6 ^^ 
HALL 71. 
LIQUID BITUMEN AND ITS DERIVATIVES. 
This hall contains a collection of crude oil from the chief oil 
regions in the United States, and of the products obtained from 
these oils by destructive distillation, as exhibited by the Standard 
Oil Company in the Mines Building. A series of borings are also 
exhibited here, showing certain sections of the geological strata 
through which some of the highly productive oil wells have been 
sunk. 
PETROLEUn. 
Cases 1, 2, 3, and 4. — Crude petroleum, varying con- 
siderably in color from black through different shades of dark 
green, brown to amber, the greenish brown being the most com- 
mon. It is of unpleasant odor in the crude state, and of difterent 
grades of consistency, from the thin liquid to the thick and viscous. 
It is generally liquid, but exposed it becomes more or less oxi- 
dized and hardens. As to the chemical nature of petroleum, the 
members of the paraffine series enter largely into its composition. 
They vary from the simple marsh gas through a series of liquids 
to solid forms. The theory generally accepted as to the origin of 
petroleum is that it has resulted from the decomposition of animal 
and vegetable matter. It occurs in the rocks or deposits of nearly 
all geological ages. It is associated most abundantly with sands, 
sandstones, and clayey shales, but it is found also permeating 
limestones, giving them a bituminous odor and rendering them 
sometimes a continuous source of oil. Specimens of these shales, 
sands, and limestones are to be seen in the collection. 
Case 3. — Twenty-eight specimens of standard white illu- 
minating oil — standard required by state laws — representing vari- 
ous state tests. 
Case 6. — Twenty-eight specimens of water-white refined oil 
as required by state test. 
Case 7. — Forty-eight specimens of cylinder oil of various 
grades. 
