PROGRESS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF STEEL. 815 



result of the application has been, that phosphorus has been converted 

 from an enemy into a friend, and aids in producing and maintaining 

 the temperature that is needed. Silicon is also useful as a combus- 

 tible, and in preventing the metal from becoming honeycombed by 

 escaping gases while solidifying. This it does by combining with 

 oxygen and preventing the latter substance from combining with car- 

 bon and forming a gaseous product. 



In consequence of the extremely high temperature which we can 

 command, either in the Bessemer or open-hearth process, it is possible 

 to obtain in a molten state a metal practically free from carbon, or 

 containing carbon to any required amount. All of the products have 

 been called steel, although they constitute in effect a new metal, hav- 

 ing qualities considerably different from those of steel. 



It thus has resulted that we speak of steel ships, steel boilers, and 

 steel rails. The metal of which ship-plates are made contains about 

 ttmt P^^* cent, of carbon, that for boilers about y^/o"? while rails usually 

 have about y^y. The first and the second could not be appreciably 

 hardened, and the third is considerably below what would formerly 

 have been considered steel. 



At present there is but one sound reason why steel should not 

 universally replace iron with advantage, and that is, that in some 

 cases it is cheaper to employ iron. Statistics show us that the enor- 

 mous quantities of steel now manufactured have but little, if at all, 

 affected the production of wrought-iron. It is, however, I am con- 

 vinced, but a question of time. When the day comes and every day 

 brings us nearer to it when steel will be manufactured as cheaply as 

 iron, then will wrought-iron be a thing of the past among the great 

 civilized nations. 



One word as regards the employment of steel made by these mod- 

 ern methods for cutlery. Cutlery-manufacturers would tell you that 

 it is useless for the purpose ; nevertheless, on the Continent, it is very 

 largely used, and in this country to a considerable extent. I do not 

 hesitate to assert that, with suitable ores and proper care in the manu- 

 facture, steel well suited for cutlery can be made both in the open- 

 hearth and the converter. The essential in the ore is that it should 

 not contain phosphorus ; with but a trace of phosphorus present, a 

 good cutting edge could never be obtained. 



If we glance back for a moment to review our history, we shall 

 see that the open-hearth processes embody the same principle as the 

 first process by which steel was produced, viz., the mutual action of 

 carburized iron and oxide of iron on one another, and the Bessemer 

 process is, after all, though a splendid offspring, only the natural de- 

 scendant of the finery process, the origin of which, as we have seen, 

 was due to modifications in the primitive blast-furnaces. There is 

 perfect continuity throughout, and, after all, what more natural ? 



