1862.] g9 [Powel. 



that its peculiarity depends upon the presence of zinc, but I suspect 

 it contains manganese. Those irons would then 'seem totally unfit 

 for ordinary castings, for even when mixed with other pig iron, it is 

 impossible to work them for castings. On one occasion, in attempt- 

 ing to make a roll in this way, which was afterwards broken, the 

 white iron had disposed itself about the surface, and it was then at- 

 tempted to repeat the experiment, but no such disposition of the 

 hard iron could again be obtained. 



For the purpose of being worked as malleable cast iron, its first 

 remarkable and valuable properties begin to appear. I send you two 

 fragments of a cast iron stirrup made in this way. It is hard and 

 strong when cold like steel. The larger piece has been in one place 

 drawn out, hardened, tempered, ground, and sharpened as a knife- 

 blade, which has quite a good edge. Thus you see it is malleable, 

 and is in fact a steel. The other and smaller fragment of the same 

 cast iron stirrup is welded to a small piece of a nail-rod. Thus it has 

 all the requisites for the best quality of malleable cast iron work, with 

 the peculiar steel-like character, only it is not capable of bending when 

 cold as malleable iron. 



The small, square cake of coarse-looking iron, is a piece of the 

 common puddled bar made from the white cast iron. Tt appears 

 here as already a good quality of iron in the first stage of refining. 



Next I send you a loop of round bar iron, about one and a half 

 inch round iron, which has been, I should think, nine inches long. 

 Captain Jenkins saw this specimen bent in the form you see it en- 

 tire/^ cold. The two ends are in contact, and the opening in the 

 centre of the loop is about five-eighths of an inch. It is impossible to 

 find a more remarkable evidence of the toughness of a specimen of 

 wrought iron in the cold. The outer curve of the bend is perfectly 

 unblemished. The cut and fractured ends speak for themselves. 



Next I send you a sample of octagon cast steel, which was made 

 from the puddled bar iron in black lead crucibles. This was done 

 at Sufferns or Ramapo, New Jersey. I send you also, through the 

 kindness of the Captain, the formula for the steel charge in black 

 lead crucible, viz. : 



40 pounds of iron. 



i oz. yellow prussiate of potash. 



1 oz. sal ammoniac. 



8 oz. charcoal. 



1 gill of salt. 

 02 oz. manganese. 



