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By H. E. Kramm

During the summer of 1910, I had the opportunity to study in detail the geological conditions of what is known in northern California as " Harrison gulch," in Shasta county. Though the district, as a whole, that is, the western part of Shasta and the eastern part of Trinity county, has contributed during the last 15 years a considerable share of the gold-production credited to Shasta county, very little is known of its geology, perhaps because the country is covered with a dense growth of brush which makes exploration and prospecting extremely difficult. Topographically the district presents a succession of ridges trending approximately N-S., and alternating with deep, narrow canyons. The drainage is partly into the Sacramento, partly into the Trinity river. Climatic conditions in summer time are almost ideal. It is true, the thermometer may climb to 115°, but the air is dry

Jan 1, 1913

By Owen R. Rice

Changes in coke hardness affect the working of the blast furnace, for soft coke is an obstacle to proper furnace operation. Soft coke is due to a low hydrogen-oxygen ratio in the coal charged; increasing this ratio increases the hardness of the coke. The best means of determining the hardness of coke is the combined tumbler and ball-mill. What is Good Coke? It is not always appreciated that the correct answer may be such a reliable forecast to the physical condition of the blast furnace, and incidentally its entire operation, that among the ordinary variations in other raw materials and also in operating conditions, it assumes a position of primary significance. Inasmuch as coke forms two-thirds of the total bulk of material charged, this assertion will not seem exaggerated, and in the subsequent discussion its applicability will be presented. Coke is the ideal blast-furnace fuel because it is strong and hard enough to resist the crushing and grinding effects of the furnace burden, and its porosity allows the ready passage of gas upward through the charge, and rapid combustion before the tuyeres. Coke deprived of its strength and with a cell structure physically frail and chemically susceptible to solution by carbon dioxide has its chief asset eliminated. When the melting zones are approached the fluid cinder trickling toward the hearth will envelope the small pieces of coke and form a sticky mass that will retard the free passage of gas. Blast pressure will then rise, driving will slow up and fragments of coke will lie inert before the tuyeres, rendered practically incombustible by their slaggy envelop. It is believed also that coke messes at cast are attributable to quantities of such coke floating unburned in the hearth. It has been correctly claimed that coke rendered small outside the oven possesses greater combustibility than that so developed in the

Jan 1, 1922

By Owen R. Rice

Changes in coke hardness affect the working of the blast furnace, for soft coke is an obstacle to proper furnace operation. Soft coke is due to a low hydrogen-oxygen ratio in the coal charged; increasing this ratio increases the hardness of the coke. The best means of determining the hardness of coke is the combined tumbler and ball-mill. What is Good Coke? It is not always appreciated that the correct answer may be such a reliable forecast to the physical condition of the blast furnace, and incidentally its entire operation, that among the ordinary variations in other raw materials and also in operating conditions, it assumes a position of primary significance. Inasmuch as coke forms two-thirds of the total bulk of material charged, this assertion will not seem exaggerated, and in the subsequent discussion its applicability will be presented. Coke is the ideal blast-furnace fuel because it is strong and hard enough to resist the crushing and grinding effects of the furnace burden, and its porosity allows the ready passage of gas upward through the charge, and rapid combustion before the tuyeres. Coke deprived of its strength and with a cell structure physically frail and chemically susceptible to solution by carbon dioxide has its chief asset eliminated. When the melting zones are approached the fluid cinder trickling toward the hearth will envelope the small pieces of coke and form a sticky mass that will retard the free passage of gas. Blast pressure will then rise, driving will slow up and fragments of coke will lie inert before the tuyeres, rendered practically incombustible by their slaggy envelop. It is believed also that coke messes at cast are attributable to quantities of such coke floating unburned in the hearth. It has been correctly claimed that coke rendered small outside the oven possesses greater combustibility than that so developed in the

Jan 1, 1922

By J. A. Ede

The property of the Spring Valley Coal Company, situated in Bureau county, Ill., comprises something more than 30,000 acres of coal-lands, on which have been opened four mines, designated as Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 4. Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4 are plans of the first three; and Fig. 7 is a view of the surface-plant at No. 4, the workings of which it is not necessary to illustrate, as this mine has been practically merged in No. 2. No. 4 shaft is only 500 feet from No. 2, and both are ventilated by the same fan, and are in the same circle of air-supply. In speaking of No. 2, we now include No. 4. The system pursued in all the mines is " long-wall advancing," and the shafts are all vertical. The seam worked is locally and commercially known, in the Illinois series, as No. 3; but its position in the geological series is that of No. 2. It averages in thickness about 42 inches, arid has no partings, but mines in rectangular lumps, which stand a large amount of handling before breaking. An analysis made from Colliery No. 1 gave the following : Per cent. Moisture,.......... 1.45 Volatile combustible matter,.47.27 Fixed carbon,.........41.97 Sulphur,.........2.46 Ash,....... .. .. .. 6.85 Plate 6 shows a photographic view of this seam. The staff seen in the view is 37 inches long. The table on page 188, recorded in my office, which I presume to be correct, may be of interest. The bottom is fire-clay, varying in thickness from 6 to 24 inches. It affords what is considered good mining-ground. The roof immediately above the coal is a dark shale, lying in small bands, from 4 to 9 inches in thickness. Between the

Jan 1, 1900

By A. R. Ledoux

I was wondering whether we were going to adhere to our text. It seems to me that we are having a very remarkable meeting of mining engineers this year, because no matter what the texts may be that are assigned to us, we get back toward something higher; we turn to the consideration of questions of ethics, and of applied Christianity. Yesterday we listened to the most eloquent and remarkable address by Mr. Rickard in memory of Dr. Raymond, and it was told us that he was to speak about Raymond's achievements as an engineer. He did say considerable on that subject, but he was himself carried away with the spirit of the man and moved us all by his portrayal of Dr. Raymond's continued and fruitful labors for the betterment of mankind—that is to say, his religion. Our President asked me if I would say something this afternoon and I find in the bulbtin that the text of the discourses which we are to have here this afternoon is "Internlttional Cooperation in Mining in North America." But again I find that the eloquent speaker who has just preceded me has dwelt largely on ethical and spiritual cooperation rather than upon cooperation in mining. That is, cooperation as men, rather than solely as engineers. The imaginary line dividing Canada from the United States, unmarked by fort or military post, was mentioned by a previous speaker. There are going to be in the future, I am sure, fewer entanglements of the barbed wire of tariff discrimination along our border-—to that end let us cooperate. But there has always been a reciprocity in men. A Canadian conceived and created our great transcontinental line, the Great Northern Railway; an American made the Canadian Pacific what it is. In mining and metallurgy, American engineers, backed by American capital, have built up great Canadian industries while Canadian experts have developed some of the resources on this side of the line. They have done much more than develop our resources; some of them have been our leaders in sympathy for labor. It is therefore not a question of creating a spirit of cooperation, but of giving it freer scope and a fuller realization of fraternity—or, to use the word now more common and of deeper significance—brotherhood. These are days of combination. Corporate interests in this country are now compelled, or at least encouraged, to combine in ways that

Jan 1, 1920

By Thomas Fraser, H. F. Yancey

BefoRe a new coal-washing plant is installed, or an existing washery is remodelled and improved, considerable experimental work on the coal to be washed should be done. A thorough examination of a coal, to determine whether it can be washed successfully and the best and most economical process for securing a satisfactory grade of washed coal, calls for mine sampling, analytical work, and experimental coal-washing tests which may require several months' time and the expenditure of considerable money. Having collected the required data on the characteristics of the coal and the results secured with different types of machines under different sets of conditions, it is necessary to decide what method of treatment should be used. The interpretation of the experimental data is no small part of the problem. The first step in the investigative work is to determine from the characteristics of the coal and the manner of occurrence of the impurities whether it is possible to separate the dirt from the coal and produce a washed coal of the required quality. Then it is necessary to select the type of washer or the system of treatment that will produce the greatest amount of washed coal of this grade for the least cost. To secure this information, tests may be made at laboratories operated by consulting or contracting engineers, at the testing plants of machinery manufacturers, at commercial washeries, or in an experimental washery erected on the site of the proposed plant. Such tests will produce figures in which every factor, including analyses of raw coal and washed coal and yield of washed coal, may vary widely. To reduce these results to a common basis for comparison is very difficult. A number of plans

Jan 1, 1923

By Thomas Fraser, H. F. Yancey

BefoRe a new coal-washing plant is installed, or an existing washery is remodelled and improved, considerable experimental work on the coal to be washed should be done. A thorough examination of a coal, to determine whether it can be washed successfully and the best and most economical process for securing a satisfactory grade of washed coal, calls for mine sampling, analytical work, and experimental coal-washing tests which may require several months' time and the expenditure of considerable money. Having collected the required data on the characteristics of the coal and the results secured with different types of machines under different sets of conditions, it is necessary to decide what method of treatment should be used. The interpretation of the experimental data is no small part of the problem. The first step in the investigative work is to determine from the characteristics of the coal and the manner of occurrence of the impurities whether it is possible to separate the dirt from the coal and produce a washed coal of the required quality. Then it is necessary to select the type of washer or the system of treatment that will produce the greatest amount of washed coal of this grade for the least cost. To secure this information, tests may be made at laboratories operated by consulting or contracting engineers, at the testing plants of machinery manufacturers, at commercial washeries, or in an experimental washery erected on the site of the proposed plant. Such tests will produce figures in which every factor, including analyses of raw coal and washed coal and yield of washed coal, may vary widely. To reduce these results to a common basis for comparison is very difficult. A number of plans

Jan 1, 1923

By Charles Catlett

Some years ago the writer was struck by what might be called the remarkable vitality of the Virginia furnaces during the panic of 1893; and attention was called to the fact in the American Manufacturer of February 8,1895. From the second half of 1892, which was a period of maximum output, to the second half of 1893, when the full effects of the depression had been reached, the output of pig-iron had fallen off in Illinois 85; in New York, 66; in Ohio, 51; in Tennessee, 44; in Pennsylvania, 28; and in Virginia only 15 per cent. It seemed a reasonable inference that the State which had thus shown its marked ability to meet hard times could make and market its product with a larger margin of profit than any of the other States. This was true at that time, and to a certain extent the reasoning still holds good; but my mistake was in not fully realizing the marked effect of the Mesabi development, combined with reduced economies in transportation, and the consequent advantage to those furnaces which were so situated as to utilize these new commercial factors. The effect of these factors is seen in comparing the second half of 1894 with the second half of 1892. New York had dropped off 44, Alabama 23, Tennessee 21, Illinois 19, and Virginia 16 per cent., while Pennsylvania had increased 5 and Ohio 10 per cent. While there is no question of the great economy which has been made possible for certain interests which are peculiarly situated with reference to the ores of the Northwest, it is yet too early to say what furnaces not so fortunate will have to pay for their raw material. Already an increase of twenty cents per ton of ore has been announced, based upon increased cost of production.

Jan 1, 1900

By Sidney Powers, Alfred C. Lane

This paper aims to present the results of an investigation concerning gravitative differentiation in lava flows, based on a quantitative microscopic and chemical study of a Triassic basalt from Nova Scotia, and confirmed by data secured from a study of certain Keweenawan ophites. At Cape d'Or, Nova Scotia, near the head of the Bay of Bundy, marine erosion has exposed a series of Triassic basalt flows in which copper has been sought for a number of years. Studies of the thickest flow of the series with regard to volumetric composition, specific gravity, and grain have been made by the junior author, and measurements by students at Tufts College, together with confirmatory observations of the same nature on this and other flows by the senior writer, and chemical analyses made by the Division of Chemistry, Mines Branch, Ottawa,' all show differentiation in lava flows comparable to that in intrusive bodies. The work was made possible by the availability of the drill-cores, the property of Tufts College, and emphasizes the desirability of the study of drill-cores from other localities. Measurements of the specific gravities of certain Keweenawan lava flows of Michigan by the senior author, from material collected in 1915, will be given as a comparison to those of the Cape d'Or flow. It has been found that the specific gravity of drill-cores, or volume per cubic foot, can be readily obtained by measuring their dimensions. This can be done to an accuracy of within 1 per cent. in pieces of core over 100 mm. in length by using a micrometer gage for the diameter, and taking the average of six measurements of the diameter; and the average of four measurements of the length made with a finely graduated ruler. Then, after weighing them, the weight in grams per cubic centimeter, or what is practically the same thing, ounces per cubic foot, is obtained. System-

Jan 1, 1916

By W. O. Hotchkiss

Rock exposures are usually a very small part of the surface area in any mining district and the prospector and geologist must base their deductions as to the area, extent, and structure of various formations upon exposures that seldom form 5 per cent. of the area studied. Most often, outcrops form less than 1 per cent. of an area, so that exploration for mineralized contacts or mineral-bearing formations necessitates drilling, test pitting or tunneling, shaft sinking, and other underground work. In these days of high costs any method that will give definite facts regarding rock? obscured by soil or other material should be used to the greatest possible extent. In the early days of the Lake Superior iron districts, mines were located in the few places where ore was present in outcrops. Later, larger orebodies have been found, in depressions, obscured by soil and other foreign material. Mineralized rocks are oftentimes more weathered, softer, and more easily eroded than unmineralized rocks. It is quite natural, therefore, to expect that such orebodies (particularly where large enough to influence erosion in former physiographic conditions) should lie in depressions and be obscured by later debris. It is not difficult to believe that the history of the development of Lake Superior iron mining may be duplicated in other mining districts, that even larger orebodies than those first mined may be found in areas where the rock exposures, which led to original discoveries, are few or lacking. The chief properties of rocks that can manifest themselves through an obscuring cover are magnetism, electrical effects, radio-activity, gravity, and sound transmission. All of these have been used, to a small extent, to tell us a few things about what lies below the surface that we could not otherwise determine, but none has been used so long and so widely as

Jan 1, 1923

By W. O. Hotchkiss

Rock exposures are usually a very small part of the surface area in any mining district and the prospector and geologist must base their deductions as to the area, extent, and structure of various formations upon exposures that seldom form 5 per cent. of the area studied. Most often, outcrops form less than 1 per cent. of an area, so that exploration for mineralized contacts or mineral-bearing formations necessitates drilling, test pitting or tunneling, shaft sinking, and other underground work. In these days of high costs any method that will give definite facts regarding rock? obscured by soil or other material should be used to the greatest possible extent. In the early days of the Lake Superior iron districts, mines were located in the few places where ore was present in outcrops. Later, larger orebodies have been found, in depressions, obscured by soil and other foreign material. Mineralized rocks are oftentimes more weathered, softer, and more easily eroded than unmineralized rocks. It is quite natural, therefore, to expect that such orebodies (particularly where large enough to influence erosion in former physiographic conditions) should lie in depressions and be obscured by later debris. It is not difficult to believe that the history of the development of Lake Superior iron mining may be duplicated in other mining districts, that even larger orebodies than those first mined may be found in areas where the rock exposures, which led to original discoveries, are few or lacking. The chief properties of rocks that can manifest themselves through an obscuring cover are magnetism, electrical effects, radio-activity, gravity, and sound transmission. All of these have been used, to a small extent, to tell us a few things about what lies below the surface that we could not otherwise determine, but none has been used so long and so widely as

Jan 1, 1923

By Paul D. Merica, H. Hanemann

The application of other than mechanical methods to the study of the mechanical-physical properties of metals has become in the last few years a topic of investigation of ever-increasing interest, both from the theoretical standpoint and from that of the engineer and constructor. Besides the investigations which have been made of the magnetic properties of ferromagnetic metals, in their relation to the mechanical properties of these metals, which will be discussed more in detail below, there have been made studies of other phenomena in the same relation, and methods for the mechanical testing 'of metals have even been suggested; for example, the microscopic method of Tammann,' and the thermo-electric method of Turnera for determining elastic limits. The application of all such methods, which are based upon the dependence of some physical, crystallographic, or possibly chemical property, upon the mechanical state of the metal, must be preceded by close and careful correlation of these various "test" properties with the known mechanical state of the different metals or materials. It is with this view that the present work, as well as that of many previous investigators of, what may be termed in the interests of brevity, the mechanical-magnetic properties of ferromagnetic materials of construction, has been done. Previous Investigations of Mechanical Magnetic Properties The effect of mechanical stresses and of deformation, elastic or otherwise, oil the magnetic qualities of iron, steel, and other metals, has been studied by a number of investigators from the time of Joule (1841) to the present. It will, however, for the present purpose be sufficient to give an account only of the principal results obtained in the course of these investigations. It was early noticed (Villari, 1865) that if an iron wire is placed in a

Jan 1, 1916

By Thomas T. Read

Readjustment of the industrial world to a peace basis after more than 4 years of war will involve many fundamental and far-reaching changes that cannot as yet be clearly foreseen or definitely provided for. Such problems may be subdivided, in the vocabulary of war, into those involving material and those centering about personnel. Of the two, the latter group is the more difficult and obscure, as the factors involved are less clearly understood and the methods to be followed are not yet tested and standardized. When it is said that the market is weak, stocks large, and demand light, every business man understands clearly what is meant and what course he should adopt to adjust himself, so far as possible, to such conditions. But when it is said that the rapid spread of Bolshevism in Europe is a danger to industrial organization in this country, it is difficult to have any assured sense that all that the statement may mean is clearly understood or that the means to be followed to meet such a situation are definitely known. Since Bolshevism is primarily a mental phenomenon and since the rupture it brings about in industrial organization should be prevented, if possible, it is my purpose to restrict this discussion of the activities of the Committee on Industrial Organization to some of its mental aspects, as the chairmen of the sub-committees, from their special knowledge of their own fields, can best set forth recent progress in the lines with which they are especially concerned. The first requisites of success in industrial organization, as in the biological organism of which it is the social counterpart, are unity of purpose and coordinated activity. Typical good and bad examples of this' are the relative parts that the United States and Russia have played in the great war. These two factors are primarily mental, and it is not difficult to view the mental aspects of all problems of industrial organization as the most important ones. Unless we can attain unity of purpose and coordinated activity in industry, the provision of comfortable homes at reasonable rent, the assurance of steady work at good wages, the elimination of industrial accidents, and provision against want in old age or in case of disability will have brought us no nearer to our real goal.

Jan 1, 1919

By Harold Earle Cook

The purpose of this paper is to state briefly the inspection requirements of the Bureau of Ordnance, the specifications governing the inspection, and the physical and chemical properties of the steel used in the construction of ordnance for our Navy. It would be of interest to evoke discussion on points in these specifications which do not tend to insure the production of the very best material for the purpose intended. In other words, what requirements of our specifications are useless and also in what manner are our specifications deficient? It might be well at the start to answer the first criticism of this paper which will probably be made, and that is that the title does not agree with the subject matter. Considering metallographic work as covering only the macroscopic and microscopic examination of metals, this paper will have gone beyond the subject; but it is believed that a broader definition of metallography is that it is the study of the relation of the internal structure of metals and alloys to their composition and to their physical and other properties. The internal structure of steel is dependent on its physical and its chemical properties. These physical properties are dependent on the chemical composition and the mechanical and thermal treatment of the steel. So it seems that this subtitle would not be entirely necessary and that the title " Metallography of Steel for Ordnance Purposes" would cover a study, not only of what we can learn of macroscopic and microscopic examination, but broadly of the whole subject of the specifications, the fulfillment of the requirements of which produce the structural conditions revealed by macroscopic and microscopic examination. I will refer but briefly at the beginning to the microscope and its uses in our inspection. It is only very recently that the Bureau of Ordnancc has furnished certain of its inspection offices with a portable Tassin outfit for the microscopic examination of steel. Since that

Jan 1, 1916

By Homer G. Turner

Coals, other than anthracite, have been so thoroughly studied under the microscope during recent years, that we now know what kinds of plants and what parts of plants form the bulk of lower rank coals from peat to bituminous coal. The microscope has also shown the state of preservation of such vegetation as well as the nature and distribution of products of plant decay. These and further details have been ascertained mainly through the employment of two methods of attack, section cutting and maceration. Anthracite has failed to respond to these methods, so well adapted to the study of lower rank coals and, therefore, has been neglected by investigators to such an extent that there is much doubt as to its microscopical characteristics. The object of this paper is to lift anthracite from its realm of obscurity by demonstrating the wealth of microscopical detail that is revealed when reflected light is used on a properly polished and etched surface and, further, to show the relationship between anthracite and bituminous coal. Technique The method adopted in this investigation is similar to that described in an earlier paper.' Because of slight modifications recently made, the process is again described. It consists, briefly, of etching a polished surface of coal with heat. Although pieces of various sizes and shapes are used, blocks of coal about 2 or 3 cm. square take the most uniform polish and are large enough to be handled with ease. Larger pieces can be used if one has the equipment for polishing them and they rnay be desirable when one wishes to study some particular form that extends for some distance through the coal. Large surfaces, however, require greater care in polishing and etching; for this reason, they are not recommended for ordinary work.

Jan 1, 1925

By G. F. Comstock

These notes should be considered as a further discussion of Mr. S. W. Miller's paper on "Some Structures in Steel Fusion Welds."l In that paper and the resulting discussion, several conflicting opinions were expressed as to the identity of the needles or small crystals present in oxyacetylene and electric welds. An interesting specimen of an electric weld examined by the writer seems to afford new evidence regarding the needles, that may be worth presenting at this time. The specimen consisted of a piece of 3/8-in. (9.5-mm.) steel plate, about 21/4 by 13/4 in. (5.7 by 4.5 cm.) in size, on which some iron had been deposited by arc-welding to a depth of about 3/16 in. (4.7 mm.). The weld appeared to be a very good one, with no noticeable break or boundary between the plate and the deposited iron. Sections for microscopic examination were cut in three planes at right angles to each other through the deposited metal, two of these sections also extended through the steel base. After polishing in the usual way, the microscope showed that the deposited metal was full of very small, round, gray, oxide spots, while the steel plate contained quite a number of alumina inclusions and a little slag. The sections were etched with nitric acid in ordinary alcohol, and structures similar to those described by Mr. Miller were then displayed. Fig. 1 shows the typical appearance of the deposited metal, which was quite uniform in all three of the planes examined. The round dark-gray spots are oxides, and the pale angular crystals are evidently what Mr. Miller called cem-entite and Mr. Jeffries martensite, while Mr. Ruder and Professor Boyls-ton think that they might be nitride. The boundary between this structure and the steel base was sharply defined under the microscope. Fig. 2 shows the structure of the plate just under the weld; this is almost martensitic and resembles a coarse-grained casting. This coarse cast structure soon became finer as the distance from the weld increased, finally becoming very fine, with numerous small particles of sorbite. This very fine structure, shown in Pig. 3, became coarser in turn and finally merged into the original normal structure of the steel plate, shown

Jan 1, 1920

By Edmund B. Kirby

This meeting marks the point at which the long-standing dissatisfaction with the mineral-land laws, the innumerable protests against them, and the many isolated efforts to obtain relief, have developed into a general movement for their revision. That part of the mining industry which is affected by these laws has three general organizations which are able to speak for it: the American Institute of Mining Engineers, the Mining and Metallurgical Society of . America, and the American Mining Congress; all of which are represented in this meeting. In the series of able and thoughtful papers presented here, prominent men have discussed the evils of the present laws and some of the reforms which should be made in them. We all appreciate fully the ultimate value of these studies; but we are also painfully aware of the fact that discussion of this kind has been going on for a quarter of a century without any other effect than a steady increase in the mass of printed records stored on library shelves. In order to get any practical result we Gust induce an indifferent government at Washington to act, and to do this we must unite in pushing some practical plan whereby it may act in a simple and effective way and with the least possible amount of criticism or opposition. The actual question before us is not whether the mining laws are bad; for their evils and absurdities are not only beyond discussion but also beyond the resources of a temperate and dignified vocabulary. It is not what particular changes ought to be made; for it is premature to make . specific recommendations until there is some one to listen to them. Moreover, we all know that there are wisdom and experience enough available, and awaiting that time, for the creation of a code which would be a model to the mining world. The practical question now is, how to obtain the revision; and since the American Mining Congress has of late restricted its attention to this phase of the problem I wish as one of its representatives here to present its views upon the matter.

Jan 1, 1915

By Herbert F. Miller

For a long time I have believed that the gas- and brick-costs of open-hearth furnaces using prodncer-gas could be greatly decreased by a change in the design of the port, which would materially reduce the first-cost of the furnace, the rebuilding-cost, and the repair-cost. The defects of the present type of such furnaces, which has clone duty for so many years, may be studied in Fig. 1, in which A A are the two air-uptakes, B is the gas-uptake, and C the end of the gas-port. In the present type of furnace, C is practically 011 the edge of the bath and therefore combustion begins to take place at that point, but has no effect until the gas passes from 5 to 10 ft. into the hearth. As the furnace grows older, C moves back by reason of the burning or falling down of the arch. The furnace reaches its highest efficiency when C has moved a certain distance, but is still near enough to the bath for the overhead layer of air to hold the gas down on the bath, and far enough back to permit combustion to take place at some distance from the bath. This latter fact means that the temperature is sufficient to melt steel at the edge of the port. From this time on, the furnace decreases in efficiency. What is the reason ? As C moves further hack, the gas is released from the gas-port at a point where there is little or no overhead layer of air. The result is that the gas floats along the roof, with the air mostly underneath it. Why the air does not stay over the gas is readily seen in Fig. 1. The lines of draft naturally run parallel to the length of the furnace. The air-uptakes being on the sides and the gas-port in the middle, most of the air will naturally be drawn along the sides of the furnace and the layer of air will be thinnest over the gas, where it is most needed.

Jan 1, 1914

By John W. Cobb

The attempts of British investigators to arrive at definite knowledge concerning the nature of the nitrogenous constituents of coal have been mainly made through studies of the behavior of coal on carbonization and gasification. There have been carried out numerous determinitions of the distribution of nitrogen in the products of carbonization under laboratory and large-scale conditions; and by a careful consideration of the extent to which nitrogen is liberated, say as ammonia,. at different temperatures and under different conditions of operation as regards atmosphere, it has been possible to form some general notions as to the nature of the nitrogenous compounds present in the coal; and at the same time to arrive at clearer ideas as to what are the important operative factors in determining the ammonia yield under working conditions. This work has been spread over many years and is summarized below. The difficulties of connecting the results in such a way as to allow of the nitrogenous constituents of the coal being described in terms of specific organic structure are great. They arise, for example, in the carbonization process, because the phenomena of decomposition observed at any one temperature can only refer to compounds decomposing at that temperature, each of them with a previous history of chemical transformations occurring at lower temperatures. To put it in &other way, the compounds occurring in the coke at any stage are not in the least likely to be those present in the original coal. The same difficulty, in a milder form, occurs when the method of differential solution is attempted. There is always the preliminary question, almost impossible to answer, as to how far the separation by the use of the solvent has involved some form of decomposition of the original compounds. In the following summary, an attempt has been made to bring together results obtained by British workers.

Jan 1, 1925

By H. D. Hoskold

DuRing the last few years, various persons have been put forward as originators of some mechanical device for the purpose of finding distances without the use of a chain or other linear measuring-instrument, and among these, the Englishman, Gascoigne, 1639, is prominent as the first in England; while James Watt, 1771, and William Green, 1778, are also included in the list of inventors. It is possible that this useful and important problem occupied the attention of others prior to the date cited, and, consequently, it is difficult to decide what nation first gave birth to the inventor of an instrument for the object under consideration. A very important work appeared, not long since, in Paris, devoted to a history and discussion of some of the older and newest forms of surveying-instruments,* and at page 79 of that work a curious old instrument is exhibited, called Bigonometre, i. e., an instrument for finding distances and solving trigonometrical problems. in surveying. A copy of the diagram of the instrument exhibited in the book referred to is represented in Fig. 1. Having had an occasion to read the French work referred to, I communicated with the author of it, and he was good enough to reply that he found a diagram of this old instrument in a book published in 1597, by Danfrie, existing in the library of the Academy of Sciences, in Paris. Col. Laus-

Jan 1, 1904