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By Persifor Frazer

I DESIRE to say that, owing to the number of papers which have been more or less crowded at this session of the Institute, and the fact that, as one of the Local Committee, I have the distinguished honor to feel somewhat like one of the hosts, I should not tax the patience of members at this late hour, but would have my paper read by title were it in any way possible to do this. But the task I have set myself this evening is to present to the eyes of the members of the Institute certain objects which have occupied more or less of my time during the last eighteen months or two years. The objects I allude to are some of the igneous rocks of this country, which, until quite recently, have been less understood than any others. It will be well known to some of the members that some of the cooled lavas of a previous age of our planet, when not directly coarsely crystalline and granular, were considered and spoken of as " natural glasses," or perfectly uncrystalline, vitreous, or hyaline masses of matter. Among the first results of the use of the microscope was the dispersion of this fallacy. Sir David Brewster, Mr. H. C. Sorby, and William Nichol (the discoverer of the celebrated calcite prism, which bears his name), had, with greater or less success, examined sections of various rocks and minerals, both by transmitted and reflected light, and also in the form of powder. But, until the genius of Vogelsang undertook the subject, these investigations had no permanent value, nor did they constitute an independent line of mineralogical and geological research. Since the close of his labors, by Vogelgang's premature and much-lamented death, the subject has been made one of renewed interest by his brother-in-law, Ferdinand Zirkel, as well as by Rosenbusch, Tschermak, and many others abroad, and at home by the commencement of a systematic study of the traps of Connecticut by Messrs. E. D. Dana and G. W. Hawes, of New Haven, and by the splendid set of described sections of the traps of the West which have been furnished by Zirkel to illustrate Clarence King's report. I had the honor of presenting a large number of thin sections of our traps at the Washington meeting, for the inspection of the mem¬bers, with the aid of a table microscope belonging to the Smithsonian Institution. Here I propose to project these sections upon the

Jan 1, 1877

By Charles M. Rolker

THE Allouez Mine is situated in section 31, town 57, north of range 32 west, Michigan. The mine is being worked in a conglomerate bed, which conglomerate is generally conceded to be the continuation of the Albany and Boston conglomerate of Houghton County. Besides the well-known Calumet and Hecla with the adjoining Osceola, both working on the same bed, and the new location, the Seneca, now being tried on the Kearsarge conglomerate, the Allouez Mine is the only one working on a conglomerate bed. The Albany and Boston, in Houghton County, of which, as said before, the Allouez is supposed to be the continuation, shares with all the remaining conglomerate beds, near and around Portage Lake, the property of being non-quartziferous, while the conglomerates of Keweenaw County are all highly quartziferous in character. This change takes place, according to Professor Pumpelly, about six miles northeast of Portage Lake. The Allouez conglomerate, with a dip of 38° 15' and a general course of about 36° east of north, is overlaid by a trap, and has as its footwall an amygdaloid. The trap is followed by a series of amygdaloidal melaphyres and true amygdaloids, further on by the greenstone and ashbed ; towards the lake shore alternating traps and conglomerates are found. At the footwall of the Allouez conglomerate, an amygdaloid lies, the thickness of which is not known, which is also the case with the other formations, accurate surveys and geological researches of this district having, as I was informed, never been made. About 198 meters (650 feet), horizontally measured, from the Allouez conglomerate another amygdaloid bed can be traced, on which the present rockhouse stands, further on a melaphyre is exposed, and then follow the diverse conglomerates, the Calumet, the Kearsarge, and Kingston, which, according to the last geological report, are at about the re-

Jan 1, 1877

By P. Barnes

IF it be admitted that the use of the metric system of measurement is desirable, and that it will be well, as urged by one of our engineering societies, to show upon all our plans or drawings a metric scale in addition to a scale of inches, then it becomes important to introduce some ready means of drawing these scales. For many present purposes it is quite sufficient to space off and to draw them with the common dividers and the right-line pen, but if the number of drawings made or copied in an engineer's office, and upon which scales must be shown, is more than two or three daily, then some more mechanical or automatic means should be provided. For a great majority of detail drawings, a simple transcript of the surface of a good two-foot rule would answer every purpose, and probably the best comparative showing of the metric scale would be made by drawing a line of millimeters close by the side of the line of sixteenths. This would be in fact little more than the

Jan 1, 1877

By Andrew S. M’Creath

THE treatment which a steel receives, and the uses to which it may be applied, are frequently determined by the percentage of carbon which it contains; and especially is this the case in the different steel works in this country. The part which this element plays in the composition of steel is such an important one that a process for its accurate determination becomes an absolute necessity.

Jan 1, 1877

By C. R. Boyd

WITHOUT attempting to do more than give a preliminary or skeleton report upon the geology and minerals of Southwestern Virginia at this time, I am led to hope that the great commercial importance of the sixty miles of cross-section here crudely treated of

Jan 1, 1877

By Charles P. Williams

THE determinations of the specific gravities of a number of samples of lead produced in Missouri, which form the subject of this note, were undertaken with the view of ascertaining if any approximation to the purity of such leads could be reached in this manner. The results would seem to indicate that, whatever value the method may have in the case of the crude and more impure

Jan 1, 1877

By James F. Lewis

THE hematite iron ore mines east of the Hudson River are confined to a strip of country ten to fifteen miles wide, commencing on the south, near Fishkill, running northeast through Dutchess County, and striking the southeast corner of Columbia County, extending into Litchfield County, Conn., known there as the Salisbury mines, cropping out again at and near West Stockbridge, Lanesboro, and Cheshire, Mass., also in Bennington County, Vermont. The ores are found in beds or deposits and in veins, with a limestone ledge on one side and slate on the other, from six to thirty feet from the surface. Portions of it are quite solid, called rock ore, but

Jan 1, 1877

By Robert W. Hunt

THE memorable features of American history have been making fast during the last century, and notably so since 1860; and they are by no means confined to political or to any one branch of scientific development. Of all the industrial arts, none show a greater change or a mightier progress than the Bessemer manufacture. And this year, while we are celebrating the first centennial of our national life, we can also celebrate the first decennial of American Bessemer practice. While not forgetting or undervaluing what has been done in other countries, I have thought that a brief history of the introduction and development of the Pneumatic or Bessemer process in America would be of interest. In 1863 the Kelly Pneumatic Process Company was formed and an arrangement entered into with William Kelly, who had taken out letters-patent of the United States, Nos. 16,444 ; 17,628, re¬issued as 505; 18,910, dated January 10th, 1857 ; June 23d, 1857; November 3d, 1857; and December 22d, 1857, respectively. This association was composed of the Cambria Iron Company, E. B. Ward, Park Brothers & Co., Lyon, Shorb & Co., Z. S. Durfee, and, later, Chouteau, Harrison & Valle joined the combination. Not satisfied with possessing the control of the Kelly patent, they sent Mr. Z. S. Durfee to England, to secure for this country Mushet's patent on recarburization, No. 17,389, dated May 26th, 1857, the same having been taken out in England on September 22d, 1856. In this Mr. Durfee was successful. Previous to the application of William Kelly for a patent, Henry Bessemer, of England, had taken out patents dated February 12th, 1856, and August 25th, 1856, in this country. Kelly claimed priority in the discovery of the principles of the process, and the Patent-office allowed his claim by granting him his patents. In the autumn of 1862 Mr. Alexander L. Holley, while in England, was impressed with the importance of Mr. Bessemer's inven¬tion, and so fully foresaw its future, that, upon his return to the United States, he induced Messrs. John A. Griswold and John F. Winslow, of Troy, New York, to join him in endeavoring to possess Bessemer's American patents. Mr. Holley returned to England in

Jan 1, 1877

By John Birkinbine

IN all metallurgical processes and mining operations, water is an element which receives attention from the management ; and provision is required either for a means of supply, or for the disposal of accumulation. In many works the quantity of water to be furnished is sufficiently large to place the item of water supply of equal importance to the reception of material or disposition of product ; and the means to be employed receive, or should receive, the most careful investigation. There are exceptional cases where mines or quarries possess a natural drainage, but a large majority of the useful ores and the fuels delved from the earth are obtained from workings in which water accumulates and must be removed. Often the quantity to be

Jan 1, 1877

By Persifor Frazer

COMPARATIVE columns expressing the series of rocks of the lower half of the Mesozoic age in this country and in Europe are not yet definitely established. The following represents a co-ordination of the beds in England and Germany,* with a list of materials to be worked in from this country. † * Cotta, " Geologic der Gegenwart." † Section from York to Dillsburg. Report C, 1875; Second Geological Survey of Pennsylvania.

Jan 1, 1877

By William Metcalf

IT is the object of this paper to oppose unnecessary changes, and the introduction of new and confusing terms. From the earliest times of which we have any record on the subject, iron has been divided into general classes. Whether iron was first known in the form of wrought iron or of steel, is a matter of no importance; but at the time when cast iron first became a prominent article of commerce, wrought iron and steel were old products¬steel, at that time, being generally made from wrought iron by the process of cementation. As steel was then properly defined as iron containing more carbon than wrought iron, so cast iron was appropriately defined as iron containing more carbon than steel. Until the year 1776, when Huntsman first began the manufacture of a new kind of iron by melting wrought iron and steel in crucibles, the above definitions were all that could be desired. At first, probably, owing to imperfect appliances, only a highly carburized iron was melted in crucibles, and this led to its being called cast steel. If our ancestors had found a name for this material not involving the use of the word steel, we would have been saved the trouble of the present discussion. As the arts developed, new uses were found for steel, and the products of the crucible were varied, until at the present day it is quite common to find steel containing no more carbon than average wrought iron, and other steel containing nearly or quite as much carbon as some cast iron. All of these various products of the crucible have retained, or received, the name cast steel, usually abbreviated to the simple word steel, without causing any confusion among producers or consumers in regard to terms or their meaning. In 1855, twenty-one years ago, the Bessemer process was introduced ; this was followed in a few years by the Siemens-Martin process, and the products of both were at once, and have ever since been, called steel, from the fact that they were identical in chemical and physical properties with crucible cast steel. At the present time, then, we have three subdivisions of cast steel, viz.: Crucible cast steel, Bessemer cast steel, and Siemens-Martin,

Jan 1, 1877

By J. H. Bramwell

THE following experience in rebuilding a furnace crucible while in blast may not be wholly uninteresting to some, notwithstanding its purely practical character. Few are aware of the frequent calls made on a furnace manager's skill and ingenuity, to meet the irregularities which present themselves with kaleidoscopic variations in the operations of furnaces. Unfortunately the methods pursued in overcoming these practical difficulties are too seldom recorded, and much valuable information is lost that could not fail to be of value to many, and to none more so than the educated technical manager, with a limited practical experience, who, without a literature or record of any kind to refer to, finds himself, in times of emergency, dependent and looking for assistance from those whom it is his province to instruct and direct. With positive data, however, that like difficulties have been successfully overcome, he can confidently resort to similar expedients, with such modifications as the circumstances may demand in his particular case, and pull through seeming impossibilities in the face of ignorant prejudice. The Quinnimont Furnace (60 x 15 feet) had been in operation but two months, when it became necessary to draw the tuyeres out a distance of 18 inches, in order to give them a resting-place; the brickwork under them being completely cut away, so that after each

Jan 1, 1877

By Richard P. Rothwell

THOUGH coal has been mined in this country for more than a century, no systematic effort was ever successfully made to ascertain the total amount produced. The production of the Cumberland Basin, Md., and the shipments from the anthracite fields of Pennsylvania, have been placed upon record, thanks to the intelligence sand foresight of Mr. C. Slack in the former case, and to the late Mr. B. Bannan in the latter. For some of the years between 1822 and 1842, the production of the Richmond Basin was reported by Mr. R. C. Taylor, but since that date till the author undertook this work it was impossible to obtain any statement of the production of this field. A few of the newer fields, such as that of Mt. Diablo, Cal., have been fully reported, and a few of the newer States have also had this service performed by some intelligent private individuals.; but no statistics of coal production have ever been collected either by the State or General Government, if we except the returns for the years 1869-70 of the census report. During the year 1875, by great exertions, I succeeded in obtaining, and July 3d, 1875, gave in the Engineering and Mining Journal what, "though not an accurate statement of our coal production," was " by far the most full and reliable that had ever been published." Though that report showed the production of bituminous coal to be 23,630,094 gross tons, or about six million tons more than had ever before been reported, it was in reality two and a half million tons below the actual output. The more full returns I obtained for 1875 gave many figures for 1874

Jan 1, 1877

By John Henry Harden

THIS shaft, located in the northern anthracite coal-field about 2300 feet southwest from the court-house at Wilkes-Barre, in the County of Luzerne, Pa., is the property of the Lehigh & Wilkes¬Barre Coal Company. The sinking and cribbing to the solid rock (see isometrical view on Plate IX) was conducted by Mr. W. W. Kenrick. Dimensions of the earthwork to the foundation of the cribbing, 51' 1/2" long, 17' 4" wide, 31' deep. Total amount of excavation in cubic yards, 998.5. Dimensions within the permanent cribbing, 45' 4" long, 11' 16" wide, 31' deep, divided into six parts by buttons 8" x 12", each division, 7' x 11’ 16". Permanent cribbing 12" x 12"; temporary cribbing 8" x 10"; backing, 3" thick ; clay puddle to ex¬clude surface water, 12" thick; conductors, 8" x 5"; lining, 1" thick from top to bottom of the shaft. In the latter part of the year 1871, Mr. H. Murray & Son contracted with the company for the continuation of the work at the rate of four hundred dollars per yard in depth, to a point 100 feet below the Hillman seam of coal ; for the succeeding 100 feet the price to be increased twenty-five dollars per yard, and so on until the bottom rock of the Baltimore seam of coal was found. The size of the shaft within the cribbing timbers is 45 feet 4 inches by 11 feet 6 inches, having six divisions of equal dimensions, 7 feet by 11 feet 6 inches, giving room for what is known as the" standard diamond" car, whose capacity when level full is 100 cubic feet, but when loaded by the miner 4 inches above the top contains 112 cubic feet.* Two divisions of this shaft are intended for hoisting coal from the Hillman seam, two from the Baltimore seam, one for ventilation, and one for pumps. The works were planned for two pairs of direct-acting, high-pres¬sure engines, twenty-four boilers, and for an estimated output of 2500 tons of coal per day from the two seams. * Size of the "standard diamond" car, 8' 10” x 4' 3" x 2’ 8” = 100.1.4; loaded 4 inches above the top, 8' 10” x 4’ 3” x 3’ “0"= 112.7.6.

Jan 1, 1877

By Lewis M. Haupt

IT has given me great pleasure to read, in the papers recently published by this Society, the discussions on the subject of Technical Education, which were developed at the joint meeting held at the Franklin Institute in June, 1876; and since it was impossible for me to be present, I desire to improve this my first opportunity of adding the weight of my testimony and experience to what has been so ably presented by others. It is a subject about which the people need to be kept agitated, that their views may expand with the demands made for a higher and more thorough education. It is the public at large, the capitalist, the manufacturer, and the laborer, who are to be benefited more or less by this elevation of the standard of our professional schools, and it is but just, therefore, that the schools should look to them for the means with which to accomplish so desirable an object. It is no doubt to the interest of a metallurgist to employ a skilled laborer who will prevent waste by properly proportioning his materials ; by regulating the supplies of air and fuel ; by arranging his plant in the most economical manner, and by disposing of his products to the greatest advantage. The engineer is benefited by selecting for an assistant a person able to determine the values of his factors of safety for the same materials in different forms and positions, avoiding expensive suits for damages and cost of reconstruction; he should be able to so locate a road as best to fulfil the requirements of a through traffic, and yet develop local industries. But I need not multiply instances to show what all will readily concede, viz.: the advantages of a theoretical education ; that was fully demonstrated at the previous special meeting, but it is still an open question whether the practical instruction should precede, accompany, or follow the theory.

Jan 1, 1877

By W. M. Courtis

THIS district commences near Pigeon River, the northeastern boundary between Minnesota and Province of Ontario, and extends entirely around the north shore of Lake Superior, terminating for the present at the Bruce Mines on Lake Huron. The discoveries of mineral-bearing veins have been confined for the most part to the lake shore, or to the country opened up by the Dawson Red River road. As yet the country back from the lake has been but little explored, on account of its roughness, being intersected by steep, rocky trap bluffs, 1000 or more feet high, and alternating white cedar and tamarack swamps. The forests are exceedingly difficult for prospectors. In many places Titanic piles of rocks, protected by chevaux-de frise of dead cedars, with their hooked, tough, sharp branches, and- a covering of spongy moss, sometimes several feet thick, successively guard against the discovery of hidden treasure. The Hudson's Bay Company for nearly a century have maintained trading-posts at Fort William and other points, which probably opened the way to the first discoveries that were made at Prince's Bay, near the western limit of the district. At this point a large vein was worked by Colonel Prince, the owner, as early as 1846. The richest part of the vein seems to have been on Spar Island, but work was stopped on account of excess of water. Sir William Logan states that a mass of ore weighing several hundred pounds and carrying 3 per cent. of silver was taken out. On the mainland small quantities of native and sulphide of silver were found, together with iron and copper pyrites, zinc blende, and galena, in a large spar vein. On the main shore a drift 165 feet long and 90 feet in depth

Jan 1, 1877

By Louis A. Riley

I DESIRE to submit, for the consideration and information of the members of the Institute, the following data, drawings, and tables, showing what I believe will be interesting information with regard to the diamond drill, and its uses in developing mineral lands. I would first say that the results given have been obtained during the past two years by means of two drilling machines belonging to the Lehigh Valley Coal Company, operating on their coal lands in the Mahanoy, Lehigh, and Wyoming regions. 1st. A tabulated statement, giving location of borings, date, progress, total cost, itemized cost per foot, etc. 2d. Section showing strata bored in Nos. 5 and 10 holes at Mt. Carmel, see Plate VI. 3d. Section showing strata bored in No. 19 hole at Hazleton, see Plate VI. 4th. Photograph and description of drill No. 2. From the first it will be seen that the total number of test-holes bored up to May 1st of this year is 24; 9 of these are in the Mahanoy region, 6 in the Lehigh region, and 10 in the Wyoming region, in all of which cores have been taken for the whole distance. The total distance bored is 9902 feet. The majority of the holes have been put down for the purpose of proving the lower veins of the coal series, and have had to encounter the harder rocks of the coal formation. Much of the distance has been through the lower conglomerates, going in some cases through the coarse egg conglomerate, the foundation of the coal deposit, and to the green sandstone and red shale which underlie it. These lower sandrocks and conglomer¬ates are among the hardest known to geologists, and present a formidable resistance to the exploring drill. This fact must be taken into consideration in comparisons of cost of drilling, and when considered will still further improve the very favorable results I am able to show in my statement of costs. In illustration, I will cite the work of one bit when boring in the upper or softer rocks of the Wyoming region, where 280 feet were obtained without resetting, while in the Lehigh and Mahanoy regions, in the lower and harder rocks, bits set with the same quality of diamonds would only bore from 3 to 20 feet before being worn out. In this connection it may

Jan 1, 1877

By Oswald J. Heinrich

THE responsibility resting upon the owners and managers of mines where fire-damp is generated, renders it a matter of imperative duty that a full and correct statement of any explosion that occurs should be given to the public. But such a statement must be based on the testimony of impartial eye-witnesses or trained experts. Then a sad experience may result in the adoption of effective preventive measures. In the absence of any official and professional body of mining experts in the State of Virginia, the writer desires to submit to his professional brethren of the American Institute of Mining Engineers an account of an explosion which recently took place in a colliery under his management, and earnestly desires a thorough and impartial discussion on the facts submitted. Description and Plan of the Mine.-The "Grove" shaft is situated at the nearest point 825 feet from the last old workings upon the Midlothian property, south of the old Pump shaft works. (See Plate III.) The shaft was sunk by the former company, some thirty years ago, to the depth of 622 feet. An incline over 230 feet long, starting in a northwest direction at a depth of 105 feet above the shaft bottom, had been driven to explore the coal on the dip. A return of very small dimensions had been driven round the shaft on the south side, entering the upcast chamber. With the information obtained from the former company that a seam of coal about four feet thick, at a depth of 490 feet, had been found, and with the information obtained by the present proprietor, R. T. Burrows, of Albion, N. Y., by means of two boreholes on the dip west of the old shaft, in both of which workable seams of coal at various depths had been ascertained, the clearing out and thorough retimbering of this shaft were commenced in March, 1873. Borehole No. 1, at a depth of 477 1/2 feet from surface, revealed a seam of coal. This borehole was afterwards carried to a depth of 1140 feet to the granite, without finding any other seam of coal. Borehole No. 3, at a depth of 608 feet, revealed the first coal-seam, 142 feet thick; at 633 feet, the second, 12 feet thick; at 662 feet the third, 1 foot thick, and at 692 feet the fourth, 4 1/2 to 5 feet thick. The borehole was stopped at a depth of 715 1/2 feet.

Jan 1, 1877

By J. Price Wetherill

THE coal-seams that are worked vary from 32 to 100 feet in thickness, and occur at all angles of inclination, but are never flat for any great extent. They contain coal, slate, and an unsolidified coal, called dirt by the miners, in various proportions, a uniform seam of coal alone being rare. The upper walls are composed of conglomerate, sandstone, or slate; the first two hard and solid in texture, and withstanding the action of the atmosphere and moisture sufficiently well to offer but little trouble to the mining operations ; while the latter crumbles rapidly, owing, in part, to the decomposition of iron pyrites which it contains in large quantities, and in part to its own friable character, and requires constant care to avoid accidents to the men working below it, and to prevent its mixing with the coal mined. The floors are composed of slate. As in all mining operations, the. general system pursued is to reach with a permanent outlet such a point in the seam as will

Jan 1, 1877

By A. Henry

THE manufacture of wheels of metal for locomotives and cars constitutes an important branch of the iron industry, and one closely related, moreover, to many of the conditions of railway practice, such as speed, safety of passengers, and economy of working. It has been, also, since the introduction of iron roads, a subject of constant study on the part both of engineers of construction and iron manufacturers. The car-wheels at first used in Europe had spokes of wrought iron and a hub of cast iron. Subsequently endeavors were made to make the wheels entirely of wrought iron, by forging successively the different parts which constituted the hub, spokes, and rim. By this treatment the expansion of the heated portions at the last forgings gave rise to interior ruptures in the already cold and finished parts. The metal was thus strained before use, and the wheels broke frequently in service. It was in consequence of these failures, doubtless, that the engineers of this country were led to employ exclusively wheels of cast iron. The railway companies are nevertheless greatly interested in the reduction of the weight of rolling stock, while preserving abundant strength, and by the employment of wrought-iron wheels one may attain this double end if the defects of manufacture which we have just mentioned are avoided. This may be accomplished by making the wheels in such a manner that the different parts are welded at the same time, whereby the interior strains which so frequently give rise to ruptures in wheels successively forged are avoided. This result has been attained by what is known in France as the Arbel process, of which I will give you a short description if you will kindly give me a few minutes' attention. The process may be briefly summed up as follows : A pile of puddled bars of the general form of the wheel to be made is prepared,

Jan 1, 1877