The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1874-05-07

CUBIC feeT: or lOuf IeeG NlQe, IOuf Ieeb
high, and eight feet in length 1t is
corded in half cords, whole cords, and
many times two or three cords are put
in one rank. In average timber a wood
chopper can cut, split and cord up from
two to foul cords. Some men in extra
ordinary timber, on a race, or wager,
have put. up from six to eight cords per
day. Two and a half cords day for
month is very good average. The
hearth is piece of ground made level,
some 40 to 80 feet in diameter, in circle.
man with very stout sled and one
yoke of oxen, hauls the wood into the
hearth. He lays the haywood, or that
from the small limbs of the tree, on the
outside OF the hearth, then sets the split
wood, and other solid wood on end, COM
mencing at two sides, and filling inwards
until the hearth is full. except passage
through the middle just wide enough for
his oxen and sled to pass through. Then
the collier builds pen of cord wood in
the centre, and stands the wood on end
around it, and another course on that,
until the hearth is full, making mound
like cone. The hearth holds from
twenty-five to thirty cords. Leaves are
spread over the wood, now called coal
pit This is to hold the dirt from run
ming among the wood. Dirt is now
thrown over the entire pit. to the depth
of three or four inches. Then fire is
dropped into the pen in the centre, and
dry wood thrown in. When the fire has
taken good hold, the pen is filed up
with wood, leaves and dirt put on like
the balance of the pit. Then holes are
made around the top by running the
handle of a shovel through the dirt to
the wood The smoke comes slowly
through these holes, and in many hours
the fire is drawn to them, when they are
| close, and circle of holes made around
the pit lower down, until the fire is thus
drawn down to the bottom. 1t takes
from week to ten days to burn pit.
1t sinks considerably before finished.
The dirt covering the pits the first round
is called green dust and does not do so
well as the next round, when the dust is
| dry and black 1t turns the rain much
better, and is every way better. The
smoke from burning coal pit has very
pungent smell, like creosote, and can be
smelt for mile or more. Some times
| the dirt will fail in at some point in
pit, and the flame will burst out. Then
the collier on watch must bestir himself,
or there will be great destruction of wood
| He has on hand his dress wood, which
he throws into the flaming pit until the
| hole is filed up. Then he covers it with
leaves and dirt, and gets upon it and
stamps it and jumps upon it until it is
quite as solid as the balance of the pit. l
have seen these pits in the night when
the flame looked like great house on
| fire. When the fire has been drawn all
through the pit, to the bottom, and the
wood is all charred, or coaled, the last
circle of holes is closed, and the fire dies
out. Then the coal is drawn, or shoveled
out, loaded into wagons with fiat basket,
holding a bushel and a half wagon
holds 200 bushels. 1t is unloaded at the
furnace by hitching yoke of oxen to
the hind end of each board in the bottom
of the wagon bed, and drawing it out
When the boards were all drawn out the
coal falls to the ground, and the wagon
is driven away. Five cords of wood make
two hundred bushels of coal, or one load
1t takes one load or two hundred bushels
to make a ton of cold blast iron. 1t takes
/
less yield to make cold blast than it does
to make hot blast iron, but it sells for
about twenty dollars per ton more, and
the advantage is, that in dull times like
these, there is more demand, in proper
ton. for the finer quality, or the cold
blast iron. l suppose all my readers have
some idea of what is meant by the terms
cold and hot blast iron. In one case the
common atmospheric air is forced by the
great steam bellows through the tweers
into the furnace, short distance above
the ground. In the other case, after the
bellows congresses the air and forces it
into the pipe leading to the furnace, the
pipe is changed into multitude of fues,
sometimes, as in Hoops patent hot blast,
into spiral circles, and among these Is
introduced flame, until the compressed
air is heated to 1000 or l 200 degrees, and
this, as hot as flame, is forced through
the tweers into the furnace.
Ophir is being constructed for cold
blast, charcoal furnace. The company
have purchased the engine recently used
at Star Furnace, Kentucky. 1t is of the
same pattern as that used at Fulton, in
this place. 1t has power for two fur
naces, and they intend to put up stone
coal furnace at their leisure. 1t costs
about $4,000 to~put up hot blast, and
they will save that expense until they
erect the stone coal furnace. The cele-
brated Anthony coal vein crops out a
short distance above the bank at the top
of the furnace stack, and it can be used
for long time without even loading it
into wagon. Ore is being discovered
all around the furnace, and they have
= timber enough withinreach to make char
coal iron for several years. They can
get road to Tropic Furnace at the Chill
licothe Bridge, only fraction over three
miles. There they reach the railroad.
made careless inquiry about stock,
as did not know but might meet some
one who would like to get some stock