Page:Architectural Review and American Builders' Journal, Volume 1, 1869.djvu/656

532 The Architectural Review and American Builders' Journal. [Feb., A spirit of emulation and of ambition seems thoroughly aroused in the minds of our people, with regard to the deco- ration and embellishment of our homes and our grounds ; and everywhere we are struck by the beauty and artistic skill lavished on the elegant and chaste designs for Statuary, Rustic Vases, Flower Pots, and Pedestals met with, in our public and private gardens and cemeteries. But ornamentation alone is by no means the sole use to which Terra Cotta has been and is still put. As we have before said, its several applicabilities are numerous, we will briefly here enu- merate some of them. And first, per- haps, in point of antiquity, we may refer to its availability, as a material for forming drain pipes. That it con- stitutes a most durable and service- able drain will hardly, we think, be denied, when we remember the fact, that sewers built of it have been discovered in the excavations at Herculaneum and Pompeii, in an excellent state of pres- ervation. As these ancient cities of Italy were overwhelmed, by an eruption of Vesuvius, in the year A. D. 19, we may safely infer, that the practice of using this material for drain pipes was known to the ancients long before, as we can thus trace it, for from 1800 to 2000 years. In America, it is comparatively new ; and for a long time we were dependent entirely upon England for our supply ; but — as its merits gradually became more appreciated, and new applications for which it was capable discovered — the demand became so extensive, that a Terra Cotta manufactory was estab- lished in Philadelphia, >y S. A. Harri- son, No. 1010 Chestnut street, to meet the steadily increasing demand. From a small beginning, made by Mr. Harri- son in 1850, his works have now assumed colossal proportions, occupying, at the present time, an entire block, the opera- tions of which are carried on by the aid of patent improvements of his own in- vention. His example has been followed by many others ; and Terra Cotta drain pipe manufactories are now becoming institutions in our country. Being the most thoroughly vitrified pipe of any in the country, his are most suitable for the purpose of drainage, the smooth glazing, which is one of their peculiar properties, being the result of the posi- tive vitrification of the mass, and not a mere superficial layer of what is called lead glazing, similar to that employed on common red pottery, which is readily acted upon by chemical agents, and sewerage water. These are made in all sizes, from two (2) to fifteen (15) inches bore, with bends, branches, traps, &c. Another use of Terra Cotta is in the manufacture of chimney tops, plain and ornamental. From the ease with which the material can be moulded into any shape whatever, its adaptation to this particular branch of constructive detail is extremely felicitous. They are exe- cuted in the most architectural and ar- tistic designs, beautiful in proportions, producing a striking and picturesque effect ; and have become of almost uni- versal adoption, wherever obtainable. They are impervious to the action of frost, and to the strong gases emitted from coal, so destructive to brick chim- neys. They have rapidly taken the place of the latter, and have successfully stood the severe tests to which they have been applied. We will now proceed to another use, and that a very important one, to which this material has been applied, viz., as flue-pipes for smoke, hot air, ventilation, &c, in the construction of buildings. It is superior, for such purposes, to the corroding and expensive iron and tin flue-pipes, which have so long been em- ployed ; and being, to a great extent, a non-conductor, there is less loss of heat, and the building is secured from damage by fire. It possesses another advantage, that it can be built in a six-inch parti- tion, thereby occupying much less space, than the old style of flues. These flue- pipes are manufactured in lengths of eighteen (18) and twenty-four (24)