PRACTICAL PAPERS—IMPROVED MACHINERY. 
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consist of: First, “ a plain flatting mill or cylinder for common 
clays, and of a double one for hard and stony ones. These 
rollers not only roll the clay, but grind and crush all the hard 
matters therein, the whole passing off in thin slabs or films to 
the horizontal plug mill placed beneath. Secondly, in the in¬ 
side of the horizontal plug mill rotates a screw formed of in¬ 
tersecting blades of a new and special construction, which cuts 
and mixes the materials, at the same time conveys them into a 
compartment in which they are subjected to great pressure, 
and from thence passes through openings in the mouthpiece, 
ready moulded and forming the products desired. When the ma¬ 
chine is applied to manufacturing either solid or hollow bricks, 
a compound homogeneous mass or stream suflicient to form 
four bricks is at once and in a continuous manner expressed 
through the plate die. This mass in traveling along is carried 
on a slide, and is separated longitudinally into four parts 
by steel wires operating by the action of the machine. Third¬ 
ly, the cutting apparatus on said slides, which separate cross¬ 
wise in a regular right angle the four said parts so as to produce 
at once four perfect bricks, which are removed from the slide 
after each movement of the cutter. This operation is done 
while the stream of clay is continually advancing.’' 
They also claim that “ this machine has solved an important 
problem, viz: the manufacture of bricks and other ceramic 
products possessing all the various qualities desired, by using 
either rich or poor clays, and either arable or stony and add 
that, “in fact, the calcareous bodies, limestone and silex, are 
so ground and reduced to powder as to neutralize their disad¬ 
vantageous effect. The mixture of sand and cinders with any 
clay is, under the action of this machine, rendered quite hom¬ 
ogeneous.” 
The rapidity of manufacture is not, however, quite so great 
as in the case of the machines above spoken of. Of solid brick, 
and of rectangular hollow brick, there are delivered from one 
thousand to one thousand five hundred per hour; of flat tiles, 
two thousand to three thousand; and of drain pipes and mould¬ 
ings, variable quantities, according to size. 
