Mr. T. H. Henry on the Composition of Wootz, or Indian Steel. 43 



pretends to have produced blades so nearly emulating those of 

 Damascus, as to allow of their being bent at a right angle, 

 and capable of dividing a film of gauze floating in the atmo- 

 sphere*. 



I obtained from my friend Mr. Trenham Reeks of the Govern- 

 ment School of Mines, two samples of wootz, furnished to him 

 by Mr. Lewis Humbert of the militarj^ department of the India 

 House ; one was in the form of a cake, such as would be produced 

 by allowing the melted steel to cool in the crucible ; the other 

 was forged into a small bar, abovit 4 inches long and 1 inch 

 square, and weighed 4760 grs., or rather more than 11 oz. 

 These are the forms in which it is imported into this country. I 

 preferred operating on the bar, for in steel in this form small 

 particles of slag are often so intimately mixed with the metal as 

 to defy separation ; and it is possible, as all the alumina found 

 by Dr. Faraday in wootz was in an insoluble form, that it might 

 have existed as silicate of alumina. 



The specific gravity of this specimen was 7*727 at 62° F. 



Analysis. 



To determine the total amount of carbon, the steel in its soft 

 state was reduced by means of good files to such a minute state 

 of division that it passed through copper-wire gauze containing 

 8100 holes to the square inch. The files employed were those 

 used for polishing, being " single cut ;" they are not so hard as 

 the "cross cut" files, and consist of sharp edges instead of points, 

 and consequently are not so liable to abrasion ; when used with 

 care there is no danger of any particles of the file mixing with 

 the steel operated on. 



It was then burnt with oxide of copper only, as Kudernatsch 

 recommends. I believe the most accurate results are obtained 

 by this method. I could not find any iron remaining in the 

 metallic state after combustion ; it appeared all in the state of 

 magnetic oxide. 



I obtained in two experiments, operating in one case on 60 

 grs. passed through the gauze of 8100 holes to the square inch, 

 and on .^Ogrs. passed through gauzeof 14,400 holes to the inch, — 



I. II. 



1"645 j/^rcent. r652 percent. 



The amount of uncombincd carbon in the form of graphite, 

 was determined in the usual manner, by dissolving in hydi'o- 

 chloric acid, in a platinum vessel, evaporating to dryness without 

 filtration, separating the silica from the graphite by caustic pot- 



* A specimen of his damask steel is to be seen in the Museum of the 

 Government Sehool of Mines in Jcimyn Street. 



