INDUSTRIAL PROGRESS DURING THE YEAR 1876. ccix 



to cover this subject quite fully, viz. : The superior endurance of this 

 new alloy is bringing it rapidly into use for many other puq30ses be- 

 sides those for which it was originally employed. It still continues in 

 demand for bearings, but is being widely adopted with great advan- 

 tage for pit-ropes, telegraph-wires, bolts, etc. When used for tele- 

 graphic purposes, it is claimed to have thrice the conductivity, and 

 greater strength than the iron wire commonly employed. In its em- 

 ployment for bearings, it has been found to possess a power of en- 

 durance nearly five times greater than that of gun-metal, besides 

 being less liable to heat. Even when heated, it is also atfirmed, it 

 does not cut the journals. In England and on the continent of Eu- 

 rope it has been largely introduced in the construction of the bear- 

 ings of railway carriages that have to travel long distances without 

 stopping. The gain in respect of economy is also great, showing a 

 saving in favor of phosphor-bronze of four to one. The bearings of 

 rollino--mill ensrines have to endure a similar amount of friction, and 

 some of the largest concerns of this description in England have 

 adopted it with satisfactory results. 



Excellent results have also followed the use of phosphor-bronze 

 for plungers, pump-cylinders, and piston-packing. When made into 

 wire cables and ropes, it is affirmed not to be liable to take on a 

 crystalline structure under the action of repeated shocks, which is 

 the case with both iron and steel, as many fatal casualties testify. 

 While it is very hard, it does not emit sparks when struck upon a 

 harder surface, in virtue of which property it has been found to be 

 very suitable for the tools used in the manufacture of gunpowder 

 and the like. At the Centennial Exhibition the Phosphor-Bronze 

 Company exhibited some fine ornamental castings, and specimens 

 of bearings and other uses to which the metal is found applicable. 

 The English government employs phosphor-bronze very largely in 

 the royal arsenal gun and carriage departments. A number of the 

 finest vessels of the English navy have likewise been fitted with 

 phosphor-bronze bearings, slide .-faces, bolts for propeller blades, 

 slide and expansion valves, etc. Many of the Peninsular and Ori- 

 ental steamships use it in their engine-fittings, and other steamship 

 companies are adopting it for bearings, sheet-rings, slide valves and 

 facings, piston-rod cross-head bearings, piston rings for high-pressure 

 cylinders, etc. The authority from which we have gleaned the fore- 

 going points concludes with the statement that a metal that can be 

 made more ductile than copper, as tough as wrought iron, and as hard 

 as steel, is necessarily fitted for many uses, especially as it can be re- 

 melted without any material loss or alteration in quality. In this 

 country, finally, the use of the alloy is gradually extending. 



It is worthy of note that while in this country we are just in tlie 

 midst of a discussion of the feasibility of doing away with the ob- 

 jectionable system of carrying lines of telegraph on posts through 



