10 
cast iron ; imbedded in the centre of the bar was a smooth 
egg-shaped mass about |in. diameter, crossing the fracture, 
and leaving a cavity as its mould in the metal on one side. 
He assumed that faults like this were probably owing to the 
rapid processes in use for reducing masses from the puddle 
into bars of wrought iron, whilst the metal was only partially 
converted to the malleable state, as appeared in this sample 
of bad iron. The iron in a semi-fluid state, is passed from 
the furnace through a succession of rollers, without re-heating 
or faggoting, as were formerly practised, and at once reduced 
to the sizes required. The improved rolling mills could not, 
it seemed, insure improved qualities of wrought iron, whilst 
they afforded temptations to make it far inferior to any that 
could have been made fifty years ago. Considering the many 
hazards to which life and property are exposed in travelling 
by railway and otherwise, from the iron e< shuffled off in 
haste,” and found in use in engineering constructions, it 
becomes important that previous tests should be employed 
to ascertain the real nature of the iron, so as to leave no 
question of its being in a safe condition for the purpose 
intended, and not like this specimen, and like much 
now-a-days mad^Jjy pressing the half-converted puddle into 
marketable shapes. 
In connection with the subject of the slow changes which 
iron undergoes, M. Bregtjet, of Paris, stated that in their 
furnace for preparing soft iron, he had observed a remarkable 
case of crystallisation of wrought iron. One of the furnace 
bars became brittle, and on breaking a portion of it, he found 
it to contain a large cubical crystal of iron, each of whose 
sides measured five millimetres in length. This singular 
specimen is now in the possession of M. Balard. 
