The Iron Age 1905-02-02: Vol 75 Iss 5

HE P~S06, "a1 vO 45 id, : AG [RO ee F A Review of the Hardware, Iron; Machinery and Metal Trades. published every Thursday Morning by David Williams Co., 232-238 William St.. New York, Vol. 75: No. 5 Reading Matter Contents....... page 431 |phabetical Index to Advertisers ‘‘ 237]| jassified List of Advertisers.... ‘‘ 229 a and Subscription Rates “ 236 FOISLEr Pulleys turned inside and out On their own center. . x 2 SY at SS SS \ as Y Forster Pulley Works, ae Cuba, N. Y. — AMERICAN MFG. CO., 65 Wall Street, N. Y. SEE PAGE 150. THE BRISTOL COMPANY, Waterbury, Conn. Bristol’s Recording Instruments. For Pressure Zocpperatare and Electricity Silver Medal, Paris Exposition. All Ranges, Low Prices, and Guar- anteed. Send for ireulars [AMSON SPOT CORD a “2 rot Fie ee ae ee i ee —- acl Z = me a) " “La — > —_ es Also Linen and Italian Hemp Sash Cord, SAMSON CORDAGE WORKS, Boston, Mass. TURNBUCKLES,. a Branch Office, 11 Broadway, New York. jeveland City Forge and IronCo., - Cleveland, O. rcouRnN BU CHE UES. ane MERRILL BROS., ikem 465 to 471 Kent Ave Brooklyn, E.D.. N.Y OUNDRY IRON. Hrard Building, Phila, ILLING & CRAN corpo waved Tite. Boston An all time and New York, Thursday, February 2, 1905. $8 00 a Year, including Postage. Single Copies, 15 Cents. of U. M. C. Short Range Shells is the same as regular Shells. For short range or bush shooting they are superior, for at 25 yards they give practically a 40-yard pattern and penetration. WM. C0. Show ; nat Shula are universally popular. One Sportsman writes: « ‘* Having tried many shot spreading devices I was skepti- cal of the new U. M.C. Short Range Shells. Experience in the field shows them to be all you claim. They kill but never mutilate.’’ The Union Metallic Cartridge Company, Agency, 313 Broadway, New York City, N. Y. BRIDGEPORT, CONN. “°CAHALL BOILERS *% « CAPEWELL HORSE NAILS “THE BEST IN THE WORLD HIGHEST AWARD IN ALL COMPETITIONS GOLD MEDAL LOUISIANA PURCHASE EXPOSITION St. Louis, 1904 MADE BY THE CAPEWELL HORSE NAIL CO., Hartford, Conn. JENKINS BROS. VALVES Every valve bearing the name and Trade Mark shown in cut is sold under the positive guarantee that if it is not perfectly tight, or does not hold steam, oils, acids, water, or other fluids longer than any other valve, it may be returned and money will be refunded. Write for booklet,—‘‘ Valve Troubles.’’ JENHINS BROS., New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, London. All Round Favorite (Water a and Rall Delivery) See AMERICAN SHEET & TIN THE AMERICAN TUBE & STAMPING COMPANY SEE BRIDGEPORT, Conn. PAGE “§wmedon” Gold Rolled Steel ie, Drawing »« Stampin ng MAGNOLIA METAL. Best Anti-Friction Metal for all Machinery Bearings. Pac-Simile of Bar. PLATE COMPANY’S ienedineas ~ MAGNOLIA METAL CO. Ad. on Page 26 Owners and Sole Manufacturers, 113-118 Bank Street, $e Francisco, Montreal, Boston, and Pittaba We manufacture ali grades of Babbitt Metals a au Chicago, Fisher Bidg. competitive prices. NEW YORK. et PR POM sen re a Ae ale Laledicae ___ THE IRON AGE SHEET | THE PLUME & ATWOOD Me6, Co D pRass ee Sheet and Roll Brass ( SH peel oomfiliipae GERM AN ( SHEET eee GILDING METAL, COPPER Rivers ROD Pins, Brass Butt Hinges, Jack Chain, Kero. SILVER (ime "=e ght Pea SS rasta La dal |LOW BRASS, SHEET BRONZE, |% MURRAY sT., NEW YorK s ae Ta 0 RAS 144 HIGH ST., BOSTON. PS SEAMLESS BRASS AND COPPER seniena ak eto Bele See“ ee | TUBING. BRAZED BRASS AND| soumo wns: iat, BRONZE TUBING. :::::::: an races SCOVILL MFG. CO. Randolph-Clowes Ca WATERBURY BRASS CO.) “gzgasr” WATERBURY, CONN. WATERBURY, CONN. MANUFACTURERS OF 99 John St., New York. Providence, R. |. peazeo brass « copper ¢|Bldgepon Deoxidized Browze & BRAZED BRASS & COPPER Metal Go., TUBES. SEAMLESS BRASS BRIDGEPORT, GONN. Automobile Castings a Specialty. Rolls, Rods, Bolts and Tubes, Brass Shells, Cups, Hinges, Buttons, Lamp Goods. Special Brass Goods to Order. FACTORIES: WATERBURY, CONN. Depots & COPPER TUBES CHICAGO, TO 36 IN. DIAM. NEW YORK, BOSTON. New York Office, 253 Broadway, Postal High Tensile Strength. | unpunmane Bronze and Aluminum Alloys. || Henry Souther Engineering Co, Write Us. HARTFORD, CONN. Consulting ay eae and Anal yst 8. Complete Physical Testing Laboratory; Expert Matthiessen & Hegeler Zinc Co., §|—————= SMELTERS OF SPELTER Aru I. Rutter y Ch. SHEET ZINC AND SULPHURIC ACID. oan earner: Special Sizes of Zinc cut to order. Rolled Battery Plates. NEW YORK. F Selected Plates for Etchers’ and Lithographers’ use. Selected Sheets for Paper and Card Makers’ use. Small tubing in Brass, Copper, Stove and Washboard Blanks. Steel, Aluminum, German Silver, &c. Sheet Brass, Copper and Ger- ZINCS FOR LECLANCHE BATTERY. man Silver. Copper, Brass and cusumarmanammanamasnaimmntama nn | nen: iver Wire, Bryased and Seamless Brass and Copper Tube. aL ANY Faw nase i ' aay a kl Copper and Brass Rod. | Ld ites |THE BRIDGEPORT BRASS CO, 8s-74 West Monroe St. Chicago. BRIDGEPORT, CONN. EE TUNE COMERS TCG TM eta mam | O° TY Oo ow Sy Bin tne rth ois — hia Ww. G. ROWELL a ee Bridgeport, Conn. AND + TUBING HENDRICKS BROTHERS a WIRE Belleville Copper Rolling Mills, | sass ano copper coon: In Great Varieties. MANUFACTURERS OF Braziers’ Bolt and Sheathing GEORGE KROUSE COPPER, HEAVY CASTINGS Cc Ic) WA7 RIV ET * Manufacturer of all kinds of lien ee ae = = Brass and Composition Casting’. Ingot Copper, Block Tin, Spelter, Lead, Antimony, etc. Brazing Metals, Hard Composition and 49 CLIFF ST., NEW YORK. : Phosphor Bronze Castings A Speciallty. 160 to 154 Morgan Street, JERSEY CITY. '\. a ee a ee ee ee THE IRON AGE New York, Thursday, February 2, 1905. The Wagner Cold Saws. Two new types of circular saws for cutting cold metals have recently been designed at the works of Gus- tave Wagner, Reutlingen, Germany. Their construction and working are radically different from anything to be found in this country. In each of them the shaft of the circular saw blade revolves in a swiveling head carried on the end of a sliding support which is square in sec- tion and is traveled axially to feed the saw. The swivel- ing head may be fixed at any angle by a binding screw, the setting being assisted by a graduated circle. The drive of the saw is obtained from a spindle within the square supporting member, which carries a tempered Tee IRon AGE Fig. 1.—The No. 2 Cold Saw Built by steel worm, engaging a worm wheel keyed on the saw shaft. The spindle at the driven end is provided with a tight and a loose pulley and an eccentric which drives the feeding mechanism. The eccentric actuates a rocker arm carrying a pawl which revolves a ratchet wheel keyed to a feed spindle. The latter extends through a tail projecting vertically from the rear end of the square supporting member and ends in a screw within a fixed pedestal bearing on the frame. As the feed spindle re- volves the saw is fed forward against the work. The screw works in a long nut on the upper face of which a rack is cut, and above the nut is a small pinion engaging the rack on the nut. This pinion is secured to a lever carrying a counterpoise and holds the nut yieldingly against the forward end of its housing. When the pres- sure against the saw blade increases, due to its encoun- tering a harder or a larger section in the work, the nut yields more or less and retards the feed, simultaneously raising the counterpoise. As soon as the work becomes lighter the descending of the weight makes up for the loss in the feed. As a result of this action every one of the teeth of the saw performs the same amount of work, even when the blade is not quite circular or is out of cen- ter. It also avoids the breaking of the blade when it is overworked, as the device is self acting. When a cutting job is completed the feed is stopped altogether by the throwing aside of the pawl. The blade can be fitted on either end of the saw shaft to cut at angles either side of the vertical. The saw shaft Gustave Wagner, Reutlingen, Germany revolves in adjustable copper bearings. The worm wheel} is of phosphor bronze and revolves in an oil bath. The saw blade is lubricated and cooled by dipping in a basin of soap suds in the base of the machine. The small type of the machine, shown in Fig. 2, is built with a vise, and the larger one, Fig. 1, with a sliding table, allowing the use of a milling cutter for machining surfaces. The apparatus furnished with the machine for hold- ing the work operates in a simple and rapid manner and contains two jaws, which are fixed on the main bed and the sliding table and are fitted with prismatic grooves to hold round irons or small girders and U irons of various sections in a vertical position. ‘The piece to be cut is strongly gripped, which is a protection against damage to the saw blade in case of too rapid feeding. The saw £ 374 blade meets the work in the most favorable position, and the cutting is done in the quickest possible time. Round irons and pieces of small section can be tied up in bundles and a number cut at one operation. The machine illustrated in Fig. 2 is provided with a saw blade about 16 inches in diameter and will cut a sec- tion up to about 5 x 12 inches. The machine complete, as illustrated, weighs about 1700 pounds. lustrated in Fig. 1 carries a saw 24 and will cut a section 8 x 20 inches. guided in dovetail ways and bevel gears. The machine il- inches in diameter The sliding table is and can be shifted by a screw The arrangement is such that there is no operating handle which can come in the way of the The No, 1 Reutlingen, Germany. Cold Saw Built by Gustave Wagner, piece which is being cut. Both types of machine can be directly driven by electric motors or by gear drive in place of the belt arrangement which is shown in the en- gravings. ———_.3--o—_—____. The Standard Underground Cable Company.—The abnual meeting of this company was held in its offices in the Westinghouse Building, Pittsburgh, last week. De- spite the general depression in business, the orders re- ceived were larger in 1904 than in the preceding year, but competition was keener, and generally lower prices on products prevailed. The business for the year amounted to $8,571,553, which represented the combined output of all the plants of the company, not counting the extra rods rolled for the company’s copper wire mills. The including of references to rod and wire mills, weath- er proof factory, insulating wire factory and cable fac- tories gives some idea of the way in which this business has extended during the past few years. Out of the net earnings the usual 12 per cent. dividends have been paid, amounting to about $240,000, and a large sum was applied to surplus. The old officers were re-elected, consisting of Mark W. Watson, president, and Joseph W. Marsh, vice- president and general manager. ZToss ><-se. The output of the Dominion Iron & Steel Company, Sydney, C. B., for 1904, is stated to have amounted to 143,115 gross tons of steel of all kinds and 96,601 tons of pig iron. The company imported 222,000 tons of iron ore for use in blast furnaces. There were consumed 385,- THE IRON AGE February 2, 1905 000 tons of coal, mostly in the manufacture of coke, of which the production was 170,000 tons. The production of tar amounted to 1,650,153 gallons: of sulphate of am- monia, 846,557 pounds; of sulphuric acid, 2631 tons. ——_#-+e —— Pacific Coast Trade Notes. SAN FRANcisco, CAL., January 21, 1905.—The prospect for good crops continues very promising. We have had suf ficient but not copious rains at intervals for the past two weeks. The South has hadample share as well as the North, and the conclusion of the United States Weather Bureau is that crops of all kinds will be very large this year. There a lull in trade for the past couple of weeks, as there generally is at this season, but business men are almost unanimous in the opinion that 1905 will be a much inore successful business year than 1904. <A leading hard- ware jobber of this city says that, although 1904 was a good year, his conclusion is that 1905 will be very much better. He says that, whereas California used to depend first on gold and then on wheat, it is no longer what has been called a one-crop country. Hence there cannot be in these days a total failure of crops. The new year promises a large demand for structural Several buildings have already been projected that will have steel frames, and in the case of one, the Mana- dock, on Market street, between the Palace Hotel and the Hxraminer Building, a contract has been let for $100,000 worth of structural steel for the building, which will cost altogether upward of $1,000,000. Another building for which a great deal of money will be spent in the fitting up is the Fairmount Hotel on Nob Hill. The retail hardware dealers held their annual convention in Stockton this week. The retailers’ organiza- tion has grown with great rapidity during the past few years, and there is no longer any feeling of conflicting in- terests between the jobber and the man who brings him in contact with the public, both classes working together for the common good. The proposed revision of the law on transportation brings up again the old question of rates from seaboard to seaboard, from New York and Philadelphia to San Fran- cisco, Portland, Seattle, Tacoma, Los Angeles, &c. These rates by rail are necessarily lower comparatively than those from interior points, such as Chicago and St. Louis, to the Pacific Coast, and any change in the law which would bring about mileage rates would be resented by the withdrawal of a large portion of freight from rail to sail and steam. As regards the matter of rebates, which at one time prevailed extensively, the practice created such dissatisfaction after a few years’ trial by the roads that it was given up. A’ totally independent question is the difference between carload and less than carload rates, which is founded on purely business principles, and which besides protects the trade of the coast from the jobbers of the Central West. The maintenance of the differential will be fought for by the hardware and steel and iron mer- chants of this coast. Two deeds were placed on record this week by which James Smith, Jr., receiver of the United States Ship- building Company, transfers to George R. Sheldon the real and personal property of the Union Iron Works. This transfer is in accordance with the plans for reorganization published some time since. This is satisfactory to every- body interested, except perhaps the citizens of San Fran- cisco, who are by no means pleased at seeing the control of this plant pass definitely into the hands of outside parties. True, no less a person than Mr. Schwab assured us that the Union Iron Works as an institution would in the future eclipse the splendors of the past; but for all that, all on this side of the Sierras would much sooner see it as it used to be under the control of our home capi- talist. Every San Franciscan feels a personal interest in its welfare. Imports for January thus far have not been very large. The export trade by sea has been light also. Con- siderable shipments of machinery, including a good many gas and oil engines manufactured here, have been sent by steamer lately to Australia. The Sierra had quite a number on her last trip. Exports to the Orient have fallen off since the beginning of December. a. & Es has been steel. February 2, 1905 The Merrill Improved Steam Drop Hammer. The new features in the drop hammer herewith illus trated and manufactured by E. W. Merrill, Jr., Brooklyn, N. Y., are mainly in the part which is known as the lifter—i. e., the mechanism for raising the hammer. In its improved form the. lifter may be placed over any style of drop hammer and the hold-up latch, ordinarily fast ened to the upright and engaging the hammer to hold it at different hights, is done away with. By dispensing with this latch the noise and shock upon the working a 7 SES < el Ve af th The Merrill Improved Semi-Rotary Steam Drop Hammer. parts and the consequent wear and tear are eliminated. The result is a comparatively noiseless drop hammer, the only perceptible sound being that caused by the blow when the hammer is working. In place of the latch there is now substituted a brake securely fastened to the lifting shaft. This brake works in conjunction with the main valve, which operates the lifter. and the instant the lifting shaft stops the brake is automatically applied, securely holding the shaft in the position at which it is set to stop, with the hammer suspended. The hold-up brake is released at will by a small controlling valve, which is connected to the foot treadie by a light chain or rod. When the treadle is THE IRON AGE 375 kept depressed the hammer will deliver repeated blows until the foot is removed, or a single blow may be given by releasing the treadle after the hammer strikes. It is also possible to strike a suppressed blow when the treadle is depressed but slightly. If for any reason the supply of steam or compressed air should be interrupted, the hammer cannot fall, even though the treadle be de- pressed, as steam or air pressure is required to operate the controlling valve before the hammer can drop. \s the entire operating mechanism of the lifter is self contained on the one bed plate it can be placed over any style of drop hammer. These lifters can be con- structed to raise the hammer as high as 8 feet and at the same time are adjustable to any intermediate hight of fall, even to a drop as low as 6 inches. The change to make the hammer trip automatically at any hight between the lowest and highest limits of fall requires only a few turns of a small turnbuckle, and may be made in the fraction of a minute. This adjust- ment to any hight of fall cannot be made while the ham- mer is in operation. The number of blows delivered per minute depends upon the steam or air pressure. Under ordinary conditions 100 blows per minute may be deliv- ered with a 1-foot fall, 75 blows with a 2-foot fall, 60 blows with a 3-foot fall, and so on proportionately for greater distances of drop. When setting the dies the hammer can be lowered and held rigidly suspended in any desired position, or gently lowered until the faces of the dies meet. When the ham- mer is held stationary in a raised position steam is not consumed, as the tension upon the brake which holds the lifting shaft is applied by two powerful compression springs. The drop can be worked without much effort on the part of the operator, as it requires but a slight pressure upon the treadle to open the brake valve. The motive power being steam or compressed air it is possible to place the machine in any convenient location where a supply pipe can be carried to it. By this method of lifting it is possible to successfully raise very heavy hammers. Forgings 240 pounds each have been formed from the solid by hammers raised in this manner. The hammer delivers a free and heavy blow, as there is nothing to retard its fall. The catch- ing of the hammer on the rebound is instantaneous, which eliminates all drag and a double blow after the dies strike. The valves and working parts do not re- quire adjustment from time to time, consequently skilled labor is not necessary for its operation. —_—_@--o—___- The Milan International Exhibition, 1906.—The managers of this proposed world’s fair have brought to the notice of the Italian Minister of Agriculture, Indus- try and Commerce the necessity of formulating special legislative provisions (as has been done before in the case of all previous international exhibitions) to give protection to everything that will be sent to the exhibi- tion from abroad. The derogation is asked of Articles 50, 64 and 68 of the law on Italian patent rights, &c., and suspending the prohibition of introduction into the kingdom of objects similar to those protected in the kingdom, limiting the right to sequester infringements or articles bearing forbidden marks to the sole cases in which the person who provokes the sequestration holds the rights in the same country as the person who is to suffer the sequestration. The Minister has taken the mat- ter into consideration. ——___.-- o————____ London bank clearings have shown a steady increase during the last decade, but their growth is small as com- pared with the increase in New York clearings during the same period. In 1896 the clearings in New York amount- ed to $28,870,000,000, while the clearings in London were $36,890,000,000. In the year 1898, for the first time in history, the clearings in New York exceeded the clear- ings in London. In no year since then have the London clearings amounted to as large a total as the clearings in New York. Last year the clearings in New York amounted to $68,649,000,000, as compared with $51,447,- 000,000 in London. The bank clearings in New York are now greater than in any other city in the world. iso tae ae + weer eae re 376 THE IRON AGE German View of American Industry. Frank H. Mason, United States consul general at Berlin, Germany, makes the following report to the De- partment of Commerce and Labor: The throng of German engineers, mechanics, scientists, educators, merchants and manufacturers who went to America during the past summer, not only to see the Louisiana Purchase Exposition but to travel over the United States and examine with expert intelligence the details of American railroad management and our agri- cultural and industrial methods, are now returning and relating to their neighbors and colleagues what they have seen. One can hardly take up a German newspaper without finding a more or less extended report of what some one of these clever observers had found and learned in the United States, and has related to his verein or lo- cal chamber of commerce, with his comments and con- clusions as to what it All means to Germany. It has been no mere pleasure trip to these thoughtful gentlemen, but an earnest, serious effort to learn everything possible of the real productive and commercial strength of our country, and what Germany will have to meet and com- pete with in the future struggle for a growing share in the world’s trade. German Experts Find Defects in Our System, It is quite worthy of note that the general tone of these reports is distinctly reassuring to the hearers be- fore whom they have been delivered. While admitting freely the boundless resources of our country, the energy, industry and unsurpassed mechanical skill of the peo- ple, the superiority of our factory system, the speed and cheapness of rail transportation, and the restless, pro- gressive spirit which is always looking for a new and better machine or method than the one already in use, the German experts find, or think they have found, de- fects in many parts of the American system, which unless reformed will continue to weaken our country’s grasp upon international trade and promote the interests of competing nations. Without necessarily concurring in these criticisms, it may be of timely interest to hear and consider briefly what they are. There has been noticed to begin with on the part of our people a general feeling of complacent satisfaction with everything American, a secure conviction that what- ever is done or produced by them is the best, and that they have only to keep on as they have begun to have the future securely in their hands. There is, say these critics, a pervading ignorance and indifference about everything outside the United States that from the Ger- man standpoint will be, unless corrected, a serious handi- cap in our quest for foreign trade. The careless confi- dence with which agents and salesmen are sent abroad, with no special preparation and with no knowledge of any language but their own, to do business in countries where only a trifling percentage of the population un- derstands English, strikes these careful, methodical Euro- pean experts as amazing. The meagerness of technical education, the trifling annual contingent of chemists, en- gineers, educated dyers, weavers and electricians, as compared with the throng of lawyers, physicians, den- tists and unspecialized graduates turned out by our col- leges and universities, seems to them shortsighted and improvident. The high standing and excellence of a half dozen great technical schools in the United States are frankly conceded, but what are these in a country of 80,000,000 of people in which practically every student is destined for an active and useful life? Absence of Special Commercial Training. But most surprising of all appeared to the German visitors the absence of any adequate system of special education for commerce, banking and foreign trade. They consider our so-called commercial colleges, where young men with a district or grammar school education are rushed through a three months’ course of bookkeeping and commercial usages, as little better than a farce. One of the visitors, a stadtrath and professor of com- mercial ethics, talked with some of the students of such an institution in one of the Eastern cities, and was sur- prised at their limited and superficial knowledge, their February 2, 1905 ignorance of languages, and nearly everything else out- side the United States, and their cheerful confidence that their 10 weeks at the “college” would equip them for success anywhere. Reduced to simplest terms, these in- vestigators generally conclude that the reliance on a general and more or less superficial education, together with natural adaptability, to fit young men for almost every walk in life, and the lack of specialized study in physical science, modern languages and the industrial arts, will if persisted in neutralize much of the advantage which our country enjoys through natural resources and advantageous geographical position for the South Amer- ican, Mexican and Asiatic trade. They note also the enormous disparity between American and European wages, the high rates charged by express companies, and the general heavy cost of handling business in the United States, and conclude that on the whole the “ American danger ”’ has been greatly exaggerated, and that a stead- fast adherence by Germany to the educational system and commercial methods now in practice will leave the Fatherland little to fear in future competition with Amer- ican manufactured goods. In just what degree these observations are correct and the resultant conclusions logical and justified it is not the purpose of this report to inquire. Inevitably the observations which have been here roughly summa- rized were made from the German standpoint by men who might naturally overlook or misunderstand much that did not conform to their theories and traditions. But the fact that such conclusions have been declared by trained observers, after several months of close observa- tion, may well suggest the reflection whether some points in their criticism should not be taken into account. Overconfidence Our Most Dangerous Weakness. Certainly it should not continue to be truly said of our people that their most dangerous weakness is over- confidence, an undue reliance in their own skill and the innate superiority of everything American, and their con- sequent unwillingness to adapt their goods to the wants of foreign consumers, or make the systematic effort which other nations have found necessary to build up and main- tain a prosperous export trade. That this danger really exists does not rest upon the testimony of the German visitors alone. An eminent English technician who recently visited the United States was impressed with the lack of scien- tific knowledge on the part of foremen and high class operatives, and the indifference on the part of their em- ployers to the latest and highest perfections in ma- chinery. The latter portion of this criticism is confirmed by various Americans who are engaged in supplying new labor saving machines to Great Britain and Germany, and who find that progressive foreign firms in the metal industries are more enterprising than their American rivals in adopting up to date labor saving equipments of American origin. Germany and Great Britain afford especially good markets for American machinery of the best types. Not only this, but the labor conditions abroad seem to favor the use of such perfected machinery. This opens up the latest and most important fact in the whole situation, which is that the conditions of labor, espe- cially in the metal industries, are rapidly changing— have, indeed, changed in England and Germany since the great machinists’ strike in Great Britain and since the Germans have learned that it is against America, not Europe, that their industrial strength must in future be measured. An incident which illustrates this is related by a lead- ing American manufacturer of machine tools and has been published on both sides of the Atlantic. The man- ager of a large machine shop in Berlin was about to order a new machine tool, and sent to an American fac- tory sample pieces to be worked by it in order to as- certain precisely the time that would be saved and how well the work would be performed. The pieces were worked out and returned, with a report of the time occu- pied by each operation. Among others, a piece had been roughed out to the required size by an engine lathe in seven minutes. Shortly after the American manufac- turer visited the Berlin shop and was shown the written February 2, 1905 tag affixed to the piece and was told that it was absurd— that the lathe work would require at least an hour. He then offered to demonstrate that it could be done in seven minutes, the engine lathe having meanwhile arrived and having been set up ready for work. But the German fore- man said, “ No, that was unnecessary; if the Americans can do it in seven minutes we can.” Two days later the foreman reported that under his supervision the lathe had done the work in five minutes. German Ambition to Beat the Foreigner. The story is pertinent only as a proof and illustra- tion of how German shops are being supplied with the very latest and most highly perfected machinery, and how German workmen have been taught to take the American rate of production as the standard and to work up to or even beyond it. Realizing that the future pros- perity of German manufacturers will depend, as now, largely on their export trade, and consequently their ability to compete with those of America, German work- nen of the better class have come to the conclusion that their best interest is to be as efficient and productive as possible. There is a new and pervading ambition to beat the foreigner wherever possible at his own game and with his own tools. When it is remembered that this highly educated, efficient and’ambitious labor costs the employer only from one-third to one-half the wages that are paid in the United States, and that it is com- paratively tractable and easily managed, it will be seen that a situation is being developed here which our coun- trymen will do well to take into account. In no other country is banking capital so largely, so skillfully and so effectively used to develop and sustain manufacturing industries and to market their products in foreign countries as in Germany. A large, enterpris- ing and steadily growing merchant marine carries the products of German industry to every part of the inhab- ited globe. The united influences of the Government, the powerful sale and trade syndicates and the capital- ists who found banks and finance railroads in new coun- tries, are all intelligently and systematically exerted to give Germany a front place in the list of exporting nations. As Germany has been clever and enterprising in adopt- ing and making the best use of improved methods and machinery from abroad, so the nations which, like our own, must meet this competition in the world’s mar- kets, will find it needful to imitate her methods in much that relates to thoroughness in specialized education in the art of adapting and selling goods to alien peoples, and to high service in everything that pertains to the de- velopment and maintenance of foreign trade. SO Morse Elevators in the Pittsburgh District.—Morse, Williams & Co., Philadelphia, have opened a branch of- fice at 1018 Penn avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., for the sale and erection of all classes of passenger and freight ele- vators. <A practical elevator man is in charge of the office and will submit preliminary plans and specifica- tions or furnish elevator information to builders, archi- tects or owners. The firm states that since its establish- ment, 30 years ago, it has sold 17,000 machines. The line includes everything from the largest freight ele- vator down to a hand power elevator or a dumbwaiter. ———_-+e—____ Saturday night, January 28, was designated as “ En- gineers’ night” at the University Club in Milwaukee. The club has recently taken up the occupancy of its new club house on Jefferson street, and a series of special evenings has been arranged for the winter season. Among those who were present were Edwin Reynolds, consult- ing engineer, and A. M. Mattice, chief engineer, Allis- Chalmers Company; Alonzo Burt, president, and E. B. Cottrill, general superintendent, Wisconsin Telephone Company; Col. E. G. Pratt, general manager, and R. B. Brown, chief engineer, Milwaukee Gaslight Company; John I. Beggs, president, and C. J. Davidson, chief en- gineer, Milwaukee Electric Railway & Light Company, and Fred M. Prescott, president, Prescott Steam Pump Company. THE IRON AGE 377 Pig Iron Production in 1904. The following statistical information is taken from the Bulletin of the American Iron and Steel Association for February 1: The American Iron and Steel Association has re ceived from the manufacturers complete statistics of the production of all kinds of pig iron in the United States in 1904, also practically complete statistics of the stocks of pig iron that were for sale on December 31, 1904. We have received reports of production directly from every furnace in the country, but we have been refused by the owners the statistics of unsold stocks held by five small furnaces. From other and trustworthy sources, however, we have received careful estimates of these stocks, so that the stock statistics we present are for all practical purposes complete and correct. Total Production.—The total production of pig iron in 1904 was 16,497,033 gross tons, against 18,009,252 tons in 1903, 17,821,307 tons in 1902, 15,878,354 tons in 1901, 13,789,242 tons in 1900, 13,620,703 tons in 1899 and 11,773,934 tons in 1898. The following table gives the half yearly production in the last four years in gross tons: Periods. 1901. 1902. 1903. 1904. Virst half...... 7,674,613 8,808,574 9,707,367 8,173,438 Second haif.... 8,203,741 9,012,733 8,301,885 8,323,595 Yotals.......15,878.354 17,821,307 18,009,252 16,497.033 The production of 1904 was 1,512,219 tons less than that of 1903. The production in the second half of 1904 was 150,157 tons more than that of the first half. The causes of the decline in production in 1904, as compared with 1903, are so well known that they need not be dwelt upon in this connection, but it is worthy of mention that the last four months of 1904 showed great and steadily increasing activity in production. This rate of produc- tion was continued and exceeded in January of the pres- ent year. Classified Production.—The production of Bessemer and low phosphorus pig iron in 1904 was 9,098,659 tons, against 9,989,908 tons in 1903, a decrease of 891,249 tons. The production of basic pig iron in 1904, not including charcoal of basic quality, was 2,483,104 tons, against 2,- 040,726 tons in 1908, an increase of 442,378 tons. The production of charcoal pig iron in 1904 was 337,529 tons, against 504,757 tons in 1903 and 378,504 tons in 1902. The production in 1904 was 167,228 tons less than in 1903 and 40,975 tons less than in 1902. The production of spiegeleisen and ferromanganese in 1904 was 219,446 tons, against 192,661 tons in 1908. The production of ferromanganese alone in 1904 amount- ed to 57,076 tons. One company produced 946 tons of ferrophosphorus in 1904. A significant feature of the above statistics is the increased production of basic pig iron in a year of gen- erally reduced production. Unsold Stocks.—The stocks of pig iron which were unsold in the hands of manufacturers or which were under their control in warrant yards and elsewhere at the close of 1904, and were not intended for their own consumption, amounted to 408,792 tons, against 623,254 tons on June 30, 1904, and 591,438 tons on December 31, 1903. The American Pig Iron Storage Warrant Company held 55,350 tons of pig iron in its yards on December 31, 1904, of which 17,700 tons, included above, were reported to us as being still controlled by the makers, leaving 87.650 tons in other hands. Adding this 37,650 tons to the 408.792 tons noted above gives us a total of 446,442 tons that were on the market at the close of 1904. Furnaces.—The whole number of furnaces in blast on December 31, 1904, was 261, against 216 on June 30, 1904, and 182 on December 31, 1903. The number of fur- naces in blast at the end of 1904 was 45 larger than on June 30 of the same year and 79 larger than on December 31, 1908. ————_-- oe —————_—_——_ G. A. Hassel has been appointed superintendent of the plant of the Pittsburgh Steel Foundry, at Glassport, near Pittsburgh, to succeed D. MacDougal, who has resigned, and after a rest will engage in another line of business. a Ls 1 Est mT i Fs 3 4 a Bs i‘ eer a i + 4 > H ‘ ra i ¥ 7 a4 th ie a5] : cs ei 7 e) {23 3 m 4 eu i 1 7 ; \ : 3 i mF fi | ae é + ‘ _ i F bi i" Bet y oy Ag ca ie 378 THE IRON AGE The Interpole Variable Speed Motor. The desirability of means for quickly changing the speed of certain classes of machinery, notably machine tools, is too well appreciated to call for discussion. It is the usual practice to obtain this variable speed in one of two ways, either by mechanical devices which allow of variable speeds with a constant speed drive, or electrical means for varying the driving speed. The latest addition to the latter class is the interpole variable speed motor built by the Electro Dynamic Company, Bayonne, N. J. There are certain important conditions essential in a variable speed motor which this motor is claimed to ful- fill and which are made a part of the guarantees contained Fig. 1—Vhe Motor with Armature and End Shields Removed, Showing the Fields and Interpoles. in its specifications. They are reversibility, nonsparking under heavy overloads, large range of speed, speeds con- stant at all loads when adjusted to any desired speed, compactness, simple wiring, simple control, simple ac- cessories. light weight and high efficiency under average loads. With this motor speed variation is offered in ranges of 2 to 1, 3 to 1 and 4 to 1. These may be in- creased if desired, but they cover those most often called for, the variation usually required being from about 250 to 1200 revolutions per minute. Almost any intermediate speed within the range of variation can be obtained with a certainty that prac- tically constant speed will be maintained under varying loads. Changes can be made instantly, and the controll- ing apparatus can be placed anywhere on the tool or Fig. 2 Che Interpole Motor Completely Assembled. machinery for convenience of operation. In many kinds of machine tool work a great saving and increase in out- put are effected with variable speed direct drive as com- pared with belt drive, especially where a number of changes in speed are necessary. In the interpole motor the torque is increased as the speed is decreased, and this is important both in maintaining constant speed and in having the tool work uniformly and with the greatest cutting capacity. The motor has shown good efficiency both at the highest and lowest speeds, with a high aver- age efficiency. Current is taken from an ordinary standard two-wire February 2, 1905 system, the motor being connected across the circuit like any constant speed motor, The interpole motor occupies a comparatively small space, as will be noticed from the illustrations, which is one of the most essential features, and it is also light in weight. There are no parts sub- ject to wear other than are contained in any standard con- stant speed motor. ‘There is practically nothing to get out of order, and it may be seen that the internal con struction is very simple. It often happens that, through carelessness, too much oil is poured into the receptacles or oil cups of a motor, so that the coils and commutator become fouled with oil or grease, and sparking or short circuiting results, often causing injury to the armature before the neglect is dis covered, but in the interpole variable speed motors bali bearings are used, which require only the application of a little vaseline once in six months. The cost of mainte- nance of the motor is low, due to perfect commutation, and it is capable of withstanding 100 per cent. overload with- out sparking. The principle of the construction and operation of the interpole variable speed motor whereby its desirable per- formance is obtained will be understood from reference to the accompanying illustrations. It will be seen from Fig. 1 that between the main poles of the machine there are intermediate smaller poles, the faces of which, with those on the main poles, form very nearly a complete ring to encircle the armature. The winding of the motor is peculiar. In one sense it is a shunt motor, and in an- other a compound motor. If the intermediate poles were removed the motor would be a simple shunt motor, the 2 Fig. 3.—The Armature of the Interpole Motor, Showing One of the Ball Bearings. field coils being connected across the main line. The coils which would ordinarily be considered compounding coils —i. e., those in series with the armature—are wound on the intermediate poles, but have a different effect from that intended in a compound motor. Their purpose is to correct the distorted magnetic field attending the weak- ening of the main field current necessary when higher speeds than normal are wanted. By so doing they avoid the sparking which would result in an ordinary motor, due both to the self induction in the armature coil which is short circuited at the instant that its corresponding commutator segments pass under the brush and to the armature reaction. In the ordinary motor the evil ef- fects of self induction are alleviated by the shifting of the brushes, which, of course, makes it impossible to re- verse the motor without shifting the brushes to a corre- sponding position in the opposite direction. A very de- sirable result attending the use of the intermediate poles is that it is not necessary to shift the brushes, no matter what the load, as they are placed at the normal neutral position, and the motor will run quite as well in one direc- tion as another. The complete motor is shown in Fig. 2, and a view of the armature removed in Fig. 3. The latter shows clearly one of the original features of the motor, which is the use of a ball bearing instead of a babbitted bearing. This bearing is of a special form known as the Hess-Bright ball bearing. Its peculiarity is that the balls are sep- arated by springs, with thin plates at their ends, the pur- pose being to avoid the rubbing of one ball against another February 2, 1905 and reduce this source of friction found in the ordinary ball bearing. Within the coils of the springs are inclosed pieces of wool saturated with vaseline or a similar heavy lubricant, supplying such slight lubrication as is neces- sary. The ordinary oiling and the use of oil cups are en- tirely done away with, and,as has been stated, these bear- ings require no attention oftener than about once in six months, when it is well to remove the cover and again sat- urate the wool packing if it is needed. A very desirable feature of the ball bearing is its very slight wear and the maintenance of perfect concentricity of the armature within the pole shoes, which contribute to the best elec- trical performance. The Premier Diamond Mine. The London Economist in a recent issue, prior to the discovery of the 3000-karat diamond in the Premier mine, prints the following relative to that enterprise: The second annual report of the Premier diamond mine shows that during the year ended October 31 last the profits amounted to £667,788, which, added to the balance brought forward from the previous year, places the sum of £770,601 at the disposal of the directors This amount is to be used for the development and equip ment of the property, the future of which is of excep tional interest, in that from November 1 last 60 per cent. of its profits will. under the Diamond ordinance of the Transvaal, be handed over to the Transvaal Govern ment. The nominal capital of the company, which is only entitled to 40 per cent. of the profits, is £80,000. but as its £1 shares stand at £80, the market value is £6,400, 000. This being so, the Transvaal Government's share of the capital value of the mine is worth on the present market basis about £9,600,000. Here is an asset worth having, and if the mine comes up to expectations it will yield a large revenue to the Transvaal. The directors, it may be said, are endeavoring to obtain a reduction of the proportion they will be required to pay to the State, and it is stated that 50 per cent. is the figure which they suggest. But even if this were granted, the State’s share would amount to a large annual sum, provided, of course, the mine yields the results predicted. Hitherto the fate of a diamond mine in South Africa has de pended largely on the attitude adopted toward it by the De Beers Company. Our special mining commissioner, however, has stated, in dealing with the Premier, that. in his opinion, the latter is too powerful for the De Beers either to purchase it or to starve it out. Besides, the enormous interest possessed by the Transvaal Govern ment in the mine should be a strong point in its favor in the event of it becoming involved in a struggle with De Beers. The future of the Premier mine, indeed, may have highly important results, both as regards the world’s diamond industry and the revenue of the Trans vaal. oe A New Lukens Mill for Wide Thin Plates.—The Lukens Iron & Steel Company, Coatesville, Pa., has in stalled a mill 112 inches long by 36 inches in diameter, for the manufacture of very wide thin plates. This mill can roll 3-16 inch and No. 8 B. W. G. up to 108 inches wide and No. 10 B. W. G. up to 102 inches wide. The following extras are ¢harged in addition to the Plate As sociation extras: extra Thickness Width.—Inches Cent WOEO ORO ic detec cvecvaccee TE OC tenies 0.1 a RS 6b ci ere menawy ... 84to 96 inclusive 0.2 WR PROM ik kc cw cciacaccccscecs CO te 202 Remmi 0.3 po) 6. ...102 to 108 inclusive 0.5 on ET 72to 84 inclusive 0.1 ee Seer 84 to 96 inclusive 0.2 | ey See : . 96 to 102 inclusive 0.3 a See , 102 to 108 inclusive OD er ere ee ; 65 to 70 inclusive O17 A can art nod ; 70 to 84 inclusive. 0.2 ea a eee se ee 84 to 6 inclusive. 0.4 ee a ere fk 0.5 The company claims to have the only mill in America Which can make these sizes, which are suitable for a THE IRON AGE 379 variety of special work It is believed that manufactur ers of tanks and stacks will appreciate the opportunity thus offered to secure plates dispensing with the extra riveting required in the use of narrow ones. 0 <— The Star 10-Inch Wood Turning Lathe. Some rather novel features for a wood turning lathe are found in the one illustrated herewith It may be said in general that there is not the tendency to improve wood turning lathes that has marked the advance of recent years in lathes for iron and metal. Chief among the new points embodied in this lathe, which is made by the Seneca Falls Mfg. Company, 255 Water street, Seneca Falls, N. Y., are the design of the bed and stand ards and the form of the head stock and tail stock east ings. A feature which contributes to convenience is the provision of handles on all nuts and locking contrivances which there is occasion to manipulate frequently, doing away with wrenches. The lathe, rated as a 10-inch size, has an actual swing of 11 inches over the ways and 7 inches over the hand rest. The head stock is of web pattern, strong and solid, and has a hollow spindle made from a crucible steel forging. The spindle runs in large phosphor bronze bear- ings, which are dust proof and self oiling, and is claimed rhe Star 10-Inch Wood Turning Lathe, Built by the Seneca Falls Mtg. Company to run at a very high speed for a very long time without attention. The cone pulley has four steps and is turned inside as well as outside to obtain a perfect balance for high speed. The tail stock is the curved, or cut under, pattern and has a long bearing on the ways. It is firmly locked to the bed by a convenient lever, which is attached and al- ways in place. The tail stock spindle is also locked by an improved device. Long and short T rests are furnished. The rest socket and saddle are locked to the bed by a clamp locking device, and the T rest is held in the socket by a friction clamp instead of the set screw com- monly used. Both are operated by attached levers. The bed is broad and deep, and being thoroughly braced by the cross webs is stiff and rigid. At the pres- ent time it is made in two lengths, 4 and 5 feet. The front way is flat and the back way is V-shaped. <A con- venient shelf is secured to the back of the bed for hold- ing tools, &¢. The countershaft is self oiling and has self aligning bearings, four-step cone and tight and loose pulleys. The loose pulley has a self closing oil cup. Face plate, screw chuck, cup and spur centers are fur- nished with each lathe, and when desired a slide rest for metal turning will be furnished. 380 The New Reed Ball Bearing Friction Drill. Several original