664  Medical  Division  of  National  Museum.  {  Sptamber  1920: 
The  still  used  in  the  Carolinas  is  about  8  or  10  feet  long  and 
about  4  or  5  feet  high  and  about  the  same  width.  The  still  is  made  of 
wood,  except  the  bottom,  which  consists  of  sheet  iron.  Between  8 
and  9  inches  from  the  bottom  is  a  false  bottom  of  wire  mesh  or 
perforated  sheet  iron. 
In  Connecticut,  however,  the  industry  is  on  a  more  permanent 
basis.  The  stills  are  larger  and  more  effective  than  that  shown  in  the 
illustration,  and  each  distillery  has  a  warehouse  in  which  it  stores  the 
twigs  and  brush  which  are  used  for  distillation,  these  plants  being 
quite  extensive  and  representing  considerable  investment. 
In  Carolina  the  distiller  buys  the  bark  privilege  from  some  lumber 
company,  and  under  this  privilege  cuts  down  the  birch  trees,  paying 
a  stipulated  sum  for  each  tree  used.  These  trees  run  up  to  as 
much  as  10  or  12  inches  in  diameter. 
When  the  tree  is  cut  down  the  buyer  removes  the  bark  by  beat- 
ing the  trunk  and  the  larger  branches  with  a  maul,  and  carries  the 
bark  thus  obtained  to  the  still  in  baskets. 
The  bark  is  laid  on  the  false  bottom  of  the  still,  about  40  bushels 
constituting  a  charge,  and  the  cover  is  fastened  on  with  wedges  as 
shown  in  the  illustration. 
The  outlet  of  the  still  is  an  ordinary  gas  pipe,  generally  from  V2 
to  I  inch  in  diameter  and  about  10  feet  long.  This  is  encased  in  a 
long  box  or  trough  through  which  a  stream  of  water  flows,  con- 
densing the  mixture  of  steam  and  oil  which  comes  off.  The  bark  is 
first  steamed  for  about  12  hours,  as  the  oil  does  not  exist  in  the  bark 
as  such,  but  as  a  glucoside  which  is  hydrolyzed  by  the  steaming  and 
thus  yields  oil.  The  heat  is  then  raised  sufficiently  to  insure  dis- 
tillation, which  goes  on  generally  for  about  another  12  or  14  hours, 
making  24  to  28  hours  to  run  a  charge. 
One  ton  of  green  bark  will  usually  yield  about  three  pounds  of 
oil.  The  bark  which  has  been  distilled  serves  as  fuel  for  the  next 
charge. 
The  distillate,  consisting  of  a  mixture  of  oil  of  birch  and  water, 
is  collected  in  a  funnel  placed  in  an  ordinary  Mason  jar  placed  on  a 
hollowed  receptacle.  The  oil  of  birch  settles  to  the  bottom  and  the 
milky  mixture  of  oil  and  water  overflows  the  jar  and  passes  down 
through  the  receptacle  beneath  the  jar  into  a  small  pipe  which  leads 
into  the  still  below  the  water  level. 
The  apparatus  is,  therefore,  in  the  nature  of  a  continuous  reflux 
still,  though  in  a  very  crude  form. 
