76 Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 



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Magazine and Journal of Science, and as an instance of observation, 

 ingeniously applied. 



An eminent London cutler, Mr. Weiss of the Strand, to whose 

 inventions modern surgery is under considerable obligations, has 

 remarked, that steel seemed to be much improved when it had become 

 rusty in the earth, and provided the rust was not factitiously produced 

 by the application of acids *. He accordingly buried some razor blades 

 for nearly three years, and the result fully corresponded to his expecta- 

 tion j the blades were coated with rust, which had the appearance of 

 having exuded from within, but were not eroded, and the quality of the 

 steel was decidedly improved. Analogy led to the conclusion, that the 

 same might hold good with respect to iron under similar circumstances j 

 so with perfect confidence in the justness of his views, he purchased, as 

 soon as an opportunity offered, all the iron, amounting to fifteen tons, 

 with which the piles of London Bridge had been shod. Each shoe 

 consisted of a small inverted pyramid, with four straps rising from the 

 four sides of its base, which embraced and were nailed to the pile - t 

 the total length from the point which entered the ground to the end 

 of the strap being about 16 inches, and the weight about 8 lbs. 



The pyramidal extremities of the shoes were found to be not much 

 corroded, nor indeed were the straps ; but the latter had become ex- 

 tremely and beautifully sonorous, closely resembling in tone the bars 

 and sounding pieces of an Oriental instrument which was exhibited 

 some time since, with the Burmese state carriage. When manu- 

 factured, the solid points in question were convertible only into very 

 inferior steel : the same held good with respect to such bolts and 

 other parts of the iron work as were subjected to the experiment, 

 except the straps; these, which in addition to their sonorousness, 

 possessed a degree of toughness quite unapproached by common iron, 

 and which were in fact imperfect carburets, produced steel of a quality 

 infinitely superior to any which in the course of his business Mr. 

 Weiss had ever before met with j insomuch, that while it was in 

 general request among the workmen for tools, they demanded higher 

 wages for working it f. These straps, weighing altogether about eight 

 tons, were consequently separated from the solid points, and these 

 last sold as old iron. The exterior difference between the parts of 

 the same shoe led at first to the supposition that they were composed 

 of two sorts of iron j but, besides the utter improbability of this, the 



* This enterprising artist has informed me, that "some years since he sent 

 with Captain Parry, in his voyage to the North Pole, some steel, which was 

 constantly exposed on deck in the Northern latitudes without being in 

 the slightest degree rusted ; but on arriving in a warmer and moister atmo- 

 sphere it became so. This steel he found very good, but not equal to that 

 from London Bridge." 



t A successful application of genius or observation is rarely heard of 

 without some one endeavouring to reap the benefit or the credit of the 

 discovery, whileentitled to neither, nor perhaps understanding the principle 

 on which it depends. The fame of Mr. Weiss's steel soon spread, when 

 another person immediately purchased the bolts and fastenings of the old 

 Bridge: the articles manufactured from them will answer equally well as 

 relics. 



