THE CANDLE-MAKER.
1. The subject of the candle-maker's labors may be defined to be a wick, covered with tallow, wax, or spermaceti, in a cylindrical form, which serves, when lighted, for the illumination of objects in the absence of the sun. The business of candle-making is divided into two branches; the one is confined to the manufacturing of tallow candles, and the other, to making those composed of wax or spermaceti.
2. The process of making candles from tallow, as conducted by the tallow-chandler, needs only a brief description, since it differs but little from the method pursued by families in the country, with which most persons are familiar. The difference lies chiefly in the employment of a few conveniences, by which the candles are more rapidly multiplied.
3. The first part of the process consists in preparing a wick, to serve as a foundation. The coarse and slightly twisted yarn used for this purpose, is spun in the cotton-factories; and, being wound into balls, is, in that form, sold to the tallow-chandlers, as well as to individuals who make candles for their own consumption.
4. A sufficient number of threads is combined, to form a wick of a proper size; and, as they are wound from the balls, they are measured off, and cut to the proper length, by a simple contrivance, which consists of a narrow board, a wooden pin, and the blade of a razor. The pin and razor are placed perpendicular to the board, at a distance determined by the length of the proposed wick. The wicks are next put upon cylindrical rods, about three feet long; and a great number of these are arranged on a long frame.
5. To obtain the tallow in a proper state for use, it is separated from the membranous part of the suet, by boiling the latter in an iron or copper kettle, and then subjecting the cracklings to the action of a press. The substance that remains, after the tallow has been expressed, is called greaves, which are sometimes applied to fattening ducks for market. This is especially the case in the city of London.
6. The tried tallow is prepared for application to the wicks, by heating it to a proper temperature. It is then poured into a suitable receptacle, where it is kept in order either by a moderate fire underneath, or by the occasional addition of hot tallow.
7. The broaches, as the sticks with their wicks are called, are taken up, several at a time, either between the fingers or by means of a simple instrument denominated a rake, and dipped into the tallow. They are then returned to the frame, and suffered to cool, while successive broaches are treated in the same way. The dipping is repeated, until the candles have been thickened to the proper size.
8. In the preceding plate, is represented a workman in the act of dipping several broaches of candles, suspended on a rake, which he holds in his hands. The mode of making dipped candles just described, is more generally practised than any other, and in this manner five or six hundred pounds can be made by one hand, in a single day. In some establishments, however, a more complicated apparatus is used, by which every part of the process is greatly expedited.
9. Mould candles are made very differently. The moulds consist of a frame of wood, in which are arranged several hollow cylinders, generally made of pewter. At the lower extremity of each cylinder, is a small hole, for the passage of the wick, which is introduced by means of a hook on the end of a wire. The cotton is fastened at the other end, and placed in a perpendicular situation in the centre of the shafts, by means of a wire, which passes through the loops of the wicks. The melted tallow, having been poured on the top of the wooden frame, descends into each mould. After the candles have become sufficiently cold, they are extracted from the cylinders with a bodkin, which is inserted into the loop of the wick. One person can thus mould two or three hundred pounds in a day.
10. Candles are also made of bees-wax and spermaceti; but the mode of their manufacture differs in no particular from that of common mould candles. The wicks for wax-candles are usually made of a peculiar kind of cotton, which grows in Asiatic Turkey.
11. Before the wax is applied to this purpose, the coloring matter is discharged. This is effected by bleaching the wax, in the following manner. It is first divided into flakes, or thin laminæ, by pouring it, in a melted state, through a colander upon a cylindrical wheel, which, at the same time, is kept revolving, while partly immersed in cold water. The wax, having been removed from the water, is placed upon a table or floor covered with some kind of cloth. Here it is occasionally sprinkled with water, until the bleaching has been completed. The process occupies several weeks, or even months, according to the state of the weather, that being best which is most favorable to a rapid evaporation.
12. Spermaceti is a substance separated from sperm oil, which is obtained from a species of whale, called physeter macrocephalus, or spermaceti cachalot. This oil is obtained from both the head and body of the animal, but that procured from the former contains twice the quantity of spermaceti.
13. To separate the spermaceti from the oil yielded by the body, it is first heated, then put into casks, and suffered to stand two or three weeks, in order to granulate. The oily part is now filtrated through strainers; and the remainder, which is called foots, is again heated, and put into casks. After having stood several weeks, these are put into bags, and submitted to the action of a powerful press. The spermaceti thus obtained, is melted and moulded into cakes. The oil thus separated from the spermaceti, is called spring or fall strained; because it is filtered and expressed only during those seasons of the year.
14. The oil from the head of the whale is treated like that from the body, in almost every particular. The difference consists, principally, in omitting the use of the strainer, and in the employment of stronger bags and a more powerful press. The oil obtained from the head-matter, is called pressed, since it is separated by the action of the press only. It is also denominated winter-strained, because the operation is performed in the cold weather.
15. The spermaceti, having been melted and moulded into cakes, is reserved until the succeeding summer, when it is cut into thin shavings, by means of a large shave, similar to the spoke-shave of the wheelwrights, and again pressed as before. The oil of this last pressing is called taut pressed, and is the least valuable kind, since a slight degree of cold causes it to become thick. The spermaceti obtained from the oil of the body, and that from the head-matter, are melted together, and purified by means of potash-ley.
16. The sperm-oil, thus freed from the spermaceti, is extensively used in lamps as a means of illumination; and, for many purposes, it is far more convenient than tallow. In the country, lard is frequently employed instead of oil, especially by the German population. In some European and Asiatic countries, vegetable oils supply the place of animal fats, in this application.
17. The origin of the art of making candles is not known. It is evident, however, that the business is comparatively modern, since the Greeks and Romans, as well as other nations of antiquity, employed torches of pine and fir, and lamps supplied with oil, in the production of artificial light. The words in the Scriptures translated candle, imply nothing more nor less than a light produced by some kind of oil consumed in a lamp.
18. The lamps in ancient times were suspended by a chain or cord from the ceiling, or supported on stands and moveable tables, which were called by the Romans lampadaria, or candelabra. Many specimens of this utensil are preserved in several museums of Europe, and some have lately been found in the ruins of Herculaneum.
19. The Chinese make their candles from the tallow obtained from the seeds and capsules of the tallow-tree. This tree, which is produced in great abundance in China, is said to grow in various parts of South Carolina and Georgia. In appearance, it resembles the Lombardy poplar.
