312 TRANSACTIOXS OF THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. [YoL. 11. 



to five per cent, of nickel ; and carrying out the tests on a larger scale^ 

 recent experiments at Annapolis proved that armour plate made of steel 

 containing nickel was superior to any other plate. 



These facts and the statements in the New York Mining Journal \x\ con- 

 nection with the Sudbury deposits (and which my observations lead me 

 to believe are correct) " that the Canadian mines alone could supply the 

 whole demand in the world even if the other sources did not produce 

 anything " give to us a new interest in this question of manufacturing 

 steel, as well as gratifying information as to the supply of this new 

 element which, without doubt, will enter into its composition in the future^ 



THE AVAILABLE MARKET FOR HOME PRODUCTION. 



I shall, lastly, briefly touch on the question of market. I merely 

 allude to home market, for what foreign demand might spring up for a 

 superior grade of nickel steel, did we make it, I shall not attempt to 

 predict. 



The fact that I previously pointed out that a man living south of the 

 49th parallel has produced for him in his own country 54 times as much 

 pig iron as if he were located to the north of the said line, seems to 

 prove to me one of two things, namely, that there is a great deficiency 

 that can be legitimately made up by smelting and manufacture, or that 

 the average Canadian is lower in the scale of civilization than I believe 

 him to be. 



I think if the matter were thoroughly investigated that a Canadian 

 uses per capita as much iron and steel as an inhabitant of the United 

 States. 



As to the amount of the consumption I do not think I could quote 

 anything more disinterested as authority than the geological survey of 

 Canada. In the report for the year 1887-88, page IJ of part S, we find 

 that "during the years 1886 and 1887 there were imported for con- 

 sumption into Canada 345,000 tons of pig iron and 283,000 tons of steel. 

 If to this is added the amount of pig iron consumed as such, it will be 

 seen that, excluding all the iron and steel entering into such highly manu- 

 factured articles as cutlery, surgical instruments, edge tpols, machinery 

 of all kinds, engines and many other hardwares and manufactures, there 

 was a total consumption equivalent in pig iron in 18S6 and 1887,. 

 respectively, to about 415,000 tons and 356,000 tons. If made in the 

 country, this quantity of pig iron would represent to our makers at 

 actual prices a value of about $5,000,000 ; it would necessitate a }^early 

 supply from Canadian iron mines of 1,000,000 tons of ore, and, before 



