PROCEEDINGS OF THE POLYTECHNIC ASSOCIATION. 497 



of this bell is estimated at 300,000 dollars. Wiien it was cast, it was left 

 for a long' time in the pit, on account of not having- a lifting apparatus 

 capable of removing it, but a method wms at last devised, and it was 

 placed in the chapel of the Tzar. In a short time the bell was cracked, 

 when it was taken down. In Moscow there are more large bells than in 

 any other city on the contineiit. They have 1190 bells there, and a chime 

 of 32 bells in one tower. The largest casting in modern times is that of 

 an anvil block weighing 1-10 tons. 



Mr. James Harrison said, we were indebted to a member of this Institute 

 for taking a photograph of the bell of Moscow, which gives us an exact 

 view of it and its present position. When it was raised from the pit and 

 placed in the chapel, it was struck one or two blows, when it cracked. It 

 now stands on a stone-wall; the peice that was broken out, is used as a 

 door to enter the bell. It is impossible to conceive how so massive a work 

 cnuld be executed, particularly in that age of the world. 400,000 pounds 

 of metal, poured into one mass at the same time, is very remarkable. The 

 inscriptions around the bell are exceedingly beautiful, and altogether it 

 fi)rms one of the most wonderful pieces of workmanship known. 



For hundreds of years until quite recently, all bells have been made of 

 a composition of copper and tin. Indeed, so identical was this compo- 

 sition with bells that it has been and is now known as bell-metal. While 

 the inventive genius of the people had been applied to the improvement of 

 all other articles of manufacture, that of bells has escaped their notice. 

 Perhaps one reason for this was that it seemed impossible to make them of 

 any other material than the old bronze metal. But in 1855 a discover}^ was 

 made in Prussia that bells could be made of cast steel, and their introduc. 

 tion has reduced their costs very considerably, and at the same time 

 awakened a spirit of inquiry which has led to many improvements. But 

 the question is raised, will bells made of steel and its compositions be 

 durable? Will they not break ? A little reflection will show that steel is 

 much the strongest metal, and experience has proved that steel bells are 

 durable. They are not as likely to break as bells of other metdls. Of 

 course, bells will be broken, no matter what kind of metal they are 

 made uf, if they are struck violently in one place for any great length of 

 time. 



The key of a bell should be adapted to its weight, as the tone naturally 

 becomes deeper with the increase of weight, and vice versa. There are 

 some peculiarities about the distance that bells can be heard that is not 

 yet fully understood. There are some bells of 250 pounds that have been 

 heard in clear weather four miles off, and some of 500 pounds that are 

 heard 8 miles; while there are others of equal size and weight that cannot 

 be heard more than half those distances. 



The opinion seems to be that a great deal depends upon the location 

 as well as upon the manner in which the bell-room is built. It has been 

 found that bells are heard much farther in those towers where the bell- 

 room is left open witJKjut blinds, and with the top ceiled immediately above 

 the windows. The largest bells are not always heard at the greatest dis- 

 tance — for instance, the bell in our City Hall park, weighing 22,000 pounds, 

 [Am. Inst.] F* 



