The Iron Age 1889-08-29: Vol 44

HE . IRON The Haskell Dynamite Gun. | than is usual with one large charge. The, | present gun will serve as a basis upon | GE TuHurspDay, AuGusT 29, 1889 Fivye-Wire Nail Machine. The Board of Ordnance and Fortifica-| which to determine the efficiency of the} The accompanying engravings show a tion have provided the funds necessary for | weapon, and whether or not its claims will | new machine for making wire nails, which the purchase of an 8-inch Haskell multi- hold good. The gun it is now intended | is the invention of and is manufactured by charge dynamite gun of the model known | as that of February, 1889, the intention | ¢ being to use the gun for experimental pur- | purpose it is claimed to be especially well | to build will be used for throwing shells} John T. Kennedy, New Haven, Conn. ‘ontaining a charge of dynamite, fer which |The machine is simple in construction and all the parts are simple and not liable to voses. It will be made at the Cold Springs | adanted, owing to the slow initial speed | get out of order. The heading is done by Works and will be tried at the Sandy|and absence of shock. The aim will be | means of a crank, the same as in the com- Hook grounds. The Haskell system, as/to use a very large charge of dynamite in| mon riveting-machine, and all the parts our readers will remember, consists in | the shell, the premature explosion of which | are operated by positive motions. Fig. starting the shot with a small charge of ' will be guarded against by using a very |1 of the detail drawings is a front ele- “ Gq Yin J? gn B ie a a AS Pa os = HTT ae i FIVE-WIRE NAIL MACHINE, BUILT BY JOHN T. KENNEDY. slow-burning powder, and then increasing gradually the propelling force by the igni- tion of charges of quick-burning powder arranged in aseries of pockets placed along the tube of the gun, these pockets resem- bling in the guns heretofore made warts or excrescences growing out of the tube. By this means it has been claimed that a greater muzzle velocity could be obtained, and with less internal pressure than by the use of one large charge placed in the breech | of the gun, as the theory is that the ball is started by the first small charge of powder, and as it passes the first or nearest pocket to the breech the charge of quick powder therein contained is ex-' ploded, adding to the pressure behind the ball; as the ball reaches the second pocket the charge there is exploded and | so on to the muzzle, the ball being in its| course through the gun subjected to a series | of impulses, each of which adds to its| velocity and at the same time subjects | the gun itself to a much less pressure! small charge of powder in the breech to} vation of the cutting-off 7, and gripping start the shell. The gun formerly tried at | dies 12. The cutting-off dies are worked Sandy Hook contained as a first charge in| by means of the roll 10, and slide 4, the the breech 18 pounds of powder, and in| latter being operated by an eccentric on each of the four pockets placed beneath | the shaft. Fig. 1 shows but one side of the gun a charge of 28 pounds of quick- | the machine, the other side of which is a burning powder, making in all 130 pounds, | duplicate. Fig. 2 is an end view of the an excessive charge for a gun 6 inches bore | cutting-die holder. Fig. 3 is a top view and weighing 25 tons. of the cutting die holder and the gripping- . —— _ holder, and shows the method of working. Locomotives altered in their fire-boxes |The cutter 7 is adjusted by the wedge 6, for the burning of coke have been run on | and the holder 2 is forced by the incline the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad with suc- | on the slide 4 and drawn back by a small cess, the special object being to abate cin- | roll in a corresponding incline. The grip- ders on the passenger trains. A limited | ping-die 12 is held in the holder 5 by a express from Baltimore thus adapted ar-| screw, and this holder is keyed into the rived in Philadelphia ahead of time. A | holder 3, which is forced forward by the coke fire has to be pretty shallow, and | knuckle-joints 3’ 3”, operated by a pit- when the firemen got over the habit |man and lever from a cam on the shaft, caused by the use of bituminous coal of | which has a power on the gripping-dies of piling coke high in the fire-box, there was '24to1. The holder 3 on the other side a hot fire with no smoke or cinders. The | of the machine is keyed into the machine weight of coke used was about the same as | and is not formed with the knuckle-joints. would be required of bituminous coal. | Fig. 4 is a side and top view of the punch 4% eS — te > ee ee ee Suet Le LL OLE i ge cee ee eR FO ea aT POM Em SD EE A RT oman Mes Tae Tee Ah Ta ako aa em ante a A AE a a alten ic ie ae ——— oe me ee ‘ 8 ' - oe —.. . on me >. é ™ sa ==—2: 2 = mn > ; te, iy ne Pes % wes Fi ier ee . = S¢ par aes ee ote 1 Ss wR Be Shs = 4. é =e Bie 314 THE IRON AGE. August 29, 1€89 lll for heading the nails, which is moved by a! both physically and chemically, as to make | of by Mr.'Nordenfelt in the production of crank and shaft. The machines are made in two sizes, No. 1 weighing about 3000 pounds and making all sizes of nails from 1 inch No. 14 up to and including 3 inch No. 10, making 700 nails per minute of the smaller sizes, and producing 3000 pounds of 10d | nails in 10 hours’ running time. The | No. 2 machine weighs about 1200 pounds and makes all sizes from the smallest No. 22 wire nail up to and including 2-inch No. 14 wire, making 1000 nails per minute of all sizes. One of the ad- vantages claimed for this machine is that while it will produce a large quantity of good nails in a day, it is not run at a high rate of speed, No. 1 running at 140 and No. 2 at 200 revolutions per minute. The | motions are all easy and the parts are not liable to wear so as to get out of order. The cutting-dies will work well for from four to six days, when they can be easily and quickly replaced. cm Alloys of Aluminium.* The most important alloys of aluminium are those made with copper. These alloys were first prepared by Dr. Percy, | in England, and now give promise of | being largely used. The alloy produced | by the addition of 10 percent. of alumin- | ium to copper, the maximum amount that can be used to produce a satisfactory alloy, | is known as aluminium bronze however, are made which contain smaller amounts of aluminium, possessing in a de- | gree the valuable properties of the 10 per | cent. bronze. According to the percentage of aluminium up to 10 per cent., the color varies from red gold to pale yellow. The 10 per cent. alloy takes a fine polish, and has the color of jewellers’ gold. The 5 per cent. alloy is not quite so hard, the color being very similar to that of pure gold. I am indebted to Prof. Roberts Austen for a splendid specimen of crystal- lized gold, as also for a mold in which the gold at the mint is usually cast, and in this I have had prepared ingots of the 10 and 5 per cent. alloy, so that a comparison may be made of the color of these with a gold ingot cast in the same mold, for the loan of which I have to thank Messrs. Johnson, Matthey & Co., all of which are | before you. I have also ingots of the same size of pure aluminium, from which an idea of the relative weights of gold and alumin- ium may be obtained. To arrive at perfection in the making of these alloys not only is it required that the aluminium used should be of good quality, but also that the copper must be of the very best obtainable. For this purpose only the best brands of Lake Superior copper should be used. Inferior brands of copper or any impurities in the alloy give poor results. The alloys all posses a pood color, polish well, keep their color far better than all other copper alloys, are extremely malleable and duc- tile, can be worked either hot or cold, easily engraved; the higher grades have in elasticity exceeding steel, are easily cast into complicated objects, do not lose in re- melting and are possessed of great strength, dependent, of course, on the purity and percentage of contained aluminium. The 10 per cent. alloy, when cast, has a tensile strength of between 70,000 and 80,000 pounds per square inch, but when ham- mered or worked the test exceeds 100,000 pounds. (A sample shown broke at 105,- 000 pounds.) An attempt to enumerate either the present uses or the possible future commercial value of these alloys is beyond my present purpose. I may, how- ever, remark that they are not only adapted to take the place of bronze, brass and steel, but they so far surpass all of those metals, ~* From a lecture delivered by Sir Henry Ros- coe, betore the Royal Institution of Great Britair their extended use assured. (Sheets, rods, | tubes, wire and ingots shown. ) But even a more important use of alu- minium seems to be its employment in the iron industry, of which it promises shortly to become a valuable factor, owing to certain effects which it produces when present even in the most minute propor- tions. Experiments are now being carried on at numerous iron and steel works in England, on the Continent and in Amer- ica. The results so far attained are greatly at variance, for while in the majority of cases the improvements made have en- couraged the continuance of the trials, in others the result has not been satisfactory. On this point I would wish to say to those who may contemplate making use of aluminium in this direction that it would be |advisable before trying their experiments to ascertain whether the aluminium alloy they may purchase actually contains any aluminium at all, for some of the so-called aluminium alloys contain little or no alu- castings of wrought-iron. Aluminium forms alloys with most other metals, and | although each possess peculiar properties which in the future may be utilized, at present they are but little used. In conclusion, I beg to call your atten- tion to the wood models on the table, one being representative of aluminium, the other aluminium bronze. The originals of ' these models are now in the Paris exhibi- tion, each weighing 1000 pounds. With regard to aluminium bronze I cannot speak ositively, but the block of pure alumin- lum is undoubtedly the largest casting lever made in this most wonderful metal. I have to thank the directors of the Alu- minium Company, and especially Mr Castner, for furnishing me with the in- teresting series of specimens of raw and |manufactured metal for illustrating my discourse. I — The new United States cruisers should be practically tested in long voyages at Bronzes, | minium,and this may doubtless account for'sea in actual service. Opportunity for LEVFR WORKED BY CAM ON SHAFT Fig. 1 Fig. 2 DETAILS OF FIVE-WIRE NAIL MACHINE. the negative results obtained. Again, unfair criticism is afforded so long as others contain such varying proportions of | their exploits are confined to the sea-board, carbon, silicon and other impurities as to | varied by an occasional trial of their am- render their use highly objectionable. | phibious qualities. A cotemporary, per- It seems to be a prevailing idea with some | haps in a cynical spirit, says: ‘‘ The people that because aluminium is so light Chicago was received from John Roach’s compared with iron that they cannot be di-! assignees years ago, but she has not yet rectly alloyed, and, furthermore, that forthe | made a cruise; the Atlanta and the Boston same reason alloys made by the direct melt- were accepted before the Chicago, and ing together of the two metals would not be | have each made one short trip to the equal to an alloy where both metals are re- | West Indies and have hung around home duced together. Now, of course, this is | ports ever since; the Yorktown has been not the case, and the statement has been in commission several months, and she, put forward by those who were only able | too, is a home body.” to make the alloys in one way. Alumin- | ~ ium added to molten iron and steel lowers| A new line of steamships is about to be their melting points, consequently in-| put in the West India trade, the two lines creases the fluidity of the metal and causes already existing being unable to transport it to run easily into molds and set there the freight offering. The Quebec line without entrapping air and other gases, | has been running for several years to the which serve to form blow-holes and similar; Windward Islands. The direct line to imperfections. It is already used by a, Trinidad started about four months ago, large number of steel founders and seems ur der a subsidy from the Colonial Govern- torender the production of sound steel, ment. The Anchor Line now has its op- castings more certain and easy than is! portunity, while American vessels are otherwise possible. One of the most re-| pressed with business in the coastwise markable applications of this property trade. It is not long since the West India which aluminium possesses of lowering the | trade was done wholly by a fleet of Ameri- melting-point of iron has been made use ;can schooners. August 2¢ 29, 1889 The Worthington 1 High. Duty Attach- ment, In our issue of August 8 we illustrated and described the high-duty attachment to the Worthington pumping engine. In view of the wonderful simplicity of this attachment and its great efficiency we é & ae i a ‘- ' -- —j - K : — : Se ee ; 1 4 Sf x Atmospheric Line: _ a : x Vx eae cain picid The Worthington High-Duty Attachment.—Fig. 1.—Card from High-Pressure Cylinders, B Cc D E Fig. 2.—Showing Available P» herewith present a most thorough and plain account of the duty it performs, taking our cuts ard text from a lecture delivered before the class of mechanical engineering of Sibley College, Cornell University, by J. F. Holloway, past presi- dent of the American Society of Mechani- cal Engineers. After describing the com- pound condensing direct- acting duplex pump, Mr. Holloway said that the one needed improvement was some device or attachment by which steam-power could be stored up at the beginning of each stroke of the piston and | given out again toward the end, in order to still further a its economy. Such a de- vice would, yroperly constructed, per- mit the use a high-pressure steam at the commencement of each stroke, and of its being cut off during a portion of the stroke, thus enabling less steam to do the same work, and of course with a corres- ponding saving of fuel. As illustrating the peculiar adaptation of this kind of pump for handling water, it may be said that an indicator card taken | from the water end is practically a paral- lelogram. In order to produce such a| card, the irregular action of the power used in dnving the pump, it is evident when driven by the direct force of the steam on the pump plunger the steam card must also be a parallelogram as well. in which no irregular lines rev eal | other hand, to cut THE IRON AGE. + ftrodues steam in such a cylinder at the beginning of its stroke which was of a much _ higher pressure than was necessary to move the column of water the result would be an excessive pressure at that point on water, which would not only distort the water-card and which would be shown by Now, were we to J ressure at Each Point of Stroke. the | 3 on l This newly-invented and ingenious de- vice, which is intended to permit the cut- | ting off of the steam in the steam cylinder and its subsequent expansion, while at the same time the force exerted by the steam upon the pump-plunger shall remain uni- form during the entire stroke, may be briefly described as follows: To the ordinary com- pound direct-acting steam-pump as usually built there is attached a plunger-rod which | projects through the outer end of the pump chamber, and around which there is the usual stuffing-box for packing the same. On the end of this plunger-rod is fastened a cross-head which in cuides that are bolted on the outer end of the pump. On this cross-head and oppo site to each other are semicircular recesses. On the guide-plates are cast two jour- nal-boxes, one above and the other below the plunger-rod, both equidistant from it and at a point equal to the half stroke of the cross-head. In these journal-boxes are hung two short cylinders on trunnions, which permit the cylinders swing backward and forward in unison with the motion of the plunger-rod. Within these swinging cylinders are plungers or rams, which pass through a stuffing-box on the end of the cylinder, and on their outer end they have a rounded projection which fits in the semicircular recesses in the cross-head, and, consequently, as the cross head moves in or out of the pump it car- ries with it these two plungers, which, in turn, tilt the cylinders backward and for- ward. These swinging cylinders are called ‘ compensating cylinde rs,” and they are filled with water, ‘except when the pump- jing engines are used on oil lines, when they are filled with oil. The pressure on the rams within the compensating cylinders is produced by connecting the compensating cylinders through their hollow trunnions with an accumulator, the ram of which moves up and down as the rams of the compensat- ing cylinders move in and out. The ac- cumulator used is of the differential type— that is, it has below a small cylinder filled with oil or water in which its ram moves, while above it has a much larger cylinder fiilled with air. On the top of the ram of the accumulator is an enlarged piston- head which fits closely in the air cylinder. So it will be seen, that the pressure per square inch on the ram of the accumulator will be the pressure of the air in the air ‘cylinder per square inch, multiplied by the moves to q’ : oe —~—_ A* here Line : ee Be id Atmospheric Line _* .. f i = “a —y X ae L F . pe ~—po ya ——— — + —_—-- Y Fig. 3.—Card from Low-Pressure Cylinders. ” A RB" c ne E" $_—s_e ie Tee a : : — a” K* ' A B e D gE’. G x « J’ K’ Fig. 4.—Available Pressure in Low-Pressure Cylinder. the indicator, but it would as | excessive shocks and _ strains | pump and its connecting pipes. off the steam well bring upon the On the difference between the area of the air piston and the ram of the accumulator. This difference of areas is a matter of caleula- in the | tion based upon the particular service for cylinder at any point during the stroke of | which the pump is constructed. the piston would be to reduce the power | pressure in the air cylinder The is controlled below the point necessary to move the} by the pressure in the main delivery-pipe of the pump, as it is connected to the air delivery. water-column, and the pump would stop short of its full stroke. | chamber on the main The om anes - arta git aT aS FD a aE hi og ek — # es ae eee rae Pr oe re ee i CS ae SR eee ee a re ee ae rr ee te ets <t oo am os > e+ _. 3 6 THE IRON AGE. August 29, 1889 peculiar and important effect this arrange- ment has on the operation and success of the *‘ high-duty pumping engine” will be shown later on. , A until at one-half stroke the two plungers will stand exactly opposite each other and at right angles with the pump-plungers, and of course in a position where they can neither retard or advance the movement of the plunger. Now, as the pump-plunger passes the center of its stroke, the compensating plungers being, as before said, attached to | the cross-head of the pump-plunger-rod, | begin to turn in an opposite direction from which they started, and by degrees, owing ¥’ J! z= The We r‘hington High-Duty Attachm ont.—Fig. 5.—Low-Pressure Cylinder Multiplied Four Having described briefly the construction of this new and novel attachment to the direct-acting duplex pump, I will now describe as best Ican without a model its effect on the operation of the pump. We will suppose the pump about to be- sin its outward stroke. At this time the compensating cylinders (shown in Fig. 7) will be turned so as to point toward the outer end of the pump, with their plung- ers at the extreme point of their outward stroke, and at an acute angle with the pump plunger-rod, and with the full pressure of the accumulator load pushing ! Times. F G i I J K Fig. 6.—Total Pressure of Both Cylinders Combined. them against the advance of the pump- to the increasing acuteness of the angle plunger. <As_ the gins its outward ward angle of the stroke each compensating plungers, pump-plunger be- they make with the plunger-rod, they for- begin to exert a power to push the pump- movement it makes changes the | plunger along, whereas before and up to the half stroke they resisted the movement |of the plunger. This pushing force in- creases constantly, until at the extreme end of the outward stroke, and when the ac- cumulator-plungers are, as at the begin- ning, at their most acute angle, they exert their greatest force in helping to aid the pump-plunger in its outward movement. | It is perhaps unnecessary to add that the return stroke of the pump is made under precisely the same conditions as the previ- | ous stroke. If we were to convert the movements of the compensating plungers into a diagram which would illustrate the power they re- ceive and give out we would have a curved line having a point at the half- stroke in which there would be no power exerted, while at one end would be shown a line of resistance above that zero line, which would be the exact result of that resistance at each point in the first half of the stroke; and it would also show on the last half of the stroke the same curve of power given out again. The peculiar shape of this curve (Fig. 7) is the result of carefully calculated arrangement of the details of construction, and it can be made to conform very close to the curve of the pressure line in the steam cylinder at almost any point of steam cut-off. | Having now considered the pump end of Fig. 9.—Card from Water-Cylinder. |a direct-acting steam-pump to which there is attached this new device for ob- taining a high rate of fuel economy, we will now turn our attention to the be- havior of the steam in the steam end of such a pump. We will assume that the pump is driven by compound cylinders in which the area of the expanding cylin- der is four times that of the high- pressure cylinder. In attempting to de- scribe the action of the steam force exerted on a direct-acting pump, I am embarrassed by the fact that I cannot produce before you drawings on the blackboard that will have to any considerable extent the ac- curate outlines of indicator cards. So you will be obliged to refer to the printed diagrams that have been distributed in the room, Fig. 1 represents an indicator card taken from the high-pressure cylinders of such a pumping engine as we have under consideration. You see that the admis- sion line is straight and perpendicular to the line of pressure; this is owing to the fact that in pumping engines of the kind we are describing there is a slight pause at the end of each stroke, which not only allows the pump-valves to seat themselves quietly, but it as well fills up the clear- ances and steam ports to the full steam pressure before the piston starts. In this diagram XX represents the line of the at- mosphere and YY the line of the zero OOOO August 29, 1889 THE IRON AGE. 317 pressure. The power exerted in this brought to the same basis we can add |in Fig. 6, a figure which at first glance cylinder up to the point of cut-off and|them both together and find at cael oaadl seem to be the furthest possible from that to the end of the stroke is| what is the total pressure or eianee wane from what is required to move a i shown by the linel7mnopaqrstu 2, which is the steam line of one stroke of the piston. The return stroke is shown by the exhaust and compression line k 3 i h J By e deb The resulting pressure in this cylinder will be the pressure above the line Y at each of the ordinates, less the back press- ure at the same ordinate. If we take this resultant pressure and apply it to the same number of ordinates, all of which shall j start from one common base-line, we will t each stroke of the pump, a. have a curved line which resembles Fig. 2, in which the line A’ B’ C’ D’ E’ FY G’ H’ I’ J’ K’ will show the available steam- pressure at cach part of the stroke of the piston. In Fig. 3 we obtain by the same process the line of pressure in the expanding steam cylinder on the same number of ordinates, and from each ordinate of which we must, g as before, subtract the back pressure above vy ‘ zero pressure. When we have done so we y will have the total pressure-line of the y expanding steam cylinder, as shown in g Fig. 4. In order that we may make a by comparison of the pressure in the expand- G yi ge ing cylinder with the high-pressure card, Z Vi ges L Are g Y " v ye Pil y SD | ™ g 5 ; Nw ¥ | +3 f Y | ’ g : | ; A ae ae i jaa ‘ Half Stroke of Stroke. TT, 7177 ee = S Ro \ Fig. 7.—Compensating Cylinders and Diagram, we must multiply the total pressure shown on each ordinate by the ratio of the areas of the two cylinders, which in this case is four to one. This will produce the curved line shown on Fig. 5. Now that we have the | erted each stroke. at particular part that both the steam pistons exert during | just what proportion of that power is pump-plunger which in its effect oh a and also} water-column is to show a card * vertical _ oats oe er ‘ t ; : ‘ : \ \ LE \ \ i \ Ee” : W Worm DT LITT OL OLEO VOD OPO TT, VELLA ye SS Wy | | ee ty E End of Stoke 4K? Fig. 11.—Combined Card. at each end and parallel on each side.”’ It | was for the purpose of producing this much-to-be-desired although seemingly | impossible result that the high-duty at- | tachment was invented, and, as [ hope to show, has accomplished. In _ order that I may the better explain how this brought about, we will draw a figure which shall represent the | pressure of water on the pump above the atmosphere line, as well as the pressure, or as itis best known, the suction | line below the atmosphere line, the total of which will be shown on Fig. 9, Fig. 8 being omitted as simply showing how these combined pressures are obtained. | We see in Fig. 9 the result we wish to produce, and in Fig. 6 the means we have of producing this result, and as it must be remembered, by a piston which is con- (nected directly to the pump-plunger, | without the intervention of cranks, shafts | or fly-wheels. In order to make a graphic | illustration of the difficulties to be over- ex-| come, as well as the means employed to of each|overcome them, we will on top of this is This adding together of all the} line of the water-card pressures and on forces of a steam compound condensing engine, under the conditions previously the same base line draw the power or pro- pulsion line, so that we can see how they line of pressure of each steam cylinder | described, will produce a card as shown] fit each other. Re ee 5s at — se 2. “Ee, eS de. mi. es se: A 318 THE IRON AGE. August 29, 1889 This is shown by Fig. 11, in which | well as an advancing effect on the power the direct-acting steam-pump to enable it to A WWE is the outline of the water-| brought to bear on the pump, we will now | become the steam pumping-engine of the load or pressure on the pump; or, as we | trace its influence by placing this curve on future, there are other reasons why the use may* say, the resistance which is to be overcome, and A A” K” K is the outline | of the force exercised by the steam cylin- | ders during the same stroke as was shown by Fig. 6. The intermediate letters show the steam-power exercised at each part of | the stroke, F” F being the half-stroke of the pump. In looking on this arrange- ment of the two diagrams it will be seen that at the beginning of the stroke of the pump the steam-pressure is largely in ex- cess of what is required to move the water, while at the end of the stroke it is far be- low what will be required to do so, and that it is only at the half-stroke that the steam-pressure and water-resistance are equal and that under the condi- tions as shown it is the only point where they would meet on equal terms. To put this high pressure of steam on the pump-plunger direct would at once and by a sudden jump raise the water-pressure far above the point | shown, and with a shock the result of which it would be hard to estimate, while the fall of the steam-pressure, after it passes the center of the stroke, would soon bring the pump-plunger to a stop, which by its suddenness would | produce a shock not unlike that at the beginning of the stroke. Leaving for the time being this some- what puzzling problem, we will again refer to the action of compensating cylin- ders, ot an area of plunger and under a pressure of water that would adapt them to a pump operating under the pressure of steam and water resistance, as shown by | the previously-given figures. This will be graphically shown by Fig. 7, in which the line A B is a neutral or no-pressure line, and the ordinates a” b” ec” de" f' gq" h" i’ jk” are equal divisions of the stroke cor- responding with the ordinates shown on the steam-pressure cards, 7” being in both in- | stances at the half-stroke of the pump. The figures shown below the pressure diagram represent the position of the plunger) cylinders at the beginning of the stroke, at one-quarter, one-half, three-quarters and full stroke, and also show what is the effect of the influence exerted by these cylinders at these varying points on the stroke of the pump. At the beginning of the stroke a” /” and when the accumulating plungers are at their outer stroke it will take an amount of power equal to a” /’” to push the plungers of the compensating cylinders | in against the pressure that is on the end of them; as the plungers are driven in theangle of theinclination of the plungers to the center line of motion increases, and it takes less power to push them in, and, as a consequence, the line of the resist- ance is less and less at each ordinate, until we arrive at the half-stroke, where the plungers, standing at 90°, each being op- posite the other, they are at a neutral line, where they exert no influence on the progress of the pump-plunger in any direc- tion; but, as the plunger moves on, the | compensating plungers, acted on by the | pressure of the accumulator, begin to press outward, and as they leave the cen- ter perpendicular line they begin to exert an influence in helping to push the pump- | plunger along, which influence constantly increases until the plunger arrives at the outer end of its stroke, when the plungers of the compensating cylinders give out their vreatest force, and which is exactly the force put into them at the beginning of the stroke. This line of resistance and of impulse can be varied by changing cer- tain features of the construction, but, as shown in the diagram, it is calculated to suit the steam-pressure and cut-off of the steam pump we have undertaken to describe. Having constructed another and new line of curves, which show a retarding as lalso the line of useful effect of the com- |H'’ G” steam (which in the pumping engine de- | which by reason of the high steam used at |in them, and the space inclosed within the | through the compensating cylinders, while | what is required to keep up the speed of the same water-card as we did the steam propulsion curve. This brings us back to Fig. 11, in which the line A K takes the place of the line A B, Fig. 7. Above and below this base base line we construct the same curved line as is shown in Fig. 7, and which crossing the same number of | ordinates as have the other cards, shows | exactly on each ordinate the influence it | exerts on the pump at that particular | point of its stroke. With this dia- gram before us, in which is seen first the | amount of power required to move | the water column at a steady, uniform | pressure through one stroke of the pump, | and in which we have the steam-| pressure line which is to move it, and | pensating cylinder, we will now examine | what is the combined effect of all these | forces. We will assume that the left-hand | vertical line is the beginning of an out- ward stroke of the pump, just as we have assumed for a previous outward stroke. We see at the very start that the line A W is the amount of power required to move the water, but we have the line A W A” as the steam-power we have put on the pump at this point, and we see that the power inclosed within the lines w AY BY CY D 2” 8" 6 & jos much more power than we want. Now, if we look at the lower left-hand cor- ner we will see that the space inclosed between the lines A A’ B’ C’ D’ E’ F and FED CBA represents the amount of steam 1t takes to push in the plungers of the accumulating cylinder, and it adds just that amount of resistance to the ad- | vance of the plunger. At F’ F’ we have arrived at the half-stroke, and here we} find the steam-pressure is just equal to the resistance of the load or head of water on the pump; but as we pass this point on to the end of the stroke we find that the area inclosed within the lines F’ W K’ J” I” represents the amount of power which by reason of the expansion of the scribed is 16 to 1) falls below what is | required to do the work. It is at this point that the compensating cylinders come to the rescue and give out the power the beginning of the stroke was stored up lines F G HIJK and K' J’Il’ H’G’ F’ represents the stored-up power they now give out. As the diagram is now constructed the space inclosed between the two curved lines would represent the total net power exerted by the steam direct, as well as the space inclosed within the parallelogram represents the resistance to be overcome in moving the water-column. Now, if you will measure the lengtb of any one of these ordinates between the curved lines, and which represents the power exercised at that particular part of the stroke, you will tind that it exceeds but a very little the resistance of the pump-plunger at the same point, the excess of the power being just the pump. While I have perhaps described this new and beautiful invention with a minute- ness that was unnecessary, I have done so under the impression that there are many persons who look upon these engines when in use who have no clear idea of the func- tions performed by the compensating cylin- ders,and who know of the exceedingly high duty they give, but without an idea as to | | desirable. | perform | heavy | stantly starts off at how such a result is brought about, and for the further reason that the literature on this subject is as yet very meager. In addition to the surprising manner in which this ‘* high-duty attachment” ful- fills the seemingly last and only want of of compensating cylinders are exceedingly While it has been shown they equally well the functions of fly-wheels in distributing the | power applied equally through the entire ‘length of the stroke, they do so by using far less material in their construction and by occupying far less space. There aré now pumping engines in use in which the compensating cylinders and their attach- ments do not weigh 4000 pounds, and where it would require, in order to pro- duce equally satisfactory results in a ro- tating engine, a fly-wheel which would have to be 20 feet in diameter and weigh 100,000 pounds, Another and equally important feature connected with the use of compensating cylinders is that they produce equally good results when the pump is moving at low speeds as when moving at high speeds, while it well known that when a fly-wheel is employed in connec- tion with pumping it only produces its best results when run at the one particular speed for which it was designed, and when for any reason the pump is run at a lower speed the usefulness of the pump is impaired just in proportion as the speed decreases. There is also in the use of the device described an element of safety which is of much value. In a fly-wheel pump, if at any time when the pump is working up to its maximum speed an ac- cident takes place, such as the bursting of a pipe or the blowing out of a joint and the pressure is suddenly released, the fly- wheel, by reason of the mass of metal in its rim and with its stored-up power, in- i speed which, un- checked by the attending engineer, would soon produce disaster. When compen- Is /sating cylinders are used they derive their power through the accumulator, which in turn is connected with and de rives its power from the pressure in the main delivery pipe. Now, if the pressure in the main pipes should suddenly drop by reason of a breaking of pipes the pump- ing-engine would at once stop, for the reason that it has no mass of metal in motion to impel it forward, and for the further reason that the power of the accu- mulator would be gone, and the action of its own valves would shut off the steam. LL Iron-Making in Rhode Island.--In a letter to the Boston Herald, George M. Rice, president of the Worcester Steel Works, writes: ‘‘There is in Rhode Is- land and perhaps in Massachusetts a very large supply of the best coal for smelting iron ore mined in this country orany other country. There is also a mountaip of iron ore, apparently inexhaustible, of the very best material for making steel. During the war of 1812 it was used for making cannon, and they proved of great strength. A few months will be likely to demon- strate the facts in this statement. Pig-iron san be made at Portsmouth, R. I., cheaper than it can be made in Pennsylvania or in any part of the country except Alabama and Tennessee. The pig-iron made in those States is not suitable for making the best steel, being so high in phosphorus and sulphur, while that of Rhode Island is very low in phosphorus and sulphur. The Rhode Island coal has some fluxing prop- erties, increasing its value, If the people {in New England had devoted a portion of their enterprise to developing iron and coal interests, instead of doing so much in cot- tou and wool, a very different view would have been taken by parties who are inter- ested in its prosperity. We are using this coal under our boilers for making steam and in our cupola with a great saving in cost and quite to our satisfaction. The work of our most famous geologists, Augast 29, 1889 THE IRON AGE. 319 Professors Jackson, Sillman and others. | knot over the requirement, and this is in will tully confirm all I say about coal and ' creased up to $40,000 for the fourth, fifth | as water-works contractors. Theirs was theory, ours is practice | and sixth quarter knots. iron, positive.” I The Reeves Wood Split Pulley. The Reeves Pulley Company. of Colum- bus, Ind., are just placing upon the mar- | months tothe advertised time (two years) ; ket a new type of wood split pulley illus- The Reeves Wood Split Pulley. trated herewith. They state that the materials used in forming both the arms and segments for the rims are all of an exact thickness, and in building same the arms are firmly glued and nailed in each alternate layer, thereby making each half of the pulley one solid structure, and en- tirely obviating the use of any kind of arm fastening, which latter has always been considered as being an objectionable feat- ure in this class of pulley. The bushing used in these pulleys permits of any regu- lar size being placed upon any ordinary- sized shaft. It is claimed that these pulleys are much lighter than those of iron or steel; they can be conveniently placed in position without removing the shatt, the principle of compression being used in securing the pulley to the latter, and producing an equal contact with the shaft at all points; that there is a gain in the transmission of power through their use by reason of the stronger grip ob- tained by the belt; no set-screws or keys are necessary, and ‘hat, finally, it is impossible to injure the shafting. S$ — re — Proposals for Five Steel Cruisers. On the 22d inst. the Navy Department opened bids for the construction of five steel cruisers, three of them to be about 2000 tons, and two 3000 tons displace- ment. The proposals were divided into | resolutions were passed condemning the | warehouse, greater caution and prudence | four classes; first, for the vessels complete | according to the Department’s designs; | second, for the vessels complete on the contractors’s designs; third, for the hulls upon the Department’s designs and the machinery upon the contractor’s designs, and, fourth, for the construction of the ma- chinery upon the Department’s plans and of the hulls after the contractor's ideas. The small vessels are to exhibit a maxi- mum speed of at least 18 knots for four consecutive hours, with premiums in case of an excess and deduction in case of failure to attain this speed. The vessels are to be completed intwo years, and are not to exceed $700,000 each in cost. If they failto attain 16} knots they will be rejected. In the case of the two 3000-ton vessels a speed of 19 knots is required, these vessels not to cost more than $1,100,000. Inthe first case a bonus of $10,000 is offered for the first quarter In the second | casea bonus of $50,000 is offered for each quarter knot over the 19 required. |The bids were as follows: for | ito build the three 2000-ton $780,000, but with the addition of six | vessels ‘Cramp & Son, of Philadelphia, proposed | | nership of Comegys & Lewis. | } | | } to build the same vessels at $875,000 each, and the two 3009-ton vessels at | $1,225,000 each. As these prices exceed the appropriations, the work will probably be readvertised or Congress will be asked to increase the amounts. EEE Long Credits and Cut Prices. A convention of merchants was held in Hamilton, Canada, last week, at which system of easy credits. Facilities extend- | ed by the banks are supposed to foster reckless trading. Furthermore, the sys- tem of selling through travelers is charged | with much of the responsibility for the inordinate competition prevalent. In former times, when the bulk of the buy- ing was done by retailers in the wholesale | were exercised in assuming liabilities, .and | less pressure to purchase was put upon,the | customer, while now the traveler in his anxiety to book an order never wearies Of | commending his wares and persuading the retailer to lay in a large stock, offering as | inducements long credits and low prices. | One cut in price is followed by another | until goods are actually sold below cost in order to retain the customer and obtain | paper with which to finance. Reviewing the subject, the Montreal (uzette says: ‘*Tt is necessary, first of all, to lessen the risk of bankruptcy, and that can best be | done by the exercise of discrimination by | wholesalers in the sale of goods and by reducing credits. Wholesalers are prin- cipally responsible for demoralization in | retail trade produced by excessive compe- | tition, compromises and easy credits, and | they, rather than the retailers, must devise and apply the remedy.” a Judgments for $58,516 have been en- tered against Comegys & Lewis, contrac- | tors, at No. 15 Cortlandt street, New York, ! in favor of the following creditors: Shickle | Harrison & Howard Iron Company, of St. | Louis, $26,635: Wing & Evans, $15,635; | Coffin & Stanton, $11,955; Thomson- Houston Electric Company, $3128, and Penn Iron Company, $1163. Execution was issued to the Sheriff, but it is said there was nothing attachable to levy upon. Messrs. Comegys & Lewis have been in D The Bath Iron Works, of Maine, prop« wel | light, sensitive and rapid drilling. |adapted for drilling holes from 0 to 4 business for about ten years, principally Mr. Lewis |is at present in Chili, from which Gov- | ernment the firm about a year ago obtained a contract to extend the railroad system, | for, it is said, $17,000,000. The North and South American Construction Company were formed to carry out the contract. In explanation of the judgments the repre sentative of the firm said that they were taken with a view of settling up the part- Zz) The firm would be dissolved and Mr. Comegys would continue the water-works business on his own account. I New Sensitive Drill. The drill of which we present an en- 'graving is manufactured by W. P. Nor- ton, of Bristol, Conn., for whom the Prentiss Tool and Supply Company, of 115 | Liberty street, New York, are the agents. The drill is designed for all classes of It is inch and to the center of 12 inches, being trom the face of the column to the center of the spindle 64 inches; in depth it will drill without readjustment of the table or work 4 inches; in hight it will admit work up to 33 inches. Each drill is provided with a bell center for insertion in the table to receive the lower end of i shaft to be centered, there veing an index S line on the column to insure its accurate New Sensitive Drill, lining with the spindle. It is claimed that in sensitiveness the drill is unsur- passed, the spindle being balanced by a special coiled spring so arranged as to | secure a perfect balance, and is provided with an adjustment for preserving the same when chucks or other tools are attached to spindle. The table is bal- anced by a weight in the center of the column that allows the table to be freely a — > oan teemgege lions een Su Re = ce es Bam i _- a 2k ea -* * 74 s 320 THE IRON AGE. swung around the column at any point or | sary for electric lighting, but it does re- | There can be no greater misconception of adjusted vertically with ease and without the slightest danger of falling. All the manipulations about the drill can be accomplished from the front of the guachine, so that there is no need for the operator to change his positicn in shifting | the belt, adjusting the table or any other movement. On the spindle is an adjust- able collar, which is convenient when drilling to depth or counter-boring. Ea NOVES OF THE ELECTRIC LIGHT CONVENTION. In welcoming the association, W. C. Ely, of Niagara Falls, described a plan which he said solved the problem of UTILIZING THE POWER OF NIAGARA. From the water-level in the chasm be- low the falls it is proposed to excavate a tunnel 24 feet in diameter, extending under the village eastwardly at an ascend- ing grade of 1 foot in 100 feet, which tunnel will approach within 400 feet of the river, just east of the present hydraulic canal and at that point will be 125 feet below the surface of the land and the waters of the upper river; thence it will extend east- wardly with aslightly moditied grade and parallel with the river about 14 miles, and at its easterly termination will still be 90 feet below the surface and in diameter 10 feet, the same having been gradually narrowed to that limit in the last 14 miles of its length. This vunnel will serve as a| tail race simply to discharge water. Im- mediately over and above this tunnel will | be constructed lateral tunnels at right | angles with the river and the main tunnel, | and arranged to discharge into the latter. Over and above the lateral tunnels, and, | like them, at right angles with the river | and main tunnel and upon the surface of the land, will be excavated surface canals, | into which will be diverted the waters of | the river. By the side of these canals, wheel-pits can then be excavated and into | them turbine-wheels placed at a depth of | 100 feet below the surface of the land, | and arranged to discharge directly into | the lateral tunnels below, and thence through the main tunnel or tail-race and | quire a steady and uniform speed. An engine running 40 revolutions per minute, provided the speed is regular, will make as good lights as one running 300 revolu- tions. It has been practically demon- strated in a great number of plants which have used the small, high-rotative speed engines that such is the fact, the low speed using less coal, oil and attention, while the cost for repairs is very much less, as well as loss of steam from radia- tion, clearances, &c., than high-speed en- gines. Ona pair of Corliss engines 23 x 48 inches, at 75 revolutions per minute, running day and night for nearly seven years, the actual cost for repairs was but $25, and during that time they were shut down but once on account of breakage, and then only ten minutes, to disconnect one engine, the other being run with the load of both at increased steam-pressure. Regarding the VELOCITY OF ELECTRICITY Professor Anthony said; ‘‘In the first place, in regard to the velocity of electric- ity, Dr. Fell made the remark that it was well known that Wheatstone demonstrated that the velocity of electricity was 280,000 miles per second. All of us know that such experiments were unreliable, and that it is now perfectly well understood that it | was not the velocity of electricity at all, but simply the time required for those | wires to be charged, and for a spark to | leap across the gzp between the two wires. |The velocity with which electricity passes over any given conductor is not known, and we know that that velocity depends upon athousand things. In the first place, it depends upon the conductivity of the conductor; in the second place, upon the amount of pressure or potential, and upon many other things, The fact is that in the nerves of the human body the velocity of the electrical current is known to be im- mensely less than it is in a metallic wire. In a wet string the velocity of the current in passing over even a space of a few feet is readily measureable, requiring quite a large fraction of a second to pass over a distance of even a few feet. I merely speak of this matter that it may go upon record, if these discussions are to be reported, that this question of the velocity of electricity into the gorge of the river below the falls, | Cannot settle the point as to whether This system of transverse canals and tun- | death by electricity would be painless or nels would discharge 864,000 cubic feet of | 2Ot. water per minute, and furnish 119,000 | horse-power. We take the following from a paper by | M. D. Law on THE PERFECT ARC CENTRAL STATION. Electric lighti