ones head would De che "
ed of In a twinkling. especially "a the
bottom. for The speed n acquires ia lis
fan is almost as great as that Ii ia.
when fred from a gun.
Nearly everr stranger who visits tho
tower for the FIRST time wants to pix.
his hand into the stream 20 see how haId
81 Is falling. Recently wise young mar
with \ SIN hat insisted on holding out
hts hand. ana Engineer Tracey. whs has
run he tower Tor thlrty-hve years. Jerk.
ed him bah just In time 20 save tn
hand. The young man then held ont hi-
hat 10 catch ha:ful Of the shot 'rhs
llt was eaten up so quickly that only q
few bits OF "a could b. fshed from 40
we'll. The engineer then held pine boArl
into TIC rain. and when the shot passed
fiSht through It the visitor shuddcrei al
the thought Of the hand he might have
taken hoinc.
Tube Prevents Accidents.
To ward against accidents the lead &
dropped down wooden tube. Tho tube
Is open here and there TO let the abr cir,
culate freely. Tho hot shot IN falling vii
often swerve 10 ono side and beat agains
the sides. About onc-third OF the shol
dropped Is ruined hy this or hy bciul
beaten out Of shape IN striking the water
The only recently improvement Ia max
ng shot Is tn driving blast % iced att
up tho tube through which the shot falls
Thus a sorter fan win harden the shot
but as tho chilled air o. costly the al
tower Is Just as valuable as ever.
The holes In the colnndcr 10 not regu