semer steel in America.[3]

[2] See especially material distributed by the American Iron and
Steel Institute in connection with its celebration of the
centennial of Steel: "Steel centennial (1957), press
information," prepared by Hill and Knowlton, Inc., and released
by the Institute as of May 1, 1957.

[3] Holley's work is outside the scope of this paper. Belatedly,
his biography is now being written. It can hardly fail to
substantiate the contention that during his short life
(1832-1882) Holley, who negotiated the purchase of the American
rights to Bessemer's process, also adapted his methods to the
American scene and laid a substantial part of the foundation for
the modern American steel industry.

Steel Before the 1850's

In spite of a rapid increase in the use of machines and the
overwhelming demand for iron products for the expanding railroads, the
use of steel had expanded little prior to 1855. The methods of
production were still largely those of a century earlier. Slow
preparation of the steel by cementation or in crucibles meant a
disproportionate consumption of fuel and a resulting high cost.
Production in small quantities prevented the adoption of steel in uses
which required large initial masses of metal. Steel was, in fact, a
luxury product.

The work of Reaumur and, especially, of Huntsman, whose development of
cast steel after 1740 secured an international reputation for
Sheffield, had established the cementation and crucible processes as
the primary source of cast steel, for nearly 100 years. Josiah Marshall
Heath's patents of 1839, were the first developments in the direction
of cheaper steel, his process leading to a reduction of from 30 to 40
percent in the price of good steel in the Sheffield market.[4] Heath's
secret was the addition to the charge of from 1 to 3 percent of
carburet of manganese[5] as a deoxidizer. Heath's failure to word his
patent so as to cover also his method of producing carburet of
manganese led to the effective breakdown of that patent and to the
general adoption of his process without payment of license or royalty.
In spite of this reduction in the cost of its production, steel
remained, until after the midpoint of the century, an insignificant
item in the output of the iron and steel industry, being used
principally in the manufacture of cutlery and edge tools.

[4] Andrew Ure, _Dictiona