MARK TWAIN'S WAY.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, Issue III, 2 April 1891, Page 4

MARK TWAIN'S WAY.

When I was living wilh my brother in Buffalo, Mark Twain occupied a cottage across the street. We didn't see very much of him, but one morning as we were enjoying our cigars on the verandah after breakfast we saw Mark come to his door in his dressing gov.-n and slippers and look over at us. He .slood at his door and smoked for a minute, as if making up his mind about something, and at last opened his gate and came lounging across the street. There was an unoccupied rocking-chair on the verandah, and when my brother offered it to him he dropped into it with a sigh of relief. lie smoked for a few minutes and said : " Nice morning." •' Yes, very pleasant." " Shouldn ; t wonder if we bad rain by and by." •' Well, we could stand a little." " This i5 a nice house you have here." " Yes, we rather like it." " Mow s your family ?" " Quite well — and yours ?" 1 Oh, we're all comfortable;" There was another impressive silence, and finally Mark Twain crossed his legs, blew a puff of smoke into the air, and in his lazy drawl remarked, "I suppose you're a little surprised to see me over here so early. Fact is, 1 haven't been so neighbourly, perhaps, as I ought to be. We must mend that state of things. But this morning I came over because I thought you might be interested in knowing that your roof is on fire. It struck me that it would be a good idea- If— " But at the mention of fire the whole family darted upstairs, trailing language all the way up. When we had put the fire out and had returned to the verandah, Mark wasn't there. • MOW SLATE PENCILS ARE MADE. In making slate pencils, broken slate is put into a mortar run by steam, and pounded into small particles. Then it goes into a mil! and runs into a " bolting" machine, such as is used in flouring mills, where it is " bolted," the fine, almost impalpable flour that results being taken to a mixing-tub, where a small quantity of steatite flour, similarly manufactured, is added, together with other materials, the whole being made f into a stiff dough. This dough is kneaded thoroughly by passing it several times between iron rollers. Thence it is conveyed to a table, where it is made into charges, or short cylinders, four or rive inches thick, and containing eight to twelve pounds each. , ■ , Four of these arc placed in a strong iron chamber or retort, with a changeable nozzle, so as to regulate the size of the pencil, and subjected to tremendous hydraulic pressure, under which the composition is fc pushed through the nozzle, in the shape of a long cord, and passed over a, sloping table slit at right angles, to give passage to a knife which cuts them into lengths. They are then laid on boards to dry, and after a few hours are removed to sheets of corrugated zinc. The corrugation serves to - prevent the pencils Irom warpfng during the I process of baking, to which th»y ape next v subjected in a kiln, into which superheated steam is introduced into pipes, the term perature being regulated according to the requirements of the articles exposed to its influence. - • • ■ . - From the kiln the pencils go to the finishing and pack ng-room, where the ends are ! thrust 'for a second under rapidly revolving |jHp«rgy wheels, and withdrawn neatly and sPfwjpcthlv joit.icd. They are then pac!:ed I into paste board boxes, each containing one ! I hundred j < r.cils, and these boxes are in turn [ packed u>r shipment in wooden boxes, consi: tainin^ one hundred each, or ten thousand | pwicikJn a sh : pping box. Nearly all lh« ! I work U dotw by t»oy», and*«coit thwfwrt