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.