Some of the hardest and most durable Brick which have probably ever been produced in the world, the writer saw made in a few hours and in a peculiar manner at El Paso, Texas, in November, 1887, and the process consisted simply of running the slag as it came from the smelting furnaces into moulds in which they were formed into brick. The adoption of this plan for utilizing slag would serve a two-fold purpose, and it would do away with the necessity of finding vacant ground for the constantly increasing accumulations of this material, and also be a source of profit to the smelter, as the brick manufactured would be indestructible, hard as steel, and finely finished.
The business of manufacturing brick, like any other calling, demands, in the present age of machinery and competition, the closest attention and personal supervision, even to details, in order to insure success ; and the measure of prosperity is small to the brick-maker whose heart is not in, and whose mind is not upon his business. In this craft there is no sentiment ; on the contrary, the brick-maker's life is one of laborious applica tion, unremitting watchfulness, with large and constantly in creasing responsibilities. From the moment the clay is dug in the bank to the time the brick is delivered to the building, there is not a single step or move but which demands the in dividual supervision and exacts the watchful eye and constant care of the brick-maker who expects and desires success. Before long the old-time typical brick-yard, with its primitive outfit, will become a tradition of the past, and will have scarcely a place in our memories. It has answered the purpose for which it was designed, has performed its part in the building and improvement of this marvellous land. In the earlier strug gles of the people of this country to provide shelter and homes for their families, it has filled no unimportant place. Up to
within a few years the hand-brickmaker did not recognize the logic of wants, or yield to the restless genius of the minds en gaged in the persistent purpose of inventing machinery that would make a better brick cheaper than could be made by manual process. We cannot blame him if he still loves the sound of the walk dropping in the mould, the peculiar smell of the poplar slider, and the cracking of the pen-mouth fire, all of which have a charm for the old time hand-brickmaker.
The brick-machines which will be hereafter enumerated have indeed revolutionized the craft in almost every particular. With every mechanical device which is to be described in this volume I am perfectly familiar, and have seen all in actual operation, and for this reason have selected such for illustrating the different portions of this work. There are other contriv ances and machines made in this country and in Europe, that may be equally as good as some herein given, and no effort will be made to praise those which shall be used for illustra tions above others which may have equal claims for considera tion. The thousands of inventions cannot all be mentioned ; and rather than fall into a sea of error, so common in mechan ical descriptions, I shall be compelled to select only those the merits or demerits of which I can discuss from personal knowledge.
Before any attempt is made to explain the processes or ma chines employed in the manufacture of brick or the other branches of pottery, it is highly important that there should be a thorough knowledge of the character of clay, and some of its changes while under the several conditions to which it is to be subjected. This will be attempted in a general way for brick in the following chapter.