16 THE IRON ORE DISTRICT OF EAST TEXAS. 



Comer & Fairis, and we procured lime rock from Coryell County, by the 

 Texas and St. Louis Railroad, at a cost of about $4 per ton delivered. The 

 furnace was started for an experimental test on the 30th of November, 1885, 

 and ran, with splendid results, to the 10th of January, 1886, when the coal 

 became exhausted, and it was blown out. The output of iron was seldom 

 less than twenty-five tons per day, and frequently over thirty tons per day. 

 From this blast the total yield was 1044 tons of excellent iron. 



The furnace was again put in blast on the 1st of July last, and is now in 

 blast, and the yield to date from this second blast is 3069 tons. Total out- 

 put of the two blasts 41 13 tons, which is worth at a fair cash valuation $16 

 per ton, or $65,808. 



As to quality of the iron, I submit the following extracts from letters re- 

 ceived from iron men to whom samples were sent: 



The Johnson Iron Works, New Orleans, says: "The sample of pig iron 

 sent us has been used up in the manufacture of machine castings. The iron 

 is of excellent quality and runs well in the mould. We would have no hesi- 

 tation in using this grade of iron for any class of our work." 



Mr. J. L. Smyser, vice-president of Lithgow Manufacturing Company, of 

 Louisville, Ky., says: " I thank you for the samples of iron just received. I 

 want to say promptly that they have every outward evidence of being: excel- 

 lens; better than any irons being sold in this market. 1 am positively as- 

 tonished that Texas is making any iron at all, to say nothing of its quality. 

 If there is plenty of this iron, Texas would be a good place for a foundry." 



Mr. Paul A. Fusz, secretary of the Chouteau, Harrison & Valle Iron Com- 

 pany, St. Louis, writes Mr. R. A. Barrett, thus: "Your piece of pig iron 

 came to hand to-day. Thepig is the best I have ever seen from a charcoal 

 furnace. It appears to be perfect." 



More than half of the yield of the furnace has been of the quality from 

 which we have such flattering reports. 



I can assure you that these results have been very gratifying, and they 

 are due, to a great extent, to the skill and ability of Mr. Barrett, who has 

 made but few pretentions, but lias in a quiet, modest way performed much 

 more than he promised. The results, too, demonstrate the fact that the 

 former failure of the furnace was not attributable to a faulty construction, 

 but to the want of proper management. 



Contract for Capitol Castings. — It was very fortunate that soon after 

 the determination to operate the iron furnace an opportunity presented to 

 make a large contract for castings, which would consume a large amount of 

 the products of the furnace. On the 26th of October, 1885, a contract was 

 made by your Board with Mr. Gus. Wilke for a large amount of the cast iron 

 work for the new Capitol; principally columns, with their pedestals, bases and 

 caps, and the castings for the dome of the building. The prices agreed upon 

 were 2} cents per pound for the columns, bases, etc., and 4 cents per pound 

 for dome castings, delivered in Austin. The estimate of the amount of cast- 

 ings is about two million pounds, which at an average of 3§ cents is $67,500. 

 The work to be performed was difficult, but Mr. R. A. Barrett, our furnace 

 manager, agreed to take general supervision over it, which he has done, and 

 his services in this respect, as in others, have been invaluable to us. It took 

 considerable time and outlay of money to get our foundry and machine shops 

 properly equipped for this new character of work. A good foundryman had 

 to be employed; also an experienced, skillful pattern maker. All of this was 

 done as soon as possible, and we now have probably the best equipped foun- 

 dry south of St. Louis. The foundry department is under the immediate 

 charge of Mr. Frank Kavanuagh and the pattern shop under Mr. R. Flachs, 



