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Treatise on the Manufacture of Steel in England in 1844. Mr. G. Ekman, in his letter which refers to Professor Le Play's work, estimates this production of 1845 at 3000 tons; and, according to Mr. Unwin's statement, giving 40,000 tons as the annual production of steel in England, it must now amount to 7200 tons, when the whole import of foreign iron not re-exported has been deducted. The English steel-iron is moreover universally known for its closeness and pureness, and some of the best sorts are so much liked, that they fetch a higher price than the best Swedish marks."

Thus much as to the competition of British iron with Swedish, in Great Britain, for the manufacture of steel. He then refers to the export to other countries, and shows that of Great Britain to be five or six times as large as it was, whilst that of Sweden has been almost stationary," that the latter amounted to almost one-half of the export of Great Britain twenty years ago, and in 1850 it was scarcely a tenth part of it, and must since then have fallen off still more."

The object of Mr. Woern's motion was to alleviate, if possible, this state of affairs, by inducing the Government to remove all taxes and restrictions on the manufacture of iron. But the greatest difficulty Sweden has to contend against, as far as the increase of manufacture is concerned, is the want of coal.

Now comes a consideration, whether, with the immense abundance of rich ore which Sweden possesses, there are not certain localities where it may be shipped at a low rate of cost. Let the Swedish Government take off any heavy restrictions on the export of this ore, and a valuable trade may be encouraged between Gottenborg, or other shipping ports, and the port of Newcastle, thus bringing the ore to the coal, and a more certain benefit might be derived by Sweden than by an attempt at any great increase of the manufacture.

NORWAY.

Oddy, in his work on "European Commerce," observes, that iron makes no regular article of export from Norway; yet there does not appear any reason why they might not have cultivated this branch of manufacture as well as Sweden. Wood they have in sufficient abundance. There are several foundries in Norway, but they have not been worked with spirit; their produce is therefore but small. Since the year 1792, they have not much extended their works. Moss, a town of a thousand inhabitants, contains a principal iron work. Skaggerak is also in repute for its iron trade.

The iron mines of Norway lie on the coasts of the Gulf of Christiania, and on the side facing Jutland, principally at Arendal, at Krageroe, and the neighbourhood. The ores consist almost solely of black oxide of iron, which forms beds in veins of from 4 to 60 feet thick, incased in gneiss. These iron ores are reduced in a great many smelting forges situated on the same coast, and particularly in the county of Laurwig. The annual product is about 7300 tons, in the form of cast-iron, bar-iron, sheet-iron, nails, &c., of which one-half is exported.

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CHAP. IX.

RUSSIA.

Of the vast tract of country now comprehended under the appellation of Russia, we glean from ancient authors little that tends to illustrate the early history of iron.

The Scythian nations, from their mixture of rude, pastoral, and warlike habits, cannot be expected to supply posterity with their own history; we, therefore, are indebted to other sources for such information. The Greek authors do not much enlighten us in our researches after the extent of knowledge which the Scythian nations had of the useful arts, nor as to the extent of advantages they derived at that remote period, from the riches of their inexhaustible mineral soil.

The literary records of China may, when explored, open, at some future day, many interesting facts in the history of the Scythians, Tartars, and Russians; their early trading, and extent of their knowledge. It is much to be lamented that so vast a field of antiquity as China has not yet been fully explored and ably gleaned. In that isolated empire, the arts and sciences flourished for ages anterior to the era of our Lord. Sematsien, who wrote his valuable history of China, 97 B. C., dates his authentic chronology from 841 B. C. After about six centuries (in which war and anarchy held sway), we arrive at the bright period of revival of learning and improvement in letters, by the invention of paper and printing; about 206 B. C. We may also mention that about this time the great wall was built, mainly as a defence against the nations at war with China; the latter, by the adoption of the improved nature and quality of the arms of her opponents,

became victorious, the cuirass and lance being now of common use. This brief notice, we conceive, justifies our expectation that China possesses much which we think may enlighten the industrious inquirer. The immense value of iron as material for arms, was manifest wherever introduced, and its great superiority over other metals so employed immediately commanded attention. Those nations who had previously been ignorant of its manufacture, seeing its utility, would at once become eager to obtain it and learn the method of procuring it from their own soil. Such reverence did the Scythians pay to a sword of iron, that they worshipped it as the shrine of Mars. Herodotus, lib. iv. Again, we learn from the same source, that "the Massagetæ had all their arms, their spears, arrow-heads, battle-axes, helmets and breast-plates of brass decorated with gold; they use neither silver nor iron, which indeed their country does not produce.' "The Scythians,” he says, "possess neither silver nor brass."-Lib. lxiv. 71.

The ancient writers knew little or nothing of the north parts of Scythia, or the region of Siberia, in later times found to be immensely stored with valuable minerals, and surpassingly rich in ores of iron.

In Siberia, at a time reaching back beyond all history, mining was vigorously practised by a nation bearing the name of Tschudes, whom Georgi takes to be the ancient Mandshures: an interesting account of the mine works of this nation may be read in Pallas' Travels, tom. iii. pp. 608 -610.

Thus, Russia, we see, was possessed of iron ores from time immemorial, but previous to the reign of Ivan Vassillievitch history says nothing of any regular mining operations. This prince, in the year 1491, sent two Germans to the river Petschora, on mineral discoveries, who were so fortunate as to find silver and copper ore. During the reign of Ivan Vassillievitch the Second, the English, by a treaty concluded in the year 1569*, obtained the privilege of seeking for and

*The communication with Muscovy had been opened in Queen Mary's time, by the discovery of the passage to Archangel, but the commerce to that country did not begin to be carried on to a great extent till about the year 1569.

smelting iron ore, on condition that they should teach the Russians the art of working this metal, and pay, on the exportation of every pound, one denga, or halfpenny.*

The first regular mine works, which may be properly so called, were established about ninety versts from Moscow, by two foreigners, who, in the reign of the Czar Alexy Michaelovitch, were at Moscow, on commercial affairs, and had found ore in that territory;-they requested, and obtained permission to work it.

These works, the first and only ones in Russia prior to Peter the Great, were visited by that monarch, who wrought in them himself before he set out, in 1698, on his first journey into foreign countries. Remaining some time in Saxony, he not only made himself acquainted with the arts of mining, but requested the king of Poland to give him some workmen ; and, in the following year, twelve of them, with a master at their head, and the assayer, Bluher, went to Russia, where they found ore in the districts of Kazan and Kalula, and began to work. The emperor, however, finding that with these two establishments he should be in want of people, sent Bluher, in 1701, again to Saxony, who returned in the same year with several persons skilled in mining, and repaired immediately to Olonetz, where they opened a mine of copper The subsequent journeys of Bluher gave the first occasion to the discovery of the Siberian minerals, for, in the year 1703, he was dispatched to the Permian mountains, near Solikamsk, where he found an old mine; whence he proceeded

ore.

The Queen (Elizabeth) obtained from the Czar (John Basilidus) an exclusive patent to the English for the whole trade of Muscovy. After the death of John Basilidus, his son Theodore revoked the patent which the English enjoyed for a monopoly of the Russian trade. When the Queen remonstrated against this innovation, he told her Ministers that princes must carry an indifferent hand, as well between their subjects as between foreigners, and not convert trade, which, by the laws of nations, ought to be common to all, into a monopoly, for the private gain of a few. So much juster notions of commerce were entertained by this barbarian than appear in the conduct of the renowned Elizabeth! Theodore, however, continued some privileges to the English, on account of their being the discoverers of the communication between Europe and this country.--Hume.

* Of the first arrival of the English, and the origin of their commerce, there is an account in the "St. Petersburgh Journal," vol. ix. p. 149.

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