Delaware tribune. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1867-1877, 1869-09-02

sT1EL-Dk WILLIAM FIELDS, A w1LMING-
ToNiAN, THR INVENTOR.
The necessity has beer felt for mary years of q
cheaper mode for the manufacture of iron. One
Of the difficulties 10 this country which prevented
the full development of the iron interests was
the want of some process by which sulphur,
phosphorus, and other impurities, could he
eliminated, TO make American iron equal or
superior to that of foreign manufacture. The
want Of space will not allow us to enter into n
full detail Of the various methods which have
from time TO lime, been invented and applied to
facilitate and cheaper the manufacture of iron
md steel. The various inventions and improve
mrnts hitherto made, I'VE had more direct
heirirg -n the adaptabiliiy Of pudding and
smelling furnaces to the removal of the impuri-
ties Of the crndc metal, and lh, reby producing u
cheaper aud superior article of iron. This hight
II ting furnaces having heen Increased 81
per c,nt.. and prnpnriioually every other way,
the c',-t Of producing pis-irun has been reduced
probably from 90 to 80 per cent The use nf
chemical agents has nut been SO mneh depended
on as purifier of iron, as the adaptation of fur
naces i,r the smelling Of ore and the removal Of
impurities.
Amongst the manyimprovcments Of the present
age. the "Bpssemer" process of Injecting jets of
air ntu the metal in its liquid state, thereby re-
moving the sulphur and phosphorus, appears TO
he the most POPULAR or Ut least the most praclic-
ed by iron makers.
The ,Eler ,hillisen' process If purifying iron
relates more specially To the chemical inode of
which. from the meagre accounts given. we arc
If comparatively In the dark The New York
Timss, IN u criticism upon recent Invention Of
our tnwnsmhn, DR.. Fields, says OF the "Ellers-
hauspn' process, that
-"rhe Wrought Irnn manufacture has recently,
by M aus of the EIlrrshausen process been ina
terially Improved and cneapentd This k pucu-
liar means of mixing iron ore and other purifying z
materials with inid crude ion, to facilitate the
chemical ch lngss which like place Ia tue subse-
queht process of pudding"
With, ut Il nlnre extended review of the various
meth'tds by which the m nufncture OF iron is
Facilitated, we will at once proceed TO speak OF
the recent invertinn nf Or. William Fmlds, Of
this city, which we believe is about To C cate a
revolution In the manufacture Of iron and steel
Dr. Fields is inv,aitur of marked charaetrr.
He was bnrn in York. Penns,lvanii, in 1874,
lie gradu tted in tue L 'ltctic c ,llege OF Mrdi-
cine, in Philadelphii. aud pr ,ctccd In New York
and some Of the New England States removing
from Rhode Island to this city III 1851, where he
has ST. ce resided
Several patents hear his name previous to his
last aud most valnahle, Ii 1851 he invented
hydraulic Ram. which bcctme very popular. In
1873 h. invented n tarning process foi the tan
mtg Of leather in few hours.
propeller wheel. b, be u.ed in canals, thereby
obviaing the u4n IF horse power, which is now
bring trsttd, aud which. it In br!irved, will be
used asa motive power in cani's generally.
He has also Caveats tnr an Invention To separate
-ilver and gold fran the crude ore, which is
sn,Bewh similar to his last invention Of which we
ehill TOW speak.
DR. Fields, being strong friend to American
Industry. was the misfortune of America b.ing
suh.rdina'e to Europe in The manufacture Of iron
aud believed that II some way could be devised
t' remnve the sulphur nnd phosphorus which 30
ahouuds In this country, that n"t nnly could we
produce u cheaper but II snp rior article He
claims that by his process he will make hettcr
-fe.'l from cast iron than c,n he m de by any
other prOcrss In Amrrci or Europe from bar r ~.
Tie nsts the common pudding furnnc. either
single ar dnnhl, such as are USED for nnkii r lar
iron. with the same gnapiity Of iron as Is used
f"r either pu poses. aud when the mss Il in q
molten sntt he throws IN package Of hi chem
lc,s, when in twenty minutes thu pigii"n l. cot-
vrried into wrought irnn. The sulphur and
hsi,ht u> ha,f z nren eliminated by the chrm-
icii npplic,ii the mas Ia re dy to te rolled
into 'mr,, hun lnf re tho bir- roll d the siur
mass IN - liquid or molten state may b. civert-
ed Into steel III the slmr furnace by throwing IN
,'nthrr prrknge Of diff ren, kind Of chemic !.
which converts the mass lin due steel then IL
l. hall,.i MP and each hall ia hammered under y
-t"ain hammer and r lid INTO bar- # u proper
'iz' Usually twn INCHES ,qfiarc and left tn cn.l:
when prnL,rtly cooled the mrs ar. cut into short
pieces then melted IN n firnace ar tots mad. tnr
That rlri'se MS desired, and when sufficiently
heated is east intD car wheels, tr,gs FIR liz.
nlls. am all kinds ni hnlluw ware II wanted
fur files and edge twls il j. run from n crncibc
into fl,sks, and when cl rrheatpd and han-
inrred into any des irihle shane. We have heen
>hpwn M. l piece OF steel for q rs and M. 2
piece fur edge t0nls manufactured hv J,s Hornrr
Il Co., pf PumptOn N. j.. and which were pr,'-
t'utced hy competent Judges ~ he n very supe
ri"r article If steel. Fnmiteen hundred pounds
al steel were IN d- at this test. aud so we'll sitis-
he'd were M.psrs Hnm,T Il ca with The res ult Of he
experiment that Dr.. Fields has been engaged IN
he 3lst If August to make five TONS more when.
II the prrsii''n is as successfnl as the first has
h.en, they will 'mmrdit'ey en'er into II. ,ti,-
ions fur the purchase of the right II the State Of
New Jersey.
ut the C.mhri, Iron Works, at Lohnstown, Pa.
with very saii.tact,ry results, rs will appear bv
references to a humber of crrtihcites, some oi
which have already heea published In the New
York fribune, the iran dge. and other aiding
Journals. We here give one certificate from an
lid aud experienced puddlcr, which has mt pre-
vinusly been published in any pnper ana which
will show the great advantages of the new
process 3
CAMBRIA Co, Pa,
JoHssTowS, July b, 1869 {
This is tn certify that | have hcen present ut
ts'. ~, WHt'l W. Nlll'hui rW Us WIN
making iron fr the Cnmhri4 Iron Wnks, and Ia
ih four heats he mtdea far brtler quality of iron.
He made In the first melting. s cwt. 2 grs. and
lhs, I'd cwt, 81. 8 cwt. Or. 4th. cwt 3
qrs with % lbs left The i'm nsed was 400
Hollidayshurg, 800 Pttsburg. 800 Marietta. s.,
the average l,ss of DR. Fields iron was five per
cent where the average # the loss Of lhr Canb
mill was from twelve to fifteen per cent. here
State have heen puddler and heater and iron
worker for many years, both IN Europe and
America WILLIAM WATKINS.
The Camhrii works turn out 2l0 tons of iron
per dav, or about $1,000 tons annu,ly, which at
loss Of ~ per- cent. according to the certificate
Of Mr. Watkins, wDuli make m an"utl lss nf
!, 500 tons, and cnmpnted ~ $50 per ton. wunId
,nnt to S46S 600 annnallv. The loss by DR.
Fields PROCESS Is p.r cent ,er g. $50 TONS nmonnt-
ing to 500 900. Then we have the f,ll"winy
exhibit in fay n Of the new D. ocess Of DR. Fields
shown by the Cambria works alone, for one year;
tu process, loss. T4hS,tHU
Fields process, lnss. 2Ii TOO
~
Gain In favor of Fields process. :. S26l. .OUO
Then seduct from the amount gained by the