Page:The Granite Monthly Volume 10.djvu/90

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��Hon. Aretas Blood.

��and has given his personal super- vision to the business.

The Locomotive Works are located on Canal street, and cover about six acres. The machine-shop is a sub- stantial building, parallel with Canal street, two stories in height, 430 feet in length, and 84 in width. The wood-shop is also a two-story build- ing, 100 feet long and 40 feet wide ; the blacksmith-shop is 365 feet long and 50 feet wide ; the boiler-shop, 205 feet long and 52 feet wide. There is also a large brick building, 230 by 36 feet, for making brass castings and building steam fire-engines. In the spring of 1872, Mr. Blood pur- chased the steam fire-engine business of the Amoskeag Company, with the good-will and the patents, and now manufactures the "Amoskeag P2n- gine," which is the old engine in name only, as it has been entirely re- modelled, and is now one of the most complete, perfect, and efficient en- gines manufactured. There are now over 650 of these engines in use. Here are also built all kinds of hose carriages, fire apparatus, &c. A grad- uate of this machine shop — Mr. Blod- gett — has lately been elected by the New Jersey legislature to represent that state in the United States sen- ate.

Mr. Blood has proved one of the most successful locomotive builders in the country, 1,330 having been turned out at these works. The worivs have a capacity of giving employment to 700 skilled work- men, and of turning out 150 locomo- tives and 50 steam fire-engines every year. The monthly pay-roll ranges from 330,000 upwards. The aggre- gate earnings of the works during

��its most successful year amounted to $2,500,000. A thorough machinist, and a man capable of handling a large force of men and conducting large business operations, he has commanded success, and the Man- chester Locomotive Works are one of the representative institutions of manufacturing New England.

Whatever success in life Mr. Blood has achieved he attributes to the teachings and training received at home from his mother. When he left the parental roof he tried to fol- low the advice of his mother : " Shun bad company ; try to please your employers." He tried to please his employers by showing an interest in his work, and succeeded in doing so. Evenings he not only improved by keeping out of doubtful company, but by study in his own room, often working until midnight, drawing plans of the machinery he was at work on during the day, and thus improving his time. He was faithful to the interests of those who employed him, and did not need some one to watch him. For the many years he was an employe he won the confidence of his employer by interest in his work, faithfulness, industry, and hon- esty, as well as by his intelligence and zeal, and when he in time became an employer of labor himself, these qualities were recognized by those in need of his services. Another char- acteristic of Mr. Blood, which has helped him to achieve success, is his perseverance. This led him to stick to whatever he undertook to do until he had done it, in small tilings as well as in more important under- takings.

Mr. Blood is also a director and

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