FARMERS' IXSTITUTES. 217 



that did not contain an account of some "kerosene horror." Peoiole began to 

 look upon it as a dangerous substance, and "accidents" as the natural result 

 of its use. But since this law has been enforced, all this has been changed ; 

 very few accidents have occurred, and so far as I can learn but one life has been 

 lost in our State by the use of kerosene within the last two years. This ques- 

 tion of public safety both to life and property is too important a matter to be 

 lightly dismissed in considering this subject. 



I now turn to the question whether the poor burning quality of the oil is nec- 

 essarily connected with the high test. Before discussing this point let me 

 describe how coal oil is made from petroleum. Last month I visited Cleveland 

 and spent several days in examining the methods of refining. The petroleum 

 is brought in immense iron tanks from the oil regions of Pennsylvania, from 

 Titusville and Oil City, and lately large quantities are brought from Butler 

 county; this petroleum differs from that brought from the older oil regions, in 

 having a larger proportion of paraffin. The crude petroleum is distilled in very 

 large stills made of boiler iron, which contain from 85 to 1,000 barrels of petro- 

 leum. Many of these look like immense steam boilers. When the still is filled 

 with petroleum the still is heated just like a steam boiler and the volatile pro- 

 ducts escape just as steam does from a boiler, but the vapor is carried through 

 long iron pipes which are placed in boxes of cold water in order that the pro- 

 ducts of distillation may be condensed and saved. These boxes of cold water 

 are usually about four feet square, and from 200 to 250 feet long. In the bot- 

 tom of tliese "condensers" are placed a number of iron pipes which run the 

 whole length of the condenser, and into these iron pipes the vapor formed by 

 distilling the petroleum is conducted and is thus condensed by contact with the 

 cold iron pipes. The first vapors that are produced in distilling the petroleum 

 are not condensed but escape at the further end of the iron pipe, and are called 

 gas by the workmen. Then a very volatile and inflammable material is con- 

 densed called naphtha ; then a heavier and less inflammable oil, kerosene ; and 

 finally a heavy oil containing a large amount of paraffin, called jDaraffin oil, and 

 finally a quantity of tarry matter is left in the still. 



The three products of distillation preserved at Cleveland are therefore naphtha, 

 kerosene, and paraffin oil. Thus the products of distillation pass from a very 

 light and volatile material which is too volatile and inflammal^le to be safelv 

 used in our lamps, to an oil too heavy and uninflammable to be satisfactorily 

 used in ordinary lamps. Between the volatile naphtha and the heavy paraffin 

 oil comes, — or should come, — the kerosene for lamp use. But kerosene differs 

 greatly in quality ; the first that is saved in distillation or refining differs but 

 little from the last portion which was cut off as naphtha: it is a little heavier 

 and a little less volatile than the "heavy naphtha.'" As the refining proceeds 

 the kerosene becomes heavier and less volatile, and its flash test rises. The first 

 portions of kerosene saved in refining is known as 110° oil, the latter portions 

 are our 140" oil. When tlie refining has gone a little further paraffin oil begins 

 to come over. This paraffin oil holds in solution a quantity of a solid waxy 

 material, paraffin. This paraffin makes an excellent quality of candles, but it 

 is wretched stuff to burn in a lamp because it lower? the capillary power of the 

 oil to such a degree that it will not freely rise in the wick ; when lialf the oil in 

 the lamp is burned out the lamp goes out, the wick gums and cliars, and a very 

 poor light is the result. I have examined the influence of paraffin on the capil- 

 lary power of the oil and I find that a small quantity of paraffin will diminish 

 the capillarity of oil to one-seventh of its original capillary power. If the refiner 



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