The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1895-11-21

hardest rolled pure aluminium is about
the temper of hard brass. 1t will take
very high polish, about equal to that
of pure silver.
Aluminium unites readily with all met
ais except lead, antimony and mercury,
and many useful alloys have been discov-
cred In the last few years. The useful
alloys so far have been principally in two
groups, one of aluminium with not more
than 10 per cent of other metals, and the
other of metals containing not over 10
per cent of aluminium. In one case the
metals impart hardness and other useful
qualities to the aluminium, and in the
other the aluminium gives useful qualities
to the metals with which it is alleged.
Aluminium and copper form two series of
valuable alloys, aluminium bronze, con-
tanning from to II per cent of alumni
mum, and copper-hardened aluminium,
containing from to 10 per cent of cop
per. The to II per cent aluminium
brOnzes are among the densest, finest
grained and strongest alloys known-al-
Toys having ductility along with tensile
strength. The alloy of between 10 and
IL per cent of aluminium with copper is
the true aluminium bronze"
Until some radical change comes in the
manufacture of aluminium, the price will
not come down to such point that it
will be the main factor in all sorts of
metal work. And until some radical
change is made from the present method
of reducing aluminium, bauxite must con-
tinue to be the chief ore from which the
metal is obtained. So far, the mineral
has been found in commercial quantities
in only two localities in the United States.
Discoveries that will put down the price
of aluminium are looked for at any mo-
ment. DR.. @. w. Hayes of the United
States geological survey says that bauxite
is principally found in the southern por-
ton of the Appalachian valley and in
Arkansas, and that it is only in the south
ern portion of the Appalac hians that the
ore bodies are developed to large scale.
Within the belt extending from Adairs-
vile, Ca, southwark a distance of 60
miles to the vicinity of Jacksonville, Ala,
the ore has been worked most extensively
near Adairsville and in the Dyke district
near Rock Run, Ala.
DR.. Hayes says that an interesting aues-
ton arises as to the supply of bauxite.
and the possibility of it's being exhausted
in the near future. No estimates have
yet been made of the amount of ore in
sight IN this country, and none can be
made which will have any claims to &C.
curacy until at least one of the repre-
sentative ore bodies shall have been thor
oughly exploited and their depth ascer-
tanned. The development of these de-
posits is as yet in it's infancy, and the
opinion prevails that they are inexhaust-
ible; but this same opinion existed few
years. ago concerning the limonite depos-
its of the region referred to, and the
limonite is now all gone. The favorable
geologic conditions are present in other
portions of the southern Appalachians,
extending nearly to Central Alabama end
through Tennessee and Virginia.
One of the greatest difficulties. all in
ventors are agreed, in the use of alumni
mum more generally is the difficulty of
soldering it. A fortune undoubtedly
awaits the man who shall invent per-
feet aluminium solder. The aluminium
soldiers put upon the markets recently are
almost numberless, and many of them are
near the mark so far as temporary tests
can establish, but still there is room for
improvement.-New York Tribune.