THE BRUSH-MAKER.

The nature of this man's business is to make brushes, hair and carpet brooms, and mops of all sorts ; he is generally the manufacturer of wooden coal-hods, and of measures for corn and coals.

The operation of making a brush, is one of the most simple that can be described, as there is scarcely a tool made use of in the
business, which is not familiar to every workman.

The wooden part of brushes is generally of oak or elm, which is cut to its proper size by a large knife, fastened down to the block with a staple at one end, in such a manner that it is moveable up and down ; to the other end is a handle. The wood to be cut, is held in the left hand, while the knife is worked with the right. The knife is always kept very sharp ; and by its make and mode of using, hard wood is very readily reduced to any shape and size. This wood, when cut into the proper sizes, is drilled with as many holes as is necessary, and into these the hair is put. The hair made use of by brush-makers is hog's bristles, vast quantities of which are imported every year from Germany and Russia, when we are not at war with those powers. These are subject to a heavy duty.

Whalebone split very fine, so as to resemble bristles, has of late been much used, as a substitute for hair, and will be generally
found in most black-coloured brushes, mixed with the black hair. Some brush-manufacturers have also offered brushes made with
whale-bone entirely. They are of course cheaper, but not so durable.In choosing brushes, observe if the hair is fast bound, and if it lies close together ; if it is not well bound, and the hair appears to fly out, the brush will never work well ; and if the hair is not fast bound, it will come out on the work, and disfigure it, as is discoverable from loose hairs lying about when the paint is laid on. Brushes in which the hair is fastened with a silver wire, are superior to those fastened with copper or iron wire, especially when they are to be used with water : brushes for the hat-maker, are best fastened with card and wooden pegs, instead of wire and the usual cements, as they have to be frequently dipped in boiling, though weak mixture of water and sulphuric acid.

There are brushes of various sorts, shapes, and sizes; but the structure of them all is the same, or nearly so. When the bristles are
sorted, combed, and picked, a certain portion of them is taken and tied together in the middle with string, fine copper, or iron wire;
and then doubled : in this double state, they are fastened into the wooden stock, with hot cement, made of melted glue, or pitch and
rosin. The ends of the hair are now to be cut off and the surface to be made even or uniform.

Common hearth-brushes and hair brooms are made in a slighter way. As soon as the stock is brought to its proper shape, it is drilled, and the bushes inserted in the manner above mentioned.

In some brushes, the wires are visible on the back; in others, the backs are smooth, there being thin slices of wood glued over the wires. Scrubbing-brushes are sometimes used to dry- rub oaken floors ; in that case, the backs are loaded with lead. In London, and its vicinity, where the high wages of female servants render them impertinent and slothful, it has become, by custom, a part of the man-servant's business to use them, but in the country, where wages are lower, the female servants consider this sort of work theirs beyond dispute, and would ridicule a man for " doing women's work."

In this business, Mr. Thomassin, of Birmingham, has obtained a patent for a new method of making hearth-brushes, perhaps
more ingenious than useful ; they are so constructed, as to conceal the hair in a metal case, by means of rack work.

Mops are made of woollen yarn, spun for the purpose. Besides these, there are other kinds of mops, manufactured of woollen rags, which are collected by poor women, from the dust taken from the dunghills, &c.

The coal-hods are usually made of oak, With two wooden or iron handles on the sides ; they are not so neat as copper ones, or as those made of iron and varnished : but they are much cheaper, and will last much longer than iron hods.

Great nicety is required in making corn measures ; they must contain a certain exact quantity. The standard for measuring corn, salt, coals, and other dry goods, is the Winchester gallon, and it must contain 272 and one quarter cubit inches ; the bushel contains eight such gallons, or 2178 inches.

A journeyman in this business, will earn a guinea, or thirty shillings a week ; the profits to masters are pretty considerable where the
returns are great.

Such are the divisions of labour in this eoun try, that the same persons do not make the brushes and the long handles ; these last are made by turners, who are thus employed by the master brush-maker. In Kent-street, and several other places, there are broomstick manufactories. The making of birch-brooms is a distinct and profitable trade. The birch will grow in land which is hardly fit for any thing else. Ground covered with moss, has been known to produce birch-trees so well, that in a few years they have sold for ten pounds per acre, and the after produce has been considerably increased.

Besides broom makers, who are constant customers for the birch ; hoop- benders are considerable purchasers of the same article.
The largest trees are often bought by turners, and the wood is used for yokes and other instruments of husbandry. In the northern
countries of Europe, birch-wood is used for wheels of carriages.