104 On the Manufacture of Bar Iron in India. 



this subject, I am now able to state, that the Native process 

 is based upon the most correct scientific principles, and 

 that the operation admits of being regulated with the most 

 exact minuteness. 



2. Scientific men in India, where fuel and labour are 

 so cheap, will find the investigation, although difficult, la- 

 borious and very complicated, yet both interesting and gra- 

 tifying, from the surprising and unexpected results which 

 will be met with. Among these, which are not I believe 

 known in Europe, I have found that the products of com- 

 bustion in blast furnaces is neither carbonic acid, nor cor- 

 bonic oxide, but a compound, containing I believe, nitrogen, 

 as may be inferred from its very noxious qualities, it being 

 capable of rendering a man insensible for several hours, 

 when freely inhaled ; and from the fact, that cyanide of 

 potassium was found by Dr. Clark to be an occasional 

 result in the English blast furnaces, I find also, that cast 

 iron contains a gas, and that oxide of iron enters into its 

 composition. 



3. I recommend this subject more particularly to the 

 attention of scientific men in India, because I conceive 

 that among the better qualified scientific of Europe, few 

 are likely to undertake the matter in a proper way, so as to 

 produce results valuable in practice. Men of wealth will 

 naturally prefer giving their attention to more seductive 

 researches, and none but the wealthy could bear the requi- 

 site expense, where charcoal sells for 40 rupees a ton. 



4. I have been surprised to find how much prejudice 

 prevails among Europeans in India, regarding the quality 

 of the iron produced by the Natives, and how little atten- 

 tion has been given by any one to see if it is fit for use, and 

 if it can be used cheaper than English iron. I may ask 

 if those who have thought upon the subject, suppose that 

 the Natives of India are such fools as to continue to prefer 

 the use of their own iron, while they could buy cheaper 



