Letter, James Gleason to William Gleason

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Commercial Hotel
Corner Montgomery Ave. & Kearny St.
Edward Holland Proprietor
San Francisco, Cal
March 3rd 1892

Dear Father;
It will not be long now
before we are home again. Mother is
doing well in Sacramento. I had a letter
from Charlie and he says she improved
as soon as she got back. I told the
foreman at the Risdon Iron Works that
I would leave soon but he wants me to
stay and finish the work around the planer.
He keeps piling up the work though so I
would not get through before next
Christmas if I do all he wants done.
I will take French leave of them one
week from this Saturday March 12 that will
be. If we start for home about the 15th
it will be about right wont it? The cold

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2
weather will be all over by that the time we
get home say the 21st of March. I am
getting lots of experience in this shop but
mighty little you would want to copy. The
tools are all old and the shop methods
older still. If red tape had anything
to do with success this firm would lead.
Of course they have some excuse for not
getting special tools in that their work
is always changing. First it is all Corliss
engines then ship work and all sorts of
jobs shafting pulleys and general jobbing
pumps etc. But to see a man turn and
bore pulleys on one of these old scotch lathes
would give you the heart ache. They bore
all their pulleys with the ordinary hook
tool until they fit the Whitworth gauges.
They are particular too they must fit
the gauges dead exact. For a firm that
has a mint of money back of them they
are foolish not to spend a few dollars on
reamers and save a whole lot on wages.
I am doing well on the planer thanks to

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3.
a friendly Irishman who was my helper on
the first job I chucked. He knew more
about chucking the job than I did and
told me the machine had a quare way
of going helter skelter when it was first
started up and to moind myself for the
boss had fired the old man that ran the
machine. The trouble with the machine
was it wouldnt reverse within 12” and
then again it would reverse at 20” and
in planeing keyseats this caused trouble
by smashing tools and marking the
work. I didnt do anything but fix
the machine and receive a devil of a
setting out from the foreman the first
day that was last Monday and I worked

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4.
like a horse too. I paid the helper 75c
to stay after six and take up the belts
and I staid and ground up a lot of
tools for there were none at the machine.
Tuesday morning I started in and
made up for lost time and have kept it
up. The keyseats are 1 5/16” wide and 9/16” deep
and some are 24” long. The old planer
makes a noise now like a battery when
running on the cut.
The Superintendent gave me an invitation
to supper and spend the evening at his
house next Tuesday night.
Rix & Birrell say that they will sell
a 32” lathe 29’ bed this week to Risdon Iron Works.
About that Gear Planer I am afraid I
made a mistake letting Rix & Birrell
have anything to do with the job.
I had the matter nearly settled when
Mr Scott the President of the Union
Iron Works said he didnt know that he
was talking to Rix & Birrell. This is one
man that our agents dont stand in with.

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5.
I judged the importance of this firm by
the way that I was received on their
letters of introduction. They certainly
have a good reputation in San Franscisco
but dont seem to stand in with the
Union Iron Works.
Kate’s letter was received today enclosing photo
of the Stearns Lathe. She asks why this
country wouldnt be a great field for a
tool shop. I was curious on that point
and called on the San Franscisco Tool Co,
to find out what they were doing. Their
Superintendent says they cant compete
with the east for the reason that their
field is not large enough for them to
manufacture. If they build a 26” Lathe

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6.
they dont get another order perhaps for a
year for the same size lathe. For this
reason they confine themselves to special
tools. Their men have to be all round
mechanics at big wages and this is the
case in most of the shops here, notably
in the shop where I am working.
I have to order all my own tools and do
whatever repairs is to be done on the machine
and consult no one. The foreman gives
me a weeks work and never sees me again
until the job is finished. There is iron
mined here also a poor quality of native
coal. The coal commonly used comes
from Australia. Now to talk of working
under difficulties what would you
think of building a full fledged 20ft
boreing mill in a shop about the size of
Jones’s with no more facilities for
handling heavy castings than Jones has.
The S.F. Tool Co did this and years ago
they built a 75 ft boreing mill in the
same shop.

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7.
Mr Dorward the Supt of the Risdon wants
me to run a lathe and work awahile on
the vice befor I go. He evidently wants
me to go through the whole place so as to
be able to suggest the tools needed most.
I will know enough of their shops at the
end of my two week stay.
Last Monday night after the foreman gave
me his blessing I was mad enough to quit
but am glad now that I stuck it out.
He gave a compliment today on the way
the old planer was running. If he says
any more Ill strike him for a raise.
Mother was looking at a set of China to
give Aunt Kate. It takes a big set you
know for their family and Mother says

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they are badly in need of dishes. One
set she priced was $55. This was the
purpose she wanted to draw all her
bank account for. I will earn $36.
so if Kate will send on money so that
we will have some left over it will
make things all right. This trip has
cost a lot of money but I am in hopes
that some will come back in orders
from this country. Bement has held
the field for 25 years. Will write
again Sunday.
Love to all.
Yours
Jim.