THE AIR OF STOVE-HEATED ROOMS. 335 



condensation of moisture then follow, as Dr. Siemens af- 

 firms? Let us suppose that the air of the room is raised 

 from 30 to 50 by convection purely; reference to tables 

 based on the researches of Kegnault, shows that at 32 the 

 quantity of vapor required to saturate the air is sufficient 

 to support a column of 0'182 inch of mercury, while at 50 

 it amounts to 0'361, or nearly double. Thus the air, in- 

 stead of being in a condition of giving away its moisture to 

 the walls, has become thirsty, or in a condition to take 

 moisture away from them if they are at all damp. This is 

 the case whether the walls remain at 32 or are raised to 

 any higher temperature short of that of the air. 



Thus the action of close stoves and of hot surfaces or 

 pipes of any kind is exactly the opposite of that attributed 

 to them by Dr. Siemens. They dry the air, they dry the 

 walls, they dry the ceiling, they dry the furniture and every- 

 thing else in the house. 



In our climate, especially in the infamous jerry-built 

 houses of suburban London, this is a great advantage. Dr. 

 Siemens states his American experience, and denounces 

 such heating by convection because the close stoves there 

 made him uncomfortable. This was due to the fact that 

 the winter atmosphere of the United States is very dry, even 

 when at zero. But air, when raised from to 60, acquires 

 about twelve times its original capacity for water. The air 

 thus simply heated is desiccated, and it desiccates every- 

 thing in contact with it, especially the human body. The 

 lank and shriveled aspect of the typical Yankee is, I be- 

 lieve, due to this. He is a desiccated Englishman, and we 

 should all grow like him if our climate were as dry as his.* 

 The great fires that devastate the cities of the United States 

 appear to me to be due to this general desiccation of all 

 building materials, rendering them readily inflammable and 

 the flames difficult of extinction. 



When an undesiccated Englishman, or a German endowed 



* In each of my three visits to America I lost about thirty pounds 

 in weight, which I recovered within a few months of my return to 

 the "home country" (of English-speaking nations). RICHARD A. 

 PROCTOH. 



