Kerosene Oil. Never leave a lamp burning with the wick turned down. Aircurrents are liable to cause the chimney to break. The wick-tube then will become greatly heated, and the lamp filled with a dangerous vapor. A burning lamp with a broken chimney becomes liable to violent explosion in about fifteen minutes. A lamp should not be left burning at all in a vacant room or house. Burners.-The successful combustion of kerosene depends largely on the burner. Two kinds are made, one for heavy oil, the other for light oil. Of these there are numerous devices and patents. Competition and universal demand for cheapness has filled the markets with worthless burners. The successful and commendable Hinge Sun burner for ordinary house lamps has been largely displaced by cheap imitations, some of which are simply brasswashed tin. The burner should be adapted to the oil to be used, whether heavy or light. It should be well made, of brass, and as short as possible. It should be properly constructed for draft and ventilation for the escape of vapor from the vapor chamber of the lamp. For light oil, it should burn without heating-the cooler the better. The Hinge Sun, Grand, and Irex gave most satisfactory results with light oil, especially the Irex, which requires a thick, even wick, giving a fine light. For heavy oil, a more liberal wick is required to raise the oil freely enough to supply the flame and give the required heat, hence two or more wicks are provided. The Dual, Duplex, Oxford, and Moehring will burn successfully oil having a flashing point of two hundred and seventy to two hundred and eighty degrees, yet the flame will not be so white as that from one hundred and five or one hundred and ten degrees oil with a good burner, nor give so good satisfaction. The so-called Hitchcock lamp, designed to burn without a chimney, gives a steady, strong, clear pleasing light of full sixteencandle power, and being of metal, is commended for safety, economy and illumination. Burners should be kept perfectly clean, and free from crustation on the wick-tube, and accumulation of charred wick on the perforated disk. The disk is for the purpose of supplying draft and Kerosene Oil. the necessary amount of oxygen of the atmosphere to consume the carbon of the oil. When the disk is clogged, imperfect combustion and smoke is the result. Keep the vent-tube along the wick-tube open and clean, as it is the safety-valve of the lamp. Gummed and clogged burners can be easily cleaned by boiling a few moments in sal-soda or concentrated lye and water. Use chimneys properly adapted to the burner. The size and form has much to do with the success of the burner. Get the best annealed glass. There is no economy in purchasing cheap, common glass chimneys. Most flat-wick burners require what are known as sun-burner bulb chimneys. Burners with more than one wick require flat-bulb chimneys. Wicks. Probably not one person in one hundred gives a lamp wick thought or attention. Yet it is one of the most important factors in the burning of kerosene, as it is also one of the most probable causes of complaint of the unsatisfactory burning of oil. The markets are filled with cheap wicks, worthless and valueless at any price. They are hard, soft, rough, smooth, thick, thin, wide, narrow, regular and irregular, all in the same wick. Select a wick of soft, even texture, thick enough to carry oil sufficient to supply the flame. As wick tubes are presumed to be of proper size, the wick should snugly fit the tube, yet move freely. It should only reach the bottom of the lamp. The so-called Fletcher wick appears to be made with much care, and was the best of the samples tested. Wicks should be changed once each month. At the annual meeting of the Board in May, Rule 9, of the Rules and Regulations for the Inspection of Illuminating Oil, was amended to read as follows, to-wit: Rule 9. The brand must be placed on the barrels, or packages, with bright colors, and must be affixed by the inspector in person, or by some person under his direction, who is not directly nor indirectly interested in the manufacture and sale of illuminating oil. The brand is an official signature, and must not be permitted to pass out of the custody of the inspector. But no barrel shall be branded previous to being filled with oil. Safety Burning Fluids. Considerable complaint has been made during the past year by oil refiners against the rigidity of the inspection in this State, and several attempts were made to force illegal oil into the State, but the payment of transportation out of the State of the rejected stuff uniformly provided a remedy. SAFETY BURNING FLUIDS. A large number of complaints were made during the past year of persons going about the State selling a so-called French Electric Fluid, and the "Excelsior" Safety Burner. This is an old fraud under a new name, and which has been exposed many times during the past twenty years. A large number of so-called safety lamps and processes for making safety burning fluids have been patented, to make it possible to burn the explosive napthas without danger. A keg of gunpowder is safer in a house than either. Agents go about selling recipes for making the so-called safety fluid, and claim that it is perfectly safe. · It should be known that nothing can be added to naptha that will change its explosive character. If so, refiners would long since have discovered it. No lamp is safe with dangerous oil, and all lamps are safe with safe oil. The chief substance of this so-called safety fluid is gasoline, benzine, rhigolene, or other volatile constituent of naptha--it is only naptha under a false name, into which roots, gums, barks and salts have been introduced, only to leave it as explosive as before. The formula for making this "Electric Fluid," reads: "Gasoline one gallon, gum camphor one ounce, salaratus one ounce, common salt four ounces. The experiments given by the vender of these fluids to deceive the people are very convincing. To show his mixture is not Railroad Accidents. explosive, he will unscrew the wick tube, apply a match where the vapor, if any, quietly takes fire and burns without explosion; or he pours a quantity in a saucer and applies a match. There is no explosion, the customer is satisfied, and to save a few cents purchases the patent. Now, it should be borne in mind that a certain portion of air is necessary to cause an explosion of naptha vapor, and it requires some skill to properly mix these, and the vender is very careful that he does not do it. Equal parts of air and vapor will not explode; three parts air and one part vapor will give a vigorous flash; five parts air and one of vapor will give a loud report; eight or more parts air and one vapor will give a violent explosion. The sale or use of these so-called safety fluids, or of any oil for illuminating purposes which are the product of petroleum, which has not been inspected and approved, is prohibited in this State, and all persons selling such should be arrested, and fined, or imprisoned, as provided by law. RAILROAD ACCIDENTS. The murderous car-coupler and pin still continues the slaughter of young men, and to mangle and maim bodies and limbs. They will probably continue until prohibited by force of law, notwithstanding inventive genius has devised an adequate preventive against this murderous business. The Railroad Commissioners, in their report for the year ending June 30, 1888, say: During the year, one hundred and eighty persons were killed on the railroads in the State. Of these ten were passengers, one hundred and one employes, and sixty nine others not connected with the operation of the road. Eight were killed by derailment, twenty by collision, one caught in frogs, nineteen coupling cars, thirty-two fell from trains, ten getting on and off Railroad Accidents. trains, two at highway crossings, twenty from miscellaneous causes, three from overhead obstructions, nine while stealing rides, eight while intoxicated, thirty-six while trespassing on track, and one suicide. There were seven hundred and twenty-three persons injured during the year, Of these seventy-seven were passengers, five hundred and sixty-four employes, and eighty-six others, not connected with the operation of the road nor sustaining the relations of passengers; fifty-nine were injured by derailment, seventy-one by collisions, seven were caught in frogs, two hundred and forty coupling cars, fifty-two fell from trains, sixty getting on and off trains, five at highway crossings, one hundred and eighty-two from miscellaneous causes, thirteen from overhead obstructions, eleven while stealing rides, twenty-five trespassing on track, and one while intoxicated. The number killed is forty-eight more than the previous year, the number injured is two hundred and eighty-three more. There were in the State during the year three of four accidents attended with loss of life and personal injury from causes that may reasonably be expected not to occur again. This will not, however, we think, satisfactorily account for the greatly increased number of killed and injured over the report of the former year. With the increased appliances for safety, we had hoped this year to record a decrease. There were eight killed and fifty-nine injured by derailments, there were twenty killed and seventy-one injured by collisions, there were one killed and seven injured by being caught in frogs. The one killed was on the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway, and five of the injured on the Illinois Central, one on the Chicago & Northwestern, and one on the Sioux City & Pacific. The Commissioners understand that the Chicago & Northwestern is using the Edwards' foot guard, but are not aware what safety appliances are used by the other lines reporting accidents from this cause. cars. Nineteen persons were killed and two hundred and forty injured coupling The Western Car Builder's Association, more than a year ago, agreed upon couplers of the Janney type, as in most respects more fully than any other, meeting the conditions required for safety. It is evident that the automatic coupler has not been very generally adopted, as nineten persons were killed in 1888, and nine in 1887, and two hundred and forty injured, while in the previous year one hundred and thirty-four were injured. But one year since the organization of this Board, has there been as many killed, and the injured exceed any previous number by fifty-eight. In 1878. there were killed, coupling cars.......... 17 70 14 55 17 87 20 64 16 182 16 |