Brie^maKers’ /T\a9ual 
 
 -BY- 
 
 R. B. MORRISON. 
 
 Compiled and Arranged with Additions 
 
 -BY- 
 
 J. A. REEP. 
 
 AN ILLUSTRATED HAND-BOOK FOR READY 
 REFERENCE. 
 
 I 
 
 T. A. RANDALL & CO., 
 
 PUBLISHERS, 
 
 INDIANAPOLIS. 
 

 Cor-J ’ 
 
 re 
 
 827 
 
 AT? 
 
 I%90 
 
 COPYRIGHTED BY 
 
 T. A. BAND ALL & CO., 
 1890. 
 
List of Illustrations. 
 
 Diagram of Yard.Page 20 
 
 Clay Hoist and Cable Railway. 37 
 
 Elevated Clay Hoist. 38 
 
 Racks and pallets. 50 
 
 Brick Setting. 79 
 
 Improved Kiln and Roof.107 
 
 Tools for fireman. 116 
 
 Diagram of Hollow Wall.139 
 
 Cut showing section of brick street and sidewalk. 171 
 
BB1CKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 iii 
 
 P REFAC E. 
 
 Brickmaking, although one of the oldest industries of which 
 we have record, and one of the most useful to man, was carried 
 on for thirty centuries or more, using the same method adopted 
 by the sons of Noah when they established their famous “plant” 
 on the plains of Shinar soon after the historic flood. There was 
 held the first brickmakers’ convention and the resolutions there 
 adopted are still in force among their followers, for they said one 
 to another, “Go to, let us make brick and burn them thoroughly.” 
 
 During the last half of the present century, however, this 
 great industry has improved wonderfully on the primitive methods 
 of Noah’s sons. Steam power has well nigh revolutionized the 
 business and the brickmaker of twenty-five years ago who has not 
 kept abreast of the spirit of improvement, must again become an 
 apprentice and learn his trade a second time or retire from the 
 field. 
 
 Until within the last twenty years our craft was without clay 
 literature, there being no practical works in print on the subject 
 of brickmaking. The writer began a series of articles on brick¬ 
 making which have appeared monthly in the columns of the 
 Clay-Worker during the past five years. These articles were in¬ 
 tended to help those who engaged in the manufacture of bricks 
 without practical knowledge of the business, rather than men in 
 the business who possess practical experience, and this little 
 volume is given to the craft as a book of practical hints, based on 
 years of experience and careful observation in the manufacture of 
 
IV 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 brick. The writer makes no claim to a scientific treatise of the 
 subject. If the writing of this book will help some of our brick¬ 
 making friends to make a better brick than they did before and 
 with increased profits to them, the author will feel amply rewarded 
 for his effort. R. B. MOBRISON. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 v 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 HINTS ON STARTING A BRICK YARD. 
 
 Market. Location in respect to same. Drainage. Water 
 supply High water mark. Drains about the works. Clay bank. 
 Man in charge. Tools. Engineer. Fireman at engine. Boiler, 
 machinery, etc. Second-hand engines, machines. Size of en¬ 
 gine Attending industrial exhibits, conventions,etc. Adapting 
 machine to the clay. Stifl mud and soft mud machines. 
 Preference, adantages, etc. The dry clay process. Advantages 
 and disadvantages. Drying brick in the kiln. No one process 
 to be general. Comparison of methods. Clay and its quality... 4 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 the clay bank. 
 
 Its Importance. Extensive clay beds necessary to success. 
 Frequent removals on shallow beds. The coast cities and their 
 brickyards. Richmond, Baltimore and Philadelphia. Water 
 in clay bank. Its source. Removal of water. Floods. Prep¬ 
 aration for. Soil and subsoil. Mixing the clay. Sand and 
 its advantages. Watching the mining for results in burning. 
 Method of mining. Use of powder in clay bank. Mining in 
 benches. Use of water at clay bank. Picks and shovels. 
 Making falls. Advantages. Boring or plugging the bank. 
 Quality and how to test. Strong and weak clays. Water 
 supply. 11 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 PLAN OP YARD. 
 
 Laying out the yard. Locating the kilns. Dry houses. 
 Machine room. Engine room. Clay bank, etc. Diagram of 
 
VI 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 yard and works. Convenience of same. Rail car tracks. How 
 to locate the dryers. Machines and line shafting How to 
 bring in clay. Convenience in feeding. Improved machinery 
 Bust on engine. Dryers. Use of pallets. Iron pallets. Wood 
 pallets; how to make. Competent man to lay out plan Ad¬ 
 dition to plant. Saving expense. Waste of capital. Can brick 
 voiks be started successfully? Comparison with blast fur¬ 
 nace . 
 
 19 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PLAN OF WORKS FOR STEADY OUTPUT. 
 
 The main points. Full capacity of works. Market the 
 entire product. Per cent, of waste in manufacture. Machine 
 the fountain of supply. Extra help at machine. Extra ma- 
 ehine. Full clay supply. Comparison of production and ex¬ 
 penditure. Diflerence in pay roll. Large leak in expense 
 account. Steady employment for hands. Full capacity better 
 than more machines. Management for results. Brick burned 
 well to keep stream moving. Good kilns. Difficulty in drying 
 brick. Changing hands.to other work. Cost of rehandling 
 Permanency of works. No theory needed in brickmaking. 
 
 Get the best and sell the best. Advertise your goods. Stock 
 pile. How to keep abreast or ahead of the market. Winter 
 work. Advantages, prices, etc. Brick piles a safe investment. 27 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 BRINGING CLAY TO MACHINE. 
 
 Methods Wheelbarrows. Carts. Tram cars. Spool and 
 cable. Steam hoist and drum. Dump cars. Dump track. Sit¬ 
 uation in respect to method. Elevate the clay. Power Ulus 
 tration and description. Track and switch. The cable Idlers 
 under cable. Size of cable. Size of spool or windlass. 85 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 MACHINES AND THEIR ADAPTATION. 
 
 _ Preferences Making brick by hand. Tempering wheels. 
 Claims of manufacturers. Advice to purchasers. Diflerence of 
 clay requnes different machinery. Rock and pebbles. Shells, 
 winkles, lime pebbles, etc. Experimenting in manufacture. 
 Foamy clay. Tough, tenacious clay. Diflerence in working 
 Danger of breakage. Care of machines. How to set machine! 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Vll 
 
 Roots, grass and trash in clay. Oiling the bearings. Heating 
 of journals and boxes. Dirt in cogs and oil-holes. Requirement 
 of machine. Belts, pulley, etc. Starting and stopping machine. 41 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 DRYING BRICKS. 
 
 How bricks are dried. Drying power of air. Dry, hot air. 
 Moist, hot air. Compared to a sponge. Artificial heat. Amount 
 of water in green brick. Best method of drying? Natural 
 heat. Artificial heat. Cheapness of sunshine. Work, worry 
 and uncertainty. Danger from frost and rain. Per cent, of 
 waste. Area in drying. Lumber to cover. Shed system and 
 stiff mud bricks. Pallets and racks for soft mud bricks. Wear, 
 tear and anxiety of proprietor. Advantages of racks and pal¬ 
 lets. Failure to dry in wet weather. Advantages with artificial 
 heat. Certainty of output. Less capital. No worry. Spring 
 prices. Cost of dryers. Comparison of methods and results. 
 Patented hot air dryers. Cost and value. Investigating merits 
 of kilns, dryers, etc. Portable hacking trucks. How used. 
 Placing the brick on yard. Moving to kiln. Disadvantages of 
 the truck. Wheelbarrows. Mule power. Small output. Danger 
 of breakage. Good for small yards .. 47 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 DRYERS AND THEIR CONSTRUCTION. 
 
 Plan for hot floor dryer. Length of floor. Economy in 
 length. Foundation. Grade for flues. Soot chamber. Flues 
 under floor. Distributing chamber of furnace. Size of flues. 
 Covering the flue. Construction of floor. Pavement. Thick¬ 
 ness. Drying capacity. Height of stack. Size inside. Roof 
 over dryer. Posts and walls. Material for roof. Eave troughs. 
 Drains, etc. Flues liable to clog up with soot. How to clean 
 them. Damper to smoke-stack. Size of furnace. Grate sur¬ 
 face. Fuel. Coal bin. Comparison with other dryers. Ex¬ 
 haust steam. A slow way. Floor covering for pipes. Iron floors. 
 Cement, etc. Live steam, and exhaust. Back pressure on 
 engine. Comparison of cost. Directions for putting in an ex¬ 
 haust steam dryer floor. Receivers, headers, pipes, valves, etc. 
 Draining the pipes. Live steam. Uniform heat. Severe cli¬ 
 mates. Sheds over dryers. Capacity. Cost of pipes. Amount 
 of bricks required. Back Pressure. Prevention, Friction, etc. 57 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 viii 
 
 CHAPTER N. 
 
 PRESSED OR REPRESSED BRICK. 
 
 Question of profits. Construction of pressed brick walls. 
 Small yards. Extra cost of making pressed brick. Sheds for 
 storing. Profit in molded and ornamental designs. The clay. 
 Sand. Raw clay finish. Repress. Workmen. Baltimore and 
 Philadelphia pressed brick. Care taken in manufacture. Stiff 
 mud brick. Soft mud brick. How to proceed with them. Cov¬ 
 ering with canvass. Equalizing the moisture. Drying the bricks. 
 Hot floors. Pallets. Racks, etc. Wheeling to kiln. Carrying 
 to kiln on pallets. Setting of pressed brick. Height in kiln. 
 Reversing blocks. Whitewashing during burning. Spacing. 
 Clay and sand. Burning the sand. Sifting and storing. 
 Weathering the clay. Tempering. Hand molding. Machine 
 molding. Stiff mud gluts. Force at the hand press. Oil for 
 use of press. Piling and hacking to dry. Warping, cracking, 
 etc. Rubbing and dusting. Ornamental designs. Molding the 
 brick. Care taken with molds. Setting molded brick. Judge¬ 
 ment necessary for good results. Attention called to import¬ 
 ance of this class of goods. Wants of the people. By whom 
 and where they should be made. Keeping up with the trade. 67 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 SETTING BRICK IN THE KILN. 
 
 Importance of good setting. Bad burning. Spaces. Setting 
 the benches. Unburned brick in benches. Overhanging courses 
 in arches. Course of the heat. Illustration. Three and a-third 
 brick bench. Description. Stretcher. Closing course. Platting 
 courses. Kilns burning coal. Old style kilns. Amount to 
 setter. Height. Fuel in arches. Burned brick for platting. 
 Saving and loss in burning. Uniform success. 78 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 CLOSING A KILN. 
 
 Doorway to kiln. Description of timbers and bars. Closing 
 wall or bestowing. Daubing. Outside wall. Sand for bestowing. 
 Bracing the wall. Casing for top of kiln walls. Danger of fire. 
 Closing up before firing. 82 
 
BOOKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 IX 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 BURNING A KILN OF BRICKS. 
 
 Condition of green bricks. Damp bricks vs. dry bricks. 
 Whitewashing and crushing. Shrinkage in drying. Stiff clay 
 bricks. Slow drying. Low tires. Watch with the kiln. Fuel 
 in water-smoking or sweating. Which is cheapest? Starting 
 the tires. Draft in platting. How to tell when dry. Cold spot 
 and how to remedy. Soot or choke. Furnaces and their ad¬ 
 vantage. Comparison of fuel. Increasing heat. Settling heat, 
 heat. Closing the casing wall. Platting, etc. Waste of heat. 
 Settle. True and false settle. Importance of good burning. 
 Setting necessary to success. Cooling a kiln when burned. 
 Discoloration. Check, cracks, etc. Soundness. Tough clay vs. 
 sandy or loamy clay. Draft. Checking of top courses. Color 
 of brick. Discoloration in burning. Dead beat or moving lively 
 heat. Baking and burning. Grate surface in furnace. Dralt 
 in kiln. Skill and judgment necessary. Furnaces to keep 
 uniform heat. Burning by rule. Variation of clay. Admitting 
 air while burning. Comparison of wood and coal. Updraft or 
 open top kilns. Escaping heat. Firing. The ash-pit. Sum¬ 
 mary. Starting up in the spring. Damp floors, walls, etc., etc. 85 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 BRICK BURNING AND KILNS. 
 
 Burning brick properly the key to success. Burning in 
 “quick time.” Clays, variation, etc. Time and fuel of secondary 
 importance. Saving time and fuel to waste the bricks. Brick- 
 makers’ whims. “Bricks every time.” Comparison of methods. 
 Folly in haste. A good burner. “Printed rules” in burning. 
 Which process to adopt ? Permanent walls. Scoving or casing. 
 Salmon bricks. Melted arches. Benches. Checked or broken 
 bricks in arches. Old style laborious. Six day burning. Go 
 slow. The question. Temporary walls vs. permanent walls. 
 Loading from clamp walls. Permanent walls do not pre¬ 
 vent waste in arches. Furnaces. Sound arch bricks. Burn¬ 
 ing coal screenings. Less labor. E. V. Wingard’s invention. 
 Revolution in brick burning. Improved methods. No limit. 
 Where found. Go and see them. Adapt them to your clay 
 and circumstances. Kilns not portable. Money well spent. 
 
 No monopoly. Down draft kiln. Construction, capacity, etc. 
 Weak point. Objections. Up and down draft kiln. Its uses 
 in, etc. Continuous kilns. Description and working of tire. 
 Mode of tiring. Burners. Expensive to construct. Their sue- 
 
X 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 cess in Germany. Not suited to our trade. Brick and tile 
 burned together. Their manufacture. No question. How to 
 burn and set them. Low per cent, of waste. Kilns filled with 
 tile. Advantages. Bricks, tile and pottery. Kiln and burner 
 for success. Choose your kiln. Wood and coal to burn with. 
 Kiln walls. Lining the wall. Years of use. A good roof. How 
 constructed cheaply. Ratters. Roof-boards, etc. Fire. Strength¬ 
 ening the main walls. Corner timbers. End walls and rods. 
 Timbers at kiln doors. Height of timber. Stay rod. Expansion 
 of walls, etc., etc. 97 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 REMARKS ON FIRING AND FIREMEN. 
 
 Difference in firemen. Skill and ignorance compared In¬ 
 structing new men. Wages. Competing for place. Experience 
 in the work. Saving in fuel. Changing men. Rest. Working 
 at night. Producing heat economically. Amount of coal. 
 State of the furnace. Leveling fires. Dispatch in firing. Clear 
 space. Quick, lively fires. Clinkering. Restoring heat. Time 
 to clinker. Melting the grate bars. Size of grates. Doors. 
 Sleeping on duty. Damage done, etc.110 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 UNLOADING A KILN. 
 
 What method is best? Wheelbarrows. Large orders. 
 Endless belt. Wire cable track. Turn-table and movable track. 
 Amount per man. Switch track. Manner of handling. Green 
 brick a frail object. Care in handling. Rush of orders. Un¬ 
 covering pressed brick. Change. Hard knocks. Faces on brick. 
 Care in laying in wall. Platting. Light courses. Where to 
 begin. How to load pressed brick. Overliangers. Rubbish. 
 Arches. Benches, etc. Expedition in unloading and setting, 
 etc., etc .118 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 WHEN TO BUILD NEW WORKS. 
 
 Most favorable in point of economy. Market. Experience 
 no requirement. Unemployed capital. Questions and sugges¬ 
 tions. Springtime. Permanent plant. Improved methods, etc. 
 Fall months. Winter weather. Expectation. Uphill work. 
 First season’s sales. Experience in this matter. Engine. Ma¬ 
 chinery. Boiler. Lumber. Plan of yard. Permanency. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 xi 
 
 Grading, drainage, etc. Frost in the spring. Drying the brick. 
 Protecting the output. Damaged or defaced brick. Temporary 
 kilns. Securing your trade. Salmon brick. Kiln walls, dryers, 
 etc., etc. Selection of kiln and dryers. Winter and fall work. 
 Ready for business. Less capital. Extravagance. Cost price. 
 Fuel and its cost. Contracts, fuel and labor, etc., etc.123 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 BURNING BRICKS WITH NATURAL GAS. 
 
 Wood and coal as fuel. Petroleum. Its discovery and uses. 
 Natural gas and oil. The burning well. Experiments ridiculed. 
 Erie, Pa. The ideal fuel. Desirable characteristics. Danger of 
 explosion. Utility and benefit to clay and iron workers. Brick- 
 makers benefited. Companies organized. Drying and burning 
 bricks. Regulation of heat in kilns, dryers, etc. Opinions of 
 brickinakers. Remedy for damaged arches. All brick burning 
 alike. Cost per M. The “Smoky City.” Gas posts. How about 
 the supply. Oil wells abandoned. Ohio and Indiana gas fields. 
 
 Gas monopoly. Prospective failure. Coal and oil. Gas as a 
 substitute. Experiments in oil. Not suited to small yards.127 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 BRICK AS A BUILDING MATERIAL. 
 
 A “brick is a brick.” Poorly burned brick. Prejudice 
 against brick. Beauty and durability. Frost and fire-proof. 
 Ornamentation. Brick vs. stone. Frailty of wooden houses. 
 Paint and repairs. Colors in bricks. Comparisons. Old brick 
 houses of colonial days. Church at Norfolk, Va. 17 3 9. 
 English bricks. Comparison with brick houses of to-day. 
 Frame or wooden houses. Customers and the brick walls. 
 Damp walls and the remedy. Hollow walls. Basements. Stone 
 foundations. Course of slate. Drainage. Grading. Height 
 above ground. Driving rains. Condensation. Bricklayer, not 
 the brickmaker. United action. Cost and expense for repairs. 
 Progress in the art. Bricks the material. Terra-cotta in lieu of 
 stone. The art. Front. Stability, utility and ornament. Brick 
 universally used. Primitive man. His dwelling. The Dutch 
 oven. Sod house, etc. Iron in building. Abundance of clay. 
 Wooden houses. Expensive buildings. Four classes of clay 
 ware. Ancient terra-cotta. Greek and Roman Art. Its uses. 
 Ease of working compared to stone. Difficulties to overcome. 
 Beauty in true lines. Color of terra-cotta. Washing and stor¬ 
 ing the clay, etc., etc.134 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 xii 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 WOOD AS FUEL IN BRICK BURNING. 
 
 Wood. Coal. Coke. Gas. Oil, etc. Utilizing the timber. 
 Scarcity of. Comparative value of cord wood with coal. Seasoned 
 wood. Poor wood. Knots etc. Cords per thousand. Fuel 
 supply. Danger of fires. Bulk of cord wood. Difference of 
 cord wood and clay banks. Northern timber. Southern tim¬ 
 ber. Southern pine. “Old field pine.”. \ 4 £ 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 COAL AS A FUEL IN BRICK BURNING. 
 
 Use in arts and manufactures. Variation in quality. Brown 
 coal Surface coal. Pure, or perfect coal. Anthracite coal. 
 Semi-anthracite. Bituminous coal. Fat or fusing coal. Differ¬ 
 ent results. Amount of coal per thousand bricks. Master 
 mechanics. Civil engineers and their brickyards. Comparison 
 of methods. Financial differences. Clays. Their refractori¬ 
 ness. Building brick and fire brick. No rule to apply for 
 amount of fuel. Block coal. Nut coal. Slack. Screenings. 
 East Tenn. coal. Ohio, Penn., Ill. and Ind. coals. Pocahontas 
 coal. Brickmakers and their problem. Anthracite coal; its 
 advantages and disadvantages. Bituminous coal in comparison 
 Smoke and soot. Brick darker color. Heat more regular! 
 Improved kilns. Burning coal without grate bars. Description 
 of method. Run of mine or lump coal. Our preference.151 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 FIRE CLAY, FIRE BRICK, PAVING BRICKS, ETC. 
 
 First intention. Demands. Paving bricks. Parties who 
 have fire clay. Their importunity. Ignorance of clay. Found 
 where. Blending of clays. Silicates, etc. Not used as mined. 
 Shrinkage. Furnace work. Natural compounds. Soutn Car¬ 
 olina clay. Infusible clay. Its proportions. Other properties. 
 Fluxing. Essential qualities in fire brick. Uniformity. Size. 
 Composition. Dissimilar to building brick. The brick mason! 
 Joints in fire work. Mortar. Directions to make. To lay fire 
 brick work. Liability to shrink. Melt out, etc. Third requi¬ 
 site. Crushing weight Furnace walls. Arches. Hearths. 
 Abiasion. Dust. Alkalies, etc., etc. Wear of fire brick. Chip¬ 
 ping. Splintering. Color. Cheapness. No perfection. Iron 
 oxides. Lime. Perfect refractory clay. Sandstones. Burning 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 xm 
 
 fire clay wares. Degrees of heat. Fire clay kilns. Up and 
 down draft kilns. Capacity. Direct updraft. _ Accumulation of 
 fire brick “bats.” How to utilize them. Making and burning. 
 Economy. Extract. Analysis of clays. Extract from Ures 
 Dictionary of Arts. Interesting facts. Extract from writings of 
 Dr R T Brown. Paving bricks. Street pavements. 1 he de¬ 
 mand. Substitutes. Granite. Suitable clay abundant. Thor¬ 
 ough working of. Stiff mud brick. Hard burned. Coarse or 
 sandy clay unfit. First street pavement. Failure predicted. 
 Best and cheapest. Spread of system. Cost etc. Bnckmakers 
 opportunity. Reputation of established. City engineers. Othei 
 pavements. Building brick and pavers. Test places in streets 
 Construction of brick streets. Different streets. 108 
 
Briel^ma^ers’ /T^apual 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 In sending out a book to find readers it is important that it 
 be one that is instructive, or highly entertaining. There are many 
 reasons for this. The principal reason is that books are so plenty 
 and have become so cheap, that there are many good books 
 begging for readers. Every field seems to be fully occupied in the 
 domain of literature. 
 
 Let us glance over it and see: History is a fertile, and at this 
 day, a very productive field. History is being enacted every day, 
 and all about us. The times are fraught with great events, and we 
 do not lack historians. Scientific workers and writers are busy, 
 and their name is legion in every branch of art, in mechanics, in 
 agriculture, the scientist has been there with the alembic, the 
 crucible and retort, and where the scientist has not been in pursuit 
 of knowledge “no man knoweth.” Some of them have even peeied 
 into the glowing arches of the brick kiln; and in the scientific 
 journals we read of the evolution of heat from combustion and 
 its close relation to electricity; units of heat, the fluxing of molecu¬ 
 lar coatings, the vitrification of clays, etc., etc., which all goes to 
 prove that progress has been made and greater results will follow. 
 The poet has told his tale in verse, and we lack nothing in that 
 line. And what a field of brambles and weeds is fiction! 
 
2 
 
 JBRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Look, now, at the field of Art and let us see what has been done 
 for the brickmaker, as the making and burning of bricks is among 
 the oldest of arts and in this particular branch of art there has 
 been less written than any other. Books on brickmaking are 
 scarce on the shelves of our libraries. There are few, indeed, who 
 are engaged in the brickmaking business who have even a single 
 volume to direct them, and nothing at all in most cases, except the 
 circulars and catalogues of advertisers who have machinery to sell, 
 and these describe the process and management each with his own 
 particular machine, in a very brief way, and are usually very lim¬ 
 ited as to the process of making and drying; and burning is some¬ 
 thing with which they are usually not acquainted. 
 
 We do not desire to be understood as saying there are no 
 books on brickmaking. We have read some works on that line, 
 but our experience is that they usually are so high priced that but 
 few will buy, not from inability, but from force of habit. We 
 think, after looking over the field, that the times are ripe for a 
 book on brickmaking—one for the average brickmaker, the man of 
 small means, as well as his more wealthy competitor; for the brick¬ 
 maker whose output is half a million, as well as he who makes 
 thirty or fifty millions annually. We will endeavor, in these 
 few pages to give you the best we have, leaving out all the vague 
 and mysterious terms of the scientist, of which the average brick¬ 
 maker knows practically nothing, and tell you in as few words as 
 possible what we have learned about bricks and their manufac¬ 
 ture. We propose to give short chapters on each part of the 
 process and so classify the work as to make it a ready work of 
 reference. Also to use such terms as are common among the 
 workmen, so that it will be more readily understood, and a book 
 that will be inquired for by foremen and managers of yards, as 
 well as proprietors. 
 
 While we do not ignore the scientist and his terms, we think 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 3 
 
 the bulk of the men who are engaged in brickmaking, are not 
 versed in science and know nothing about chemical or scientific 
 terms in relation to the brick business, but feel that they have 
 skill enough to both make and burn good brick if some one 
 will but show them the way, or tell them how it can be done. 
 Many of them have seen or heard of a better and more profitable 
 way than they are pursuing, but they reason in this way: “I have 
 seen a great many experiments tried in brickmaking, particularly 
 in the way to burn, and I have tried some myself; and, after all is 
 said and done, I have settled down to the way I am doing, and 1 
 am hard to move out of that way. The risk is so great, as I have 
 seen so many failures in making, drying and burning, and all 
 other parts of the trade that I can’t aflord to try any new experi¬ 
 ments.” 
 
 We will not go back and dig up the ruins of Babylon to 
 get bricks and mosaics, and speculate as to their manufacture. 
 We will leave that for the antiquarian and confine ourselves pretty 
 closely to the present and its advantages over the methods of fifty 
 years ago. We will endeavor to aid the progressive brickmaker, 
 counsel and advise the old style manager, and adopt all the 
 labor-saving and money-making methods that we can find to help 
 you on in your business. We think it would hardly be consistent 
 in us to write an article in this work and go into all the details 
 about how to make and burn a kiln of brick on the old style plan 
 of fifty years ago, when every city, village and hamlet in the whole 
 length and breadth of the land has from one to one thousand 
 men in it who consider themselves adepts in that style of brick¬ 
 making. We propose now to learn something from those who 
 criticize this work; and give our readers our “Hints on Brickmak¬ 
 ing” as it should be, and is done, in the most economic and 
 expeditious manner, and what few readers we do have, we hope to 
 merit their approbation for our weak efforts in their behalf. 
 
4 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 HINTS ON STARTING A BRICK YARD. 
 
 The first thing to be considered in starting a brick yard, is a 
 market for the product, for upon this depends your financial 
 success. I have many times during my travels come across a site 
 where the ground was well adapted to the business; laid high and 
 diy, level, easy of access; an abundance of good clay, water conven¬ 
 ient, and all that could be desired except a market for the wares. 
 And under the head of market, must be considered facility to the 
 market; how the yard is located so as to be easy of access to 
 wagons, cars, or boats; how I can in the cheapest and most 
 expeditious way, put my brick on the market. If you have a 
 choice of more than one bed of clay that is good, then choose the 
 best location with regard to drainage, water supply, and facilities 
 for shipping, and getting fuel to the works, also. In regard to 
 drainage, get above high water mark, if possible. Many a brick- 
 maker has lost all by floods. Have one or more main drains of 
 sufficient size; then have lateral drains connecting with these 
 leading from engine house, machines, dryers and kilns. On most 
 all yards there is waste water at the machines, clay pit and tank. 
 
 The clay bank should always be drained with a large ditch if 
 possible; if that is not practicable, water must be lifted out with 
 machinery of some kind. 
 
 Drains about the works must necessarily be covered, and the 
 end of the drain where the water enters should be protected with 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 6 
 
 a screen of coarse wire, or small iron rods three-fourths of an inch 
 apart. In dry weather these drains should be closed with a board 
 or piece of sheet-iron to prevent them from getting clogged with 
 rubbish. 
 
 Secure for the drain as much fall as possible and avoid all 
 sharp angles. These drains will always be a source of satisfaction 
 to the proprietor, as well as the employes, saving the former many 
 dollars and the latter many a ducking. 
 
 The next important adjunct to any brick works is a good 
 foreman, one who thoroughly understands his business, and is a 
 practical workman. He should have some considerable business 
 knowledge, and tact enough to be able to keep every employe 
 about the works in complete training, seeing that each man per¬ 
 forms his allotted task, with skill and dispatch; and his habits 
 should be such as to command the respect and confidence of both 
 employer and employe. 
 
 The next thing is a full supply of good tools; enough to carry 
 on the work of brickmaking without hitch or jar, for lack of any¬ 
 thing in the line of tools. And this includes a dozen picks, two 
 mattocks, two dozen shovels, four spades, two dozen dirt barrows, 
 two dozen brick barrows, three large size iron ash barrows, two 
 crowbars, two pinch bars, fifty feet of three-quarter inch rope, one 
 hundred and fifty feet of one-inch rope, with pulley blocks, two 
 jackscrews—one long and one short one, two axes, two hand axes, 
 with hammers, hatchets, saws, square, brace and bits, a dozen 
 assorted files, wrenches, cold-chisels, punches, etc., etc., together 
 with an assortment of nails, screws, bolts, nuts, washers, etc. I 
 think where the yard is established with a proposed capacity of fifty 
 thousand per day, it is a very good plan to secure a man as engi¬ 
 neer who is a good mechanic, and can work at the forge and do 
 the blacksmith work for the yard repairs, etc. Let him have an 
 assistant as fireman, who keeps an eye on the engine during his 
 
6 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 absence and then the engineer can do any work that he is called 
 upon and yet be near all the machinery. Let him be provided 
 with a forge and anvil, a bench drill, a set of dies and taps up to 
 one inch and provided with a small stock of iron rods and bars, 
 and a few pounds of bar steel. And if he is skillful he can save 
 many large bills of repairs, and machine shop work. And I have 
 seen works where the engineer was provided with a set of pipe 
 titling tools, and then he could attend to all steam and water 
 connections, saving many dollars to his employer. Such a man 
 as engineer always commands higher wages than a man who can 
 turn on and shut off steam, but an engineer such as described is 
 cheaper at one hundred dollars per month than some we have 
 met would be at one dollar per day. 
 
 In furnishing a brick plant with a complete cutfit in the way 
 of engine, boiler, machine, puggers, disintegrators, crushers, eleva¬ 
 tors, hoisting apparatus, and a good system of handling and drying 
 brick ready for the kilns, together with kilns and driers, there 
 should be great care and attention given the matter before hand. 
 Do not under any circumstances buy old machinery, unless you 
 are well acquainted with it, and its capacity for work, or you may 
 find when it is too late, that it would not suit the former owner 
 for the same reason that it does not suit you. 
 
 Be sure your engine has more power than you need. If you 
 have an engine and boiler of large power you can run your 
 machinery with less fuel and lower head of steam than a small 
 power with double the pressure, and you are also in shape to add 
 to your capacity at any time without stopping the works to haul 
 out the small engine and replace it with a larger one. 
 
 See that everything needful is procured before starting the 
 works, everything in its place and kept there, all machinery well 
 located in line, plumb and level. Do not start up in a half-handed 
 way, with a quart of oil, when you know you are going to need it 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 7 
 
 by the barrel, nor a wagon load of coal when you are going to run 
 steady for a month and will use several carloads. 
 
 It is always best to spend some time in visiting some of the 
 best brick plants in the cities adjoining you, or even at a distance, 
 where there is a variety of machines, dryers and kilns in operation, 
 determine on the kind which is best adapted to your clay and 
 your means, then purchase what you need, not what you think 
 you need. Your wants will become known to you as you grow 
 in the business. Do not make any one yard a model for yours, 
 but select the best you can find on a dozen or more and combine 
 these to perfect your plan. 
 
 If your clay is best adapted to soft mud brick and the market 
 is against stiff mud, you can select among the soft mud machines 
 and puggers, that which you consider to be the most economic, 
 taking all things into consideration. 
 
 You may have to pay a higher price for the machine you 
 want, and, in this way, save a continual expense in labor, repairs 
 and stoppages, which are expensive. 
 
 It is a good plan to attend the State Fairs and Industrial 
 Exhibits, to see the clay working machinery in operation, and 
 compare the work with your clay and its adaptability to the ma¬ 
 chine in question. If your clay is of a variety that can be woiked 
 direct from the bank, in a semi-dry or stiff-mud machine, then I 
 would not attempt the business with a soft-mud machine. Our 
 preference is for the stiff mud machine for the reason that 
 the brick can be handled direct from the machine and 
 hacked from six to ten courses high; this cannot be done 
 with soft-mud bricks, as they have to be laid on their flat sides on 
 board pallets or drying floors, occupying much more space. The 
 3tiff-mud brick contain less moisture, and are quicker and easier 
 
 dried. 
 
 The dry clay process of brickmaking is just now receiving a 
 
8 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 great deal of attention, and is deserving of something more than 
 a passing notice. The dry clay yards, so far, have, as a rule, been 
 failures, and a great deal has been said and written on the subject. 
 But out of these failures, success will in due time come. 
 As yet the system is largely experimental; in some places, with 
 suitable clay, and after long, laborious and continued effort, there 
 has been a measurable degree of success. While we have no need 
 to decry the method, we think that the dry clay process of brick- 
 making is not well adapted to small yards, for several reasons 
 which we will name: First, on account of the greater cost of 
 buildings, machinery, kilns, etc. While it is supposed to do away 
 with the trouble and cost of dryers, yet, where we have been on 
 yards that were meeting with a measurable degree of success with 
 dry clay machinery, they employed their exhaust steam to further 
 dry the brick, before entering the kiln. We believe this is a good 
 plan, as the dryer you can make the brick, the less time is con¬ 
 sumed in burning. We have found by experience that the most 
 expensive place to dry brick is in the kiln, after they are set 
 ready for burning. Another reason is, the process is more modern, 
 and I have seen where some writers urge it upon those who con¬ 
 template starting a dry press yard, to secure the services of a man 
 who has been successful in managing such a yard; this is a very 
 good piece of advice, but hard to do, as the admission made by 
 the writer, previously, would lead one to believe that there was 
 more failures by far than successes. Where, then, would we look 
 for such help as is desirable? They are employed already if suc¬ 
 cessful, and, if they were transferred to another locality in different 
 clay, their success might be turned to defeat, and they in turn 
 left stranded. If the process was adapted to the successful mak¬ 
 ing of brick under all conditions, there might be some hopes for 
 it coming into universal use. 
 
 But no one process will ever be universally adopted. 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 9 
 
 There is another argument against the dry clay brick and the 
 stiff-mud brick also, to a certain degree, and that is, they are more 
 dense and compact, and, consequently, harder to burn. 
 
 These are the chief features now against the method. Let us 
 see what can be said in favor of the dry piess. 
 
 First, the cheapness of handling the brick from machine to 
 
 kiln direct. 
 
 Second, no expense of building and operating dry houses or 
 dryers. 
 
 Third, no loss by exposure to weather. 
 
 As the supposition is, that the clay is to be worked dry 
 enough, so frost will have no destroying effect on them, we will 
 add also to these another opinion, which is based on our observa¬ 
 tion : That the cost of drying the clay, re-handling and preparing 
 it, is so much greater than the drying of green brick by any 
 method with which we are acquainted, that we would hesitate to 
 advise anyone to enter the field while there was a surer method of 
 success. I cannot see why it costs less to dry a brick before it is 
 molded than afterward. 
 
 As to the quality of the bricks made on the three different 
 machines, there is a great difference. The soft-mud machine and 
 hand-molded brick are almost identical; the difference, if any, 
 in favor of the machine made brick. The stiff-mud brick are all 
 more or less imperfect, and generally, are not adapted to outside 
 walls or fine fronts without repressing, but for all inside work, are 
 just as good as any brick made; while the sofUmud brick are 
 better finished and have well defined angles, and the sand coating 
 gives them a smooth surface. The stiff-mud brick are stronger 
 because they are more dense, crack less in burning, making less 
 waste in the arches and also in handling. Each have their ad¬ 
 vantages and disadvantages, and can be learned, which is desired 
 for a local market, by interviews with the contractors and brick 
 
10 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 masons in your neighborhood. The kind of clay to be used 
 should have much to do with the choice of machine. A sandy or 
 short grained clay will work best on a soft-mud machine, while a 
 plastic, unctuous clay will do best on a stiff-mud machine and 
 will not require tempering wheels or pugger. When a stiff clay 
 machine is used and clay is hard to dissolve, a crusher or disinte¬ 
 grator is necessary. Where either of these are used, the clay can be 
 carried to them, also from them to machine by elevators, of which 
 there are many kinds. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 11 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE OLAY BANK. 
 
 The first and most important item in brick manufacture is 
 the clay bank. In the preceding chapter we spoke of this and wish 
 in this chapter to further impress it on the minds of those who 
 contemplate starting brick works on an extensive scale. 
 
 We have seen many rich firms and corporations, who had 
 carried on the brick trade successfully—for a few years—and had 
 shaped their works from the start to make bricks from clay banks 
 contiguous to the works. These same firms, after having built up 
 a trade and a reputation for their goods that was enviable, found 
 that their clay supply was in a fair way to give out. There may 
 have been several reasons for this. When the works were estab¬ 
 lished, this firm had probably counted on a steady output of 
 forty thousand bricks per day, and if their trade had remained at 
 that, as an average during the years past, they might still have 
 had clay to run the works for several years to come. But the 
 expansion of their trade was greater than was expected, and, fiom 
 forty thousand per diem, grew, in some cases, to one hundred and 
 forty thousand, for a day’s output; and this, too, continued foi 
 many months. At this rate, their supply was limited in a few 
 years, and they were obliged to shift about from one point to 
 another, and tracks had to be moved, or roads changed, frequently, 
 causing loss of time and expense, and in some cases, of which we 
 are aware, it has been necessary to construct a small railroad, 
 
12 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 several miles in length, to the clay beds, and a complete over¬ 
 hauling and change of the works to suit the changed condition in 
 that respect. Again, there are many cases where the entire plant 
 has been moved frequently, from one point to another. This is 
 observable on the suburbs of nearly all our Atlantic Coast cities. 
 The clay lies in shallow stratas, varying from two and a half feet 
 to six feet, scarcely ever exceeding that depth. The brick plants 
 established at these places are generally on ground that is leased 
 a few acres at a time, and are calculated to last only long enough 
 for the city to grow up to, and, in some cases, beyond the limits 
 of the brick yards. This was to accommodate themselves to their 
 trade and be near their contracts, thus saving long and expensive 
 hauls by carts or wagons. And it was best to allow the ground 
 occupied as brickyards to be built upon and they, in turn, pushed 
 farther out. This is plainly the case in Baltimore and Philadel¬ 
 phia, while in the neighborhood of Richmond, Virginia, what 
 is called Rocketts, or rather meant “Rocketts’ Old Fields,” have 
 been brickyards since a very early day, in the history of that city. 
 The reason why these brick yards confine themselves to this point 
 is on account of the great depth of the clay. A manufacturer 
 here, with a lease on three or four acres of clay bank, is safer than 
 he would be in the neighborhood of Philadelphia with twenty 
 acres, not counting anything in favor of either place in regard to 
 market. And the same is true of many sections of the country. 
 The clay can only be used for a few feet and must have the top 
 soil incorporated with it to insure anything like a marketable 
 product. While others again have clay beds of great depth and 
 well situated for the establishment of permanent works, with no 
 danger of a shortage in clay. 
 
 We will, therefore, assume that your works are located, includ¬ 
 ing your clay bank, as an adjunct. And you should begin, rirst, 
 by making preparations to drain the clay pit. This must be 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 13 
 
 done, or you will find yourself so overwhelmed with water during 
 a great part of the time as to be unable to get out clay. And 
 where a steady output is desired, your clay bank must be so 
 arranged that clay can be taken out at nearly all times, barring 
 floods. 
 
 There are three sources from which you may expect water to 
 cause a hindrance in mining clay. First, that which falls on the 
 bank as rain or snow. Second source is surface water, which will 
 ooze in from adjacent low ground on top of the clay strata below the 
 soil, or is forced up from the bottom through the underlying sand 
 or gravel. Third, is from floods or overflows. 
 
 If the clay bank is on low ground, alongside a creek or river, 
 as is usually the case, then there is no remedy; and the only way 
 to do is to wait till the waters have gone down. In such case, it 
 is well to have a ditch of sufficient size cut through to lower levels 
 as an outlet for the water in the bank, and which will give you 
 rapid and efficient drainage. 
 
 To drain the clay bank properly, it is necessary to begin 
 mining at the lowest point and rise gradually, so that water that 
 may fall upon it, as well as that which rises from below, will run 
 
 from the bank instead of towards it. 
 
 If there is not sufficient fall for drainage, the water must be 
 lifted out with a pump or siphon. There are many devices now 
 in use for lifting water rapidly and cheaply, so that the matter of 
 drainage is only of secondary importance, as clay can be mined to 
 any depth, as well as any other mineral; however, it should 
 receive careful attention, so as to avoid losing time for want of 
 clay in wet weather. If the clay lies below high water, the only 
 way to prevent loss of time during floods, is to have a sufficient 
 stock of clay stored on higher ground to use when necessary; the 
 increased advantages of steady production will more than compen¬ 
 sate for the re-handling of this clay. In taking clay from the 
 
14 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 bank, it is best to use the soil and subsoil beneath; first removing 
 the sod or surface growth that is full of roots, or undecayed fibrous 
 matter that would clog the machinery; this saves labor and also 
 saves clay; and where the clay is of sufficient depth and strong 
 enough to bear mixing the soil with it, it usually gives a richer 
 color to the burned brick. All clays give better results when 
 taken from top to bottom, the whole mass being mixed thoroughly, 
 insuring uniformity of shrinkage in drying, and color in burning. 
 
 If your clay is underlaid with a strata of fine sand, part of it 
 can be' used with benefit, thus saving your clay, preventing loss 
 from cracking of bricks in drying; rendering them easier to burn 
 and making less strain on machinery in the manufacture. How 
 much sand can be used, can soon be learned by experiments in 
 that direction. 
 
 A brickmaker should visit his clay bank every day, to see 
 that it is properly managed. Clay is liable to vary in different 
 parts of the bank and different varieties of clay may require a 
 different amount of settle in the burning, some more, others less, 
 and unless this is closely watched, may cause serious loss, and no 
 apparent reason for it. There is another thing that must be 
 watched in the clay bank, and that is the method or manner of 
 mining it; no matter what method is in use, picks and shovels 
 alone, or steam shovels, there still remains two ways—a right way 
 and a wrong way. 
 
 I have seen a force of men in the clay pit, under the manage¬ 
 ment of one man who understood the work, who could mine and 
 load clay for seventy-five or eighty thousand bricks per day, and 
 do it with ease. Again, I have seen the same number of men 
 without a leader or boss over them, each one doing about as he 
 pleased, that were worked much harder to get out clay enough to 
 make fifty thousand bricks each day; and, so far as I could see, 
 one bank was as good as the other, all things considered. 
 
BEICKMAKE11S MANUAL. 
 
 15 
 
 Where your clay bank has a breast or depth of eight or more 
 feet, and your output is fifty thousand and upwards, it is economy 
 to use powder and blast the clay; particularly so during diy 
 weather, when the clay bank is sun-baked and dried to a lock-like 
 consistency. 
 
 This can be done in the following manner: Let the bank be 
 squared down to the floor level and nearly plumb, then cut under 
 with the picks, a channel of six or eight inches at the bottom the 
 length of the bank which is desired to be thrown down. At the 
 same time let another force, provided with augers, be boring holes 
 four feet or more from the edge of the bank and down to a level 
 of the floor; the distance from the edge can be determined by the 
 depth of the bank; the deeper the bank the wider the slice that 
 can be split off. It is best to have two or more augers, made 
 with any common two-inch carpenter’s auger; let one be provided 
 with a four-foot shank, and another an eight-foot, and, if your 
 bank is a foot or two deeper, still another. But if your clay goes 
 on down to unusual depths, then it is better to mine it off in 
 benches, eight or ten feet to a bench, making a level or floor at 
 the bottom of each bench. Let the short auger bore the holes as 
 deep as they can reach, and then finish with the long shanked augei. 
 A hole eight feet deep can be bored in less than fifteen minutes. 
 
 A row of holes ten feet apart, scattered along the bank for 
 one hundred feet, will embrace within its limits enough clay to 
 make from sixty to seventy-five thousand bricks. After boring 
 these holes, a half stick of dynamite exploded in each of them 
 will spring the clay and make an opening in which a charge of 
 powder can now be fired, which will throw down the whole bank 
 and in most cases the clay will be pretty thoroughly mixed in 
 the fall. 
 
 If the clay is in need of water, it is now in fine condition to 
 be put in soak for use on the following day. Where everything is 
 
16 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 properly arranged this can be done by having a two-inch pipe 
 connected with the pump at the engine house and laid to the clay 
 pit; and a few yards of two-inch hose at the bank to sprinkle the 
 clay as it lies after being blasted out. 
 
 If your works are not extensive enough to warrant this out¬ 
 lay, and your dependence is mainly on picks and shovels, you can 
 still, with proper care and forethought, save much expense in this 
 part of the work. Let one man be selected who has some skill 
 and speed combined; Let it be understood that his duty is to cut 
 the drift or channel undar the bank by picking underneath as far 
 as can be done with safety; he can attend to this while others of 
 the force are loading the cars or carts at another point in the bank 
 
 After the cut is made below, as far as desired, then go above, 
 and, with the pick, strike a channel through the soft soil till you 
 come to the subsoil below and about three feet from the edge of 
 the bank; then let three men take each a good, strong, chisel 
 pointed crowbar and drive down at several points along the chan¬ 
 nel, and split off in this way, almost plumb, the whole face of the 
 bank; and in this way more clay can be loosed up in two hours’ 
 time, ready to shovel into carts, with only three men, than a 
 dozen men can do with picks alone and work all day, as I have 
 seen done by working from the top downwards, with no digging 
 under as a starter. 
 
 Another important item concerning the clay bank is the 
 quality of the clay. The quantity can be determined by having 
 a number of holes dug to the depth of six or more feet, or bore 
 holes with the auger as described in this chapter. The first 
 method is the most satisfactory unless a man is skilled in the 
 business of prospecting with the auger. 
 
 The best method of testing the quality of the clay is to make 
 brick from it, dry them, set them in the kiln and burn them 
 thoroughly; some should be set in the arches, some in the body 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 17 
 
 of the kiln and some near the top; there is then a reliable test 
 made as to their shrinkage in drying and burning as well as 
 to their strength and color; this test amounts to demon¬ 
 stration. A practical brickmaker can judge of the strength by its 
 quality and appearance. Clay that is plastic in its nature and 
 breaks into angular particles, and parts in irregular seams, indi¬ 
 cates that it is a strong, tenacious clay, and will produce, if prop¬ 
 erly made and burned, a strong and durable brick. If it breaks 
 up fine, with the seams smooth and straight, having the appear¬ 
 ance of soft stone, it indicates loamy or sandy clay, less tenacious, 
 and will make a brick inferior in strength to the other; but if 
 well burned will endure the action of the weather and atmosphere 
 in the wall as well as the other; but, at the same time, is more 
 likely to become damaged in the burning, especially in the com¬ 
 mon clamp walls where they are subjected to the drafts of cold 
 air during the burning process. 
 
 I mention this matter in connection with the location of 
 your works, as upon it depends the success of your enterprise; 
 that is, in regard to the color and quality of your ware. After 
 your tests of clay have been made and you find you have not less 
 than four feet of clay, and the deeper the better, you turn next to 
 the requisite in any brick yard, which is water. There should be 
 a never failing supply of water within reach; for when there is 
 little rainfall and scarcity of water, then it is most advantageous 
 to make brick; for they dry rapidly and without loss, and every 
 day can be improved in making brick. The clay in a dry time 
 requires more water than at any other time, so that when water is 
 naturally scarcest, most is needed. I have frequently seen yards 
 idle for want of water in the very best of weather for brickmaking, 
 and the next season, perhaps, idle again, because they have more 
 water than they know what to do with. So the necessity of an 
 abundant and reliable supply of water is very important, not only 
 
18 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 for the making of brick but a good quality of water to supply the 
 boiler, and drinking water for the use of the hands. Then arrange 
 a system of pipes around the works, so you can turn on a hose on 
 short notice in case of fire; let the kilns be especially provided 
 with this means of putting out fires. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 19 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 PLAN OF YARD. 
 
 In laying out your yard, begin with your rail track for cars, 
 or boat landing, and locate your kilns at a point where they will 
 be convenient to fill and discharge. Have your drying sheds next 
 to the kilns; then next to the dry house is the machine room with 
 the engine and boiler conveniently located. Back of these is your 
 clay bank. The following diagram is a general plan for brick 
 works which has been adopted by many of the largest firms and 
 most successful among the brick manufacturers. One advantage 
 claimed for this plan is that the clay when it leaves the bank, 
 moves continually forward towards the kilns, and from thence 
 direct to cars or shipping point, and practically, the drier men are 
 not in the way of the machine men. The dry rollers also work on 
 the opposite side from the machine men and are out of each 
 other’s way. 
 
 In the illustration, C represents clay shed; E, engine; B, boiler; 
 S, line shaft; M, machine; D, driers; KKK, kilns; RR, railroad 
 tracks at each end of kiln. The fuel can be unloaded at kilns or 
 driers from the same tracks. The track at opposite end of kilns 
 is used for bringing fuel to kilns, and also for shipping brick by 
 cars. The engine, boiler and machines are out of the way of 
 smoke and dust from burning and discharging kilns; and if the 
 kiln sheds should take fire, the engine house and machine sheds 
 are comparatively safe. This arrangement of the works will be 
 
20 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 PLAN OP YARD. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 21 
 
 found very convenient where it is at all practical to so consti nc t 
 them. Where artificial dryers are used, and wood or coal is 
 used for heating them, the furnaces of the dryers should be placed 
 next to the kilns, and the smoke stack next to the machine. 
 Where there are tracks at both ends of the kilns, it is best to have 
 the track between the kiln and drier elevated from four to seven 
 feet, according to location and a good road graded beneath it to 
 allow for cars, or truck and barrows, to pass underneath with green 
 brick to the kiln without being delayed by loading or unloading 
 cars standing on track. The only disadvantage this offers, is the 
 inconvenience in loading cars that stand on the elevated track. 
 Where barrows are used in loading cars, the top half of kiln can 
 be loaded on the elevated track, and the arches on ground track 
 at opposite end. One advantage this raised track has over a ground 
 track is it allows a large space below the track as storage for fuel, 
 and saves a great deal of re-handling to keep the track clear. 
 
 In placing brick machines in position they should all stand 
 in line, and all be driven from one line of shafting. This is a sav¬ 
 ing of space; makes the work all run uniform when changes are 
 made from one machine to another and the driving belts are 
 all of uniform length, and the clear space underneath is all 
 alike. The line shaft should stand on trestles, independent 
 of the frame work of the building and about twelve feet above 
 the floor of the machine room. This will allow of the driving 
 belts being carried well up out of the way of the workmen. 
 Of course, this will depend somewhat on the kind of machine 
 used. In some cases this plan would not be best, but for all up¬ 
 right machines that are built for a top feed, it is an excellent plan. 
 The clay should be brought in on an elevated track from twelve 
 to twenty feet in height, and arranged so that it will move down¬ 
 ward, into, and through the intermediate machinery and pass from 
 
22 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 theie into the brick machine without much labor in shoveling, or 
 the vexation of elevators. 
 
 Arranged as stated above, one man can feed each machine 
 for twenty-five or thirty thousand brick per day. If not so arranged, 
 and the machines have to be fed with shovels, it will require two, 
 tlnee and sometimes four, men to keep the machine supplied 
 when the clay is dumped on the ground, level with the bottom of 
 the machine. It is taken for granted that any man putting up a 
 new plant on improved plans will want to provide for the use of 
 clayworking machinery of some kind. Inclined tram track, with 
 hoisting machinery, drums and cables, are being put in in almost 
 all new plants whei’e it is at all practicable to do so, as well as im¬ 
 proved machines for preparing the clay, separators, crushers, etc. 
 The engine house and boiler should be separated from the machine 
 room so as to avoid the dust and keep the engine clean, as it is 
 well known that dust will cause an engine to wear out faster at all 
 of its wearing parts; and it is the best economy to make this effort 
 to save your engine. 
 
 If artificial dryers are used, the bricks should be handled from 
 the machine to the kiln on cars; this saves fuel and labor, and 
 prevents damage to the bricks in handling. If soft mud brick 
 are made, it is necessary to use hacking pallets of wood or iron in 
 order to dry them on cars. An iron pallet is best, but the cost is 
 much heavier than wood and prevents their general use. If some 
 inventor will make an iron pallet that can be had for the price of 
 from ten to fifteen or twenty cents, he will do well with it, as it is 
 much needed. Wood pallets cost from 5 to 8 cents each, accord¬ 
 ing to the cost of lumber. We think it is a great mistake to make 
 pallets of plastering lath, as is frequently done. They are too frail 
 and short-lived; they will not stand the rough usage incident to a 
 brickyard, and neither will they keep their shape when subjected 
 to the heat of a dryer on one side and the moisture of green brick 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 23 
 
 on the other. It is money thrown away to use this kind of ma¬ 
 terial for pallets. The laths or strips for pallets should be not less 
 than | or f of an inch in thickness, and inches wide. These 
 will bear a man’s weight without breaking, and this is necessary, 
 as they very frequently have it to do when in use. 
 
 It is usually cheapest to order the lath sawed at the mill the size 
 desired j three feet is about the usual length, and if theyaie oideied 
 this length they can be sawed from material too short to be marketed 
 and can generally be gotten cheaper on that account, as a gieat 
 deal of unmarketable material can be utilized for that purpose. 
 The experience of the writer is that the round hnishing nail or 
 wire nail is best to use in putting them together, as they will not split 
 the end piece, and holds well in the wood. When stiff clay brick 
 are made, it is not necessary to use pallets to dry them in tunnel 
 dryers, as they can be hacked or piled up in loose hacks on the 
 cars. Many brickmakers prefer to use pallets with stiff mud bricks 
 as it saves them from being damaged by contact with each other, 
 as when they are hacked on the cars. A pallet made of two pieces 
 7 0 f an i nc h in thickness, four inches wide, nailed one and a-half 
 inches apart, to end pieces 2x5 and ten inches long, answers very 
 well for this kind of bricks. Where stiff mud bricks are hacked on 
 cars for drying, they can be placed on an open frame of wood or 
 iron and six or eight courses deep, the bricks spaced from one 
 to one and a-half inches apart, reversing each tier, and in this way 
 they can be handled and dried and moved to kilns ready to set 
 without pallets, and but very little damaged. This mode will answer 
 for common building bricks, but for fine front or ornamental, or 
 moulded designs, pallets are necessary. 
 
 At many yards, after the bricks are made they are carried to 
 the drying yards or sheds in an opposite direction from the kilns, 
 instead of toward them. It is plain that this is labor lost. Let every 
 move take them nearer their final destination—the loading point 
 
24 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 —cars, boats or wagons. It seems to me that when parties con¬ 
 template starting a new brick plant, or enlarging an old one, or 
 remodeling one to a yard of more modern design, it would pay 
 them to secure the services of a competent and experienced man 
 to make a plan of their works with two objects in view: First, let 
 it be so arranged that the clay and moulded bricks always move 
 towards the kilns, with as few handlings, and short journeys as 
 possible. Second, if you begin your works with only one machine, 
 have it so constructed that you can increase to two or three, or 
 even a four, machine plant without remodeling the works or re¬ 
 arranging the original plan. If men without practical experience 
 in the brick business would do this, it would save them 
 many dollars, as well as many disappointments and vexations of 
 spirit, and the telling to their friends in after years of how it ought 
 to have been done in the start, and how they would do if they 
 were to begin again and put up another plant. This is all un¬ 
 necessary. 
 
 Enough has been done to teach experienced brick men how 
 brick works should be built. One trouble with many men who 
 have no experience in the business is, they think they know 
 better how to do all these things than the men who have 
 grown gray in the business and have kept up with the fore¬ 
 most. If you mention that such a plan or method has been 
 tried and abandoned as a failure, you will hear a whole volume of 
 theory that is going to carry these enthusiasts on to fortune; no 
 danger of them stranding on that rock; they will steer away from 
 it; they propose to turn everything right around in the brick 
 business. And they usually do, and run the boat ashore in a 
 hurry; buy their knowledge and pay a good round sum for it. A 
 false economy in this line leads to serious loss, and a distaste for 
 the business is sure to follow. 
 
 There are a great many men engaging in the brick business 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 25 
 
 at this time who are not practical brickmakers, and in many in¬ 
 stances I have known, they have generally managed to waste a few 
 thousand dollars in needless expenditure because of their lack of 
 necessary knowledge of the business. There have been brick 
 plants put up in the past few months that cost the owners 
 forty thousand dollars, that should have cost but twenty-five 
 thousand. Now, why was it? First, they began without a com¬ 
 plete and definite plan. Second, the plant was constructed 
 without a practical, competent brickmaker to superintend and 
 manage the works. The question arises here—can a brick works 
 be planned, constructed and equipped so that it is success¬ 
 ful and profitable from the beginning? Or, must there be a waste 
 of time and money caused by mistake and poor management in 
 building the works and one, two or three years of unprofitable 
 brickmaking? If the latter case be true, then brick manufactur¬ 
 ers are to be pitied, and the art of brickmaking sadly in need of 
 skillful men of the craft to push it to the front with its sister in¬ 
 dustries—a place where its great importance demands it should be. 
 
 If a blast furnace, which is more complicated in every way, can be 
 properly built and made to pour forth its molten stream as abun¬ 
 dantly and profitably the first year as it does the second or third, 
 why cannot a brick plant be made to do equally as well? 
 
 Years of experience and observation, as well as a kind of pro¬ 
 fessional pride in your place, which lurks in the breast of every 
 thoroughbred brickmaker, compel me to believe that a brick ^ 
 works can be properly planned and economically built and 
 equipped, and made from the beginning, successful and profitable. 
 There are men in this country capable of planning brick works as 
 they should be, and hundreds of intelligent and practical men to ex¬ 
 ecute them properly and manage them successfully and profitably 
 to the owners after they are built. It is not necessary, then, to 
 make these mistakes and incur these losses. When men realize 
 
26 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 that brickmaking is not only a trade, but an art, requiring years of 
 experience and intelligent thought to acquire a requisite know¬ 
 ledge of the business and then a close application of the same to 
 the manufacture of their wares, they will not attempt to manu¬ 
 facture bricks with incompetent help, but will at once secure a 
 man of indisputable capability, and not until this course is 
 adopted will this immense waste of capital and business energy be 
 avoided. 
 
 This is written more particularly for the benefit of those wdro 
 contemplate going into the business, than for those who are already 
 in, for it is not every man who sayeth, “Lo, I am an expert 
 brickmaker,” that will prove to be such a one. 
 
 A friend wrote me once that he had secured the services of a 
 man to superintend his works, who came from a distant part of 
 the country where experts are supposed to flourish in abundance. 
 This man found fault with everything about the works and held 
 supreme contempt for the ways ot all the native brickmakers and 
 said he: “Behold, I will burn a kiln of bricks the like of which was 
 never seen in this forsaken country!” “And,” adds my friend, “he 
 succeeded beyond my expectations in carving out his boast, for,” 
 said he, “there was not a single hard brick in the whole kiln.” 
 This is a true incident and is a fair sample of what has happened 
 many times before and will continue to occur until brick manu¬ 
 facturers employ only those who are known to be proficient and 
 trustworthy. 
 
BEICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 27 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 PLAN OF BRICK AVORKS FOR STEADY OUTPUT. 
 
 One very important object in starting any kind of factory 
 is a steady output. 
 
 After a number of years’ experience, it is the opinion of the 
 writer, that the two great points in the business of brickmaking, 
 are: First, turn out the full capacity of your machinery every 
 day. Second, get this product into the market with the least 
 possible waste after the bricks leave the machine. The waste in 
 drying, burning, and handling, should not exceed one per cent. 
 
 To meet the first point, it is necessary to keep the machine 
 running continuously, for this is the fountain that supplies the 
 stream of bricks; if this be stopped the stream is broken, or dried 
 up; if, on the other hand, you can keep the machine running, the 
 supply will come without a break. If one hour is lost at the 
 machine it cannot be regained. If the setting gets behind, extra 
 help will make it up; so also with the loading at the kilns. 
 Therefore, don’t let any small matter, or a little unusual expense, 
 stop the machine. It may be necessary sometimes to put on one 
 or even two extra hands to keep it running; it is better to do this 
 than stop. There is false economy in stopping the machine to 
 save a little extra cost in labor. 
 
 It is true economy to have enough men at the machine to do 
 the Avork well. 
 
 To get all out of a machine there is in it, it must be kept 
 
28 
 
 B RIGKMAKERS MA NUA L. 
 
 full of clay all the time, and the machine moving; and force 
 enough to take away every brick that is made, without injuring 
 or destroying any of them by hasty handling. Sometimes there 
 are but two truckers, when there should be three, and in the 
 course of a day, two or three thousand brick are tossed back on 
 that account; all this is lost to save one dollar. Have the 
 machine adjusted and ready to start at the regular hour for work 
 every day; and when that hour arrives let the stream of bricks 
 begin and flow steadily from that moment on until the task is 
 accomplished. To do this, it is necessary to have an extra 
 machine,in case of a break down; and also a supply of clay under 
 shed near by, so that rain will not interfere. 
 
 We will suppose the weekly production of a works is 150,000 
 bricks, one week’s expenses $450 or three dollars per M. We 
 will say that labor cost $1.25 per M, fuel costs $1.25 per M, and 
 regular or current expenses cost 50 cents per M. This latter 
 includes salary of superintendent and bookkeeper, other office 
 expenses, horse feed, insurance, taxes, etc. 
 
 When the works produce only 100,000 in a week, labor costs 
 $125, fuel $125, and regular expenses are $75, or a total of $325 
 for 100,000 bricks, or 25 cents per thousand more than the 
 previous week. 
 
 Now if your capacity is 25,000 bricks per day—make 150,000 
 every week—you will find the pay roll will be very little more, if 
 any, than if you made 10,000, or even 20,000 less brick during the 
 week. I find here one great leak in expenses; keeping a large part 
 of your men employed when there is no production to keep up 
 the expense. It is only just and right to give your men steady 
 employment; you are thereby insured a better class of workmen, 
 at a less cost for wages. To do this, arrange your works so you 
 can run up to your capacity every day. This is much better than 
 to buy a second machine during a brisk trade, when you are only 
 
BRTCKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 29 
 
 partially utilizing your present capacity. A great mistake is 
 made right here, in buying a second machine; as it requires in 
 most cases more power to run, greater facilities for drying, an 
 increase of the working force, tools, kilns, etc., where, perhaps, half 
 the outlay for machines, driers, kilns, tools, etc., and all the 
 adjuncts of a brick yard, might with good management at all 
 points, reach the object in view, and be much more satisfactory, 
 as well as profitable. 
 
 Next comes the point of saving the product after it is made. 
 The brick must be carefully and properly handled all the way 
 from machine to car. They must be dried under cover to avoid 
 loss by rains and dried in a manner to suit the clay, so as to avoid 
 loss by cracking or breaking in drying. In drying, to make the 
 output regular throughout the year, it is necessary to have artificial 
 
 dryers. 
 
 After they are dried they must be properly burned—that is 
 the all important point—burn them well. Next, with the least 
 cost for fuel and labor, as large a per cent, of the whole output 
 as possible should be hard brick, without damaging or destroying 
 any by overburning. 
 
 To do this, it is necessary to have permanent walls; and to 
 prevent damage and loss in the arches from sudden changes in 
 temperature, there must, in up-draft kilns, be furnaces and heat 
 chambers interposed between the cold air and the burning biicks. 
 
 In down-draft, kilns, the air is heated as it passes upward 
 between the outer and inner walls. A kiln must do three things 
 or possess three requisites: It must burn the bricks nearly all 
 hard without waste, and with cheap fuel; and it must be simple 
 to operate and control. It must possess other advantages. It must 
 be durable in its construction, or its advantages will be overcome 
 by the cost of keeping it in repair. 
 
 One of the worst difficulties in the way of a steady output, is 
 
30 
 
 BRTCKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 to get the green brick dried and out of the way of the machine 
 hands. On most yards the machine, with three days’ work in each 
 week, will turnout more brick than can be dried and kilned; 
 then the hands, as a matter of course, have to be changed to 
 another class of work. There is confusion and loss of time in 
 doing this; tools are displaced, the endless litter of the yard has 
 to be rearranged to suit the work; and some brickmakers with 
 racks and pallets are obliged in a stress to hack up the brick that 
 are now dry, in order to make room for more green brick. 
 
 Heie comes in a loss of time—rehandling and marring of the 
 brick; and that too, generally, in a pressing season, when time is 
 money, and each time the brick are handled adds about 25 cents 
 pei thousand to their cost, and detracts from the appearance and 
 value of your product. 
 
 To overcome all this loss, and be able to take advantage of all 
 the season, and the wet day as well as the one that follows, we 
 propose in this work to illustrate and explain by detail, the 
 methods which are in hse among the most successful of our brick 
 manufacturing firms. 
 
 We will suppose you are a progressive brickmaker; that 
 you have attended, or are you going to do so, all the National 
 Convention of Brickmakers; that you take one or more of the 
 excellent publications devoted to the interest of brick men; that 
 you are up to the times and at least acquainted with the different 
 methods of making and burning of bricks. We hope you have a 
 machine and engine, and will assume that you have; and from 
 this as a base, we will begin. We will locate your machine as 
 near the clay bank as possible and as favorable as circumstances 
 will permit to railroad, river, canal, or wagon road; the location 
 of your clay bed with reference to the works, having much to do 
 with the economic handling of the clay as well as the preparation 
 of it. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 31 
 
 When anything is done let it be done right, substantial and 
 permanent. 
 
 When your engine and machines are set up let them rest on 
 heavy timbers laid on a foundation of solid masonry, or its equiv¬ 
 alent; then have them to stand plumb and in line with the 
 shafting. We have seen machines break simply because they were 
 not plumb or in line; in either case the gearing does not work 
 properly, causing extra strain; then comes breakage, expense and 
 delay. 
 
 This shows again the importance of having a complete plan 
 of the whole works, when starting a brick plant. A little saving 
 of labor or power may seem an insignificant item at first glance; 
 but when the saving of this labor, hundreds and thousands of 
 times over in the course ol the year, it becomes a great and 
 important saving in the end. 
 
 When a man starts to build a good house, he hires an experi¬ 
 enced architect to make his plans, and specify the materials in 
 detail and probable cost of the same. He can tell his patron 
 where the material can be bought at the least expense for the best 
 quality; and it is wisdom on his part to employ the architect to 
 do this for him. 
 
 Now if any brickmaker will turn out his full capacity every day 
 and save it as described in the foregoing, he can make money in 
 the brick business. 
 
 Without these points being attended to he cannot succeed; 
 the profits per thousand are too meagre to bear much theory or 
 red tape. 
 
 Theory has ruined many a brick yard. It takes a rich firm 
 to stand up under the management of a man who has many 
 theories to explode and little practical knowledge. It is well to 
 be progressive, but not well to sink all the profits in experiment¬ 
 ing and changing the order of things, frequently. Get the appli- 
 
32 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 ances suited to your clay, location and capacity, and stick to them. 
 Get the best there is among them and push your business. If 
 you are not a practical brickmaker secure the services of one who 
 is, and learn the business. 
 
 Never let a customer wait for bricks. If it is necessary, load 
 bricks all night or load them in the rain. Get up a reputation 
 for promptness in filling orders, and your sales will increase. Give 
 your customers good bricks, and ten hundred for a thousand. 
 Talk your business up; explain the advantages of brick over 
 wood, for building; its fire-proof qualities; its durability, etc. 
 Advertise your wares, so that people may know where they can 
 get bricks. Have posters printed with name, address and what 
 you manufacture, and paste one on each side of every car that 
 leaves your works. Now it seems to me that it would be more 
 profitable, as well as satisfactory, to prepare to run your present 
 machinery steady, than to buy more and let it rust out two-thirds 
 of the time, while your employes are thrown out of work in winter 
 when work is scarce. Get a good set of men, give them steady 
 work through the year, and employer and employes will be richer 
 at the end of the year. “Go to,” build you a dryer and permanent 
 kilns and sheds, make all the brick possible with the machinery 
 you now have, before going off and buying more, and leaving it to 
 stand idle the greater part of the year. 
 
 A brick manufacturer should not shut down his works for 
 want of orders, until he has a good supply on hand; the quantity 
 depending wholly on the market. At some points a half million 
 might be considered sufficient; at other places ten millions would 
 not be any too many. 
 
 In order to keep ahead of the market, and make brick in the 
 winter, when the demand is light, it is necessary to have artificial 
 dryers; and this method I think cheaper than natural heat, or air. 
 The bricks occupy less space, and in this way save moving long 
 
BRICKMAKEKS MANUAL. 
 
 33 
 
 distances from machine to drying floors, and from there to kilns; 
 also saves cost of hacking, covering and uncovering. The loss 
 which attends outdoor drying is avoided; certainty takes the place 
 of uncertainty, so far as the quantity of bricks made and saved is 
 concerned. 
 
 These advantages and savings will more than pay for fuel 
 required to dry them under cover; where they can be dried in 
 rainy weather, as well as clear weather, in winter as well as summer. 
 
 One objection offered against making brick the whole year is, 
 that in fall and winter there is little demand, and provision must 
 be made for storing the product. 
 
 Bricks can be moved from the kiln to the stock pile at a cost 
 of from twenty to twenty-five cents per thousand. By doing this, 
 the demand can be met in the busy season, even though it is 
 double the capacity of the machine or yard. When there is a 
 large demand for bricks, the prices invariably rule from fifty cents 
 to one dollar per thousand higher than in the dull season, and 
 this more than repays the cost of storing the brick. 
 
 I find in many places, in the spring months, that it is impos¬ 
 sible to supply the demand for brick; contractors, in such cases, 
 are compelled to send off for them, shipping them long distances, 
 at a cost of ten dollars per thousand or more, laid down at the 
 building. This causes new yards to be started to supply the 
 demand, and the result is, at some points, there are twice as many 
 yards as need be; which tends to make sharp competition, low 
 prices and unprofitable business. As long as manufacturers sup¬ 
 ply'the local demand with good brick, at fair prices, there is little 
 danger of new yards coming into competion. The wise and suc¬ 
 cessful brickmaker, is the one who, in dull times, looks ahead 
 and prepares to meet the future demand; and when it comes 
 sends out his accumulated millions of bricks at a good price. 
 While his short-sighted competitor says, “If I only had a lot of 
 
 O 
 
34 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 bricks,” and talks about bad luck and such nonsense. It is lack 
 of nerve and foresight. We have seen this thing repeated time and 
 again, and suppose we will again in the future. A brick manufac¬ 
 turer may not have orders for a hundred thousand bricks on the 
 first day of January, and a million on hand; and by the first day 
 of April following, that million has gone where all good bricks go, 
 (into the wall) and he will have orders on his books for two 
 millions more. This is not a supposed case, but an every year 
 occurrence, with hundreds of brickmakers. “Pile your bricks up.” 
 Burn them well, so they will stand the weather, and you have the 
 best stock in the world. The moths will not tackle a hard brick 
 more than once, and it will be the moth that is damaged and not 
 the brick. They are too cheap to steal. They are indestructible. 
 They are fire-proof, frost-proof, and cyclones pass them by on the 
 other side. They never get out of fashion, therefore need never 
 be sold at cost. Where, on this uncertain earth, is there anything 
 so safe as money invested in a pile of well-burned bricks that 
 have been well made ? 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 35 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 BRINGING IN CLAY TO MACHINE. 
 
 The method of bringing clay to the machine must depend 
 largely upon your means, or the capacity of your works, situation, 
 etc. 
 
 First, is by wheelbarrows, when your clay is within one 
 hundred yards of machine; beyond that it is very unprofitable. 
 One man can pick and wheel clay for five thousand brick in ordi¬ 
 nary clay banks with level ground to wheel on. 
 
 The next plan is with horses and carts. Two horses and carts 
 with one boy as driver, and three men in the clay bank, can dig 
 and load clay enough to make from twenty to twenty-five thous¬ 
 and brick per day, according to the situation. If the distance is 
 too great, it will require another cart and horse, with driver. 
 
 Then comes the tramway and car system; the cars drawn by 
 horse-power, or steam, with cable running over a windlass or 
 drum, connecting with the main shaft of your engine or power, 
 hi the handling of clay in this way, I think side dump cars are 
 the best. The best and cheapest car I haye seen is a frame on 
 common coal car trucks. The bed or box is mounted on two 
 rockers, like a cradle. The bottom of the rocker is cast iron and 
 has sockets cast one inch deep, one and one-fourth inch in diam¬ 
 eter, four inches apart, sockets tapering to the bottom. This 
 rocker rests on a cast iron bar which is fastened to the frame 
 of the car, parallel with the rocker. On this bar are knobs to 
 
36 
 
 BRTCKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 correspond with sockets in the rocker, in size and space between. 
 The bed of car is held in place by a strong chain and hook on 
 each side of the car attached to the frame below. When the car 
 is ready to be dumped, the hook is taken from the staple on the 
 side opposite from where the clay is wanted. The car is tipped 
 on the rockers and dumps; the knobs below entering into the 
 sockets in the bottom of the rockers, prevents the bed from 
 slipping off 
 
 I think this can be easily understood, is not complicated in 
 construction, will dump on either side, and generally gives good 
 satisfaction. 
 
 There are other devices for dump cars, also a section of track 
 made to tilt and dump the load from car. Where the track is 
 made to dump the car can be made lower and is easier to load in 
 the clay bank; but has this disadvantage, it can be dumped only 
 on the section of track, and a dump car can unload at any point; 
 and in most cases this is desirable. 
 
 There are also many hoisting drums manufactured by the 
 machinery men, and all well adapted to the work. Some are 
 engine and boiler complete with the drum, and others are the 
 drum alone, either single or double. 
 
 Let the plan of getting clay to the machine depend entirely 
 upon your means, and insist on having the best you can afford. 
 
 The plan adopted must depend, of course, in a great measure, 
 upon the situation of your clay bank. 
 
 If, as is sometimes the case, the works are at a point below 
 the clay you have a great advantage, in being able to move your 
 clay into place on tram cars, by the force of gravity alone. That 
 is, you can arrange your track and tram cars, so that a loaded car 
 will descend and draw up an empty one. 
 
 But, if, as is most usually the case, the clay is below the line 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 37 
 
 of works, then it becomes necessary to use steam, or horse-power 
 to get the clay to the machine. 
 
 As was shown in a previous chapter, we prefer to elevate the 
 clay high enough above the machine, so that a sufficient amount 
 clay can be left on the platform to make one or two days 
 run of the machine. This constitutes a reserve bank that 
 can be drawn on, in case of a rainy day, or flood in clay bank, 
 break down of the inclined tramway cars, or any other unavoida¬ 
 ble accident, or delay. The loaded cars can be drawn up the 
 incline with whatever power is most convenient; a light locomo¬ 
 tive, or an endless wire cable running over a drum, and connected 
 with the main shaft, or a separate hoisting engine, or a horse rail¬ 
 road. 
 
 We are speaking now of works that are designed to make a 
 considerable amount of brick, a id the smaller yards will pardon 
 us, if we have described, or illustrate methods, that are not suited 
 to their means or capacity. Our wish is that you may have the 
 advantage of all the improved methods of manufacture. 
 
 We give herewith an illustration of an inclined tramway or 
 cable railway, which can be built and operated at moderate 
 expense. 
 
 In this diagram, “a,” is the inclined railway; “b,” descending 
 car; “c,” ascending car; “e,” endless cable; “f f,” upright posts of 
 frame; “g,” drum or cylinder, supported by frame. The cable 
 should pass twice around this drum, to prevent its slipping; one 
 end of cable is running on, while the other is running ofl. 
 
38 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 1 here must be a double track from the hoisting drum “g” to a 
 point below where the cars pass; a single track will answer for the 
 balance of the way down. Where the clay bank is above the 
 works, the loaded cars going down, bring up the empty one; but 
 where the clay is below or near the level, then power must be 
 applied to the drum sufficient to move the loaded car up the incline. 
 A lever of sufficient length and strength, with one end passing 
 over the drum, can be used for a brake. The cars also should have 
 a brake for safety. The cable should be of wire from five-eighths 
 
 to seven-eighths of an inch in diameter, according to the incline. 
 If you use hemp cable, of course it must be heavier. Tim cable 
 must have idlers, or rollers, on bottom of track between the rails 
 to prevent friction, and wear on cable. 
 
 By this plan only a single length of cable is needed with 
 sufficient surplus for the two laps or turns on the drum, “g.” 
 This drum should be not less than thirty inches in diameter. 
 
 To handle clay economically, it is necessary to elevate it by 
 steam or horse-power above the machine. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 39 
 
 There are two ways to elevate the clay. One is to dump on 
 the ground level, and carry it up to tlie preparing machine by 
 elevators. The other plan is to elevate it before it leaves the car 
 or dump cart. I prefer the latter plan and the following diagram 
 shows this method. 
 
 It is simply an inclined railroad. The cars can be drawn up 
 the incline by a stationary drum or cylinder, or with horses or a 
 light locomotive, where bricks are made in large quantities. 
 
 The following specifications and letters refer to above diagram. 
 
 «A,” is the brick machine; “B,” inclined hopper, through which 
 clay passes from the preparing machine to brick machine; “C, 
 line shaft, from which any number of machines can be driven; 
 this, as shown, is twelve feet above the floor of the machine room. 
 «D,” is the pugger or tempering machine, or it can be a crusliei or 
 disintegrator; “E,” platform on which men stand to feed the pre¬ 
 paring machine; “F,” is the clay as dumped from the car; “G,” is 
 the elevated track; “H,” is dump car on the elevated track; “I,” 
 is the building. 
 
 In this plan there is sufficient room at each machine to hold 
 clay enough fora day’s run of the machine; so that during a 
 rainy day, the machine can draw from this reserve clay. 
 
 There are other plans which may be better in some locations, 
 the position of the clay beds with reference to the works, having 
 much to do with the mode of handling clay to the machine 
 economically, as well as the preparation of it. 
 
 Preparation of clay is an important matter in the manufac¬ 
 ture of bricks. Often this part receives but little attention; the clay 
 is brought from the bank and dumped at the machine, some water 
 thrown on it and it at once goes into the machine. Throwing 
 water on clay in this way has about the same effect on the body 
 of the clay, as water thrown on a duck’s back has on the duck. 
 
 When clay is dug in the bank during the dry season and 
 
40 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 made into bricks, with the preparation described above, the result 
 will be that a large amount of the bricks will be imperfect, and 
 have to be thrown back, causing a loss to the output of the 
 machine of at least ten per cent. 
 
 Clay should be soaked for a few hours, or passed through 
 some tempering machine, crusher, pugger, or disintegrator, before 
 any machine can make them perfectly and without loss. The 
 amount of brick saved by proper preparation of clay will soon pay 
 for machinery necessary to do it, besides making a better quality 
 of bricks. 
 
 These machines also save re-handling of the clay, where it can 
 go direct from the bank to the machine. It saves the labor of two 
 men at least, at each machine, and protects the brick machine 
 from stones, bolts, spikes, or pieces of wood, and this saves the 
 machine from breakage. The diagram just given shows how 
 these preparing machines may be located with reference to 
 machine and tracks. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 41 
 
 CHAPTER VIL 
 
 MACHINES AND THEIR ADAPTATION' TO THE WORK. 
 
 With all due and proper respect to the inventors and manu¬ 
 facturers of clay working machinery we must admit that we, as all 
 others interested, have our preference for certain or special 
 machines. Some prefer one class of machine, or a particular 
 machine in that class. Other brickmakers, located in the same 
 neighborhood, will prefer a still different machine altogether. 
 And we have lately been through sections of the country wheie 
 many millions of brick are made annually, and found a great 
 many manufacturers who ignored altogether, all machinery for 
 molding bricks. Richmond, Va., is a notable example in this 
 respect. There are but few machines in use there. Manufacturers 
 prefer to keep up the old style, hand-molded bricks. There is 
 one thing to be said in favor of these men, they all, without an 
 exception, have an engine to drive their tempering wheels; but 
 where brickmakers are so slow to adopt all labor-saving methods 
 and are not using brick machines, one expects to see the old style 
 mud mill or tempering box, with the blind mule, or ox team as a 
 motor. Also in the neighborhood of Baltimore and Philadelphia 
 will be found many yards run on this very primitive plan. 
 
 There will always be a difference of opinion in regard to 
 machines for the use of brickmakers and clayworkers. But it is 
 not every brickmaker or machine manufacturer who will go to 
 the bottom and find the reason for this difference. 
 
42 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 I once met a brickmaker who was using an old style soft mud 
 machine, and that, too, apparently at a great disadvantage. I 
 asked him why he had ever been induced to buy such a machine, 
 when there were so many that were superior to it. His reasons 
 were that he was well acquainted with the manufacturer and he 
 always liked him, and that was the reason he bought the machine. 
 Most brick men will give a more practical reason than this. 
 
 Each manufacturer will claim that he has the machine that 
 will do all that is required to disintegrate, pulverize, or separate 
 the stones from the clay, or will thoroughly pug, mix, temper, 
 mold and discharge, at a certain rate per day, a given number of 
 bricks; and under certain conditions and circumstances, most 
 machines can be made to do all that is claimed for them. But 
 there is, as yet, no one machine, that will work all kinds of clay, 
 or that has proved itself to be of universal adaptation. And, for 
 this reason, it is best to go slow in buying expensive machinery 
 on simple statements alone. The purchaser should first satisfy 
 himself that the machine will do the work required of it, or make 
 such arrangement with the manufacturer, that if it will not do it, 
 the machine must be returned to him at his expense; as the 
 loss falls directly upon the purchaser, if it does not come up to the 
 guarantee, if he has not taken some such precaution in the matter. 
 
 Machines are usually built to suit particular kinds of clay, 
 and will work that one kind only,profitably. It may be necessary 
 to examine the clay question in this connection. Let us see: The 
 difference in the composition of what is used as brick clay is so 
 great, that of a necessity it requires different machinery to work it. 
 In one place the clay will be deep in the bed or deposit, free from 
 stones, gravel, or anything like sand or grit; while in another 
 location, the clay may be equally as good and yet scattered through 
 the deposit, will be fragments of flint or gravel varying in size from 
 one inch to one foot in diameter. 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 43 
 
 Where the rocks are large and infrequent, they can be sepa¬ 
 rated from the clay in digging and handling before it reaches the 
 machine. But where the rocks are small and frequent, then it 
 requires special machinery to separate them from the clay. In 
 case the stones are small and not of a lime formation, they can 
 be crushed and worked up with the clay into common building 
 bricks; but for fine pressed brick, for front facing, or ornamental 
 brick, clay is required that is free from stones or gravel, or the 
 stones must be crushed to a fine powder and worked up with the 
 clay. 
 
 Where the stones are of a limestone formation and are left in 
 the clay, burning the brick burns the stone into water lime, and 
 on exposure to the weather, even to the atmosphere alone, the 
 lime is slacked and bursts the brick. 
 
 The same thing occurs along the Mississippi River, and other 
 large streams, or near the coast where the clay deposit is of recent 
 formation, and contains wood or snail shells, periwinkles, etc.; 
 these form lime spots in the brick and ruin great quantities. Now 
 it is evident that the machine that would answer to separate the 
 rock, or crush it in one clay, would not perform the work in the 
 clay that is filled with fine pebbles, or winkles. 
 
 A manufacturer located in a section of country that is all 
 underlaid with clay varying in depth from live to forty feet, clean 
 in its composition, free from all rock or sand, will most likely 
 manufacture a machine first, for his own use, or the use of a brick- 
 maker in his neighborhood. He will experiment with his machine, 
 and perfect it to work the clay of his locality, or that of the 
 adjoining towns or counties; and in this way he is called upon to 
 make a machine for his neighbor or competitor. The machine is 
 thus put to trial with this clay, or that which is similar in its 
 composition. But should his trade, through advertising, grow on 
 his hands, and he receives an order for a machine at some remote 
 
BUICKMAKEES MANUAL. 
 
 44 
 
 point, and sends it to the customer without a trial in the clay of 
 that section, the chances are there would be two men badly dis¬ 
 appointed. I have known just such cases as this. The clay that 
 is well adapted to stiff-mud machines, is not so well adapted to 
 soft-mud machines. 
 
 The stifi-mud machine will work the clay direct from the 
 bank, pioviding it is clear of stones; while the soft-mud machine 
 would require a pugger, or tempering wheel, to prepare the clay 
 before it. entered the brick machine. 
 
 A clay of a loamy, friable nature, with a large percentage of 
 line sand, will work better on a soft-mud machine, while a fine 
 plastic clay is suitable for stiff-mud machines. 
 
 All soft or stiff-mud machines with which we are acquainted, 
 have a grinding shaft, with a series of paddles or arms; or, in some, 
 a screw-blade, set to force the mud or clay downward or onward 
 to the point of discharge. These paddles must be set firm and 
 solid to the shaft with adjustable bolts, and at an angle or incline 
 to feed the machine no faster than it will discharge the clay, as 
 made or finished bricks. If set at too much incline, it requires 
 more power to run the machine; and the clay is forced backward 
 in the box, or body of the mill; and is consequently in danger of 
 breakage at some point, because the clay is forced downwards 
 faster than it can be fed out as molded bricks. 
 
 I do not propose in this chapter to champion any one 
 machine, but only speak of the care and attention necessary to 
 keep any machine in good working order. First, study your 
 works, and the advantages of one position over another, for the 
 location of the machine. Determine on the heighth to the top of 
 the machine, and arrange so as to bring the top of machine as low 
 as possible to save labor in feeding it. A great deal of heavy labor 
 is saved by bringing the clay up near the top of the machine, or 
 what is better, above the top, and then it can be fed with one 
 
BRICKMAKEES MANUAL. 
 
 45 
 
 man; where, if it has to be lifted up with shovels, it requires two 
 men; and in a great many cases, it is necessary to dig a pit for the 
 foundation of the machine, and make a drop below the floor level 
 from one to one and a half feet, or more, as the case requires. 
 
 This, in a great many places, is a very great help in the matter 
 of feeding the machine, or getting up the clay, and is little or no 
 detriment in the working of the machine or arrangement of works. 
 When the machine is so placed, the floor must be graded 
 down to allow the trucks to come into the machine and be pushed 
 out with their load of green bricks readily and without confusion. 
 
 Some clay is filled with roots that penetrate to a great depth 
 and are carried to the machine in the load. Once in the 
 machine, these fine roots hang on the paddles or arms, and 
 where they are numerous, they are a source of great annoyance 
 by hindering the downward passage of the clay. 
 
 In order to feed well, the clay must be cut with a knife edge 
 and clear the paddles and they push it onward, while if allowed 
 to clog with any fibrous material, soon push the clay back out of 
 the way of the paddles, and the feeding ceases. 
 
 One great point in running a brick machine is to keep all 
 the wearing parts thoroughly and frequently oiled. Where there 
 is two or more machines in steady use, one man should have the 
 oiling to attend to as his constant duty; to oil all the bearings 
 and cog wheels; and if it is a stiff’-mud machine, the molds, or 
 dies, are to be constantly supplied with a sufficient amount, and 
 no excess or waste of oil. I have found that where there was a bear¬ 
 ing neglected in the early part of the day, and it got hot, that the 
 heat expanded and tightened other parts of the machine until it 
 became necessary to stop and cool off; then by starting right and 
 keeping oil on the boxes and journals, everything would go off' all 
 right all the rest of the day, and run at a much higher rate of 
 speed than before. 
 
46 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 There is, on most machines, some parts that are subjected to 
 a jerk or push at each revolution or discharge of the molds, and it 
 is not an infrequent occurrence for bolts to come loose or break 
 off. This should be carefully watched, and all taps kept tight¬ 
 ened, and parts of the machine in place, thereby saving breakage 
 and consequent stops; all the joints and packing looked after, and 
 no leaks allowed to scatter clay under the machine, over the oil 
 boxes, and among the cogs, or any place where it will cause trouble 
 or annoyance. The machine is calculated to receive clay in the 
 box or cylinder and discharge bricks at a given point. If it is 
 built so it will not do this, get one that will. 
 
 Another point is, to arrange your belts so that they can be 
 slacked up, and the machine stopped in case of a break-down, 
 without a journey across the yard to the engine house. Another 
 plan is, to connect the governor valve on the engine with a cord 
 lunning to the machine, then, in case of a break-down at the 
 machine, the workmen there can have control of the engine and 
 stop in a moment. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 47 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 DRYING BRICKS. 
 
 Bricks are dried by air currents which absorb the moisture 
 from the green bricks by contact with them. The drying power 
 of air currents depends upon their temperature and velocity. Dry, 
 hot air moving fast, absorbs moisture rapidly, while a cold, damp 
 air moving at any rate of speed will dry slowly. Green bricks dry 
 slowly even when the sun shines hot, if there is no breeze, while 
 they sometimes dry rapidly in cloudy weather when the wind 
 blows briskly. The atmosphere in this respect is like a sponge; 
 when the sponge has absorbed a certain amount of water, it will 
 take up no more. When the atmosphere has absorbed a certain 
 amount of water from the brick with which it is in contact, it will 
 hold no more and the brick cease to dry. If, however, fresh air is 
 continually replacing the moist air, the brick will continue to dry 
 until they are as dry as the atmosphere; at this point, they cease 
 to dry. By the use of artificial heat, forced draft, or currents of 
 dry hot air are brought in contact with the brick, drying them by 
 carrying off moisture as it is absorbed. All drying is the same in 
 principle, and differs only in degree. The drying of bricks is a 
 matter of more importance than the average brickmaker would at 
 first thought believe. 
 
 We will suppose that the yard is arranged to run constantly, 
 and turn out twenty-five thousand bricks each day, three hundred 
 days in the year. This is an output of seven and a half million 
 
48 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 of brick annually. If these bricks are made by the soft mud pro¬ 
 cess, they will each contain when made, one and a-half pounds of 
 water, at the lowest estimate. This would require us to evaporate 
 over thirty thousand pounds of water every day, Sundays and 
 holidays all counted in on the drying. This is a very low esti¬ 
 mate, and might safely be calculated as equaling twenty tons of 
 water that has to be got rid of every day before they are fit to 
 burn; or, rather, before it is safe to attempt it. 
 
 Which is the best and cheapest method of drying bricks? 
 
 Let us look at the matter now in a business way, at the differ¬ 
 ent methods. First is the good old way (but not the best) of the 
 sunshine process, where the bricks are spread out on the ground 
 to dry in the sunshine. Every brick man knows the work and 
 the worry and uncertainty of this way. I was urging the impor¬ 
 tance of some more reliable method of drying bricks to an old 
 brickmaker at one time when he, to meet my argument, suggested 
 that there was nothing cheaper than sunshine. I admitted that 
 much, and still support the old“gent” in that point, but I could not 
 resist the reply that was ready—that there was nothing that I 
 could call to mind that was so little to be depended upon, I left 
 him with his bricks out in the sunshine drying, over an acre or 
 two of open field. The season was what was called showery; not 
 excessively wet, but the air was damp; the clouds were frequent 
 and heavy. I went back to call on him some six weeks later to see 
 how he was coming on; piles of wet mud were numerous all over 
 the yard; he was busy with a force of hands, sorting the broken 
 bricks and dissolved clay, from among those that were passable ; 
 hack after hack was tumbled down in apile of ruins; he showed 
 me one pile of several thousand bricks that had gone through the 
 pug mill five times already and was ready to go back and repeat 
 the process again. Sunshine may do in Egypt, but not in this un¬ 
 certain latitude. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 49 
 
 The advantages of sun drying are that it costs very little to pre¬ 
 pare the ground for drying the brick; and sun heat costs nothing. 
 The disadvantages are that while it is furnished without price, 
 there is no certainty about the supply and it comes without any 
 regularity; and sometimes for weeks at a time, no brick are dried; 
 hence the brickmaker who depends upon this process of drying 
 has an uncertain output, indeed. Still there may be more cer¬ 
 tainty about the output, than the amount he puts in the kiln, 
 as the brick are not only exposed to rains, but in the spring and 
 fall months they are liable to be frozen, and the percentage of 
 bricks lost will average at least fifteen per cent, of the amount 
 laid on the yard. There are only six months of the year that 
 they can be dried in this way, or any other method of natural 
 heat; and only part of this time is available. 
 
 Where bricks are made in large quantities, it requires a large 
 area for drying them, as it must contain nearly a week’s produc¬ 
 tion. This necessitates the moving of the bricks long distances 
 from machine to yard, and from yard to kiln. 
 
 This method also requires the handling of large quantities of 
 lumber to protect the brick; and necessitates a great deal of labor, 
 and destroys in a season many thousand feet of the very best lum¬ 
 ber. I have frequently been on yards that used lumber for 
 covering green bricks, that had to be lifted off the bricks in 
 the morning and lifted on again at night, and shifted about to get 
 at the dry brick, or for other reasons; and if the lumber had been 
 in suitable shape there was enough of it to build a first-class shed 
 over a furnace dryer; and such a covering is always ready, not in 
 the way, and don’t have to be moved about. 
 
 The second method of drying by natural heat is the shed sys¬ 
 tem ; this is where the stiff mud brick are hacked direct from 
 the machine, under large open sheds, and dried by natural air 
 currents. 
 
 4 
 
50 
 
 BKICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Brick will dry in this way, but very slowly. The hacks 
 on the outside of the building will dry in reasonable time, 
 while further in from the walls or posts, the brick will stand 
 for many days without any perceptible change. Soft mud brick 
 are dried on the same principle by using pallets. The pallets are 
 made of light lumber, a little longer and wider than the mold, 
 and have a foot piece at each end about J-inch higher than the 
 green brick are thick. The pallets can then be placed one above 
 the other in tiers, and left in this way under sheds or in the open 
 air until they are sufficiently dry to hack in tiers, and support the 
 weight of six or eight courses. 
 
 If you adopt any method of natural heat and air currents, let 
 it be the the rack and pallet system; that is, placing the bricks on 
 pallets under a narrow shed; the pallets being suspended on tiers 
 of cleats, or strips, which are nailed to 2x4 upright posts. The 
 objection to drying by natural heat is the risk of damage or total 
 loss of brick by rains and otherwise as before stated. 
 
 Then there is the uncertainty about the amount of produc¬ 
 tion in a given time; and the anxiety, worry and general wear 
 and tear of the proprietor. 
 
 The pallet system is advantageous with soft mud bricks, for 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 51 
 
 they can be dumped from the molds at the machine, this pre 
 vents sticking in the molds, and when placed on pallets they can be 
 put in racks or tiers, one above another, and a large quantity can 
 be stored in a comparatively small space. When the racks are 
 provided with projecting roofs or canvass sides, they save the 
 brick from damage by rains, or checking during high dry winds, 
 so that the shed drying and rack and pallet system, are a gieat 
 improvement over the old style sunshine mode. But they are 
 open to the same objections that the sunshine method is; that 
 the bricks will not dry in damp weather and are liable to be 
 frozen in cold weather. 
 
 The general advantages of artificial drying over natural heat 
 are many, without reference to one mode of artificial drying, 
 over another. I will endeavor to make plain some other of these 
 advantages in addition to what has already been mentioned. With 
 an artificial dryer, and a machine that will produce twenty-five 
 thousand brick per day, a brickmaker can make from six to seven 
 millions of brick per annum. To 'dry without artificial heat, 
 would require two machines of 25,000 capacity each, or more, to 
 produce the same amount of brick in a year. Now in case he has a 
 dryer, he can with half the labor, half the tools and power, and 
 consequently with little more than half the capital, produce the 
 same result. He can then give his employes steady work, and 
 in this way gets a better class of men for perhaps less wages. There 
 is much less worry and responsibility when he retires at night. He 
 has no anxiety about a storm coming up in the night, and dam¬ 
 aging or destroying his day’s product; or perhaps a week’s labor 
 may be swept away, and his yard in such a condition he can make 
 
 no more brick for several days. 
 
 To put brick on a yard where they are exposed to storms, is 
 an uncertain, unprofitable, and vexatious way to do. I have many 
 times seen a whole week’s product destroyed, leaving the yard in 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 chaos, and the proprietor in about the same condition. I find but 
 very few men who can look upon the total wreck of one hundred 
 thousand brick, with any degree of composure or refrain from 
 using fretful language. Drying with artificial heat, you save all the 
 ware; you can dry brick when it is raining, and even when it is 
 freezing. There is no loss of time on account of bad weather dur- 
 a rain or a damp spell after a rain w'hen your yard is in such 
 a condition it is impossible to do any work on it until the weather 
 clears and the yard dries. 
 
 Again, in most markets, prices are better in the spring months 
 than any other time of the year. If dried by sunshine, they 
 must be made during the early part of the preceding autumn, and 
 the stock carried over six months. With a dryer the entire sea¬ 
 son’s product can be sold the same year, and by the first of March 
 or April, the spring stock is ready for market at a good price, and 
 you can without risk contract for future delivery, knowing that 
 you can fulfill your contract. How is it with the manufacturer 
 who has no dryer? He has no assurance that he can fill future 
 orders, and in most cases here is where he comes in competition 
 with other brickmakers. 
 
 The cost of dryers some will say, is an objection. I think 
 from a careful reading of this chapter, and then comparing it with 
 your experience, you will see it is just as expensive to dry brick 
 by sun and air as it was to make by hand instead of by machinery. 
 Drying brick by artificial heat is generally acknowldeged by pro¬ 
 gressive brickmakers to be the best and cheapest plan. There has 
 been a decided change of opinion upon this subject in the past 
 five years. I receive many inquiries about dryers and brick dry¬ 
 ing. 
 
 There are a number of devices for drying bricks with hot air. 
 that are patented, and advertised, and in some places are in opera¬ 
 tion; and it is claimed doing good work. It is well enough to in- 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 53 
 
 vestigate their merits as to cost, ease of management, and results; 
 and among all the dryers, choose the best or the one most suited 
 to your needs. When a brickmaker spends one or two thousand 
 dollars on kilns, or dryers, or a machine, if they are good and dur¬ 
 able, he has added just that much to the value of his plant. And 
 is it not just as much the privilege of the brickmaker to have 
 good machinery, and a full line of first-class equipments, in the 
 brick business, as any other manufacturer ? 
 
 I think you will agree with me in this at least, that he does 
 more work and handles a larger amount of ware, for a smaller 
 margin of profit, than any other manufacturer. He handles a 
 ton of clay many times in the process of making and drying; then 
 burns it a cost of from fifty to seventy-five cents a ton, delivers it 
 at from one to three miles to market, for about $2.50 or $3 per 
 ton. At best the margin is small. Show me a manufacturer who 
 works under as many disadvantages for a smaller margin. For 
 this reason he must watch the little leaks of his profits. The 
 waste in making, drying, burning, handling, and delivering, 
 must be avoided at every possible point. 
 
 The cheapest mode of investigating machinery, is to visit the 
 fairs and expositions, where such machinery is on exhibition, and 
 in operation. But to investigate kilns and dryers it is necessary 
 to visit the brick and tile works, where they are in use; as they 
 area class of manufactures than cannot be carried around. The 
 machine, kiln or dryer, that cost least to build or to operate, is cer¬ 
 tain in its results, and is durable in construction, is the kind to 
 purchase. Then study to make it a success. 
 
 There is another method of open air drying that deserves 
 some mention here, and is well adapted to small yards running 
 one or two machines; that is the system of hacking on pallets 
 about from thirty-five to fifty bricks on each pallet, and moving 
 them into position on the yard with portable hacking trucks. The 
 
54 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 brick are hacked in open order, three or four courses in height as 
 they are made at the machine. Stiff mud bricks are hacked on 
 edge direct, on top of each other, the brick being placed over the 
 space below, each hack with the same number of brick. Soft mud 
 brick are dumped on the pallet and set one above the other; a 
 foot piece on lower side of pallet, interposed to keep them from 
 coming in contact with the bricks on the pallet below. These are 
 lifted from the ground by a device of levers, and are then in po¬ 
 sition between the wheels of the trucks at a few inches from the 
 ground, and can be rolled to any point on the yard, and again with 
 the levers lowered to rest them on the ground where they are to 
 remain till dry. By placing them in straight lines, and at a right 
 distance from each other, giving space enough for a free circula¬ 
 tion of air among them, more brick can be hacked and dried on 
 the same space, and do not require to be touched with the hands 
 till the tossers take them in the kiln. They are then placed 
 right on the yard in good position for covering with boards or 
 battens to protect them from storms of wind or rain. 
 
 They can be placed two rows close together and economize 
 space on the yard in that way, and light movable battens can be 
 made to shelter them with an A shaped roof, which sheds each 
 way and is a good protection. The pallets with their loads of brick 
 can be taken when dry and moved to the kiln direct, without 
 re -handling, by use of same hacking trucks, and left ready 
 for the tosser. The greatest disadvantage is they cannot be used 
 in such a manner as to keep a large force of setters employed. The 
 trucks are larger than barrows and occupy much more space to be 
 handled; the pallets as emptied are getting in the way all the 
 time and more than two trucks at a time cannot well work in a 
 kiln at same time. Six wheelbarrows are of more consequence 
 than three trucks. 
 
 Yards with a large capacity and heavy output must be pre- 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 55 
 
 pared to keep up each day, and all the time, the output at the ma¬ 
 chine without jar or confusion, and all the work must be brought 
 into small compass, and open yards cannot be so managed as to 
 secure these results. 
 
 There are times on most yards when the weather is in such 
 condition that the brick dry by the wind alone, and when the 
 weather is cloudy and no sunshine, the brick may be dry on the 
 side of the yard opposite to the kiln, the wind having been on that 
 side. When this is the case, the trucks are of less service than 
 wheelbarrows, as the barrows can be moved in a much smaller 
 space than the trucks, and the trucks have to be discarded to get 
 at the dry brick. Then, after rains, if the yard is inclined to be 
 heavy, runways of planks can be laid down and wheelbarrows used 
 when the trucks would not answer. 
 
 There are some yards using the portable trucks, and handle 
 them with a small mule and stiff* traces provided as shafts for the 
 trucks which are detached and hitched to the next loaded truck 
 very readily. A man goes with the mule to drive and guide the 
 truck, and load and unload the truck. But I find such yards do 
 not make over two or three million brick per annum. I believe 
 this plan is very far superior to that of dumping or hacking on the 
 ground. The system cannot be compared to the rack and pallet 
 way, as there is no way of covering them from the weather that 
 can be called convenient or reliable, as in the rack and pallet 
 method. Where brickmakers are wanting to change from the 
 old way of soft mud brick dumped on the ground to some better 
 method and do not want to make large outlay for dryers, we would 
 recommend the portable hack as a good move in that direction. 
 Three of the trucks will answer for a one machine yard, not less, 
 as there must be provision made for an extra, incase one is needing 
 repairs. There is always danger of breakage with the trucks, as 
 the load is heavy. If you use a mule, one hundred bricks is a 
 
56 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 load, and the weight on the truck is over six hundred pounds; if 
 pushed by hand the load of forty-five bricks and pallet, is about 
 three hundred pounds. This weight is hung below the axle of 
 the truck in such manner that any inequality of the ground may 
 cause the load to swing sideways and the pallet to strike the spokes 
 of the wheels, breaking them out; and the construction is such 
 that there is a weakness in the gearing, and they are soon out of 
 repair, and loose jointed. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 57 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 DRYERS AND THEIR CONSTRUCTION. 
 
 Brickmakers who want dryers, and do not feel able to put up 
 one equipped with pallet cars, tunnels, tracks, fans, coil pipes, etc., 
 can put up a flue or hot floor dryer, with less outlay for material 
 and labor, than any other reliable dryer. 
 
 The following plan of construction I consider the best and 
 most durable, when cost is considered, and most brickmakers are 
 obliged to study economy in every department of their business. 
 
 The flues should be from one hundred to a hundred and fifty 
 feet in length, between the furnaces and smoke stack. It is always 
 a matter of economy to build the dryer as long as you can, as the 
 heat will answer to warm the floor of the extra length over a hun¬ 
 dred feet from the furnaces with but very little more expense for 
 fuel and no more expense tor firemen. 
 
 Grade the foundation for the flues, so that it rises twelve 
 inches from the furnace to the smoke stack at the opposite end 
 Let the flues open into a cross chamber which connects them with 
 the smoke stack. This chamber should be as high as the flues, 
 and extend downwards twelve inches below the bottom of the 
 flues, and about sixteen inches in width. This allows any soot 
 that is not drawn into the stack, to fall from the flue and be de¬ 
 posited in this soot chamber, which can be arranged to admit of 
 cleaning it out occasionally, and thus prevent its accumulating in 
 the mouth of the flues, to stop draft. 
 
58 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Beginning at the furnaces, the flues arc started on a wall at 
 the rear end of the furnaces, twelve inches above the grate bars 
 At this point they receive heat from a distributing chamber which 
 in turn connects with the furnace. This chamber should be six¬ 
 teen inches wide, and six inches higher than the top of the flues, 
 and covered with an arch or large, flat or curved tiles. 
 
 The flues should be five inches wide in the clear, and sepa¬ 
 rated by a wall built with a single witdth of brick laid four courses 
 high. The first five or six feet of these flues next to the furnace 
 should be built of fire brick and the furnaces and chambers lined 
 with fire brick. All this work can be built up with clay mortar, 
 with a good proportion of sand to make it work off the trowel 
 freely. The flues are to be covered with bricks laid either on their 
 flat sides or on edge. The partition walls can be of salmon brick. 
 The cover or cap brick should be sound, hard brick. 
 
 Over the top of these cap brick or cover to the flues, is a cover 
 of tempeied mud just stiff enough to ivork down well with the 
 trowel, into all the joints and spaces between the ends of the 
 blicks, and as this mud dries, roll it with a heavy roller, closing up 
 all cracks and openings caused by shrinkage. When it gets too 
 hard for the roller to make any impression upon it, it must be 
 tamped with a large block rammer until it is hard and nearly dry; 
 then grout the floor with thin mud until dry and air tight, then 
 pave with hard brick, bedded in thin mud, and made as level and 
 even on top as possible. The tempered mud should be put on, so 
 that when the floor is finished the whole thickness including cap 
 brick and pavement, should be as follows: At the end next the 
 furnaces twelve inches, and gradually reduce to eight inches when 
 half way back to the stack, and from there to stack reduce to five 
 or six inches. 
 
 This floor if properly constructed will dry stiff mud bricks set 
 on end close as can be handled readily, once every forty-eight 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 59 
 
 hours , or it will dry soft mud brick laid on flat sides, once every 
 twenty-four hours. 
 
 The capacity of these floors with stiff mud bricks is ten to the 
 square foot; with soft mud bricks, two and half to the square foot. 
 With flues one hundred and fifty feet long, the stack should be at 
 least fifty feet high. A stack of this height, with a flue twenty- 
 four inches square inside, will answer for a dry house floor forty 
 feet wide, by one hundred and fifty feet in length, and a dryer of 
 this size will dry thirty thousand stiff mud brick, or fifteen thous¬ 
 and soft mud bricks, in twenty-four hours. 
 
 The roof can be put on with a single span, and a comb in the 
 center, ora lighter roof can be put on with a valley in the center, 
 supported by a row of posts through the center of the drier. These 
 posts, and all others about the shed should rest on brick pillars, so 
 t hat they are at least eight inches above the floor of the dryer. 
 There is then no danger of fire being communicated to the posts 
 from the flues. Most dryers of this kind that are burned down, 
 catch fire from the posts being buried in the brickwork or ground 
 near the flues. The building should be covered with a shingle, 
 tin, or gravel roof. You. must have something that is water proof. 
 A dryer roof that leaks, is but little better than none at all, 
 as it damages the brick and makes the floor damp, which prevents 
 the brick from drying evenly. 
 
 The building should be provided with eave troughs to carry 
 off the water that falls from rains; and also with drains to carry 
 away all water from the building, because if water is allowed to 
 settle in around the walls, and penetrate the flues, soot will then 
 adhere to them and clog them up or very much impair their use¬ 
 fulness in radiating heat. 
 
 When the flues need cleaning, make an opening across the 
 floor of the dryer, into the flues wide enough to work in comforta¬ 
 bly, and about thirty feet from the furnace; make other openings 
 
60 
 
 BRICK.MAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 about the same distance all the way back to the stack; take a 
 heavy wire of sufficient length to pass through each flue from one 
 opening to another with a plug of wood on the end to prevent its 
 getting hung on the brick work; fasten a bunch of old sacking 
 or rags on the other end, and drag it through one flue at a time, 
 until they are all swept clean. After this bundle of rags has gone 
 through one flue, it is dubbed “the black cat,” which name is very 
 appropriate. Another way to effectually clean the flues is to make 
 a steam connection with the boiler and carry a one-inch pipe back 
 to the openings made in the floor, or as near as conveniently can 
 be done, and then with a short piece of hose inserted in the flue 
 openings, and the steam turned on, the flues can be swept quickly 
 and thoroughly. I have also had a patch of soot collect on the dryer 
 floor and stop up a few feet of three or four flues, stopping the 
 draft at the rear end of these flues, and injuring all that side of the 
 dryer. Where you have reason to suspect any such trouble, it can 
 be helped sometimes by taking a couple of buckets of water and 
 dash into the furnace, a half bucket full at a time, on top of a 
 strong fire; this generates a flash of steam that rebounds out of 
 the furnace door, and also acts on the flues, and if the soot is not 
 too heavy, will tear it loose and the draft will be free for a time; if 
 thisdoes not remedy the draft,clean out the flues, asitis apoorplan 
 to waste the space and fuel on your dryer floor without the results 
 for which it is intended. In this way the dryer flues can be thor¬ 
 oughly cleaned without much trouble, and very little loss of time. 
 By cleaning out one furnace at a time, or half the dryer,there need 
 be but a very short stoppage of the works. It is a good plan to 
 take advantage of any other stoppage or break down, to drop the 
 fires in the dryer and clean out the flues about twice annually; do 
 this as fast as can be done without letting the floors cool off en¬ 
 tirely, as in so doing there is a waste of heat, and a saving of fuel 
 in drying brick all the time, as soot adhering to the flues prevents 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 61 
 
 the radiation of heat, and it passes up out of the stack. The 
 smoke stack should be provided with a damper, so it can be closed 
 at night, or when the fires are banked during a temporary stop¬ 
 page of the works, to hold the heat under the floor and in the 
 flues. 
 
 There should be a furnace about three feet wide and five feet 
 long with grate bars three feet, or three feet eight inches long, 
 making from nine to twelve square feet of grate bar surface, for 
 each ten feet of width of dryer. 
 
 The slack or coal bin must extend at least ten or twelve feet 
 from the front of the furnace. Coal slack as fuel will make all 
 the heat required. Where coal costs too much and wood is cheap, 
 then use wood. The furnace may be the same size as for coal, only 
 a less number of grate bars are needed, and they only in the middle 
 of the furnace. The space on each side of the grate bars can be 
 filled up in the ash pit with a course of brick, as a dead wall on 
 each side of ash pit up to a level of top of grate bars. This only 
 where wood is the fuel, as when coal is used, more room is need¬ 
 ed for ashes, and more draft is required. Such a dryer will dry 
 bricks as well as the most costly and expensive dryer; but will 
 cost more for fuel and labor in handling the bricks, as they have 
 to be re-handled to take them from the trucks or barrows, and 
 place them on the floor of dryer, and then again lift them from 
 the floor to the barrows before placing them in the kiln; while in 
 the tunnel dryers, the brick go direct from the machines to the 
 kiln on the drying cars and are not touched by hand; thereby 
 saving expense of two handlings, and consequent damage to the 
 uuburnt bricks. 
 
 There is another system of drying brick with exhaust steam, 
 that is working its way into notice, and is in use on some yards, 
 but which has not yet been perfected enough to commend it to 
 the favorable notice of brickmakers, as a safe, expeditious and re- 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 liable means of drying, when the steam is used as a means of heat¬ 
 ing the floor of dryer. 
 
 There are several reasons for this; among them is the first 
 question of cost. A dryer built forty-two feet wide, by eighty- 
 t two feet long, will contain inside the wall space, floor enough to 
 hold thirty-two thousand bricks set on end; allowing ten bricks 
 to each square foot of surface. Brick set on a dryer floor should 
 he dry enough in from thirty-six to forty-eight hours, to be re¬ 
 moved and give place to green bricks. Our experience is that on 
 this floor they cannot be dried sufficiently in four days, during 
 the winter months or damp weather, to be set in the kiln and be 
 safe against freezing or crushing from water-smoking. 
 
 There is in a dryer of this size nearly seven thousand feet of 
 steam pipes. These pipes lead from a distributing pipe at one 
 end to a waste pipe at the other end, laid with sufficient fall so 
 that condensed steam will flow to an outlet provided for it at the 
 lowest point, and below the level of the pipes in the dryer. This 
 allows for a one-inch pipe every six inches over the whole width 
 of the floor, and then when the pipes are all in and safely adjust¬ 
 ed, leaks all stopped, valves all ready to turn steam on and offj 
 then comes the next question of a floor covering, suitable for 
 hacking brick on. I have seen such floors laid with green or stiff 
 mud bricks well rammed and dried in around the pipes; but they 
 were soon ground to an impalpable powder by the heels of the 
 men and the wheels of the trucks and barrows. 
 
 This was a great detriment to the bricks both in appearance 
 and in preventing them from drying. The dry dust acting as a non¬ 
 conductor between the pipes and the green bricks. The wheels of 
 the trucks would also cut through and pound over the pipes mak¬ 
 ing them leak, or drive them deeper into the floor, which caused 
 a. low place for condensed steam to collect, and rendered the lower 
 end of the pipe useless, by being filled with cold vapor or con- 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 63 
 
 densed steam. Then again I have seen the spaces between the 
 pipes filled with brick, and cement, or clay mortar filled in over 
 the pipes between the bricks. This made a very rough, uneven 
 floor, obstructed with dust, and very troublesome, as the wheels 
 of the trucks would fall into the spaces between the bricks and tear 
 out the mortar, and knock the brick loose, or break down the 
 loaded trucks of green brick causing confusion and delay. This 
 has but one advantage; the green brick are nearer the pipes and 
 dry faster as ttie pipes are nearly on a level with the top of the 
 bricks which go between them. 
 
 A brick floor or pavement on the top of the pipes is a good 
 serviceable floor, but the heat is slow in passing through, and is 
 never very great. This floor is an excellent one for repressed brick 
 drying; but for common stock the brick must dry in quicker time. 
 The floors of a dryer should be smooth and hard, and be 
 kept swept clean ahead of the trucks and green hackers, so that 
 the green brick will not pick up particles of dust or lumps of 
 clay which will adhere to them while in a soft state. I have seen 
 no floors of iron or cement that were cheap or practical, as iron 
 plates could not well be laid over the pipes and made serviceable 
 oi- cheap; cement if it is bedded around the pipes is too unyield¬ 
 ing and causes breakage at the joints or connections; or it will, 
 like the clay, soon return to fine dust by the wear of the wheels. 
 
 Where steam is used to heat the floors, the exhaust from the 
 engine is expected to keep up the heat during the days, and with 
 suitable connections, live steam at night. We have yet to see any 
 great difference between exhaust and live steam with ninety 
 pounds pressure from a forty-horse boiler. 
 
 There is always a back pressure on the engine while using 
 exhaust steam that impairs the power, making it up hill work for 
 your engine all the time. This will be more noticeable on a small 
 engine than on one of large power. 
 
64 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Then, again, in counting the cost of drying with live steam at 
 night for four or more nights, with labor, fuel, etc., and the more 
 extensive sheds to hold the four days run of brick, and your brick 
 not thoroughly dried, which eventually has to be done in tl e kiln 
 after they are set for burning, with fuel and labor added there, 
 and by counting the cost of fuel and labor at both points, 
 our experience is, that a furnace dryer is much more satisfactory 
 and reliable, both in point of time and economy. 
 
 A floor dryer can be constructed in the following manner, to 
 use either exhaust, or live steam, or both : Grade your floor with 
 a fall of eight inches in one hundred feet; have the highest end 
 next to the boiler; cover this surface with one-inch steam pipes 
 in hundred feet lengths; lay these pipes in parallel lines, six 
 inches apart from center to center; these pipes connect at right 
 angles with header pipes at each end; the receiving header,that is 
 the one nearest the boiler, connects with a pipe which in turn 
 connects with the exhaust pipe. 
 
 These three pipes should be of equal size, and the steam 
 should enter the receiving header at a point equally distant from 
 each end, so the steam will be distributed equally through it. The 
 header at the opposite end, can be one less diameter. The 
 header pipes at both ends should be two inches lower at one end 
 to allow the condensed steam to flow out; at the lower end, place 
 a globe valve, a little smaller than the header pipe; with this reg¬ 
 ulate the volume of escaping steam and water. Some use steam 
 traps, but they are no better than a globe valve of sufficient size. 
 The receiving header pipes should also be provided with a one 
 inch globe valve to drain it. By placing a globe valve in the ex¬ 
 haust pipe, above the point of connection with pipe leading to 
 dryer, the steam can be allowed to escape through it without pass¬ 
 ing through the dryer. 
 
 After the floor pipes are laid and straightened, there will be 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 65 
 
 four and a half inches of space, between the line of one-inch pipe. 
 Lay a line of burned bricks with their ends together, so that their 
 top surface is one-half inch higher than the pipes; fill the space 
 between the lines of brick with a mud mortar, covering the pipes 
 one-half inch; then over all, lay a smooth pavement, herring-bone 
 style, of smooth, hard bricks, bedded in mud mortar as they are 
 laid. They will be supported by the bottom bricks so that the 
 pipes have no weight on them, and can expand and contract with¬ 
 out breaking at the joints. 
 
 The header pipe at the lower end should rest on skids, so it 
 can move when the pipes expand with heat, and return when cool¬ 
 ing. The live steam pipe runs from boiler to exhaust pipe, and at 
 night can be used to keep up the heat in floor, when the engine is 
 idle. 
 
 Nearly all floors of this kind that have been built, did not 
 have the pavement of bricks on top, or over the pipes. Some have 
 been laid with only the string courses with mud between. This 
 makes a poor floor as the mud is soon dried and is then cut out 
 and reduced to fine dust. Others have been laid with cement be¬ 
 tween, instead of stiff mud, with like results. Those who put 
 down this kind of floor, seemed to think a course of brick paving 
 would prevent the floor from heating; this however, is a mistake, 
 for when once heated through, the floor is just as hot with the 
 pavement as without it. We have demonstrated this to our en¬ 
 tire satisfaction. We have a steam dryer floor, constructed as the 
 one described, and it gives better satisfaction than any other of 
 the kind of which we have any knowledge. The heat is uniform 
 all over these floors. This makes a good, permanent dry floor and 
 is especially adapted to drying repressed and ornamental bricks or 
 drain tile. We do not desire to be understood as recommending 
 this floor for winter use in severe climates; but for all ordinary 
 spring and fall weather or all sections south of the Ohio River, it 
 
66 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 can be used as an all-the-year-round dryer by covering with a suit¬ 
 able shed and close side walls. Should the weather turn suddenly 
 cold and threaten to freeze any wet bricks on the floor, a good 
 plan is to put on a force and hack up the dry brick on the outside 
 walls of the sheds. 
 
 Where twenty-five horse power engine is used, the exhaust 
 will heat a floor fifty by one hundred feet, or five thousand feet of 
 surface. On a floor of this size where live steam is used at night, 
 so the floor is not allowed to cool down at night, ten thousand soft 
 mud bricks can be dried every twenty-four hours, or of stiff mud 
 brick set on end fifteen thousand per day can be dried. 
 
 Pipes for a floor of this kind and size as described, fitted and 
 put in place, will cost about $ 800 , and requires about thirty-five 
 thousand bricks to complete the floor. 
 
 The next question to determine is, does it make backpressure 
 on the engine ? 
 
 We find that by letting the steam escape freely from the dis¬ 
 charging header pipe, the back pressure is hardly perceptible ; if 
 however, we fail to do this, the pressure against the engine be¬ 
 comes strong, and impedes it. If the escape is sufficient the only 
 pressure so far as we can see is the friction of the steam passing 
 through the pipes. No more backpressure than in sending steam 
 a hundred yards through a pipe, except that it passes through a 
 series of small pipes, and the combined surface of these is greater 
 than one large pipe, hence more friction. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 67 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 CHAPTER ON PRESSED OR REPRESSED BRICK. 
 
 Does it pay a brickmaker to make repressed brick ? This is 
 a question that I am very frequently asked and will answer here 
 as I have frequently done before in person. Experience leads 
 me to believe that there is no money in making a repressed brick 
 on a small yard, or for what might be termed a light market. The 
 principal reason is the light demand for them. Parties buying 
 brick for a house or store building, want the brickmaker to let 
 them have the repressed brick for the front, at common brick 
 prices. This is done sometimes to secure a contract, when there 
 is close competition. This is not only ruinous to the pressed 
 brick business, but tends to a lowering of prices of common brick. 
 
 Another great drawback to pressed brick is that they are not 
 properly laid in the wall. There are but few cities in this 
 country that have professional pressed brick layers that make a 
 specialty of their trade and lay nothing but pressed or ornamental 
 brick. The finest pressed brick made anywhere will not look well 
 unless skillfully laid up in the wall. 
 
 I think where a brickmaker has a one-machine yard, he 
 should make a good, common brick, handle them carefully, and 
 have kilns that will burn bricks well and of a uniform color. By 
 producing a fine stock or common brick, he needs no pressed 
 brick to effect sales. Where a kiln has pressed brick in it, they 
 are usually in the heart of the kiln. The extra cost of placing 
 
68 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 them there before burning, and in getting to them, taking care of 
 them while discharging the kiln, etc., is considerable. When you 
 come to them in kiln, they must be moved away from the common 
 brick and in piling them they must be graded for color. This re¬ 
 quires time and delays shipment of the common bricks, however 
 great the hurry to get at them. After pressed brick are taken 
 from the kiln, they should be stored in sheds under a good roof; 
 and where they are to stand any length of time, they should be 
 protected at the sides from dust as it will penetrate several courses 
 into the pile, which detracts very much from their appearance. 
 
 Where there is a sufficient demand to justify proper prepara¬ 
 tion and the clay is suited to their manufacture, there is profit in 
 making pressed brick and ornamental designs to go with them. 
 The clay should be of a good quality and burn a deep red color 
 without any special outside veneer of sand to cover defects in color 
 in the body of the brick; also, that will dry without warping or 
 cracking and remain perfect in shape when ready to set in the 
 kiln. Brick that are crooked when set in the kiln will not be 
 straight when they are burned, and it is folly to go into the mar¬ 
 ket with any other than a first-class A No. 1 brick. 
 
 It is necessary to have a fine sand that will burn a red color 
 to match the clay of which the brick are made. This sand is to 
 coat the gluts before repressing. A raw clay finish without sand 
 will not make a first-class repressed brick; fine sand gives them a 
 smooth, finished appearance that cannot be done with clay alone. 
 So we must have good clay, good sand and also a good repress. 
 Lastly, but not least, we must have careful and skillful workmen 
 in every part of the process from the clay bank through all stages 
 of making and burning, and until they are laid in the wall. The 
 question is often asked: “Why do the Philadelphia and Balti¬ 
 more repressed brick sell for more monej’ in the markets of this 
 country, than those made in other places?” One reason is that they 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 69 
 
 have a fine quality of clay suitable for their manufacture. There 
 are, however, beds of clay in other places just as good or better, so 
 that this does not altogether account for the superior quality of 
 bricks made at these two places. When we come to investigate 
 the matter, we readily see where the difference comes in. It is in 
 the great care they take in the making and handling of them. 
 They aie all made made by hand in a single iron mold, the clay 
 being tempered thoroughly beforehand with tempering wheels, 
 the preparation of the clay being the first important part. They 
 use molds without bottoms, and a fine sand to coat the 
 bricks, which burns as red as the clay. Each time they are 
 handled, they are rubbed with the hand on the sides and ends. 
 The coarse particles that adhere to them are removed with a soft 
 brush before they are repressed. They are handled from the 
 press, and while in the green state, between two thin paddles, and 
 laid with their flat sides upon the floor, and one upon the other 
 until they are five or six deep. In this way the face of the brick, 
 which is the edge, is not damaged by contact. Semi-dry or stiff 
 mud brick may be pressed direct from the machine, as they are 
 then sufficiently dry to be handled from the repress without af¬ 
 fecting their shape. 
 
 Soft mud brick must be taken from the machine to the yard 
 or drying shed and remain there until partially dry. Just here 
 many have their greatest, difficulty, as the brick will dry more 
 rapidly on the surface than inside, especially the angles and cor¬ 
 ners; and by the time the brick is stiff or dry enough to stand 
 handling, the surface and corners are too hard to repress. What 
 is needed at this point is to equalize the moisture that remains 
 throughout the brick, the center being, as yet, quite damp. This 
 can be done by taking the bricks and setting them in close hacks, 
 using care in the handling of them; then cover with canvass, or 
 old carpets, or sacking that has been moistened. Let them re- 
 
70 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 main a few hours and when uncovered, they will be found ready 
 to lepresss; part of the moisture in the center has come to the 
 surface, and every part is ready for pressure and handling. This 
 is on the principle applied in the laundry of sprinkling and fold¬ 
 ing of dry clothes to prepare them for ironing. Just why the 
 women folks find it necessary to dry the clothes and then moisten 
 them again, I am not prepared to say. I do know the moisture 
 must be uniform in every part of the brick when it is re¬ 
 pressed. 
 
 The moulding of fancy or ornamental brick and all re¬ 
 press work is usually done under sheds built expressly for that 
 purpose, and the work should be given to the best brickmakers. 
 The sheds should be arranged so that the drying can be done 
 slowly and regularly. Where the drying is done without fire heat, 
 arrange your roof and racks so as to allow a free admission of both 
 sun and air when it becomes necessary to do so. Battens, or light 
 movable doors, sections of canvass, etc., can be provided to keep 
 off beating rains, or high winds which might cause them to dry 
 too fast, making them crack or warp. In many cases where they 
 dry too quickly, it may be necessary to coyer them with canvass 
 or carpet and sprinkle it lightly with water occasionally. When 
 the bricks have dried sufficiently, they are wheeled to the repress 
 only as fast as needed, as they become dry on exposure to the air, 
 or contact with hot floors. We dry our repressed and ornamental 
 brick on a hot floor by setting them on end. To set them on end 
 without injury, they must be pressed quite stiff; stood on end on a 
 hot floor, they will dry in three days. The quicker and safer plan 
 is to place them on edge or on their flat side to dry, as they are 
 not in any great danger of falling over and having the corners 
 broken and marred. 
 
 Where the hot floor is not used, they should be placed on 
 smooth pallets to dry. If they are dtied on a hot floor they are 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 71 
 
 taken when sufficiently dry and rubbed with the hand, the corners 
 made free from all roughness and inequalities, and all particles 
 brushed from the face. They are now loaded onto spring barrows 
 with coarse woolen blankets between the tiers; each tier is brushed 
 at the kiln as they are uncovered before setting. If they have been 
 dried on pallets, they remain there in pairs, three pairs to each 
 pallet. We do not use barrows to move our pressed brick to the 
 kiln. The wheelers take two pallets with twelve bricks and carry 
 them to the kiln on their shoulders. The setters take them from 
 the carriers, or wheelers, thus avoiding any chipping of the cor¬ 
 ners. This care in handling from the glut to kiln is what will 
 give them their square angles and corners; the proper sanding and 
 rubbing, their smooth and velvety appearance, and their color, de¬ 
 pends upon their being set right in the kiln and then properly 
 burned, in which line we have had eminent success with our meth¬ 
 ods. Much depends on the setting of pressed brick; the bottom from 
 which you begin to set pressed brick must be level and each brick 
 set exactly over the one it faces and not projecting sideways or 
 endwise. This requires great care in setting, but is the only way 
 to insure a perfect face on the brick, as there will be a darker line 
 than the body of the brick wherever these projections are made. Set 
 the brick facing each other three courses high,then crossed with three 
 courses again. Twelve courses of pressed brick in the kiln is high 
 enough to set them, and they should be placed at such a heiglith 
 as to secure the best results of the burn, and not too near the top 
 so as to have them pale. The blocks on the same level should 
 be reversed, the ends of bricks in one block set against the sides 
 of the bricks in the adjoining block; this is to prevent them from 
 careening while settling. They must be peifectly dry when set, 
 and set on dry brick below them to prevent whitening on the sur¬ 
 face when burnt; give them fully as much space between as you 
 do for common brick, as they are harder to burn, being more 
 
72 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 dense; do not under any circumstances set them closer together, 
 or the fire will be slow in getting through them and there will be less 
 settle and pale brick where they should most certainly be hard 
 and well colored. 
 
 The first thing in order to secure success in making pressed 
 brick, is to have a good supply of clay that is uniform in its 
 quality throughout the bank, that will burn a good red color, 
 free from spots or streaks of black or any other color than 
 red. Then comes a fine quality of sand that will burn red to 
 match the clay. This sand should be prepared by being burnt 
 before using. A good place to burn the sand is to put from 
 two to four inches of it under the green brick in the kiln and 
 burn it with them, and then remove it carefully and sieve it, 
 first through a coarse sieve and on down to a fine one. Before 
 using, it should be run through a haircloth sieve in quantities 
 as needed, and all particles of coarse sand removed. The bulk 
 of burnt sand can be stored in a dry place for use as needed. 
 
 Clay for pressed brick is much better to be dug up in the 
 fall and weathered, then hauled into piles convenient for the 
 tempering machine; and this part of the work must be thor¬ 
 oughly done. If it is not tempered sufficiently by one passage 
 through the machine, put it through the second time. After 
 the tempering comes the molding. Some makers of pressed 
 brick, hand-mold all their gluts in steel molds, one or two to 
 the mold. Others use a soft mud machine for their pressed 
 brick and a stiff mud machine for common stock. Again, there 
 are brickmakers who make pressed brick direct from the machine, 
 using a stiff mud glut, and run the clay through the machine 
 twice. They start up and run with fresh dug clay for about an 
 hour, piling the bricks or tempered clay beside the machine; then 
 run this through the machine again, saving the gluts for this day’s 
 work of repressing. 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 73 
 
 I believe the best results are obtained, where speed and econ¬ 
 omy are expected, by using a soft mud machine, laying the gluts 
 on the floor with a very low heat under them, or in sheds without 
 heat or sunshine until they are set enough to handle without 
 leaving finger-marks on them. Then hack them in piles conven¬ 
 ient to be got at with the repress, as the repress is now to be taken 
 to the pile of gluts. One man at the press, with two boys, will 
 constitute a force to make the brick. The gluts are taken singly 
 by a boy, and placed in a tub or box of fine sand, and is turned 
 over in the mass and rubbed until each of the six faces of the cube 
 is thoroughly coated with sand, and is then placed on the table of 
 the machine. The man at the repress must be provided with a 
 can or bucket with oil, and a swab of waste or rags, with which he 
 lightly, but thoroughly, oils all the wearing parts of the repress 
 and the whole inside of the mold, including the lid. This must 
 be done without unnecessary waste of oil or smearing of repress, 
 and must be repeated as often as there is a tendency of the brick 
 clinging to the face of the mold, or to fray or crack the face of the 
 brick as it rises from the mold, or is lifted from it. 
 
 The oil used can be crude petroleum of the lighter grades, 
 with enough tallow or cheap fat melted and added, to make it 
 clear the mold freely; or, kerosene oil, with a small proportion of 
 lard oil added—in the proportion of one pint to two gallons of 
 kerosene. The glut is then placed quickly and neatly in the 
 mold-box, and should be thick enough to just more than fill it. 
 The extra clay above the top of the mold is cut away with a 
 wooden blade of hard wood, the lid thrown into position and 
 pressure applied; the brick is now raised from the mold and the off- 
 bearer takes it between two thin, hardwood paddles which can be 
 provided with a light strap to go over the hands, and prevents them 
 from falling and are carried into place on the floor of shed. 
 
 There are various ways of drying pressed brick. Some dry 
 
74 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 them on end or on their flat sides on a warm floor; others lay 
 them on pallets and place them in racks and dry slowly in the 
 shade; and again others hack them live or six courses high laid 
 flat side down and as close together as can be conveniently hand¬ 
 led without coming in contact with the finished brick. Again, I 
 have seen them laid on edge with half inch spaces between them 
 arid every alternate course set over the space below. This plan I 
 cannot commend, as the shrinkage of the brick below, with the 
 weight of those above, would cause many of the brick to tear apart 
 to make room for the shrinkage. One thing is very essential, and 
 that is to keep them all about the same distance apart on the 
 drying floor, as the brick will naturally dry faster on the side 
 which is most exposed to the air. This will cause them to draw- 
 out of a straight line and be hollow on the side that is dried first, 
 and no matter how dry they eventually become, they remain 
 somewhat crooked. For this reason, I advocate slow drying in the 
 shade. After they are once dry enough to be handled with safety, 
 they can be taken from the floor or hacks, and all particles or 
 crumbs carefully brushed off; and placed in pairs on wooden 
 pallets, three pairs to each pallet, and the pallets hacked up in 
 tiers. These pallets are described elsewhere in this work. In this 
 way the brick are in no danger of being broken on the corners or 
 otherwise marred in handling, and it is also about as expeditious 
 a mode of handling from dryer to kiln as any other. 
 
 The making of fancy patterns of brick for cornice, belt 
 courses, columns or door and window-caps, water tables, etc., is 
 becoming an important item in brick manufacture. The designs 
 are numerous and some are very fine, resembling terra-cotta work, 
 and where made to correspond with the square or face brick, they 
 make a beautiful contrast. A front tastefully trimmed with fancy 
 patterns of brick is equal in appearance to terra-cotta trimming. 
 They relieve the monotonous appearance of a plain brick wall and 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 75 
 
 make a trimming as durable as the wall itself. Ornamental 
 brick, or molded designs are made with the same mold-box and 
 repress, and in this way correspond in size and design with the 
 square bricks, and lay up in bond properly in the wall. The 
 molds or dies are made of brass or iron and are fitted up in 
 patterns to mold the design on the edge or on end as required, 
 and also where a return molding is needed, the patterns are made 
 to mold the design for both edge and end. These designs are 
 made in all the varied forms and devices imaginable, and are sus¬ 
 ceptible of a multiplicity of designs by different arrangement of 
 the patterns. These patterns or molds are placed in the side or 
 end or bottom of the repress or mold box, and after being pressed 
 and delivered the pattern is carefully removed, which leaves a 
 well defined impression on the brick. These fancy designs sell at 
 from $25.00 to $200.00 per thousand. These brick require great 
 care in the making all through the process, including the setting 
 and burning as well as in shipping. They must be very carefully 
 packed in straw, so as te protect the molding from damage. The 
 greatest expense in the making is the cost of the patterns. When 
 they can be made of iron they do not cost much, while brass pat¬ 
 terns cost from $10.00 to $25.00 each and upwards. 
 
 These molds after being put in place carefully, care being 
 taken previously to have them thoroughly cleaned and oiled, 
 using every precaution to keep the patterns from striking against 
 each other or any part of the repress. They must not come in 
 contact with any metal or tool of iron to deface any part of the 
 ornamentation. The clay is now forced into the mold and pressed 
 and kneaded down with the hands, and in some patterns pounded 
 in with a light wooden mallet so as to completely fill out the or¬ 
 namentation of the pattern, the top shaved off as before and 
 pressure applied. The brick is now raised and the pattern is 
 raised with it and must be carefully removed and the brick carried 
 
76 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 as before to the drying floor. It is usually best to stand these 
 brick on end to dry on a very smooth, level place. Two men and 
 two boys with one repress can make from two hundred to one 
 thousand fancy bricks per day according to the design, as some 
 require much more time and labor than others, some patterns be¬ 
 ing in two and some in three parts. This is necessary to remove 
 the pattern without damaging the face of the brick. The clay 
 must be of a plastic nature to receive a well defined impression 
 from the pattern, and must dry without warping or checking. The 
 pattern must be thoroughly cleaned and oiled while in use, and 
 care must be taken to have them thoroughly cleaned and oiled 
 when laid away, for, unless they are smooth and bright, the clay 
 will cling to them and leave flaws in the brick. 
 
 1 he patterns for all the molded brick must be put away in 
 a room or corner of the works that can be shelved oft’ and kept 
 locked up so there is no general handling of patterns by cur¬ 
 ious, idle persons who will carelessly lay them on the other, or strike 
 them against each other, doing them much damage by handling 
 and examining. These molded brick must be set in the kiln 
 where they will burn hard and uniform in color, set so 
 they will have a good face on the molded side, and to get this 
 they must have a free fire space over the molded edge, and not 
 touch other brick, or they will have fire-marks, and on account 
 of their shape must be set according to the pattern, some on 
 edge, others on the flat side. Square, pressed, or common brick 
 are to surround them and arranged so no weight or pressure comes 
 on them from the brick above. There can be no general rules 
 given for the setting of these brick, as it all depends upon the 
 skill and judgment of the man in charge. Most designs can be 
 set in pairs with their backs together. It requires some consider¬ 
 able practice to set them so as to secure the best results in 
 burning. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 77 
 
 This branch of the brickmaking industry should receive 
 more attention from the brick manufacturers, if they wish to 
 compete successfully with stone and iron of all kinds, as well as 
 terra-cotta and encaustic tile. Our people want their homes 
 beautiful and ornamental as well as substantial. This can be 
 done without going outside of a modern brickmakers supplies, 
 or at least it ought to be. I do not mean by this that every brick- 
 maker should make fancy bricks, as it would not pay to do so. 
 But they should be made by those who are now making bricks in 
 large quantities who have clay adapted to their manufacture, 
 and they should be made in or near all the principal brick 
 markets in our country, so that those desiring them can pro¬ 
 cure them without paying out a large amount for transporta¬ 
 tion. It behooves every progressive modern brickmaker to keep 
 up with the demands of the trade and furnish his customers 
 with the best of everything in his line. 
 
78 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 SETTING BRICK IN THE KILN. 
 
 All brickmakers recognize the importance of properly burn¬ 
 ing their wares. This cannot be done, however skillful the burner 
 may be, or how good the kiln, unless the bricks have been prop¬ 
 el ly set in the kiln; and much of the bad burning is due to igno¬ 
 rant or careless setting of the bricks. A slight obstruction will 
 change the course of the heat, it being very sensitive. 
 
 Insetting brick the spaces left for draft should be uniform,as 
 nearly as^ practicable throughout the kiln; where they are ’set 
 three over three, or eight over three, the setter has a guide, and 
 only by carelessness can he go wrong; but in the setting of the 
 benches and overhanging courses, he has no such guide, and must 
 use his skill. Most setters hack the brick in the benches; that is 
 they break joints; this I think is a mistake, as it prevents the heat 
 from moving upward from the benches to the body of the kiln, 
 and all the heat must pass through the overhanging courses to 
 reach the brick in the body of the kiln, and on many yards will 
 be found brick taken from the benches burned and glazed on the 
 ends next to the fire; while on the other end of these same brick 
 there is scarcely a show of fire, as the brick is a very poor grade of 
 salmon; it is so poorly burned because the fire had free escape 
 only at the top of the arch, and was closed in on the sides of (he 
 bench, and how many hundreds of such arches can be found with 
 salmon brick through the benches, and the overhanging courses 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 79 
 
 and two or three courses immediately above them all melted, twist¬ 
 ed and tangled up in a mass of ruins. There was an excess of 
 heat w T asted on these few brick that would if properly distributed 
 have burned the benches all good hard brick and many more 
 higher up in the kiln. 
 
 The benches should always be set so that the tire can pass 
 into them from the arch or fire flue, and from there pass freely 
 upward into the body of the kiln direct. The natural course of 
 heat is upward, and there need be but little fear of these brick at 
 the top of the arch not being burned. 
 
 T will illustrate my idea by the following diagram : 
 
 Fig. 2—Elevation. 
 
 Figure 1 represents the ground plan of the benches between 
 the eyes or arches of kiln. This is a three brick bench, with an 
 
80 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 added stretcher course between, known as a three and a third brick 
 bench. The bricks are set in pairs as shown. Figure 2 is the 
 elevation of end view of bench showing stretchers in third, sixth, 
 and ninth courses in middle courses up to overhangers; then 
 each alternate course in middle between the overhangerS is a 
 stretcher. Figure 3 is elevation of bench next to fire flue or 
 arch, showing first and second, fourth and fifth courses, set in 
 pairs directly over the other. This shows only six courses. I 
 think it better to set nine straight courses as shown in figure 2. The 
 third, sixth and ninth courses, set tight on face of arch, with 
 stretchers behind them; this crosses the courses and allows a 
 free passage for heat and flame as described, by passing into the 
 benches horizontally, and upward vertically. When the brick are 
 properly set in pairs they have one straight face. The stretchers 
 between the courses, from bottom to top of bench prevent the 
 fire from running from one arch to another, as it will do when 
 one arch is hotter than the one next to it; but it still allows suf¬ 
 ficient circulation of heat through the bench. There is in this 
 plan but one tight course above the bench; that is the binding 
 course, which is immediately over the closing courses; one-half 
 resting on each course. This is set tight only on the quarters of 
 the kiln and loose next to the wall for four feet, and through the 
 center of kiln. 
 
 I think in setting above the arches, they should be set with a 
 little space for draft next to the wall, and across the end. Set top 
 course same as the balance, and two courses of platting above ; 
 the first flat course set crosswise of the top edge course and a full 
 inch between bricks; top platting course to be of good square 
 burned brick, crosswise of bottom platting and close to¬ 
 gether. The directions refer particularly to coal burning kilns 
 with furnace attachments, but will also be found advantageous in 
 any kind of clamp wall, and I have had good success in burning 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 81 
 
 with this plan of setting in the old style outdoor “pile” of bricks 
 with a green brick casing. A good setter with three wheelers will 
 set from fifteen to twenty thousand brick per day. The brick 
 should be set from thirty-six to forty four-courses high. I think 
 forty courses a good height; as high as is convenient to put up, 
 and take down. 
 
 In permanent kilns with furnaces attached, I find it best to 
 put a few large pieces of hard wood, or a barrow of coke or coal 
 in the center of each eye, as the arches are set; this expedites the 
 heating of the kiln in the center at the close of sweating, or wa¬ 
 ter-smoking part of the burn. 
 
 We desire to impress upon our readers the importance 
 of using good burned brick for platting, and put on as described. 
 It is important for this reason: It enables the burner to economize 
 his heat, as well as to control it, by distributing it evenly through¬ 
 out the kiln; there are no large holes for heat to escape, or form a 
 draft too strong to control. Many use bats and refuse brick for 
 platting to save a few brick. They save one dollar’s worth of 
 brick, and waste five dollar’s worth of fuel. There are a great 
 many ways of setting brick; some are good, some are not. We 
 have adopted this plan on account of our uniform success in being 
 able to control our fires with our methods in burning, as well as 
 when we burned in old style kilns, “out door style.” 
 
 6 
 
82 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 CHAPTER XIL 
 
 CLOSING A KILN. 
 
 After the kiln of brick is set, then comes the closing up 
 of the doorway to kiln, and making ready to fire. It is a difficult 
 matter to close up the wagon way and make it air tight; however 
 it can be done and very effectually. 
 
 With the kiln constructed as is explained in the chapter on 
 kilns, there is, as you will notice, a timber on each side of the door¬ 
 way, 8x10 inches and anchored to the wall. On the outer corner 
 of these timbers we nail fast with heavy nails, a strip or scantling 
 2x4 inches on the side next to doorway. This leaves a groove be¬ 
 hind it next to wall, and in this is fitted a strong bar of 4x6 inches, 
 to reach across from one timber to the other; three of these bars 
 at each end of the kiln or doorway. These are supported at the 
 end with a short block of wood or scantling, spiked to the timber, 
 and at equal spaces between top and bottom. These bars serve as 
 a brace or bar, against which the closing wall is to receive sup¬ 
 port. 
 
 The closing wall is a nine inch wall of brick hacked up against 
 the unburned brick. Then give it a coat of daubing mortar, made 
 of three parts of loamy sand, and one part of soil or clay; there 
 is a great mistake made by most all hands on brick yards, in this 
 matter of daubing; the mortar should be nearly all sand, and then 
 it will not crack. I have seen kilns daubed all over with a pure 
 clay mortar, laid on while the kiln was warming up and the daub 
 
BlilCKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 83 
 
 was more of a hindrance in several ways than it was good. It cer¬ 
 tainly could not keep the air from penetrating the kiln as there 
 was not a patch of daub on the whole outside of the kiln, of the 
 size of a man’s hand that was whole and free of cracks. Try this 
 daub made of loamy sand alone, and then close beside it of half 
 clay, half sand, or another of all clay and note the difference. 
 The daub is made to stop up cracks and openings on the outside 
 of kiln, and if it does not do it, it is of no consequence. 
 
 Outside of this closing wall, put up another wall, leaving 
 about four inches of space between them; fill this space with fine 
 sand being careful not to pack it, but shovel it in loose so it can 
 settle when the kiln gets hot and shrinkage begins. The outside 
 closing wall must be well braced against the bars; sufficiently so 
 as to stand the push of the hot kiln and all the weight of brick 
 and sand behind it. 
 
 This is a very important piece of work and must be carefully 
 done ; so it will not fall down while the kiln is hot, or so the sand 
 Avill leak out, or run in among the burning brick, and choke that 
 end of the kiln. As your kiln shrinks and settles in, the sand 
 will settle at the top and must be kept filled up as high as the 
 top of the wall. Keep the air from entering, for air will make 
 salmon brick all over the space which is effected by the draft, 
 driving the heat farther in from the wall, and when all the bal¬ 
 ance of the kiln has settled, this place would remain high and be 
 unburned. When done burning the kiln, this closing sand if it 
 is of a suitable kind, will answer for sanding molds on soft mud 
 machine, or any other such use as may be desired, or it can be 
 saved and piled up at the end of the kiln, in a box or bin, and 
 used for the same purpose next burn. 
 
 Kilns that are built twelve or thirteen feet high on side walls, 
 are not high enough to come to the top of the unburned brick 
 when they are set forty courses or more in height. It is always 
 
84 
 
 JBBICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 best to set above the top of the wall enough to allow for all the 
 settle of kiln in burning to still remain above the wall. 
 
 This unfinished part of the kiln, is now built up with a loose 
 nine inch wall of brick all around, with the inside end of the 
 bricks plumb with the face of kiln wall, and built up to a level of 
 top of green brick. Let it be carefully daubed from the wall to top 
 of hack. During the burn and after the kiln begins to shrink,or kiln 
 walls expand, keep the top of this loose wall pushed in close up to 
 the brick, to prevent a too rapid escape of heat next to wall, or 
 flame from rushing out and endangering the frame work of roof; 
 by pushing this wall up tight and close, the platting is tightened on 
 the heads and quarter, driving the draft to the center of kiln. 
 Keep a good supply of daub, on hand after the kiln is fired. Do 
 not put off the necessary closing up until after the fires are light¬ 
 ed, as something will be likely to be neglected. See that the end 
 walls are all properly closed, false wall up and daubed, platting 
 all nicely adjusted with a uniform draft over the whole top; all 
 openings about the kiln closed, and cracks all daubed about kiln, 
 wall and furnaces, except the fire door of furnace Then you are 
 ready to light the fires in your kiln, providing you have fuel 
 enough convenient to burn the kiln. Always, if possible, have the 
 fuel on ground before you set fire to the kiln, as there must be no 
 let up of firing from start to finish. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 85 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 BURNING A KILN OF BRICKS. 
 
 The first thing to be taken into consideration when the fire 
 is first lighted under a kiln of brick, is the condition of the 
 brick when they were set in the kiln. If they have been set 
 in “bone dry,” they will stand a good, strong lire on the start, 
 and will not be long in water-smoking. If, however, they have 
 been set only partially dry, the fire should merely be kept go¬ 
 ing, or a slow, smoldering fire for the first twenty-four or thirty- 
 six hours, after which, increase the fire gradually. Care is required 
 in this part of the process of burning, particularly if your brick 
 are damp. If the brick are “bone dry” and everything is fav¬ 
 orable, they will water-smoke in forty-eight hours. Should they 
 be quite damp in any part of the kiln, it may require four days, 
 or even longer, to dry them without crushing or whitewashing the 
 bricks. There should never be red heat in the kiln while water¬ 
 smoking. 
 
 Many years’ experience teaches me that whitewashing of 
 bricks in burning is caused by making the kiln too hot in the 
 arches while water-smoking, and there is danger of crushing those 
 higher up in the kiln with the weight of those above them, as the 
 vapor in its passage through the kiln softens those at the top; 
 our advice is, “Go slow” in water-smoking and do not have a 
 water settle, as that is a most unwelcome sight to a burner, 
 for he knows what it means; and to one who has not seen one, it 
 
86 
 
 BRICKMAKELS MANUAL. 
 
 can only be conjectured as to the difficulty he will have to burn 
 such a mass of debris. 
 
 I have burned bricks made from stiff clay, some of which 
 were set only partially dry. Those that were “bone dry,” were 
 smaller than the others as they had shrunk all they would in 
 drying, while the others had not; the consequence was, where we 
 set damp bricks, the kiln was three or four inches higher than the 
 rest; when these began to dry the top began to sink and when we 
 were done water-smoking, the kiln was level and the bricks unin¬ 
 jured. This could only occur with stiff clay bricks and very slow 
 fires, and then, perhaps, only in certain kinds of clay. I do not 
 think that bricks are ever injured by slow drying, and they are by 
 a too rapid fire on the start. When the bricks are set quite damp, 
 I think it is well to let the fire go down low occasionally, which 
 will drive the heat to the top of the kiln. Some burners even put 
 a fire in the arches or furnaces at a late hour at night, and let it 
 go till early next morning. This is, in my opinion, a poor plan. 
 I prefer to have a watch with the kiln, even if he does little or 
 nothing, to see that no accident occurs or be on hand in case of 
 wind, rain or freeze, or any other untoward circumstance. 
 
 In water-smoking or sweating a kiln, either wood or coke 
 should be used for red brick or terra-cotta ware. Fire bricks can 
 be water-smoked with coal fires as a start, if they are set dry 
 enough so that soot will not adhere to them so as to impede the 
 draft. 
 
 The question is asked: “Which is the cheapest, wood or 
 coke; and which is the best?” This will depend upon the place 
 you are situated, and the price of wood and coke. Coke is the 
 best for the reason that there is no smoke or soot, and is a steady, 
 pure heat and your fire is very regular. One man can water-smoke 
 two or three kilns at the same time and then not be over-worked, 
 where everything is conveniently arranged. I consider coke the 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 87 
 
 cheapest when it costs not more than 12J cents per bushel, and 
 wood is $2.00 per cord. The cost is nearly equal, but the coke is 
 the best, as it requires more labor to water-smoke with wood. If 
 you have anthracite coal as fuel to burn brick, it is not necessary 
 to have either wood or coke, except to start the fires in the fui 
 naces. 
 
 You leave the furnace doors open in water-smoking, except 
 when the kiln begins to get dry and hot on top, say the last twenty 
 or twenty-four hours, then close the doors and let the heat be in¬ 
 creased gradually without making the arches red hot. 
 
 After the fires are lighted in the furnaces, it is necessary to 
 set up six or eight rows of platting lengthwise of the kiln and 
 occupy the central half of the kiln. This is to make draft to the 
 center, and to allow water-smoke to escape freely; as fast as the 
 bricks on top become dry and hot, close them down. 
 
 A kiln is not always dry when the vapor cannot be seen. In 
 cool weather it shows plainly, or at night or early morning when 
 the atmosphere is charged with moisture; then it shows very 
 plainly, but in warm weather, especially in the day time, it can¬ 
 not be seen. The only sure test, is to drop or sprinkle water light¬ 
 ly over the top course of platting, and if the bricks are dry 
 and hot, they will hiss or send forth a “soda-water sizz, and show 
 that there is no water-smoke in that place. 
 
 In water-smoking, sometimes heat leaves a certain part of the 
 kiln; then we have a “cold spot.” In this case I put down all the 
 platting that have been raised on that part of the kiln, and make 
 the top tight, to prevent the escape of the heat and prevent the 
 cold air from going down from the top. 
 
 The heat being generated faster than it escapes, soon spreads 
 to every part of the top of the kiln seeking an outlet. As soon as 
 the cold spot is thoroughly warmed up in this way, open the plat¬ 
 ting there and the heat will rush there, because of the strong 
 
88 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 draft, and soon warm up and dry out that part of the kiln. It is 
 a matter of great importance know how to remedy a “cold spot,” 
 either in water-smoking or raising heat. 
 
 In burning with coal, or coal slack, it is important to have the 
 kiln dry before beginning to tire with it; for wherever there is any 
 dampness, there the soot will adhere, and retard the draft, and heat 
 will be slow in that place, the soot remaining on the brick until 
 driven off by red heat. When this mistake has been made (be 
 surest and quickest remedy is to cease firing with coal, and tire 
 uith wood or coke until the soot is driven out; then put on the 
 coal again. 
 
 In kilns with furnace attachments, nut coal or coal screenings, 
 is the best fuel. It is much better than lump coal, as it saves the 
 labor of breaking the lumps; it can be distributed evenly over the 
 the grate bars, covering every part of the furnace floor, and can 
 be tired quicker; the furnace doors are not required to be kept 
 open any length of time to admit a large volume of cold air. A 
 good fuel is two parts of nut coal and one of slack, providing it is 
 free of dirt and slate, and is fresh from the mine. 
 
 Where your fuel is full of dirt or any deleterious substance, 
 the intense heat will melt it along with the ashes, into a clinker, 
 or cinder on the grate bars, which will give the firemen much 
 trouble; as he must have draft from the ash pit, through the fuel 
 to have perfect combustion, and make heat. 
 
 When clinkers forms on the bars, removing them will cause a 
 loss of heat in the kiln, consequently an increase of the fuel bill, 
 and we would urge it upon you to see to it that you have good fuel 
 always, whether you use wood or coal. The cost may be a few 
 dimes more per ton. The place to count the cost is to count the 
 result, when done burning. 
 
 When the kiln is dry, put on coal and increase the heat, 
 biinging the arches to a red heat as fast as possible. As soon as 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 89 
 
 they are heated their whole length, increase the heat again, until 
 they are a bright red or near the point of settling; then hold the 
 heat steadily at this point until the tire appears all over the top of 
 the kiln, and is as hot on top, as in the arches. Then put on the 
 settling heat, and when the top begins to sink, see that it sinks uni¬ 
 formly. If one part settles faster, tire under that part less, and un¬ 
 der the high part more. 
 
 It is important to keep the casing jammed close in against 
 the burning kiln; also to tighten the platting where it opens; 
 flame should not appear above a finger length on top; should it 
 appear in greater length or size, the heat is then being wasted 
 and the brick will not burn close to the top. 
 
 Bricks that are set forty courses high, should settle all the 
 way from six to eighteen inches according to kind of clay used. I 
 speak now of those clays that are more generally used for making 
 building brick; as there are some clays with which we have had 
 to do that did not settle any, and instead of settling, actually 
 raised up two inches higher; in this case our guage would have to 
 be the swell rather than the shrinkage. The only certain way to 
 determine the amount of settle required is by a practical test. 
 
 In testing a new clay, or rather burning a strange clay for 
 the first time, I always watch the arches very closely, and as long as 
 they stand up straight, and show no sign of melting, I feel easy 
 about those above. To settle a kiln on the heads that is next to 
 the walls, fire light and often. To throw heat to the center, fire 
 heavier with longer intervals; as the fire burns low, the draft 
 which all comes in at the sides drives the body of heat to the cen¬ 
 ter of kiln. I always find it best to settle the whole of the kiln 
 together, keeping the top all over as level as possible. 
 
 A kiln should be from forty-eight to seventy-two hours in set¬ 
 tling. 1 think three or four inches in each twelve hours is as fast 
 as clay can be settled, without breaking or warping the bricks, if 
 
90 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 your clay is one that shrinks in burning. It is well known that 
 there cannot be a good burn without the required amount of set¬ 
 tle. But there may be the required amount of settle and not a 
 good burn. There are two kinds of settle, a true settle and a 
 false settle. The true settle is when the shrinkage of the brick is 
 uniform from bottom to top of kiln, as near as practicable, while 
 the latter is nearly all in the arches or bottom of kiln. This is 
 caused by firing too hard before the heat has time to equalize 
 throughout the kiln, and pass up to the top courses. It is to lead 
 burners to avoid this that I have explained how, in my opinion 
 and experience, it can be accomplished. 
 
 The burning of bricks is certainly the most important part of 
 their manufacture; unless they are well burned all previous labor on 
 them is lost. They may be perfect in shape and finish but almost 
 worthless if not properly burned. The money is made or lost at 
 this stage of the process. I think there have been more failures 
 on account of unsuccessful burning than from all other causes; 
 hence anyone embarking in the manufacture of bricks who has 
 no practical experience, should, by all means, secure the services 
 of a competent burner; make a success of this department, and I 
 have no fears but that the difficulties of “making” can soon be 
 overcome. 
 
 One thing essential to good burning is good setting. Bricks 
 must be set in the kiln properly, or the burner cannot burn uni¬ 
 formly. The spaces between the bricks should be uniform all 
 over the kiln. There should be at least a half inch space between 
 the bricks in all parts of the kiln. And in setting the benches 
 and overhangers, or projecting courses in arches, care should be 
 taken to allow space for heat to rise freely to the body of the kiln, 
 through the overhangers as well as in the benches. 
 
 After a kiln of bricks has been burned and closed up, it has 
 then to be cooled ready for delivery; and usually the brickmaker 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 91 
 
 is in a hurry to get his kiln opened. This hurry many times 
 causes brick to be seriously injured after they are burned. A too 
 free admission of air while the bricks are hot will discolor them. 
 Some clays that burn a light red, will have a pale salmon color, 
 caused by the moisture in the atmosphere, coming in contact 
 with the hot surface of the brick. The cold air causes the brick 
 to cool too rapidly and cracks them. All clay products are fragile 
 and will not stand rapid cooling. It is well known that glass will 
 fly into fragments, if while it is heated it is brought into contact 
 with a draught of cold air. Now brick partake, in a measure, of 
 the nature of glass; and if it is cracked or shattered in the process 
 of cooling, the brick loses its metallic ring and its strength is 
 impaired as a building material; thus detracting from its market 
 value. 
 
 As a rule, tough, tenacious, plastic clay, can be cooled faster 
 without injury, than free, sandy or loamy clay. 
 
 Large kilns with heavy walls, should have from three to five 
 days to cool; according to the nature of the clay. And they 
 should not be made air-tight below when closed; there should be 
 small openings left in each furnace low down in the closing of 
 the ash-pit, to admit some air below to supply the place of the 
 hot air escaping at the top of the kiln. If a kiln is made practi¬ 
 cally air-tight below, when closed, cold air will enter at the top to 
 replace the escaping heat; this will cause the top courses to be 
 brittle, where the cold air goes down. A few inches of air admit¬ 
 ted below will prevent this and not damage the most lender clay. 
 This I learned by observing the top of cooling kilns at night. 
 
 When you are hurried to get a kiln cool, after it has been 
 closed twelve hours, admit a little more air at each furnace, and 
 keep enlarging the opening two or three times in each twenty-four 
 hours, until you have the door fully opened at the end of the sec¬ 
 ond or third day. In this way it cools gradually though rapidly. 
 
92 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 You can soon determine just how fast you can cool your kiln 
 without damaging your ware, and then act accordingly 
 
 The general color of all burnt brick is red or some shade of 
 ied; owing to the clay containing a greater or less per cent, of 
 _ ”' on ' Where the percentage of iron in clay is large, the brick are 
 apt to be blue; in particular if the degree of heat comes near the 
 melting point, and is then subjected to a volume of fresh or cold 
 air. In burning bricks we have to give them the utmost care and 
 attention, so as to bring them as near as possible to the melting 
 point without endangering their quality. 
 
 I am frequently asked my opinion as to which is the best 
 in burning bricks, to give them a good color—a dead heat or a 
 lively heat ? I am always in favor of a lively moving, heat, and I 
 desire to be fully understood. I base my opinion on practical 
 experience through a long term of years, although it may be un¬ 
 scientific. 
 
 My experience has been that when a kiln had tardy draft, 
 the heat remained too much in the arches and bottom of kiln; 
 and the result was the arches were more or less melted, and sev¬ 
 eral courses of salmon or pale bricks on top, and three or four 
 days extra time consumed in burning. 
 
 Where there was proper draft, and moving heat, the burn 
 was nearly uniform from bottom to top, and the color of the 
 bricks the same, with a much better and brighter color than 
 those burned with a dead heat. 
 
 The latter are really baked, instead of burned. 
 
 Another important item in burning bricks is to burn them 
 well with economy of heat. This includes proper combustion, 
 as well as thoroughly utilizing the products of the same after¬ 
 wards. We may have a furnace with heat chambers and all 
 that, producing as near as practicable, perfect combustion and 
 then waste the heat afterwards. 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 93 
 
 First, we want a heat generating furnace of proper dimen¬ 
 sions and with sufficient grate surface; and grates with aii 
 spaces, according to kind of fuel used. 
 
 Then we must have heavy, close built walls, to prevent 
 radiation of heat, as well as to exclude cold air. 
 
 Then the top of the kiln must be so arranged as to allow 
 only enough heat to escape to make necessary draft and no 
 more. Some draft is necessary to produce perfect combustion 
 and equalize the heat throughout the kiln from side to side 
 and from bottom to top. All these things are indispensable to 
 economy of heat. 
 
 Then there must be skill and judgment, and close applica¬ 
 tion of the same, to properly manage the firing and regulation 
 of heat. This must not be left to boys or unskillful men. I 
 do not want a kiln that “any boy can manage.” When a man¬ 
 ufacturer has one, two, or three thousand dollars worth of bricks 
 dependent upon the result of a single burn, he wants a man 
 of skill and judgment, and one reliable in every way to look 
 after it. If the ware or any part of it is spoiled or even in 
 part damaged in burning, it is a loss of labor from the clay 
 bank to the finished product. 
 
 In using bituminous coal it is necessary to have grates 
 upon which to burn it. In using coal screenings, I think grates 
 with half-inch slots about the proper air space, with a thickness 
 of bar of three-quarters of an inch between slots. I find a grate 
 surface of about twelve square feet, the best for each furnace. 
 
 There are two advantages, or rather objects, in view in hav¬ 
 ing furnace attachments to clamp walls. First, to have as near 
 as practical, perfect combustion, thereby economizing all the 
 heat contained in the fuel; and again, to exclude all the cold 
 air from the ware in the bottom of the kiln, and avoid subject¬ 
 ing the same to every sudden change of temperature, thereby 
 
94 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 keeping a uniform heat in the bottom of the kiln as well as in 
 other parts of it. 
 
 While I believe in applying scientific knowledge in every 
 way it can be done, to the making and burning of bricks, I think, 
 at the same time, bricks cannot be burned by rule; neither can 
 any arbitrary rule be applied to the economic use of fuel; condi¬ 
 tions and circumstances, quality of fuel and quality of clay, are so 
 varied, that rules must be flexible indeed to cover every case. 
 Some fuel requires more under-draft through the grate bars than 
 others; and, again, some require more air above the grates, and 
 then different stages of a burning kiln require different applica¬ 
 tions of air in place and quantity. 
 
 I am satisfied air, in proper quantity, should be admitted 
 above the burning fuel or grates; then after the gases are super¬ 
 heated in their passage through the heat chambers, then near 
 where the heat enters the kiln proper, there should be admitted 
 as much oxygen as the heated air will absorb without reducing 
 the heat below the degree required for the burning of the ware. 
 This can be regulated by admitting more or less air and a careful 
 observation of the heat in the arches. One skilled in burning 
 wares knows at a glance whether he has the proper degree of heat 
 or not. Coal must have a certain amount of air passing through 
 it from below, in order to insure a high degree of heat. Wood 
 will burn without so much under draft. A pile of wood will burn 
 with a fierce heat even on the ground outside, while a pile of coal 
 would only be a smoldering fire unless blast is applied. 
 
 It is always well to admit some air above the fuel on the 
 grates, anywhere between the grates and the kiln. This is done 
 in a number of kilns with more or less success. 
 
 There are some writers on brick burning who claim a great 
 loss of heat in an updraft open-top kiln. I cannot accept their 
 assertions as true. If escaping heat is referred to, I agree; for it 
 
BKICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 95 
 
 all escapes, every particle of it; we have no use for it afteri 
 it has passed the ware, unless we can utilize it in some other 
 direction; escaping heat might be, and is, I believe, used for dry¬ 
 ing purposes; but it is useless for burning. 
 
 Escape of heat is essential to practical burning. Bricks can 
 no more be burned with a dead inactive heat, than a fish can live 
 in stagnant water. It is a law of nature that action is necessary to 
 life; stagnation in anything means death and decay. 
 
 To burn bricks properly the heat must be kept uniform in 
 every part of the kiln; to do this there must be draft which 
 means moving, lively heat; we cannot have draft without escape. 
 “The mill will never grind with the water that has passed,” so it 
 is with the kiln fire. 
 
 The amount of fuel cast into the furnace at each recurring 
 fire is another important item. Only enough should be thrown 
 in at each firing to make a light coating all over the grate surface; 
 say four or five dirt shovels full; the thickness of burning coke on 
 the grates, should not exceed four or five inches, and the grates kept 
 clean so as to show a bright light in the ash-pit at all times; and 
 to save your grate bars, hot coals and ashes should never be 
 allowed to accumulate in the ash-pit. 
 
 Now, it seems to me, after the proper amount of air has been 
 admitted above and below the grates in the furnace, (the amount 
 admitted below is regulated by the size of the ash-pit door), then 
 again near the point of contact with the ware, admit just as much 
 as it will bear, we have then done all that can be done in this direc¬ 
 tion—the amount to be determined by the burner and adjusted 
 to suit the quality of the fuel and the condition of the kiln at the 
 different stages of burning. Again, the top of the kiln must be 
 so arranged that the escaping heat can be reduced to the lowest 
 point consistent with draft required; there should be more space 
 for heat to escape while water-smoking, than when you are raising 
 
96 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 heat or settling a kiln, as the draft is less strong at first, for the 
 reason that the bricks are cold and damp, and the heated air in 
 its upward passage through the kiln becomes heavily surcharged 
 with vapor, which is heavier than air. And here the judgment of 
 ^the burner must be exercised. If you are starting in the early 
 spring, and it is your first burn after your kilns have stood all 
 wintei, allowance must be made for dampness in the walls and 
 floor- “Go slow.” Take time to water-smoke, make a good burn 
 on the first kiln of bricks, even if it consumes a little more fuel, 
 time and labor; and you can undoubtedly shorten the time on 
 the next burn; but never do so at a risk of damage to your brick 
 01 tile. Keep up a slow fire the first twenty-four or thirty-six 
 hours, and as the bricks begin to get dry below and warm up 
 above, the draft becomes stronger, and the kiln wall begins to 
 expand, then all the open spaces on top must be reduced. This 
 can be accomplished very readily by pushing in the casing above 
 the top of the kiln wall, and the platting that has been raised 
 dropped back into place. 
 
 Another plan is to lay the top platting with a space between 
 them; then when ready to tighten up, they are forced together 
 with a spade, and other bricks put in the spaces. I prefer the 
 former plan, as it is less work to close up the top, and the heat is 
 always under better control. 
 
 After a kiln is heated to the top, the object then is to let the 
 heat out of the arches as freely as possible, and hold it closely at 
 the top. In this way the arches are not too hard nor the top 
 brick too soft. The heat can be driven out of the arches to the 
 top by throwing air currents at a moderate degree of heat into 
 them, and thus prevent overburning or melting of the benches 
 below. This is our method and one with which we have had a 
 marked degree of success. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 97 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 BRICK BURNING AND KILNS. 
 
 This department gf brick manufacture, is constantly coming 
 to the front, as the key to the situation. This is the point where 
 the most enthusiastic would-be brickmakers have met their Water¬ 
 loo, and this is the rock that will wreck many another unwary 
 mariner on the muddy seas of brickmaking. 
 
 There is nothing that makes me so “utterly tired,” as to hear 
 one of these alleged brickmakers tell how he burned a kiln in two 
 days and four nights, with just half the amount of fuel that any 
 man had ever used before. It is true that there is a vast differ¬ 
 ence in clays; some requiring more fuel, as well as more time to 
 burn them. 
 
 The time it takes to burn a kiln of brick is an insignificant 
 item; and the amount of fuel used, is a matter of secondary im¬ 
 portance. The great objective point is to make a good burn, that 
 is ninety per cent, and upwards of hard bricks, with ninety-nine 
 to one hundred per cent, of the bricks burned, fit for market. Do 
 this every time, and nine cases out of ten you will succeed as a 
 brickmaker. 
 
 The ruinous policy of sacrificing the quality of the brick as well 
 as destroying a large percentage of them to save a few tons or coids 
 of fuel, and a few hours, or even days of time, is followed by some 
 manufacturers, and they will persist in it until they fail misera¬ 
 bly. I have known instances where manufacturers of brick, com- 
 
98 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 pellet! their burners to burn their kilns within a given time ; and 
 to do this melted the arch brick to get the required settle, and left 
 many thousands soft in the top courses; this to humor an absurd 
 whim. 
 
 Some of the best processes of burning are condemned by 
 many brickmakers because they require forty-eight hours more 
 time to burn than the process they are using; even though in the 
 end there is a considerable saving in labor and fuel, and a decided 
 improvement in the product. 
 
 I believe in using a kiln that insures the manufacturer a well 
 burned kiln of brick every time; even though it requires more 
 time and more fuel. 
 
 A New York merchant can send a cargo of goods to a foreign 
 port, cheaper than his competitor can, by sending them at his own 
 risk; thereby saving insurance premiums that others pay. Would 
 tie display business sagacity and foresight by this scheme ? Is it 
 not best to pay more money, and make his profits secure ? There 
 is just as much sense in trying to save insurance premiums on 
 goods shipped by an ocean steamer, as there is in using a kiln 
 that saves a little time and labor, and risk having a poor burn. 
 
 Use a kiln that carries assurance with it, one that will bring 
 forth good fruit every burn, to the satisfaction and profit of the 
 owner. 
 
 It is not the intention of the writer to condemn a kiln that 
 burns with little fuel and short time, provided it does its work 
 well, turning out good brick with little or no waste. I only wish 
 to show the folly of trying to gain time and save fuel at the sacri¬ 
 fice of good results. 
 
 I must add however, that when we have secured a good kiln, 
 it is then necessary to secure the services of a successful burner. 
 W e have not reached that golden era in our business where we can 
 burn a kiln by “printed rules,” only requiring a, man of muscle. 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 99 
 
 with sufficient education to read the rules, to make a perfect burn 
 every time. When this is done then any one can take his chemi¬ 
 cals, brushes, canvass, and his printed rules, and paint pictures that 
 will rival those of the immortal Raphael, or Michael Angelo ; or 
 with mallet and chisel carve from a block of marble the “Three 
 Graces.” 
 
 Which process of burning brick will insure the most success¬ 
 ful and economical results taking all things into account? Does 
 it pay to have permanent walls to burn in ? Or, shall I burn with 
 the old fashioned casing or scoving kiln, which is a nine inch wall 
 put up around a green kiln, and taken down after each burn ? 
 The old style casing kiln has many objections. First, the labor of 
 building up and taking down the casing at every burn. 
 
 Again, the walls being light and illy built, there is a great deal 
 of cold air enters the kiln all over the outside wall which deflects 
 the heat towards the center, and the fire cannot be controlled; 
 hence there is a large per cent, of salmon brick all over the out¬ 
 side and more particularly on the ends and in the corners. The 
 fuel being burned in the arches directly under and in 
 contact with the brick, melts a great many. The coals 
 and ashes, which accumulate while burning, prevent a 
 great many in the lower part of the benches from burning hard 
 enough. Then, too, the fire holes of the kiln are open whenever 
 the fires burn low, and the draft of cold air comes in direct con¬ 
 tact with the heated arches, while the brick is thus expanded 
 with the heat, and is exposed to a draft of cold air, contraction 
 takes place instantly, and the brick is checked, split, cracked, and 
 in some clays, broken entirely off. 
 
 The old way of burning is always a much more laborious way of 
 working; there is no certainty of the result, and among the many 
 scores of brick yards we have visited, we have found but few who 
 practiced any well established method who worked on the old plan. 
 
100 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 One plan with no other object in view than not to burn over six days 
 was to hurry the matter all it was possible and shorten the time 
 of the burn from six to five or even four days, which is followed in 
 some places yet, with very poor results; as it is impossible entirely, 
 to burn brick properly in that time, and make a success of the 
 burn. Our advice is to go slow on the first two-thirds of the 
 burn, and get your heat well up all over the kiln. Don’t get in a 
 hurry,on the water-smoking or in raising heat; take time to do 
 the work well, even if it takes eight or ten days. The question of 
 what process of burning to adopt, or what kind, or class of kilns 
 to use is one that should be well considered, for this point, after 
 all, determines whether the enterprise is a success or failure, as 
 bricks have but little or no value in the market, unless properly 
 burned. 
 
 To burn a kiln of brick it is necessary to have a wall or 
 casing. The first question arises whether it is best to burn in a 
 a temporary wall ; that is, shall we build a light wall and 
 remove it when done burning, or shall the wall be made heavier 
 and more durable, and be permanent, so that we can us& it for 
 one, two or five years without rebuilding. 
 
 There is only one advantage that be can claimed in favor of a 
 temporary wall, and that is after removing the wall the conven¬ 
 ience of getting to the burnt bricks at all points. In every other 
 respect, the permanent wall is better and where permanent kiln 
 walls are built with rail road tracks at each end, and the bricks 
 loaded on cars instead of wagons or carts, it is just as cheap to 
 load from a permanent clamp. While the saving of expense in 
 building the temporary wall, and removing it after each burn, 
 together with its attendant waste of bricks, soon amounts to 
 enough to build a good, heavy kiln wall. Again, with a heavy wall, 
 the bricks can be burned hard closer to the sides with less fuel, 
 and is less affected with the wind or weather. 
 
BRICKMAKEHS MANUAL. 
 
 101 
 
 A permanent wall, however, does not prevent waste in burning. 
 The arch bricks are melted, twisted, cracked, or broken with in¬ 
 tense heat, and drafts of cold air, the same as in temporary walls. 
 To avoid this waste, furnaces are attached to these walls, and cold 
 air is kept from coming in contact with bricks in the bottom of 
 the kiln; the heat supply being continuous and regular so that 
 the arch bricks are not melted by sudden, intense heat, or broken 
 by sudden contraction caused by cold air rushing into the kiln 
 when the fire door is opened. In this way the arch bricks are 
 saved whole and sound, and well burned to the ground, there be¬ 
 ing no bed of coals and ashes there to prevent a free circulation of 
 tire and heat among the ground courses. 
 
 Another advantage of furnace kilns, is they bum coal screen¬ 
 ings, which in most places is a very cheap fuel and will burn 
 equally well with wood, lump coal, or run of mine, and with less 
 than half the labor required to burn a kiln of bricks on the old 
 fashioned plan ; as one man on each watch can do all the firing 
 for a kiln of two hundred thousand or more. 
 
 For the first kiln of this class, brick manufacturers are indebt¬ 
 ed to the inventive genius of E. Y. Wingard. His invention amount¬ 
 ed to almost a revolution in brick burning, as his process used a 
 refuse fuel, the coal screenings of the coal mines, at less than half 
 the labor required in the old way, and burned a large per cent, of 
 good brick with a very small waste in the arches, and did this with 
 a kiln that was not complicated in its construction and manage¬ 
 ment. The name of Wingard will be, as it is now, familiar to 
 brick makers for many years to come. 
 
 This invention like many others had some weak points or 
 imperfections. Few new inventions have had so many good points 
 and so few defects. There have been a number of improvements 
 made on this kiln, which have added a great deal to its strength 
 and durability, as well as simplifying and perfecting the methods 
 
102 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 of controlling and regulating the heat, and giving more perfect 
 combustion of the fuel. 
 
 There are perhaps less than six other kilns of this class, that 
 are in general use and practically successful. This class of kilns, 
 I consider the best for burning common building brick, as they 
 are comparatively the cheapest kiln to build, and do good work 
 economically, and are not limited as to capacity. They can be 
 built to hold one hundred thousand, or one million, and still be 
 complete in every part, and the best evidence that they are well 
 adapted to the use of the brickmaker, is the fact that they are 
 found in successful operation on most of the principal brick 
 yards in this country. This cannot be said of any other class of 
 kilns. 
 
 As I have remarked elsewhere in this work about machines, 
 go and see these different kilns in operation,on the yards where they 
 are used. If possible, see them in different stages of the burn, note 
 the amount of labor and class, and amount of fuel. Examine the 
 kiln in all its particulars, from the filling with green brick to the 
 discharging its burned ware. Examine closely the results, and 
 then determine which of these is best adapted to your situation, 
 clay and circumstances. If an inventor has a good kiln, dryer, or 
 machine, he is not afraid to have its merits investigated, and the 
 only way to do this is to see it doing the work required of it. Bear 
 in mind that a biick kiln is an invention that cannot be carried 
 about and demonstrated as a success, like a corn planter, pencil 
 sharpener, or sewing machine. You must either accept the testi¬ 
 monials of its patrons, or go in person and see the kiln in use. 
 
 The biickmaker who spends a few dollars traveling among 
 the principal brickyards within three or four hundred miles of 
 him, examining into the different methods of manufacture and 
 burning, will not be the loser in any sense, and his investment in 
 that respect will be returned to him in dollars many fold over, 
 
I 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 103 
 
 by Ins coining in contact with and adopting other labor, and 
 money-saving devices, as there is no one yard that has a monop¬ 
 oly of all the good things, and but few yards but possess some¬ 
 thing of value to the man who is willing to learn, and is on the 
 search for a better plan. 
 
 The next class of kilns to which we wish to call attention is 
 the down draft kiln. These are built both square and round, with 
 an arch or crown over them. This crown has several small holes, 
 of six or eight inches diameter in it which serves as a vent for the 
 vapor, and to make upward draft in the early stage of the firing; 
 these holes are usually shut down after the kiln is heated through¬ 
 out, and the smoke and flame are carried out at the bottom of kiln 
 by a subterranean flue which is connected with a high stack and 
 controlled with a damper in same. These kilns are built with a 
 capacity of from fifteen to fifty thousand fire bricks, and for burn¬ 
 ing these bricks, sewer pipe, etc., are as good and in some respects 
 better than the up draft furnace kilns. They are however, in pro¬ 
 portion to their capacity, much more expensive than the up draft 
 kiln, and are beyond the reach of the common brick manufactur¬ 
 ers, and also too small to be made available on yards with large ca¬ 
 pacity. One of the difficulties of a crown kiln is to properly sup¬ 
 port the arch so that it will not settle, and eventually fall in. 
 Another objection is that the kilns are not so easily filled and 
 emptied, the arch being in the way. But they save the trouble of 
 platting the kiln. 
 
 Another class of kilns which is a modification of the direct 
 down draft, is the up and down draft. In this kiln the fire is car¬ 
 ried up from the fire box, or furnace, with a flue or flues, on dif¬ 
 ferent sides of the kiln, and the heat is radiated through the sides 
 of the flues and the volume of heat and flame carried up through 
 them and then downwards to the subterranean flue as in the kiln 
 mentioned before. This kiln is much more successful than the 
 
 
104 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 direct down draft; particularly for burning tile, sewer pipe, 
 terra cotta, pottery and such ware. It is also used on many tire 
 brick works, with eminent success, where thei’e is no great capac¬ 
 ity required, as is the case on yards making building brick. 
 
 There are also continuous kilns, for burning bricks which 
 are in use to a very limited extent in some parts of the country. 
 These kilns are built in different shapes, according to the pattern 
 or design of the different patentees. Some are circular, others are 
 oval; again, they are built in the form of a parallelogram, and are 
 subdivided into a series of arched chambers, with a capacity usu¬ 
 ally of from eighteen to twenty-five thousand to each chamber. 
 These chambers are built so that they are connected one with the 
 other, so as to form a complete circuit, and are in size so that there 
 is from twelve to eighteen chambers thus connected. These 
 chambers are each connected with a high stack, and provided 
 with a damper, the object of which is to close off' any escaping 
 heat after the bricks are dry in that particular chamber, and send 
 the heat through the next succeeding chamber or kiln. A plan 
 adopted by some is to close the openings from one chamber to the 
 next, when the kiln is being set with green brick, by putting over 
 the opening a large sheet of cardboard, and as the heat rises this 
 is burned away, and escapes into the adjoining kiln, and the 
 damper is now closed to the stack from the dry kiln. The heat 
 is raised to the point required to burn hard the brick that are be¬ 
 hind, and each day is expected to burn off a section, empty a sec¬ 
 tion, and fill another with from four to six sections intervening 
 between the kiln just closed and the one just filled; not less than 
 three sections cooling; four would be better, particularly if the 
 capacity of the chambers are large. 
 
 The mode of firing this class of kilns is peculiar, inasmuch 
 as the fuel, which is coal, is dropped in among the brick through 
 an aperture in the crown of the chamber, and is scattered among 
 
BllIC KM AKERS M AN UAL. 
 
 105 
 
 the bricks in its descent to the bottom of a flue, which is built 
 among the green brick as they are being set. The woik of fhin,, 
 is a very light duty, as the charge of coal is scarcely evei moie 
 than from three to five pounds at a time. What is required in 
 this is skill in burning, and the man in charge as burnei finishes 
 one chamber and then an assistant must take the night turn, and 
 another is finished by the head man next day; this continues 
 daily without interruption. These kilns, as is well known, are ex¬ 
 pensive to construct, and so far as my observation goes, have not 
 been made a practical success in this country. The reason pei ■ 
 haps lies in the fact, that they have not been properly constructed 
 on account of their heavy cost, and probably not well managed in 
 burning them, through ignorance of the method. In Germany 
 they burn brick successfully in the Hoffman Kiln, which is the 
 representative kiln of this class. The great merit of these kilns 
 is their saving of fuel; but our brick manufactuieis in this 
 country, with the exception of a few, are not prepared to build 
 such expensive kilns. 
 
 There is occasionally an inquirer who writes to some of the bi it k 
 or clay journals, asking if brick and tile can be burned together in 
 same kilns; or in other words, can they be manufactured together 
 with profit? Where the clay is adapted to both brick and tile, I 
 see no good reason why they may not. There are a number of 
 machines that will make both bricks and tile, by simply changing 
 the dies. They can be dried by natural and artificial heat, and 
 there is no question about burning them together, having burned 
 them together for five years. I used a Wingard Kiln, 24x16 feet in¬ 
 side; set the arches with bricks, and set fourteen courses of bricks 
 in the bottom, then ten courses or tiers of tile on the bricks. In 
 this manner, the kiln held twenty-seven thousand bricks, and 
 thirty thousand three inch tile, or twenty thousand four inch tile. 
 I used two hundred bushels of coke to water-smoke a kiln, and 
 
106 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 frcm thirty to thirty-five tons of coal screenings for burning. The 
 bricks were all good fronts and pavers, and no waste, while the tile 
 ■were well burned, and usually the waste tile did not exceed one 
 per cent. This kiln could be used for bricks alone, and would 
 hold about ninety thousand when set forty-four courses high. 
 
 I have seen kilns of this kind filled entirely with tile, forming 
 arches with tile, with comparatively little loss in the arches. 
 Where a kiln will burn either, or both together successfully, there 
 are many advantages in making both bricks and tile. When the 
 demand for one is light, make the other, and vice versa. There 
 are places where the demand for bricks does not justify a man in 
 giving his time to brickmaking exclusively, and the same with 
 tile; when perhaps the two combined would make a fair amount 
 of business, and yet the demand for both would not warrant a 
 man in having a machine for brick and another for tile. We have 
 seen the same thing occur in the pottery business, where the 
 works if confined to pottery alone, would have had a very meager 
 trade, but were situated so favorably in respect to clay, market, 
 etc., that they made in addition to the above, sewer pipe and fire 
 bricks also. This kept the force always employed and established 
 a good trade. 
 
 The most important thing about starting a tile works, is to 
 secure a. good kiln, and a burner who will burn the tiles hard, 
 and do this with small waste. I spoke before of using the Win- 
 gard Kiln. I do not say that is the kiln you must get, or must not. 
 There are other kilns of more recent design, and later improve¬ 
 ments. That is a matter that is left for you to decide and adopt 
 as your choice among the many. 
 
 After all, brick manufacturers in most sections must depend 
 on wood or coal for fuel, and the kiln that burns this fuel most 
 economically, and produces the best results, is the kiln wanted by 
 a great ma jority of the brickmakers. 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 107 
 
 In building a permanent kiln of any kind the walls should 
 be at least thirty-two inches thick at the base, and sixteen at the 
 top, and lined with fire bricks, where exposed to intense heat; all 
 brick work of the whole kiln to be bonded together in the best 
 manner known to the brick layer, as the intense heat to which 
 it is to be subjected, tends to destroy the wall, even when built in 
 the very best manner. A good kiln properly built and managed 
 will soon save every dollar of its cost, and do good work for many 
 years, with occasional slight repairs. 
 
 Improved Brtck Kiln and Roof. 
 
 A permanent kiln should have a permanent roof; that is, a 
 roof that need not be removed when burning. Such a roof should 
 be at least nine feet above the top of the kiln; that is to say the 
 plate or eave should be that height. It should have an opening or 
 ventilator at the peak of the roof, four feet wide; this ventilator 
 
108 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 can be raised three feet above the main roof and covered with 
 roof boards similar to the covering of the kiln. The timbers sup¬ 
 porting the roof should be at least 6x10 inches with the six 
 inch side against the wall; they should be firmly bolted to the 
 wall with anchor bolts, that fasten to a rod running through the 
 main wall. The plate on top of these posts should be 4x10 
 inches and fastened to the posts with a flat bar of iron £x2 inches, 
 and three feet long, bent so as to lay on top of the plate and ex¬ 
 tend down twelve inches on each side of the post, and is held in 
 place with a £ inch bolt, twelve inches long, or it can be held in 
 place with the iron rod that goes across the kiln from post to post, 
 on opposite side, which acts as a hog chain to prevent the rafter 
 from spreading the wall. The rods should be at least six feet 
 above the kiln of bricks, so as to be out of the way when walking 
 over it. The rafters should be 2x8 inches, and three feet apart; 
 collar beams 1x8 inches, fourteen feet long; two of these to each 
 pair of rafters; one nailed on each side with ten penny nails. 
 These will be stronger than a two inch piece, and require only 
 small nails to fasten to rafters, while the two inch would require 
 heavy nails that are liable to split the rafter. Directly under the 
 comb of the roof put irf a piece 2x8, twelve inches in length, be¬ 
 tween these collar beams and nail it in well; this keeps the double 
 collar beam from warping and twisting out of shape with the heat. 
 The rafters must be well stayed with diagonal braces, nailed on 
 the under side of them, to be out of the way of the purloin plates 
 above. There should be four purloin plates, the first at the foot 
 of the rafter. The top one, two feet and a half from the peak of 
 rafters; the other two, put in by dividing the space equally to re¬ 
 ceive them ; on top of these nail good, sound plank twelve inches 
 wide, nailed close together, with the top end of board just even 
 with upper edge of the purloin plate. I prefer a roof covered with 
 plank as described, so that in case of fire it can be readily taken 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 109 
 
 off. With a roof of one-third pitch, it is not necessary to have 
 lap boards to cover the cracks. Nail the boards on single, close 
 ogether, and by using burned brick for platting, whole brick, and 
 carefully put on, you will have very little trouble from rain. I 
 have used such a roof for the past four years, and have not lost 
 one with fire and no damage by rain worth mentioning. If, at any 
 time, while the kiln is hot, there should be danger of fire, every 
 fourth board can be taken up; and need not be taken from the 
 roof, only turned over on the next plank, and is then put down 
 again when the kiln cools off. The main walls of a permanent 
 kiln should be strengthened with two heavy iron rods, built in the 
 wall, and should reach clear through from end to end, projecting 
 far enough at each end to receive an 8x8 timber, which is fastened 
 on to act as a buck stave on the corners, to prevent the main wall 
 from expanding too far away from the hot kiln of bricks during 
 the burn. Should your clay be of that kind that shrinks a great 
 deal, the space between kiln wall and the hot bricks, would be 
 be so great as to cause serious trouble. 
 
110 
 
 BKICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 REMARKS ON FIRING AND FIREMEN. 
 
 There is a great difference between a fireman who under¬ 
 stands his occupation, and one who does not. I found this out in 
 my travels among brickmakers, burning kilns of brick on first 
 tiial. My firemen as a rule were selected from among what are 
 termed on most yards “burners;” that is, men who assist as laborers 
 during the burning of a kiln, in wheeling wood, daubing the kiln, 
 and sliding in wood under the direction of a head burner or su¬ 
 perintendent. These men usually have but little skill in brick 
 burning, none, in fact. They only labor to get the work done as 
 directed, and as to having any care or concern in the matter is out 
 of the question. Now to change these men from handling wood 
 to shoveling coal, and reduce the force of firemen from five, six 
 or seven on a turn, to only two, or one, seems to make them in¬ 
 different as to results. They were not worked as hard as formerly, 
 but they expected they would be. They have always done just as 
 they were told, but the telling must come every time for every 
 move; no move can be made on their own responsibility. I think 
 it a wrong idea to employ such men as firemen. 
 
 I have found where I had new men to instruct in coal firing, 
 01 burning of new kilns, to select a capable, willing man of some 
 judgment, show him the importance of the trust, and stimulate 
 him to excel by an extra reward. It made no difference to me 
 whether he ever saw a kiln burned or not, if he was ready to learn 
 
BRIG KM AKERS M A NU A L. 
 
 Ill 
 
 he was more valuable to me than the indifferent time server. Get 
 your firemen to vie with each other, to see which can raise the 
 best heat, with the least coal; keep the brightest and clearest 
 flame; ash pit emptied; an abundance of fuel close at hand for 
 immediate use; and then keep all coal and ashes separated, and a 
 clean standing place in front of the furnace and about the kiln. 
 
 I think there are times when employers are very much to 
 blame for the negligence of their firemen, by not paying sufficient 
 wages; and the result is their parsimony acts as a “boomerang” on 
 their pocket books. An owner of a brickyard who wants to em¬ 
 ploy firemen, as a rule will give no more wages than to day labor¬ 
 ers. 
 
 This is not only unwise but unjust. There are but two changes 
 of hands, and they divide the day into shifts of twelve hours each, 
 and more frequently prolong their duty through a day and night, 
 and even into two days and a night without relief. The best plan 
 is to pay those men by the hour the same rate as day laborers; 
 this makes their pay a trifle more, but at the same time is an in¬ 
 centive to ambitious laborers to earn more wages.. 
 
 The employer or manager of a yard can save many times over 
 the increased wages in the saving of fuel bills, with a good fireman, 
 besides an increased value on the burned brick. I once burned a 
 a kiln of brick for a yard owner who was very close in his dealings, 
 and he would pay a fireman no more than one dollar for a turn of 
 twelve hours. I had among the lot a man who had fired for two 
 years on an ocean steamer. This man wanted one dollar and fifty 
 cents per day of twelve hours. I prevailed at length on the proprietor 
 to employ him one turn till I would try him. I found that he 
 could fire the kiln for twenty-four hours and use no more fuel 
 than any of the others would in twelve hours, and have a good 
 bright heat, and everything in order as I have described, while 
 the others would let the heat drop, clinkers collect on the grate 
 
112 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 bars, or ash pit fill up, and slovenly work done generally. Here 
 was a saving of not less than ten dollars per day in fuel, with an 
 extra outlay of fifty cents. The man was well worth two dol lars per 
 day; he was vigilant, careful, orderly and faithful. 
 
 I would earnestly urge it upon employers to give this matter 
 more attention, and secure the very best of firemen, and then re¬ 
 tain them at wages that will make it an object to them to remain 
 with you. I very frequently have men make application to fire a 
 turn or two at night during the burning of a kiln. I always ex¬ 
 plain to such men that firemen on a brick kiln have a steady job 
 at firing, and I do not intend to alternate the work from day labor 
 during the day, to firing at night, just to allow them to earn an 
 extra dollar or two. I want firemen, just as I would want setters, 
 ■wheelers or any other class of workmen, to follow that as their 
 business and keep up with the burn and learn something in re¬ 
 gard to the management of the kiln during the different stages, 
 from hour to hour, and from day to day. This applies particu¬ 
 larly to works that turn out a steady output of bricks, and are 
 constantly burning their wares. 
 
 A fireman who goes on duty in the evening, after doing a day 
 of hard work, is in no condition to take hold of work so import¬ 
 ant as brick burning. He may have an idea that all he has to do 
 is to open the door, heave in the fuel and then wait till it is burned 
 up, and repeat the process. This might be done and ton after ton 
 of valuable fuel burnt to cinders, and the kiln would never rise 
 above a cherry red heat. The fireman who has this conception of 
 the work, will take a nap while the fire burns down, and trust to 
 luck or providence that some untoward accident or incident will 
 waken or rouse him to make the next fire. He will quite likely 
 feel cool and shiver enough to rouse himself to see if the fire is 
 burning, or likely to go out; or he will find himself nodding and 
 falling over, as he has seated himself on a wheelbarrow, or the coal 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 113 
 
 pile; or the watch will sternly call him to duty. Where a fire¬ 
 man goes to work rested and refreshed, and his mind made up to 
 do his duty by keeping at work, he will not get sleepy any more 
 at night than in the day time. There is always work enough to 
 busy a fireman. The trouble is to get men who will conscientious¬ 
 ly perform the work at night, as other workmen do in daylight. 
 They take advantage of the darkness to quit and do nothing 
 after the furnace is filled with fuel, until it is ready to charge it 
 again. Give your firemen to understand that they are to be on 
 their feet and constantly employed at night, as well as in day time, 
 and a move will have been made a long way towards better burn¬ 
 ing at le»s cost. The first thought here is, that night work is un¬ 
 natural, and brickmakers are too exacting. This is not the case; 
 when one considers the army of men who are at work every night, 
 the conclusion is that all night work is more important than work 
 done in daylight, even though it is the same, and only needs to be 
 faithfully done in brick burning, as in all other classes of work. 
 
 There is a great deal to learn about firing; that is to make heat 
 economically,or in other words, how to make the greatest amount 
 of heat in a furnace with a ton of coal. It matters not whether 
 the heat is to be used to make steam, dry brick or burn them; the 
 same principle applies with equal force to all of these. I refer 
 now to burning coal or coal-screenings on a grate surface. 
 
 First, the coal should be taken on a dirt shovel, or small 
 
 scoop. No more coal should be taken than will lay on the shovel 
 
 when it is being cast into the furnace. If there be too much on 
 
 the shovel, some will fall off’ before it reaches the furnace door, 
 
 and a stray piece or two will land in the ash pit under the grates, 
 
 instead of upon them ; here it will either burn and waste its heat, 
 
 or it will be carried to the dump with the ashes. If the shovel is 
 
 filled in the right manner and the cast skillfully made, all the 
 
 coal will ao inside the furnace. The fireman, however, should be- 
 
 8 
 
114 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 fore beginning to fire, glance into the furnace and see that the 
 burning coke is level and of equal thickness over the grates, then 
 he should determine quickly just where each shovelful should 
 go, and put it there. Four or five shovelfuls of coal should be 
 sufficient to cover eleven or twelve feet of grate surface. 
 
 If when the door is thrown open the fire is uneven on the 
 grates, take a light hook made of f or f iron, of suitable length, 
 and level it lightly without putting the iron on the grates, as that 
 would cause the live coals to fall through and waste the fire. As 
 soon as the last shovelful is thrown in, close the door; let this be 
 done quickly; never stop for any purpose until it is closed, and 
 never open the door until the tools you are to use in firing or 
 clinkering, are in reach. When the door is opened, more oxygen 
 is carried into the furnace than can be consumed, and this re¬ 
 duces the temperature. As soon as the fire is made and the door 
 closed, with your shovel, rake back from the pavement under the 
 door, any coal that may have fallen and leave the passage clear. 
 The space between the furnaces and fuel should be at least three 
 feet, and not more than five, as the fuel should always be within 
 easy distance so that the fire can be be made quickly. 
 
 To make a lively, effective heat, the grates must be kept as 
 free from clinkers as practicable. The best manner of cleaning 
 or clinkering the grates, depends somewhat upon the nature of 
 the fuel. If it makes a hard sheet-like clinker, break it up, by 
 running a clinker bar under it, into pieces that will go through 
 the door; with a single hook this kind of clinker can be readily 
 separated from the live coals and drawn from the furnace; if, how¬ 
 ever the clinkers are soft and slaty, they cannot be separated from 
 the live coals in this manner; instead of a hook, use a scraper 
 made of iron Jx4 inches, 8 inches long, welded or riveted to a 
 f-inch rod nine feet long. With this carefully push the live coals 
 which are always on top, to the rear of the furnace without mov- 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 115 
 
 ing the clinkers below. If the fires are low it is a good plan at 
 this stage to throw in a couple of light shovels of coal or a few 
 lumps, well back in the furnace on top of the live coals, and let 
 them remain there while the grates are being cleaned. When 
 this has been done, scrape the ashes and clinkers through the 
 door, leaving the grates bare and clear. The live coals can then 
 be drawn forward on the grates and they in turn covered with a 
 thin layer of coal, and heat will soon be restored. By pushing 
 the fire back before clinkering, it leaves the burning coke to cover 
 the grate bars, without falling through, as fine coal is apt to do 
 and helps to keep the line coal in place until it is well ignited. 
 Another advantage in pushing the fire back is, that it prevents the 
 cold air from rushing in and chilling the ware in a burning kiln. 
 
 How often the furnaces should be cleaned out, depends 
 wholly on the nature of the fuel; but as often as the furnace fails 
 to keep a bright clear heat after the flame disappears, just so often 
 must it be cleaned; whether it be once every two hours, or every 
 six hours. Another important point, is to keep the ashes from 
 getting near the grate bars. I think an ash pit should be at least 
 twenty inches deep, and the ashes should be kept never less than 
 twelve inches from the grates. If by any means the ashes or the 
 coke that is carelessly knocked from the grates, get red and hot 
 in the ash pit, either remove them at once, or cool them with wa¬ 
 ter ; this will prevent the grate bars from being melted or warped. 
 
 A grate bar to burn fine coal should have slots for draft, 4-inch 
 to f-inch wide, varying to suit the coal used. The tire doors should 
 have a plain surface on the inside, and be braced on the outside 
 by ribs, cast in the shape of a four pointed star. The star raised 
 one and a half inches above the face of the door. The ribs 
 should join the door by means of an even curve, instead of an 
 angle. The door must have from twelve.to sixteen holes through 
 it of f or 4 inches in diameter. 
 
116 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 There is one thing a fireman should not do; that is, sleep be¬ 
 tween firings. Good firemen like detectives, never sleep while on 
 duty. The intervals between firings should be regular, but the 
 length of a nap I have never been able to determine, or even ap¬ 
 proximate. When a fireman sleeps on duty while burning brick, 
 the kiln is injured by a reduced temperature, and again when he 
 wakes up and begins to try and make up the lost time, the ware 
 is likely to suffer damage from too much heat. Vigilance and 
 judgment are needed in brick burning. 
 
 The tools necessary for a fireman where coal is used, are illus¬ 
 trated in the engraving. No. 1 is a No. 2 dirt shovel. I consider 
 this better than a scoop as there is a saving in fuel, and allows the 
 coal to scatter evenly over the fire. No. 2 is a rustling iron used 
 also to pull out clinkers. No. 3 is a clinker bar made of 1-inch or 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 117 
 
 1 J-inch iron to break up or lift from the grate bars heavy clinkers. 
 No. 4 is a scraper to clean off the grate bars when fouled with slate or 
 small clinkers. No. 5 is a chisel shaped iron of ■£ inch round iron 
 which is very useful in closing up or tightening the platting dur¬ 
 ing the burn. No. 6 is a pair of tongs made with a chisel edge, 
 on the jaws, and is used to handle the platting, and is a great con¬ 
 venience in closing cracks in the platting when closing up, or to 
 handle hot bricks,which is necessary many times while burning a 
 kiln. Have a set provided for each side of the kiln. 
 
118 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 UNLOADING A KILN. 
 
 The best and cheapest method of getting bricks from the 
 kiln, and loaded into cars, is a question that has not yet been de¬ 
 termined. Most yards have their kilns side by side, with their car 
 tracks running by the ends of the kilns. Wheelbarrows are used 
 to carry the bricks into the cars. Usually in this way, one man 
 can load from six thousand to seven thousand a day. This an¬ 
 swers very well where from four to six cars a day are loaded from 
 one kiln. But when fifteen or twenty cars a day are loaded from 
 one kiln, wheelbarrows cannot be used, as there is not room to 
 work the number required. 
 
 Some have tried an endless belt to carry the bricks into the 
 cars, driving it by horse or steampower. It carries the bricks fast 
 enough, but it requires considerable time to raise and lower it to 
 suit the state of the kiln, and to shift it from one part of the kiln 
 to another. It might be made to work profitably, but it is doubt¬ 
 ful, however, about its coming into general use as a brick conveyor. 
 It seems to me a wire cable inclined toward the car with boxes 
 suspended and arranged to travel in with the load, and return an 
 empty one on a similar cable would be a better plan. When 
 loading from the bottom of the kiln it would be necessary to ele¬ 
 vate the load above the bottom of the car, enough to give it suffi¬ 
 cient incline to carry it to the car. 
 
 There would be difficulties to overcome in this plan; but 
 
 x 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 119 
 
 some inventive genius may accomplish it. We simply call atten¬ 
 tion to the pian, and would be glad if some Avay could be devised 
 to make lighter this hard task of carrying brick from the kiln to 
 the cars. 
 
 There is another plan that might do away with much of this 
 labor; which would be to lay a temporary track into the kiln, 
 and put the car into the kiln, so that bricks could be tossed into 
 the car direct, without rehandling or wheeling. This would ne¬ 
 cessitate a separate switch track for each kiln, or a turn table in 
 front of each. The latter would be more practicable, requiring 
 much less room, and less time to remove a loaded car from the 
 kiln,and put in an empty one. In this way there could be loaded ten 
 thousand brick a day, to the man employed; and there would be 
 no trouble to work ten men at loading one car, providing it is an 
 open top or flat car; box cars would be a hindrance to this way of 
 loading. The temporary track in kilns, could be made of light 
 rails, or wooden stringers with strap iron on top, so as to be moved 
 in sections with little labor. As to moving the cars either loaded 
 or empty, with a proper car pusher or lever costing five dollars 
 each, tw'O men can move a car, without much trouble when the 
 tracks are nearly level as they should be. The grade of the switch 
 tracks has much to do with the economic handling of cars. The 
 cars of fuel and supplies, together with the empties should stand 
 on the highest part of the track, so that when moving them to the 
 kilns, and away from them when loaded, they are going down 
 grade, and are easily moved. After you have determined upon 
 the method of conveying the bricks to the car, the next step is to 
 consider the manner of handling and caring for them, to insure 
 them the neat, finished appearance that is desired in any product. 
 
 The brick itself has a very rough time of it after being dug 
 up in the clay bank, and is subjected to a great deal of rough 
 usage until it finally rests quietly in the wall for a time. The 
 
120 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 green brick is supposed to be a frail article; liable to become soft 
 from moisture; or, if frozen while in a damp state, will 
 crumble on thawing; it will also crack in drying or burning, or 
 become broken, shattered or marred in handling at some point be¬ 
 tween the machine and the finished brick laid in the wall. 
 
 On a great many yards, after the bricks are burned, any fur¬ 
 ther care in the handling of them seems to be entirely ignored. 
 Instances and places could be stated where the bricks are made 
 and burned as good as could be desired or expected with the ma¬ 
 chines and appliances. The pressed brick, in particular, are all 
 made very carefully, and in fact no better can be found any¬ 
 where as a rule. These pressed brick after being carefully made 
 and dried are taken from the hacks and placed one at a time on 
 the brick barrows; each tier on the barrows is carefully brushed 
 with a dust brush; soft blankets are used between tiers, and light 
 slats interposed between in the courses. They are set in the kiln 
 one at a time, as tenderly as if they were fine ware. 
 
 Sometimes there is a rush of orders for pressed brick, and in 
 the eagerness to fill orders promptly, they are taken out of the 
 kiln first and while yet warm. The pressed brick being below, 
 part of the common stock have to be uncovered prematurely, and 
 the top courses of rough brick are piled back on top of others, and 
 are thus in the way of everything below them. Presto, the change 
 is now to see how much they will stand in the way of hard 
 knocks without breaking, and through carelessness or indifference 
 in the matter all attempts to retain their nice, finished appearance 
 as taken from the kilns seems to be abandoned. 
 
 They are taken up two or three at a time, or more, according 
 to the strength or disposition of the man loading the barrows, and 
 in some clays, if the bricks have been well burned, they may be 
 adhering to the faces just enough to cause them to lightly stick to¬ 
 gether. A blow with another brick will bring them apart or 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 121 
 
 make the spawls fly; or worse yet, reduce them to bats. They 
 are piled together in heaps or layers, on tray barrows, and wheeled 
 over uneven runways to the cars or wagons, and by the time they 
 are delivered at their destination they are full of scratches and 
 mars, and corners knocked off, they look as if they had been left 
 over from the Tower of Babel. 
 
 That is how not to unload a kiln of bricks. It is a poor adver¬ 
 tisement to any company and a standing disgrace to the man who 
 makes and burns a good article, as his work has gone by default 
 and the bricks ruined in their appearance by careless handling. All 
 bricks should be handled with care enough to insure good faces 
 on at least one-fifth of all the common stock. The pressed brick 
 are supposed to have each one good face, and that should be kept 
 free from all defects, all the time, until it is laid in the wall; and 
 even then the mason should use every precaution to keep them 
 from being stained or daubed with lime or mortar while the 
 building is in progress. 
 
 On opening a kiln, let the platting be taken up carefully, and 
 set back on top of the clamp walls; and all salmon brick or light 
 courses on top be taken down first, so as to get at the hard bi’ick 
 below. In unloading clamp kilns, begin at each end, and strip 
 down to the top of the pressed brick courses. Then take out all 
 the pressed brick, and do not mix them with the common brick, 
 beginning at the front at each end, so as to get all clear to that 
 level. Use every precaution to keep the faces of the brick clean 
 and free of mars of all kinds. A kiln of bricks will unload easier 
 beginning at the end where you left off setting, and go back in re¬ 
 verse order, taking out first those set in the kiln last; time can be 
 gained in this way; try it. And, also, in connection with this sub¬ 
 ject is the loading the brick on the car or wagons. Begin with a 
 clean, level floor on bottom of car, and put a fine scattering of 
 straw, or marsh hay on the floor, and then put the brick carefully 
 
122 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 in place one course at a time. Between the courses of brick, put 
 straw enough to keep the bricks from being rubbed or scratched 
 by contact in transit. Let this part of the work receive as much 
 care as at any time during the process of making, as your bricks 
 cost you more each time they are handled, and to all these hand¬ 
 lings must now be added the cost of burning. Then when your 
 pressed brick are all out, unload to the top of the benches includ¬ 
 ing the overhangers, and as soon as the first arch is opened, let all 
 bats and rubbish be dropped into it out of the way. Square up 
 the work on this level to the walls on both sides. Much time is 
 gained in this way; your work is orderly, and the brick can be 
 graded as loaded. While in the former case of digging holes to 
 get at the pressed brick, much time is lost or wasted, and many 
 bricks are spoiled or broken, and on works where a continuous 
 stream of bricks is expected every day, it is just as important to 
 unload the kilns quickly as it is to set the bricks in the kiln 
 quickly. After the bricks are all out to top of benches, then re¬ 
 move the benches and rubbish, one arch at a time, and your floor 
 is soon cleared. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 123 
 
 CHAPTER XYII. 
 
 HINTS ON WHEN TO START. 
 
 Parties who contemplate starting a new brick plant, will be¬ 
 gin to enquire when is the best time to start work, so as to enter 
 the market with the product ? The best time, as understood to 
 be meant, is what is the most favorable time of year to begin oper¬ 
 ations, in point of economy and assurance of market for the 
 brick. 
 
 There was a time in the history of the country when no one 
 entered into the business of manufacturing any commodity, with¬ 
 out some previous knowledge or experience in that particular 
 line. But now when capital is seeking investment at all points’ 
 men engage in the business of brickmaking who have never 
 been on a brick yard in any capacity, and the inquiring business 
 mind will ask such questions as are naturally suggested. Our an¬ 
 swer to all such is, very early spring is certainly the proper time 
 to open work on the new yard or plant. In speaking of a brick 
 plant, a permanent one is meant; that is, with steam hoist engines, 
 machines, artificial dryers, permanent kiln, etc. Among the 
 good reasons for beginning at this time of the year is, the weather 
 is more likely to grow better and more favorable for all kinds of 
 work; while if started in the fall months, the weather will be grow¬ 
 ing worse all the time, and much work will be done at a great 
 disadvantage, and consequent loss. 
 
 I have seen firms begin work in October, expecting to have 
 
124 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 their plant built and perfected, and making brick in a month or 
 six weeks, that were not ready to fill large orders for brick till the 
 following May ; and all work done in the meantime was done on 
 a strain, upgrade; because of the wet and cold, mud and freez¬ 
 ing, rains, thaws and general discomfort in the effort to build the 
 * works, and make brick without ample preparation. 
 
 By all means begin in the spring, even if your sales are not 
 as heavy the first year as you may desire; experience teaches that 
 they will be as large as you can attend to and carry on the work 
 of perfecting your plant. First select your machinery, engine 
 and boiler, and order them; also all lumber necessary to build a 
 good engine house, machine building, tool room, etc. These 
 buildings should be made permanent and safe from the start. 
 
 Then grade your yard, with a fall of one foot in one hundred; 
 provide drains so that surface water will be carried away quickly ; 
 begin making bricks as soon as there is no probability of frost de¬ 
 stroying the bricks, and dry by sun, heat and air. Provision must 
 be made to protect the product, so far as possible from the rain. 
 However, if some of the bricks are damaged somewhat by rain, 
 they can be burned and utilized in building your temporary 
 walls as well as the permanent ones. The product of the 
 first season, or part of it must be burned in temporary walls, and 
 in burning this way there will be a certain per cent, of arch brick 
 damaged more or less, and probably more salmon brick than can 
 be sold. These can be set aside for building the permanent kilns 
 and dryers. 
 
 Bricks cannot be burned in temporary walls, or even perma¬ 
 nent walls, without more or less damage to the arch brick, unless 
 the latter have furnaces attached to protect the brick from sudden 
 shrinkage, caused by drafts of cold air when; burning. No man, 
 however skillful, can prevent cold air rushing in the fire hole when 
 he is putting in fuel. This, I think, is plain to every practical 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 125 
 
 brick burner. By setting aside the damaged and part of the sal¬ 
 mon brick, you are enabled to give your patrons a good quality 
 from the start, thus securing their custom. Salmon brick should 
 always be protected from the rain and dampness, to save them, as 
 they will dissolve, if exposed to the weather. 
 
 As soon as a sufficient quantity of brick has accumulated, be¬ 
 gin the building of clamp walls, and in the latter part of the sea¬ 
 son begin building artificial dryers, of whatever kind you may 
 choose, from among the many in use, and before, or by the time 
 cold weather comes, have the dryer ready for operation. 
 
 During the fall and winter build as many additional clamps 
 as may be needed, and by the time spring opens, your plant is com¬ 
 pleted and ready to turn out good bricks with the full capacity of 
 your works every day. This is the most economical way in all 
 the details of starting and enables one to put in a plant with 
 much less capital. I have known men to buy bricks to build 
 their dryers and clamps. This, I think an extravagant way to pro¬ 
 ceed. If the brick used in construction are manufactured at the 
 plant, they get them at cost; if they are bought, they must pay 
 cost with profit and cartage, or freight added. 
 
 Before the work of building the plant begins, determine 
 whether the fuel used will be wood, coal, oil, or gas, and the cost of 
 same delivered at the works. If it is coal, contract for the year’s 
 supply at the most favorable time. If wood is to be the fuel, be 
 sure to have a season’s supply where it can be reached when 
 wanted. Next to labor, fuel is the most important item in brick 
 manufacture, and this question should receive careful attention. 
 Judgment should be exercised in purchasing wood; good split 
 wood is cheaper at $3 per cord than are poles, soft or decayed wood 
 at $2 per cord. The same is true, in a manner, of coal; it is bet¬ 
 ter to pay more and get clean, pure coal, for we must remember 
 that there is no heating power in cinders, or ashes, and impure 
 
126 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 coal requires more labor to fire with it. More heat is wasted, as 
 the furnaces require more frequent cleaning, and this is always at¬ 
 tended with a certain loss of heat, and, as a consequence, longer 
 time is consumed to burn the brick. 
 
 There is no doubt that the very best way to economize heat 
 and fuel in burning is to hold the heat on the ware as hot as it 
 will bear, and without intermission, thereby economizing heat; 
 and it improves the quality of the ware burned, and there is no 
 method of doing this except in kilns properly constructed, with 
 heavy walls and furnaces. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 127 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 BURNING BRICKS WITH NATURAL GAS. 
 
 In the early history of the manufactures of this country, the 
 only fuel available for steam purposes was wood. Later this was 
 supplemented, and even entirely'supplanted with coal in many 
 sections, as the mines were opened up and worked. Coal was 
 then used in its various ways in the factories, furnaces and mills, 
 as fuel direct, or as coke, and also to some extent as gas. This 
 was continued with varying degrees of success, until the discoveiy 
 of petroleum in Western Pennsylvania, late in the fifties. 
 
 Eor several years after the discovery of oil, its principal use 
 was for illumination, or as a lubricant; but with the advances 
 made in all the arts and sciences, progress was made here also; 
 and its products and uses were multiplied and varied, beyond the 
 conception of the most sanguine. 
 
 It was predicted soon after the discovery of oil, that on ac¬ 
 count of its abundance and cheapness, and its inflamable charac¬ 
 ter, it would eventually be used as fuel in lieu of wood or coal. 
 No account was made at that time of the gas which accompanied 
 the flow of oil in nearly every case, and in many instances where 
 a hole was drilled for oil, and abandoned as a dry hole, gas contin¬ 
 ued to flow in an uninterrupted way for years afterward, without 
 any attempt to utilize it as a manufacturing agent. 
 
 The writer remembers seeing a well that was drilled for oil, 
 that at a stated depth encountered a fissure in the rocks, from 
 
128 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 which the gas burst forth with tremendous force, and was ignited 
 by the fire at the engine which worked the drill. All the wood 
 work of the derrick and buildings were consumed, and the well 
 continued to burn for years afterward, the flame shooting high up 
 in the air with a roar that could be heard for miles up and down 
 the valley; the flame mounting as high as the tops of the tallest 
 trees in the surrounding forest. Cases similar to this were nu¬ 
 merous throughout the oil region, or adjacent to it, as the two 
 products seem to be correlative. There was a few feeble attempts 
 made to shut off the flow of gas, and extinguish the fire, so as to 
 go on with the work of drilling for oil, but without success until 
 in recent years. 
 
 There were some few individuals in the vicinity of the oil or 
 gas wells who made experiments in a rough way with a view of 
 utilizing the waste gas, to warm their dwellings or for kitchen 
 uses. 
 
 An uncle of the writer made some such attempts, but was 
 looked upon as a triflex*, or dare-devil for tampering with a sub¬ 
 stance that seemed to have its origin in the infernal regions, or 
 down in that supposed direction of them, and possessed such a 
 highly combustible and apparently destructive natui*e. 
 
 His experiments were not with gas alone, but oil also; and 
 many wei*e the scares he gave himself and family, before he ar¬ 
 rived at anything like success. With the pipe fittings from old 
 abandoned oil wells, he piped the gas to the kitcheix stove and 
 fire place, and continued to use it for a long time before it came 
 into genei'al use. Our recollection is that his neigliboi’s made 
 him a laughing stock by insinuating that laziixess prompted him 
 to devise this means to avoid chopping wood. The laugh on his 
 side came late but was expi*essive. 
 
 The city of Erie, Pa., was probably the first to adopt 
 any method of utilizing the gas in an economical way, for heat or 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 129 
 
 illumination, and this was done in a crude or wasteful manner 
 for many years. But as it gradually became known and recog¬ 
 nized, appliances were perfected for controlling the flow at the will 
 of the consumer, until in its present state we have apparently the 
 ideal fuel which, when handled with proper care, possesses more 
 desirable characteristics than any other. It is easily regulated, 
 constant, serves both for light and heat, and can be adapted to 
 any stove or fireplace that uses wood or coal. It is entirely free 
 from bulk, weight, dirt or ashes,and no big lumps to be missing in 
 the morning. It is quick in its operation, and has no variation af¬ 
 ter adjusting the flame; it burns with a heavy, dark yellow flame, 
 depositing carbon, or soot, when too strong, or insufficiently sup¬ 
 plied with fresh air, which is necessary to perfect combustion of 
 any fuel; but if turned low enough to keep up a low heat, the 
 flame is a dark blue, vaporous flame, similar to a sulphurous 
 blaze, or that given oft' from a fire of coke or charcoal. It is 
 burned in the dwelling for fuel and light; it is burned in the 
 kitchen stove, and the parlor grate. Apply the match, turn on the 
 gas, and the fire is made and the work done for the day, so far as 
 the heat is concerned. It is well to bear in mind that the above 
 directions, say apply the match first, and then turn on the gas, as by 
 turning on the gas first, if you should be late with the match, the 
 stove becomes filled with gas, and would be likely to be 
 wrecked with the explosion, which would inevitably take place. 
 The grate is filled with brickbats, pieces of broken sewer pipe, or 
 broken castings, or old door knobs, etc., or any incombustible ma¬ 
 terial to hold the heat, and it soon warms a room or a whole 
 house. In winter a small amount of gas is left burning all night 
 in the grate or stove, and the rooms are warm in the morning. It 
 is a great saving of time and labor, and is cheaper by far than any 
 other fuel yet discovered. 
 
 It cheapens manufacturing on account of its utility, epesciallv 
 
 9 
 
130 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 the manufacture of iron and clay products, because of the great, 
 amount of heat required in the working of these two products 
 some manufacturers needing fuel only for power; so manufac¬ 
 turers of iron and clay are benefited by this cheap fuel in a greater 
 degree than most others. I am glad the brick manufacturer has 
 been benefited by it, as well as others, and that bricks can be eco¬ 
 nomically dried and burned with natural gas for fuel. 
 
 Most of the brickmakers in Pittsburg, Pa., and near 
 there, use natural gas and hot floor dryers for drying brick. As 
 far as drying is concerned, it is a grand success; there being no 
 soot or ashes to impede the heat, or act as non-conductor. The 
 floor is heated the whole length, requiring no labor whatever. 
 
 After natural gas was determined upon as a fuel for domestic 
 purposes, it soon was demonstrated to be a proper fuel for manu¬ 
 facturing purposes also. Companies were organized, lines of pipe 
 laid from the gas territory to the adjacent towns and villages; con¬ 
 tracts were made to supply fuel gas for a term of years at a nomi¬ 
 nal sum. The brickmakers in many cases, availed themselves of 
 these offers, and pipes were laid to the works, as at all other places 
 of manufacturing; they agreeing to pay a certain price per thous¬ 
 and for the drying and burning of the brick, or for the burning 
 alone. The pipes are inserted into the furnace just above the fire 
 door, as understood for coal burning furnaces. The ash pit and 
 door are bricked up solid, and air for combustion admitted 
 through the same opening which the pipes enter, and this is ar¬ 
 ranged to be opened or closed, at the will of the burner or man in 
 charge. 
 
 In the matter of brick burning, by admitting more of a vol¬ 
 ume of air the flame is increased, but does not seem to heat the 
 kiln so well as does a smaller quantity of air and less flame 
 When a kiln of brick is in full blast and raising heat the roar of 
 the escaping gas and rush of flame is so loud, the men about the 
 
BKICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 131 
 
 kiln can scarcely make themselves heard unless they speak loud¬ 
 ly. Some of the brick makers say it is a complete success; others 
 claim their arch bricks are not so sound. This difference is ex¬ 
 plained, I think, in this way: Those who formerly used the old 
 style clamps had damaged arch brick in burning with coal, there¬ 
 fore find them no better, or worse in burning with gas. While 
 those who have burned with furnace attachment kilns and had 
 sound arch brick in burning with coal, find their arches dam¬ 
 aged in burning with gas. We think, however, if properly ar¬ 
 ranged and managed, much better results can be obtained from 
 burning gas in furnace attachment kilns, than without, as the 
 cold air will damage the arch bricks when it enters the kiln di¬ 
 rectly with the gas, before it has been heated. A chamber outside 
 the walls for combustion of the gases and oxygen, is the only way 
 to prevent the damaging of the arch bricks. The writer examined 
 a kiln of brick that was about ready to close up. The fires were 
 perfect, the heat uniformas in the improved kilns, but,there were 
 defects in the method that looked as if they might easily be rem¬ 
 edied. The heads were high and the green brick were dark next 
 to the wall. The centers of the arches, or closing courses, 
 were down three inches lower than the benches, on each 
 side of the arch. These matters can be remedied very materially, 
 and with a fuel as perfect as gas seems to be, there ought to be 
 perfection in the burned ware. The setting of the brick to dis¬ 
 tribute the heat equally through the benches, would make the 
 settle alike all over, and then an ample provision for draft on the 
 heads next to the walls, would help burn the bricks out at that 
 point. 
 
 Our experience in burning bricks with wood and coal, in old 
 style out door klins, and by improved methods with furnace at¬ 
 tachments, prompts us to suggest these means as a remedy, as all 
 brick burning is virtually the same, no matter what the fuel. 
 
132 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 A gentleman near Pittsburg informed me that he paid the 
 gas company, eighty cents per thousand for the drying and burn¬ 
 ing of his bricks. He reports to the company at the end of each 
 month, the number of thousands he has dried and burned dur¬ 
 ing the month. If he uses any coal during that time it is charged 
 to the gas company, and deducted from their bill. There is one 
 great satisfaction about this system—the brickmaker knows to a 
 cent all the time what it costs him to dry and burn his brick. All 
 through the gas producing section it is used in the iron works, 
 forges, rolling mills, etc., and Pittsburg, much to my surprise, I 
 found as clean as Philadelphia. It has been known in the past as 
 the “Smoky City.” The term has lost its significance. In riding 
 through the gas fields and much of the adjacent territory, and 
 through the Ohio valley below Pittsburg the gas can be seen blaz¬ 
 ing from the gas posts in the day time. These are usually two- 
 inch pipes, with an opening of sufl&cient size to make a flame of 
 three or more feet in height, and being without glass tops, look 
 like great candles, and to the observer, one would expect to see 
 the melted tallow or the consumed post, with a flickering and ex¬ 
 piring flame. 
 
 There is but one question in my mind about natural gas, and 
 that is: Is the supply inexhaustible? We know the petroleum 
 wells are not. They first spout or flow, then they are pumped, 
 and finally the pump fails to bring up the unctuous fluid,and it is 
 abandoned for newer basins. Gas has been found in greater or 
 less quantities wherever oil has been found, and seemed to ex¬ 
 haust itself in the same manner. These reservoirs of gas may be 
 inexhaustible; if so, the process of generating it is perpetual. 
 Since the discovery of gas in Ohio and Indiana, these sections bid 
 fair to rival the oil and gas district of Western Pennsylvania. It 
 is of immense benefit to the people now. However, I suppose a 
 great syndicate will be formed to control all the gas producing dis- 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 133 
 
 tricts and the prices also; as most all the good things and neces¬ 
 saries are monopolized in this way. 
 
 We lately saw an article in one of the trade journals calling 
 attention to the fact that some of the large iron mills in Pitts¬ 
 burg were about to discard natural gas as fuel, and this was having 
 a tendency to discourage manufacturers at other points who had 
 located in the gas field. It would seem from the statements made, 
 that gas as a fuel had in several respects been a disappointment. 
 A great deal of loss had been experienced by owners of mills and 
 workmen, also, on account of the frequent failure of the gas supply, 
 and that it would only be a question of time when they would all 
 turn to artificial fuel, for all their wants and needs in that line. 
 
 The next substitute for fuel after natural gas, is gas manufac¬ 
 tured from either coal or oil, either of which is feasible and meas¬ 
 urably successful, considering the limited range of the experiments 
 in that line. Coal has been reduced to a fine powder and sprayed 
 into a furnace in a shower of dust in combination with a jet of 
 dry steam; this is reputed to produce an intense, white heat at low 
 cost. Oil has also been fed into the furnace with steam, and 
 makes a fuel that is free from objectionable qualities, and again the 
 oil has been heated to a certain point at which it is resolved into 
 a gas, differing but little in its nature from the natural gas. While 
 in a few cases oil and steam are being used as fuel in drying and 
 burning brick, yet we feel that the matter is not yet perfected 
 enough to advise brickmakers to invest in the oil burners. It is 
 as yet in its infancy, and the methods too expensive or unrelia¬ 
 ble to adopt for general use. 
 
 We hope the time may soon come when we will be able to 
 advise oil for fuel in brick burning. Since natural gas is confined 
 to limited areas, oil can be transported to distant points and then 
 converted into gas, and used for all purposes, as natural gas. 
 
134 
 
 BRICIvMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 BRICK AS A BUILDING MATERIAL. 
 
 There is a saying that “a brick is a brick.” In other words, 
 rough or smooth, red or yellow, it is a brick. This is a great mis¬ 
 take. There is just as much difference between a good brick and 
 a bad one, as between a good egg and a bad one. I have heard 
 men say, “I prefer brick to wood for my house, but brick is too 
 plain. I can have a frame house as I like it. Wood is more 
 capable of ornamentation than brick.” This is too often the case, 
 for we know how a house built of rough and poorly burned 
 brick looks. 
 
 It is true that the walls sometimes exhibit a variety of colors, 
 like Joseph’s coat, ranging all the way from a bilious yellow to a 
 blue black. These colors, however, are not in regular stripes, but 
 after that style known as crazy quilt pattern. Such brick often 
 prejudice men against brick for fine houses. On the other hand, 
 we know that a house built of well made, well burned brick, laid 
 in white mortar, trimmed with stone, terra cotta, or fancy patterns 
 of brick, certainly makes a beautiful and durable building, one 
 that will stand for centuries in any climate, and is nearer fire¬ 
 proof, than any other frost-proof material used in building. 
 
 It has been but a, very few years since the art of brickmaking 
 has advanced far enough to give us molded brick, or ornamented 
 designs, beyond a few designs in angles or circles; these were 
 employed on bay windows, or irregular corners and openings, or 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 135 
 
 to a very limited extent in cornices, but with the rapid advance 
 made in our architectural designs, and our demand for some or¬ 
 namentation in brick houses, as well as wood, came the improved 
 methods of brickmaking, and elaboration of our brick buildings 
 with molded water tables, belt courses, arches, corbels, spandrels, 
 lintels, mullions, dados, friezes, consoles, base courses, and, in fact, 
 any and all parts of the structure, are now ornamented in a mul¬ 
 tiplicity of designs, that are far more pleasing to the eye in several 
 respects, than wood or stone; more substantial, and in every way 
 better, so that it is no longer a plausible excuse, that wood can 
 be ornamented better than brick. A glance at a first-class house 
 of to-day will convince the most skeptical, either on the exterior 
 or interior. A wooden house will be an old house in appearance 
 in thirty years; and in that time will have received no less than 
 ten or twelve coats of paint, to keep it looking respectable; while 
 a well built brick house will improve in its looks. The eye will 
 delight to linger on its walls, gables and angles, with their lines of 
 light and shadow, and its general effect, as a picture. The natural 
 color of brick is much more pleasant to the eye than the bright 
 glaring colors of the shops, laid on in oil, which soon fade, wash 
 off', blister or peel, and, in short, are unsightly. The different 
 colors of brick, disposed in panels, belt courses, and lintels, in one 
 shade, with all plain walls in some other prevailing color, or the 
 house trimmed in stone or terra cotta, make a picture that can¬ 
 not be produced with wood and paint, and have anything like 
 durabilitjr. This is a matter you can easily prove to your own 
 satisfaction. 
 
 Hunt up some of the old houses built in the fifties, or previous 
 to that time; they were marvels of skill and workmanship—verit¬ 
 able palaces. I speak now of the best class of frame houses that 
 were being built all over the country at that time. You thought 
 those houses fine. You kept them in mind as an example or 
 
136 
 
 BRTCKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 model to pattern after as you grew up to manhood, or if already 
 giown to that estate, would have such a house when you built. 
 Go now and take a look at those houses,' some of them were built 
 in close proximity to an old brick house of fair pretensions, and 
 you can find them both still standing, and note the difference in 
 the two; I venture to say the brick house has hardly changed, 
 while the frame is an old pile of loose boards, decayed sills and 
 steps; it is hardly fit for a habitation for man. 
 
 There are quite a number of buildings in the cities along the 
 Atlantic coast that were built of brick brought across the sea; 
 some from Holland, and others from England. One that the 
 writer recalls having seen in Norfolk, Va., is a church built of 
 brick brought from England, which bears the date of its erection 
 in the gable, by the brick built in and projecting an inch from 
 the face of the wall as headers, forming the figures in an irregular 
 outline to correspond with the brick work and form in figures, 
 two feet or more in length—1 7 3 9. The brick that form the 
 outline of these figures are the arch brick, that are glazed a 
 brownish black color on the ends that came next to the fire. 
 These glazed brick are noticeable all over the face of the wall, 
 and laid in without regard to any design, form a quaint picture, 
 in comparison with a fine pressed front as constructed at this day. 
 These English brick are smaller every way than our sizes as 
 now made, being about 7 ^x3jx 2J inches. They were burned hard 
 enough to stand the weather in this unfavorable climate, but are 
 all shades from a yellowish red to a dark cherry red, and on down 
 to brown and black among the arch brick. This church, anti¬ 
 quated as it is, still has an air of gentility that compares very 
 favorably with buildings put up within the past forty years, and 
 fai surpasses the unsightly wooden boxes we see so frequently all 
 over the country to-day. 
 
 Theie are to-day, in different sections of the East coast, some 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 137 
 
 good examples of old brick work, dating back from seventy-five to 
 one hundred, years or more; and but few structures of frame that 
 are considered of any consequence, that have been standing over 
 fifty years. 
 
 A brickmaker who makes good brick, that are uniform in 
 shape and color, should take his customers to buildings built of 
 different qualities of brick, and show them the difference in 
 appearance when laid in the wall. This brick wall argument is 
 conclusive, when it is properly presented to sensible men; they 
 can see it is cheaper to pay more and get good brick; here is 
 where it effects both the brickmaker and consumer. Some object 
 to brick houses because the walls are damp. I find this objection 
 prevails largely in the Southern States. The preference is for a 
 frame house, that can be set up on brick piers or wooden posts to 
 give a circulation of air under the house. The claim is that a 
 house with a brick wall under it, is a place that will breed fever 
 and disease. But the argument is only an open acknowledgment 
 of their ignorance of the building business. Houses can be con¬ 
 structed of brick with large rooms, well lighted and ventilated 
 under the whole superstructure and used as a basement story, and 
 be no more productive of disease, if as much so, as in the case 
 where the houses are built in detachments, one part separated 
 from another with an outdoor space between sections, as is so 
 frequently seen in all parts of the South. 
 
 It is well known that hollow walls with inlets for air at the 
 bottom and outlets at the top, will keep the inside of walls as dry 
 as any wooden building. Sometimes there is an excess of mois¬ 
 ture in the ground and the dampness rises in the walls by cap¬ 
 illary attraction, causing much trouble and annoyance, and is 
 frequently the primary cause of much sickness in such places. 
 There are several ways to avoid this. Where a building has a 
 stone foundation, there is not likely to be much moisture rise 
 
138 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 fiom it to the brick wall above. Another plan is to have a good 
 system of underdrains laid underneath and all about the building. 
 The earth should be graded higher next to the foundation walls 
 to carry off all moisture, or surface water. The foundation walls 
 should be built up from two feet six inches, to three feet or more 
 above ground, before the first floor joist is laid on. Near the top 
 of this foundation, and below the floor joist, a course of roofing 
 slate should be laid between the bricks and well bedded in the 
 mortar; this will effectually cut off the absorption of moisture 
 fiom the earth, and there will be no trouble from damp walls on 
 lower floors. There is another source of dampness which we will 
 consider here. When a driving rain beats against the wall of a 
 biick house, the bucks absorb this water very largely; and where 
 a rain of this kind lasts a few hours, the dampness penetrates to 
 the inside on the first and sometimes even the second story, so 
 that the water will stand in drops on the inside walls. This water 
 is not always that which has penetrated the wall as rain, but is 
 water condensed on the cold wall, from the warm air on the in¬ 
 side of the building. However, the effects of the dampness are 
 the same; and where walls are nicely papered, or decorated, they 
 are very often sadly damaged, or entirely ruined. 
 
 The temedy for these damp walls and foundations are not 
 piopeily in the hands of the brickmaker, but rather the brick¬ 
 layer; but the bricklayer in most cases neglects this very impor¬ 
 tant item in his work. He has not the competition in his trade 
 that other branches of the building trade have, and his work is 
 hurried and in many cases illy done, to what it should be. But 
 the brickmaker should be up to all these points and be able to 
 instruct his patrons, and then it can be required of the mason to 
 build such work as he desires. 
 
 In building a hollow wall, where the header or bond course 
 of biick comes, lay a Flemish bond; which is a header and 
 
BRICKMAKEliS MANUAL. 
 
 139 
 
 stretcher alternately. These headers bond the wall on the outside, 
 to the inner wall, and leave a space between the two of one and 
 a half or two inches, of a chamber continuous from bottom to 
 top, and a free circulation of air throughout; the rooms inside 
 are then equable in temperature, dry and comfortable; being 
 much cooler in summer, and warmer in winter, as it is also frost¬ 
 proof. This hollow wall I have built in several instances, where 
 I have had an opportunity, and the results are highly satisfactory. 
 
 Diagram of Hollow Wall. 
 
 Brickmakers and builders should give this matter of damp 
 walls and cellars more attention; dampness being the most seri¬ 
 ous objection that can be brought against the use of brick; and 
 few people know that they can have a brick house as free from 
 dampness, if properly constructed, as any frame house. It costs 
 less for repairs and insurance, and can be made as attractive in 
 design as desired. 
 
 Let the bricks be made still more beautiful in finish, color 
 and design. It is plain that it is to the interest of brickmakers 
 to make not only a good brick of durable quality, but they must 
 avail themselves of the real improvements for the handling and 
 preparation of the clay and the molding, drying and burning of 
 the bricks, so as to produce a brick well finished in appearance, 
 perfect in shape, and burned in a manner that will bring out its 
 very best color, and be hard enough for durability. 
 
 Bricks will undoubtedly be the great stand-by for building 
 
140 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 material in the future; of this there can be no doubt. It is true 
 stone will also be used largely, but not to near the same extent, 
 for the reason that stone is more expensive; it costs more to work 
 it into shapes or forms of beauty and utility, while the plasticity 
 of clay, allows of an infinitude of designs and beautiful forms. 
 
 Clny products are among the first articles of manufacture of 
 any race of people, and by their advance in the art of clayworking 
 we judge of their advance in civilization. Just how soon we will 
 leach the point when brick will be more in demand for the walls 
 of our houses than wood, depends in a great measure upon the 
 biickmakers; and if J can read the signs of the times aright, they 
 are arousing from their lethargy and shaking the dust and cob- 
 v ebs of ages from their industry, and are leaving the beaten track 
 which their predecessors have followed with blind devotion for 
 centuries. I hope to live to see the day when our art will take its 
 place in the front rank of the great industrial procession, a posi¬ 
 tion to which its usefulness and its great antiquity justly entitle it. 
 
 The desired object or aim in all building operations is 
 summed up in the following three requisites: First, stability; 
 next, utility; then ornamentation. We will not discuss these 
 points separately, but leave them for your consideration. 
 
 Theie is no manufactured material so universally employed 
 the world over as bricks, in some form, nor none that has been so 
 long in use. That clay was used for building purposes was on 
 account of the ease with which it could be worked and shaped 
 into cubes, 01 other forms, for building blocks, and afterwards 
 diied or burned to retain their shape. Stone for building pur¬ 
 poses was not nearly so abundant, nor so readily formed into 
 proper shape for building purposes. 
 
 Primitive man, like the race of to-day, sought the most fertile 
 lands; those lying contiguous to streams, on broad savannas or 
 in rich valleys; and in these sections stone was not near so 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 141 
 
 plenty as in the hilly or mountain districts, but were plentifully 
 supplied with wood and clay. Necessity required him to construct 
 a habitation quickly and easily; first ag a shelter from the storms 
 and also as a defense from wild animals. His first rude eflorts can 
 only be surmised; later, he may have built his house like the 
 more recent emigrant, who, in Kansas or Coloi’ado, made a sod 
 house from the turf or sod of the prairie; building it up like a 
 stone wall, and, by arching it over or drawing in the top, covered 
 the structure with the same material as the walls. We do a great 
 deal of reasoning by analogy; hence those of us who can remem¬ 
 ber the old Dutch oven of our grandmothers, built out of doors 
 on a platform of suitable height, over which was spread a thick 
 coating of tempered mud; then on this clay floor was piled up in 
 a conical or dome-like shape, small twigs in the bottom, with 
 heavy wood on top, and then brought into the right shape to form 
 the inside of the oven with bark and chips, until its shape was 
 something like the capital letter D on the bottom of oven; this 
 was provided with a door about twelve inches square, and an 
 opening at the rear as a vent or draft. Over this pile of wood and 
 bark was spread a thick coat of tempered mud some three or foui 
 inches thick, and well kneaded into shape; this was covered with 
 something to keep off the sun and wind until it was thoroughly 
 dry; after which fire was applied to the wood on the inside and 
 all burned out, leaving it stand like a half burned brick on the 
 inside; these ovens would stand, with care and slight shelter, for 
 years; and many a savory morsel has been prepared in them, as 
 the writer can testify to his own delectation. So that reasoning 
 from this point we can infer that in this way and manner, was 
 evolved the house of those early times. This method was prob¬ 
 ably improved upon to allow of additional size and solidity with¬ 
 out weakening the structure by also burning it on the outside 
 with wood heaped over the structure. 
 
142 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 While iron plays an important part in all structures, yet its 
 use is limited to certain parts only, and is not likely to ever be 
 adapted to the building of walls, roofs or floors of houses. While 
 it is abundant, yet it is limited in its area of distribution, and 
 transportation adds to its cost, and is only used where strength 
 and lightness of construction are needed. 
 
 Clay for brick or for building purposes, is the most abundant 
 of any known substance, and is capable of being quickly and 
 easily fashioned into some shape, either rude or artistic, that ren¬ 
 ders it portable, durable, and efficient. 
 
 In the early settlement of this country, wood was almost the 
 only material used in the construction of all buildings; and this, 
 on account of the abundance of timber of all kinds suitable, has 
 continued almost uninterruptedly up to the present time. But 
 the enormous consumption of wood in all its various uses, as 
 required in our advanced civilization, renders that article too 
 expensive to enter wholly, or even largely, into the construction 
 of our houses. Our people to-day are too well informed on all 
 general topics, to be very far behind in the race for supremacy 
 and leadership in the school of political economy; and they have 
 discovered the fact that wood is an expensive material with which 
 to build a home. And very naturally the question is suggested: 
 What shall we use as a substitute for our wooden houses? 
 
 That brick is to come into general use for the walls and 
 foundations of our houses can scarcely be doubted; for the reason 
 of their being indestructible in their contact with the weather 
 water, or lire, and the almost unlimited and universal distribution 
 of clay suitable for their manufacture. 
 
 In treating the subject named above, viz., the requisites in all 
 building operations, we have, in a general way, only spoken of, or 
 considered them, in the point of durability and utility. While 
 the subject has by no means been exhausted, we feel that we have 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 143 
 
 only touched lightly upou it, and leave it that we may 
 pass to other points that concern us more directly. 
 
 In the fore part of this chapter we state that it is only within 
 recent years, that the art of brickmaking has advanced enough 
 to give us molded or ornamental designs in brick work. Let us 
 be understood on this point. There are so many kinds of clay 
 ware that have been subdivided into classes, each class separate 
 and distinct; and in the line of progress in the art, they trench 
 one upon the other. But we think it best to follow the masses 
 in classifying clay products into four distinct classes, and these 
 in turn subdivided. Beginning with bricks, which is the rudest 
 form of all clay ware, and as we go up in the scale we leave the 
 original brick and come into the realm of terra cotta. And so it 
 is with pipes and sanitary ware, as we ascend in the scale until it 
 attains the highest excellence in the potters’ art in earthenware 
 and porcelain products. 
 
 The ancient nations of the Old World employed terra cotta 
 in architecture, as a means of ornamentation as well as for its in¬ 
 destructibility—the Greeks more largely, perhaps, than any other. 
 Strictly speaking, terra cotta means, earth baked, and is meant to 
 be applied to any fictile object that has been burned or baked; 
 but in its architectural sense, especially, implies the finer articles 
 in decorative work, in contradistinction to the plain brick. 
 
 Terra cotta articles are supposed to be those parts of the 
 structure that are incapable of being formed of plain brick, made 
 in large pieces, and on account of the ornamentation, requires a 
 clay of certain peculiar properties in respect to plasticity, shrink¬ 
 age in drying and burning, and also in color; and, in this way, is 
 not considered as brick. Both Greeks and Romans employed it 
 largely, not only for architectural purposes, but for an immense 
 variety of other uses and objects, from the commonest articles of 
 every day use to the most elaborate and ambitious works of art; 
 
144 
 
 BKICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 such as colossal statues and groups. It was also used in minia¬ 
 ture busts, statuettes, jewelry, sarcophagai, inscribed tablets, tiles, 
 etc., etc. In some respects the use of terra cotta or burnt clay 
 has great advantages over marble or stone, in the sculptor’s art. 
 The soft clay is easily and rapidly molded into form while the 
 sculptors thought is fresh in his mind, and for this reason, terra 
 cotta work often possesses a spirit and vigor which can hardly be 
 lepioduced in the laboriously finished marble. It has of late 
 years been very largely used in some important buildings in 
 different places all over this country. 
 
 The great improvements which have been made in the man¬ 
 ufacture of terra cotta will quite likely lead to its more extensive 
 use. The great difficulty has been to retain the impression of the 
 mold in all its sharpness of outline and detail. This is due to 
 the uneven shrinkage and warping, which is likely to occur in 
 the manufacture of large pieces; the outside, or edges and corners, 
 dry faster than the middle and under side, and in consequence of 
 the slow drying of the middle, its shrinkage is greater, thereby 
 destroying the beauty of its lines, as any want of truth in archi¬ 
 tectural lines soon become painfully apparent to the true artist. 
 This is more noticeable in long lines of cornice, or in the fit of an 
 arch of door or window, belt courses, or entablatures, etc., each 
 piece must fit accurately to the next one, or else the lines of 
 molding become broken and irregular, thereby defacing what it 
 was intended to render ornate. 
 
 Terra cotta is now made of many different colors; some man¬ 
 ufacturers using a clay to correspond with their pressed and orna¬ 
 mental bricks, which they manufacture in connection with it—a 
 rich red and a warm ochre or cream color, being the most pleasant 
 to the eye, and more in demand. 
 
 In order to avoid the defects of making in its warping, twist¬ 
 ing, shrinkage, or cracking and breaking when it is fired in large 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 145 
 
 pieces, it is necessary to have a large proportion of silicon in the 
 clay; and most manufacturers wash their clay, to remove any 
 impurities in the way of sand or fine pebbles of stone or iron. 
 And it is usually stored up months in advance of using, to allow 
 it to become seasoned and make a homogeneous mass when it is 
 finally worked. 
 
 10 
 
146 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 WOOD AS FUEL IN BRICK BURNING. 
 
 The time is not very remote when there was but one kind of 
 fuel used in burning bricks. Forty years ago, I believe I am sure 
 in saying, there was scarcely any brick burned except with wood; 
 and those with the old style out of door kilns; while to-day we 
 use wood, coal, coke, natural gas, or oil, in permanent kiln walls, 
 or improved patent kilns, with furnaces attached, constructed on 
 scientific principles. Wood and coal being more generally dis¬ 
 tributed over the brick manufacturing districts, are more largely 
 used, and in all probability will be for years to come. 
 
 When this country was in its infancy, it was covered in great 
 part with a dense growth of forest, which usually occupied the 
 best of our arable lands; wood was then plenty, and every means 
 was employed to rid the ground of this surplus timber; and 
 femong other things was the utilizing it so far as possible in brick 
 burning. And even to-day in some sections where there are 
 tracts of timber a little remote from market, you may hear men 
 speculating as to the advisability of using this wood, to burn a 
 kiln or two of bricks. They say “I can’t sell the wood and I have 
 great lots of it going to waste; and I believe if I would use it up 
 and burn a few hundred thousand brick I could sell them some 
 time, even out here in the country.” And in many places where 
 wood was less salable than brick, it was the starting point of 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 147 
 
 some of our prominent brick manufacturers; making available 
 and profitable to themselves their otherwise useless materials. 
 
 Wood in most places is being rapidly superceded by coal, 
 wholly or in part, and for several reasons. First on account of its 
 scarcity, which in turn makes it high in price. Wood that has 
 hitherto made the best fuel is no longer used as such, because of its 
 value in manufactures in various ways. Where trees were cut en¬ 
 tirely up into cord wood in former years they are now first cut for 
 sawmill material, and all the trunks and solid parts are used as 
 such, while the top limbs and inferior parts, together with dead 
 hollow trees are worked up into cord wood ; so that no great quan¬ 
 tity of first class cord wood is available now as formerly. The 
 comparative value of wood in comparison with coal, depends 
 measurably upon the kind of wood, or the time it was cut, condi¬ 
 tion and quality generally. 
 
 The following table gives the value of wood as fuel as com¬ 
 pared with coal in weight : 
 
 One cord of hickory or hard maple weighs 4,500 lbs., 
 which is equal to 2,000 lbs. of coal. 
 
 One cord of white oak weighs 3,500 lbs., which is equal to 
 1,750 lbs. of coal. 
 
 One cord of beech, red oak and black oak weighs 3,250 lbs., 
 which is equal to 1,450 lbs. of coal. 
 
 One cord of poplar, chestnut and elm weighs 2,350 lbs. which 
 equals 1,050 lbs. of coal. 
 
 One cord of pine, weighs 2.000 lbs., which is equal to 925 lbs. 
 of coal. 
 
 So it is safe to assume that 2£ lbs. of wood equals 1 lb. 
 of the average quality of bituminous coal; and 1 lb. of pine wood 
 is worth about the same as 1 lb. of hickory, assuming both to 
 be dry; and in brick burning it is very important that the wood 
 
148 
 
 BRlCKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 be dry, as each 10 per cent, of moisture will detract that much 
 from its full value. 
 
 Wood should be cut and seasoned not less than six months 
 before using; and should be split into sections so as to be hand¬ 
 led readily, and enter the arches without unnecessary effort or 
 struggles of the fireman. 
 
 Where the wood is split or left in large, ungainly knots, or 
 forks of trees, firemen will usually work around them or away 
 from them, leaving them on hand and in the way when done 
 burning the kiln ; and in this way a large lot of worthless wood 
 is liable to accumulate. 
 
 Sometimes wood that is cut and “ricked” up in the woods, re¬ 
 mains there for a term of seasons and deteriorates very much in 
 value as a fuel. It may be the trees were of a variety that have no 
 lasting quality, and the sap portion of the timber is soft and 
 spongy, and rots easily. Such wood makes but little heat, by pro¬ 
 ducing but little flame, and is no more than a smoldering bed of 
 coals. 
 
 The same would be true of other varieties of timber cut at 
 the wrong time of the year, as then the worms would have so 
 eaten and penetrated all the sap portion beneath the bark, and not 
 stopping there but attacked the hard wood beneath the sap, and in 
 a measure destroyed all of it, enough so as to render it nearly worth¬ 
 less. If the fuel is good the intelligent burner knows it; if it is 
 not he must work accordingly. Any of the free burning woods, 
 sound, hard, and dry, is what is needed for fuel when you use 
 wood. 
 
 But do not expect your burner to do good work with green 
 wood, or that which is sap rotten; or sour heavy, stuff that will not 
 burn free in any condition; ora lot of small twigs and brushy 
 stuff that may have been imposed upon you as cord wood. 
 
 As a rule, brick can be burned at the rate of two thousand to 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 149 
 
 the cord of wood; and the man who makes from one to four mil¬ 
 lions of brick annually; has a grave problem before him in the 
 early spring months. 
 
 He must have his fuel on the yard at all times, when he does 
 not need it, as well as when he does; and many times during the 
 season will find him short of fuel, and a kiln hot. Some of the 
 old brickmakers will smile and say “I have been right there my¬ 
 self.” 
 
 And again, wood is a bulky fuel; it occupies too much space 
 that in most yards is valuable, and on account of its bulk and in- 
 flamable character, must be kept at a reasonable distance from 
 burning kilns. 
 
 Now consider the bulk of wood necessary to burn four mil¬ 
 lions of brick, at the above estimate. It would require a rick of 
 wood, four feet wide, eight feet high, and a mile and a half in 
 length. This is only a reasonable approximate estimate; some 
 will say, too much, others not enough; but is based on experience 
 and observation among the brickmakers over a wide extent of coun¬ 
 try. 
 
 I hear it frequently stated that there is a great difference in 
 the burning or refractory properties of clay; but I find a greater 
 difference in the fuel value of wood from one pile to another, than 
 I do in the clay banks from one yard to another. 
 
 The woods of the Northern States are harder, tougher, and of 
 more lasting quality, and make better fuel as a rule than the tim¬ 
 ber of the South, excepting only ; ,he rich, fat pine of the South¬ 
 ern States. 
 
 Taking varieties as they run; white oak, beech, maple, hick¬ 
 ory, post oak, ash, etc., and the growth is a hard, tough timber, 
 making a hot, lasting fire; while the native woods of the South, 
 many of them, are among the soft woods, or lighter timber, such 
 as soft maple, cotton wood, magnolia, cypress, cedar, chestnut, 
 
150 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 elm, sweet gum, etc., and among the varieties of oak and hickory, 
 the timber is not so dense or lasting in its quality as a fuel. 
 
 Over a great portion of the Southern States, there is an 
 abundance of good pine; but like all other sections where brick 
 are most in demand, the timber is getting scarce, and first class 
 pine cord wood is scarce; and pine wood can only be had from 
 the second growth timber, designated “Old Field Pine.” 
 
BRICKMAKEES MANUAL. 
 
 151 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 COAL AND ITS VALUE AS A FUEL IN BRICK BURNING. 
 
 What has been said in a preceding chapter in regard to the 
 difference in value of wood, is applicable also to coal. The coal 
 measures are distributed over a large area of the inhabited part 
 of the earth’s surface, and any part that is inhabited by civilized 
 peoples in the alluvial districts, which is void of coal, is still 
 largely dependent upon coal for some of its uses in the arts and 
 manufactures. 
 
 It is found upon analysis, and also more clearly demonstrated 
 by practical tests, that coal varies very much in its constituents, 
 and as a heat producer. The coals classed in market as Mus¬ 
 kingum Valley coal, Brier Hill coal, or Pittsburg coal, has no uni¬ 
 formity of grade, and varies from good to bad in different mines 
 of the several districts, and so it is through all the different coal 
 measures of the different states and sections. 
 
 Geologists teach us that the Brown coals, or lignite, are ex¬ 
 amples of imperfect coal, or what is termed coal of recent forma¬ 
 tion. This is loose in texture, soft, dirty, and produces a low heat, 
 with a large proportion of ashes and refuse. 
 
 The bituminous coal fields of most sections, have some mines 
 that approach this quality of coal; particularly where the coal 
 lies near the surface, or crops out on hill sides or in ravines or 
 bottoms of streams; that which lies deeper in the earth being 
 
152 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 more pure, or perfect coal. In this grade of pure or perfect coal, 
 the combustible matter is part fixed, and part volatile. 
 
 When the combustible matter contains from 90 to 95 per 
 cent, fixed carbon, it is called anthracite coal. If it contains from 
 80 to 85 per cent, fixed carbon, and 15 to 20 per cent, volatile mat¬ 
 ter, it is called semi-anthracite or semi-bituminous coal, of various 
 grades. 
 
 If the volatile matter rises to the proportion of 30 or 40 per 
 cent., it becomes full bituminous coal, which always burns with a 
 strong, clear flame, and will cake over or melt together into a 
 mass, and when the flame has passed off, will burn as coke, with 
 an intense white heat, melting the solid ashes into a cinder or 
 clinker. 
 
 If the coal approaches or exceeds 50 percent, volatile matter, 
 it is highly bituminous, fat or fusing coal, and is well adapted to 
 the manufacture of coke, gas, oil, etc. Now after careful com¬ 
 parison of different coals, it is evident there must be a great dif¬ 
 ference in results in brick burning, in using the different varieties 
 of coal. 
 
 I am frequently asked “How much coal does it take to burn a 
 thousand brick by your method ?” Now that is a question that I 
 will answer and do it as near correct as the man who will tell me 
 “How much milk a cow gives, or how much does a lump of chalk 
 
 weigh ?” 
 
 I have frequently been interviewed by men who are interest¬ 
 ed in railroads, as road masters, master mechanics, engineers, (C. 
 E.,) etc., and they also had a smattering knowledge of, and con¬ 
 trolling interest in a brickyard. These men had their locomo. 
 tives to do a stated amount of work in a certain length of time, 
 with a regular allowance of coal, all figured out and tabulated, 
 by rules and problems in Engineering and Physics; and they did 
 not hesitate to tell me that a man who could not tell how much 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 153 
 
 coal it took to burn a thousand brick was not fully up to the head 
 in his class as a brick burner. 
 
 This article is to answer that class cf brickmakers. When an 
 engineer is confined strictly to one grade of fuel, each engineer 
 his own engine, and one route of travel regularly, an 1 his load 
 never exceeds a certain number of loaded cars, he can then tell 
 very nearly how much coal will be needed to make the trip. 
 
 But with the poor brick burner, ihe case is an entirely different 
 one. He has no means of knowing how much moisture has to 1 e 
 expelled from his green brick before they are burned. Some¬ 
 times his fuel is from one mine which is a free burning, fat coal and 
 again it is from another mine which is dirty, full of slate and sul¬ 
 phur and altogether is a poor fuel. 
 
 One time his fuel is slack or coal refuse, and another time it 
 is nut coal of fair quality, or during a scarcity of this grade he 
 has run of mine. In my own case, I have had the best nut coal to 
 raise heat immediately after the water-smoke was off', and then be 
 compelled to use a poor quality of coal dust, with a settling heat 
 and finish. Our engineer will say, “Why do you have it so ? 
 Why don’t you use a uniform quality of coal ?” “Well,” F answer, 
 “I have found that railroads and brickyards are, of a necessity, 
 compelled to run business in two entirely different channels. The 
 financial standing of the two is so wide apart, they can’t be run 
 together on the same rules and principles. 
 
 And, again, it is a conceded fact that clays vary in their re¬ 
 fractory properties, so that the man who burns fire brick will use 
 tons of coal to the thousand, while on the yard next to him, 
 where common red brick are burned, the same amount of coal 
 will burn four or five thousand brick. And all brickmakers of 
 experience who are up to their business know that their cloy 
 will vary in the bank, and must be mined, mixed, piled, and 
 
154 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 mixed again in proportional amounts from different parts of the 
 pit, to secure a uniform grade of burned brick. 
 
 This argument is to show that there is no exact rule, and can 
 be none, for pounds of coal or wood as a heat producer, to the 
 thousand of burned brick ; and there are also various other reas¬ 
 ons that can be assigned, which will remain always among the un- 
 demonstrable problems of brick burning. 
 
 Block coal as it is mined comes to market in large lumps, 
 partaking the nature or appearance of slate, that can be split 
 into slabs or sections,and is not liable to fall to pieces in handling. 
 While it is a free burning fuel, it leaves a large quantity of loose, 
 light colored ashes, and on account of its large size and hard¬ 
 ness in breaking,it is not desirable as a fuel for brick burning. Coal 
 that is used for burning brick should be of a small size, so as to 
 scatter evenly over the grate bars, and begin to make heat rapidly. 
 Block or lump coal can be used in its coarse condition as mined in 
 blast furnace work; but for brick burning the best success is at¬ 
 tained with nut coal, and coarse grades of slack, or coal screen¬ 
 ings. 
 
 The experience of the writer is, that the very best coal 
 to produce heat with free burning qualities,freedom from excessive 
 clinkers, a low per cent, of sulphur or slate, is that from the mines 
 of East Tennessee. While there are other sections that produce 
 a good quality of bituminous coal that may be equally as good or 
 even better, our observation among the coals of Northern Ohio, 
 Western Pennsylvania, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Virginia, Ala- 
 bame, Georgia and Tennessee, goes to prove that, all things con¬ 
 sidered, we give it precedence over the others. 
 
 The Virginia coal mined on the line of the Norfolk and 
 Western Railroad, and classed as Pochahontas coal is a bright, 
 glossy, bituminous coal, or as some call it, semi-bituminous. 
 This coal is of a free burning nature, but is not productive of 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL 
 
 155 
 
 much flame; rather too much sulphur, and makes a large amount 
 of heavy clinkers. The lumps of coal are readily shivered or 
 knocked to pieces with a light blow of a hammer. The one great 
 fault of a coal of this kind is, it breaks up too fine, and when 
 “fired” the fuel lies so close on the grate bars, as to virtually close 
 all draft through them. This is one cause of its liability to clinker. 
 The heat goes over the top of the mass, causing a melting to¬ 
 gether of half burned coals, which cool on the dark ashes below. 
 This coal is so fine and free in parting into dust, than when shov¬ 
 eled into a superheated furnace, the particles will ignite with a 
 flash like powder and cause an instantaneous rebound of the fire 
 from the furnace door. 
 
 It is not the intention to write up the coal of any locali¬ 
 ty, or deprecate another, but merely to compare the value of the 
 different kinds of coal, and show that manufacturers of brick and 
 clay wares have a different problem before them, than the man 
 who uses coal to raise steam in his boiler, or to make heat for do¬ 
 mestic use, or any other of the uses to which coal is applied. 
 
 Take, for instance, the anthracite coal of Pennsylvania, and 
 for cleanliness, evenness in burning, lasting qualities and freedom 
 from sulphur, or any other deleterious substance, and for domestic 
 use, it can scarcely be excelled as a fuel; certainly not for cheapness 
 and unlimited quantity. But we must question its use as a fuel 
 in brick burning, for the reason that it has but little flame, and is 
 virtually slower of draft, consuming more time to burn. 
 
 Again, it is of a smooth, or slick nature, which is enhanced 
 when brought to a red heat, and has no coherence one particle to 
 another, which allows it to part with all of its fine coal, by slip¬ 
 ping through very fine grate bars into the ash pit, thereby caus¬ 
 ing waste, while bituminous coal will part with its tar or oily 
 components, and cause it to expand and coke over the grate bars, 
 which can then be rustled up with the firing iron, while the flame 
 
156 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 carries the heat high up in the kiln, and causes hard brick to be 
 burned at the top or near the platting courses. 
 
 In burning brick with coal, it is always best to drive off all the 
 moisture first with wood or coke before putting on the coal fire ; 
 there being a tendency in most kinds of bituminous coal to pro¬ 
 duce a large amount of heavy smoke and soot that clings to the 
 damp brick at the top part of the kiln, and retards the draft, or 
 as brick burners say “chokes the kiln,” and can only be driven off 
 by long continued firing with coal or, what is quicker and a better 
 plan in such cases is, to stop coal firing and fire with wood until 
 red heat is well up over the kiln. 
 
 Coal has the reputation of burning brick a darker color than 
 with wood. This may be true, but my belief is, that coal furnishes 
 a steadier heat, and where coal is used there is a better provision 
 for brick burning, control of fires, less of cold air admitted among 
 the heated burning bricks, and as a result, the bricks are more 
 uniform in color, are not blued or shaded by cold air drafts, and 
 have their true color. This is more marked in the improved 
 kilns of modern design than the old clamp walls. 
 
 An opinion prevails among a great many brickmakers, that 
 coal cannot be used for brick burning without furnaces and grale 
 bars, and they go on from year to year using wood alone, at a high 
 pi ice, in the sections where coal is abundant and cheap. We 
 will give our observation and experience in the matter, which can 
 easily be verified. Where you desire to burn brick in part with 
 coal, you begin first by setting your arches, twelve inches wide, 
 three and a third brick bench, set nine courses high with four 
 overhanging courses; this makes the arch high enough to build 
 your fire holes, two to each arch at each end of the arch. 
 
 First build the lower one outside, three bricks in length, four 
 courses high, and arch them over. On top of this arch lay any 
 heavy iron bar. An old railroad iron is about as easy procured 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 157 
 
 and suitable as can be had, laid next to the kiln and crossing all 
 the arches. This bar serves as a bearing for cord wood to lean on 
 when firing. Now level up on top of the arches, and fill in care¬ 
 fully between all the buttresses, and turn another arch immedi¬ 
 ately over the one below, and of the same size. 
 
 In water-smoking the kiln, fire altogether in the lower arch 
 next to heads, and as the kiln gets hot and dry, in the upper one 
 with wood only. Then when you have draft enough in the kiln to 
 burn freely, slide in two sticks of wood in each arch, letting the 
 ends rest on the inner iron bar. On top of this wood shovel in 
 coal until the upper arch is closed, and the draft through the 
 lower arch will cause the coal to burn free. 
 
 The lower arch must be kept clear and bright, clinkers pulled 
 out and all draft to be through a bed of free burning coals. At 
 each recurring fire, shove in the coal with your two sticks of wood 
 in the upper arch; then fire the coal on top of them as before. 
 When it is necessary, the arches can be fired by sliding wood to 
 center as in any old style kiln. In this way a good heat can be pro¬ 
 duced, and the fuel bill very much shortened. Lump coal or run 
 of mine, is the kind to use, as coal that is fine requires grate bars. 
 While there is some advantage in this method over wood alone, 
 where coal is plenty and cheap, we do not desire to be understood 
 as recommending it. Our preference is for permanent kiln walls, 
 and furnaces. 
 
 Where kilns are properly constructed and managed, and 
 three arches are burned with one fire, there is a great saving in 
 fuel, labor, and wastage of brick; permanent kilns are plenty 
 enough at this day, so there is no controverting the fact, and they 
 are designed to burn wood, coal, gas or oil, according to your lo¬ 
 cation. 
 
158 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 FIRE CLAYS AND FIRE BRICKS. 
 
 While we have said but little or nothing so far about fire 
 bricks, this manual being prepared chiefly for the use of makers 
 of red or building bricks, yet we feel that the work would be in¬ 
 complete without it, and the importance of that line of brick¬ 
 making demands that we should add a chapter devoted to that 
 subject; and under the head of fire brick we will include paving 
 brick, as an addition to the chapter, as these goods are, at present, 
 coming into prominence along with the other branches of the 
 clay industry. 
 
 We have frequently been amused, and at times have been 
 beset, by parties who made a discovery on land belonging to them 
 or in which they had an interest, of a clay which differed in tex¬ 
 ture, color, plasticity, depth, etc., from anything in the line of 
 clay of which they had any knowledge, and the idea was upper¬ 
 most in their minds that they were possessed of a mine of wealth, 
 if they could only induce some party to look into the matter and 
 locate a works to make pottery, tile, sewer pipe, earthen-ware, 
 fancy bricks, terra-cotta, etc. In their opinion, anything and 
 everything in clay ware, from bricks to finest porcelain, could be 
 made of it if they could only find the right man to lay hold of the 
 enterprise and make them rich with the products of their find; 
 and it has been the duty or task of the writer when called upon 
 for his opinion as to the value of some of these clays, to pronounce 
 
BR1CKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 159 
 
 some of them a very poor quality of clay for any manufacturing 
 purpose, the tests being made in the mold, in drying, and lastly 
 in burning them, which is the crucial test for all clays. 
 
 Most of these enthusiasts would adopt the idea that their find 
 was a valuable deposit of fire clay and their hopes were built on 
 working it up by making fire brick at a price ranging from 
 eighteen to thirty dollars per thousand for the product and the 
 profits counted as all in excess of making a common rough, red 
 brick, when, in fact, it was usually farther from being a fire clay 
 than some other variety, not having any properties that would re¬ 
 sist fire and would generally melt like a wax and form a vitreous 
 mass under a heat that would only burn hard a good, red brick 
 clay. This, to many of these parties, was a sad blow to their 
 hopes, or a signal for an attack on the veracity or knowledge and 
 skill of the party or parties making the tests and experiments, 
 but in every case of the kind spoken of, we know those beds of 
 clay still remain undeveloped mines of wealth. 
 
 While good fire clays are abundant, there still remains a 
 great deal of ignorance in that line as to the properties of a the 
 clay. What is usually used for making fire bricks is not a plastic, 
 free clay, properly speaking, but is found between the veins or 
 seams, or below the coal in the coal measures. It is of a dark 
 gray, or grayish yellow color; approaching a black or brown, with 
 a slaty or rocky nature, that dissolves on exposure to the weather, 
 or it is rendered plastic by grinding in pans, crushing with 1 olIs, 
 or other pulverizing machinery. 
 
 Most fire clays are blended in the process of manufacture, to 
 obtain the best results; some being deficient in silica, or lime, or 
 some one or more of its constituents. Very few clays can be used 
 as dug or mined. Most of the refractory clays are deficient in in¬ 
 fusible matter, and must have it supplied and incorporated with 
 the plastic clay. This is furnished in quartz sand, pulverized 
 
160 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 flint, burnt clay, or granulated fire brick bats, serpentine, talc, 
 graphite in powder, etc., etc. This is mixed in the proportion of 
 plastic clay one-fifth, and of the refractory or infusible matter 
 four-fifths, or one-fourth lean, and three-fourths burnt clay, or 
 quartz. This is done to prevent shrinkage, as it is highly im¬ 
 portant that all furnace work remains in place where laid without 
 shrinkage; as usually there is a part of the superstructure of the 
 furnace, resting on the heated brick work below. 
 
 A friable paste with large grains, will resist a great heat and 
 remain unchanged, while one with fine grains and not well mixed 
 will split at a high heat, or will melt and warp. All fire clays are 
 not obtained in the coal measures; there are many places where 
 excellent fire clay is found in abundance as a natural compound 
 and in proper proportion to use as dug from the earth, containing 
 a good combination of silex and aluminum, with enough of lime, 
 or iron, to properly fuse or flux the mass in burning. There is a 
 clay of this description in South Carolina that makes a good fire 
 brick for all ordinary purposes, standing up Avell under a high 
 heat. But, like many other sections so favored, it is remote from 
 market or lines of transportation, making it undesirable. 
 
 Fire bricks and all fire clay goods, are made of the most in¬ 
 fusible clay obtainable; such as contain from 63 per cent, to 80 
 per cent, of silica, with the addition of from 18 per cent, to 25 per 
 cent, of aluminum to render the mass plastic; the remainder is 
 water and contains besides, in small quantities, lime, soda, mag¬ 
 nesia and iron, with traces of potash. These latter ingredients 
 cause the clay to flux under a high heat and form the burnt 
 brick. When the clay contains from 6 per cent, to 10 percent, of 
 these fluxes it will generally melt. If the silica is largely in excess, 
 3 per cent, or 4 per cent, will cause it to melt. If it is aluminous, 
 6 per cent, or 7 per cent, oxide of iron will not cause it to loose its 
 refractory qualities. 
 
BRICIvM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 161 
 
 The essential qualities of a good fire brick are, first, uniform¬ 
 ity, and by this is meant, not in size alone, but in their composi¬ 
 tion. The clays and infusible material must be so evenly blend¬ 
 ed, that they are alike in the materials of which they are made. 
 A fire brick is not like a common building brick which has ap¬ 
 parently no other office to fulfill than to uphold the super¬ 
 structure above it. The fire brick is required to do this and also 
 stand up under a heat that tends to melt, or a blast from forge or 
 bellows, that has an abrading or cutting force, similar to a blow¬ 
 pipe on the fire within the furnace, and if any part of the furnace 
 lining is deficient in infusible material, there is a weakening of the 
 wall at that point. By uniformity also is meant size as mentioned 
 above. The principal trouble experienced in all fire brick work 
 is in the work of the brick mason; he usually makes too open a 
 joint between the bricks, and much of the mortar used in con¬ 
 struction is not of the same nature as the fire bricks; generally 
 being made of a low grade of potter’s clay, or some other soft 
 unctuous clay found in the neighborhood, and miscalled fire clay. 
 This is used in a manner that is entirely wrong for this class of 
 work. It is made up of about the consistency of lime, mortar 
 and sand for plasterer’s use. The clay is not well tempered, is 
 full of lumps of stiff mud; probably half the clay has been dis¬ 
 solved that was meant to be used; the remainder is scattered 
 throughout the mass, like raisins in a plum pudding. The mason 
 uses this mortar, as he did lime mortar, with a joint of one-fourtli 
 or three-eighths of an inch between bricks, and when the work is 
 completed it is usually in a good condition to shrink a consider¬ 
 able in drying, before the fire is applied to the furnace. Such 
 clays as this mortar is made of, have a great tendency to shrink or 
 melt under a high heat, and when the furnace becomes super¬ 
 heated, the mortar joint is the first place to give way; the fire cuts 
 
 into the opening where the mortar has melted out, forming eddies 
 
 11 
 
162 
 
 BEICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 of flame, which is sure to destroy or deface the inside of a fur¬ 
 nace wall, and when it is cut deep enough to throw the weight or 
 part of it on the heated bricks, they begin to warp, twist, and 
 eventually fall out. 
 
 The only sure remedy for this is to make very close joints in 
 all fire brick work. A paste or mortar made of finely ground fire 
 clay, or pulverized fire brick bats, is the best; mixed thin so the 
 bricks can be lightly dipped in the paste, and then quickly put in 
 place, rubbing and settling them down to a close bed, both on the 
 sides and ends. The bricks are better to be wetted before dipping 
 in the mortar, as that prevents them from setting their mortar 
 bond too quickly till put into place. 
 
 dhe third requisite of a good fire brick is strength to resist 
 the different pressures required of it, under different circum¬ 
 stances. The crushing weight of a fire brick is from 600 to 1000 
 lbs. to the cubic inch. Some of the best grades of fire brick have 
 been known to resist a pressure of 3,000 lbs. and upwards. To 
 insure safety, they should support more than double their own 
 strain under a long continued high heat without attention. For 
 the walls of a furnace, the best bricks are close grained and dense, 
 that have been burned in their manufacture enough to take out 
 all shrinkage, and contain in their composition an excess of silica. 
 In the hearth of the furnace they should have an excess of alum¬ 
 ina; in the walls and arches exposed to the abrasion of the flames, 
 ashes and cinders, together with the action of acids or alkalies 
 contained in the fuel, or contents of the furnace, the bricks should 
 be nearly pure silica, with a proper modicum of alumina and 
 magnesia. A good fire brick will wear or burn off evenly, without 
 melting to excess, chipping or splintering. The wear of the 
 brick is caused by the flames and dust; chipping and splintering, 
 by the expansion and contraction from cold to hot, and hot to 
 cold, when the fires are allowed to go down and the furnace cools 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 163 
 
 off. The best fire brick should be of a pale cream or clear bufl 
 color and uniform throughout its mass, when burnt to the full 
 extent of its shrinkage. 
 
 The fourth requisite for a fire brick is its cheapness, and there 
 is no material yet manufactured that fulfills all these conditions 
 perfectly. If the clays are deficient in any part of their compo¬ 
 sition, supplying the deficiency adds to the cost of making, or the 
 clays are remote from the market, and transportation adds to the 
 cost of them. Oxide of iron when present in the clay will show 
 itself in gray or cinder spots, and blotches on the burnt biick, and 
 more or less, according to the percentage of iion. A light coloicd 
 cream or buff brick, denotes the absence of iron; and lime is the 
 agent which fluxed the mass in burning, any excess of lime mak¬ 
 ing it fusible. The most refractory clay when deprived of its 
 water, is silica 57.42, alumina 42.58. Silica alone cannot be used, 
 as it has no binding qualities like alumina. 
 
 Almost all sand stones contain a small per cent, of clay or 
 lime, that cements the particles into a solid rock. Some makers 
 of fire brick use sand-stone by burning it, if it is what is called 
 a quartzose sand-stone. It is then cooled with water which aids in 
 its disintegration; ground lime is then added in the proportion 
 of 1£ percent, both in the bond or plastic clay, and also the mor¬ 
 tar in which they are laid. 
 
 Fire bricks require a much greater degree of heat to fuse or 
 burn them ready for the trade than building bricks. It is esti¬ 
 mated by tests made with the pyrometer that red biick will fuse at 
 from 1,200° of heat to 1,500° in most clays, while with fire clay it 
 requires from 3,500° to 4,280° Falir. to burn them. 
 
 Fire clay goods are usually burned in what are termed, up 
 and down draft kilns, with arched over tops, to prevent the too 
 rapid escape of heat, and pressure of the atmosphere from above 
 while burning. Others use kilns of a circular shape with arch 
 
164 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 turned over at a height of ten or twelve feet from the floor, and 
 the kiln is carried on up to the height of from forty to sixty feet, 
 and gradually narrowed down to from four to six feet, for the top 
 of chimney. Openings are left in the crown over the kiln for the 
 escape of smoke and vapor, and as the kiln becomes hot they are 
 closed down to a small vent, and the heat is condensed and held 
 on the ware in the bottom of the kiln. These kilns have a door 
 in the side for filling and discharging, which is sealed up close 
 when the kiln is full. The capacity of a fire brick kiln varies 
 from 6,000 or 8,000, on up to about 35,000 for the largest sized 
 kilns. These kilns, with the arch inside of stack are up draft 
 kilns or more commonly styled direct up draft, or muffle kilns. 
 
 We have occasionally made some very good fire brick for our 
 own use in the following manner: On a large works, there are al¬ 
 ways more or less of an accumulation of old worn out fire bricks 
 and bats—by placing these on a solid pavement of hard brick, 
 and crushing them up fine with a heavy iron tamp, so they can 
 be screened through a J inch screen. There is in almost all neigh¬ 
 borhoods a vein of tough clay of the consistence of potter’s clay, 
 such as was spoken of in the fore part of this chapter. By mixing 
 this with the crushed fire brick in the proportion of two bushels 
 of clay, two of crushed brick and one of sharp sand, the raw clay 
 serving for a binder, then molding them on the machine, after 
 first moistening the mass sufficiently so it will work properly. Af¬ 
 ter thoroughly drying them, we set them in the top part of the 
 arches and overhangers, under the red brick, where they will get 
 the hottest fire of the burn. 
 
 Where works require a large amount of fire bricks, and the 
 purchasing price is from twenty to thirty dollars per thousand 
 this will effect quite a saving. Any one having an accumulation 
 of fire bricks and bats, can secure a very common grade of fire or 
 potter’s clay to use as a binder. We do not desire to be understood 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 165 
 
 as saying that these brick are good enough for all fire brick work; 
 but that they will answer well for almost all walls and arches that 
 are not subjected to a very great degree of heat. There 
 are parts of all furnace work that require the best brick that can 
 be procured, and it is economy to get them even at a high price, 
 rather than have the furnace give way at an important point, 
 while the furnace is heated, in the midst of an important piece 
 of work, as the burning of a kiln of brick. 
 
 The following we copy from the American Mechanical Dictionary: 
 
 Fire bricks are usually made of silica, and refractory clay, with 
 a small proportion Of cementing material. Some fire bricks are 
 made into which clay does not enter as an ingredient. 
 
 In England quartz is ground, and freed from iron by sul¬ 
 phuric acid. In Wales fire bricks are made of ground quartz with 
 one per cent, of lime, and water sufficient. The bricks are made 
 in iron molds by pressure, and in burning the lime acts a flux to 
 cement the quartz. 
 
 The composition of fire bricks is indicated by three analyses, 
 at widely different points, first: 
 
 CARTER COUNTY, KENTUCKY, CLAY. 
 
 Silica. 
 
 
 64 
 
 Alumina. 
 
 .23 
 
 43 
 
 
 
 Lime. 
 
 U 
 
 U 
 
 
 . 0.212 to 
 
 2.093 
 
 Soda. 
 
 . 0.283 “ 
 
 0.728 
 
 
 BELGIAN FIRE CLAY. 
 
 
 
 
 ...64.2 
 
 
 
 ...32.2 
 
 
 
 ... 2.4 
 
 
 
 ... 0.0 
 
 Alkalies. 
 
 
 ... 1.2 
 
166 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 The fire clays of Forges les Eaux, and Ardennes in France, 
 Belgium, Stourbridge, England, and Klingenberg, Germany, vary 
 between the following proportions: 
 
 Silica. 64 to 71. 
 
 Alumina. 22 “ 38. 
 
 Oxide of iron. . 0.2 “ 4. 
 
 Lime.trace “ 1. 
 
 Alkalies. “ “ 1. 
 
 The following extract is from Ure's Dictionary of Arts: 
 
 Fire Clay. —Fire clay is found in great abundance and per¬ 
 fection for making fire bricks, retorts, etc., in slate clay. In color 
 it is gray, or grayish yellow ; massive, dull, or glimmering, from 
 admixture of particles of mica; fracture—slaty, approaching some 
 times to earthy; fragments—tabular, soft, sectile, and easily 
 broken; specific gravity=2.6; adheres to the tongue, and breaks 
 down in water. It occurs along with pit coal. Slate clay is 
 ground, and reduced into a paste with water for making fire 
 bricks; for which purpose it should be as free as possible from 
 lime and iron. Pure clay, the alumina of the chemist, is abso¬ 
 lutely infusible; but when subjected to the fire of a porcelain 
 kiln, it contracts into about one half its total bulk. It must however 
 be heated very cautiously; otherwise it will decrepitate, and fly in 
 pieces, owing to sudden expansion into steam of the water com¬ 
 bined with its particles which it retains with considerable attract¬ 
 ive force. It possesses little plasticity and consequently affords a 
 very short paste, which is apt to crack when kneaded into a cake. 
 It is not infusible by itself, but it will not dissolve in the fusible 
 glasses; making them merely opaque. If either lime or silica be 
 added separately to pure clay in any proportion, the mixture will 
 not melt in the most violent furnace; but if alumina, lime and 
 silica be mixed together, the whole melts, and the more readily, 
 the nearer the mixture approaches the following mixture or pro- 
 
BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 167 
 
 portion: 1 of aluminum, 1 of lime, and 3 of sand; if the sand 
 be increased to five parts, the compound becomes infusible. These 
 interesting facts, show the reciprocal action of those earths which 
 are mixed most commonly in nature with alumina. 
 
 We cannot close this chapter without adding a word of cau¬ 
 tion, which we extract from the writings of Professor R. T. Brown, 
 cf Indianapolis, formerly Chemist of the Department of Agricul¬ 
 ture, Washington, D. C. He says: “The analysis of a clay is only pre¬ 
 sumptive evidence of its adaptation to the various departments of 
 clayworking, and never to be taken as conclusive. The intense 
 heat of the kiln may effect decompositions, and develop combi¬ 
 nations which are beyond the reach of chemical regents. The 
 presence of a great mass of highly heated material, sometimes ex¬ 
 erts an influence that cannot be produced in the laboratory. 
 These remarks may be prejudicial to my profession, and indeed 
 uncalled for, but they are the honest truth.” 
 
 PAVING BRICK. 
 
 Within the last few years there has been quite an agitation 
 created in the minds of municipal authorities, as well as among 
 the citizens, in regard to street pavements, with all the improve¬ 
 ments made in our means of locomotion, carriages, cars, etc. The 
 fact still remained with us that our streets were very imperfect; 
 they were out of repair, rough, dirty, and withal were expensive 
 to construct, and troublesome to keep in repair. The demand is 
 almost universal among the cities that make any pretensions of 
 keeping up with the improvements of the times, for better streets. 
 This demand must be met with a material that is suitable for all 
 localities, and make a better roadway than any other now in use. 
 
 Almost all sections have a material that will answer as a sub¬ 
 stitute, and make a roadway better than the soil or clay of the 
 neighborhood. Many sections are well situated in respect to rock, 
 or gravel. This spread upon the street to form a heavy bed or 
 
168 
 
 BRICKM AKERS MANUAL. 
 
 foundation, will stand the wear of vehicles for some months, and 
 makes a passable roadway, but is all the time being ground into 
 powder, and this makes dust when the wind blows, or mud when 
 it rains. There has been no move made toward a general or uni¬ 
 versal road material,except as brick or paving blocks are coming into 
 general use. Granite blocks are in use in many places,and make a 
 good street; one that will stand an immense amount of wear, is 
 clean and moderately smooth. The cost of granite is what will 
 hinder its coming into general use, as all are not so well situated 
 as to have granite quarries, and when transportation is added to 
 the first cost, makes it beyond the reach of even rich corporations. 
 Brick for street paving can be made in almost all localities or near 
 by; as clay is so abundant and generally distributed that but few 
 places are situated so that there is no clay of some kind suitable 
 for good brick. 
 
 It is not all clay that will make a first class paver. There is 
 an abundance of clay that will make a No. 1 building brick, that 
 has not the requisite toughness or plasticity to make a strong, 
 compact brick, that has a clear metallic ring like a piece of pot¬ 
 tery. The clay should be put through a thorough process of tem¬ 
 pering, kneading and working, so as to make the mass of clay a 
 compact, homogeneous mass. The toughest, strongest brick are 
 those made on a stiff mud machine, as stiff as can be conveniently 
 worked; then dried slowly and evenly; and thoroughly burned 
 to the proper degree of hardness. A brick that is made from a 
 coarse clay, or one that has a large per cent, of sand in it, will be 
 open and porous, or easily broken, and is unfit for paving pur¬ 
 poses. The ideal paving brick is one that is made as described 
 above from a tough, plastic, smooth clay, with a fine grain; that 
 will bum hard without warping, twisting, or melting easily under 
 a strong heat, as the brick must be made to lay a smooth, even 
 floor, or pavement, and be hard enough to be non-absorbent of 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 *169 
 
 fluids. It has been sixteen years or more since the first brick 
 street pavement was laid in the town of Charleston, W. Va., 
 and it was brought to the notice of the city authorities by the 
 brickmakers, as a suitable material, in lieu of macadam, 01 othei 
 paving material. 
 
 Extensive and thorough tests have been made since then, al¬ 
 most altogether by brickmakers themselves, as was the case in 
 Charleston ; they going so far as to furnish the material and grade 
 the street properly, and put down the pavement at their own ex¬ 
 pense, on a section of the street that was subjected to a great deal 
 of travel and heavy traffic. 
 
 The wiseacres shook their heads ominously at this move, and 
 were profuse in their predictions of failure. These streets pio\ed 
 in every case to be the very best in point of comfort, durability, 
 convenience or easiness in keeping in repair; and what is ovei 
 and above all, the cost was below that of granite or wooden pave¬ 
 ments, or any other good paving material. This piece of pavement 
 was in constant use for eleven years, and was then in a good state, 
 showing no signs of failure or wear, and Avas taken up to allow of 
 the street being properly graded; the authorities in the mean 
 time having put down some miles of brick pavement on all their 
 streets having heavy Avear. 
 
 The system is gradually coming into use and spreading; pai- 
 ticularly into sections of country that are void of rock, like the 
 prairie country of Illinois, and which is blessed Avith an abund¬ 
 ance of clay suitable in every respect for paving bricks. These 
 flat, prairie countries stand in need of some cheap, duiable pa\e- 
 ment, as without it they are left in a miserable condition during 
 part of the fall and spring months, and wet seasons. 
 
 The cost of brick pavement, including the grading and all 
 necessary work to complete the same, Avill vary from $1 to SI .SO 
 per square yard, according to the location and price of labor, 
 
170 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 teams, sand, etc., and it lias been demonstrated that streets can be 
 paved, including curbing and sidewalks, together with the neces- 
 suiy giading, at a cost of $2 per yard, where labor was $1.00 per 
 day, teams $3.25, and sand 80 to 90 cents per cubic yard. 
 
 There are a great many localities all over the country, that 
 have excellent beds of clay suitable for paving brick; and brick- 
 makers should be taking advantage of these opportunities to se¬ 
 cure them, for the trade which is sure to come; as the durability 
 and economy of this kind of roadway has been amply demon¬ 
 strated. There is one thing we will as a body of brickmakers have 
 to do, that is: Take some measures to call the attention of civil 
 engineers to the fact of brick pavements being superior to stone, 
 wood, macadam, nicholson, asphaltum, or any other of the recog¬ 
 nized good paving materials, which are in use over the country. ° 
 
 We have endeavored to get what information we could on this 
 subject, by inquiry and examination, and investigating the kinds 
 and qualities of different clays, bricks, and pavements; and after 
 all, we do not think we can add anything to what has already been 
 said on the subject. The universal opinion among brickmakers, 
 who are interested in paving brick is, that a brick for paving pur¬ 
 poses, must be burned hard, almost melted, or vitrified.; a brick 
 
 that is not burned to this hardness, should not go into street work. 
 
 In burning brick for building purposes from a good, tough, 
 unctuous clay, very often there is quite a large per cent, of bricks 
 m the arches that are burned to the proper degree of hardness for 
 pavers. These should be selected and set aside for that particular 
 purpose and then when you have accumulated enough to do so, 
 make some arrangements with your city officers to put down a 
 small section, where it will get the constant wear and traffic of the 
 street continuously. See that the work is well done-none but 
 good brick put in—and then call the attention of the authorities 
 
mm 
 
 BKICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 171 
 
 to it and request them to examine it carefully and compare with 
 other pavements. 
 
 Showing section of street and sidewalk construction. 
 
 There are several methods of construction of streets with pav¬ 
 ing bricks which have been adopted by different cities, according 
 to their ability and inclination, and with varying degrees of suc¬ 
 cess. The first plan was to grade the street to the proper degree, 
 leaving it from five to seven inches higher in the middle; then put 
 down from two to four inches of coarse sand and fine gravel; 
 bring it to a proper curve with a template, and then roll it with a 
 heavy roller until it is firm and hard; on this lay the paving 
 brick on edge, and at right angles to the sidewalk. When it is all 
 down, sand should be scattered over it and left there until it is 
 well settled down between the bricks, and has filled all the spaces. 
 This is the cheapest plan, but is not the best, as the ground be¬ 
 neath is likely to become softened, and the bricks driven down by 
 heavy vehicles, making holes and ruts. One way to remedy this, 
 is to lay a course of bricks on their flat side on top of the coat of 
 sand; then on top of these bricks, put sand enough to bring all 
 even with the template again, and pave on this with bricks set on 
 edge; or what is still better, grade the road way, five or six inches 
 deeper and fill in with broken rock and sand, or coarse gravel, fur¬ 
 nace slag, or cinders, with sand; this must be rolled or rammed 
 hard, and over this put down the two courses of brick as described 
 above. 
 
 Another plan known as the Hale pavement system, is to 
 bring the street to proper grade with a covering of about three 
 inches of sand, all made smooth and surfaced with the template; 
 over this is laid lengthwise of the street a covering of one inch 
 
172 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 boards, which have been steeped in hot tar; on top of these boards 
 is again spread an inch or two of sand, and spread smooth as be¬ 
 fore ; and on this, brick are laid on edge, with fine sand swept into 
 the spaces between the brick. It is claimed that this last pave¬ 
 ment is much cheaper than the double course of brick, or broken 
 stone and sand; and the boards below give a good bearing for the 
 brick and prevent their driving down into the sand or soil. This 
 system is patented, and has been in use on some few streets for 
 several years with excellent results. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 173 
 
 HINTS TO THE BEGINNER. 
 
 *BY J. A. REEP. 
 
 In starting a new brick plant fitted up with modern improve¬ 
 ments, as a summer and winter yard, there are probably as many 
 main points to take into consideration, to insure success as in any 
 other of the principal lines of manufacture. 
 
 Most new firms about to engage in the manufacture of bricks 
 are likely to flatter themselves on the simplicity of the business, 
 and its few requirements, and consequent small outlay of capital. 
 
 The points that are to be considered are situation, suitable 
 material, fuel, labor, water supply, market, and proximity to city. 
 These are some of the main points to look after; some 
 of these can be so managed, as to overcome any possibilily of en¬ 
 tire failure, but the plant may struggle along in a half-handed 
 way for a long time and be paying a low rate of interest on the in¬ 
 vestment. For instance, the situation in every other respect 
 may be good, and the clay although abundant, may be of such a 
 a nature that no known method of making and burning could 
 produce from it brick that are desirable in color; and you would 
 be compelled to make nothing but a common rough brick of per- 
 
 *Note. —The above paper was read before the National Brick Manufacturers’ 
 Association, at Philadelphia, Pa., the Fourth Annual Convention, which convened 
 Dec. 10th, 11th and 12th, 1889. While there are many points in the address that are 
 in the Dody of this work, yet there is much of it that will appear as new material, 
 and will bear repeating here as a work to refer to at any time by those contemplating 
 the starting of new works in the future. 
 
174 
 
 BKJCKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 haps an inferior quality, and sell them at a low price to realize 
 anything. 
 
 In starting a brick plant first be sure of a market for your 
 bricks. Have a clay bank ample enough to last as long as you de¬ 
 sire with a growing trade. Never build large and expensive 
 works on a shallow bed of poor clay. See that you have a good 
 location for your works above high water mark; good drainage in 
 every respect about your works; water supply ample enough for 
 all purposes—for steam and tempering of clay, for drinking and in 
 case of fire. 
 
 Locate yourself convenient to some good line of travel and 
 shipment, either by boat or railroad; if you depend on water 
 lines provide yourself with your own boats or barges; if by rail, 
 establish yourself permanently as regards your shipping rates, both 
 for fuel and bricks, or as near it as you can in reason. Get “elbow 
 room.” Make a complete plan of your works before you begin, 
 then carry out your plan to completion. Let it be arranged from 
 the start, expecting the plant to grow on four sides if need be. 
 Don’t crowd your neighbors if you have room or space elsewhere. 
 Don’t imagine that your kilns full of burned brick is the end of 
 the yard, or the last of the bricks. Have room enough beyond 
 the end of the kilns to unload any excess of orders during the 
 dull seasons, and then when the rush comes you can take advan¬ 
 tage of the opportunity and draw on the stock pile to fill urgent 
 orders. If you are stocked up in your kilns with no room to un¬ 
 load, you would be obliged to stop the works and wait for orders 
 to empty the kilns; and your stock of brick could never exceed 
 the capacity of your kilns. It is all very proper to make your 
 works compact, but don’t get too close to the “other party.” Let 
 it be understood first, last and all the time that brickmaking is a 
 trade; a calling; brick burning an art, a profession if you please; 
 
 01 as much so as the architect is to being an artist. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 175 
 
 Brickmaking and burning is a trade that cannot be 
 learned in a week or fortnights’ travel among the brick yards, or 
 mere reading a fine description of other brickmakers’ success, or 
 listening to fine spun theories, based on the failures of the unsuc¬ 
 cessful brick man. A great many brickmakers have been obliged 
 to dismount from a theoretical hobby. 
 
 The brick business must always remain a business by itself, 
 and there is not much that can be used with it or in connection 
 with any other manufacture. We speak of this here, as we ha'se 
 found some parties who have been raised in some other occupa¬ 
 tion and followed it nearly all of their active lives, and are now in¬ 
 terested in a brick plant as part owner or probably manager or 
 superintendent of the same. In most cases their former success 
 was due to a thorough knowledge of one particular line of trade. 
 The great mistake that is likely to occur here is, they presume 
 too much on their knowledge of their former business and carry 
 certain methods over from one calling to the other. We have in 
 mind now parties who were connected with the dry goods trade, 
 railroad work, saloon keeping, lumber yard, cotton buying, etc. ; 
 and many other occupations that had proven profitable to them. 
 
 The saloon keeper, managing a brick yard according to the 
 theories of some of these men would require the off-bearer tow eat 
 a Tam O’Shanter cap and a white apron, and be provided with a 
 clean towel to wfipe the trucks off with, like unto a saloon coun¬ 
 ter; and have the whole place scrubbed out every morning before 
 daylight. 
 
 The railroader will sit down and figure it out to have all brick 
 trucks and barrows moved about the yard from machine to dryer, 
 and from dryer to kiln, like a baggage truck loaded with trunks, 
 and they together with the clay cars and carts, must come and go 
 on schedule time, and the green trucker with No. 1 barrow must 
 side track at the corner for No, 2 or 3 to pass. 
 
176 
 
 BKICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Again the cotton buyer has an old compress that has gone 
 through the fire when the ware house burned, and he has been 
 struck with an idea that hurt him some. The compress will answer 
 for a brick machine with a little rebuilding and he has been ex¬ 
 perimenting for the last three years on it, while his competitor 
 who has had more sense and less cash, has pushed ahead with a 
 laugh at the folly, and has made bricks and some money. 
 
 To parties who are just beginning the business and have no 
 knowledge of the best methods of making and burning brick, we 
 would advise them to get suqh knowledge as lay nearest them first. 
 “Don’t” be afraid to ask questions of those who do know, nor im¬ 
 agine that you will get all the advice and assistance you want 
 without money and without price. Show yourself willing to pay 
 for advice here, as you do your doctor or lawyer. 
 
 We believe it would be a good plan for all new firms just 
 starting, to set aside a certain amount of their working capital, as 
 a fund to cover traveling expenses, and about once or twice each 
 year send a member of the firm, together with the manager or 
 foreman to those yards that are making the best bricks, and are 
 accessible, or they are competitors in the same market; and go 
 expecting to find something better in the way of making, drying 
 or burning which will pay you to adopt. Your foreman who is, or 
 should be, a practical brickmaker will pick up a vast amount more 
 of brick lore than you will, and come back recruited and replen¬ 
 ished and ready for work. He will make more of an effort to 
 please you and think more of you in every way. In case you 
 make such a trip, look well to all the details; take note of all 
 you find that is worth anything to you, and also note well the 
 defects. Don’t allow the proprietors to hurry you through the 
 yard with a “Now you see it,” and then out of the works with a 
 “Now you don’t see it” manner. Go quietly, moderately, and 
 without demonstration, or display; take time enough to talk to 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 177 
 
 those who can and will give you such information as you desire 
 or need. Then when you can, return the favor, in kind at least, 
 Don’t be a “sponge,” a “chronic” or crank. Give in return for 
 what you get. 
 
 We used to have a teamster that drove a fine span of mules, 
 which he had trained to move at the word, and pull as they should 
 at the right time. His word to the team when he had a load a 
 little above the ordinary, or any hard pull was “Get right 
 now,” and the mules would lean forward on the collars, and at the 
 next word they would walk off with the load. It seems to me that, 
 to-day, as an Association of Brickmakers, we can do 
 no better by the inexperienced, who contemplate starting or who 
 have but recently started, than say to them as Joe said to the 
 mules “Get right now,” for it will be a hard pull. What we have 
 said and shall say here is meant for the inexperienced or new firms. 
 It is supposed that the brickmakers who have been long in the bu¬ 
 siness are experienced, and are not in need of hints. We do not ex¬ 
 pect they will tear up their yards, or pull down buildings to re¬ 
 build them, but so far as they can, consistently, in adding to their 
 works, so modify them as to suit the requirements of the trade, 
 with the advanced methods in use. 
 
 In starting your building for brick works, bill all your lum¬ 
 ber at once and order it in one lot in bulk, rather than a car or 
 two at a time, there will be less vexation on account of delays and 
 shipment. Pile your lumber in neat piles as you unload. Keep 
 each size and kind separate from the other; procure all the ma¬ 
 terial needed to push the work without waiting for anything. 
 Build your engine and machine room first; and the best plan in 
 setting up your heavy machinery is to put in the boiler and engine 
 first. It takes more time to set up and properly adjust this part 
 of the plant than any other. Make all steam and water connec¬ 
 tions and fuel supply secure before you start; neglect no part of this 
 
178 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 work, everything is important here; this is the head or power of 
 the whole plant. 
 
 I have noticed that a firm of new brickmakers, or a new firm of 
 brickmakers are always certain to order their brick machine first, 
 and they keep it around outside in the way and in the weather for 
 six weeks, or two months or more. Begin with the engine and 
 boiler as a nucleus from which to work out and away from it. Get 
 an engine too large, rather than too small. The small one will 
 have to be substituted for a larger, and that makes expense and 
 delay. "Get right” on this. 
 
 Get a first class engineer; one who understands his business 
 in caring for and running an engine. Very often a man can be 
 hired who is fully competent to run your engine, and is a machin¬ 
 ist who can do a great many repair jobs on a machine, engine, 
 shafting, pulleys, etc., and who can also do all the smith work 
 about the works if he is provided with a forge and its equipments. 
 If you are so fortunate as to get such an engineer, supply him 
 with a good fireman who can control the engine and keep up 
 steam, and let the engineer be in charge of all the machinery. Fur¬ 
 nish him with a set of dies to make any ordinary sized bolt and also 
 a set of tools to cut and fit steam and water pipes up to two or three 
 inches in size, and then a small stock of pipe and pipe fittings, and 
 a few bars of flat and round iron and steel, a vise, bellows and an¬ 
 vil ; then if he is the mechanic you need, he will fashion the nec¬ 
 essary tools for his work out of the stork. In this way you will 
 save many repair bills, and cut expenses at an important point. 
 Make your buildings high enough to have the shafting, pulleys, 
 belts, and all gearing that goes overhead well up out of the way. 
 I find more engine and machine rooms too low, than too high. 
 Ten feet is too low for side walls, twelve feet is low enough, thir¬ 
 teen or fourteen feet is better. When the eaves are low down 
 they are in the way and cars of clay cannot be brought in under 
 
BEICKMA KERS M A NUAL. 
 
 179 
 
 the eaves inside the building. Then your machine has to be set 
 low down below grade, to get room to feed it, while your clay sup¬ 
 ply is left near the outside of the building. You have no room 
 for storage of clay surplus, and a summer shower will stop the 
 works for want of clay supply. When buildings are low down, 
 beams and braces are in the way, or if taken out, your building is 
 weakened to that extent. I cannot understand why some men 
 build their sheds and all their buildings on the brickyard so low 
 down when it requires only six inches or a foot added to the length 
 of a post, to have them high enough to save the heads of the 
 workmen, and keep the proprietor upright. I have an acquaint¬ 
 ance with several yards where the proprietor goes about among 
 his buildings all day in a hump backed position to keep his head 
 from contact with the beams above him. Of a necessity much 
 work has to be done on a brick yard at night; and when beams 
 and braces and doors are all low down, it is certainly a very un¬ 
 comfortable place to work. Even in day time a workman with 
 his head in danger works ill at ease, and cannot do his best; he 
 watches his head as much as his work. The floors of machine 
 room and dry floors under sheds are continually filling up and 
 have to be graded off more frequently when the eaves are low. 
 
 Furnace sheds and kiln roofs, should be high enough to be 
 safe from tire without removing. “Get right” on the height ques¬ 
 tion. Get tools enough at the outset to start you off without a hitch 
 or jar of any kind for want of tools to work with. We have seen 
 proprietors start a yard expecting to make 50,000 or 100,000 bricks 
 per day, who bought a half dozen trucks for green bricks, a half 
 dozen barrows for dry bricks, four tray barrows, a dozen shovels,four 
 picks and two mattocks; and protested for weeks and months 
 against getting more, except when a pick, shovel, or barrow was 
 broken so as to be of no further use. I say get tools. Get more 
 than you want. I would far rather have too many picks, shovels, 
 
180 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 barrows, etc., etc., than to have so few that when a hand needed 
 one he was sent wandering around the yard for a half hour or 
 more, over two or three acres of brickyard buildings, to hunt up an 
 idle shovel or pick, or any other needed tool. Have a tool room. 
 Keep it locked, and some responsible party in charge of it; it is 
 a poor recommendation to any firm to have tools scattered all 
 over the premises. Let each separate gang of workmen have a 
 good tool box that can be locked up and the man in charge of the 
 gang have the tools in his care. 
 
 Provide a large roomy repair shop; and then have all trucks, 
 barrows, cars, carts, shovels, picks and all the paraphernalia that 
 can be repaired, taken there immediately when broken and get a 
 substitute; have extras for substitutes; don’t delay your work 
 waiting for a broken tool, but have one ready to go out, when 
 the broken one comes in. Keep a man as a “Handy Andy” for 
 repairer or any other work as needed. Let it be his job to look 
 after all these things, and keep the buildings in repair or build 
 new ones as needed. “Get right” on this point, by all means. 
 
 Supply yourself with machinery enough to keep up a steady 
 stream of brick moving at all times without jar or stop. Then 
 too, when you get your works built, and engine and machine in 
 working order, and you have seen the machine make a few green 
 bricks, don’t expect to sell brick immediately; you can’t do it. 
 If j r ou take orders, as we have known parties to do for immediate 
 delivery, you will compromise your future credit in that way, by 
 failure to fill orders. Customers are very easily affronted and 
 your trade will soon go elsewhere. Worse still, an offer to furnish 
 brick all hard, when you are not provided with kilns,or any knowl¬ 
 edge of your burner, might result in a suit for damages against 
 you, proving expensive, discouraging, and even disastrous to the 
 firm. And right here is a temptation in the way that tends to 
 hurt any new company; that is, the desire to sell bricks out of 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 181 
 
 the first lot made and burned, knowing full well they must needs 
 use several hundred thousand before the works are any way near 
 completed, and they ready to go on the market with bricks. This is 
 frequently done to help keep up the running expensesof the works, 
 and help the concern along by building up a trade, but rather re¬ 
 tards the building operations in this, that it takes away from the 
 plant brick that are needed to build kilns, dryers, walls, founda¬ 
 tions, pavements, etc., and necessitates the drying of brick in the 
 open air, and burning in old style kilns; trucking and wheeling 
 brick and firing kilns on muddy, sodden floors, thereby suffering 
 a loss of time, labor, fuel, and brick, and retards the growth of the 
 works at its most critical period. 
 
 Acquaint yourself with the best brickmakers and their meth¬ 
 ods. If they are using old style ways, and that suits you better 
 than any other, then suit yourself by all means. The public that 
 buys brick will do the same, and if your neighbor or competitor 
 makes better brick, they will choose between you and ycur neigh¬ 
 bor. If he is using a patented dryer or patented kiln, don’t con¬ 
 demn the patent business in a lump, but bear in mind that you 
 are using a patented brick machine, run by a patented engine. 
 Your belting, oilers, hangers, wrenches, etc., and even the buttons 
 on the off-bearers overalls are patented. Don’t question anything 
 just because it is patented, but decide on its merits, by the work 
 it will do. You may have seen the man who gets himself in a 
 fever heat if you mention that the article is patented. You might 
 with great propriety ask for a patent on his style of brick yard as 
 its like is nowhere on the face of the earth. 
 
 Above all other things have a good, competent and reliable 
 man as superintendent, or manager of your works; a man with 
 practical experience, and business tact; one who can command 
 the respect of both employer and employees. Get him and then 
 make his situation so agreeable that it will pay him to stay, and you 
 
182 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 to keep him. You will find enough men willing to serve in hisstead 
 at lower wages, but it will be better, for you if he has gotten things 
 to running smooth, and seems to have but little to do, to bear in 
 mind that if you change for a new and untried man with no 
 qualifications for the place, that you and the new man both will 
 be kept very busy for a long time to come. How often it is the 
 case, that after a few months of well directed effort, and close man¬ 
 agement on the part of the manager, some member of the com¬ 
 pany who is a novice in brickmaking in all its details, is con¬ 
 strained to believe that the superintendent is an unnecessary ad¬ 
 junct to a brick yard; and that they in particular have no need of 
 a man of that kind,the hands they employ can get along, apparent¬ 
 ly to them, without him. 
 
 The matter is talked over and worked up until as a sort of 
 trial to see how it will operate, the superintendent is dismissed, 
 and his salary is saved. But at what cost to the company ! The 
 ruin of one kiln of bricks, which almost always quickly follows, 
 would have paid the salary for one or more years to come. And 
 then comes not only one kiln but several follow in quick succes¬ 
 sion, or partially so. Trade is lost that is hard to regain. Confi¬ 
 dence is hard to restore in the ability of the company to furnish 
 their advertised goods promptly, and of a decided good quality, 
 and for a time ruin is imminent. “Get right” on that. 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 183 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 A 
 
 Adapting machine to the clay 41 
 Advantages and disadvan¬ 
 tages of dry clay . . . 8, 9 
 
 Addition to the plant . . 24 
 
 Advertise your goods . . 32 
 
 Advice to purchasers of ma¬ 
 chines .7 
 
 Artificial heat.47 
 
 Amount of water in green 
 
 brick.48 
 
 Advantages in racks and 
 
 pallets.50 
 
 Amount of bricks for floor 
 
 dryer.59 
 
 Amount to each setter . . 81 
 
 Admitting air while burning.94 
 Amount of coal .... 152 
 All brick burning the same 131 
 Anthracite coal .... 155 
 Abrasion of fire bricks . . 161 
 
 Analysis of clays .... 165 
 Abundance of clay . . . 142 
 
 B 
 
 Boiler.19 
 
 Brickyard, starting a . . 4 
 
 Boring the clay bank . . 15 
 
 Burn right to keep moving 97 
 Brick piles good investment 34 
 
 Belts, etc.21 
 
 Back pressure on engine . 63 
 
 Baltimore and Phila. brick 68 
 Burning the sand . . . 131 
 
 Bad burning.78 
 
 Benches, setting the . . 79 
 Bracing the bestowing . . 83 
 
 Burning well, importance of 97 
 Burning and baking . . 92 
 
 Burning by rule .... 98 
 
 “ key to success . 97 
 “ quick time ... 97 
 “ printed rules . . 98 
 
 “ revolution in . . 101 
 
 “ brick and tile to¬ 
 gether .... 105 
 “ go slow .... 100 
 Burner, a good .... 98 
 
 “ and kiln for success 98 
 Burning gas well . . • 127 
 
 Brickmakers benefited . .130 
 
 Brick is a brick .... 134 
 “ poorly burned . .134 
 
 “ prejudice against . 137 
 “ beauty and durability 
 
 of.139 
 
 “ wall and customers 137 
 Basements .... 137, 139 
 
 Bricklayer vs. maker . .138 
 
 Bricks the material . . .135 
 
 Bricks, universal use of .140 
 
 Brown coal.151 
 
 Bituminous coal .... 152 
 Building and fire brick . 163 
 Block coal, nut coal, etc . 154 
 Burning coal without grates 156 
 Blending of clays . . . 159 
 
 Brick mason, the .... 138 
 Burning fire clay wares . 163 
 
184 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Brown, Prof. R. T., extract 
 from writings of . . .167 
 
 Brickmakers’ opportunity 170 
 Building brick and pavers 168 
 Brick street pavements . 167 
 C 
 
 Clay bank.li 
 
 “ and its quality . . 10 
 
 “ beds extensive, for suc¬ 
 cess . 11 
 
 “ , water in, bank . . 13 
 
 “ , use of powder in, bank 15 
 “ strong and weak . .17 
 “ how to bring in . . 35 
 
 “ and sand. 14 
 
 “ weathering the . . 72 
 “ tempering the ... 39 
 “ variation in . . 14,42 
 
 “ refractoriness of . . 166 
 Competent man to lay out 
 
 yard.24 
 
 Comparison of fuel . . . 153 
 Choke in burning ... 88 
 
 Cold spot in kiln .... 87 
 
 Coast cities and their brick¬ 
 yards . 12 
 
 Convenience of yards . . 23 
 in feeding ma¬ 
 chine . . 21 
 
 Comparison witli a blast 
 
 furnace.25 
 
 Comparison of production 
 and expenditure ... 28 
 Changing hands about . . 30 
 
 Cost of rehandling ... 30 
 
 Carts, cars, cable and spool 35,36 
 Care of machines ... 44 
 Certainty of output ... 29 
 Capital, less needed . . 28 
 Comparison of methods and 
 
 results. 31 
 
 Cost and value of dryers . 32 
 
 Construction of flue dryer 57 
 Cement floor . . . . . 33 
 Capacity of dryer .... 59 
 
 Cost of pipes for dryer . . 66 
 
 Construction of pressed brick 
 
 walls.67 
 
 Care in making .... 68 
 
 Covering with canvass . . 69 
 Carrying to kiln on pallets 71 
 Closing up doorway to kiln 82 
 Closing up kiln before firing 84 
 Condition of green brick . 85 
 
 Crushing while burning . 85 
 
 Cooling a kiln w T hen burned 90 
 Checks, cracks, color and 
 
 25, 
 
 discoloration. 
 
 Casing or scoving . . , 
 Checked brick in arches . 
 Coal screenings, burning . 
 Construction and capacity 
 of kilns . . , 
 
 Corner timbers 
 Changing the men . . 
 
 Clinkering the grate bar: 
 Care in handling brick 
 Care in laying in wall 
 Cost price .... 
 Contracts for fuel, etc 
 Companies organized 
 Cost per M with gas 
 Coal and oil as fuel . 
 
 Colors in bricks . . 
 
 Church at Norfolk, Va 
 Comparison with house 
 built to-day . . 
 
 Customers and walls 
 Course of slate 
 Condensation . . 
 
 Cost and repairs of brie 
 house .... 
 
 Clay ware in four classe 
 Color of terra-cotta 
 Coal and coke 
 Cord wood and coal, value of 
 Cord wood, bulk of . . 
 
 and clay bank 
 
 Coal, brown. 
 
 “ surface .... 
 
 , 91 
 99 
 99 
 
 101 
 
 102 
 
 109 
 
 30 
 
 114 
 
 120 
 
 121 
 
 125 
 
 174 
 
 130 
 
 132 
 
 157 
 
 134 
 
 136 
 
 135 
 
 137 
 
 138 
 138 
 
 139 
 
 143 
 
 144 
 
 146 
 
 147 
 149 
 149 
 151 
 151 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 185 
 
 Coal, block, nut, slack, 
 
 screenings.154 
 
 Civil engineers and brick¬ 
 yards .152 
 
 Comparison between rail 
 
 roads and brickyards . 153 
 Composition of fire bricks 160 
 Crushing weight .... 162 
 Color, cheapness, etc . .163 
 Coarse, sandy clay . . . 168 
 Construction of streets . .171 
 D 
 
 Drainage about works . . 4 
 
 Dry houses.167 
 
 Diagram of yard and works 20 
 Dust on engine .... 22 
 
 Dryers.57 
 
 Difference in pay-roll . . 28 
 
 Difficulty in drying . . 48, 51 
 
 Drum and steam hoist . . 36 
 
 Dump cars, dump tracks . 36 
 
 Difference in clays . . 43, 44 
 Danger of breakage ... 44 
 Dirt in cogs and oil holes . 45 
 
 Drying bricks.46 
 
 Dryers, their construction . 57 
 
 Dryer, hot floor .... 57 
 Distributing chamber in 
 
 furnace.58 
 
 Drying capacity .... 59 
 
 Dryer roof.59 
 
 Drains about dryer ... 59 
 Damper to stack .... 61 
 
 Draining the pipes ... 64 
 
 Drying pressed bricks . . 65 
 
 Description of illustration 
 
 of setting.79 
 
 Description of timbers and 
 
 bars .107, 108 
 
 Danger of fire.109 
 
 Damp brick vs. dry brick . 87 
 
 Draft in platting .... 87 
 
 Discoloration.92 
 
 Dead heat, or 02 
 
 Draft in kiln 
 
 103 
 
 111 
 
 114 
 
 114 
 
 116 
 
 161 
 
 164 
 
 163 
 
 166 
 
 7 
 
 Down draft kiln . . 
 
 Difference in firemen 
 Dispatch in firing 
 Doors to furnaces 
 Damage done ... 
 
 Damaged or defaced brick 120 
 Danger of explosion with gas 129 
 Damaged arches, remedy for 131 
 Durability of bricks . . .135 
 
 Drainage about buildings, 
 
 works, etc.4 
 
 Driving rains on walls . . 138 
 Dutch oven ...... 141 
 
 Demand for paving bricks 167 
 Directions for fire clay 
 
 mortar . 
 
 Direct up draft kiln . . 
 
 Degrees of heat . . . 
 
 Dictionary of Arts —Ures 
 Dry clay machines . . 
 
 E 
 
 Engineer.5, 178 
 
 Engines, second-hand . . 6 
 
 Engine, room, dust on, etc 19, 22 
 Extra help at machine, 
 
 extra machine .... 28 
 
 Elevate the clay . . . • 39 
 
 Experimenting in manufac¬ 
 ture .24 
 
 English brick.136 
 
 Escaping heat.04 
 
 Experience in firing ' . .111 
 
 Endless belt '.H8 
 
 Experience no requirement 110 
 Extravagance in building 
 plant .... 
 
 Experiments in gas 
 “ “ oil 
 
 Expensive buildings 
 Ease of working clay 
 East Tennessee coal 
 Essential qualities of fire 
 
 bricks. 161 
 
 Economic method for brick 
 works.25 
 
 2o 
 
 128 
 
 133 
 
 7 
 
 144 
 
 154 
 
186 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Extracts from Mechanical 
 
 Dictionary . 
 
 . 165 
 
 Extracts from Prof. R. T. 
 
 
 Brown’s writings . 
 
 . 167 
 
 Extracts from Ure’s Diction- 
 
 ary of Arts .... 
 
 T? 
 
 . 166 
 
 Fireman at engine . . 
 
 5 
 
 Frequent removals . 
 
 11, 12 
 
 Floods . 
 
 
 Full capacity of works . 
 
 . 28 
 
 Full clay supply . . . 
 
 . 11 
 
 Floor dryers,construction, etc 57 
 
 Foundation for . . 
 
 . 57 
 
 Flues under floor, size, cov- 
 
 ering, etc. 
 
 
 Flues, how to clean out 
 
 . 59 
 
 Foreman . . 
 
 5 
 
 Furnace for dryer . . 
 
 . 61 
 
 Fuel for dryer ... 
 
 . 61 
 
 Floor covering for pipes, 
 
 
 iron floors, etc . . 
 
 62, 63 
 
 Floor, steam heated . 
 
 . 61 
 
 Force at hand press 
 
 . 73 
 
 Fuel in water-smoking . 
 
 . 86 
 
 Furnace attachments . 
 
 . 88 
 
 “ for uniform 
 
 
 heat . . 92, 101 
 
 Firing, mode of . . . 
 
 . 110 
 
 Firemen, difference in . 
 
 . Ill 
 
 Faces on bricks . . 
 
 . 121 
 
 Frost in spring months 
 
 . 124 
 
 Fuel and labor . , 
 
 . 125 
 
 Frost and fire-proof brick 
 
 34 
 
 Frailty of wooden houses 
 
 135 
 
 Full supply of wood 
 
 . 149 
 
 Financial differences 
 
 . 153 
 
 Fire clay, fire bricks, etc 
 
 . 158 
 
 Furnace work .... 
 
 . 161 
 
 Fluxing of clay . . . 
 
 . 163 
 
 Fire brick work, wear of 
 
 . 162 
 
 Furnace walls ... 
 
 . 162 
 
 Fire brick bats, utilizing 
 
 . 164 
 
 First brick streets . . . 
 
 . 169 
 
 Failure predicted . . . 
 
 . 169 
 
 G 
 
 Get the best . 7 
 
 Grate surface.61 
 
 Good setting. 73 
 
 Good burning. 79 
 
 Grate surface in furnace . 61 
 
 Good burner. 90 
 
 Grates, size of. 93 
 
 Green brick a frail object . 120 
 
 Grading, etc .124 
 
 Gas posts . 132 
 
 “ monopoly.132 
 
 “ a substitute for fuel , 130 
 
 Greek art. 143 
 
 Granite blocks.168 
 
 H 
 
 Hints to the beginner . .173 
 Hints on starting .... 123 
 High water mark ... 4 
 
 Hot air dryers, patented . 52 
 
 Hot floor dryers .... 57 
 
 Height of stack .... 59 
 How to clean the flues . . 59 
 
 Hand press. 73 
 
 Height to set.81 
 
 Handling brick from kiln 
 
 to car.118 
 
 Handling, care in ... 120 
 
 Hard knocks.120 
 
 Houses, brick and wooden 135 
 
 Hollow walls.139 
 
 Height above ground . . 138 
 Heat, regularity of ... 90 
 Heating of journals ... 45 
 Height of buildings, sheds 178 
 I 
 
 Industrial exhibits ... 7 
 
 Importance of the clay bank 11 
 Improved machinery . . 7 
 
 Iron pallets.22 
 
 Illustrations of clay hoist 37, 38 
 Investigating merits of kilns, 
 
 dryers, etc. 53 
 
 Illustration of setting in 
 
 benches.79 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 187 
 
 Invention of E. V. \\ ingard 
 Improved methods . . . 
 
 Indiana gas fields . . • 
 
 Improved kilns .... 
 Infusible clay, its propor¬ 
 tion, etc. 
 
 Iv 
 
 Kilns, locating the . . . 
 
 “ good . 
 
 “ old way .... 
 
 closing. 
 
 “ and burning . . . 
 
 “ not portable . . . 
 
 “ down draft, up draft 
 
 “ and burner for suc¬ 
 cess . . . 
 
 “ walls and lining 
 
 “ doorway . . 
 
 l ’ temporary . . 
 
 selection of 
 “ regulation of heat in 
 
 L 
 
 Location of yard .... 
 Laying out yard .... 
 Locating kilns, etc . . . 
 
 Line shafting. 
 
 Lime pebbles. 
 
 Loamy clay. 
 
 Lumber for covering green 
 
 brick. 
 
 Length of hot floor . . . 
 
 Live steam and exhaust 
 
 Low fires. 
 
 Loading from clamp walls 
 
 Less labor. 
 
 Low per cent, of waste . 
 Leveling the fires ... 
 
 Lively fires. 
 
 Large orders. 
 
 Light colored courses . . 
 
 Loading pressed brick . 
 
 Less capital. 
 
 Liability to shrink . . 
 
 Lime in fire clay . . 
 
 Location. 
 
 101 
 
 102 
 
 132 
 
 101 
 
 163 
 
 21 
 
 92 
 
 99 
 82 
 97 
 
 102 
 
 103 
 
 90 
 
 100 
 
 82 
 
 100 
 
 102 
 
 101 
 
 4 
 
 19 
 
 21 
 
 21 
 
 43 
 
 44 
 
 49 
 
 57 
 
 63 
 
 86 
 
 100 
 99 
 97 
 
 114 
 
 114 
 
 120 
 
 121 
 
 121 
 
 29 
 
 161 
 
 160 
 
 174 
 
 M 
 
 Markets.. • 
 
 Machines, stiff and soft mud 
 
 Methods, etc. 
 
 Mixing the clay .... 
 Mining for results . . . 
 
 Mining in benches . . • 
 
 Making falls . . • . • 
 
 Machine room ..... 
 Machine and line shafting 
 
 Main points . 
 
 Market the entire product 
 Machine the fountain . . 
 
 Machine, extra .... 
 Method of bringing in clay 
 Making brick by hand 
 Manufacturers’ claims . . 
 
 Machine, care of . . . • 
 
 “ requirements of 
 
 “ starting and 
 
 stopping . . . 
 
 Moist, hot air. 
 
 Method, best in drying 
 Material for roof .... 
 Making pressed brick, cost of 
 Molded and ornamental . 
 Moisture, equalizing the . 
 Molding the bricks by hand 
 Molding the bricks by ma¬ 
 chine .... 
 
 Molds, care of . . 
 
 Melted arches . . 
 
 Money well spent 
 Monopoly . . . 
 
 Mode of firing . . 
 
 Melting the grates 
 Manner of handling 
 Machinery, etc 
 Material, bricks the 
 Master mechanics, etc 
 Mason, the brick 
 Mortar . . . 
 
 Melting of mortar joints . 
 Making fire bricks for own 
 use. 
 
 4 
 
 44 
 
 44 
 
 40 
 
 14 
 
 15 
 15 
 21 
 21 
 27 
 27 
 
 27 
 
 28 
 35 
 
 41 
 
 42 
 
 44 
 
 45 
 
 46 
 
 47 
 
 48 
 59 
 
 67 
 
 68 
 69 
 69 
 
 69 
 
 V5 
 
 79 
 
 102 
 
 103 
 
 95 
 
 95 
 
 120 
 
 124 
 
 134 
 
 152 
 
 138 
 
 161 
 
 162 
 
 164 
 
388 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 N 
 
 No process in general use . 8 
 
 Necessary to success . . 11 
 No theory needed ... 31 
 
 Natural heat.50 
 
 No limit to methods . . 57 
 
 No monopoly.103 
 
 "* Ne w works, when to build 123 
 Natural gas, and oil . . . 133 
 Not suited to small yards . 133 
 Not used as mined . . . 154 
 Natural compound . . . 159 
 No perfection . . . 
 
 0 
 
 Oiling the bearings ... 45 
 Ornamental designs ... 75 
 Overhanging courses in 
 
 arches.73 
 
 Old style kiln.31 
 
 Open top kiln.31 
 
 Old style laborious method 99 
 
 Objections.100 
 
 Ohio and Indiana gas fields 132 
 Oil, experiments in . . . 133 
 Oil wells, abandoned . .127 
 
 Oil and coal .133 
 
 Ornamentation . . . .134 
 Old brick structures . . 135 
 Oven, the Dutch .... 141 
 
 Oil, gas, etc.133 
 
 Ohio coal.154 
 
 Oxides of iron.130 
 
 Opportunities of brick- 
 
 makers .]7o 
 
 Other pavements . . . .170 
 Oil for use of repress . . 73 
 P 
 
 Preferences in machines . 41 
 Philadelphia, Richmond and 
 Baltimore brickyards . 68 
 Picks and shovels ... 5 
 
 Plugging for clay .... 16 
 
 Plan of yard.39 
 
 Pallets, wood and iron, how 
 to make, etc.22 
 
 Plant, addition to 
 
 . 24 
 
 Plan of works for steady 
 
 
 output.• 
 
 . 27 
 
 Per cent, of waste 
 
 . 27 
 
 “Pay roll . . 
 
 
 Permanent works 
 
 
 Prices . . . 
 
 
 Pallets and racks 
 
 . 50 
 
 Proprietor, wear and tear 
 
 of 51 
 
 Patented dryers 
 
 . 52 
 
 Plan for hot floor 
 
 • 57 
 
 Pavement 
 
 
 Posts and walls 
 
 . 59 
 
 Pipes, cost of, etc . 
 
 . 66 
 
 Pressed brick, profit in 
 
 . 67 
 
 Philadelphia pressed brick 66 
 
 Pallets and racks . 
 
 . 50 
 
 Pressed brick setting 
 
 . 71 
 
 Piling and hacking to dry 69 
 Platting, burned brick for 80 . 81 
 Permanent walls . . . . 99 
 Permanent walls no preven¬ 
 tion of loss in arches . 100 
 Pressed brick, how to load 121 
 
 Permanency.123 
 
 Petroleum.127 
 
 Prospective failure of gas 
 
 supply. 132 
 
 Poorly burned brick . . 134 
 Prejudice against brick .134 
 Paint and repairs .... 135 
 Primitive man .... 140 
 
 Poor wood.147 
 
 Pure or perfect coal . . 151 
 Pennsylvania coal, Poca¬ 
 hontas coal.154 
 
 Problems of brickmakers . 154 
 Paving bricks .... 167 
 
 Parties with clay beds . . 158 
 Perfect refractory clay . .160 
 
 Pavers and building bricks 168 
 Pavements, other . . . 171 
 
 „ Q 
 
 Quality of clay, how to test 16 
 Question of profits ... 17 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 189 
 
 R 
 
 Richmond,Ya., brickyards at 41 
 Results in burning ... 97 
 
 Rail car tracks.21 
 
 Rocks and pebbles in clay 43 
 Roots, trash, etc .... 45 
 Requirements of the ma¬ 
 chine .46 
 
 Rack and pallets for soft 
 
 mud brick.50 
 
 Receivers, pipes, etc ... 61 
 
 Raw clay finish on pressed 
 
 brick.68 
 
 Repress.• • 73 
 
 Reversing blocks in setting 71 
 Remedy for cold spot . . 87 
 
 Roof for kiln.107 
 
 Rest for firemen . . . .112 
 
 Restoring heat .... 116 
 Rush of orders .... 120 
 
 Rubbish.120 
 
 Regulation of heat in kilns, 
 
 dryers, etc.95 
 
 Remedy for damaged arches 98 
 
 Repair shop.180 
 
 S 
 
 Starting, hints on ... 123 
 Second-hand engines or ma¬ 
 chines .6 
 
 Size of engine . . . . 6, 178 
 Soft mud vs. stiff mud . . 9 
 
 Superintendent .... 181 
 Strong and weak clay . . 44 
 Saving expenses .... 28 
 
 Steady output.27 
 
 Steady work for hands . . 32 
 
 Sell the best.32 
 
 Stock pile.33 
 
 Spool and cable, size, etc . 37 
 
 Steam hoist.38 
 
 Situation.39 
 
 Shells, winkles, etc ... 43 
 Starting and stopping ma¬ 
 chine ....... 46 
 
 Sunshine in drying ... 48 
 
 33 
 
 57 
 
 59 
 
 61 
 
 63 
 
 65 
 
 Spring prices. 
 
 Soot chamber in dryer . . 
 
 Smoke-stacks, dampers, etc 
 Size of furnace .... 
 Steam for drying, live . . 
 
 Severe climates .... 
 
 Small yards.67 
 
 Sheds for storage .... 68 
 
 Soft and stiff mud brick for 
 pressed work .... 
 Setting pressed and orna¬ 
 mental brick .... 
 
 Sand and clay. 
 
 Sifting and storing . . . 
 
 Setting necessary to good 
 
 burning . 
 
 Saving and loss in burning 
 Sand for closing doorway . 
 Shrinkage in drying . . 
 
 Slow drying, sweating . . 
 
 Starting the fires .... 
 
 Soot or choke in kiln . . 
 
 Settling heat, etc .... 
 Sandy and loamy clay . . 
 
 Skill in burning .... 
 Saving time and fuel, wast¬ 
 ing bricks . . . . 93, 98 
 
 Scoving or casing 
 Salmon bricks . . . 
 
 Six day burning . . 
 
 Sound arch brick 
 Strength of main walls 
 Stay rods in main walls 
 Skill and ignorance in 
 burning .... 
 
 Saving in fuel . . . 
 
 State of the furnace . 
 
 Sleeping on duty . . 
 
 Switch tracks . . . 
 
 Spring time for starting 
 Sales first season . . , 
 
 Selection of kiln and 
 
 dryers. 
 
 Stone foundation . . 
 
 Slate course foundation 
 
 69 
 
 71 
 
 72 
 72 
 
 78 
 
 79 
 83 
 86 
 86 
 85 
 88 
 89 
 91 
 93 
 
 99 
 
 99 
 
 100 
 
 101 
 
 107 
 
 108 
 
 110 
 
 111 
 
 113 
 
 116 
 
 119 
 
 123 
 
 124 
 
 . 125 
 , 137 
 . 138 
 
190 
 
 BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 Supply of season’s wood, etc 147 
 Southern timber, pine, etc 149 
 
 Surface coal. 151 
 
 Semi-anthracite .... 152 
 Semi-bituminous .... 152 
 Smoke and soot .... 156 
 
 Silicates, etc . 159 
 
 Shrinkage.161 
 
 South Carolina clay . . . 160 
 Size of fire-bricks, etc . . 161 
 
 Splintering bricks, sand¬ 
 stones, etc .162 
 
 Street pavements, substi¬ 
 tutes . i . 167 
 
 Suitable clay for pavers . 168 
 Spread of system . . . .170 
 T 
 
 Tools. 0 , 179 
 
 Tools for firemen, illustrated 116 
 Tough, tenacious clay . .168 
 
 Tram cars. 37 
 
 Track and switch .... 38 
 Trash in the clay .... 43 
 Tempering the clay ... 40 
 Three and a-third brick 
 
 bench.so 
 
 Timbers, description of . 108 
 Time and fuel in burning 97 
 Tile burned with bricks . 105 
 Timbers at kiln doorway . 82 
 
 Time to clinker .... 115 
 Turn-table and movable 
 
 tracks. 119 
 
 Terra-cotta, ancient, color 
 
 of, etc. 143 
 
 True lines, beauty of . . 144 
 
 Timber, northern and 
 
 southern. 149 
 
 Tennessee coal .' . . . 154 
 Thorough working of clay 40 
 Test places in, street 
 
 pavements.169 
 
 U 
 
 Use of water at clay bank . 15 
 
 Uniform heat . . . . 78, 92 
 
 Unburned brick in benches 78 
 Uniform success .... 98 
 Up draft kiln ... 94,103 
 
 Unloading a kiln . . . .’llg 
 Uncovering pressed brick 120 
 
 Uphill work . . 
 
 
 Use of crude oil in burning 133 
 
 United action . , 
 
 . 168 
 
 Utility of terra-cotta, uses 
 
 . 144 
 
 Utilizing the timber . 
 
 . 146 
 
 Uniformity .... 
 
 . 156 
 
 V 
 
 
 Valves .... 
 
 64 
 
 Variation of clay 
 
 149 
 
 Variation of coal . , 
 
 151 
 
 W 
 
 
 Water supply . ,. . 
 
 17 
 
 “ in clay bank . . 
 
 13 
 
 “ removal of 
 
 13 
 
 Wood pallets . . , 
 
 23 
 
 Waste of capital . , 
 
 24 
 
 Winter work 
 
 33 
 
 Wheelbarrows . 
 
 5 
 
 Winkles, shells, etc . 
 
 43 
 
 Work, worry, wear and tear 51 
 
 Waste, per cent, of 
 
 27 
 
 Wet weather, drying in 
 
 52 
 
 Walls and posts . . 
 
 59 
 
 Whitewashing in burning 
 
 85 
 
 Weathering the clay 
 
 72 
 
 Warping in drying . . 
 
 70 
 
 Watch with kiln, water- 
 
 
 smoking .... 
 
 86 
 
 Waste of heat . 
 
 89 
 
 Whims of brickmakers 
 
 98 
 
 Walls, permanent . . , 
 
 101 
 
 Walls, temporary . . . , 
 
 100 
 
 Waste in arches . . 
 
 99 
 
 Wingard, E V, invention . 
 
 101 
 
 Weak points .... 
 
 101 
 
 Working of fire .... 
 
 113 
 
 Working at night . . , 
 
 112 
 
 Wire cable track . , 
 
 118 
 
 Where to begin to unload 
 
 
 kiln . 
 
 121 
 
BRICKMAKERS MANUAL. 
 
 191 
 
 When to build works . .123 
 
 Winter weather, winter and 
 fall work . . . • - t • 32 
 
 Wooden houses frail . .135 
 
 Walls of brick, dampness 138 
 Washing the clay . . • 145 
 
 146 
 
 162 
 
 162 
 
 Wood as fuel . • • 
 
 Walls of furnace work 
 Wear of fire bricks . 
 
 Y 
 
 Yard and works, diagram of 20 
 Yard, plan of. 19 
 
WILLIAMS’ Cyclone Pulverizers, 36,40 and 48-in. diameter. 
 WILLIAMS’ Automatic Feeders and Mixers for Dry Presses. 
 WILLIAMS’ Revolving Clay Screens. 
 
 WILLIAMS’ Automatic Feeders for Dry Presses. 
 WILLIAMS’ Clay Elevators. 
 
 WILLIAMS’ Clay Conveyors. 
 
 WILLIAMS’ Sizing Machine for Arch and Angle Brick. 
 WILLIAMS’ Brick Trucks. 
 
 WILLIAMS’ Clutch Pulleys and Couplings. 
 
 WILLIAMS’ Complete Outfits for Dry Press Yards. 
 
 Write to 
 
 Milton F. Williams & Co., 
 
 1417 N. 2nd Street. St. LOUIS, MO. 
 
 zeie.^.idq'ct'.a.is.'X’EIRS for. 
 
 Brick Moulds 
 
 Hand—6 Brick. 
 
 Of All Shapes and Sizes. 
 
 Brick and Tile Yard Trucks 
 
 and Wheelbarrows, 
 Tempering Wheels, Re-Presses, 
 Furnace Fronts, Kiln Doors 
 and Frames, Kiln Covers, 
 
 Band Tighteners, 
 Door Connectors, Etc., Etc. 
 
 Get our Illustrated Cata¬ 
 logue and Price List before 
 placing your orders. 
 
 Hand—3 Brick. 
 
 Machine—6 Brick. 
 
 Prompt attention given 
 to correspondence. 
 
 D,Jl). 
 
 2ST0"'^7v r X-iCri.d-orx, 
 
 Ola.1©. 
 
The Purington Paving Brick Co. who have one of the largest and best equipped brick works 
 in America, have an Iron-Clad Dryer forty-two feet wide and one hundred feet long in 
 which they are drying paving brick in twenty-four hours. 
 
The Secret of Success. 
 
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 261 Dearborn St., Chicago, Ilhs. 
 
Mey Patent Clay Elevaton 
 
F. H. C. MEY’S 
 
 ZP^TIEIbTT 
 
 CLAY ELEVATORi» CONVEYOR 
 
 FOR 
 
 ELEVATING AND CONVEYING SOAKED SOFT CLAY 
 INTO THE BRICK MACHINE. 
 
 Practical brick mannufacturers will see its good points at 
 once. It dispenses with the old method of shoveling or Avheeling 
 the soaked soft clay from the pit into the brick machine. The 
 Elevator and Conveyor can be set at any convenient place, and 
 pits are dug into the ground on one or both sides. This does 
 away with building a raised platform or pit back of the brick ma¬ 
 chine, thereby saving more than the cost of this Chain Elevator 
 and Conveyor, and being on level ground it is far less hard woik 
 for horses filling the pits and enables them, at the same time, to 
 draw heavier loads. If there are pits on each side of the Elevator 
 and Conveyor, this will enable the operator to run the brick ma¬ 
 chine every day. It will elevate the clay as fast as wanted and 
 requires but little power. The pit men can handle more clay by 
 using this Elevator and Conveyor and do their work with less 
 labor than by the old way of getting the clay Irom the soak pit 
 into the machine. Different kinds of clay can be mixed thoroughly 
 by putting light clay in one part of the pit and strong clay in 
 another, and when there are two pit men, one can handle the 
 light and the other the strong clay, and both kinds being elevated 
 to the brick machine at the same time, it will be thoroughly 
 mixed in the machine. 
 
 Elevators and Conveyors for elevating or conveying dry clay 
 from the bank or shed to machine can also be furnished. 
 
 F. H. C. MEY, 
 
 • BUFFALO, N. Y. 
 
Are the Machines you should use to grind your clay. 
 
 THEY ARE THE BEST. 
 
 For Prices, Write 
 
 Q. 9 f\. potts 9 <?o., 
 
 Indianapolis 
 
 Ind 
 
0. & A. POTTS & GO., 
 
 MANUFACTURERS OF 
 
 Briel^ /^aetyipery 
 
 BRICKMAKERS' SUPPLIES. 
 
 We are prepared to furnish complete outfits for any desired 
 capacity and fully guarantee our machinery and supplies. 
 
 Send for descriptive catalogue of 
 
 The Potts Horizontal Stock Brick 
 
 Machine. 
 
 The Potts Clay Disintegrators. 
 The Potts Combined Pug Mills 
 and Disintegrators. 
 
 The Potts Improved Mold Sander. 
 
 Clay Elevators, 
 
 Dump Cars, 
 
 Trucks and Barrows 
 
 and all Brickyard Supplies. 
 
 We make our our own brick molds. 
 
 C. & A. POTTS & CO., 
 
 INDIANAPOLIS. IND. 
 
THE FREY-SME6KLER GO., 
 
 BUCYRTJS, OHIO. 
 
 __manufacturers of- 
 
 CLAY WORKING MACHINERY, 
 
 Ku.ll Factory Outfits. 
 
 Eight Different Brick Machines Using the Celebrated Nehlergesaes 
 Patent Lubricating Brick Die. 
 
 Perfect lubrication, sharp corners, solid body of brick. 
 
 Size of brick never changes by size of Die. 
 
 The Die does not wear out, as the steel liners take up all the 
 
 wear and are cheaply replaced. 
 
 Can be used for any shaped Die. 
 ggg“Send for Catalogue to the 
 
 P^ey-^e^ler Q°- 
 
 BUCYRTJS OHIO. 
 
The “New Quaker” 
 
 The most Simple in Construction, Most Powerfully Built, yet 
 the most reasonable in price of any first-class Brick Machine 
 in this Country, Oyer 1,000 are in operation, scattered through¬ 
 out every State in the Union, giving the most perfect satisfaction. 
 
 New Quaker Horse Power, Capacity 15,000 to 20,000. 
 
 The v above cut represents the Horse Power Machine and pits 
 ready for work. 
 
 Regular Steam Power Machine, capacity 20,000 to 25,000 
 per day. Extra Heavy Steam Power Machine, capacity 30,000 to 
 50,000 per day. 
 
 We make a specialty of equipping complete yards, including 
 Engines, Boilers, Pug Mills, Mold Sanding Machines, Molds, 
 Trucks, Barrows, Shafting, Pulleys, Belting, Etc., Etc., all set up 
 and in running order. Send for Illustrated Catalogue. 
 
 Correspondence solicited. 
 
 FLETCHER & THOMAS, 
 
 INDIANAPOLIS, IND. 
 
Improved, gpm 
 
 Practical, 
 
 pgjjj Profitable. 
 
 We will contract to equip your 
 yard with machinery and deliver same 
 in working order—under guarantee. 
 
 We solicit the privilege to furnish 
 estimates and plans for your consid¬ 
 eration and comparison. 
 
 Reliable references from our best 
 known manufacturers. 
 
 Any one machine furnished on 
 short notice. 
 
 Address the manufacturers, 
 
 Jonathan Creager’s Sons, 
 
 Cincinnati, Ohio. 
 
E. M. FREESE & CO’S. 
 
 Ilk/EZFZRO^TIEID 
 
 OHIO BRICK MACHINES 
 
 EXCEL ALL OTHERS. 
 
 The brick are delivered at the 
 hacks without handling, and in the 
 niost perfect condition at the lowest 
 cost for labor and repairs. 
 
 Write for illustrated catalogue. 
 
 E. M. FREESE & CO., 
 
 Plymouth, Rich land Co., Ohio, U. S. A. 
 
CHAMBERS BROTHERS CO., 
 
 Fifty-second St., be'ow Lancaster Ave, 
 
 PHILADELPHIA, PA. 
 
 Capacities, from 12,000 to 70,000 per day. 
 
 Guaranteed to give satisfaction and erected subject to 
 acceptance after thirty days’ trial. 
 
 Clay Granulators, Pug Mills, 
 
 Mixing Machines, Crushing Rolls, 
 Clay Elevators and Carriers, 
 
 Artificial Brick Dryers, 
 Cars, Pallets, Portable 
 
 Turn Tables, Kiln Castings. 
 
J. W. Penfield & Sen, 
 
 WILLOUGHBY, OHIO, U.8.A. 
 
 MANUFACTURERS OF 
 
 CLAYWORKING 
 
 MACHINERY 
 
 OF ALL KINDS. 
 
 Brick Machines; 
 
 Tile Machines; 
 
 Clay Crushers; 
 
 Pug Mills; 
 
 Elevators; 
 
 Iron Dry Cars; 
 
 Transfer Cars and Turn Tables ; 
 Winding Drums and Clay Cars; 
 
 Line Shafting, Pulleys and Hangers; 
 Kiln Castings and Yard Supplies, 
 
 Send for 
 Catalogues 
 and 
 Prices. 
 
A.M.&W. H.WILES, 
 
 MANUFACTURERS OF THE 
 
 ■^77ELL E§znsrO"W3ST 
 
 Standard * Brick + Machines. 
 
 This machine has been in constant 
 use in all parts of the country foi 
 over forty years, and has served as a 
 model for all successful brick ma¬ 
 chines made in the United States 
 where a Square Press is used, and 
 they are now, with our latest improve 
 ments, the best and most successful 
 Brick Moulding Machines in use. 
 
 Also manufacturers of Steam Engines, Shafting and 
 General Machinery, Brick Moulds, Tempering Wheels 
 and all articles used in the manufacture of brick a spec¬ 
 ialty. Correspondence solicited. 
 
 A. M. & W. H. WILES, 
 
 Grassy Point, (Rockland Co ,) New York. 
 
THE “NEW HAVEN 
 
 Weight, 14,000 Pounds. 
 
 Is the Heaviest, Host Powerful and Best 
 
 Machine built in America for making sand moulded brick, 
 being carefully designed to secure the greatest poss¬ 
 ible production of first-class brick with 
 the least outlay and loss of time for re¬ 
 pairs. 
 
 This machine meets the demand from brickmakers 
 who think it wiser to buy a high grade, substan¬ 
 tial machine than to wast^ time exhaust patience 
 and lose money with light and cheaply constructed ma¬ 
 chines that are manifestly unequal to the many enormous 
 strains and heavy duty required of clayworking machines. 
 
 It has made a record of which we are decidedly 
 proud. 
 
 We invite correspondence, and inquiry. 
 
 The McLagon Foundry 60., 
 
 NEW HAVEN, CONN. 
 
Hand and Power Re-presses 
 
 MANUFACTURED BY 
 
 C.W. RAYMOND & GO., DAYTON, 0. 
 
 Are the most powerful and rapid working machines 
 for repressing red and fire brick, paving and 
 furnace blocks, roofing and flooring tiles, 
 etc., upon the market. 
 
 Without an Equal 
 
 FOR 
 
 Ornamental Erick 
 
 AND 
 
 Terra-Cotta. 
 
 Our illustrated catalogue of Pressing Machines, Dumping 
 Cars, Iron Cars, Transfer Cars and a full line of brickyard equip¬ 
 ment should be in the hands of every progressive clay-worker in 
 the country. 
 
r Rapidity. 
 
 Investigate 
 
 our 
 
 Machinery -< 
 and 
 
 You will find: 
 
 Simplicity. 
 
 Accuracy. 
 
 Reliability. 
 
 Low first cost. 
 
 Low cost of operation. 
 
 ^ Perfection of product. 
 
 We make a specialty of furnishing the very best of 
 all kinds of supplies, and the superior lasting qualities 
 of our molds, trucks, barrows, etc., etc., has made us 
 many steady customers, after once giving us a trial 
 order. Full outfits a specialty. 
 
 WELLINGTON, 
 
 OHIO. 
 
Brick pallets 
 
 We manufacture several styles of 
 pallets. 
 
 THE BEST AND CHEAPEST. 
 
 Don’t fail to get our Illustrated ■ 
 Circulars and Prices before ordering. 
 
 I. B. MERSHON & GO., 
 
 EAST SAGINAW. - - MICHIGAN. 
 
The Best is Cheapest. 
 
 The truth of this old adage applies to nothing more 
 ^ aptly than to clayworking machinery. No line of ma¬ 
 chinery is subjected to harder usage or greater strain than 
 brickmaking machinery. This fact is well understood and 
 should be appreciated by brickmakers. It is economy to 
 buy the best and thus avid the expense and loss incident 
 to the breaking down of faulty machinery. 
 
 Tlie Camell Brick Machines have been on 
 the market for over thirty-six (36) years and are recognized 
 as the standard for durability and accuracy. The new, 
 improved machinery is unequalled for strength, capacity 
 and quality of products. Send for illustrated catalogue 
 of Brick Machines, Brick Presses, Tempering Wheels and 
 all brickyard supplies. 
 
 GEORGE CARNELL, 
 
 Inventor, Patentee and Sole Manufacturer, 
 
 1819, 1821 and 1823 North Fifth St. and Germantown Ave., 
 
 PHILADELPHIA, PA., U. S. A. 
 
Robert Schmidt. the Geo. C. Firestone. 
 
 Schmidt & Firestone Continuous 
 
 BEIOZ: BBIXjBT. 
 
 HELENA, MONT. 
 
 Experienced brickmakers readily concede that the most im¬ 
 portant factor in brickmaking is the burning. On nothing does 
 success depend so much as the economical and thorough burning 
 of the brick. 
 
 This kiln is adapted to the burning of all kinds of material 
 made of clay and is especially valuable where intense heat is 
 needed. Any kind of fuel can be used. No interference from 
 rain, frost or cold. Runs the year round. For saving of fuel, 
 labor, time and money it is unexcelled. 
 
 For plans and specifications, cost of construction or any other 
 information, write 
 
 SCHMIDT & FIRESTONE, 
 
 Lock Box 788. 
 
MORRISON’S 
 
 l/nproued 
 
 For Burning Clay Wares. 
 
 Especially adapted to Burning Common, 
 Repressed and Ornamental Brick. 
 
 Patented in United States and Canada. 
 
 SUCCESSFUL! DURABLE! 
 
 Daily product of our Kilns in the United States, One-Half 
 Million Bricks. Our claims fully substantiated By Our Patrons. 
 We claim ninety to ninety-five per cent, hard brick. Arch bricks 
 all Fronts and Pavers and none damaged—of uniform color. 
 
 Pressed brick burned without fire-marks—coal screenings 
 preferred for fuel. One fireman for two hundred thousand 
 bricks. The 
 
 Only Kiln that Regulates the Temperature of Heat 
 
 And directs its course by a system of air drafts, giving com¬ 
 plete control of the degree of heat as well as its manipulation. 
 This system we have covered by letters patent. Any persons 
 using these air drafts are liable to prosecution for infringement. 
 
 WE SELL OUR KILN STRICTLY ON MERIT. 
 
 For descriptive circulars, testimonials, and all information 
 desired, address 
 
 R. B. MORRISON & CO., 
 
 Box 335, ROME, GEORGIA, U. S. A. 
 
TEE EVOALT KILN. 
 
 No Longer an Experiment. 
 
 This is a Down-draft Kiln, built either round or square and of 
 any desired size. 
 
 These kilns are better adapted to a l arge output than any 
 other kilh in use where alH^dJ^^k d es i rec ^- 
 
 This Kiln is peculiar in this: 
 
 The Construction is such that the heat can be driven to any 
 part of the Kiln at will. 
 
 While this is a Down-draft Kiln, a Part of the Heat can 
 be Taken to the wares in the Bottom Direct when desired. 
 
 It has no equal for All Hard Brick and Uniformity in 
 Burning. For further information, address 
 
 W. A. ETJDAL.T, 
 
 64 Johnson Building. 
 
 CINCINNATI, OHIO 
 
— 
 
N 
 
 'S fi xy