PORTIA’S TRAVELS IN SWEDEN.
431
Rre obliged to bring back in cafe of death. If this mark Ihould be loft on vifiting thechild, he is erafed from the lift, and the parents no longer receive the fix rix-doilars.On one fide of mark is a No. in Roman characters; on the reverfe a crown : it is afinal! piece of lead, like a fiug, which cannot be fpoiled but by cutting. The funds ofthis inftitution are, 1. three thoufand tons'of wheat, furaifhed by the crown, equivalent,communibus minis, to 9000 rix-dollars. 2. By legacies of individuals, and ceconomy, acapital has been raifed of from 50 to 60,000 rix-dol!ars. 3, The College of Juftice,which receives in depofit the property of the miners, paying no more than 4! per cent.,and making a far greater profit, is obliged to pay over to this inftitution a proportion ofits fupplies, which feldom amounts to lefs than 3000 dollars per annum. All thefe, ad-'deed to voluntary contributions, form an annual revenue of about 20,000 rix-dollars.TheKing has delegated the fuperintendance of this eftabliihment to the High Governor ofStockholm , who appoints three councillors of the city as diredtors. The have no ho-norary managers.
The Hofpital of Sabbatjherg, at Kongfliolm, near to mineral waters for poor and in-firm old women, is in a ftate of great negledt
It will be feen that fomething further is defirable on all thefe efta,b !ifhments; but itis well known that good is done but by flow degrees ; there has been great improve-ments of late years, and every thing tends to fatisfy the mind that objedts of fuch im-portance will not continue difregarded : the poverty of the country is in oppofition toa rapid progrefs, or at leaft one fo rapid as humanity requires ; and if the governmentdoes all it can, no one can complain.
Chap. VIII.— Mamfaclories and Manufactures. — Merchants. — Workmen.
Swedifh manufadtures are yet very wide of perfedtion; the workmen are negligent,idle, and void of emulation; they fometimes begin their week’s labour on Wednefdav,and never before Tuefday, or if they go to their workfhops, it is but to fleep over yef-terday’s debauch. This, however, does not prevent their infilling on high wages ; themore they gain, the more they drink, and the want of money alone can make them re-fume their occupation.
Glafs Houfe. The glafs-houfe is fituated at Kongfholm, and belongs to a fubfeription; itis under the diredtion of Mr.Lindblom: glafs ware of all deferiptions is made here, drink-ing glaffes, decanters, and fome few bottles. The pot-a'fh is produced in Scania, theflint is from Pomerania (it is 16 {killings the ton) ; the mineral fait from Tripoli; theSoda from Spain . The glafs is fold by weight; the cleareft at 16 {killings per pound.The only umod ufed in the furnace is pine and fir, which coft from one to two rix-dol-lars the cord, according as the winter may happen to be for cold : its annual confump-tion is fix hundred cords ; this meafure is fix feet broad, as many deep, and only threefeet long, which is the length of the billets. This manufadtory has but one furnace inconftant work; it lafts at rrioft but two or three years : wdthin it is conftructed of hewnftone, from the ifland of (Eland, which tends to fave the wood, without, it is cafedwith brick, and cofts for its conftruction about 200 rix-dollars. It requires three orfour days to heat it; nine hours, at three expofures, to calcine flint, which, at each fe rveral time of its being withdrawn, is plunged into cold water. It takes five or fix daysto melt the white glafs in the furnace; other glafs lefs time according to its having moreor lefs colour. It requires three hours to liquify the foda. The clay of which the mouldsare made comes from Cologne: it is half burned, and half unburned, mixed; thefe
moulds