326 On the Alloi/s of Steel. 



the action of dilute sulphuric acid, the silver appears, not iri 

 combination with the steel, but in threads throughout the mass; 

 so that the whole has the appearance of a bundle of fibres of 

 silver and steel, as if they had been united by welding. The 

 appearance of these silver fibres is very beautiful ; they are 

 sometimes J of an inch in length, and suggest the idea of giving 

 mechanical toughness to steel, where a very perfect edge may 

 not be required. 



At other times, when silver and steel have been very long in 

 a state of perfect fusion, the sides of the crucible, and frec|uently 

 the top also, are covered with a fine and beautiful dew of minute 

 globules of silver ; this efFect can be produced at pleasure. 

 At first we were not successful in detecting silver by chemical 

 tests in these buttons; and finding the steel uniformly improved, 

 were disposed to attribute its excellence to an efFect of the 

 silver, or to a quantity too small to be tested. By subsequent 

 experiments we were, however, able to detect the silver, even to 

 less than 1 in 500. 



In making the silver alloys, the proportion first tried was 

 1 silver to 160 steel ; the resulting buttons were uniformly steel 

 aid silver in fibres, the silver being likewise given out in globules 

 during solidifying, and adhering to the surface of the fused 

 button ; some of these when forged gave out more globules of 

 silver. In this state of mechanical mixture the little bars, 

 when exposed to a moist atmosphere, evidently produced voltaic 

 action, and to this we are disposed to attribute the rapid de- 

 struction of the metal by oxidation, no such destructive action 

 taking place when the two metals are chemically combined. 

 These results indicated the necessity of diminishing the quan- 

 tity of silver, and 1 silver to 200 steel was tried. Here, again, 

 ■were fibres and globules in abundance ; with 1 to 300, the fibres 

 diminished but still were present ; they were detected even 

 •when the proportion of 1 to 400 was used. The successful ex- 

 periment remains to be named. When 1 of silver to 500 steel 

 were properly fused, a very perfect button was produced ; no 

 silver appeared on its surface ; when forged and dissected by 

 an acid, no fibres were' seen, although examined by a high 



