The Hardwood Distillation Industry in Netv York 39 



unloaded from freight cars. In other cases parallel roadways 

 are left open for the wagons to unload directly from the 

 woods. Parallel tracks between these roadways are then 

 provided to load the wood cars for the ovens after seasoning. 

 In cylindrical retort plants the wood is commonly rolled in on 

 wheelbarrows or o^ew trucks and loaded by hand. 



Retort House. 



The retort house is the largest building in the plant. It 

 houses the cylindrical retorts or oven retorts and in some 

 cases the stills and appliances for treating the pyroligneous 

 acid as well. However, in the most modern plants, the still 

 house is a separate building. 



The principal requisite of a retort house is that it should be 

 of iire-proof construction on account of the very inflammable 

 nature of charcoal and wood alcohol. One retort house at a 

 plant having a daily capacity of 38 cords, is 60 feet in width 

 l3y 240 feet long, 20 feet high to the eaves and 40 feet to the 

 peak of the roof. Steel beams and supports are used through- 

 out with sheet iron roof and siding. Other retort houses are 

 either built of stone or brick in order to reduce the fire hazard 

 and therefore obtain low insurance rates. ]\Iost of the New 

 York plants are poorly arranged because of their enlarge- 

 ments from rather modest beginnings and no definite plan 

 seems to have been followed in the arrangement of the plant. 



Trackage mid Cars. 



The tracks are usually standard gauge with the rails from 

 40 to 75 pounds in weight and are so arranged as to bring 

 the wood from the storage yards to the retort house and then 

 to conduct the cars loaded with charcoal through the two sets 

 of cooling ovens and out to the charcoal shed wdiere the char- 

 coal is loaded on freight cars. The most modem plants have 

 the progressive arrangement, that is, the loaded cars come 

 from the storage yards directly to the retort house; follow 



