and the Economy of Fuel. 19 



have been carried off by the steam into the atmosphere 

 and totally lost, was arrested in its flight, and brought 

 back into the boiler, and made to work the second 

 day. 



By other contrivances, the smoke also was laid under 

 contribution. After it had passed under the boilers, 

 and just as it was about to escape by the chimney, 

 it was stopped, and, by being made to pass under 

 a large copper filled with cold water, was deprived of 

 the greater part of the heat it still retained ; and think- 

 ing it probable that considerable advantages would 

 be derived from drying the wood very thoroughly, and 

 even heating it, before it was made use of for fuel, the 

 smoke from two of the boilers was made to pass under 

 a plate of iron which formed the bottom of an oven, in 

 which the wood, necessary for the consumption of the 

 kitchen for one day (having previously been cut into 

 billets of a proper size), was dried during 24 hours, pre- 

 vious to its being used. 



In a smaller kitchen (adjoining to that I have been 

 describing), which was constructed merely as a model 

 for imitation, and which was constantly open for the 

 inspection of the public, five boilers of different sizes, 

 all heated by the same fire, were placed in a semicir- 

 cular mass of brick-work, and the smoke, after having 

 passed under all these five boilers, was made to heat, at 

 pleasure, either an oven, or water which was contained 

 in a wooden cask set upright upon the brick-work. A 

 tube of copper, tinned on the outside, which went 

 through the cask, gave a passage to the smoke, and this 

 tube was connected with the bottom of the cask by 

 means of a circular plate of copper through which the 

 tube passed, which plate closed a circular opening in 



