The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1902-08-15


ment of Men-Proce.s of the Tank
house and the Pothouse.
People who have glass windows In |
their homes do not know that the glass !
enough arsInic to make IL a
deadly poison. Glassmakers say that |
tain enough Of this poison to kill a reg
iment of men. The popular supposition
that glass is made'of sand is a correct
one. but quantity Of other articles en-
tiers into its composition.
Window glass factories are divided
into two departments. n tankhouse and
n pothouse. The process of glassmak
ing In one of these departments is prac-
tically the same as I'm the other. In the
the glass is all melted In i'm
mense tanks which Will hold thou
sands of tons. In the pothouse the
glass is made I'm pots.
After the fires are lighted and a tank
is heated the glass mixture Is shoveled
in. 1t includes glass left over from the
former season. glass refuse. sand and
salt cake. Arsenic IL not used In the
tankhouse for the reason that the heat
is so intense that the drug Is volatilized
and escapes into the air without enter
ing the mixture. AS one mixture melts
and flows to one end OF tank fresh
supplies are shoveled In at the other
end.
The molten mass seethes and
works" in n manner similar to that of
n mash in a distillery. From the salt
cake comes a salt water that has to be
separated from the mass. and the easi-
est way to remove II Is to burn 1t out.
This is done by throwing stove wood
into the tank on top Of the molten
glass. The water is converted into
steam, which Is destroyed by the in
tense heat from the glass. The melted
glass is then skinned by an automatic
skinner, and II is ready for the gath
erer
A gatherer thrusts long steel blow
pipe into one OF the rings at the lower
end OF the tank He twists and turns
II until small ball Of glass gathers on
the end. This ball is partially cooled,
sawdust and then passed on to the
blower. who heats 1t again until 1t be-
comes like taffy. The blower swings
| the ball over a pit that is twelve feet
deep and rapidly blows II into an elon-
gated pear shape. When blower Is
through, the melted glass becomes a
perfect cylinder about 5 feet long and
2 feet across. Ii then passes to a snap
per-" who takes II to rack and breaks
L "a A..
The snapper gathers a small lump
of melted glass on the end OF a rod
and dexterously runs a narrow ribbon
| OF the stuff around the ends Of the
roller, both ut the blowpipe end and
| the closed end The little ribbons OF
melted glass cool in a few seconds
when they are removed. leaving q mar
row zone of almost redhot glass
around the rollers at each end. Then
taking tool that resembles a soldering
iron, the snapper rubs 1t for u momen
on his forehead. and when the point o
il is moistened with perspiration h'
runs the iron around the rollers at til,
heated spot. The glass cracks ant
separates as cleanly as II cut with I
diamond. the blowpipe is removed. ant
the closed cylinder has become a role
and is then ready to go to the fiat
tener.
The fiattener works In another par
OF the building. where are located tn
fiattening ovens. These ovens are heat
ed TO temperature sufficient to softer
the glass so that it may be rolled ou
into sheets. A series Of fireclay table
placed in a circle like the spokes Of I
wheel revolve In the ovens. and OF
these tables the rollers are fiattened
They are placed inside. allowed to be
come hot. and then cold iron Is rul
along the inside from end to end. tn
contact Of the iron cuts the glass
which is then Strengthened out upo
the table.
The fiattener has a number Of billet
of green wood attached to long iro
) handles. and with these billets. whic
are shaped In such u manner as to d
the work expected of them, he irons
the softened sheet of glass until 1t
perfectly hat and smooth. The table
inside the oven revolve. the fattene
sheet is carried away. and another roll
er is brought into position before tn
fiattener. As the dattened sheets COG
they are lifted to place on a Ion
travelling rack. ON which they are b
stages removed from the ovens. bein
allowed to cool as they go. This Is don
In order that the glass may not
shattered by too quick an exposure
the air.
When the sheets are taken from th
| flattening ovens. they are covered wit
a greasy. dirty looking coat Of chen
icals-soda. potash. silicates of the di
ferent salts. etc.-which must be r,
, moved. and for this purpose the roug
sheets are placed In an acid bath con
posed Of hydrochloric and sulphur
acids more or less diluted. After the
immersion I'm this bath the sheets al
taken TO the cutting room. where worl
! men cut them into sizes and mak
them ready for the packers. Hardly
scrap OF the glass except the roug
edges is wasted. In fact. none Is was
ed. as all refuse goes back to be mel
ed. After the cutters have finishe
their work the glass Is packed In box,
and is then ready for the mnrket.-Il
/ lfa auut.alts NayvS