Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1908-07-08
!. ROMANCE OF STEEL
The Rise of a Great Industry and
Enormous Fortunes.
KELLY AND THE AIR BLAST.

The Flash Of Genius Which Provises
the World With New metai-Rob-
ert MSshst's Deviee-capsain Sill
Jones and Andrew Carnegie.
rs late Is the middle or the last cen
,ury cheap steel was uaknown. =
was iheu sold II - cents a pound
TIE railroads were using iron rails
which wore out in less than tv.o years
and the total output OF iron and steel
r. year was less than is now made in
four days.
Then came TO William Kelly. Pitts
burg Irish-American. that fash Of gen.
ius which provided the world with 4
new metal. something as strong "a
steel and as cheap as iron
Kelly was an iron maker and needed
charcoal In time all the wood near
his furnaces was burned. ana the near
est available source OF supply was
seven miles distant To cart his char
coal seven miles meant bankruptcy IN
less he could invent way 20 save fuel.
One day lie was sitting in front of the
''iinery fire. when he suddenly Sprang
10 his feet. with a shout. and rushed 70
the furnace. At one edge lie saw n
white hot spot In the yellow mass Of
molten metal. The iron ut this spot
was incandescent II was almost gas
eons. Yet there was no charcoal
| nothing but the steady blast Of air.
/ Like n fash the idea leaped into his
excited brain-there was no need az
| Charcoal; air alone for fuel
But people said ne was crazy when
Kelly asserted that pig iron could b
| changed into malleable iron by the air
blast, for every iron maker believed
IL those days that cold air would chill
| hot iron. Some crank VIII be trying
10 burn ice next" said one manufactur-
er and Kelly, through lack Of means.
could not turn his idea into the sue
cess lie deserved
Then. seven years later. came Besse-
mer, who made the new process a com
mercial success by the invention Of his
I celebrated converter" and received
! 100000 worldwide fame and a
! knighthood as his reward Kelly re
I ceived 100000 and comparative OILY
/ ION. although his idea was the M
cleus Of the BesSemer process by
which iron is purified from carbon by
/ the direct introduction of oxygen. for
/ when Bessemer applied for and oh
/ tanned United States patent FOR his
pneumatic process" Kelly claimed prl-
J ority for his Invention. and bis claim
was allowed r. the patent Office.
Another pioneer Of the steel trade
b Fprrf.
upon n device for removing a difficulty
that baflied Kelly and Bessemer. Jared
even worse chan Kelly. for he lost his
patent by failing 70 pay tie necessary
fees and In his iaier years was de-
pendent upcn pension OF 81 .5CO which
he received annually fror, BesSeiner.
The difficulty which Mnnset removed
was this:
The air blast clears the molten
metal OF carbon and Of 81 Impurities.
Including sulphur and phosphorus. Rut
a certain quantity Of carbon Is neccS-
sary To harden the mc.cl into the re-
q'irsd qualify II steel Instead 81
endeavoring TO stsp 'hc process nj
exactly the right moment. ,lrchct
! ns,,ed why not first haT, cut I'll the
. carbon ard then rosr b~,'. TIE exact
quantity that you need:' This lsas y
staple device. hat 70 onc hal thors...
of IL before
Ti:c man who took the iF-scr..en %
Kelly and fessemer Into his h,-s's. -.
ve.oped 1t Into enc OF the wonders Of
The world and made the Clrlss..'a e.li.
lioas was Captain William r. Jones-
BIZ Jones, as he was known-who
seemed to live with the sole desire of