90 COGGIN BROWN : MINES & MINERAL RESOURCES OF YUNNAN. 



to be unable to make any use of these small and hard lumps 



of steel. 



There are furnaces and moulds for the manufacture of cast iron 



pans at Ma-li-pa and Wan-yao. The furnace used 

 Castings. ig a smal]j roun d-bottomed, tilting blast 



furnace from four to five feet high. The shaft is broader at the 

 top than at the bottom. It is made of thick clay-work and strongly 

 bound with iron bands. The narrow part is fitted into a large, 

 round-bottomed, cast iron pan, about 1| to 2 feet in diameter, the 

 joint being luted with clay. This forms the hearth. The ground 

 in front and underneath is cut away for G or 8 inches, except for 

 two small projecting pieces on each side, on which the hemispherical 

 iron bottom of the furnace rests, and which serve as pivots on which 

 the whole arrangement can be tilted slightly. When upright it 

 also rests for support on the somewhat higher ground at the back. 

 The tuyer enters the back wall just above the junction of the clay 

 and iron work, and it has a slight downward inclination towards 

 the hearth. It is connected to the blower by means of a long bamboo 

 pipe, so that the heat from the molten metal may not injure the 

 woodwork of the blower. The tapping-hole is slightly below the 

 level of the tuyer, but is cut in the front of the furnace. A rough 

 bamboo shed covers the furnace and blower and serves as a protec- 

 tion for the workmen in bad weather. 



The blowing machine is of the type which is commonly used 

 throughout Western China for most metallurgical operations. It 

 is made from the trunk of a large tree, which is cut lengthwise before 

 having the interior removed, in order to leave as perfect a hollow 

 cylinder as possible. The two pieces are arranged to fit together 

 and the joints are made airtight by the application of clay. The 

 length varies greatly for different purposes, but for the supply of 

 air to a small crucible furnace like the one under description, a 

 blower i\ or 5 feet long is used. For the large copper furnaces 

 seen in some parts of the country very much larger machines are 

 made. The piston is made of wood and is caused to fit exactly 

 by having the rims of the circular piece at its head packed with 

 feathers. The ends of the blower are made from circular pieces 

 of wood and are movable. One is pierced with a circular hole 

 for the reception of the piston rod, and both have a couple of small 

 rectangular holes which are fitted with valves of soft leather on the 

 inside. On r ce side of the cylinder two larger holes are cut and 



