﻿54 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  ment. 
  The 
  conditions 
  are 
  well 
  suited 
  for 
  surface 
  work 
  by 
  

   stripping 
  or 
  trenching 
  throughout 
  much 
  of 
  the 
  stretch 
  from 
  

   Herkimer 
  to 
  western 
  Wayne 
  county. 
  In 
  places 
  the 
  ore 
  is 
  en- 
  

   countered 
  directly 
  beneath 
  the 
  soil 
  or 
  at 
  most 
  a 
  few 
  feet 
  of 
  

   glacial 
  materials, 
  while 
  with 
  its 
  flat 
  dip 
  there 
  is 
  often 
  oppor- 
  

   tunity 
  to 
  extend 
  the 
  field 
  of 
  operations 
  to 
  considerable 
  distances 
  

   from 
  the 
  outcrop 
  before 
  the 
  overburden 
  becomes 
  excessive. 
  

   There 
  is 
  still 
  an 
  abundance 
  of 
  ore 
  that 
  can 
  be 
  removed 
  to 
  ad- 
  

   vantage 
  by 
  open-cut 
  work. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  quite 
  recently 
  that 
  mechanical 
  methods 
  of 
  excavation 
  

   have 
  been 
  introduced, 
  and 
  the 
  greater 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  product 
  in 
  

   the 
  past 
  has 
  been 
  won 
  by 
  the 
  crude 
  system 
  of 
  hand 
  labor 
  first 
  

   employed. 
  With 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  portable 
  steam 
  shovels, 
  the 
  cost 
  of 
  

   taking 
  out 
  the 
  ore 
  has. 
  been 
  so 
  reduced 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  now 
  practicable 
  

   to 
  strip 
  fully 
  twice 
  as 
  much 
  rock 
  as 
  formerly, 
  notwithstanding 
  

   the 
  material 
  reduction 
  that 
  has 
  taken 
  place 
  in 
  iron 
  ore 
  prices. 
  

  

  An 
  example 
  of 
  good 
  practice 
  in 
  open-cut 
  excavation 
  is 
  af- 
  

   forded 
  by 
  the 
  recent 
  operations 
  of 
  the 
  Furnaceville 
  Iron 
  Co. 
  at 
  

   Ontario 
  Center. 
  This 
  company 
  has 
  been 
  engaged 
  in 
  working 
  

   a 
  strip 
  of 
  land 
  lying 
  to 
  the 
  north 
  of 
  that 
  place 
  and 
  extending 
  

   for 
  over 
  4 
  miles 
  in 
  an 
  east 
  and 
  west 
  line. 
  The 
  plan 
  adopted 
  here 
  

   consists 
  briefly 
  in 
  opening 
  longitudinal 
  trenches, 
  the 
  first 
  along 
  

   the 
  northern 
  limits 
  of 
  the 
  property, 
  near 
  the 
  outcrop, 
  and 
  the 
  

   following 
  ones 
  in 
  parallel 
  order 
  progressively 
  with 
  the 
  removal 
  

   of 
  the 
  ore 
  from 
  the 
  preceding 
  trench. 
  At 
  the 
  present 
  time 
  about 
  

   20 
  feet 
  of 
  overburden 
  is 
  taken 
  off, 
  while 
  in 
  the 
  first 
  cut 
  some 
  40 
  

   rods 
  to 
  the 
  north 
  the 
  ore 
  lay 
  beneath 
  6 
  feet 
  of 
  soil 
  and 
  rock. 
  

   The 
  trench 
  has 
  a 
  width 
  of 
  60 
  feet 
  and 
  until 
  recently 
  two 
  shovels 
  

   were 
  used 
  in 
  its 
  excavation, 
  each 
  cutting 
  30 
  feet 
  or 
  one 
  half 
  the 
  

   whole 
  width. 
  The 
  shovels 
  loaded 
  into 
  buckets 
  which 
  were 
  

   hoisted 
  by 
  revolving 
  derricks 
  and 
  dumped 
  on 
  the 
  spoil 
  bank 
  

   opposite 
  the 
  long 
  face 
  of 
  the 
  trench 
  and 
  just 
  beyond 
  the 
  edge 
  

   of 
  the 
  ore 
  that 
  was 
  being 
  uncovered. 
  The 
  outer 
  shovel 
  worked 
  

   somewhat 
  in 
  advance. 
  During 
  the 
  last 
  year 
  the 
  trenching 
  has 
  

   been 
  done 
  by 
  a 
  single 
  100-ton 
  shovel 
  which 
  removes 
  the 
  rock 
  

   for 
  a 
  width 
  of 
  about 
  45 
  feet, 
  dumping 
  directly 
  on 
  the 
  spoil 
  bank, 
  

   and 
  then 
  returns 
  to 
  clear 
  the 
  remainder 
  with 
  the 
  aid 
  of 
  a 
  der- 
  

   rick. 
  1 
  The 
  shovels 
  and 
  derricks 
  are 
  mounted 
  to 
  run 
  on 
  tracks 
  

  

  1 
  Since 
  the 
  above 
  account 
  was 
  written, 
  the 
  methods 
  have 
  been 
  somewhat 
  modified 
  in 
  

   that 
  a 
  conveyor 
  has 
  been 
  installed, 
  as 
  shown 
  in 
  the 
  accompanying 
  plates. 
  The 
  con- 
  

   veyor 
  consists 
  of 
  a 
  portable 
  structure, 
  with 
  two 
  skips 
  each 
  of 
  6 
  cubic 
  yards 
  capacity 
  

   which 
  receive 
  the 
  rock 
  material 
  from 
  the 
  steam 
  shovel 
  and 
  carry 
  it 
  up 
  the 
  incline 
  

   (129 
  feet 
  long) 
  to 
  the 
  dump. 
  This 
  apparatus 
  increases 
  the 
  efficiency 
  of 
  the 
  steam 
  

   shovel, 
  at 
  the 
  same 
  time 
  enabling 
  the 
  latter 
  to 
  excavate 
  the 
  trench 
  to 
  the 
  full 
  width 
  of 
  

   60 
  feet 
  without 
  return. 
  

  

  