MECHANICS AND USEFUL ARTS. 63 



every direction, and the revolving of the cylinder constantly in- 

 termingles the quartz and mercury, so that every particle of the 

 gold and silver must come in contact with the heated mercury, 

 and consequently be taken up, thereby accomplishing a most 

 perfect system of amalgamating and desulphurizing. 



MANUFACTURE OF IRON AND STEEL BY MEANS OF MAGNETISM. 



In a literary contemporary, Mr. W. Robinson gives a detailed 

 account of his patented process for manufacturing iron and steel 

 by means of magnetism. 



Now, suppose there be no mistake about these results, what is 

 the mode in which the magnet acts upon the crude iron ? The 

 mode in which the same or a similar result is arrived at may help 

 us to an explanation. The two principal methods of turning 

 crude iron into malleable iron and Bessemer steel are by the oxida- 

 tion of the carbon and other matters out of the crude iron. In the 

 puddling process successive portions of the melted iron are 

 brought to the surface by stirring, and into contact with the air, 

 till the greater portion of the carbon passes off in the form of car- 

 bonic acid gas, etc. ; and the same thing is obtained much more 

 readily and perfectly by the Bessemer process, by forcing the air 

 through the melted metal. Now, we believe that it is an es- 

 tablished fact that crude iron cannot become malleable till the 

 carbon is driven off; therefore, if magnetism produces malleable 

 iron from cast iron, it is by driving off the carbon in some way; 

 but if it be driven out, it must be in the gaseous form. To render 

 carbTon gaseous, oxygen is necessaiy, and it so happens that 

 among the gases, oxygen is a paramagnetic ; therefore, in the 

 magnetic sphere, there will be a concentration of oxygen. But 

 this will not account for the oxidization of the carbon unless it 

 can be shown that the carbon is brought in contact with the 

 oxygen. On the surface it will be brought in contact with a 

 condensed atmosphere of ox}*gen, but without stirring how is the 

 carbon, which is mixed, or in combination with the metal below, 

 to be reached ? There seems to be but one way of accounting 

 for it, namely, this : The particles of iron being magnetic, but the 

 particles of carbon not being so, the particles of iron are 

 necessarily colligated together when under the action of the 

 magnet ; and, the carbon squeezed out, the carbon will necessarily 

 rise to the surface and there burn, which it apparently does, from 

 what Mr. Robinson says, producing a great heat and intense 

 ebullition of metal, and even melting the lining of the furnace and 

 the bricks. Whatever the mode of operation may be, the results 

 being, as stated, and we see no reason to doubt them, this 

 method of converting crude iron into malleable iron is by far 

 the simplest and most economical yet discovered. Mechanics' 

 Magazine. 



PROCESSES FOR MAKING STEEL. 



Production of Cast Steel and Iron directly from the Ore. M. C. 

 W. Siemens has patented in England a process for producing cast 



