508 
MASTER OF THE MINT. 
From the address of the barrister who appeared in support of the conviction, 
it was evident that, had the case proceeded further, an illustration would have 
been afforded of the defective character of the provisions of the Acts relating to 
the testing of petroleum. The inspector who examined the oil stated at the 
police court that the oil gave off inflammable vapour at a temperature of 95° 
F., and that therefore it was petroleum within the meaning of the Act; while 
Mr. Kemp, of the Petroleum Association, had found, as the result of careful 
testing, that no flash took place until the oil had been heated to 105° F. With 
a view of reconciling these conflicting statements, both operators, at the magis¬ 
trate’s desire, retired into a private room and repeated their experiments, but 
with the same results as they had previously obtained. Each had his own ap¬ 
paratus, and the testing w r as apparently similarly conducted by both, with this 
exception, that the gas inspector, by using under the water-bath a larger flame 
than that employed by Mr. Kemp, obtained his result in less than half the time. 
It was evident, from a single glance, that no great amount of care had been be¬ 
stowed upon the construction of the apparatus used by the gas inspector, while 
that with which Mr. Kemp made his experiment appeared to have been made 
with great attention to workmanship, and strictly in accordance with the di¬ 
rections of the schedule. 
With the parliamentary apparatus, well made and carefully adjusted for use, a 
skilled operator, working in an apartment free from currents of air, can, there 
is no doubt, obtain results that are accurate as compared with each other, if he 
takes care that the length of time occupied in raising the temperature of the 
oil to the flashing-point shall be the same in all cases ; but until the length of 
time so occupied is defined by the Legislature, or at any rate, until all are agreed 
as to what it shall be, there will occasionally be inconsistencies in the results 
obtained by different operators under the most favourable circumstances. It is, 
hbwever, clearly a mistake that the testing of petroleum should be placed in the 
hands of those who are unaccustomed to such operations, and who are, perhaps, 
in addition, provided with apparatus constructed with more regard to economy 
than efficiency.. 
Certain modifications of the schedule, including more detailed directions as to 
the mode of using the apparatus, and such provisions as shall secure its use 
officially by none but competent persons, appear to be amendments that must, 
sooner or later, be made to the Petroleum Acts, 1862, 1868. 
The Petroleum Association has done good service in this, as in many other 
cases, by protecting the interests of an important trade. 
MASTER OF THE MINT. 
For many years past the office of Master of the Mint has been filled, in this 
country, as it is in France and other Continental countries, by men of high scien¬ 
tific attainments, and the position has been looked upon as one of the very few 
profitable as well as honourable appointments which our Government has con¬ 
ferred on those who have distinguished themselves in the pursuit of science. 
After the death of Mr. Graham, the late Master of the Mint, it was confidently 
expected that the vacant post would be filled, as before, by some one whose ex¬ 
perience and knowledge w r ould place him on a par with his predecessors. Several 
candidates of that class were publicly spoken of, and it w r as the subject of a good 
deal of speculation in scientific circles as to who would be the successful one. A 
rumour at last arose that the office was not to be filled up at all, and the excitement 
on the subject gradually subsided. Still many persons have been wondering 
