of Fish Oil. 263 



it was much increased after it had arrived at a certain point. It 

 would not be an easy task to raise the heat of oil to 600 degrees in 

 an instrument like that alluded to. It would require a great ef- 

 fort for several hours. If the fire were left to work by itself, con- 

 sidering its size, it was impossible that so great a heal could be 

 produced. Even if gas had been formed, looking to the formation 

 of the room from which it might have escaped, be saw no danger of 

 its mixing with the atmospheric air, and producing explosion. 



Cross-examined. — There was a vapour from new oil at 586 

 degrees,^ and from old oil there was a slight inflammable va- 

 pour at 5S0. At 370 degrees sugar produced a strong gas. New 

 oil produced a powerful gas, or vapour, at 608 degrees of 

 heat; old oil pruckiced it at 590. He had not an opportunity 

 of minutely examining whether, in proportion to the time during- 

 ivhich oil was used, it gave out gas or vapour with greater readi- 

 ness. He had made no experiment with respect to the weight 

 of gases emitted by oil at different degrees of temperature. All 

 experience told them that new oil would burn sooner than old. 

 He made no experiment to ascertain whether a large mass of oil, 

 heated from time to time, would become more inflammable than 

 oil which had not been used. The old oil he used was furnished 

 by Mr. Wilson. 



Re-examined. — If the oil in the retort were heated to any thing 

 like 590 or 600 degrees, it would carbonize the sugar. Even 

 400 degrees of heat would produce that effect. One great ad- 

 vantage of the new apparatus was, that in a moment the sugar 

 could be prevented from boiling over. 



Mr. Wilson re-examined. — The oil he sent was whale oil, and 

 had been heated in a vessel which he had for the purpose, every 

 day, for a period of about two years. It was heated i'or the pur- 

 pose of making experiments. 



Mr. W. Brande stated that he had looked at the apparatus 

 now before the court, and had maturely considered the subject 

 vyith the view of giving evidence licre to-day. As he was neces- 

 sitated to come there, he had made a few experiments. As far 

 as his experiments, which were on a small scale, went, be must 

 say that the apparatus aj)|)eared to him to be less dangerous than 

 the old one. He had placed a vessel of oil over the fire, and put 

 a pan of sugar in it. He then put in a therniometer to mark the 

 degree of heat. When the heat rose to ."iOO or 400 degrees the 

 sugar burned. He then applied s(Miie lighted paper to the oil, 

 which it immediately put out. He therefore concluded, that 

 sugar gave out gas much sooner than oil. He could not produce 

 inflammahle gas from oil under a less temiicraturc than 600 de- 

 grees. If gas were generated in that retort, he did not imagine 

 that it would produce danger. The gas which he had seen pro- 

 duced 



