217 
Iron . 
which requires a short notice. In this the pigs of cast 
iron when put into the refinery, are kept for about two 
hours and a half in a pasty state without actually melting, 
and at the end of this period the metal is taken out by sho~ 
[I vels and laid on the open floor on a plate of cast iron, where 
it is beaten with hand-hammers in order to knock off the 
cinders and other adhering impurities. It is afterwards 
placed under the forge hammer and beaten, at first gently, 
! till the whole ntass has acquired some tenacity, and then 
the middle part is drawn into a bar four feet long, termi- 
nated at each extremity by a cubical lump of rough iron s 
in this state it is called an Ancony . It is now taken to the 
Chaffery, hammered afresh, and the ends being also drawn 
down to the same dimensions as the other part, the bar is 
compleated. 
A third method of working iron, called puddling , was 
invented by Mr. Cort, (as appears from the specifications 
| of his two patents*) and is we understand coming into 
general use at Sheffield and other places. It is particular- 
ly characterised by combining the reverberatory with the 
finery furnace, and the whole process is managed in the 
following manner. The pigs of cast iron produced by 
ed in such proportions according to their degree of carbo- 
nization, that the result of the whole shall be a grey metal, 
j This mixture is then speedily run down in a blast furnace, 
where it remains a sufficient time to allow the greater part 
of the scoriae to rise to the surface. The furnace is now 
j: tapped, and the metal runs into moulds of sand, by which 
it is formed into pigs about half the size of those which are 
made at the smelting furnace ; and these pigs when cold 
are broken into pieces, 
* See Repertory of Arts, III. p. 289 and 861, (old series,) for 
j Mr. Cart’s two patents. 
E 35 
