The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1880-11-27
Iron Making IN India,

In tn: Human district tnero ar 9 four SOW
cral localities whrre blast furnaces have
been erected. These, in tho order of their
distance from Morodabal, which Is nearest
railway station, are Kaiadungi, Dechauri,
Khurpatal and Ramgarh. At kaladunqi
there are four furnacos Of about fourteen
hundred cubic feet capacity each. The
situation Ia unhealthy, and tho furnaces
and the Blowing machinery of primitive
sort. With water az the motive power for
the blast--and water is the power intended
to be utilized in tho four loealities-thrce
OF these fArnaces have worked, in all, only
two half years. The last went out in MAY,
1868, when tho aggregate yield had been
fvo hundred and forty-ive tons of pig iron
OF very inferior quality. At Dcchauri
thero is one furnace, also Of about fourteen
hundred cubic feet capacity, which was
erected and first put in blast by the govern
mcnt officers in 1850, and after six weeks
work, during which time it produced
lifty-nine tons of iron, came to q stand by
the breaking Of the water wheel. In
January, 1862, the Human Iron Company
restartcd this furnace, but it only worked
I'LL May of the same year. It was again
put in blast In january, 1868, and blown
ONT on the 9th OF June. During these two
Dlows four hundred and twenty four tons
IN all Of iron of medium quality were
obtained. AT Khurpatal there are two tur-
naccs of about seven hundred and eight
hundred feet capacity respectively. Both
are very much after the style of tho Kala-
dnhgi furnaces. They arc of tho rudest
construction imaginable, being mere cairns;
position for obtaining either iron or fuel
that could well be imagined. No wonder.
therefore. that the larger only appears to
have been at any time in blast, and that its
total output is set down as "a few tons of
iron of somo kind" AT Ramgarh there
arc the outb,nldlngs Of blast furnace
which were erected in 1869, but the fur
mace was never finished. In connection
with this there are also the remains of
German forge, erected, apparently, for the
conversion OF cast into wrought iron.
That such appliances should have been
erected in India, most of them at so modern
date, will strike the British ironmastcl
with astoaishment. Yet tho facts as hero
stated, appear in printed report, dated
Allahnbad, February, this year, Ivy Mr..
Ness 70 tho secretary Of government, North
west provinces and Oudh. MIR. Ness had
been called to the district to report in detail
upon the more recent attempts of the gov
ernment TO work the Dech0uri furnaces.
These, between the opening of 1877 aud the
18th of September last year mado after
seven brcakdowns-prcccdcd by twelve
months squirt in putting the furnace into
what was believed TO bo working order
about six hundred tons. The breakdowns
related sometimes to the action OF the fur
mace, and sometimes to tho water power.
The comparatively better results of these
ii nuc6 part duet due 10 the admlxturee 81 Ram
garh ore, containing 1926 per cent. Of
metallic iron, aud over SO per cent. of silica
and alumnia, with the Dechauri ore, which
yields 80. 25 per cent. Of metallic iron aud
81 parts of silicious matter; but the better
orc has to be brought 80 miles Oh the backs
OF sheep and goats, over uneven ground
and heavy gradients. MIR. Ness seems to
have well explored the district for better
ones, as also to have conducted trials with
temporary reducing furnace; but in the
end his advice to the government is to be
content with thcirprcscnt loss, and not throw
good money after bad certainly in thp
attompt to carry OH iron manufacture In
the Northwest provinces by tho aid OF the
blast furnace. II Is manifest that the Brit
ISL lronmastcr has littlo cause to fear that
India will soon be in position to supply
herself with the home made article.