rily constructed, and as we find many old mills, would not do it. But, if you want to know how the matter is remedied in a mechanical way, split the hub of the pulley fitted to the shaft, as Mr. Grayson does, drive in a little key, and force it apart, put it on the place on the shaft where you want it, and let it go. Provided the hole is perfectly true through it, there is no trouble. If the spindle of the lathe upon which that hole was bored is accurate, if you then split the hub, and force it apart, there will be no trouble. Another remedy for it is to split the hub, and put a ring on the outside, with set-screw, so that the hub itself is drawn on the side of the shaft. I do not say that New England mills are not now properly fitted up. I am only talking about mills that were built twenty years ago, when I was a boy. [Laughter.] The careless manner in which it was done in those days is a very different matter from the manner in which it is done to-day; and I am aware, Mr. Lockwood, that there are very often mills in New England of good workmanship, and that you can show me one. We must take them all as we find them. I spoke about the set-screw system because I think it is one of the things we had better forget as soon as possible.

Mr. LockwOOD. We are here discussing general principles; and we are assuming that we are going to build new mills rather than old ones. The principles we discuss here should be general principles, - what we can do if we are to build new mills. I will admit that there are a great many old mills where it is quite difficult to remedy all the troubles that grow out of this. But yet, in regard to shafting a mill so as to prevent any essential shaking from the shafting, there is no practical difficulty of accomplishing that, whether the shafting is on the first, second, or third floor. But the mill must be properly constructed, and the shafting must be properly constructed and put up, and the whole thing properly organized.

Mr. ATKINSON. I want to say one word upon this. I have wondered why more one-story mills were not built. But I am not a practical manufacturer, and I determined to bring the subject here in this way. There is one advantage in the onestory "H" plan or the Greek cross plan, and that is apportionment of the space to the several departments, without reference to any other. You have each department by itself in its own wing. If the end of each wing is movable, and you need

to enlarge any department, all you have to do is to take the end out, and build a new section into the place. Here is a plan for a mill of sixteen thousand spindles, a fair-sized mill. Now, the question comes, whether it would cost any more or any less to move the stock horizontally, — following the machinery, to move it across from the carding-room to the spinning-room in this way, or whether it costs most to hoist it up, and lower it down. I would not contest the matter at all with Mr. Lockwood as to its being better to have a one-story or a two-story mill. If we underwriters can bring you down to nothing over three stories, we shall remove one of your causes of danger.

Now, there is another point against the high mills. Is it not worth while to save the vital force of your operatives in going up stairs five or six stories every day? Is there not a good point there? And in regard to facility of enlargement: suppose mule-spinning dies, you are not bound by any construction; you have got your room; you can enlarge it or do any thing you have a mind to with it. There are certain great advantages of the one-story plan over any other; but whether they can be made to extend to any thing beyond the economy to the carding and spinning rooms, this discussion will bring

out.

A MEMBER. Mr. Garsed was speaking about his looms being put upon stone, whether the repairs would be greater or less upon looms placed upon stone, than those in ordinary mills?

Mr. GARSED. I found no difference in that respect.

The MEMBER. I thought, from the rigidity of the stone, more repairs would be required.

Mr. GARSED. We put a piece of leather under in one case, and a piece of sheet-lead in the other. Of late years we have not used stone. The one-story mill has another advantage: if it gets on fire, like the mill in Fall River, you don't burn your workpeople. Another thing is, that, if you will build mills five stories high, I trust you will build staircases sufficiently far from the mill; so that the people will get into the open air, and not be burned by the lower story getting on fire and making a chimney of the staircase. Suppose that mill represented in the drawing to be one entire building. Now put your staircase at this end, fifteen feet away, with platforms running on to it; and another at the other end, in the same

manner. Then it is no matter which room gets on fire; the people simply walk out. The lower room burning will not fill the staircase with smoke so that they cannot escape. we increase the building of these mills so many stories high, the question is, whether coroner's juries will not some day try some of us for manslaughter.

Mr. LOCKWOOD. I do think that there has been, I had almost said, criminality on the part of very many engineers of mills, in building without regard to the means of escape for operatives. In many mills built quite recently there is a distance of a hundred to a hundred and fifty feet from the staircases, where there is no escape except by those staircases. Now, if you have a fire, suppose your cards and your fly-frames are just to the right or left of these, and the fire flashes across, and cuts off communication, you have no possible way of escape for the operatives unless you have ladders made of most ample dimensions. Now, I do say that in the construction of every mill there should be an outlet at the extreme ends of the mill. If there is an ell, put an outlet at the extreme end of that also; so that, if a fire occurs at any part of the mill, the operatives can go one way or the other, and have egress by a flight of stairs where they can go down without the liability of becoming excited, and not be subjected to the danger of going down ladders. This is a point that I wish to impress upon all persons interested in mills. We owe this much to the operatives. We have no right to put up a building, and invite people into it to work, without giving them a chance to escape beyond any possibility of being cut off in case there should be a fire in the mill. Now, in the more recent mills that I have built, I have put on the extreme ends the staircases, in the corners, built of brick, just as though they were outside. Instead of building a tower in front, I build a tower in the corner, of solid brick, so that it is as safe in regard to communicating with the different stories, as though it were on the outside. Then, where there is an ell, I put the staircase there also, so that the operatives are not forced to go down a ladder, or be caught under any circumstances. I have not only built one mill so, but several. I am now drawing plans for three mills, in each of which I adopt that plan. Of course you must vary according to your local conditions. But that one thing should always be kept in mind, as a matter of justice to those whom we employ in these mills.

Mr. ATKINSON. My attention has of necessity been called very much to this point; and I have liked better than any other mill I have ever seen, the arrangement of the Richard Borden Mill in Fall River, with the towers on each front corner, - as shown in the example on the wall before you. I instructed our own architect, who made that plan, to put the two towers at the front corners, instead of having a centre tower and a rear tower. It seems to me that if the building is built strong enough, so that it will not oscillate, that is a great deal the better way, in more respects than as regards safety. It seems to me that the towers do not then interfere with the light as much as if they are in the centre; and that there is no possibility in that way of construction of the operatives getting caught at the end of the building by the flame running across, and scaring them. Moreover, there is an escape from the rear of that building, — an outside stairway leading down to the roof of the one-story building. And I desire to call your attention to a device which our friend Mr. Good win originated. At Indian Orchard we were called upon by the health inspector to build another means of egress for the operatives. We thought we had them ample, but he called upon us to build another one; and it was apparently a matter that would cost a considerable sum of money, seven or eight hundred dollars, and perhaps a thousand dollars. Mr. Goodwin devised an outside stairway made of gas-pipe, angle-iron and wooden treads. It cost two hundred and twenty dollars. It is the best fire-escape I have ever seen. I have a plan of that, and a drawing, to be heliotyped.

I omitted to state that the Griffiths paint is entirely innocuous, and has no poisonous quality. It is to be procured of Lyman Hatfield, in Federal Street.

Mr. GARSED. Would not the matter of publishing these plans in our semi-annual report be worthy of consideration? Mr. Atkinson says they are entirely at our service. If it will cost but a trifle, I think they ought to be brought to the attention of our manufacturers. It will make a very valuable book, not only in America but in Europe, if the expense is not too great. I move that the plans be embodied in our next monthly report.

Mr. ATKINSON. I would suggest that that be left to the Board of Government. I stated what I supposed would be the

cost. As to sheets of this size, it may involve a pretty heavy expense. I would ask Mr. Garsed to accept that amendment,

- that the matter be referred to the Board of Government.

The PRESIDENT. I would say that this going out in our book might give the impression that we indorsed it.

Mr. ATKINSON. I understand that the Association is never responsible for any thing that is said here.

The PRESIDENT. The motion is, that the plans be referred to the Board of Government, to decide whether they shall be published in our next report.

[The motion was adopted. The Association then adjourned.]