The Glass Industry of the United States

Glass, from its discovery in the remote dawn of the handicrafts, a crude, unlovely thing, has come down through generations to wax in beauty and in usefulness - in service to mankind? From some chance discovery, many countries of the world now have glass industries serving as handmaiden of the arts and minister to every science. Stained glass has ever been a medium through which artistic inspiration has found expression, through the ages. With lens, mirror, and prism we are able to have telescopes and spectroscopes to pry into the secrets of the stellar systems.High-vacuum tubes of glass have made possible three of the most marvelous of all achievements of modern times - wireless telegraphy, wireless telephony, and the Roentgen ray. The camera lens has enabled man to record the actual appearance of things which many might otherwise never be able to see, and the lenses of the moving picture camera help to give enjoyment to millions. Glass has lengthened and preserved human life by the use of the microscope in medical and chemical science. After centuries of toil, of failure, and slow-won success, the modern glass plant is able to produce plate and window glass which enables the present generation to enjoy the comfort of homes, offices, and factories flooded with light and yet airy.The constantly increasing use of glass has made it absolutely indispensable in our domestic, scientific and industrial lives. Destroy all glass, forget the methods of manufacture and by that action the jugular vein of science will be severed, great industries will be crippled, and homes will be transformed into dark, poorly lighted, unsanitary shelters reminiscent of the middle ages.In value the products of the glass industry of the United States have totaled approximately $300,000,000 annually for the last four years. Because of the importance of the industry to the economic life of this country, my thought is to present in the following pages a study of certain facts and data to permit an analysis of the growth of this industry; to develop the importance of the different branches of the industry; to present the problem of imports and exports; to review present conditions, and the factors that will influence the future.