chairs in the shop devoted to their construction, they are then loaded upon a hand-car, which is drawn up by the elevator to the different rooms. This car, having received its freight, is lowered and run out of the shop, and across the street to the extensive paint shop, where the chairs are painted and varnished; after which they are "knocked down" and placed in boxes, ready for shipping to their destination.

If the chairs are to be shipped "in the wood," as it is called, they are knocked down without being painted, and packed in such an orderly manner in boxes, that when they have reached the customer, they may, without difficulty, be "set up" again, ready for painting and varnishing at the paint shop of the distant purchaser.

Since the construction of the Boston, Barre and Gardner Railroad, the cars, of this company, can be placed for lading at the platform of this paint shop and loaded with the utmost convenience, furnishing a most striking contrast, to the old method of transporting chairs to Boston and other places, by horse teams, with enormous wagons.

An important branch of the business of this firm, is its cane department, introduced within a few years. The cane is imported by an agent of the company residing in New York, directly from Singapore. Having been brought, upon the cars, directly to the shops of the company, it passes through several different processes of preparation, before it is fitted for the use of seating chairs. Coming in bundles, it is first unbound, sorted and then straightened upon a wheel attached to an upright piece of wood, over which, it is passed. The joints

of the cane are then scraped, by passing it, through a machine, designed expressly for that purpose. When this has been done, the cane is placed in long, square, revolving boxes, filled with water in which it is allowed to remain for half an hour or more. It is then ready for splitting.

This process is accomplished by passing the cane rod through a machine, its knives so constructed, that they split the stock into from five to nine strands. When thus split, the pith of

the cane passes on through a central aperture, surrounded by the knives, while the strands are thrown off, and removed by a boy in attendance. After this the strands are gauged and shaved in another machine. They are then counted out into bunches of a thousand each, while these bunches are tied up in bundles of ten, and placed in the bleaching room, where by the action of burning brimstone they are whitened for their proper place in the cane seat or cane back chair.

Much of this cane, is used by the Heywood Brothers & Co., while almost all the chair shops, in this region receive their supply of cane from this source. The Heywood Brothers & Co. are also engaged in the manufacture of a great variety of rattan chairs of tasteful and beautiful construction. The frames of these chairs are made at the wood shop, of light and delicate patterns. They are then taken, to the upper room of the large paint shop, where men, women and boys are engaged in clothing them, in the beautiful garb, with which they are adorned. Grass work of delicate finish, is also made in this room, and many fancy articles of household furnishing. This branch of industry is a necessary out-growth of the cane business already described, the object of it, being, in part to work up and utilize some portions of the cane not required in cane seated chairs.

There is also another shop of this company, where the weaving of the web for the woven seat chair is done. Also a machine shop in which most of the machinery used in the other shops is made. There is also a varnish shop for the manufacture of the varnish used in painting the chairs of the company. There are in all, connected with the business of this company, twenty-two buildings scattered over about nine acres of land and actually covering an aggregate area of four and one-half

acres.

Contrasted with its small beginning, in the shop of Mr. James M. Comee, the chair business, in thistown, has confessedly made an enormous advance, out-weighing the aggregate of all other kinds of business done among us, and is the result

of the industry, enterprise and frugality of men, who, beginning with little or no pecuniary means, have gone on steadily from year to year, till they have reached their present position of competence and affluence, and in some instances, cosmopolitan reputation.

FOUNDRY.

Closely allied to the chair business, of the town, and almost a necessity to its convenience, is the foundry of the Heywood Foundry Company.

This firm began business December 1st, 1876. Their building, is of brick, the main part being two stories in height, with a molding room extending from the main part, whose dimensions are eighty by fifty feet, the main building being fifty by fifty feet. The business done here, is making castings for all machines, including railroad castings. The company are also engaged in the manufacture of cooking stoves, of a popular pattern. The furnace has a capacity for melting two tons of iron per day, and consumes about eight hundred pounds of coal daily, while four hundred pounds are consumed in running the engine of thirty-five horse power, and in the core works. This foundry is remarkable for the convenience of its location, being situated near the track of the Boston, Barre and Gardner Railroad, from which there are extended two tracks, one running upon the upper side of the foundry, for the purpose of unloading the stock used in the works easily, into the building, on a level with the cars, and the other track, about twelve feet lower, upon the opposite side of the building, for the cars upon which are shipped the manufactured goods.

In the upper story of the main building, is the machine shop of Messrs. McKnight & Carter, whose room has a capacity of fifty by twenty feet. Upon the opposite side, is a carpenter's shop and the office of the company. Capital required in this business is $15,000. The amount of business done annually is $30,000.