The Iron Age 1888-07-12: Vol 42

‘THE Electric Welding Machines. THURSDAY, JULY 12, 1888, IRON AGE Lynn, Mass. In view of the interest at- tached to the subject we need not specially commend to the at- tion of our readers the engravings on this page, illustrating two types of machines by means of which their welding is accom- plished. The principle in- volved in this new art is that of causing currents of electricity to pass through the abutting ends of the pieces of metal which are to be welded, thereby generating heat at the point of contact, which also becomes the point of greatest resistance, while at the same time mechanical pres- sure is applied to force the parts together. As the currents heat the metal, at their junction, to the weld- ing temperature, the pressure follows up the softening surface until a complete union or weld is effected, and, as the heat is first developed in tie interior of the parts to be welded, the in- terior of the joint is, it is claimed, as efti- ciently united as the visible exterior. With such a method and apparatus, it is found possible to accom- plish not only the common kinds of welding of iron and steel, but of metals which have hereto- fore resisted attempts at welding, and have had to be brazed or soldered. Pieces of such metals and al- loys as wrought iron, silver, copper, brass, lead, tin, zinc, bronze, German sil- ver, platinum, gold and even cast iron, are not only welded to each other, but different metals can be welded one to an- other in many com- binations, extending the applications of the process to the at- tainment of results heretofore impossible in metal working, while the tensile strength of the welds, as shown by mechanical tests under the direction ot the U. 8. Ordnance Depart- : They are of sizes and types suited to the kind and scale of work, as well as to the nature and location | of the power by which they are to be | the low pressure currents needed in weld- | ing and similar work. In our issue of March 1, 1888, we re- | ferred briefly to the process of electric welding as carried out at the works of the Thomson Electric Welding Company, at | driven. Fig. 1.—Indirect Welding Machine. ELECTRIC ment, are all that can be desired. The machines built by the Thomson Electric Welding Company are generators of electricity, so constructed as to produce’ are so graded as to apply to various kinds Fig. 2.--Direct Welding Machine. WELDING MACHINES, BUILT WELDING Cco., LYNN, BY THE MASS. plied by currents taken from a circuit, fed by suitable Gynamos at a greater or less distance from the welding apparatus itself. The machines now being manufactured THOMSON ELECTRIC | of work, from the smallest wire to bars of over 3 inches in diameter. work, such as large forgings of locomo- tive frames, car axles, For heavier shaftings, &c., special forms of machines adapted to the They are built to take power | purpose can be supplied by the company, e while by the use of specially adapted holders, applied to the standard forms of machines, various shapes and irregular sizes of metal pieces may be welded with- out difficulty. The power required for the different sizes varies nearly as the cross sectional area of the material at the joint where the weld is to be made. The welding or working is claimed to be much more economical and far superior to that produced by the or- dinary methods, while the currents used are of such low pressure as to render any dan- ger of shocks impos- sible. Fig. 1 represents an indirect welding ma- chine as now built for moderately heavy work, such as metal bars of about 2 inches in diameter. This machine takes a cur- rent from a dynamo by means of wires and may be placed in any convenient loca- tion, more or less dis- tant from the source of power. Fig. 2 represents a type of the direct welding machine, combining both the dynamo and welding apparatus. This can be run by belting directly to the engine or to line shafting. This ma- chine is used for all kinds of light work, its capacity ranging from fine wire to rods of 24 inches in diam- eter. The welds, it will be understood, are butt welds and the rods to be united are securely clamped in two arms. This the engravings show clearly. We need not spe- cially emphasize the fact thet the variety of uses to which the yrocess of electric welding may be ap- plied is almost end less. Thus it is adapted to the join- from any source; to operate wherever ing of wires of copper, iron or other placed, by producing directly from such| metals, or bars of similar or different power the necessary currents, or to be sup-| shapes and sections; making joints at an- gles with bars, as T or Y joints; making chains of links with double welds, both joints being formed by one operation and ranging from cable work chains, combining the same or different to jewelers’ metals; constructing or joining, end to end, pipe of all kinds and of large diam- eters; the working, joining, &c., of lead pipe and the welding in of T connec- tions or elbows into lines of pipe, &c. The operator has absolute control over the heat as, by the simple movement of a lever, the metal can be held at any tem- perature desired. The welding process, moreover, can be continually watched, as the metal while heating is visible, instead of being covered with coal or hidden by flame, as in the ordinary process. The union further commences at the interior of the joint and not in an uncertain way, as in the ordinary lap welding, and conse- quently any flaw in the process, it claimed, can be easily discovered and pre- vented. The process almost instan- taneous with small diameters, while with larger sizes it requires but a few seconds, depending upon the horse-power used. 1s is The external part of the welding circuit is | so contrived as to be practically a pair of clamps into which the pieces to be welded may be fastened close to the ends to be joined, ao thet when Ghats anmnane te ane \saw tables, band saws, jointers, planers }and mortisers, the whole making a very tact an electric ring circuit is completed, consisting of the part included within the primary coils, the clamps and the metals to be welded. cuit is easily regulated, and is thus adapted to the demands of the work to be done, whether it be with thick or thin bars or wires, there is no expenditure at all when the welding is not in progress. Rm The Ohio Valley Centennial Exhibition. The Centenmal Exhibition of the Ohiw Valley and Central States, active prepara- tions for which have been going on for 12 months past at Cincinnati, Ohio, opened on Wednesday, July 4, 1888. The machinery department has an ex- ceptionally fine collection of iron and wood working tools, and is fully equal to, if not greater than, that of the Centennial Exposition at Philadelphia in 1876. The G. A. Gray Machinery Com- pany, Cincinnati, exhibit at the main en- trance to Machinery Hall, a 10-foot bed planer, 36 inches by 36 inches, with double heads, power quick elevating device, quick return and short run, weight, 13,- | economical in consumption of gas. 26 inches by 26 inches, with power ele- | 000 pounds ; one single head 5-foot bed, vating device, and one 5-foot bed, 2% inches by 23 inches ditto. All of these machines have a new device for shifting the belts. The machines are highly fin- ished, and especially designed for great durability. This company also exhibit one screw cutting lathe with swing, 13-foot bed, compound rest, inde- pendent rod feed, weight, 8000 pounds; | also one 20-inch swing and one 17-inch, both with 8-foot beds, having compound rests and taper attachments, The Long & Allstater Company, Hamil- ton, Ohio., have two exhibits, one embrac- ing a 6-inch angle iron shear, cutting from 4 inch to 4 inch thick; one 3 inches thick; one large plate shear, cutting any size or width of plate; one plate shear and multiple punch combined, shearing up to 50 inches in width by 3 inch thick; one 36-inch deep throat boiler punch, No. 2 size, with capacity for punching through $-inch iron; one double No. 3 punch and shear combined; one No. 3. horizontal punch; and one tire welding machine for welding and buggy tires. This machine is one of their latest productions. The welding dies are adjustable by means of cams, the female die remaining station- wagon ary, while the male and edging dies are |machinery, exhibit some of their latest The energy spent in this cir- | Falls, Ohio, exhibit their several special- ties, consisting of their patent clutch and None of the energy is wasted, and | | horse-power, | arms. was | considered | | the second in the south end. | consists of 2, 4 and 7 horse-power engines | inghouse engine, which latter they closely | Madison, Iowa, have a unique display in | pyramidal form, some 20 feet high, 8 feet 26-inch | THE [IRON AGE. adjustable to 4, inch, the machine weld- ing tires from } inch to 14 inches wide. Two sizes of this machine are made, each | being provided beneath the edging die | with a shear attachment for cutting the | tire material to the lengths desired. This | firm further exhibits a powerful bending and forming machine, also adapted to straightening heavy bars, beams, .&c., and Another portion of the hall is occupied by this firm, with a space in which is ex- hibited every variety of agricultural im- | plements, consisting*of rakes, cultivators, | plows, feed cutters, &c. ' ‘for shaping iron suitable to all purposes. | | Ritchie & Deyer, Hamilton, Ohio, ex- | hibit a model Parry saw-mill outfit and a} 10 horse-power Ritchie traction engine. This has steel gearing and a steel boiler and is well put together. The firm claim to have built the first engine of this type ever used in the United States. Cordesman, Meyer & Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, manufacturers of wood-working and best productions, consisting of tilting creditable display. The Falls Rivet Company, Cuyahoga cut-off couplings, steel-rim pulleys, pedestal stands and boxes and Akron cold-rolled shafting. This firm have supplied the electric light plants at the exposition with shafting and couplings. The clutches are made from 1 to 1000) with two, four and six ulleys, split The National Steel Wire Mat Company, with factories at Cincinnati, Chicago and Beaver Falls, Pa., have an interesting ex- hibit in the southern end of the hall, con- sisting of a complete manufacturing plant in operation producing specimens of their goods, the wall space of the exhibit being appropriately decorated with wire mats of the various sizes made. The machinery employed in the manufacture of these goods proves a great attraction to visitors. The Van Duzen Gas Ergine Company, of Cincinnati, have two displays of their gas engines, one immediately adjoining the main entrance to the machinery hall, and The exhibit of a new type. They are provided with automatic lubricator similar to the West- resemble in form, and are claimed to be The Iowa Farming Tool Company, Fort square at base, and 3 feet 6 inches at apex, consisting of a dark background upon which are secured specimens of the various tools and implements produced by them. A smaller pyramid is used for the display of grain cradles, snaths, ox yokes, &c. Mast, Foos & Co., Springfield, Ohio, make an elaborate display of iron fencing of various designs, the well-known Buck- eye Force Pumps, lawn mowers and their Iron Turbine wind engines, hose reels | lawn sprinklers, &c. The Eagle Machine Company, Lancas- | ter, exhibit well-gotten-up specimens of their hand and power cornshellers, fodder cutters, straw cutters, stackers, screen doors, corn planters, animai pokes, horse- powers, &e. | The Kilbourne & Jacobs Mfg. Company, | Columbus, Ohio, exhibit a specimen of | every article manufactured by them, em- bracing wheelbarrows, both wood and | iron, wheels, the well-known Columbus | ' steel sinks, road plows, scrapers and ex- press, railroad and freight trucks. The Wayne Works, of Richmond., Ind., exhibit grain drills, seeders, force feed | fertilizers, and their latest novelty, he! July 12. 1888, Dandy champion steel cart, of which sev- eral styles are exhibited. These carts are constructed with single and double seats, are easy of adjustment, and have a supe- rior device in the way of spring. The Richmond Machine Company dis- play mulay and gang saws, head blocks and horizontal engines. The John H. McGowan Pump Company, Cincinnati, have on exhibition a very inter- esting display of their Rival boiler feeders, Rival onl Duplex steam pumps and the Glide brass valve-box boiler feeders, tobacco presses and machinery. The center of | their space is occupied by a water column about 12 inches in diameter and 15 feet high, the top of which is surmounted by a | basin about 6 feet in diameter. In the center of this is located a flower vase. The water is forced through the column, filling the basin mentioned to overflowing and pro- ducing a very pleasant effect, particularly at night, and cooling the atmosphere very perceptibly for some distance around. J. M. Robinson & Co., occupying space 9 x 25, exhibit several of their more prom- inent productions, among which are cor- nice brakes ranging from 4 up to 8 feet in size, range and safe makers’ brakes, box bending machines, hand and power shears, | double-acting punching presses, both hand and power. Pierce, Butler & Pierce, Syracuse, N. Y., exhibit all the various sizes and combina- tions of the Florida steam heater. Sebastian, May & Co., Cincinnati, Ohio, | have a very fine exhibit of light iron work- ing lathes runuing in sizes from 8 inches swing up to 18 inches, with distances be- tween centers from 20 to 60 inches. In 'connection with their exhibit is also a dis- play for Rice, Whitacre & Co., of Chicago, manufacturers of the Kriebel steam launch engine, The National Machinery Company, of Griffin, Ohio, exhibit various sizes of bolt and nut machinery, of which they make a specialty. The Laidlaw & Dunn Company, Cin- cinnati, exhibit a complete line of the Hero vertical boiler feeders, Standard Du- plex pumps with brass removable water cylinders, tobacco machinery, &c. Six of these pumps are being used to supply the feeding of the Galloway boilers in the Park Hall, the elevator in the same hall supplying water to the grand waterfall in Horticultural Hall and the grand fountain in Park building. This firm also supplied all the pipe, fittings and valves for steam, water and fire purposes, and pipes and fit- tings for the extensive gas display in the buildings and streets approaching thereto, and the great electric light chandelier in Music Hall. Lodge, Davis & Co., Cincinnati, occupy one of the largest spaces in the hall, and exhibit the most comprehensive display of machine tools in the entire building. The exhibit consists of five sizes of turret lathes, 13, 16, 18, 21 and 36 inches. The last three are cabinet styles for boring, chasing and turning taper without swivel- ing the head. A line of shapers is also exhibited, there being four sizes, 15, 20, 26 and 32 inches, The first three are | geared and the 15 inch, operated with a rocker movement, has quick return and is fitted with a special device for al- tering the length of the stroke from 0 inch to 15 inches while in motion. There is | also a device for adjusting the cutting tool to any location in which the work may be placed on the table. The shapers can be rapidly adjusted while in motion, and a shaft of any length may be put clear through directly under the cutter arm, thus enabling the operator to cut a key- way in a shaft at any point desired. All shapers are arranged to make any required changes from one point. A full line of drill presses are also exhibited, ranging in size from 20 to 38 inches swing. July 12, 1888, The Coke Trade. The lockout in the Western iron mills, which is now in its second week, has not as yet had any perceptible effect on coke shipments, nor will it be likely to have any for some weeks to come, should tie lockout continue. A more hopeful feel- ing is being shown by the operators, and it is believed that an improvement in this industry will soon take place. ovens in blast, out of a total of 13;061 ovens in the region, leaving only 3806 idle; the output for that week being estimated at 74,664 tons. For the week previous the figures were: Active ovens, 8903; idle, 4156; tonnage, 72,166. of a portion ‘of the ovens of the McClure | Coke Company which had been idle on account of a strike of the employees, ac- For the’! week closing June 30 there were 9255) The resumption | tool of the same size. | treme a bar of ste THE [RON AGE. is some improvement in the iron trade, which will consequently cause an improve- | ment in the demand for coke. ek eee Seymour’s Lathe and Planer Tool. The Capitol Tool Company, of Hart- | ford, Conn., are putting on the market a lathe and planer tool which, in general plan, may not be altogether unfamiliar to | our readers. The engravings which we annex fully explain its ‘features. The tool | is designed to be an efficient and che ap | substitute for forged tools for lathes and | planers, rigidly holding its cutter and | taking as heav y and clean cuts as a forged | It is cheap to use because the cutters are made by cutting and grinding the end to the desired angle. Naval Progress. | The acts of March 3, 1885, August 3, | 1886, and March 3, 1887, authorized the construction of ships to cost in the aggre- | gate a trifle less than $20,000,000. The | é amount thus far appropriated for these ships is $8,315,000. This is exclusive of | about $7,000,000 appropriated for guns |and armor in 1886 and 1887, of which about $4,000,000 will be required to pay the contracts made with the Bethlehem | Iron Works a year ago, leaving $3,000,000 to the credit of the Secretary. Leaving out the double- turreted mon- itors and ‘the four cruisers, there have been |spent on the ships ordered in the past | three years $2,403, 935, and the balance on | hand fot them is $3,453,848. The double- el the length required | turreted monitor Miantonomoh will be | finished in four months. The large cruiser counts in part for the increase in the num- | This plan allows the consumer to make his | Baltimore will be launched this month and ber of active ovens and the slight increase |own cutters at small cost. in tonnage. wouk were 4560 cars consigned as follows: It does not | The shipments during the | require an elevating tool block on the lathe, | be ready for delivery on September 1. The Vesuvius will The finished in six months. las the cutter can ~ be raised or lowered in! double-turreted monitor Puritan has had Fig. 1. Fig. 4. LATHE AND PLANER TOOL, To Pittsburgh and the rivers, 1200; to the Shenango and Mahoning valleys, Chicago and other Western points, 2060 cars; to eastern points, 1300 cars. The figures for the previous week were: Pitts- burgh, 1250; West, 2000; East, 900. The following is a comparative statement of the weekly shipments for the month of June: June Total. To Pittsburgh 9 Rivebee 1,200 To Western points. .3,000 To Eastern points. .1,350 se rr ———- Totals ...........5,500 4,800 4,150 The shipments for May were 24,800 cars, or an average of 918 cars per day for the | 27 working days of that month. The | shipments for June, as will be seen by the above statement, aggregate 19,160 cars, or an average of but 737 cars daily for the 26 working days of that month. The) 4,560 19,160 aggregate for May was consigned as fol- | tem,” he says, lows: To Pittsburgh, 4300 cars; West, 13,800 cars, and to eastern points 6700 ears. The price of coke remains at $1, although some sales have been made at 95 cents per ton. There is still some talk of an attempt to revive the old syndicate. Although no definite action has yet been taken in the matter, it is nof | advance of what has long been known. LA\\ 35 —= Fig. 2 Fig. 3. Fig. 5. Fig. 6. MADE BY THE CAPITOL TOOL COMPANY, HARTFORD, CONN. the holder. Fig. 1 represents a general | view of the tool and holder. Fig. 2 shows top and side views; Fig. 3 illustrates the | tool in detail, A being the holder, B eye- | bolt, C washer, D nut, E round-nosed | cutter and F diamond-point cutter. Fig. 4 shows the tool at work in a lathe as right- | hand diamond point; A shows the tool | turning up to a shoulder, and B shows the tool turning from a shoulder with the | holder reversed so that the tool may start close to the shoulder. Fig. 5 work reversed in the lathe and turned with left-hand cutters. Fig. 6 shows method of turning out corners and squaring up. The round-nosed cutter can be used in the | same way. i The Commissioner of Patents decides that Prof. De Bausset’s proposed steel-air ship is impracticable. ‘*The patent sys- ‘was never designed to protect the chimerical schemes of vision- aries. Invention consists in more than the work of the imagination. This applicant has only carried his conception up to the point where invention must begin. The present case deals with ideas “long ex- ploded and proposes not a single step . t likely that any decided efforts will be | differs from the former schemes only in its made to form a new syndicate until there | gigantic proportions.” Cc shows the | her dock trial and has been accepted, but | her armor has not been put on. The double-turreted monitor Amphitrite is ready for her steam trial, which will occur soon. The machinery for the double- 'turreted monitor Monadnock is in procéss of construction at Mare Island Navy Yard, from plans prepared in the Navy Depart- ment. Three years ago some of the forg- ings for the 6-inch guns for the Navy had | to be imported from England, and all the forgings for the larger guns had to be | brought from abroad. Now the forgings for 8-inch guns are made here, and the |contract of last year with the Bethlehem Iron Works will make the United States |independent of England, even in the case |of forgings for the largest guns projected and for the heaviest steel shafting. The stern-post of the cruiser San Fran- ‘cisco, which is to be built by the Union |Iron Works, in San Francisco, has been successfully cast and the keel is now being laid. The Herreshoff Mfg. Company, at Bristol, R. I., have begun work on the new torpedo boat. This boat will be 138 feet long and will have twin screws, with engines capable of working up to 1800 horse-powér. The contract speed is 25, knots an hour and the builders hope to attain 28 knots. The boat will be entirely of steel. 46 THE IRON AGE. July 12, 188 8 The Cruiser Maine. The progress which is being made in the preparations for commencing the build- ing of the cruiser Maine, at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, lends special interest to the engravings which we publish in this issue, representing a general view and deck plans of the ship. The Maine is a twin-screw armored tur- ret vessel of the belted cruiser type, the vital parts being protected by a belt of armor from shot and shell, sufficient in length to insure stability even if the ends are riddled above the under-water pro- tective decks extending from the ends of the belt to the extremities of the vessel, The vessel will have great coal endurance, good steaming and maneuvering qualities, every modern improvement in offensive and defensive materiel and every appliance to insure the comfort and health of officers and crew. In general appearance it re- sembles the Brazilian armored cruiser Riachuelo, but is larger, and carries heavier guns and thicker armor, besides having greater endurance, The general dimen- sions are as follows : Length between per- pendiculars, 310 feet; breadth, extreme, 57 feet; mean draft of water, 214 feet ; displacement to above draft, 6648 tons ; indicated horse-power, 8750; speed, 17 knots ; thickness of armor belt, 11 inches. The water-line belt of steel armor just mentioned extends for a length of about 180 feet amidships, and from 3 feet above to 4 feet below the water line. From a point 1 foot below the water line the thick- ness of the armor gradually decreases to 6 inches at the bottom. The wood back- ing is 8 inches thick. The plating behind the armor is in two thicknesses, stiffened by horizontal angle bars. The athwart- ship armor bulkhead at the forward end of the armor belt is 6 inches thick. The revolving turrets are protected by 104 inch steel armor, the gun port plates being 114 inches. The revolving parts of the turrets and the spaces required for loading are protected by fixed breastworks of oval shape, 10} inches thick. There is an ar- mored conning tower, 10 inches thick, located on the central superstructure, elliptical in shape, measuring 10 feet 6 inches by 9 feet. An armored tube 44 inches thick runs from this tower to the armor deck, to protect stearing gear, speak- ing-tubes, &c, The armor deck plating in the works of the armor belt will be in two thicknesses, so disposed that one layer of plating forms edge strips and butt straps for the other. The armor deck slopes from the top of the belt at its after end, the slope being 4 inches thick. The under-water deck at the end is 2 inches thick, protecting the magazine and steer- ing gear, and so arranged as to give great stiffness to the ram bow. Coffer dams will be built above the engine and fire- room hatches to a hight of 3 feet above the berth deck. The vessel 1s bark rigged, spreadin 7135 square feet of canvas. The fore an main masts are fitted with military tops, each mounting two machine guns. The rigging is brought down in such a man- ner as not to interfere with the fire of the guns. In addition to the armored con- ning tower there is a wooden chart-house, fitted with chart tables, speaking-tubes, indicators, steering-wheels, &c., for use when not in action. A steam steering- engine is fitted, in addition to the heat- steering arrangements, and there are steam capstans, windlasses and hoists. The for- ward hawse-pipes are so formed as to be adapted to a stockless anchor, the en- trance being enlarged to take the shank and flukes of the anchor, the latter stow- ing itself an omatically within the ship on heaving to. Shutters will be fitted over the mouths of the hawse-pipes. There | are 174 water-tight compartments in the NAVY YARD. ars 3 AT THE BROOKLYN i e % TO BE BUILT en » eS S. ARMORED CRUISER MAINE, U, July *12, 1888. THE IRON AGE, 47 vessel and ample provision is made for natural light and ventilation by means of skylights, side-lights and cowls. Artifi- cial ventilation is also provided for. The vitiated air of the engine-room will be withdrawn by the fans used for forced combustion. The explosive gases of the coal bunkers are led into the funnel cas- ings and fresh-air pipes lead to the upper deck. The pumping and draining system is very elaborate, every compartment of the vessel being in connection with powerful steam and hand pumps. The electric plant consists of four sets of dynamos and engines, so connected that any one can supply all the circuits for the incandescent lamps. There are three search-lights, u any of which can be connected with any A) dynamo. These dynamos supply also light i for internal illumination, side-lights, head- lights and lights in magazines and bunkers. In addition to the usual allowance of boats % supplied to a man-of-war, inclading steam launch and cutter, there are two torpedo boats, 60 feet long. The hight in the clear between the berth-deck planks and bottom of the main-deck beams is 7 feet 10 inches. The hight in clear between the main-deck plank and bottom of super- structure decks is 6 feet 8 inches. The vessel will have two vertical in- verted triple-expansion engines in separate water-tight compartments, capable of de- veloping 8750 horse-power. The cylinders are 354, 57 and 88 inches in diameter re- spectively, with a stroke of 36 inches. There will be eight cylindrical return tubular boilers, 14 feet 8 inches diameter and 10 feet long, each having three fur- naces, the total grate surface being 552 square feet. The fire-rooms are not to be put under pressure, but the forced draft will be secured by leading air to the under side of the grate-bars, forced through ducts by four blowers of 26,000 cubic feet capacity per minute. There are two three- bladed screws with a diameter of about 15 feet. The coal at normal draft is 400 tons, but the bunker capacity is 822 tons. The endurance and radius of action at dif- ferent speeds with 400 tons of coal age: At 17 knots per hour, 960 knots; at 15 knots per hour, 1617 knots; at 10 knots per hour, 4250 knots. The main battery consists of four 10- inch and six 6-inch breech-loading guns. The 10-inch guns are mounted in pairs in turrets protected by 104 inches of steel armor. The turrets are placed en echelon, so that four guns can be fired ahead or astern. Each has a complete broadside- train on one side of 180° and on the other side of over 60°. Each turret has two loading positions. The guns are loaded, elevated and trained by the latest and most approved systems, all machinery being protected by oblong breastworks 104 inches thick. The 6-inch guns are mounted on central pivot carriages, protected by seg- mental steel shields 2 inches thick. Two 6-inch guns are placed directly forward and two directly aft, having a train each of 147°. A 6-inch gun is mounted on each side of the central superstructure having a train of 130°. The forward and after guns can be converged at a point 150 feet from their respective ends. The four 10- inch and two 6-inch guns can be fired di- rectly ahead or astern, and the broadside fire of four 10-inch and three 6-inch guns can be converged at a point 100 feet from the side. The secondary battery 1s so dis- posed as to secure a heavy bow and stern fire. It consists of four 57 mm. rapid-fire guns, four 47 mm. rapid-fire guns, four 47 * |mm. revolving cannon, nine 37 mm. re- volving cannon ard four Gatling guns. There are seven torpedo launching tubes or guns, three below the water and four on the berth deck. The 10-inch guns fire a projectile of 500 pounds weight with 250 pounds of powder, and have a maximum Ss 87% 8.8. "Tj 47% 38.8. DY is es] CABLE NIPPER CAPSTAN TO BE BUILT AT THE BROOKLYN NAVY YARD, Main and Superstructure Decks. 1; i as OL. alk ZYAT TT U., 8. ARMORED CRUISER MAINE, 48 eflective range of about 9 miles. The weight of shot that can be fired ahead or | astern from the main pounds, and either side 2300 pounds. TEER The Hall Electric Pump. The Hall Electric Pump Company, of Plaintield, N. J., with New York offices in the Tribune Building, have just made an interesting application of electricity to pumping for domestic water supply. The result is the Hall Electric Pump, of which we annex an engraving, and which is simply a combination of a rotary pump and an electric motor, the power being transmitted from the motor to the pump | by a worm gear. The illustration shows a motor of 4 horse- power. The worm on the motor shaft is of steel and runs ina box of oil; the pinion attached to the pump shaft is of best bronze; the pump, of the most improved ELECTRIC PUMP, BUILT BY battery is 2200) THE HALL THE IRON AGE. July 12, 1888, the pump is at work refilling the tank, and | attention to the fact that while the rate is it will not stop until the normal level is regained, when the rising float cuts the circuit and stops the motor. This auto- matic action of the machinery constitutes its leading recommendation. The electrical current being provided the motor and pump are always ready, and there is no use for attendance other than a weekly or fortnightly supply of oil. —_ a —— The Metal Schedule Before the House. On the 3d >f the month the metal schedule was finally reached by the House, after a lengthy discussion relating to the duty on ylass, which crowded over into the consideration of the iron duty, prac- tically cutting off any discussion on the latter. Mr. McKinley offered as an amend- ment to make the duty on pig iron $6.72— an amendment which was rejected, leaving the rate as now proposed under the Mills ELECTRIC PUMP COMPANY, PLAINFIELD, N. J. rotary principle, is also of bronze; the bed plate is of iron. Self-feeding oil cups, each containing one or more week’s supply of oil according to the work required, keep all bearings lubricated, and when the pump is ut rest no oil escapes. The floor space required is 15 inches by 16 inches, and the hight of the pump is 12 inches. A neat hardwood case keeps out all dust or dirt and prevents meddling with the motor. The electricity must be taken from a dynamo, and either an arc or an incandescent circuit can be used, but the latter is always preferable on account of its safety. In the tank a snap electric switch regulates the supply of water. A common ball float attached to the switch off, or is returned to the tank. The action of the pump is purely auto- matic. Connection is made with electric circuit by the two wires shown at top of motor and at the switch in the tank. Water is drawn in a bathroom, in the | kitchen, the laundry or bedroom, and as soon as the ball-float has dropped to the point to which it is regulated, the switch is snapped by the weight of the ball in falling, the circuit is closed, and instantly the | bill—$6 per ton. An amendment to strike out the clause, ‘‘ Iron railway bars weigh- ing more than 25 pounds to the yard, $11 per ton,” was rejected, leaving the rate as proposed. Mr. McMillen, a member of the Ways and Means Committee, proposed to strike out the words ‘ slabs and bil- lets of steel” out of the following: ‘* Steel railway bars and railway bars made in part of steel, weighing more than 25 pounds to the yard, and slabs and bil- lets of steel, $11 per ton.” The reason given for this amendment was that the railroad bar is the advanced product of the billets and that the Ways and Means Committee did not think it proper to fix |the same rate of duty on slabs and billets closes or cuts the circuit as water is drawn | as fixed upon the more advanced product —namely, the railroad bar. Upon inquiry emanating from Mr. Bayne, of Pennsy]- vania, the Ways and Means Committee stated that slabs will remain as at present, 45 per cent. Mr. Bayne called attention to the fact that the equivalent of this 45 | per cent. ad valorem rate of duty is about $8 per ton. He urged that the duty is too low and that there ought to be some dis- position to rectify the error made and put steel slabs at the proper rate. He called $6 per ton for pig metal it will be only $8, or about that, for steel slabs. Mr. Dalzell seized the occasion to re- view the statements of Mr. Scott, of Erie, in regard to the cost of manufacturing steel rails at the Edgar Thomson Works, He stated that the cost of spiegeleisen or ferromanganese in every ton of steel rails produced in this country in 1887 was about $3, an item which Mr. Scott had entirely overlooked. He objected also to the fig- ure given as the market price of 1 ton of No. 1 Bessemer pig iron at the mill as $18, holding that during the year 1887 a fair average would not be less than $20. Mr. Dalzell succeeded also in putting on record the well-known letter ot Mr. Andrew Car- negie to Mr. James M. Swank, in reply to the statements of Mr. Scott on the alleged profits made by the Edgar Thomson Steel Works. Then the amendment proposed by the member of the Ways and Means Committee, striking out ‘steel slabs and billets,” was agreed to. The bar iron clause was then reachea, J. H. Moffit, of New York, proposing as an amendment that all charcoal iron be subject to a duty of not less than $22 per ton, instead of $20, as proposed by the Ways and Means Committee. Mr. Moffit, who has been actively engaged in the manufacture of charcoal iron on Lake Champlain for the past 16 years, gave the following state- ment of cost of manufacturing a ton of charcoal bloom iron in the Lake Cham- plain district : 7¢ cords of coal wood on the stump (which is the amount required to man- ufacture a ton of iron)......... ..... $0.75 Cutting and hauling, at $1.50 per cord. 11.25 Coaling and delivering 340 bushels of ON Kaweks 1590 sdebs rcvcvedegise 7.00 Mining, separating ana transporting POE Maca ies boty 0050 ened eedss 13.00 Making and hammering the iron, includ- ing superintendence...............++. 8.00 Maintenance of plant................+% 2.00 i Cesbenktsessckeesnnncttp tna $42.00 Deduct value of wood on the —. $0.7 And ore in the ground...... ..... 80 $1.05 Labor cost in each ton..............66. $40.95 Mr. Moffit presented an official state- ment of the output of ore blooms in the country for a series of years, and showed that it had been steadily declining in spite of the fact that the quality of the product is equal to that made anywhere else. The amendment, however, was rejected, the clause standing as originally proposed. Mr. Burrows showed a rapid development of the iron trade during the last 40 years, and presented a number of abstracts from the testimony given before the Tariff Com- mission, to show how prices have been re- duced to the consumer during the penod in question. Mr. R. W. Townshend, of Illinois, had an interview read with N. O. Nelson, of the N. O. Nelson Mfg. Company, of St. Louis, in which that gentleman put him- self on record as an opponent of a protective tariff. This was met by the presentation by N. W. Nutting, of New York, of a letter written by J. W. McGranahan, of New York, to the editor of the Tariff League Bulletin. The House then drifted into a general debate, largely political in its character, which did not deal with the questions directly at issue, so far as the metal schedule is concerned. Mr. W. H. Sowden, of Pennsylvania, moved that the following clause be amend- ed: ‘‘Iron and steel T-rails, weighing not over 25 pounds to the yard, $14 per ton; iron or steel flat rails, punched, $15 per ton.” Mr. Sowden’s amendment is to sub- stitute ‘‘ $17.92” for ‘‘ $14,” and *‘ $20.16” for ‘‘ $15” from the above clause, This amendment was also rejected, and the House passed to the following item: ‘*Round iron, in coils or rods, less than 7 inch in diameter, and bars or shapes of rolled iron not specially enumerated or July 12, 1888, the steel, flat, with offered ‘‘Tron or the _ committee, amendment: longitudinal ribs, for the manufacture of | In reply to | fences, ;4, cent per pound,” the question of J. Buchanan, of New Jersey, whether the paragraph in ques- tion does not in effect propose a change of duty on one class of rods, advancing the rate on those rods which are between ;'; inch in diameter and No. 5 wire gauge, from ;',; cent to 1 cent a pound, Mr. Breck- inridge replied that the committee did not believe that the bill has that effect. He stated that the words of the present law are not changed, and it continues to stand: ‘*Tron or steel rivet, screw, rail and fence- wire rods, round, in coils or loops, not lighter than No. 5 wire gauge, valued at 34 cents or, less per pound, ;4, cent per und.” Mr. Buchanan urged that the item proposed would be held to embrace all sizes below 7, inch in diameter, and was answered again by Mr. Breckinridge that they did not understand them in that way, that the item enumerated is not in the bill, and consequently remains un- changed as in the present law. The amend- ment making the rate of duty on ‘flat iron or steel, with longitudinal ribs, ,4, cent per pound” was then accepted. Passing to the sheet-iron clause, Mr. Mc- Kinley’s amendment to strike out the para- graph was rejected without debate. The hoop iron clause was then taken up, and the discussion naturally drifted to cotton ties, which, however, is to be taken up in another paragraph of the bill. Mr McKinley’s amendment to strike out the entire Paragraph was lost. The item ‘cut tacks, brads or sprigs, 35 per cent. ad valorem” was taken up, the existing law providing as follows : ‘‘ Cut tacks, brads, or sprigs, not exceeding 16 ounces to the 1000, 24 .cents per 1000; exceeding 16 ounces to the 1000, 3 cents per pound.” Attention was called to the fact that for the first time thus far in the metal schedule the committee has changed a specific to an ad valorem rate of duty. Mr. Breckin- ridge stated that not having a guide or a record of any statistics which would give the equivalent of a fair ad valorem rate, the committee had to give up entirely trying to find a specific rate, and upon this particular item to fix the ad valorem rate established by the bill, which is the ad valorem specific of the different items. This led to an extended debate on the merits of ad valorem and specific duties. The discussion appears to have ended without any vote on the pending item. ‘‘Tron or steel railway fish-plates or — #s cent per pound” was the next item taken up, to which an amendment was offered making the rate 1 cent per pound, Mr. Buchanan urging that since bar iron was made +, cent a pound it would be only fair to the maker of fish-plates to place the duty at a rate more in proportion with that of the raw material. On Saturday, July 7, the tariff was again taken up, the proposal to raise the duty on fish plates to 1 cent per pound being rejected. Mr. Bayne moved to strike out the paragraph making the duty on ‘*wrought iron or steel spikes, nuts and washers, and horse, mule or ox shoes 14 cents per pound,” on the ground that the reduction of the surplus is not likely to be facilitated to any great extent by embody- ing the item in the bill. The amendment was rejected, and the House passed to the item ‘‘iron or steel rivets, bolts, with or without threads or nuts, or bolt blanks, and finished hinges or hinge blanks, 14 cents per pound.” Mr. Buchanan offered as an amendment the insertion of a new paragraph, reading: ‘‘ Iron or steel rivet, screw, nail and fence wire rods, round, in coils and loops,’ not lighter than No. 5 wire gauge, valued at 3} cents or less per following | |two provisions in reference to iron rods |harmonize. The sizes of iron rods be- tween No. 5 wire gauge and ;', inch in diameter are put in one part of the law at one | rate of duty and in another part at another rate. In the Mills bill but one of these | . . . . *“-. provisions is copied, and in that provision | there is a rate fixed of 1 cent per pound. | |The amendment, however, was rejected, /as was also the motion to strike out the following paragraphs: ‘* Horseshoe nails, hob-nails and wire nails, and all other wrought iron or steel nails, not specially enumerated or pro- vided for, 24 cents per pound.” ‘* Boiler-tubes, or other tubes, or flues, or stays of wrought iron or steel, 14 cents per pound.” The Mills bill fixes ‘‘ files, file-blanks, rasps and floats of all cuts and kinds, 35 per cent. ad valorem,” for which Mr. Farquhar, of New York, moved to sub- stitute the following : ‘‘ Files, file-blanks, rasps and floats of all cuts and kinds, 4 inches in length and under, 35 cents per dozen; over 4 inches in length and under 9 inches, 75 cents per dozen; 9 inches in length and under 14 inches, $1.50 per dozen; 14 inches in length and over, $2.50 per dozen.” Mr. Farquhar submitted a letter by Mr. W. T. Nicholson, manager of the Nicholson File Works, of Providence, R. L., in which that expert called attention to the fact that when he entered the busi- ness in 1865 the English list price on the coarser class of goods was $7 per dozen. ' He began selling at $7, 10 per cent. off. |To-day he states that he sells the same goods for $2.30 per dozen, the market price being $7, 70 per cent. off, or $2.10: The substitution of ad valorem for a speci- fic duty, as propased in this file item, was made thesubject of a prolonged discussion. Mr. H.-J. Spooner, of Rhode Island, re- | viewing the duty on files, alluded to the fact that labor is an important interest con- cerned in its manufacture. This he illus- trated by the recital of facts which he stated to have from unquestionable authority. ‘‘ A pound of steel. from which the finest grades of these files are made, costs 40 cents, and when made into files its value is enhanced to $59.35, an increase of 14,740 per cent. The great cost of this manufacture is in the labor employed, and it is principally for the protection of that labor that such protective duties as exist- ing law provides are required. Upon 1 pound of steel used in the manufacture of medium grades of files, costing 38 cents, the value is increased by manufact- ure into such files to $18.20, an increase of 4690 per cent.; and in the coarser grades of files a pound of steel costing 6 cents is enhanced in value by manufact- ure 1640 per cent.” Mr. Farquhar's amendment was rejected, the House pass- ing to the next clause relating to ‘‘iron or steel beams, girders, joists, angles, channels, car-track channels, TT columns and posts, or parts or sections of columns and posts, deck and bulb beams and build- ing forms, together with all other struct- ural shapes of iron or steel, {4 cent per pound.” Mr. J. D. Long, of Massa- chusetts, secured consent at this point to read a letter written by Loring & Parks, Cobb & Drew and the Plymouth Mills, all of Plymouth, on the tack duty. We quote from it the following: ‘‘Iron tack plate costs English tack manufacturers from 1} to 14 cents a pound. Ours costs us 2 cents a pound, or about 334 per cent. more. English tack manufacturers pay their tack-makers 1s. 3d., or say 31 cents per 100,000, while we pay 50, 60 and 75 cents per 100,000. For the same quality and grade of work we pay 100 per cent. for cutting. If the duty is reduced to 35 per cent. ad valorem we must reduce the wages of our help at least 33} per cent. to compete,” | | / 49 | Jersey, read from a letter from an officer |of the New Jersey Steel and Iron Com- /pany, in which the proposed duty was denounced as an outrage. Attention was | called to the fact that while common bar iron is placed at ,7; cent a pound, the rate proposed on structural iron difficult to roll! is only ;; cent. Mr. Mills claimed that even at the reduction proposed the duty was equivalent to 49 per cent., and press- ing a vote secured a rejection of the amendment to strike out the paragraph in question. A similar fate was met by the clause relating to ‘‘ steel wheels, tires and tire-blanks.” The proposed item relating to wood screws, placing them at 35 per cent. ad valorem, was struck out with the consent of the Ways and Means Committee. The House then drifted into a long dis- cussion of the duty on lead in argentifer- ous ores, and finally took up the item of ‘*needles for knitting and sewing ma- chines, 20 per cent. ad valorem.” A mo- tion to substitute 35 per cent. for the 20 proposed under the bill was rejected, in spite of the statements contained in a let- ter written by Mr. George H. Bleloch, of Springfield, Mass., from which quotations were read. The proposed 35 per cent. ad valorem rate of duty on ‘*pen-kmives, pocket- knives of all kinds and razors,” was struck out at the suggestion of Mr. Mills, but the proposal to substitute 10 cents per gross for the 35 per cent. ad valorem rate was defeated. ‘ A Our Fortifications.—The scope of the Fortification bill, to be reported to the House by the Appropriations Committee, is for an expenditure of $36,000,000. It | provides for experiments with iron guns of 10, 12, 14, 16, 18 and 20 inch caliber; converted guns, multicharge and wire- bound guns, for mortars 12 inches in ¢ali- ber, steel, castiron, muzzle and breech-load- ing. The Secretary of War, Secretary of the Navy, Chief of Ordnance of the Army and Navy and several civilian experts are to constitute the board, who can enter into a contract for furnishing any of the guns that pass the test and are deemed fit to use in either branch of the service. The appropriation is to be continued indefin- itely and not to be covered ifito the Treas- ury. If contractors, after the expiration of the time specified, fail to deliver the guns, they are to pay to the Government 6 per cent. interest on the contract price. If the guns are furnished before the speci- fied time, the contractors are to receive 6 per cent. for their prompt service. The details of the bill cover 64 printed pages, and the probability is that it will not be considered at this session. a The Longest Tangent in the World. —The new Argentine-Pacific Railroad, from Buenos Ayres to the foot of the An- des, has on it what is probably the longest tangent in the world. This is 340 km. (211 miles) without a curve. It is also a remarkable fact that in this distance there is not a single bridge and no opening larger than an linen culvert. The level nature of the country will be appreciated from the statement of the further fact that on the 340 km. there is no cut greater than 1 m. in depth and no fill of a hight ex- ceeding 1m. The country, in fact, seems to be almost an ideal one for railroad con- struction. There are some drawbacks, however, one being that there is almost an éntire absence of wood on the plain across which the western end of the road is lo- cated. This has led to the extensive use of metallic ties, which will be used on nearly the entire road. Work has already been begun on the mountain section of the road, which is to cross the Andes and unite with the Chilian line. 50 THE IRON AGE. July 12, 1888. THE WEEK. Immigration at this port during the 12 months ended June 30 was larger than ever before, excepting the years 1881, 1882 and 1883. The total was 550,000 persons, which is 60,000 in excess of the previous year, and there are no signs of a decrease in the future. The exact amount paid thus far for work and materials on the new City Hall in Philadelphia is $12,025,332.31. The French Chamber of Deputies has ap- proved the provision of the Factory bill which makes it incumbent upon employers to give their operatives one day’s rest weekly. ‘‘ Fearing to appear too clerical,” the Chamber refused to specify that this day should be Sunday. The population of Utah is now about 200,000. Of this number about 55,000 are Gentiles. The Mormons follow agricul- ture mainly as a means of livelihood, while the Gentiles are largely engaged in