Mr. J.R. Meredith, engineer, of Pittsburg, Pa., is the inventor and builder, and has them in use in the U.S. engineering service.--_Coal Trade Journal_. * * * * * STEEL-MAKING LADLES. The practice of carrying melted cast iron direct from the blast furnace to the Siemens hearth or the Bessemer converter saves both money and time. It has rendered necessary the construction of special plant in the form of ladles of dimensions hitherto quite unknown. Messrs. Stevenson & Co., of Preston, make the construction of these ladles a specialty, and by their courtesy, says _The Engineer_, we are enabled to illustrate four different types, each steel works manager, as is natural, preferring his own design. Ladles are also required in steel foundry work, and one of these for the Siemens-Martin process is illustrated by Fig. 1. These ladles are made in sizes to take from five to fifteen ton charges, or larger if required, and are mounted on a very strong carriage with a backward and forward traversing motion, and tipping gear for the ladle. The ladles are butt jointed, with internal cover strips, and have a very strong band shrunk on hot about half way in the depth of the ladle. This forms an abutment for supporting the ladle in the gudgeon band, being secured to this last by latch bolts and cotters. The gearing is made of cast steel, and there is a platform at one end for the person operating the carriage or tipping the ladle. Stopper gear and a handle are fitted to the ladles to regulate the flow of the molten steel from the nozzle at the bottom. [Illustration: LADLES FOR CARRYING MOLTEN IRON AND STEEL.]