Arizona silver belt., 1893-10-07
THIN SHEETS OF IRON
A VERY INTERESTING COMPETITION
 AMONG STEEL WORKERS.

Steel Plates Rolled So Thin That 4, 300 Q
 Them Are Required to Make an Inch
 How the Effort to Surpass Each Othcr
 Started Among MetaIlurgists.
 Among the novelties introduced on tn,
 continent lately are visiting cards made
 of thin sheets of iron, revival of the ex
 hibits made at the first Universal exhibi
 tion, held in Londonin 1851. The French
 and Spanish journals have been lately
 treating this matter of fine rolling oi
 sheets of iron as novelty, but in truth
 the affair resulted in competition be.
 tween American and English metallur.
 gists arising out of theexhihit of a speci-
 men of iron paper, if it may be so termed,
 made in 1851 by an American firm. A lively competition in iron rolling then
 ensued among British manufacturers as | tO the thinuess to which steel could be | rolled cold. Mir. Cdllott rolled sheets | the average thickness of which was the
 eighteen hundredth part of an inch. In
 other words, 1,s00 sheets piled upon each
 other would collectively measure an inch
 i'll thickness while the thinnest tissue
 paper 10 be purchased in the stationers'
 or cigarette paper, measured the twelve hundredth part of an inch.
 These very thin iron sheets are per
 fectly smooth and easy to write on, al-
 though porous when held up to a good
 light. It may Eot be out of place, con sideriug the great interest that is taken
 by those connected with that great
 branch of industry, the iron trade, to give few curious particulars as to the extent iron can be welded and the thin sheets that can be rolled out. Brother Jonathan little thought what hubbub would be created in the old country AZ years ago, when from Pittsburg he sent that wonderful letter, written on sheet made from iron. which took no less than 1000 sheets to mako an inch iu thickness. the dimensions being $ inches by 55 inches, or a surface of A inches, and weighing 69 grains. The fact had 10 sooner made its appearaucein print than Britain's sons began to work, and soon we heard that sheet contaipSag the same number of surface inches. but weighing only aG grains, had been made at the MarShtie.d iron works. Llauelly Carmarthenslgire. being exactly one third less in weight.
 But soon the Welsh leek had to give way to the rose of England orStatford- shire was anxious to take it's wonted lead, The Hope igca works succeeded in making a sheet of ll9 surface inches weighing but 50 grains, which. reduced to tho American and Welsh standard of A inches, gives about 33 grains, Messrs. '. Williams (; Co. @ inches. % grains: reduced to the same standard, about 8l grains For q time Statforlshire wore the belt, but Wales became very restless and anxious for the honor of St. David SO further attempts were made
 MarshGcld came again into the field. They succeeded in making one sheet 8 by jt inches, or a surface of 44 inches, of the astounding weight of 2Js grains only, which required no less than 2,5S3 sheets to make 1 iucb iu thickness An other sheet by 6 inches, or 4s surface inches, weighed 25 grains, but brought to the standard of 4 inches, gives but 23 grains, and requires 2.050 sheets to make 1 inch in thickness. The Pon- taTdGwe tin works next came into the field with a sheet l4s by [ 5-i6. or a sur face of ll5-l1 inches. weighing co grains. but being reduced to q inches is 2i5 grains, trfe heavier than the Marsh field. but PontarJawe claims g. 19J sheets to make 1 inch in thickness.
 We now come 10 the climax. The mil manager of Messrs w Hallam & Co. of tho Upper Forest tin works. near Swansea, succeeded Tn making sheet of the finest appearance and thinness that has ever yet been seen by mortal 1 eye. Tho iron from which the sheet was rolled was made on the premises. It was worked in a iiuery with charcoal l md the usual blast; afterward taken 10 | he hammer to be formed into a regular i int bottom: from thence conveyed 10 | he balliug furnace. and when sufficient y heated taken ID to the rolls, length i med and cut by shears into proper i engths, piled up and transferred to the | Jalling furnace again, When heated. it gas passed through the rolls, back igain into Che balling furnace. and when lnly brought to the proper pitch was aken to the rolls and made into thor 'ughly good bar
 Such is the history in connection with he forge department It was then aken 10 the tin mills and rolled till it yas supposed to be thinner than 29 rains, afterward passed through the old mills to give it the necessary polish, nd it stands on record as the thinnest heet of iron ever rolled. The sheet in uestion was 10 by 5 inches, or 55 nches in surface, and weighed but 20 rains, which, being brought to the tandard of g by 54 inches, or A surface lches, is but t6 grains, or 30 per cent ass than any previous effort, and re- uired at least 4,s00 to make an inch in Makers Journal