New-York tribune., 1870-11-02

lint after the wonerfu strides Of the past half century
an the manufacture and consumption OF this the really
precious metal what man bold IS attempt sue
CeSSful prophecy O is future utility; while u is almost
as difficult its early real history stretching back
INTO the aim twilight OF mans existence, when shadows
and realities are ineXtrcaby mingled That IuDai Cam
one OF the earliest WORKERS III lro Is OF course
familiar fact TO every who has read an article or
heard cture upon iron and its toeraby frequent use
10 have been familiar to many OF the Die writer's
O King OF BaShau. had an lion bedstead; charOts OF
harrOws ana other tools of iron, are spoken or and
pen OF iron conveyed suif ienty familiar idea tO make
convenient figure for the Prophet jeremiah while
me Israets Eere cary ppolnis' ns SpeeRh Any uSsTaoe ; @
steel mentioned, and IN the 23d book OF the liad
mass O lIp on! 80 M e. SS s,ioS ,ih ise El a %
funeral Of Patroelus; in the words OF Bryants
"Aesn PeHies placed before the host
A Of iron shspeless from the forge
When D. stroug EeiOn used to harl
BP55S BP i 4 A vs Other s4f1 or os 'S1 10 i ' .Ss. Ss
10 IroaA Rising, he addressed the Greeks;
Ant 6eis and rieh be his, this
MS cs I % or @as s ss' s. pOT 1e Hee 1H nO s1S he a' en
A. svo ';Se & for h Se na he % % Ssye IN r er hold
together by bands of lrOn fixed in place by molten lead
Later, Thucyddes tells US that the walls OF Preus
ron and small objects 81 art made of IRON or iron and
bronze were found by Layard in tombs OF early date
And through all the nations of high antiquity, iron is
mentioned. almost always in way that shows it to
have been partially common, but always highly es
teeed metal Indeed from the difficulty OF working Ii
with the primitive means at the command of men just
emerged nom barbarlsm 1t was constantly held at
weight, and whatever the age of the world, find sub
a
Development; only $50 years ago. BOachOff m Russia,
having bartered iron for equal weight OF copper coin
80 asO III the older ages as nOw those best skilled i'll
the production aud pulatOn of iron held a certain
prominence and IN some instances almost the only
calm some OF the smaller peoples have to mention IN
Ihe page OF the historian, which proOngs TO day
that sight recollection or indirect mention, which Is
This metal nom the tenacious grasp OF combined mpuri
leighbOrs a coveted implement or III headed weapon.
Thus the Chaybes once powerful Ar1ninan race, "a
own memory 10y furnishing us the rOOtO the word chaly
beate They Oher early workers. left slight record
OF their operations; mentions
That their arenaceOus washed and he also
and Dodorus scuus says that in the island of Ethaia
nced orr 10 Ggrg Sa66 leed 9T2ken he perhaps pa partially re-
other scsy particulars contain but little OF instruction
manutacturs and treatment iron in Ancient India,
Chna and Egypt where there is plenty OF evidence OF
ss early uAc and Importance, but only ntOrma
On as to the methods OF obtaining from the ores and
only deserve notice showing how this metal be-
gan It's influence and proved ITS Importance. We
only sure that was wrought iron that was produced
,md employed and not cast ron, which is compare
lively recent production, and it probable it all OBJ
lancd y primitive direct process from rleh ana easily
Down the time Of OF the iron scarce
and high to he oi general se but they enpioyedh WIN
comparative trccuOm aud perhaps Ill the absence 0r
nles OF any scientific press, which now quickly pIoml-
adoption Of new materials fresh applications Of old
ones, nothing shows more succincty the change when
had taken place the increased use OF iron under that
powerful race than the fact that Homer speaks OF deah
sleep Of brass, while VTgiwith the same idea in his
mind, conveys it tamiiarly To MS public by calling IL %
sleep OF iron. The Romans introduced the manuactpre
fhie furnished not only metal to her neghbors but also
skilled wOrbmen to those who wished to enter upon It's
ebted To spain for what early ledge of Iron work
ing possessed, while through France the practice
passed on 10 Germany, anu setthhS among lhe halH
Mountains, its numerous iorgefres helped furnish mat
tAtiaordlhaIy stock 9i goDhn stories anu @ IIy %
which were the delght ana terror OF our chIIun9ou
Further East and North, in Russia and Sweden,
IN r,de Nav from still farther East where the hordes
Of Indamen had long made TIE celebrated WOOtZ seeI
OF high quality, though made IN tle most primitive way
0r perhaps from China where iron anu It's magnetic
properties been known for ages. But at "a later
date all knowledge OF the art or this manufacture as now
pactised, mainly from England, and therefore II
is her progress that we turn for the proper history
OF iron IT, improved manufacture, as we know ~
Britain, is extremely probable but not certain tha
Csar Though we are entirely ignorant of what may have
been the method OF its manufacture with the Occupa-
ne quite extensive workings of the rich ores near the
sea- subsequently the Danes carried on the rednc
Of the deposits OF ores so largely that az sun
date the piles Of clnders lett by them supplied many
production OF pigirOn the more perfect opetaoh o to
Iast-fulnacc extracting iron from what was worthless
sldg to the crude operations Of Romans ana lanes
EARLY METHODS
The method empoyedDy all the early workers Of iron OF
whose operations know anything, similar TO that
st in IA India in BorneO, In Madagascar, and in
Africa and consisted il heating hot OF
air. that artcialy supplied by the erudest OF bellows
would permit rich OF iron h contact with nclndes
charcoal and hamnerng the Nscld lnaGs untI the
earthly impurities expelled and an iTreguarshaled
shapeless from forge" OF Homer, and whch-stl pro
duced 10y slight notifications of the same process, IN
numerous localities throughout the known w0rld-we
call bloom OF from, from the old Saxon word Btomd,
the BiOB,a Forri OF the Doonsday BOokand which is
hammered into bars or tools as wanted. Ihls carry
Of producing iron continued with slight change
Ibe universal method until the discovery OF cast IRON
aud, together with its various notifications and of
shoots patented and unpatented, are all different
branches of what is known the direct process OF
making iron, being production of malleable-iron
directly from the ore, at one process in distinction TO
fhe now common manner, called the indirect
method. which first snets the iron by means OF the
baSf-nruace, and then eliminates from the resultant
irnI s carbon and other Impurities by pudding or
ot1er means until maeable wroughr0n is obtained.
That this indirect ana roundabout way should be now
aneraily adOpted seems almost paIadoxical, and an
venfor of one of the improved direct processes for
such inventors are numerous Delng led by an tgnts
Ss 10 attenpt the short across, instead making
hes Of the road around, asks, very pertnently why
onyert iron already malleabe m the oe) into castrOn,
IN he recouyered at much labor and cost into NAL
againi The question rs an obvious one, and
49, only answer Is that thus far the indirect process has
roved be most useful for the reduction OF the majority
ores I'M large quantity all direct processes
hitherto employed being appllcaOlo o torch selected
md essily redGcibe ores, wasteful OF fuel prodga o.
or ar irregular in their result III is undoubtedly Tho
GTean of every irOnsmeiter VINO Thinks m9eh, o.
Jrcams al all 10 find method OF ODVlathg tue us
~ the bastfurnace but 40 commercially successu
,Vay has vet been found OF realiLng lis uIeai on
pe scaithatis still one Of the not lmp0DaDie achleNe
The terms teroagitiron and cast-irOn may occasion
nv lead 10 Confusion and nderstanding, and
tV,d be Constantly borne in mind that iron Is iron
However ana from whatever ores ODtalbeu; nlV"snu
an maIeabeIron is nearly pure iron, and Is maleabi
and ductle while cast-iron, well as pg4ron which
only a form OF castlron, Is compound o IioH au r'
bon with other impurities usually e1istlhg pr
ns1y i the ore In 100 large OF too intimately combine
quantity have been entirely removed py the aco
fhe bIastfurnace and is neither malleabe nor ducte
Maeable castings, Of which keys the ironwOrk aDgu'
horses harness and many small arucles are lnaue,
rsstlron in which carbon originally almost the on
i@nniity. and which by process cementation, ha
tean 50 nearly removed as make the castings slght
IDaleable though destitute OF hDeI winch ls ue'eioPe
IN wroughtiron, but not at all ductile'
THE INVENTION OF THE BLAsTFURsACE
To properly trace the history OF the present iron man