IRON 85 



contain a liberal amount. Practically all construction 

 is fundamentally of iron which has been built with 

 iron tools. 



Thus iron has become an absolute necessity to the 

 physical wants of the race. Its great utility is due to 

 the fact that it can be made into so many different 

 things. 



Occurrence. Iron is not found in nature in the state 

 in which we know it commercially, though occasionally 

 free iron which has dropped to the earth from meteors 

 is found. It is widely distributed over the whole earth 

 combined with other substances, in which form it is 

 known as iron ore. It exists chiefly in combination 

 with oxygen, carbon, or sulphur in the form of oxides, 

 carbonates, or sulphides. The United States is the 

 greatest iron producing country in the world. The 

 iron mines of the Lake Superior region are the richest 

 and best known, and supply a large part of the world's 

 annual output. 



The south also contains rich mines, Birmingham, Ala- 

 bama, being the center of the industry in the south. 

 This is due to the fact that coal and limestone, two 

 other substances necessary in iron making, are found 

 deposited there. The mineral kingdom is not the only 

 place where iron is found. The element is necessary for 

 the life of all green plants and is found in the hemoglobin 

 of the blood, where it plays a very important function 

 in carrying oxygen to the various parts of the body. 



Preparation from ore. To produce the metal iron 



