158 Frank Carney 



since in grinding wood for pulp in the manufacture of paper, they 

 are continually exposed to hot water. Formerly this country 

 imported practically all of its pulpstones from England; now the 

 Berea rock is found to answer the purpose. 



Ohio also supplies scythestones and whetstones. These require 

 a finer grained sand rock than will answer for either grindstones 

 or pulpstones. 



Artificial abrasives. In recent years natural abrasives have had 

 to compete with art'ficial stones. Several of these are now being 

 made in this country after German formulae; this competition is 

 not important. A plant at Niagara Falls, however, is turning out 

 a product with which our natural stones do not so successfully 

 compete. Carborundum, the artificial abrasive there manufac- 

 tured, was made possible by the supply of electrical current gener- 

 ated at the falls power plant. This abrasive is made by fusing 

 together sawdust, granulated coke, the source of which is the car- 

 bonaceous residue in the distillation of petroleum, and a very pure 

 glass sand. Only by the electrical furnace is it possible to secure 

 commercially the required degree of heat. The fused product is 

 ground to various degrees of fineness, and corresponding abra- 

 sive instruments are made, ranging from a fine razor hone to a 

 very coarse tool. Since carborundum is harder than anything in 

 nature, save the diamond, one appreciates how natural abrasives 

 find this artificial product a strong competitor. 



NATURAL GAS 



Natural gas and petroleum are associated in nature, and man 

 has frequently secured both from the same well. The reason for 

 this association will appear in the discussion of their origin. 



Early history. " Knowledge of the existence of oil and gas in the rocks 

 of Ohio dates baok almost to the period of the state's admission into 

 the Union. This resulted quite largely from the search of the pioneers for 

 that necessarj^ article, common salt. Thus a well drilled in 1814, near 

 the village of South Olive, Noble County, with this in view found such a 

 pressure of gas that it threw the water and some oil to a height of from 

 30-40 feet, and these eruptions were continued as late at least as 1838. 

 About the same time both oil and gas were discovered in Washington 

 County to the south. The petroleum was called Seneka oil, and was used 

 in a small way for medicinal, illuminating, and lubricating purposes. 

 Similar results were secured at many points in the southeastern part of 



