1848."1 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECTS JOURNAL 



4.7 



which are secured in their places by screw-nuts, also pass throus;h 

 the eyes of pemlant-links h, li, which pasi* throug-h the step or axle- 

 box A:, and hold it in sus])ension. I is the bearinj^-spring^, composed 

 of layers of steel plates, piled one above the other, and eniliraceil 

 by the links /(, ft, which, when screwed tij<Iit to the axle-box by the 

 nuts (shown in the drawing), cause the horizontal links /'to bind 

 tightly upon the middle of the steel plates, and h(dd them securely 

 together. It will now be understood, that wlien it is desirable for 

 the axle to take a position other than a right angle with the side 

 of its carriage, such movement will be ]>erniitted by the links c, c, 

 being free to oscillate. In order, hone\er. to check an undue 

 horizontal movement of the axle, aiul alloi\' of its adjustment only 

 to a line parallel with the radius of the curve over which the car- 

 riage is passing, elastic sto]i or check-pieces ;«, m, are provided, as 

 shown at fig. 1 ; and placed in such a manner, as to allow of a free 

 motion of about a j to ^ inch ; so that, whenever the axle mav 

 have a tendency to sway too much, either forward or backward, 

 tlie links c, c, will come in contact with the pieces m, and he pre- 

 vented from moving further. This horizontal movement of the 

 axle will only occur when the railway deviates from a straight line ; 

 but when the carriage again pursues a straight course, the axle 

 will regain its position at riglit angles to the length of the car- 

 riage. 



Another modification of the invention, applicable to a six-wheel 

 carriage, is also described in the specification, fig. 5 being a side 



Fig 5. 



elevation ; to allow the axles to move laterally, as well as in a for- 

 ward and backward direction, in order that, in a carriage having 

 three or four ]>airs of wheels, the hind wheels may fidlow the front 

 pair, not always in a straight line, as they are now obliged to do 

 (whereby a continuous abrasion ot the flanges against the rails is 

 caused when jiassin^ curves), but that they may take a position on 

 the rail suitable for compensating for the diiference in radius of 

 the two sides of the curve of a railway, and jjermit the cone peri- 

 pheries to work efficiently for that purpose. In this modification, 

 the same or analogous parts are marked witli similar letters of re- 

 ference. Instead of the four arms n, fig. I, forked arms a, are 

 made to embrace the l)eam a ; and at the junction of the prong, 

 filling-pieces are provided, and cross-rods are also employed, to 

 insure the rigidity recpiired for the arms a. The lower ends of the 

 arms a are hook-shaped, and are intended to receive respectively 

 the shackles or links c, c, which, together with the coupling-hooks 

 (■*, pendant from the bars d, perform the same office as the links c, 

 in fig. 1. From tlie peculiar construction of this coupling, it will 

 Ije seen that a lateral play or movement is allowed to the axle, 

 entirely independent of the carriage-framing (no fixed point of 

 vibration being employed, as at fig. 1) ; and, consequently, the ob- 

 ject desired, viz., giving a lateral as well as a backward and for- 

 ward motion to the axle, will be obtained. In order to limit the 

 horizontal motion of the axle, the space for oscillation is contracted 

 st X, J, (fig. 5). To guard against the danger which would result 

 from the breakage ofeither of tlie shackles c, a block of wood is 

 attached beneath the framing, which, in falling, will be caught by 

 a block resting on the coupling-links of the bars d. g is a 

 shield for pre\enting the step or axle-box k, from getting displaced, 

 in the event of such an accident as above alluded to. 



The patentee claims the modes, herein described, of connecting 

 the steps or axle-boxes to the framing of railway carriages, whereby 

 the axles of such carriages are enabled to shift their ]Jositions, 

 with respect to the frames of the carriages, for the purposes above 

 set forth. 



MANUFACTURE OF IRON. 



William Vickeks, of Sheffield, for, " Improtvments in the manu - 

 facture of iron." — Granted June 19; Enrolled December 19, 184.7. 



The improvements consist in melting pig-iron with wrought- 

 iron, an<l running the melted mixture (when divided into streams) 

 into water ; and then converting the product into malleable, or 

 wrought iron, in the following manner : — Pig-iron is to be melted 

 with scrap of wrought-irou or turnings, in any suitable furnace, (a 

 cupola furnace is recommended) ; and the proportions of wrought- 

 iron with pig-iron may vary greatly, l)ut that a very small addition 

 of ivrouglit-iron to pig-iron, run into water, will he found to produce 

 a great improvement in the quality of iron manufactured there- 

 from. Sometimes the following proportions are employed : To 



30 parts of wrought-iron are added 70 parts of pig-iron, by weight ; 

 and, although this ma}' not be found to answer for some purposes' 

 it has l)een found to answer well. If, however, the iron should be 

 intended to be made into steel, it will he necessary to increase the 

 proportion of wiought-iron, by mixing with the pig-iron about 40 

 per cent, of wrought-iron. In the manufacture of iron intended 

 for general purposes, there may be used, with advantage, a mixture 

 of 30 per cent, of scrap of wrought-iron, or turnings, with pig- 

 iron ; and such mixture, when melted, may he divided into small 

 streams, and run into water, in any convenient manner. For this 

 purpose, the patentee states he lias used the following arrange- 

 ment : — He takes a cast-iron tray, perforated with holes of half- 

 an-inch in diameter, and this is lined about half-an-inch thick, 

 with sand or composition, such as is used for stopping cujiola fur- 

 naces with ; which is punctured with holes about a quarter of an inch 

 in diameter — such punctures being immediately over the holes in 

 the tray, and then the tray is placed about 15 feet above the level 

 of the water in the tank (employed for solidifying the iron), which 

 is of wood, and about 4 feet deep ; and the melted metal passing 

 from the furnace, througli the perforated tray, into the water in the 

 said tank, will be found therein in a divided state. This product is 

 used in the manufacture of wrought-iron, and is treated the same 

 as in the manufacture of wrought-iron from pig, or refined iron. 

 The patentee adds, that he has used, with advantage, in tlie melt- 

 ing of pig-iron with wrought-iron, from 3 to 5 per cent, of black 

 oxide of manganese, which "he believes will he found to be advan- 

 tageous. This may be added from time to time, by placing small 

 pieces in the tuyere holes — the blast dividing it in the furnace as 

 the mixture becomes melted. The patentee does not claim the 

 melting of wrought-iron with pig, or cast-iron, nor the running of 

 melted cast-iron into water, when separately considered ; neither 

 does he claim the precise mode set forth, so long as the peculiar 

 character of his invention be retained ; but wh;it he claims, is melt- 

 ing pig-iron with wrought-iron scrap, or turnings, and then run- 

 ning it into water, and using the product in the manufacture of 

 wrought, or malleable iron. 



STEERING VESSELS. 



William IIenwood, of Portsea, naval architect, for " Improve- 

 ments in prDjielliny i^etuscla, and in steering vessels." — Granted Way t ; 

 Enrolled November 4, lfc;47. 



The first improvement in propelling and steering relates to scren - 

 propelled ships or vessels, and consists in placing the screw-pro- 

 peller at the aft-side of the sternpost, where the rudder is in ves- 

 sels generally, and in applying the rudder on the fore-side of the 

 screw-propeller, in the lower "and aftermost part of the run, and 

 below the propeller-shaft, the rudder being substituted for the 

 same part of the run of the vessel, as shown in fig 1. The lower 

 end of the sternpost meets the keelson, or timber running under 

 the shaft, at about the height of the centre of the shaft ; and the 

 one may be united very securely to the other, by a flaiich or 

 flanches on the shaft cylinder, let into and bolted to the sternpost 

 and keelson. This keelson, or timber, should be large in siding, 

 because of the hole through it for the rudder-head to pass through ; 

 and it must have a rabbet to receive the bottom plank. 



The propeller is connected with the sternpost and vessel very 

 firmly by a metal coupling-box o, which has a metal-frame b, at- 

 tached to it for raising and lowering the propeller ; the coupling- 

 box and hoisting-frame being formed with tongues, to slide in 

 metal-faced grooves in the sides of the sternpost s, and the coup- 

 ling-box having an interior collar, of the utmost requisite strength, 

 fitted against a corresponding exterior collar round the propeller. 

 The union of the propeller to the ship is thus made abundantly 

 strong for pressing the shaft into the propeller, and "backing 



