The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1877-04-12
EXPLOSION OFKEROSENE LAMP.

A correspondent writes at follows:
IA few evenings ago, lamp burn
ing in my kitchen suddenly went to
peices; the oil at once blazed up and ran
off the table in burning stream, setting
fire to the floor. The oil blazed up two
or three feet high, and but for prompt at.
tcntion the results would have been Sc.
rious. The lamp was OF glass, of the
fiat form. said to be the best; the oil ves>
sci would hold half or three quarters of
a pint; the wick was long enough to
reach the bottom. The flame was turned
rather low, but by no means as low as
possible, and the lamp had been burning
the greater part of the two evenings
since it had been filled, so lthat it could
not have been too full. 1t was not ex-
posed to draft and could not have been
upset or shaken no one had been in the
room for at least half an hour previous
ly. The oil was claimed to be able to
stand 1909 fire test; and Immediately
after the accident some of the oil was
tried with "a lighted match, but it
would not burn. The explosion did not
throw any pieces of the lamp more than
few inches, and the Oil was not scat
tered at all j; the noise was SO light that,
when heard in an adjoining room, it was
supposed that the chimney had broken
and fallen off. Question /. Why did
the oil that ran::from the lamp burn as
freely as turpentire, while the oil pour>
ed from the can would not burn at all?
2. Is any kind Of kerosene Oil safe, and
! (3) if so. no " can the consumer test it?n
AS this subject involves the protection
of life and property, and as similar in.
stances have lately become common, we
think it of primary importance that the
cause Of such accidents should be cor
rected, IS they lead to precisely such
catastrophes as the one in question. But
our correspondent was more fortunate
than one acquaintance Of ours, who,
coming home late in the evening. found
his house entirely burnt down, the only
possible cause being that servant hat
lett q kerosene lamp, partially burnt out
alight in her room, and as the flame
burned down an explosion doubtless fol
lowed, spread the oil, and set the house
in flames.
Our correspondents accident illus
trates the following popular errors:
Ho states that the lamp was of the ia
kind, said to be the best. Some of thu
fat lamps have the flame % near to th,
body of the lamp that the containing
vessel and the oil become warm; thel
the latter easily reaches the temperature
of the flashing point. 10. 800. or NOR,
degrees. This shows that fiat lamps or,
not by any means the safest.
2. he also saws: The lamp had beef
burning the greater part oftwo evening
since it had been filled, and so could no
have been too FULL" A full lampcanno
explode; explosion is caused by TIL
space in the lamp over the oil, which
when filled with air mixed with vapo
of oil, forms an explosive mixture. 1
barrel full OF petroleum can take fire bu
will never explode. Not long ago. w
had an illustration in New York of TIT
dangers of empty petroleum barrels
A man struck = match In order to high
pipe, upon an old petroleum barrel, AM
it exploded ct once, nearly killing him
The barrel was filed with q mixture .
petroleum vapor and atmospheric air
which happened to be in the proportio
necessary to make an explosive mixture
namely, volume of vxpor to about /
volumes of air. In fact. the addition
10 per cent of petroleum vapor TO com
mon air makes most dangerous mil