FOUNDERY. 
•wards, they assemble the hollows of the 
rings. When every thing is in its proper 
place, they strengthen the outsides of the 
hollows with mortar, in order to hind them 
with the bridge, and keep them steady at 
the bottom, by means of a cake of the same 
mortar, which tills up the whole aperture of 
the shell. This they let dry, that it may be 
removed without breaking. To make room 
for the metal they pull off the hollows oi 
the rings, through which the metal is to 
pass, before it enters into the vacuity ot the 
mould. The. shell being unloaded of its 
ear, they range under the prill-stone five or 
six pieces of wood, about two feet long, and 
thick enough to reach almost the lower part 
of the shell; between these and the mould 
they drive in wooden wedges with a mallet, 
to shake the shell of the model whereon it 
rests, so as to be pulled up, and got out of 
the pit. 
When this and the wax are removed, they 
break the model and the layer of earth, 
through which the metal must run, from 
the hollow of the rings, between the bell 
and the core. They smoke the inside of 
the shell, by burning straw under it, that 
helps to smooth the surface of the bell. Then 
they put the shell in the place, so as to leave 
the same interval between that and the 
core ; and before the hollows of the rings or 
the cap are ‘put on again, they add two 
vents, that are united to the rings, and to 
each other, by a mass of baked cement. 
After which they put on this mass of the 
cap, the rings, and the vent, over the shell, 
and solder it with thin cement, which i* 
dried gradually, by covering it with burning 
coals. Then they fill up the pit with earth, 
beating it strongly all the time, round the 
mould. 
The furnace has a place for the fire, and 
another for the metal. The fire-place has 
a large chimney, with a spacious ash-hole. 
The furnace, which contains the metal, is 
vaulted, whose bottom is made of earth, 
rammed down ; the rest is built with brick. 
It has four apertures; the first, through 
which the flame reverberates ; the second 
is closed with a stopple that is opened for 
the metal, to run; the others are to sepa- 
rate the dross, or scoriae, of the metal by 
wooden rakes .- through these last aper- 
tures passes the thick smoke. The ground 
of the fur nace is built sloping, for the metal 
to run down. 
Foundery of great guns and mortar- 
pieces. The method of casting these pieces 
is little different from that of bells : they 
are run massy, without any core, being de- 
termined by the hollow oi the shell ; and 
they are afterwards bored witii a steel 
trepan, that is worked either by horses or 
a water-mill or steam. 
Foundery, Letter, or casting of printing 
types. The first thing requisite is to pre- 
pare good steel punches, on the face of 
which is drawn the exact shape of the let- 
ter with pen and ink, if the letter be large ; 
or with a smooth blunted point of a needle, 
if small ; and then, with proper gravers, the 
cutter digs deep between the strokes, letting 
the marks stand on the punch ; the work ,of 
hollowing being generally regulated by the 
depth of the counter punch : then he files 
the outside, till it is fit for the matrice. 
They have a mould to justify the matrices 
by, which consists of an upper and under 
part, both these are alike, except the stool 
and spring behind, and a small roundish wire 
in the upper part, for making the nick in 
the shank of the letter. These two parts 
are exactly fitted into each other, being a 
male and female gage, to slide backwards 
and forwards. 
Then they justify the mould, by casting 
about twenty samples of letters, which are 
set in a composing-stick, with the nicks to- 
wards the right hand ; and comparing these 
. every way with the pattern-letters, set up 
in the same manner, they find the exact 
measure of the body to be cast. 
Next they prepare the matrice, which is 
of brass or copper, an inch and a half long, 
and of a proportionable thickness to the 
size of the letter it is to contain. In this 
metal is sunk the face of the letter, by 
striking the letter-punch the depth of an n. 
After this, the sides and face of the matrice 
are justified, and cleared, with files, of all 
bundlings that have been made by sinking 
the punch. . 
Then it is brought to the furnace, which 
is built upright of brick with four square 
sides and a stone at top, in which is a hole 
for the pan to stand in. They have several 
of these furnaces. 
Printing-letters are made of lead, hard- 
ened with iron or stub- nails. To make the 
iron run, they mingle an equal weight of 
antimony, beaten small in an iron mortar, 
and stub-nails together. They charge a 
proper number of earthen pots, that bear 
the fire, with the two ingredients, as full as 
they can hold, and melt it in an open fur- 
nace, built for that purpose. When it bub- 
bles, the iron is then melted, but it evapo- 
rates very much. This melted compost is 
