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volumes of dried peat compressed into one, and has about 
the same specific gravity as coal. Its per centage of 
moisture has been reduced by desiccation from 25 to 6.5. 
Compressed or solidified peat appears to approximate more 
closely than any other fuel to the ideal standard of the 
Admiralty Commissioners, who summed up the results of 
their experiments by stating, that the true practical value of 
coals for steam purposes depends upon a combination of the 
following qualities : — 
1. That the fuel should burn so that steam may be raised 
in a short period, if this be desired; in other words, it 
should be able to produce a quick action. 
The compressed peat burns quickly, and therefore pro- 
duces steam in a short time. 
2. It should possess high evaporative power, that is, be 
capable of converting much water into steam with a small 
consumption of coal. 
The compressed peat possesses tolerably high evaporative 
power. 
3. It should not be bituminous, lest so much smoke be 
generated as to betray the position of ships of war, when it 
is desirable that they should be concealed. 
The compressed peat is not bituminous, and therefore 
does not evolve opaque smoke while burning. 
4. It should possess considerable adhesion of its particles, 
so that it may not be broken into small fragments by the con- 
stant attrition which it may experience in the vessel. 
The compressed peat is not broken by attrition. 
5. It should combine a considerable density, with such 
mechanical structure, that it may be easily stowed away in a 
small space ; a condition which, in coals of equally evaporative 
values, often involves a difference of more than 20 per cent. 
The compressed peat possesses a form well suited for 
stowage. 
