The Iron Age 1891-07-16: Vol 48

‘THE IRON AGE can be readily and easily converted into a| and 1} inch pitch. Weight 140,000 pounds. standard open-side machine. |The success attending the extension The Detrick & Harvey Machine Com The planer is triple geared, which rein- | planers of smaller sizes induced the build- pany of Baltimore, Md., have just shipped | forces the already powerful spiral gearing | ers to get up patterns for this size. In to the Walker Mfg. Company of Cleve-|and makes the tool capable of taking | addition to the one shipped, as mentioned land, Ohio, one of their open side exten- | several heavy cuts simultaneously. The | above, another has been sent to the sion planers of great size and capable of | accompanying engraving of a chip cut by | Stearns Mfg. Company of Erie, Pa. Open-Side Extension Planer. doing the heaviest kind of work. It will | this machine from its own table conveys a | $a —___— be used mainly in planing the segments of good idea of the great power it possesses, Bids for Building Great Guns. large pulleys and sheaves, its size being | The chip is 4 inches wide and ,; of an such that all the segments, even of the | inch thick. | Proposals for entering into one of the largest wheels, can be planed at only two The following data are interesting : | largest contracts awarded by the War settings. The machine will plane 120'The width of the table is 60 inches, and ‘Department in recent years were opened | » i Ps , TTT ET TTT abl i; He eS ii | “ — eee a eminent aT A q Be L. 8 7. : eee MMM + —i paaeeare aon RS ers i qe THE DETRICK & HARVEY OPEN-SIDE EXTENSION PLANER. inches wide, 96 inches high and 25 feet| depth of the same through the Vs 14 13th inst. in the office of General Flagler, long. Combined with great capacity and|inches. Bearing on the ¥ ways each side Chief of Ordnance, They were in response ability to do work 10 feet wide, the tool is | is 11 inches. The depth of bed 24 inches. to advertisements inviting bids for build- adapted to perform work of half that | The worm has an axial pitch of 10 inches, is | ing 25 8-inch, 50 10-inch and 25 12-inch width as economically as a 60-inch planer. | 16 inches long, and engages in a rack hav-| breech-loading rifled built-up steel guns. The Sellers spiral planer motion is used in | ing a width of 9 inches and 2} inch pitch. | Efforts made last year to secure favorable this as in all planers made by this com- |The cross heads each have an 18 inch | bids failed, and it was necessary for Con- y. bearing on the beam and the side heads a/ gress to increase the appropriation for the An important feature is the sliding| 15 inch bearing. The vertical travel of | procurement of these 100 guns to $4,225,- beam, which can be drawn back in the; the main head is 14 inches, while that of | 000. beam housing, and by the removal of the| the side heads is 9 inches. The bevel| The proposals received to-day were outer post, as shown in Fig. 2, the planer | driving gear and pinion ‘havea 7inch face,'from three firms or corporations—the E eee lr eee Ss ll Ul Pryor e) ee eae eS ee ss” Ss ~~. - - ae e!|! hme 90 Midvale Steel Company, the South Boston Iron Works and the Bethlehem Steel Company. The bids were as follows: Midvale Steel Company—1 8- inch type gun with ammunition for testing, $22,028, to be delivered in three years; 25 service guns of the same pattern at the same price each, to be delivered in eight years after acceptance of the type gun; 1 10-inch type gun, $51,880, and 49 service guns at same price each, to be de- livered in eight years; 1 12-inch type gun with ammunition, $88,592, and 24 ser- vice guns at the same price each, to be de- livered in eight years. South Boston Iron Works—1 8-inch n, $27,300; 350 rounds of ammunition, 24,332; 24 service guns, $20,695 each, deliveries to begin in 1894 and to be made at therate of six per year; 1 10-inch type gun, $60,560; ammunition for the same, $43,350; 49 service guns, $47,700 each, to be delivered five each year after 1895; 12-inch type gun, $100,000; ammunition for same, $60,000; 25 service guns with 10 rounds of ammunition, $79,500 each, to be delivered five each year after 1896. Bethlehem Steel Company—8-inch type gun, $43,893 delivered in 1460 days, or $42,035 if delivered in 2190 days; 24 serv- ice guns df same kind at $19,723 cach delivered in 552 days, or $17,246 if de- livered in 730 days; 10-inch type gun, $78,937 delivered in 699 days, or $73,755 delivered in 882 days; 49 service guns of this size at $40,929 each delivered in 2130 days, or $37,754 delivered in 3404 days; 12 inch type gun, $113,951 delivered in 791 days, or $106,558 delivered in 1095 days; 24 service guns of this size at $61,- 846 each delivered in 2038 days, or $54,- 473 delivered in 3194 days. The Bethlehem bid was accompanied by some conditions, one looking to a change in the proportions of the hoops of the guns and another to allowances for ad- vance deliveries. Their bid was very com- plex and it will require several days’ time and much close calculation to ascertain which are the best terms that can be made by the Government. The Stoppage in Wales. The London Jronmonger comments edi- torially on the tin-plate situation in Wales: During the present week the tin-plate manufacturers of South Wales and Mon- mouthshire have put into force the ar- rangement made some time ago for enforc- ing a compulsory and almost universal cessation of production during the month of July. Some few of the manufacturers have declined to take part in thestoppage, but they are only exceptions to the rule, and it has to be recorded that the tin-plate makers are almost unanimously of opinior that they are doing their best for their trade by completely dislocating it at what is probably the most momentous epoch of its existence. The stoppage has thrown some 20,000 persons out of employment, and in many respects is a very serious matter, not only for the workpeople, but also for the coal owners, steel manutact urers, and other traders who are intimately connected with the principal industry of the southern part of the Principality. The workpeople have protested, not un- naturally, against the enforced stoppage. They would be likely to make this protest under similar circumstances, whatever the cause of the stoppage might be; yet, under the conditions now prevailing, it is by no means certain that the men are wrong and the masters right. It is doubtful even whether the manufacturers correctly gauge the magnitude of the struggle upon which they have entered. So far as we are enabled to. ascertain, they are of opinion that they still possess a complete monopoly of the trade in tin plates, and are of opinion that that monopoly cannot be se- THE IRON AGE. riously disturbed. We hope that view is a correct one, but we confess to having grave doubts respecting the accuracy of the latter part of the hypothesis. We have pointed out, indeed, on more than one occasion recently that the Ameri- can manufacturers mean to do their best to turn out tin plates, and that, although they may find their initial efforts greatly hampered by various difficulties, they will succeed sooner or later. Evidently the Welsh and Monmouthshire makers do not wholly share our convictions, or they would be more diftident about so greatly July 16, 1891 United States. It has also prevented a fall in prices at a juncture when low prices are of particular importance to the Welsh manufacturers, The principal plea for the course which has been adopted is that by stopping the make prices will be prevented from drop- ping to an unprofitable level. The plea is peculiar, to say the least, but it seems to be much more satisfactory to the Welsh makers than it is to impartial observers who are not actually in the business. To them the pian savors of suicide. It ap- pears to be precisely the one course which Fig. 2.—Open-Side Extension Planer.—View Showing Outer Post Removed. Fig. 3.—Chip Cut by Open-Side Extension Planer (Half Size). imperiling their business just at the most critical moment of the American attempts at successful rivalry. They have volun- tarily raised bad feelings among their men, and with light hearts, have made the men think of emigration to the United States, instead of doing their utmost to keep them comfortably employed at home. The Americans have duly anticipated the state of things which has come about, and it is stated that their agents are now busily en- gaged in Wales in picking up good work- men, as well as in exporting machinery and appliances for tin-plate making. Thus it is obvious that the united wisdom of the Welsh firms in question has had two serious effects already. It has alienated the good will of the workmen, and has made them willing to emigrate to the should not have been adopted, especially when the enormous turnover of the past few months (at high rates of profit) is borne in mind) One would have supposed the makers had done so well that they could afford to fight the matter out ina manner almost certain to give them every advantage. They have the key of the situation, yet they are so shortsighted and so devoid of a proper comprehension of the forces and resources of their enemy that they voluntarily cede their best posi- tion, and give the Americans the tremen- dous advantage of reaching discontented and unemployed workmen with offers of higher wages than have ever been heard of in the trade, It is safe to assert that in no other trade would anything of the kind have been done. July 16, 1891 A Remarkable Wester Town, The New Chicago Suburb of Harvey. The new manufacturing town named Harvey, situated 2 miles south of the city limits of Chicago, is the latest specimen of phenomenal Western growth. It was founded in August, 1890, and is therefore not quite a year old, but it is able to enu- merate over 2500 inhabitants at this early stage of its history, and boasts the posses- sion of five important manufacturing establishments in active operation, with three more building, and others confi- dently expected. With its present pros- pects the town will double its population in the next six months, The town owes its existence to T.W. Harvey, a prominent lumberman of Chicago, who selected the site for the location of the Harvey Steel Car Company’s works, and has been actively instrumental in inducing other manufacturing establishments to follow their example. Mr. Harvey has aimed to make this a model manufacturing town, and those whom he has associated with him in the enterprise are imbued with the same spirit. The prohibition of liquor selling is secured by inserting in every deed for real estate a condition that no liquor shall be manufactured or sold by the purchaser of the lot. The town has been laid out with a view to making it attractive as a place of residence. Certain districts are reserved for manufacturing sites, so as to confine the noise and other unpleasant features of manufacturing within defined limits. Landscape gardeners have been employed to lay out small parks, arrange boulevards, &c. As compared with the surrounding country the town occupies an elevated location and is already supplied with a complete drainage system. The land association have sunk an artesian well for supplying the inhabitants with water and another artesian well is being drilled to meet the prospective wants of this growing community. The railroad facilities are at present confined to the Illinois Central, Big Four and Grand Trunk lines, but the Chicago Central and the Chicago and Calumet Terminal are building in, and belt line con- nections will then be had with all the Chi- cago railroads. THE MANUFACTURING ESTABLISHMENTS. The works at Harvey now in active operation are as follows: The Harvey Steel Car Company, the Automatic Mower and Mfg. Company, the Atkinson Steel and Spring Works, Craver, Steele & Austin and the Buda Foundry and Mfg, Company. The establishments in process of erection are: 1, a plant for the manu- facture of shafting and accessories, whose owners have not yet decided upon a name; 2, a shop for the manufacture of car springs by the Middleton Car Spring Company, now rapidly being constructed ; 3, the works of the Bellaire Stamping Company, for the production of enameled ware, lamps, ijanterns, &c., which have just been placed under contract for erec- tion. Arrangements are being made for glass works. THE HARVEY STEEL CAR COMPANY. A tract of 26 acres has been reserved for the works of the Harvey Steel Car Com- pany. Their plant is at present confined to one building 300 feet long by 100 feet wide, with a truss roof in a single span. The interior of this structure resembles a machine shop or an iron bridge works more than the typical car shop. There is some wood-working machinery, but it is greatly overshadowed by drills, lathes, punches and presses for shaping and other- wise preparing the steel employed in the . THE IRON AGE. cars only are built, comprising the usual style of box cars, together with cattle cars and coal cars. The frame work is wholly of steel, while the floors, roof and lining areof wood. The sides are built of wood or of corrugated sheets, as ordered. There are a number of distinctive features in the construction of these cars which could only be set forth in a special article in the subject. At present it is sufficient to say that the sills are composed of steel channels which are ingeniously held in position by immovable clamps, thus avoid- ing the drilling of any holes in these im- portant members by which they would inevitably be weakened. The intermedi- ate sills have the draft rigging bolted di- rectly to them, thus making a continuous draw bar the full lengthof thecar. These steel cars are in use on a number of roads which have ordered samples, and the re- ports received are sufficiently encouraging to induce the belief that a new field has been opened for the consumption of large quantities of steel. Tests of loading capacity show them to be far superior to wooden cars, while they are not so heavy. It has been shown by actual tests that a 60,000-pound steel box car weighs two tons lessthan a wooden one. The capacity of the present plant is six cars per week but it will shortly be enlarged, as there appears to be no doubt that this style of construction will prove popular among railroad officials. The company have also decided to add a department for repairing wooden cars,and will build extensive shops for that purpose. There are numerous fast freight lines, refrigerator lines and stock car lines operated by Chicago interests, which are at the mercy of railroad repair shops, and will find an institution of this character a great convenience. CRAVER, STEELE & AUSTIN. A year or more since the firm of Craver, Steele & Austin determined to remove their factory for the manufacture of head- ers, spring wagons and buggies from Grin- nell, lowa, to a more advantageous loca- tion. After weighing the facilities offered by numerous places they decided to re- move to Harvey, where they built a much larger establishment than their old works. They occupy three large brick buildings. One is 200 x 240 feet, devoted to power purposes and also used asa paint and wood- working shop ; another is 160 x 200 feet, and contains the foundry, blacksmith and sample departments ; the third is 80 x 240 feet, and is used as a warehouse. The firm have a fine office adjoining the second building, which is also constructed of brick, and is not only very commodious, but is furnished with every convenience found in modern business offices. The buildings areall one story high and are equipped throughout with automatic fire extinguishers. The shops are heated by the Sturtevant system. Since their re- moval to Harvey the firm have largely increased their business and are obliged to add to their facilities, although they had provided for considerable growth in building the new plant. Their principal business is the manufacture of headers, used in cutting grain wherever it is grown in fields of large area. Their trade covers not only the entire West, but also extends to foreign countries—a large demand coming from South America. The firm states that their South American trade is badly hampered by the lack of direct steam communication between this country and the grain-growing countries of the Southern continent. A recent shipment to Buenos Ayres was sent via Liverpool, thus requiring much more time and cost- ing more for freight than if 1t could have been sent direct. The enterprise of this con- cern is shown in the introduction of electric welding, which is being done very suc- cessfully, Another notable instance of construction of the Harvey Car. Freight 91 their push is the establishment of a wheel department, which was undertaken in the face of very discouraging circumstances, When they determined to embark in this line they found the supply of wheel stock was practically controlled by the wheel combination. Canada offered the only source from which material could be ob. tained, and large contracts were placed there before the machinery for making the wheels was put in place. The firm have now been making wheels for three months, both for their own consumption and for sale, and are at last beginning to obtain material from domestic sources, since it is demonstated that they are in the business to stay. They aim to make a wheel that will satisfy the most exacting requirements of the trade, and have had flattering success even among buggy manufacturers, who would seem to be competitors of theirs. These works have employed as high as 550 hands in the busy season, bus are now running from 200 to 300 men. THE BUDA FOUNDRY AND MFG. COMPANY. Another transplanted establishment is that of the Buda Foundry and Mfg. Com- pany, which removed to Harvey from Buda, Ill. Their works were also consid- erably enlarged in the removal. Five brick buildings are occupied. The wood- working shop is 60 x 180 feet, the machine shop is 60 x 195 feet, the store room is 60 x 100 feet, and there is also a large foundry with engine room, &c. The company make a specialty of railroad work, such as hand cars, switch stands, &c., but at pres- est are doing considerable contract work in castings. The foundry is busy on ar- chitectural work for the new Grant Lo- comotive Works, whose buildings are in course of erection in another suburb of Chicago. The fire protection of this plant is arranged on the system of the Fire Extinguisher Mfg. Company of Chicago. Pipes run throughout the works from a central cylinder containing 250 gallons of chemically prepared fluid. In case of fire the pressure of an electrical button near a hose stand causes the cylin- der to revolve, mixes the chemicals to secure pressure, and the fluid is at once ready to pour on the flames with a force of 100 pounds at the nozzle, which has a stop cock to check the flow when no longer needed. The makers estimate that 250 gallons of their fluid equal 10,000 gallons of water in extinguishing power. Another interesting feature of this estab- lishment in the manufacture of steel- tired wooden wheels for railroad hand cars. These wheels have a cast-iron hub with a zigzag socket in the rim into which solid segments of wood are fitted, which are thus braced together, forming the body of the wheel. The steel tire is made by a process peculiar to these works and is bolted on the wooden body. The tire is formed from annular plates of high carbon steel 4, inch and } inch thick. These plates are heated, and are then spun into disk form or beveled between two rolls. They are again heated, and are spun into tire form between two other rolls of that shape, being turned out true to the master car builders’ tread and flange. The wheel thus made is very strong aad durable, but remarkably light, and the company’s hand cars with such wheels are, therefore, very popular among railroad men. THE AUTOMATIC MOWER AND MFG. COMPANY. The works of the Automatic Mower and Mfg. Company are not so large as those which have been described, but the estab- lishment neverthless is creditable to the young town of Harvey. A large three- story brick building is occupied in the manufacture of mowing machines, feed cutters, wind engines and other farming implements. The company also manu- Pt = .———— 92 THE IRON AGE. July 16, 1891 facture water filters, and have supplied the , passes into the slag. The substances em-|cast iron would be sufficient, but with ployed are manganese and silicon, the| steel 3.8 tons of metal will be required former being most used, as silicon gives a| The sand abutting the cast must be of cities of Cincinnati and Louisville with them. THE ATKINSON STEEL AND SPRING WORKS. The Atkinson Car Spring Works were located in Chicago until a short time since, and were operated wholly on purchased spring steel. An open-hearth steel works and a rolling mill were built last spring at Harvey by the company, and after they had been put in successful operation the spring works were removed to the same location, and the entire plant is now combined under one roof. Both coiled and elliptic springs are manufactured, and the company enjoy special advan- tages in controlling their own supply of steel. The methods pursued are of an original character, radically different from systems elsewhere employed, and are worthy of being treated in a special article on the subject. It will be seen from the above presenta- tion of facts that the industries of Harvey, resent and prospective, are of an exceed- ingly diversified character. The stability of the town thus seems to be assured, as there is no special dependence upon a single interest for the employment of the’ population, The growth of the town has weak metal. The formation of blowholes is also prevented by the presence of man- ganese in the bath throughout the process of fusion, and by adding a quantity of specially good quality and thoroughly dried, or there will be considerable dis- engagement of gas. When set in the mold the contraction goes on rapidly, and the silicon at the end of the operation, the last | sand must be removed where necessary to traces of such blowholes are caused to) ti 5 In the present state of metal- | internal strains, disappear lurgy it is unadvisable to try and expel sulphur and phosphorus from the metal while preparing it for casting, as such purification takes time, while to secure a metal free from blowholes the fusion should be as rapid as possible. Hence only selected material, such as the cross ends of Bessemer rails, cast iron, &c., should be used for steel castings. Up to the present the acid process alone has given uniformly successful steel castings, as the basic hearth favors the oxidation of the molten metal. In melting the metal the composition of the charge should be designed to give as rapid fusion as possi- ble. From the outset the furnace should be pushed, so that the temperature is very high at the end of the operation. When this is done but little oxidation of the metal will occur even before the final re- carburation. The following composition been rapid, but nevertheless healthy, and it is altogether free from the ‘‘ boom” features which have brought discredit on new manufacturing towns in numerous parts of the country. ee eee The Manufacture of Steel Castings. M. P. Mahler gives in a recent number of Le Génie Civil some interesting partic- ulars on the subject of producing castings of Siemens-Martin steel, on which but little has up to the present been published. Steel for such castings should. he states, be fluid, homogeneous, free from blow- holes and prejudicial impurities, espe- cially from the oxides of iron. These qualities belong to all good steel, but un- less especial care is taken to secure them in producing steel castings a complete failure will be the result, Fluidity and homogeneity can be obtained by a suffi- ciently high temperature in the furnace, provided that manganese is added to the charge. This body forms with iron an alloy which spreads itself uniformly through the whole charge. Silicon is less satifactory from this point of view, as the alloy it forms remains localized. As the oxidation of the bath will give a brittle and useless metal, this is prevented by adding to the charge a sufficient quantity of agents having a greater affinity for oxy- gen than iron, by means of which the oxides of this metal are reduced to the metallic state or to the protoxide which Fig. 1. THE HOPKINS BOX ADJUSTER. for the charge has given good results: Per cent. | Ue GR. wisn svivtve ‘cued 16.0 melting charge. Eighteen per cent. spie- OO. n.0inneeWnn boaaeees 8 Scrap (rail ends)........ 80.0 Forty-five per cent. fer- romanganese.......... 1.2 addition to both. | Silicon spiegel with 10 per cent. of silicon.... 1.0 The pig iron contained 3.5 per cent. of carbon, 2 per cent. of silicon, and 1.50 per cent. of manganese; 7 tons were melted and poured in seven hours. The metal tinally obtained in the castings has usually from 0.200 to 0.500 per cent. of carbon, from 0.18 to 0.5 per cent. of silicon, and from 0.320 to 1 per cent. of manganese. The following table gives limits, of which a great percentage of the constituent named is dangerous: Per cent. DD. ; cccancuuhs skonndes sasuen ieee 1.2 SEs o Os 506 n'c'o 002 6 sma beané eenah neni ed 0.60 NN a scic's aso Vaphabentngns be useek.” 0.08 PRDAMASES 6h. is vcodedécdisavsy Ginisncde 0.09 The resulting metal has astrength rang- ing from 28} to 43 tons per square inch, with an elongation of 12 to 25 cent. In pouring, one ladle only should be used. The metal solidifies rapidly, and the con- traction (0.192 inch to 0.216 inch per foot) is large and irregular. The quantity re- quired for a casting is larger than with cast iron. Thus for a heavy gear wheel weighing 2.6 tons a charge of 3 tons of allow this to proceed without setting up The fastenings of the boxes are also slackened with the same object in view. In spite of this, however, the casting will still require to be an- nealed. As regards the cost of such cast- ings M. Mabler stutes that they can be es- timated at twice the cost of east iron, a rate which pays the founders well when their works are properiy managed. EEE The Hopkins Automatic Box Adjuster. A device of interest to engine builders, steam = makers aud manufacturers of other machinery is herewith illustrated. The cut shows the end of a connecting rod, in which is seated the Hopkins automatic box adjuster, consisting only of a spring and an eccentric. The adjuster automatically tightens the bearing box by the action of the spring, thus dispensing with gibs and keys. up all lost motion and keeps the boxes properly adjusted so as to prevent pound- The adjuster takes ing, without setting them up tight enough to exclude the oil between the pin and brasses, thereby cushioning on the lubricant instead of the hard metal. Practical machinists, who have used the device, pronounce it on absolute guaran- tee against hot crank pins and consequent expense and annoyance. It is practically ea for the adjuster to get out of order. It cannot be tampered witb, and is therefore beyond the control or manipu- lation of incompetent engineers. It is manufactured by the Harvey L. Hopkins Company, 933 Rookery Building, Chicago. I President Diaz of Mexico says Ameri- cans in that country have an equal chance with others in all kinds of business. The published facts in reference to the rapid improvement of the country are verified by an experienced traveling agent of a New York gun house, who speaks of marked changes for the better within the last ten years in almost every State. The Collector of Customs at San Fran- cisco has been instructed to follow the practice adopted at New York and other Eastern ports of assessing duty at the rate of 4 per cent. per pound of copper in ex- cess of 2 per cent. contained in silver-lead ores, July 16, 1891 The James Furnace. At the Arethusa Iron Works, nial W. Johnson, New Castle, Pa., a furnace invented by Jacob James has been in use for over a year. All of the furnaces in the plant have been changed. It is also being used by the Oliver Iron and Steel Com- any, Lloyd’s Sons & Co. and the Repub- ic Iron Works, Pittsburgh. The heating and puddling furnace has a hollow fire bridge, C, with a transverse flue, K, from which a number of orifices, c, lead up- ward. The air is preheated in the flue, P, which connects as shown with the space E in the fire bridge under the fuel cham- ber A, and the grate bars a is an air chom- ber, D, formed by a tight box, d. Leading into this air chamber are a number of air pipes, ¢, into the bell-shaped mouth of which the nozzles of steam pipes, 7, are projected, so that the steam draws in aur. Above the bridge is a cold-air flue, g, connected with a number of openings with the furnace above the fire bridge. It is provided with a valve to regulate the admittance of cold air, when required, ' THE IRON AGE. for a high-class school of naval architect- ure. The Massachusetts Institute of Tech- nology has already made a beginning, and has founded a course in naval architecture. Cornell University is also considering the same subject. ——— Boards of Conciliation in France. In France, says Industries, the Councils of Prud’hommes, or local boards elected for the settlement of disputes between master and workman as to wages, con- tracts, or other matters of contention, date from 1806, when a council was formed for the district of Lyons. Their functions have been successively enlarged and re- vised by a series of statutes, the most important of which are the decree of May 27, 1848, and the laws of June 1, 1853, and February 7, 1880. It is the duty of the councils, if possible, to terminate in- dustrial disputes brought before them by a friendly arrangement between the parties, and, failing this, to pronounce judgment. The initiative in the formation of a council is taken by the local Chamber of |S ged ef EZ, Ms: sys | | A be) we THE JAMES PUDDLING FURNACE. While in the ordinary type of puddling furnaces the consumption of good Pitts- burgh coal was 2200 pounds at the Arethusa Works, with the James mod- ifications the consumption was 1800 pounds, with the same coal. They are now, however, using coal which could not be employed in the ordinary furnace. the fuel consumption being 2400 pounds. The same results have been attained in the heating furnaces of the plate mill. It will be observed that the furnace is simple, costs very little, if any, more than the usual type, and accomplishing a saving in repairs. rr *On the recommendation of the Chief Naval Constructor Secretary Tracy has named four young naval cadets who are to be educated abroad in some of the Euro- schools of naval architecture. They will first have the benefit of a course of [ep instruction, and accordingly have assigned to special service in the navy yards. With the revival of ship- building in the United States there is growing up a great demand for naval ar- chitects and managers of shipyards of high technical education, and it will not be long before there will be a field in this country Commerce, which obtains a Government decree specifying exactly the number of members to be elected, over how many communes their authority is to prevail, and what industries are to be subject to it. The minimum number in each council is six, not including the president and vice- president, but in the majority of cases the actual number is much greater. Thus, for instance, the Lille council consists of 24 prud’hommes, eight (i. e¢, four masters and four workmen) for each of the three categories—tissues, metals and miscella- neous—into which the industries concerned are divided. Each council, being com- posed of equal numbers of masters and workmen, after election hold a general meeting for the election from their own body of a president and vice-presidert for the ensuing year. Before 1880 these offi- cers were appointed by the State, and could only be employers; now, if the presi- dent is an employer, the vice-president must be a workman, and vice versé. This change, which deprived the masters on alternate days of session of the prepon- derance of the casting vote, was met in some places by the wholesale and repeated resignation of the master prud’hommes, This difficulty was got over by allowing 93 councils to constitute themselves a quorum and exercise jurisdiction without taking account of the seceders, provided one-half of their legal number remain, whether masters or workmen. Prud‘bommes are generally, but not necessarily, paid a salary, at the expense of the communes over which their juris- diction extends. One-half of the council retires every three years, but the outgoing members are re-eligible. They have no voice in the settlement of strikes, not being concerned with the fairness or un- fairness of wages, and this point should be noted carefully, as we sometimes hear it said that the institution is a failure be- cause it has failed to prevent strikes. The prud’hommes deal with differences arising out of contracts, and questions connected with wages, such as, for instance, the time and manner of payment, deductions to be made for misconduct, and the exact amount which the master undertook to pay. Questions relating to apprentice- ship, valuation, piecework, defective work, and delay in finishing work are also brought before them from time to time. The functions of the council are of two kinds—conciliatory and judicial—and con- sequently every council is divided into two sections, one for mediation and the other for judgment when mediation fails. The section for conciliation consists of two members only, one master and one work- man prud’homme, and must sit at least once a week to hear disputes, and endeavor to settle them offhand by bringing the dis- putants to a voluntary agreement. No case can be submitted for judgment till this preliminary attempt has been made. The judicial section consists of the presi- dent or vice-president, and of at least two master and two workmen prud’hommes. It is obliged by law to sit not less than twice a month. In the first-mentioned section many cases are settled in a few minutes without the cumbrous machinery of the law courts Prud’hommes are also invested by law with power to punish summarily up to three days’ imprisonment any disturbance of the order and discipline of the factory or workshop, and any grave insubordination on the part of an ap- prentice. The 136 councils established throughout France deal with about 42,000 cases a year. Of these abont 16,000 are amicably settled, about 12,000 are voluntarily with- drawn by the parties before the termina- tion of the proceedings, and only some 13,000 or 14,000 are referred to the bureaux généraux for judgment. Appeals to the commercial tribunals are rare. That great services are rendered to the country by the prud’hommes is unques- tionable, and arrangements are now being made for codifying the laws relating to them, and thus making them more useful. It has not been thought possible to make them arbiters of strikes, but proposals are being made for the constitution of boards of arbitration similar to those which are being formed in this country. a It is announced that work on the Chig- necto ship ratlway in Canada, the first of its kind in the world, has been suspended, owing to lack of funds. Thirteen miles of track are now laid of the 17 required, and when completed the railway will effect a saving in distance of 430 miles for ves- sels bound from the United States to Quebec, Montreal or other St. Lawrence ports. The railway is across the Chignecto isthmus from the headwaters of the Bay of Fundy to the Northumberland Straits, and the Canadian Government has subsidized and stimulated the work. Whether it will pay is a problem for future solution. An oil pipe line directly from West Virginia to New York is being surveyed by the Standard Oil Company. 94 War Ships Under Construction. Brassey's Annual, just published, is complete in its lists of war ships building all over the world. Great Britain has building eight battle ships of a total dis- placement of 109,550 tons. Seven of these have a displacement of 14,150 tons apiece, and one has a displacement of 10,500 tons. In speed they range from 17.5 knots to 18 knots; 1n armament from 10-inch guns to 134-inch guns; in armor from 12 inches in thickness to 18 inches. In France the armored tonnage building varies from an armored gunboat of 1045 tons to a battle ship of 12.000 tons. The aggregate tonnage is 87,961 tons, belong- ing to 13 ships, which gives a mean dis placement per ship of nearly 6800 tons. The speeds vary from 13 knots to 19 knots; the great guns from 7.5 inches in caliber to 13.4 inches, and the thickness of armor from 8 inches to 174 inches. Italy is building one 13,250-ton battle ship of 18 knots’ speed, armed with 13.4- inch guns, and armored with 18 inches of metal. No other armored ship is given by Lord Brassey as building. A second sim- ilar battle ship is to be laid down. Germany is at work on two classes of vessels—four barbette battle ships of 10,000 tons each and four armored cruisers of 3500 tons each. These eight ships have an aggregate tonnage of 54,000 tons, an aver- age of 6750 per ship. The speeds of all are given as 16 knots; the armaments range from 9.5-inch guns to 11-inch guns. The armor ranges from 9.5 inches in thickness to 15% inches. The larger figures belong to the battle ships, the smaller to the armored cruisers. Russia’s table of armored ships shows as great a variety as France’s. Of the five vessels building, two of them are gunboats of 1500 tons each, two are armored cruisers of about 10,000 tons each, and one is a battle ship of 10,280 tons. The sum of these tonnages gives a total of 32,756, or an average of nearly 6560 tons apiece. In the matter of speed the limits are 15 knots and 18 knots; the armaments range from 8-inch guns to 12-inch, and the armor is from 5 inches on the gun boats to 16 inches on the battle ship. The newest armored construction in some of the lesser nations is worth men- tioning. Spain is at work on two 7000- ton armored cruisers, to have the high speed of 20 knots, mount 11-inch guns, and carry 104-inch armor. Unfortunate Chili has a battle ship building in France of 6900 tons, 19 knots’ speed, 9.3-inch guns and 12-inch armor. Denmark has in hand a new steel turret ship of 3290 tons, 10-inch guns, 15.5 knots’ speed and 12 inches of protection. Finally, Sweden has a turret ship laid down of 3070 tons, 15.5 knots’ speed, 10-inch guns, and 114-inch armor. England is building six torpedo vessels of 810 tons each, six 3500-ton cruisers, eight 4360-ton cruisers, three of 7350 tons each and three of 7700 tons each. The speed of none is to be below 19 knots; many are expected to exceed 20 knots. The largest ships mount one or two 9.2- inch guns; the medium-sized cruisers carry 6-inch guns and the torpedo vessels are armed with the 4.7-inch rapid firers. France makes rather a poor showing. Her building operations are confined to small vessels, as is seen by the following: There are four torpedo vessels of 450 tons each and two of 850 tons each; of cruisers building, two are of 1310 tons, two of 3027, two of 3712 and one of 4160. The speed of the smallest is to be 18 knots, of the others 19 to 20. The guns in the little ones are 3 inch, in the big ones 6.3 inch. Germany’s range of tonnage is large. She is building two 380-ton torpedo vessels to go 26 knots, one 800-ton torpedo vessel THE IRON AGE, July 16, 1891 to go 22 knots, two 1580-ton cruisers, one The Voisard Duplex Pump. 3500-ton cruiser and three 5500 tonners. On these last a 9.5-inch gun is to be . : mounted; the other cruisers mount 6-inch| The Voisard pump has been so designed guns and the torpedo vessels are to carry | as to procure the greatest strength com- small rapid firers. The highest speed, | bined with medium weight, special care excepting in the smallest vessels, is to be | being taken in the selection of material 20 knots on the big cruisers; the medium-|and in the workmanship. The parts are sized ships are to go 18 and 19 knots, | made to standard gauges and are inter- Italy is developing two classes of ships— | changeable. The valves, while substan- the torpedo vessel, 740 to 840 tons, of | tially of the plain slide pattern, are of dif- which seven are building, and the small | ferent designs, ove of them being arranged cruiser of 2280 tons, five of which ere ia | to take steam at the end towar which it hand. Her largest cruiser building is a|is moving, or opposite to the other. This THE VOISARD DUPLEX PUMP. 3500-ton vessel, to have but 17 knots speed; 20 and 21 knots are expected from the torpedo vessels, 19 and 20 knots from the others. Russia, according to Lord Brassey, is constructing but four gun vessels for the Baltic Sea fleet. Nospeed is given; prob- ably 14 knots will be their best. The armament is to consist of two 8 inch and one 6-inch gun on each. Of the other nations whose building pro- grammes need notice, Portugal comes first. She is at work on two 600 ton torpedo vessels of 19 knots of speed, one 640-ton gunboat of 11 knots speed, and four 4500- ton cruisersof20 knots. Thesecruisers are to be as fast and formidable as any in the world, and will mount four 6-inch guns in their main batteries. Austria is laying down only two shi ps, a 21-knot 480-ton torpedo vessel, armed with small rapid-fire guns, caliber not given, and one 4060-ton cruiser of 19 knots, carrying two 9.4-1inch guns. China is building a 450-ton torpedo ves- selof 19 knots and one 4-inch gun and five good-sized cruisers. SEE EE The Anchor line steamer Utopia, which was sunk March 17 last by running upon the spur of the British ironclad Anson, was raised by means of coffer dams on a superstructure of timber built from the ship’s sides to the surface and forming an immense tank. This tank was lined with strong canvas and was 310 feet in length. Six powerful centrifugal pumps exhausted the water in the tank, which, ascending with the vessel inside of it, was dragged shoreward and was eventually rested upop the beach, . oy o Ah diam WS KM — WSS Sooo NON \ | OF NB LJ ~-fx-— t+ ed oe A ‘ ! | [> a ot ol 4 semen Section, permits the making of both oscillating levers of the same length and exact dupli- cates of each other, gives a more uniform stroke, and insures the full length of stroke. This special valve can be used in either chest. The other is of che plain D type, and both are so connected to the levers as to cause a slight sleckening in speed of the piston toward the end of the stroke, and a momentary pause before be- ginning another, this enabling the water valves to seat themselves quietly and easily without noise or concussion. The steam piston consists of a plain disk fitted to the base of the cylinder and having two recesses in its surface into which are sprung cast-iron snap rings, July 16, 1891 THE IRON AGE. The piston and plunger rods are in sep- | Voisard, Waechter & Co. of Canton, Ohio, arate pieces, screwed into the crosshead ! and are especially designed for boiler feed- and held in position by lock nuts, allow-| ing, mining and general purposes. ing either piston or plunger to be easily removed without disturbing any of the other parts of the pump. Although these are usually made of polished steel, plunger rods of hard bronze metal are furnished when desired. The plungers are of brass and consist of two plain disks between which is fitted a soft r bber packing. Ample provision is made for adjustment for wear by means of a single screw which is accessible by re- moving the cap, from the water cylinder. The water cylinders are lined with hard bronze barrels, which can be easily re- placed without disturbing any other part of bor Ty STILL SJLJJLJALA tj) the pump. The water valves and water ways have unusually large areas, reducing the loss by friction to a minimum and in- suring the full capacity of the pump. The valves are generally made of hard bronze metal. All the seats are of brass. The valves are so placed as to be easily reached without disturbing any of the connections. The bearings at the upper ends of the levers operating the valves consist of taper cones of large diameter connected together by a steel rod passing through them, the cone bearings being fitted into bronze bushings, which in turn are screwed into the up- _ and held in position by lock nuts, This arrangement combines a large wear- ing surface with a very sensitive adjust- ment and insures that the position and movement of the levers, and consequently the stroke of the pump, will always remain the same. These pumps are built by LT Steel Making in Australia. Some time ago the fact was reported that the Government of New South Wales had called for sealed proposals, to be opened June 21, for the supply of 175,000 tons of steel rails, to be manufactured within the colony with the use of raw materials mined there, and delivered during five years from January 1, 1893. The total amount of steel in all forms imported by the Australian colonies is said to exceed $15,000,000 per annum in value. The boro TS P q \ Wt Vertical Section. Plan. THE VOISARD DUPLEX PUMP. only Australian colony which contains the | raw materials necessary for steel making, | so far as known, is New South Wales. It is with the desire of securing the establish- ment of works for the manufacture of steel in this colony that the Government offers to guarantee to the builders of steel works orders for steel rails at the rate of 35,000 tons per annum, for five years. The last number of the Hagineer gives the following account of the steps which Englishmen are taking to improve this chance for a profitable investment : We learn that a syndicate is now being privately formed in this country with a view of thoroughly investigating and prov- ing the deposits of minerals in New South Wales, which have already to some extent been examined and very favorably re- ported upon, and if it is found that the quantity and quality are satisfactory, then Ypsrps, ; 4 ~ ~ Ss Si Dah J 95 |a definite company with limited liability will be formed for the purpose of openin out the mines and erecting furnaces on |mills of the most modern and approved type for the manufacture of steel and iron | for the supply of the colonies of Austral- asia and other available markets, including China, Japan, Straits Settlements, &c. /Connected with this syndicate are J. C. Cuninghame of Craigends, N. B., and John Cuninghame of Glasgow, the well-known | Scotch ironmasters, and Joseph Mitchell, a member of the New South Wales Legisla- ture, is now over in this country with a | view to advancing the formation of this | syndicate, and ae about the estab- lishment of iron and steel works in the colony. | 7 LY The New South Wales Government have evinced their desire to encourage the in- dustry by entering into negotiations with Mr. Mitchell for the manufacture and sup- ply, as an initial order, of the 175,000 tons of steel rails, to be delivered at the site of manufacture, over a period of five years from January 1, 1893, at a price equal to the ruling price for the time being for British-made rails landed at Sydney. From what is already known as to the extent and quality of the deposits of iron ore, coal, &c., it is calculated that hema- tite pig iron suitable for conversion into steel can be made at 40s. ($9.72) per ton, and the cost of making steel rails is esti- mated at 90s. ($21.87) per ton; whereas the average cost of imported steel rails, delivered at Sydney, over the 12 years, has been £6. 9s. 4d. ($31.50) per ton, or nearly £2 more. ‘ 96 THE IRON AGE, July 16, 1891 Some of the iron ore has been analyzed by Lewis Colquhoun, Ardeer Iron Works, Stevenston, Ayrshire, and was found to contain 55.77 per cent. of metallic iron and 0.043 per cent. of phosphorus as received and 56.65 per cent. metallic iron and 0.044 per cent. phosphorus when dried ; while Messrs. Pattinson and Stead of Middlesborough report upon a sample from the outcrop at Picton, New South Wales, 56.70 per cent. metallic iron, 5.02 per cent. silica and 0.048 per cent. phospho- rus, and state that even less phosphorus may be expected to be found in the ore under the surface. J. W. Ormiston of Glasgow states that at one place—Rylston—ample supplies of coal, ironstone, limestone, &c., are to be met with within a circle of 2 miles. Bearing in mind how some of the proprietors of Spanish mines have been deceived by finding the ore beds which they had purchased scarcely more than surface deposits of little thickness, the syndicate will by boring ascertain the thickness as well as the superficial ex- tent of the ore seams. We are informed that Messrs. John Stephenson and Cowper of Queen’s square, Middlesborough have charge of the formation of this syndicate, and it is not improbable that Mr. Ste- venson, who has had great experience in similar matters in this country, will be re- quired to go out to New South Wales, in order to organize and set in operation the contemplated works. or The Thurston & Schott Milling Machine. The Thurston Mfg. Company of Provi- dence, R. I., are building a machine especially for manufacturers of silver ware, jewelry, fire arms or any business requir- ing blanking or trimming dies. The principal features of the construction of the machine will be understood from the engraving, in which it is seen that the frame proper is supported upon gudgeons at either side, which are clamped in their bearings, and serve to hold the frame in any desired position for the convenience of the operator. Through the right-hand gudgeon passes the shaft on which is placed the driving pulley; at the other ad of this shaft is a bevel gear, which by means of another bevel gear, drives the spindle. This spindle is vertical and has a verti- cal adjustment. It ca