Furnace Hearths

CLOSED front, or open front for blast-furnaces, has been for a number of years a much discussed question among the furnace-men in every country where iron is made. As blast-furnaces are costly structures, and as the whole question is one of economy, I hope to be excused for entering a little into details. The ('fore-hearth " is a prolonged opening in the lowest part of the hearth, from two to three feet wide, four to six feet long, and two to three feet high. It is a more or less fire-proof box, cooler than