thirty-four feet. Three immense turbine water-wheels, having a united
power equal to three hundred horse, were put in when the consolidated
works were first constructed here, which it was supposed would prove
amply sufficient for all emergencies; but, since the breaking out of the
Rebellion, and the marvellous enlargement of these works, it has been
found necessary to put in a steam-engine of two hundred horse-power, to
act in conjunction with the water-wheels.

Having thus given a general description of the exterior of the
establishment, let us now enter the works and witness the entire
operations of manufacturing the musket, _seriatim_.

The first operation is the formation of the barrel. Formerly these were
made from plates of iron called scalps, about two feet long and three
inches wide, which were heated to a white-heat and then rolled up over
an iron rod, and the edges being lapped were welded together, so as to
form a tube of the requisite dimensions,--the solid rod serving to
preserve the cavity within of the proper form. This welding was
performed by tilt-hammers, which were carried by the water-wheels.
Underneath the hammer was an anvil containing a die, the upper surface
of which, as well as the under surface of a similar die inserted in the
hammer, formed a semicylindrical groove, producing, when the two
surfaces came together, a complete cylindrical cavity of the proper size
to receive the barrel to be forged. The workman, after heating a small
portion of the barrel in his forge, placed it in its bed upon the anvil,
and set his hammer in motion, turning the barrel round and round
continually under the blows. Only a small portion of the seam is closed
by this process at one heat, eleven being required to complete the work.
To effect by this operation a perfect junction of the iron, so that it
should be continuous and homogeneous throughout, without the least flaw,