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Mineraloglcal Journc}/, 135 



erations of the trip hammer shop anrl millsj flmning, he. Tlieir fur- 

 nace, which is like those employed in the great Iron mines of Swe- 

 den, is thirty feet in height, of an ovoidal form, and furnislied with a 

 powerful cylindrical machine for giving the blast. It is lined with a 

 white granite from LandaiF, composed principally of felspar, wliich 

 the iron master assnred us, formed a very durable and excellent lining* 

 The furnace was heating up at the time of our visit for an opera- 

 tion to last eighteen weeks. 



Captain Putnam^ the enterprising agent of this establishment, in- 

 formed us, that their manufactures for the last nine years had annu- 

 ally averaged forty tons of bar iron, and two hundred and sixteen tons 

 of cast iron, in hollow ware, stoves, machinery and pig iron ; with the 

 yearly consumption of two hundred thousand bushels of charcoal, 



#3 



But in conse- 



quence of considerable improvements in their works which were 

 just completed, they were beginning to manufacture at the rate of 

 two hundred tons of bar iron, and from three hundred to three hun- 

 dred and fifty tons of cast iron, annually. 



The upper works are, at present, individual property; befng owned 

 and superintended by Mr* J. Richardson. He manufactures bar 

 iron only; and produces one hundred tons, annually. This gentle- 

 man does not employ the high furnace for the reduction of his ore; 

 hut the more simple apparatus of tlie Catalan forge ; which although 

 It requires more charcoal, yet yields excellent wrought iron, and re- 

 quires comparatively but a moderate capital. The ore after a slight 

 roasting, and reduction in the crushing mill, is throwTi, every few min- 

 utes by the shovel full (without any flux) upon the burning charcoal 

 of the forge hearth, to which tlie blast is given from a common leath- 

 ern bellows. When a loup, or cake of sufficient size has been accu- 

 niulated in the basin of the forge, it is witlidrawn, put under the ham- 

 nier and forged at once. Thus, both the forge and furnace ope- 

 i*ations are united m one. These works consume seventy diousand 



expe 



twenty 



dred bushels ; and furnish emj 



Considerable expectation was awake,^ at the time of our visit at 

 Franconia, respecting the discovery of fossil coal, said to exist twelve 

 "illes distant, in the town of Bath. From a- specimen of it, present- 

 ed to us by Mr* Richardson, it was extremely obvious, that it was 

 the anthracite; and in its characters resembled closely tlie vari- 

 ety found at Worcester and Rliode Island, thouirh, apparently, of an 



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