The Iron Age 1899-11-16: Vol 64 Iss 20

A Review of the Hardware, Iron, Machinerv --~* Published every Thursday Morning by David Williams Co., Vol. LXIV: “No. 20. New York, Pirslee, 54 wo psuyase SS aynyysuy ape ae j WELMOSY MESS ‘ 0 uel ; York. $4.50 a Year, including Postage Single Copies, Ten Cents. November 16, 1899. Reading Matter Contents ........page 52 Classified List of Advertisers. .... “133 Advertising and Subscription Rates ‘‘ 59 Alphabetical Index to Advertisers *‘ {31]) OVEN LEATRE Dynamo St. Louis, Mo. sDELTING New York. Boston. Republic iron & Steel Co., HICAGO. M ine FACTURERS iron Sheets ana Plates. DISTRICT SALES OFFICES : Buffalo, N. Y. New York City. Cleveland, O. St. Louis, Mo. Cincinnati, O. Birmingham, Ala. See our advertisement on inside back cover. THE BRISTOL COMPANY, Waterbury, Conn. Bristol’s Recording Instruments, Fer Pressure, Temperature and Electricity. All Ranges, Low Prices and Guar- anteed. Send for Circulars, SAMSON SPOT CORD Also Massachusetts and Phenix Brands of Sash Cord. SAMSON CORDAGE WORKS, - Boston, Mass, er BUCKLES. BRANCH OFFICE: 11 = New York. Cleveland City Forge and Iren Co., - Cleveland, O. TURN BUCKLES. Merrill Bros., TI a sso irs ont ave Brooklyn, E. D., N.Y. BASIC Pic. PILLING & CRANE. Girard Buitging.*Phitada y Lewis Block, Pittsburgh. Apollo is perfect. The best definition of “perfect” in galvanized iron is: Apollo, Apollo Iron and Steel Company, Pittsburgh. dd. IM. ‘¢Smokeless’”’ g. 4 Paper $ Shot Shells Fitted with the ‘sAcme ’’—‘* Trap ”’ ‘¢Primrose Club’’ celebrated ‘‘Nitro’’ — “High U.M.C Base’’—‘‘ New Club ”’ ° ow are an absolute neces- PRIMERS. sity to sportsmen in Bridgeport, Conn. out of the way local- ities where loaded Shells cannot be ob- tained, and to those who have a prefer- ence for their own particular load. 313 Broadway, New York. 425 llarket St., San Francisco. Union Metallic Cartridge Co. CAHALL BOILERS » % « CAPEWELL HORSE NAILS. NEW YORK, PHILADELPHIA, CHICAGO, ST. LOUIS, BOSTON, DETROIT, CINCINNATI, SAN FRANCISCO, PORTLAND, ORE , BUFFALO, BALTIMORE, NEW ORLEANS. THE CAPEWELL HORSE NAIL COPIPANY, HARTFORD, CONN. WE CLAIM THE FOLLOWING MERITS FOR JENKINS BROS,’ VALVES. 1. Manufactured of the best Steam Metal. 2. Noregrindiug, therefore not constantly wearing out the Seat of the Valves. 3. Contain JENKINS DISC, which is suitable for all Pressures of Steam, Oil, and 4 5 6 BRANCHES: Acids, . The Easiest Repaired, and all parts Interchangeable. 5. Every Valve Tested before leaving the factory. > ALL GENUINE stamped with Trade Mark. JENKINS BROTHERS, New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Boston. Brass Prices High, So Use Bright “Swedoh” Stamp- gee 199 ing Steel. Easily Brass Plated and Save Money. ## MAGNOLIA METAL Best Anti-Friction Metal for all Machiaery Bearings. Beware ot Imitations. Genuine Magnolia Metal is made up in bars of which this ig a fac-simile : The name and trade- ’ : mark a box and bar, and the (gees. Sa words P in United States" and “Patented June 3, 90, are stamped on the un- der side of each bar. ** Magnolia Hemi is still em WA at A saqpe price it has ar on each anufactured MAGNOLIA METAL CO., (Consrpand.scl} ) 966 & 267 WEST ST., NEW YORK, ise bua 2 THE IRON AGE THE PLUME & ATwood Mes, Co., MANUFACTURERS OF Sheet and Roll Brass —AND— WIRE THE ANSONIA Brass ge Oe Co. MANUFACTURERS PRINTERS’ BRASS, JEWELERS’ METAL, GERMAN BRASS AND COPPER ingot Copper. Waterbury Brass Co. vaanenl \LE MANUFACTURERS Establisked 1845. Pins, Brass Butt Hinges, Jack Chain, Kere- sene Burners, Lamps, Lamp To bin Bronze >| Shot Roll and Platers’ Brass, rent (TRADE-MARK REGISTERED. German Silver, Copper. Brass one Ger- Petes, Pump inet. Bead ee 29 MURRAY ST., NEW YORK. S and Hexagon Bars, for Pums COPPER RIVETS AND BURS. 144 HIGH ST., BOSTON. Piston R Bolt Forging PERCUSSION CAPS, 199 LAKE ST., CHICAGO — TAPE MEASURES, 99 John Street, - - New York. METALLIC EYELETS, ROLLING MILL : | FACTORIES : _ Brass Kettles, Brass Tags, Powder Flasks, THOMASTON, CONN. WATERBURY, CONN. Shot Pouches, &c., ! R PTT RR CIEY |ocnsiecsearsceesc "Scull SCOVILL MFG. CO. WATERBURY, CONK, a Specialty. Manufacturers of . — MANUFACTURERS OF=— DEPOTS: 60 Centre St., New York. 126 Eddy St., Provi- H EET: BRAS dence, R. |. 38 Mechanic St., Newark, N. J. s be) MILLS AT WATERBURY, CONN. & COPPER. SHEET, WIRE, TUBES, | gerazep BRASS TA\NEW YACHT COLUMBIA)§ "inion ramps and'olare | 7. oo ; All Her BRONZE CASTINGS oan: ~~ > epee SEAMLESS BRASS & are made of our... ' COPPER TUBES”38"DIAM Factories, WATERBURY, COWN. srecorremme | Ordnance Bronze tw vers, "Guicgo, _ beston west CHICAGO, ILL. £W YORK ROOM 202, POSTAL TELE > RAPH BLOG #5 a BA0 ADWaAy. enecemeeom | Bridgeport Deoridized Bronze & Metal Co.,,JOHN DAVOL & SONS, CINNAT ROOM 2 - IDGEPORT AGENTS FOR = ) Brooklyn Brass & Copper Co., DEALERS IN : COPPER, TIN, SP aR, Matthiessen & Hegeler Zinc Co., ae, Ae LA SALLE, ILLINOIS, 100 John Street, - New York. SMELTERS OF SPELTER WILLIAMS FEARING AND MANUFACTURERS OF . ’ SHEET ZINC AND SULPHURIC ACID. 256 Broadway, NEW YORK, Special Sizes of Zinc cut to order. Rolled Battery Plates SELLS TO THE TRADE Selected Plates for Etchers’ and Lithographers’ use. Selected Sheets for Paper and Card Makers’ use. Sheet Brass, Fancy Sheet Brass, Stove and Washboard Blanks, German Silver, Copper, Brass ZINCS FOR LECLANCHE BATTERY. and German Silver Wire, Brazed and Seamless Brass and Copper Tubes, Brase and Cop- Bargain—Shatting Hangers Pe Dare Copper Wire Sheet and Ingot Copper; Spelter, .1—Makers, Dodge Mfg. Co.; Adjustable Ball and | No. 8--Similar to above only wick oilers. Tin, Antimony, Tead, &c. Socket Double Brace » Hangs rs, with chain oil- 114 20-in. drop, 2 15-16 in. shaft, list,. ST |, ing bearings 21 2. drop, 27-16 in avscen’ Ee 30-4 2 15-16 f $25 No. J ain Cast Iron Bo )X, not self-oiling. Se ee ee ee --- £25.80 | “95 16-1 drop, 23-16 in. shaft, list. 12.00 10 18in. * 2 15 tin. 1“ 20:15 | NO. Sane Bo Falls Rivet and chable Betton Wick ") 2 30- “ 9 7-16 in. os .* . Ofling Jouble Brace, Detachable Bottom. -in 1¢ in 18.60 | 8 19 to 21 in. drop, ; 15-16 in. shaft, list,. 24.20 BRIDGEPORT CONN. No, 2—Same as ab — only single brace. “9 19 to 21 in. “ 15-16 in Saw 11.45 ® 54 20-in. dr »p, 2 15-16 in. shaft, list. 20 40 | No ce ~Lane & Bodley. ( "hain Olling, Double Brace, 19 Murray St., New York. 6 14-in : 2 3.16 im, 5 - 11.40 Jetachable Bottom. 1 12-in , 2 3-16 in. ‘ 10.90 30 30-in drop, 2 15-16 in. shaft, list, ; 31.55 85-87 Pearl St., Boston. 17 N. 7th St., Philadelphis. Discount, 7O, 10 and 5S per cent. MANUFACTURERS OF MACHINISTS’ SUPPLY CO., - ROCHESTER, N. Y.! Brass {SHEET HENDRICKS BROTHERS ano 4 TUBING , PROPRIETORS OF THE 1 ’ Co er Belleville Copper Rolling Mills, 4 WIRE Lamp Goods of all Kinds. MANUFACTURERS OF Brazicrs’, Bolt and Sheathing oe in reat Yale — COPPER, — COPPER WIRE AND RiVETS. “xesent=—ae —S—-— - ~—— ee e 49 CLIFF ST., NEW YORK. ~ WELOM SFG. OG, 68 SUDBURY STREET. SOSTOS Importers and Dealers in wt. ST-T Ingot Copper, Block Tin, Spelter, Lead, Antimony, etc. 2 ‘THE IRON AGE. TuHuRsDAY, NoveEMBER 16, 1899 Chinese Purchase an American Flouring [iill. Probably the most complete and thoroughly up to date flouring mill ever constructed is now on its way to Shanghai, China, from the shops of the E. P. Allis Com pany, Milwaukee, Wis. F. G. Marsh, one of the com pany’s engineers, will superintend the setting up of the machinery. Not only is the mill claimed to be the most complete of its kind but it has been built for a company of Chinamen, paid for by Chinese capital and a force of Chinamen will operate it. Up to about one year ago all of the flour made in China was made in the good old primitive way of crushing and grinding the wheat by hand between two stones, one of them slightly hollowed out and the other rounded to fit in’ the hollow. A syndi gress, Dr. Wilson announced that the Philadelphia Commercial Museum, under whose auspices the congress was held, would ask the Philadelphia city councils for permission to change its name to the International Bureau of Commerce. a The Fay & Scott Universal Turret Lathe. The accompanying engravings illustrate the principal features of a new universal turret lathe of 20-ineh swing and 7-foot bed. The hend stock is shown in see- tion in Fig. 4. The front bearing of the spindle is 3% inches in diameter, and the hole through the spindle is 2 1-6 inches. ‘The four-step cone carries a 3-inceh belt. There is a friction device fer locking and unlocking the THE FAY & SCOTT UNIVERSAL TURRET LATHE. eate of Englishmen then established an English mill in Shanghai, which, though not thoroughly up to date, caused a revolution so far as milling was concerned. There are some exceedingly enterprising Chinamen in Shanghai, however, and in order to astonish the Englishmen repre sentatives were sent to this country to make an examina- tion of American flouring institutious, with the result that the order was given to the Allis Company to build the mill. It has a capacity of 300 barrels a day and is very complete. Every part has been constructed by the Allis Company, so that all that remains to be done when the machinery reaches Shanghai will be to set it up, which will be done under the superintendency of Mr. Marsh. acini atlantis At the closing session of the International Commercial Congress in Philadelphia on November 1 Dr. William P. Wilson, director of the Philadelphia Commercial Mu- seum, was presented with a handsome set of silver ware by the foreign and American delegates as a token of gratitude for his services as chief organizer of the con- back gears by the movement of the lever shown in front of the face plate in the half-tonpe engraving. When this lever is thrown in one direction the cone is loose on the spindle and is connected by friction with the back of the face plate gear. The reverse movement throws this gear out of action, and makes the cone tight on the spindle. Provision is also made for throwing our the back gears in the usual way. The machine is double back geared— namely, by slipping the gear on the cone, the ratio of back gearing can be changed, thereby obtaining twelve changes of speed for the spindle. The turret is baxagonal, 11 inches in diameter from- face to face. It is provided with power feed, revolves automatically and has six 1%j-inch holes, which, of course, can be changed to suit the requirements. An im- portant feature of the turret is embodied in an automatic stop for each tool independent of the other. This device will be understood from the drawings, Figs’ 5 and 6, the first being a plan view and the second a sectional side elevation. The outer or right hand end of the arm is pro- vided with six set screws arranged as shown by the dotted lines in Fig. 5, and by the section in Fig. 6. These set screws can be adjusted independently of each other so as to control accurately and positively the forward movement of any one of the tools carried by the turret ndependently of any of the others. The end of the lever carrying these set screws brings them successively 9 THE IRON AGE November 16 1899 front of the head stock. This device can also be operated by the lever at the left hand end of the apron. There is also an automatic stop provided which operates by the revolution of the lead screw. In place of the usual tool block on the carriage there is the tool turret, Fig. 9, 4 inches in diameter, which is connected with the cross feed. This turret is revolved Details of Bed in line with the stop shown in Fig. 6. This movement is accomplished by the cam groove on the bottom of the turret, indicated in Fig. 8. The curve of this cam is such as to move the end of the lever from one stop to the other at each one-sixth of a revolution of the turret. by the hand lever shown on top in Fig. 1. A single mo- tion of this lever to the right and back again unlocks, 1 volves, locks, and binds the turret in position. An oil pump is a part of the equipment which supplies oil to the center stem of the turret, as well as over the carriage. qe 1 a o f= = + ee rere Fig. 4.— Head Stock THE FAY & SCOTT U Provision is also made by means of which any one of the set screws can be skipped if this should be necessary. Power feed for the turret is obtained from a pulley on the end of the lead screw, which works through a worm and gear to a rack and pinion, as indicated in the cross sectional view, Fig. 7. The belt feed of the carriage and screw cutting feed are driven from the gear on the outer end of the live spin- dle_and arranged with spur gears inside of the head stock for reversing the motion, by means of the lever shown in NIVERSAL TURRET LATHE. The countershaft has two self oiling rim friction pul- leys 12 inches in diameter by 4 inches face, and is in- tended to make 125 to 150 revolutions. This lathe is built by Fay & Scott of Dexter, Maine, for whom the Prentiss Tool & Supply Company of 115 Liberty street. New York, are the sole sales agents. ee eee According to official statistics, coal miners in Illinois have averaged $100 more in earnings per capita tnan they did last year. November 16, 1899 The Cost of Steel Structures. As a preliminary to a visit to the Homestead Steel Works by the members of the American Institute of rHE IRON AGE. ° to the total weight in pounds of the structural material required: N is equal to the number of floors, includ- ing the roof as a floor, and F is the number of square feet in each floor. The first number inside of the paren- theses when multiplied by the factor N F will give YA SS" ~ \ . c inn) ()) | p_ SATA — Fig. 5.— Turret.—Plan. Architects, F. W. Kindl of the Carnegie Steel Company, Limited, read a paper on the “ Manufacture of Steel for Building Construction.” We quote from it the conclud- ing portion which deals with the question of cost: The total cost of the structural steel erected in a building of course depends upon the weight required and the current quotations for the plain material, as well as upon the workmanship thereon, its hauling to and erection at the building site. The weight of structural steel in a building is very difficult to estimate, unless plans and specifications are first drawn up, as this will depend upon the design, the number of stories, the dead and live load to be carried per square foot of floor, the weight of brick or stone work resting on the out- side girders, and the allowable unit stresses on the steel. While the allowable stresses per square inch are pretty well determined by our building laws, which are almost identical with each other, yet the former factors are of so wide range as to make each individual case different. However, for the weight of the steel skele- ton of the average office building, whose walls are car- ried by the steel work, we have found by careful records (> the weight of the beams and fittings required in the floors, while the second member multiplied by the same factor represents the weight of the columns, Thus we Fiy. 7. —Turret.—Cross Sectional Elevation. have for the weight of the skeleton steel for such a building, having a floor area of 10,000 square feet and 15 stories high, 2,400,000 pounds of beam work and iT } iit _ Fig. 6.— Turret.— Sectional Side Elevation. THE FAY & SCOTT UNIVERSAL TURRET LATHE. of the weight of steel required that the following for- mula can be used with sufficient accuracy for preliminary estimates: W=N F (15 plus 7/10 ), in which W is equal 1,792,000 pounds of column work, or a total of 4,192,400 pounds of steel work. As regards the cost, while this will vary somewhat, due to design, we might safely assume that unless the term 4 * construction is complicated, owing to an irregular lot line or unusual construction such as is found in thea- tres. music halls, &c., the average cost for fitting beams will seldom exceed 44 cent per pound above the price of plain material, including the painting, while for col- umn work. 194 cents per pound above the price of plain material. We have, therefore, for our building noted above, assuming the price of plain material will average 2 cents per pound, the cost of the beams would be 21, cents per pound, and that of the columns 3% cents per pound, or a total cost of the beams, $60,000, eolumns. Sd8.240, making a total amount of $118.- 940 for the steel werk, f.o.b. cars Pittsburgh, painted. To this must be added the cost of freight. hauling and erection The hauling can generally be done for 50 cents per ton, while the erection will seldom exceed $6.50 per ton. thus making the hauling and erection $7 per ton. The hauling and erection of the steel for our building would therefore be $14,672. making a total cost of $132.912 for the steel work, erected in Pittsburgh. as per your plans and specifications. These figures are kept somewhat on the safe side, and appear high to-day, owing to having used a base price of 2 cents per pound for the plain steel, which, as you know, is almost double the market price of one vear ago. Fig. 8. — Turret. THE TRON AGE. November 16 1899 dation of the Susquehanna and New Haven companies with a capital of $10,000,000. The Pennsylvania Steel Company have purchased the Lochiel Furnace at a price said to be $112,000. This fur- nace has a daily output of about 70 tons and the product has been used by the Pennsylvania Steel Company for several years. The tin plate mills of the Lalance & Grosjean Company have not been operated full time for several weeks ow- ing to the scareity of materials. This plant has a ca- pacity of about 160 gross tons per week, so that the re- quirements are not small. Steel is now coming in from the West in good quantities, but coal is scarce, the ship- pers still making the plea that they cannot get cars. The absence of sufficient coal is also causing trouble at the other mills, especially at the Pennsylvania Steel works. There is also much delay in the shipments on account of the car famine. Foundations are being laid for a large machine shop for the Pennsylvania Steel Works. It will be fitted with all the modern machinery. There has been an increase of 10 to 15 per cent. in the wages of the 1500 employees of the National Tube Com- pany at Middletown. The sale of the property of the Harrisburg Mfg. Com- Fig. 9.— Tool Block. THE FAY & SCOTT UNIVERSAL TURRET LATHE. Since writing this paper the price of steel has again advanced and the cost of our building would now be very hearly $15,000 more. a — Central Pennsylvania News. HARRISBURG, November 13, 1899.—The manufacturers of steel and iron in this territory are satisfied with the condition of the market, and they anticipate no diminu- tion of the demand for many months to come. They have looked over the ground very carefully and the fu- ture is apparently as bright with promise of still greater business as at any time within the last six months. The demand is phenomenal. Those intimately connected with the management of the Susquehanna Iron & Steel Company’s furnaces and mills in the Columbia region say that the business has largely exceeded the most en- thusiastic estimates of the promoters of the combination. The two furnaces are turnjng out about 150 tons of pig iron daily and the profit is large. The skelp and bar mills are also running to their greatest capacity at a handsome margin of profit so that the statement that the company made a clear profit of nearly $200,000 the first three months of the operation of the various plants un- der their control is readily believed here. John Q. Den- ny, the zeneral manager, is a practical ironmaster and he has the utmost faith in the future of this group of mills. No orders are being closed for the new year be- cause the company know that the prices will be higher and are not anxious to make any long time contracts. All the mills are crowded with orders. It is understood that the plan has about been agreed upon for the consoli- pany was accomplished by the receiver last Thursday. The proceeds were about $150,000. The Pennsylvania Railroad Company bought a large slice along their line, and another piece was purchased by E. B. Mitchell for an industrial plant. s. A New Southern Sheet [iill. Mention was made in these columns a short time ago of the fact that the Cumberland Steel & Tin Plate Com pany of Cumberland, Md., were erecting a new sheet mill plant near the black plate plant purchased a year ago by the American Tin Plate Company and recently closed down for good by that corporation. A local report states that the new plant is about completed and will be a four- mill sheet plant, comprising one 48 inch, one 38-inch and two 26-inch mills, with two stands of cold rolls. It will shortly be ready to operate and will employ almost, if not as Many men as were thrown out of employment by the closing down of the black plate plant. Besides the ordi- nary Bessemer sheet iron the company will make black plates for stamping and enameling, produced from sheet bars rolled from stock made in the new acid open hearth furnace recently built by William Swindell & Brothers and now in successful operation. The sheet mill building, constructed entirely of steel, is $0 x 250 feet and was erected by the Fort Pitt Bridge Works. Among the equipments is an improved Mesta pickling machine, capable of treating sheets 12 feet in length. The entire plant is lighted by electricity fur- nished by dynamos. which also drive an electric traveling crane. H. H. Dickey of Cumberland is president of the company. November 16 18% Early Rail Making in the United States.* BY JOHN FRITZ, BETHLEHEM, PA. | now prepared to suggest building a three-high mill, which I did, and the suggestion was met with a rebuff, which was not unexpected. . . . The officials called a meeting, and, after consultation with some practical iron men, decided to put up a geared two-high mill, and, by greatly increasing the speed of the rolls, the rail would ve finished in much less time, and consequently at a higher heat. which would prevent the serious trouble of rough and torn flanges. I was ordered to build a new mill, two-high, geared. Ll mpst emphatically said I would not do it, as two of the most objectionable fea- tures of the present system would still be retained. —- I consequently concluded that L would do as 1 had been compelled to do before and many times since assume authority and go ahead, which I did, and com- menced work on the patterns. The drawings had al ready been practically completed. After the pattern for the housing was well advanced Ek. Y. Townsend, the vice-president, came out to the works and I informed him of what I was doing. .’ In about a week he came to the works again. This time he was armed with a legal document opposing the spending of the money in the way it was being done. He handed me the document to read, whieh 1 did. After some friendly talk on the condition and the importance of the change pro- posed, he said: “Go ahead and build the mill as you want it.” “Do you say that officially ?” To which he replied: “I will make it official.’ And he did so. When I look back to that talk, which took place on a Sunday morning long years ago, and recall to mind Mr. Townsend and myself, with evidences of failure on all sides and surrounded by the gloom of future uncertain- ties, I cannot but feel it was a critical period in my own history as well as that of the Cambria Iron Company. To E. Y. Townsend belongs the credit not only of the introduction of the three-high rolls, but also for a large share of the subsequent marvelous prosperity of the Cambria Iron Company which followed the introduction of the three-high mill and its many accompanying im- provements. . . . At length the mill was completed and on July 3, 1857, the old mill was shut down for the last time. . . . The starting of the mill was the crucial period. There were no invitations sent out. As the heaters to a man were opposed to the new kind of a mill we did not want them about at the start. We, however. secured one of the most reasenable of them to heat the piles for a trial. We had kept the furnace hot for several days as a blind. Everything being ready we charged six piles. About 10 o'clock in the morning the first pile was drawn out of the furnace and went through the rolls without a hitch, making a perfect rail. You can judge what my feelings were as I looked upon that perfect and first rail ever made on a three-high train. . ‘ Everything worked well up to noon on Saturday, it being our custom to stop rolling at that time. About 6 o'clock in the evening Mr. Hamilton and myself left the mill. and on our way home congratulated ourselves on the fact that our long line of troubles and disappoint- ments was how over. About an hour later I heard the fire alarm whistle blow, and rushing back to the mill found it a mass of flames from one end to the other. In less than one hour's time the whole building was burned to the ground, and a story was started that the mill was a failure and that we dad burned the mill to hide our blundering mistakes. The situation of affairs on that Saturday night was such as might appall the stoutest heart. The next day being Sunday it Was devoted to rest and to thinking over the matter, On Monday morning we commenced to clear up the Wreck, all the workmen giving a full day toward it, and to begin the work of rebuilding. In four weeks from that time the mill was running and made 30,000 tons of rails without a hitch or break of any kind, thus making the Cambria Iron Company a sreat financial success, and giving them a rail plant far in advance of any other plant in the world. This posi- Uon they held, unquestioned, for both quality and quan- lity, until the revolutionary invention of Sir Henry Bes- semer came into general use. . In the construction of the three-high mill there were ow changes and improvements on the old two-high ui, Up to this time the leading spindles had a groove cut In them to weaken them, so that any extra strain ne on the rolls they would break instead of the rer the couplings were made light, so as to act as a OF safety valve. Then there was a breaking box : - the Tom an address before the Franklin Institute on the occasion celebration of its seventy-fifth anniversarv. THE IRON AGE. 5 ia placed between the screw and the roll. if there was not one of these safety devices breaking each day the pattern was made lighter. The result was some of them were breaking several times daily and were a constant source of annoyance. In building the new mill they were all mude so strong that they were not calculated to break. The breaking boxes on top of the rolls were made solid, as they were apt, when they gave way, to break the collars on the rolls, which should, if possible, be avoided. All this change was stoutly opposed by the workmen. and the foremen of the mill were much op- posed to it also. I replied that L would rather have a grand old smash up once in a while than be con- tinually breaking something and keeping the mill stand- ing half of the time and the metal wasting in the fur- nace. The mill made 30,800 tons of rails without a break of any kind, which, at that time, on iron, was nearly a venur’s work. The Introduction of the Bessemer Process, In 1864 the Bessemer process was introduced. Its in- troduction and perfection will ever remain one of the most interesting epochs in the history of the iron busi- hess, As already stated, the forge carpenter and milwright were superseded by the machinist. Immediately after the introduction of the three-high mill all the rail mills in the country were changed, and all the new ones that were built adopted the same plan. In fact, B. F. Jones, one of oldest, most practical and successful ironmasters in the country, and one of the very first to see the ad- vantages of the system, said to me that it was the com- mencement of the great improvement which took place in the iron works after 1857 which paved the way for the introduction of the Bessemer process. a Altogether the difficulties we encountered (in the in- troduction of the Bessemer process) were enough to ap- pall the bravest hearts. My brother George once said that he did not believe there was a man that ever went into the Bessemer business, that had charge and was re- sponsible for the result, who did not at times wish he had never gone into it; and, se far as my experience goes, I can fully verify it. And. further, I think, if it had not been for the interesting and exciting character of the business. that but few men would have been will- ing to endure the trouble and anxiety, and to bear the labor and danger which he and the workmen were con- stantly exposed to, long enough to have placed the busi- ness on a commercial basis. I wish to relate a little reminiscence of Alexander Lyman Holley, who was the consulting engineer of all the Bessemer steel works. We had a heat of steel get into the pit. followed by a moderate explosion, but no one was hurt. After the pit was cleaned up ready for work again I was relating to him some of our troubles, and had just turned around to go away when they let an ingot fall off the car on its way to the rolls, and it was beyond the reach of the crane. 1 said to him, “There it goes again.” He said, “ Yes, but that will lie om te It should not be forgotten that, England is the birth- place and home of the Iron and Steel Institute, and much of our success is due to the information we gained from the invaluable papers read at its meetings and the discussions that followed them. Here I wish to say that I should commit an act of ingratitude should I fail to give credit to the brave and noble workmen who throughout my long connection with the business have ever stood ready to meet any emergency, no matter what the danger or difticulty might be. ‘ Having already intimated that the United States was not the original home of the iron and steel industry. I will again refer to it. When | look back to my early days in the iron business. long, long ago, probably too long, it brings to mind one of the happiest periods of my life. After my daily labor was done I was free from all care until the next morning. After supper at half- past six, then a simple meal, I returned to the works and helped the puddler, heater or roller, as the case might be, until about 10 o’clock. At that time the practical men—puddlers, heaters and rollers—were generally for- eigners—English and Welsh. After the heats were charged in the furnaces, and while waiting for the charges to become heated, they would get their pipes and sit down on a pile of pig or puddled iron, as it hap- pened to be most convenient, and take their smoke. I would take a seat by them, and then they would tell me about the werks in England and describe how their mills were arranged, their system of rolling, the principle and construction of their puddling and heating furnaces, and how to work them. As I spent my nights in assist- ing them to puddle, heat and roll I gained a very general practical knowledge of the manufacture of wrought iron, which soon became of great value to me: and to the nights spent in the works with these hearty and generous workmen I owe much of whatever success I may have attained in after life. For the kind and generous man- ee es ee Se 6 THE IRON AGE. ner in which I was always treated by them they ever have a green spot ii my memory. In comparing this happy period of my life with what I have since many times gone through it might, with propriety, be com- pared with the “ Elysian Fields.” How little do the younger men who have charge of the great iron and steel industries know or even think of the severe mental strain, the great amount of bodily labor, the vexation, the surprises and the disappoint- ments that the men in charge experienced during the perfecting and erection of these vast establishments that are now engaged in the manufacture of iron and steel. ————— — Lake Iron Ore Matters. Dcututrn, November 12, 1899.—Your correspondent had been expecting heavy shipments late in the fall, but he was astonished, with others, when October showed up with enough to make the total to November 1 about 15,500,000 tons. November so far has been an excellent shipping month, and the total for the year will be still larger than was anticipated a week ago. The Gogebic range has now reached the total of 1892, a little under 3,000,000 tons, and will materially lead all its past rec- ords for the season. The Mesaba will make a total of about 6,600,000 tons. Freight rates have again sagged, this time to $1.25 from the head of the lakes. This is due solely to a lack of demand for tonnage for grain, and the slacking of ore movement by the shipment of all stocks. Grain is moving in a trifling way, there seeming to be no demand for export or Eastern .consumption. One of the exporters in Duluth recently stated to the writer that they were going into the winter after the most unsatisfactory season ever encountered. There is nothing to be told as to next year’s rates from this pres- ent lapse of price, for there is likely to be in the spring not less than 2,000,000 tons of wheat alone at Lake Supe- rior ports and tributary country elevators that must then be moved at some price. This is not mentioning the coarse grain on Lake Superior and wheat and other grains at Chicago, all of which are expected to be record breaking quantities. Coal is now coming West very slowly, for the alleged reason that there is not enough being moved from mines to Eastern lake docks, and there will be a shortage of fuel in the West the coming winter, which will necessitate very heavy shipments West in 1900. While we have “dun gone expanded” in one di- rection, we have also expanded in the merchandise move- ment to an extent that will maintain freights another year at a high notch. There is little to report among the mines this week. They are closing up the season, and not much of an im- portant nature is under way. Managers are _ too busy finishing and preparing for the coming onslaught on their reserves to get into new deals, and talk but lit- tle. In the Marquette section some things are transpir- ing. Laughlin & Co., Pittsburgh, who are exploring near Mountain Lake, have found such satisfactory indica- tions that they have started a shaft house. Their explo- ratory shaft there is 100 feet deep. The Cleveland Cliffs Company are working hard to prepare the Michigamme mine for resumption, and unwatering begins shortly. The American Mining Company will put a drill on the Adams exploration north of Jackson at once. Tracks to the mines at Cascade will be built by the Chicago & Northwestern, indicating added business there another season. The Allen, Loraine and Jones are the properties to be reached. These have not been shippers. Captain Samuel Mitchell, manager of the Negaunee mine, has resigned, as he wished to do when the American Mining Company took charge. He was prevailed upon to stay a while. Captain Mitchell is perhaps interested, indi- rectly at least, in some new aeals on the Vermillion range, and may become identified with them later. The Cleveland Cliffs Company have under construction a rock crusher to take chunks 30-inch cube. Such a ma- chine will weigh 68 tons, will have a jaw of 10 tons weight and a shaft 11 inches solid steel diameter. It will be similar to those of the Minnesota Iron Company at Soudan. In the Menominee district Oglebay, Norton & Co. have taken the May mine. The deal has been in pros- pect for some time, but it is now closed. This gives this company four mines, Alpha, May, Hollister and Bristol, besides some prospects, all near Crystal Falls. The Min- nesota [ron Company are examining the Porter lands, near Crystal Falls, on which they have had options for some menths at a 5-cent royalty for all ores. Ballou Mining Company are building a track to their mine. The Duluth blast furnace is making a Bessemer pig by the use of all Mesaba ore of low iron content, its ore running about 55 to 56 per cent. Williams is the main portion of the mixture. So far there has been no slip or other trouble with the ore in the furnace. Though the furnace is new and the force is untrained the 12-hour November 16, 1899 output is running on this ore as high as 80 tons, which will be considerably bettered later. The results are en- couraging. Work is being carried on steadily with the copper propositions at the west end of the Keewenaw forma- tion, a few miles south of the west end of Lake Supe- rior. Results are such as to encourage prospectors to continue and they expect to work all winter on several properties. Fifty or sixty miles south of the west end of the lake copper rock is also being tested and careful ex- plorations are under way. On the north shore of the lake, north of the Canadian line, copper outcrops of ap- parently high value have recently been found, and are under exploration now. It is an interesting fact that these latter are in a conglomerate rock, similar to that of Calumet. Some important zine deals are also under way in the same locality; and there is a very remarkable awakening of interest in the mineral resources of the district from the northernmost point of Lake Superior westward to the Lake of the Woods. A railroad is now traversing that district, and it will open most of the min- ing camps. Galena has been found near Swanzey, Marquette range, and explorations are under way there. D. E. W. Oe The World’s Production of Iron Ore and Coal. The following table, compiled by the American Iron & Steel Association, gives the production of iron ore and coal in all countries in 1898, or for the latest year for which complete statistics are available. English tons of 2240 pounds are used in giving the production of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Cuba, India, New South Wales, and other Australasia, and “ other coun- tries,’ and metric tons of 2204 pounds are used for alk other countries, metric tons being used as the equivalent of English tons in ascertaining the total production for all countries: --——— Iron ore. — —Coal and lignite.-— Fercent- Percent- Countries. Years Tons age. Years, Tons age. United States........ 1898 19,278,369 26.17 1898 196.405.9538 29.63 Great Britain . 1898 14,176,988 19.24 1898 202,054,516 30.48 Germany and Lux- emburg........+.++.. 1898 15,893,246 21.57 1898 130,928,490 19.75 PBs vcs <cenwes 1897 4,582,236 6 22 1898 32,489,786 4,89 Belgium..... —e 240,774 0.33 1848 22,074,093 3.33 Austria-Hungary.... 1897 3.335,005 4.43 1897 35,939,417 5.42 tics ch eshn hen ese 1897 4,107,470 5.58 1898 12,862,033 1.94 Sweden. ............. 1898 2,302,914 3.13 1898 236,277 0.04 utkswane we. 1898 7,125,600 9.67 1898 2,526,600 0 38 Saswegndss*>s. 1897 200,709 0.27 1897 $14,222 0 05 Canada........ coe. 18698 51,929 0.07 1898 3,725,585 0 56 ED Sand cesenacs .. 1898 164,077 0.22 cate bos Ae obo = South African Re- Es 620502 +02<00% = ARISE 1898 1,907,808 0 29 |) Sa .. 1897 43,314 0 06 1898 4,568,880 0.69 Greece...... 1898 501,038 0.68 1898 17.300 5 ais New South Wales.... 1897 254 owes 1898 4,736,000 0.72 Other Australasia... ah ae ays 1897 1,488,616 0.2 eee wee. 18% 27,421 0.04 1897 6,000,000 0.91 Algeria Sci6 1897 441,467 0 60 fs ate et ea Other countries REARS 1898 1,197,259 1.62 1898 4,593,424 0 69 Totala........ +... ce. 73,670,000 100.00 .... 662,820,000 100.00 $$? The American Steel & Wire Company, at Pittsburgh, have organized the employees into a number of fire com- panies, with all the latest fire fighting apparatus at their command and a perfect alarm system in all their works. Instead of carrying heavy insurance on the different plants in the Pittsburgh district the money will be used to equip the tire departments, by which a large saving is expected to be effected. The Riter-Conley Mfg. Company of Pittsburgh have secured an order for six steei oil tanks, each having a eapacity of 25.000 gallons, for the Dordtsche Petroleum Maatschappy of Sourabaya, Japan. lron ore deposits, described as being extremely rich and of large extent, have been discovered at Pojen, in Hungary. The deposits are said to occur in a mountain of about 3000 feet hight. The ore appears at the surface in many places, and, it is claimed, contains no less than 40 per cent. of metallic iron. It is in contemplation to erect large iron works on the spot. The conference between a special committee of the National Founders’ Association and the Executive Com- mittee of the Iron Molders’ Association of North Amer- ica held a two day session at Detroit, Mich., last week. The question of the estabiishment of a minimum rate of wages, which occupied a greater part of the time, was left unsettled, and it was decided to refer the question back to the organization which the committees repre- sented, to he thoroughly discussed and matured before another joint conference. RTT ER Aes acer : ¢ r r 4 ‘ SER ROPE November 16, 1599 The Kelly Adjustable Crank Shaper. The R. A. Kelly Machine Company of Xenia, Ohio, have perfected a 20-inch crank shaper, as here illus- trated. The ram has a long bearing surface, even at full stroke, and will not spring under the heaviest cut. The table is of the box pattern, and has horizontal T slots on the left hand side fer bolting work which cannot be held in a vise. The right hand side has two vertical T slots and V-shaped groove in the center, thereby en- abling the operator to bolt a shaft or other cylindrical piece of work which is to be planed while held in an upright position. A vise is held in a horizontal slot on the same side. The table can be detached from the ma- chine and work bolted directly to the apron. The cross THE [RON AGE. 7 chased and construction on the line is expected to begin in the spring. The line is to extend across country from the Monongahela River at Thompson Station to Finley- ville in Washington County on the Baltimore & Ohio, and will be about 30 miles long. The right of way is that secured by the Mellons some time ago. The con- struction for the most part will be at grade and no very material cuts and fills will be necessary. Furnace slag from Carnegie Works will be taken along the route this winter and deposited for a roadbed, similar to that of the Bessemer and the Union Railway. The claim is made that a Minneapolis chemist has succeeded in coking North Dakota lignite by a process involving so reasonable a cost of production as to excite THE KELLY ADJUSTABLE CRANK SHAPER. rail is made long so as to give the table sufficient travel. The apron has a dovetail slide on the bottom, where it is connected with the cross rail. The cross feed is posi- tive and easy in operation. The stroke can be changed while the machine is in motion. The crank motion consists of a rack and wrist, slid- ing on a cut gear, and which can be changed from the outside. Special effort has been made in the design of the machine to bring the crank which transmits motion to the rocker arm as high as possible, thereby imparting the maximum power to the ram while taking a cut. The main dimensions are: Length of stroke, 20 inches; au- tomatic cross traverse, 27 inches; vertical adjustment, 18 inches; bearing of ram in the slide at full stroke, 29 inches; top of table, 12 x 12 inches; weight, 2200 pounds. _ The Monongahela Southern Railroad, at Pittsburgn, is to be built as a feeder to the Pittsburgh, Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad. Rights of way have been pur- much hepe among those locally interested of the early utilization of this fuel, which exists in large deposits. It would be remarkable, indeed, if the discovery at Min- neapolis and the Leiter experiments at Chicago should both provide methods of converting this hitherto almost worthless material into a valuable commercial product. The material development of the Northwest would be wonderfully stimulated by the opening up of a native supply of fuel not only for domestic but for metallurgical purposes. The annual report of the United States Post Office De- partment for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1899, just made public, shows a volume of transactions aggregat- ing about $640,000,000 for the fiscal year. The revenues of the postal service were $95,021,384, and the expend- itures $101,632,161, while the volume of money order transactions was $442,483,354. Every division of the business of the Department showed a large increase. = gage eRe ————————————————eee—— pf eee oe 8 THE IRON AGE. New Phases in the Iron Trade.* BY CHARLES KIRCHHOFF, NEW YORK. To every one in the :ron trade it is imperative to study, from the standpoint of his own interests, the recent developments in the industry. That they are far reach ing and must influence every departwent of it is obvious. Some of these developments have been of gradual growth and have reached an acute stage only lately; others have come upon us very suddenly. The recent enormous rise in prices, due to a great expansion in the demand, may temporarily obscure their effect, but the day is connng when the new conditions will exert a paramount 1nflu- ence. For the territory of which Philadelphia is tbe manufacturing and finaocial center, there way be much of menace inthe two principal phases which are worthy f discussion to-night, the tendency toward the control back to the raw material and the crystallizing of the industry into very large units. Let us turn first to the policy of the contrcl of raw materials. That tendency has always existed. In the olden days the charcoal iron maker had great estates. He was forced not alone to control his fuel and his ore, but he also raised a large share of the subsistence of his work- men. Many of our modern plants bave risen to their present magnitude upon foundations similarly laid, but on the whole, in the Central West, the tendency during recent decades has been more and more toward a depend- ence on the part of the iron maker upon others for ore and for coke. So far as the latter is concerned, the consistent and bold pohcy of Hemy C. Frick during times of fearful depression in accumulating coke property was a revelation to the trade. it culminated in bis alliance with Andrew Carnegie It was a distinct effort to secure a natural monopoly— in the sense that a tangible, indisputable advantage over rival natural resources confers at least a partial monopoly within the limits of that advantage. Contrary to the prevalent opinion, which assigns to the Connellsville region quality as its chief claim to pre-eminence, it is really the low cost of mining the coal and the low cost of hauling the coke to market which gives it the position which it holds. One point should not be overlooked from the stand point of the capitalist deSiring to intrench himself behind a natural monopoly, and that is that the geological features of a coal bed make it possible to determine quite accurately the magnitude of the supply. Thé extent of a field like the Connellsville region can be determined almost to the acre. It is not many years since that during a talk with the greatest iron master of this country the writer brought up the question of acquiring ore property. a policy which a great Western interest was then pursuing vigorously. He then made the point that such a course was not wise, since one took the risks that some prospector prowling in the wilderness might discover deposits overshadowing those just purchased at a heavy cost; that therefore risks were involved which no manufacturer should take. Later on, when his first parchases of Lake Superior ore property were made, this conversation was recalled and an explana- tion of the change of policy was asked. It was met with the reply that the chances of outdoing the more recently discovered mines were too slim to be counted a serious risk. The magnitude of the successive discoveries in the Gobegic, Mesaba and Vermillion ranges at first discour- aged acquisitions: nuw a perfect craze seems to bave come over the leading interests, with one exception. The great producing interests seem to be determined to cheapen cost by eliminating all intermediate profits, and in that manner get down to a fighting cost, which wil) assure to them vitality when competitors at home or abroad are gasping in the throes of bankruptcy. The same idea underlies the effort to control the transportation from the moment the mine car is loaded to the minute when the ore and fuel are automatically charged into the furnace. Apparently this must lead to very high fixed charges, crushing in times of dullness and depression. The posi- tion of one large interest in recent years seems to point clearly to the fact that danger does lurk in that direction. But on the whole aud in the majority of instances these fixed charges are in reality less than the aggregate of former profits of individual enterprises along the chain, averaging them over a series of years. It is more probable that exploration and development work can be carried on more systematically and that pro duction can be cheapened. The comprehensive work done by the Minnesota Iron Company on the Mesaba and Vermillion ranges may be cited as a brilliant example of what can be done in this direction. One point which is made as a justification of the policy of controlling materials from the ground up is that the management is freed from the uncertainties of the supply *An adress Lefore the Metal Section of the Manufactvrers’ Club of Philadelphia, November 7, 1808 November 16, 1899 and the often vivlent fluctuations in the prices of raw materials; that witu definite knowleage of this great fac- tor in the cost sheets a tar bruader and more far sighted plan in sellimg product may be developed. That, it is naturally claimed. 1s of even greater uuportance in deal- ing wath the export trade than it is with our own domestic markets. A better adjustment between those strains on the indi- vidual links of production 1s possible which arise from the often v.olent flactuations in the demand. Fur many technical financial and administrative reasons the pro- duction ot all great manufacture