278 The Potato 



it and carries away the alcohol in vapor form, which in turn is passed 

 through a condenser, where it is reduced to a liquid. The distilling 

 apparatus consists of two copper columns, A and B, A being to dis- 

 til the alcohol from the mash and B where it is redistilled and raised 

 to desired strength. The fermented mash is continually discharged 

 from pump 1 and pipe 2 into mash heater 3. This heater is made 

 up of a series of tubes through which the mash gas goes and around 

 which the vapors from the boiling mash are passed when going from 

 A to B. The heated mash leaves 3 through pipe 4 and comes in con- 

 tact with steam. The mash goes tlirough a series of chambers, where 

 it is boiled and the alcohol relieved from it. This mash takes a down- 

 ward course from one chamber to another, and its course may be 

 followed by the shaded portions in A . By the time it reaches the bot- 

 tom, the mash will lose all its alcohol, and this mash will be automati- 

 cally discharged through 5. A small portion of the vapors will be 

 sent through pipe 6 to the condenser 7, and be tested to see whether 

 any alcohol is being lost in the "slop," as the discharged mash is 

 called. The steam necessary to boil the mash comes into the 

 bottom chamber tlirough 8, and it boils the mash in this chamber and 

 passes upward, boiling the descending mash in the various chambers 

 and carrying with it the vapors. The plates within column A are 

 so perforated as to allow the ascent of the vapors through it, but 

 do not allow the mash to fall through it, because of the steam pres- 

 sure. The vapors rise up through A and go through pipe 9 to the 

 heater 3, where they are circulated around the tubes and then carried 

 through pipe 10 over to B. The vapors coming from A contain a 

 considerable amount of moisture and other impurities which are 

 freed in B, which contains a series of chambers upon each of which is 

 carried about 3 inches of liquid. The plates are not perforated in this 

 column, but the vapors ascend tlirough a central pipe and are de- 

 flected downward by a hood over the pipe in each chamber and are 

 forced to boil their way through the liquid in each plate. The 

 arrows show their courses. These vapors become piu-er as they 

 ascend until they reach the top chamber, from which they are de- 

 livered to pipe 11 and thus into a cooler 12, where they are partially 

 cooled. From the cooler they pass into pipe 13 and through it to 

 the condenser 14, where they are reduced to a liquid. This cooling 

 and reducing is done by circulating cold water around the tubes con- 

 taining the vapors. The condensed vapor or alcohol is drawn off at 

 the bottom of the condenser and allowed to flow tlirough the test box 



