218 STATE BOARD OF AGEICULTURE. 



suffers any large amount of this i^araffin oil to run into the kerosene of course 

 we shall have an oil of very poor burning quality. All the poor-burning kero- 

 sene I have examined contains large quantities of this paraffin oil. In our part 

 of the State Ave often find kerosene that in very cold weather becomes solid like 

 lard, and of course it will not burn satisfactorily. 



A voice, "It is just so up here ; we have to get our barrels of kerosene in bv 

 the stove to thaw it out before we can empty it into the oil tank." 



Well, tliat is not Icernsene ; it may contain kerosene, but it is properly paraffin 

 oil. The refiner is tempted to run into the kerosene as much paraffin oil as he 

 can, because paraffin oil is very cheap and kerosene dear. Paraffin oil is only 

 worth 10 cents a gallon and high grade kerosene is worth about 30 cents ; thus 

 for every gallon of paraffin oil used to adulterate the kerosene the refiner makes 

 a j)rofit of 20 cents a gallon. With such a temptation before the refiner it is 

 no wonder that our kerosene is adulterated, and its burning quality so poor. 



When the oil is free from paraffin we find no complaint of its poor burning 

 quality, and no matter what is the flash test employed, if any oil is largely 

 adulterated with paraffin it will be of poor burning quality. You thus see that 

 lowering the flash test will not necessarily give us a good oil, and if paraffin 

 is excluded we shall have a good oil even if the test is hio:h. 



A voice, "How will you exclude the paraffin?" 



The test for an injurious amount of paraffin is very simple. Cool the oil for 

 ten minutes down to 20"" Fahrenheit bv a mixture of ice and salt ; if it remains 

 perfectly clear and transparent it does not contain enough paraffin to injure its 

 burning quality ; if it becomes milky and clouded or even solid, reject it at 

 once. 



I now return to the question Avhether an oil of lower flash test will be equally 

 as safe as the 140° oil. Many persons wjjo have used the lower test oil and 

 have not been burned up or blown up by its use, conclude that it is safe for all 

 persons. But there are persons in almost every community who are careless 

 in their habits and prone to accidents. "The poor ye have always with you," 

 and the unlucky are not wanting in most communities. Careless jieople will 

 nse dangerous things heedlessly. Lamps will break in an unforeseen way, 

 and accidents are perpetually occurring. The public safety requires something 

 which shall be safe even with careless usage. Your neighbor's carelessly fired 

 house or barn may burn up your buildings. 



I have made many experiments with lamj^s filled with kerosene of different 

 flash test, by allowing the lamp to burn for a time and then breaking the lamp 

 without extinguishing the flame. When 140° oil was used, the flame was soon 

 extinguished, or else the fire spread so slowly that there was ample time to 

 secure the means of extinguishing the fire. When oil of a much lower grade 

 was used, the flame often spread with uncontrollable energy, and if this acci- 

 dent had occurred in an ordinary dwelling, the building would be very apt to 

 burn up. From such experiments, I conclude that we are much safer in using 

 140° oil than oil of a lower flash test. AVhen we get a test whicli sliall exclude 

 all adulteration by paraffin, I think we shall hear no more complaints about 

 the poor burning quality of the oil. We shall thus secure good light and pub- 

 lic safety. 



Many persons complain because the high test kerosene costs more than low 

 test oil. You must all understand that the enormous advance in coal oil during 

 the past year has nothing to do Avith the question of high test or low test. It 

 is the result of a combination or ring formed by the principal oil refiners in this 



