Knoxville journal. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1874-1986, 1875-04-01
German stoves.

IT is n proverb In Germany that in
Russia you only see the cold, whereas in
Germany you feel IL. In palaces, il is
true, the system of warming by Russian
fiues is much adopted, so that an equal
temperature prevails In the halls, CALLER
les and staircases, but such arrange
ments cannot be carried out in home
life" Fuel Is immensely expensive in
Germany and Is becoming more so with
every year. Formerly In good houses
nothing but wood was burned, but for
this the old.fashioned Beriiner Rachet0fen
was necessary and the hardest beech.
wood indispensable. This kind Of stove
resembles huge monument and is built
(of a great thickness) OF a sort of con-
crete, composed of clay and gypsum, the
outside glazed with white porcelain;
the interior is so contrived that the heat
passes slowly through endless circum-
volutory valves, by degrees warming the
whole mass. The interior of the stove,
preparatory TO heating, is well piled up
with wood, a strong draught Is created
and when the logs are reduced to ashes
handle is turned In the wall Of the
stove, little door is drawn over the
grating at its mouth, and the draugbt be-
ing thus cut off the heated air remains
imprisoned In the 0fen, which will keep
warm for many hours, and to the remotest
corner OF the room an equaliZed heat
will result. The drawback TO this ar
rangement lies in the fact that If the es-
cape-valves be closed too soon the fumes
of charcoal will pass into the room, and
In a sleeping apartment the danger OF as
phyxiation Is great. During very cold
weather such casualties are by no means
uncommon, especially among the lower
orders, who, unwilling to waste any OF
the heat, are sometimes tempted to close
the escape-valves too soon, and, retiring
to rest early, reap the consequences Of
their fatal economy. But the cast-iron
stove frequently replaces in modern
houses our solid old friend the BertiHer
Ofen. These cast-iron stoves are I'M
healthy, hideous and unpleasant. while
their Intellectual fires" alternately
scorch and choke you. They produce a
furnace-like heat, affecting taste, smell
and sight, the unpleasant consequences
of which are but very slightly counter
acted by the vessel Of water which you
are advised TO keep constantly boiling on
the hottest part of the iron. When the
water boils, the steam which passes into
the room slightly relieves one from the
distressing sensations produced by the
dry heat; but the moment the fire
goes out the iron becomes cold,
and the temperature at once sinks TO
so many degrees below as it was half an
hour ago above zero. Wood can
not be burned in these stoves, as 1t
would fare away too quickly, without,
as In the case of the Bertiner Ofen, leay-
ing any genial warmth behind; SO coal or
peat, or a mixture of both, is employed,
producing results disastrous to cleanli.
ness. The thick brown smoke puffs out
into the room, and the muslin curtains
look grimy as soon as put up. Some Of
my old.fashioned friends used to declare
that the expense of washing counter
balanced the cheapest kind OF fuel, and
they stuck TO their concrete stoves with
conservative affection. In some modern
houses the Berlin stove will have an
opening like an English fireplace, but
this Is confessedly luxury, concession
to the eye, for the real business Is done
by the useful concrete at the back. It's
almost superfiuous 10 observe how much
work is saved to servants by this institu-
ton Of stoves No bright CRATES, no
polished steel tenders and fire.irons and
ormulu; no black.leai mysteries, no
rotten stone and emery paper and
chamois leather. The wood Is showed In
and piled up, light Is set TO IT, the
flames 90 roaring upward, the handle Is
presently turned, and the room will keep
warm for the next eight or ten hours
ReyLi, LETTER