BLUESTONB AXD OTHER SANDSTONES 13^ 



stone will wear out the gang saws yerv fast. The action of sl 

 stone in a mill depends largely on its hardness and texture, 



A planer consists of a stationary base with a moving carriage^ 

 on which the stone is placed and held firmly by set screws. This- 

 carriage moves forward and backward under the bits of the 

 planer. These bits are fastened to the immovable part of the 

 frame, and, as the stone pass-es under them, take off the irregu- 

 larities of the surface. 



A gang saw has a varying number of saws set at different 

 or the same distances apart. These saws are fastened by^ 

 wedges on a frame above the block of stone and are moved for- 

 ward and back by an eccentric. As the cuts in the stone deepen^ 

 the frame is lowered by a feeding device. Sand and water are 

 fed into the cuts during the sawing. 



Eubbing is usually a secondary treatment to planing. The 

 rubbing bed is a circular cast-iron plate, which revolves hori- 

 zontally. The stone is placed on this and held stationary by 

 projecting arms. The revolving cast-iron plate grinds the stone 

 and smooths off the irregularities of planing. Sand and water 

 are fed from the center into the bed during the process. 



Another kind of saw is the *' diamond " saw, which has dia- 

 monds set along the edge of the saw. The diamonds are held 

 in cast-iron teeth, which are removable from the blade. There 

 are 10 to 12 teeth, containing 2 to 3 " borts," in each saw, 

 spaced equally, according to length of blade. The diamond 

 saws cut 23" to 24'' an hour, while the ordinary gang saw cuts 

 only 2V' to 2|" an hour. 



Most docks have one or more stonecutters employed in special 

 and fine work. 



Rent and ownership 



The majority of the quarries in the two main districts are 

 worked by two or three men, sometimes in partnership, but 

 often one man operates the quarry, hiring one or two extra men 

 as quarrymen or stonecutters. A good stonecutter can com- 

 mand a wage of |1.75 to |2.25 a day, while a quarryman is paid 

 $1.50 to |2, and in some places only |1 a day. In Delaware and 



