The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. TUESDAY, JULY 5, 1887. TARANAKI IRONSAND.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1601, 5 July 1887, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. TUESDAY, JULY 5, 1887. TARANAKI IRONSAND.

It is well known that on the western coast of the North Island there are inexhaustible quantities of sand containing 90 per cent of pure iron and capable ot being manufactured into the very finest quality ot steel, and that this represents a source of wealth greater than any existing gold working if only it could be turned to account. Numerous are the efforts that have been put lorth to achieve this very desirable result, and large sums of money have been expended m experiments, but so far, although from time to time «ye have been tantalised by promises of success, only failure has been experienced, and the funds employed have proved to be so much capital thrown away. The difficulty, which has hitherto proved to be insuperable, has been to design a furnace and to discover a method m and by which the sand could be melted into the form of pig iron, at a cost which would be so much below the market value of that product as to leave a substantial margin of profit, and it is therefore with great pleasure that we read that that difficulty appears at last to have been overcome. Works have recently been erected at or near New Plymouth by a Mr Hipkins, an old ironmaster from England, who has designed a furnace and a method which appear to have given very satisfactory results. The process is said to be very simple, and to entail a minimum of labor. The furnace is an ordinary blast furnace, and is charged by mixing the ironsand with clay, limestone and other ingredients, without being made into bricks, as was the practice of Mr Smith and other previous experimenters. This obviates a great deal of the labor and consequent expense which would otherwise beentailed. A mostsuccessfulsmelting took place under Mr Higgins' superintendence on Saturday last, the metal flowing splendidly, and about three tons being obtained from the tappings. It is stated that "the furnace, which is 30ft high and 7ft m diameter, will produce between 60 and 70 tons per week of ordinary pig iron, which will realise m the market per ton, representing weekly earnings of about The present cost of fuel and labor at the furnace is so that a large margin is left for incidental expenses and profit. Charcoal iron (it is added) can be produced at a cost of per ton extra for fuel, and will command m the market about per ton more than ordinary iron." The present trial is to continue for several days longer, and may possibly continue over two or three weeks, and should the further results be equally satisfactory there can be no doubt but that the outcome will be the establishment of a profitable industry, the future magnitude and importance of which it is impossible to overestimate. In that event the Association which is conducting the present experiment will, it is stated, form a strong company as soon as possible to conduct operations on an extensive scale, having already secured the right to purchase the furnace and the lease of the ironsand beach.