136 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XIII. No. 316. 



vacuum. The independent condenser is also used in connection 

 with fire-pumps, mine-pumps, and water-works pumping-engines, 

 as well as with vacuum pans and other evaporating apparatus. 

 They are made by Henry R. Worthington of this city. 



THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE POTTERY INDUSTRY 

 OF THE UNITED STATES. 



Mr. William C. Day, in the recent issue of the " Report on the 

 Mineral Resources of the United States," traces the histoiy of the 

 pottery industry, which has of late become of considerable impor- 

 tance. 



The first pottery established in the United States was in New 

 York City, in its earliest days, when under Dutch rule. It was 

 situated near the North River, above the present Chambers Street, 

 the locality being at that time well out of town, in the country. 

 More than a century ago, perhaps, a small pottery was established 

 in Trenton, N.J., by some Frenchmen. Here porcelain, similar to 

 what is now known as French china, was made, and it is said that 

 the goods were very creditable. This establishment existed for 

 some years, but it attained no great importance. At Philadelphia 

 there was a similar pottery venture, also making porcelain or china 

 wares, which are well spoken of for quality. This enterprise was 

 sustained for a number of years, but failed to reach a permanent 

 existence. 



There were other attempts to establish potteries in various parts 

 of the country from time to time, and the only one which seems to 

 have given the greatest concern to English manufacturers was one 

 established in South Carolina. This was contemporary with the 

 great Josiah Wedgwood, who has been called the father of the pot- 

 tery industry in Great Britain, from the fact that he made great 

 improvements in the quality of earthenware, which gave a very 

 great impetus to the business in England. This South Carolina 

 pottery proved quite alarming to Wedgwood, as he feared that it 

 might become a dangerous competitor in supplying the earthen- 

 ware markets of the colonies : he therefore petitioned Parliament 

 that the manufacture of such goods be prohibited. He seemed to 

 think, that, with the excellent materials found in South Carolina 

 for making earthenware, the industry would become a successful 

 one. His fears, however, proved groundless, as the unequal strug- 

 gle was of short duration. 



One or two pottery enterprises, inaugurated within the past forty 

 years, making special articles of white crockery-ware rather than 

 a general assortment, maintained their existence only, and cannot 

 be termed successful. 



The term " pottery industry," as understood at the present time, 

 does not include the many little potteries scattered all over the 

 United States, making stone-ware jugs, pie-plates, drain tile, yel- 

 low crockery, etc., and which employ from six to twenty men each. 

 These little establishments made the cheapest and commonest 

 class of pottery products, with which foreign competition was 

 powerless. Owing to the very low-priced class of such wares, the 

 expenses of their importation bore so large a proportion to their 

 cost at the foreign potteries, that competition was out of the ques- 

 tion. In fact, in many cases the crates in which the goods were 

 packed, and the inland transportation charges, equalled the original 

 cost of the goods themselves. The pottery industry, as now spoken 

 of, had therefore practically no existence in the United States in 

 1861, the several hundreds of so-called potteries in this country 

 which statistics show then existed being all of the class above re- 

 ferred to. The Morrill Tariff Bill, and the increase of duty from 

 24 to 35 per cent, and the subsequent increase to 40 per cent, did 

 not act as inducements towards the establishment of any new en- 

 terprise. In 1863 the rapidly increasing premium on gold offered 

 the necessary inducement, and several pottery enterprises were in- 

 augurated. These manufactured at first the commonest class of 

 crockery-ware for domestic uses ; but as experience gave confidence, 

 and the wares gradually found favor, better grades were made, 

 until the standard of the china-ware used by the millions of 

 American citizens, and manufactured in this country, is recognized 

 as equal to that made anywhere. It is true that there are several 

 potteries in the United States who make more or less of very fine art 



pieces, which are forcing recognition on account of their superior 

 excellence ; but the stability of the pottery industry rests upon the 

 fact that it supplies the wants of the people for fine and common 

 crockery for domestic uses, of which we in this country manufac- 

 ture about 60 per cent. The American potter does not claim to be 

 the peer of his foreign competitor in art productions, but he does- 

 claim to equal any foreign manufacturer in the class of china which 

 he produces for the American people. To-day the English potter 

 is copying American shapes, designs, and styles of decorations. 

 How different is this state of affairs from that which existed a few 

 years ago, when the American potter depended upon foreign ideas 

 for his shapes and designs ! With the development of the manu- 

 facturing process, talent for designing shapes and patterns or styles 

 of decoration has likewise progressed, until we have made our own 

 American shapes and designs, which foreigners have been com- 

 pelled to copy and adopt in order to find a market for their wares 

 in the United States. 



This country still takes about 40 per cent of the total crockery- 

 ware exported by England. This is about the proportion that 

 has been maintained for many years, thus showing that the Ameri- 

 can potter has increased his output in keeping with the increased 

 consumption of the country. 



In regard to the present prices of pottery, it may be said that the 

 consumer can now obtain for two dollars and a half what in 1861 

 would have cost four dollars. 



The pottery industry gives directly employment to about ten 

 thousand people, to whom wages amounting annually to four million 

 dollars are paid ; this amount being nearly 50 per cent of the total 

 value of the output of the potteries. In addition to these, there are 

 many thousand more employed in the preparation of the materials 

 for the potter's use, such as mining the clays, quartz, and felspar, 

 and grinding and washing the materials. To these people nearly 

 as much more in wages is paid ; in fact, a careful estimate shows 

 that 90 per cent of the cost of manufacturing pottery is paid for 

 labor in one form or another. 



The decorating branch of this industry is one of its most inter- 

 esting features, and one in which great advances have been made 

 in late years. It gives employment of a light, interesting, and 

 elevating character to many young people, both male and female. 

 The growth of this branch has been wonderful, and has made the 

 demand for beautiful decoration, both simple and elaborate, very 

 general, and far more wide-spread throughout the country than 

 ever before. Formerly beautiful decoration was to be found only 

 in costly French and English wares, and the consumption was 

 consequently limited to the wealthiest classes : now beautiful dec- 

 orated wares are found in almost any household, where they have 

 been obtained at prices which would have been considered im- 

 possible a few years ago, and which have reduced very greatly the 

 cost for French and English decorated products, and to a very 

 great extent have enabled American decorated ware to supersede 

 the foreign. 



HEALTH MATTERS. 



Yellow-Fever. — Dr. George M. Sternberg, U.S.A., has been 

 relieved from duty at Baltimore, and is, by direction of the Presi- 

 dent, in pursuance of the authority contained in the provisions of 

 the Act of Congress approved March 3, 1887, "making appropria- 

 tions for sundry civil expenses of the government," etc., relating to 

 the methods of preventing the spread of epidemic diseases, to pro- 

 ceed to the Island of Cuba for the purpose named in the letter of 

 the President addressed to the secretary of war, April 17, 1888, and 

 upon completion of this duty to return to his proper station and 

 submit his report to the President. Dr. Sternberg is at the present 

 time at the Hoagland Laboratory, Brooklyn, of which he is 

 general director, engaged in making his preparations for his 

 proposed trip to Cuba to pursue his investigation in yellow- 

 fever. He expects to leave for Havana during the latter part 

 of March. 



Legal Regulation of Medical Practice. — The laws of 

 West Virginia require that every physician in that State must have 

 a certificate from the State Board of Health to entitle him to prac- 



