Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1878-05-10
Dust Fires and Explosions In Flour
Mills.

read before the New York state aSSoci-
ton OF supervising and adjusting agents
On the lTth Vt duly last, and recently
published, contains 50 much valuahlr
truth that i is q hcregrcttcd that more
attention was not paid Is accessible de-
tals: for II seems 10 lis that hy leaning
too much upon the semi-Scicntilic treat.
ment of tlour-mill explosions given NV
the ptWNbe l'taw,4,Y9mQs-I tqt,m1 in
I 1870, and the rcport Of Professors Mae.
adam and Rankin upon the cause OF
the ire III the Fradestou null ut elias
COW, Scotland three wears earlier.
(Which report appears to he unon tho
facts OF II single hrcl the committee has
been lcd only part way to the truth.
The commttee SAYS
First that explosions are the inner
ent cause vt fire in flour mills, and
second, thnt III the majority III these
cases the flour or meal was heated bv
the rapid motion ofthc machinery. and
4 spark WAS produced Ivy the friction of
the stones, and the oiNginouS product Of
the cereal was ignitcd, and explosion
and fire was the result
| Quotations are made from the Ger
man writer, showing that Of thousand
pounds of wheat, lS.5i are olcayinous:
Of rye II ,09; Of barley, 26Sl, 81 oats,
| S9W;ot corn, 1889. 1t the oeaginous
element really is the basis Of the cxplo-
sion, then II ought to occur III proper
ton to It's prevalence, bat the facts are
that the least olcagnous of Ill the
cereals mentioned, produces the great
est number Of fires; III fact we du not
remember To have Seen the record of
explosion III connection with amy other
than wheat flour.
Thus the facts and the theory appear
ut once to hc III loygecr-hcads
The Maskouta, Illinois, ease involved
an .Etna policy, and WAS the first to
make public the origin Of that fire
winch occurred IN the upper part of
the mill, and III II mass Of dust
not heated Ivy friction or otherwise
The facts III brief. as we have once or
twice before published them, are rs FOL.
lows: The mill was running ut night
grinding middlings. These were fed
from II large box or chamber in the mp
per part of the mill, and about three
o'clock III the morning became cloggod
The miller went upto jar the middlings
down. lie carried u small open lamp
in his hand, which he placed on beam
just behind and above his head. He
then opened the slide and thrust III il
shovel, which started the middlings
down with thud, raising cloud of
dust which issued through the open
slide, and the moment il came in con
tact with tho lamp flashed as If il md
been coal gas, burning the millern hair
and beard, and filling the middling box
with n sheet Of flame The fire spread
with great rapidity and the mill was
burned down. This was September,
1854
The Dover, Ky. accident occurred
not far from the ycm 1850 and The
cause was almost identical with the
above, although it was brought about
in very different manner. A large
quantity Of middlings had been stored
III the upper part of the mill, II was
observed that the weight caused the
flooring to sag, and man was sent up
with n shovel 10 "cven" the bin. His
weight was the last straw; the floor un-
dcmcath broke through, and cascade
of middlings flowed down through story
after story, filling the mill with dust In
II few minutes it reached the boiler
room, and the instant il touched the
fire, il ignitcd with II flash, and the mill
was Immediately in flames. Ii was to-
tally destroyed
In 1868 and 1869, the two fires men.
TONED by the committee in st. Louis
and Milwaukee occurred. The Spcctl-
tor gave some extended details in re-
gard to them Mt the time, but III both
instances, If we remember right, the
fire originated away from the stones,
and near the bran, or feed, or mddlings
spouts, where the dust prevailed and
was caused BY the presence Of candle
or lamp in each instance.
In the Monitor for July, 1879, il Il let
ter from T.. w. Crowel concerning il
hour-mill fire in Milwaukee some years
ago. Tins originated in the upper part
Of the building, and was believed by
him ut the time 10 be attributable to
the dust Of flour II commenced FIR
away from the stones, and far away
from the smut-machinc, which latter
had not been running for whole day
The Evansville fire, also mentioned
by the committee, IL described mertepsC
in the May, 1875, Monitor. II was no,
caused by the stones, and did not origi.
nate near them. The circumstances
were almost precisely the same ~ those
mentioned in connection with the Sta.
Mill at Mascoutah. About 3 o'clock in
the morning the miller went 70 the mid
dlings chest, carrying ii his hand IN
open lamp. As soon as he raised the lid
Of the chest there was MI instantaneous
fash and explosion. The millcrs arms
we're burned and the mill was DESTROYED