Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1886-12-30

w UlCu Is lut Dtcl lutl 10 ust utDtnuS
on circumstances. Bituminous coal Is
abundant and cheap in all the western
and most of the southern states. 1t is
easily ignited and produces a large
amount of heat Experiment has dem
omstrated that it is the cheapest fuel for
generating steam in locomotives and
stationary engines. 1t is in many re-
spects an economical fuel for use in
farm-houses, but there are very great
objections TO it. 1t is dirty to handle.
Burned n an open crate, it is likely to
throw off so much smoke which passes
up the chimney uncomsumed. Dur ng
unfavorable weather much coal smoke
passes from an open fire into the room.
1t vitiates the air that is taken into the
lungs and soils everything it comes in
contact with. 1t discolors books. wall
paper, and the ceilings of rooms. 1t
penetrates closets and drawers and soils
their contents 1t deposits SCOT and
tar i'm ch mneys and renders them dan
gerous. Ii is difficult to burn common
bituminous coal in cooking or heating
stove and not suffer from the annoy
ance of smoke and vile gases. The
use of soft coal makes it necessary to
employ the frying kettle instead of the
gridiron in cooking meals.
Anthracite coal is open to few objec-
tons. Burned in an open CRATE or a
properly constructed stove it produces
steady heat and throws off no smoke.
A lire of hard coal is somewhat hard to
kindle, b it will "kcep" long time.
With properly constructed stove there
is no necessity for having the fire go
out or becoming low for period of
weeks or even months. 1t is cleanly to
handle, does not attract moisture. and
produces but small amount of ash.
1t is the favorite fuel for domestic pur-
poses in large towns and cities for
many reasons. 1t is easily stored, re-
quires no preparations before it is used
and its combust on does not result in
soiling the house or anything it con-
tains However excellent wood may be
as fuel its use will no longer be general
in large towns, A large space is re-
CURED for storing it, and in city
space, even in the open air, is expen-
sive AS il is bulky, il is costly to
transport in cars and boats. Yard or
dock room for it is expensive The
cost OF saving and splitting wood in n
city is large. II the work is done in II
woodward customers have no assur-
ance that they get the amount they pay
for. As rule they have no room on
their own premises for preparing cord
wood for the fireplace or stove.
Few western farmers, however, can
use anthracite coal for cooking pur-
poses or for heating their dwellings.
The cost of transporting It is too
great. They must accordingly choose
between bituminous coal and wood. II
there are no trees on their own land or
in the neighborhood where they live.
they are compelled to use soft coal till
trees can be raised. Few will question
the advisability of rails ng supply of
wood at the earliest period possible. A
good wood lot serves TO make a farmer
Independent in the matter of fuel. 1t
saves large sum every year. II adds
TO the beauty and comfort of the farm
1t attracts song-brds and breaks the
force of the winds. 1t furnishes Il
pleasant retreat during the summer.
A farmer with a wood lot of his own
can have supply of the best fuel with
out the expenditure of money. He can
chop wood ut times when he has no
profitable employment. He can haul 4
TO the house when there is nothing for
his teams to do. He can prepare it for
the stove and fire place during the win
ter, or at other times when he can not
work in the fields. A good wood lot
furnishes security against anxi ETY. when
roads are impossible and the supply of
coal at the nearest town exhausted. Ii
saves trouble. care, and money. 1t
permits ease, contentment, and comfort.
Well-prepared seasoned wood is the
best fuel for cooking purposes durin g
warm weather when it is not desirable
to have the house made warm. 1t is
easily kindled, and the fire It makes
will become extinguished soon after
the meal is prepared. With common,
air-tight stoves, which are inexpensive,
sleeping-rooms may be kept comforta-
bic during the winter with very little
trouble. Quite large blocks of wood
can be burned in them. By closing
the draft a fire can be kept in one of
these stoves over night without trouble
and with very little expense. Sitting
and living-rooms can be heated in a
very satisfactory manner by the use OF
these stoves. They produce no dirt or
smoke and do not vitate the air They
are not cheerful, but the common soft
coal stove j. not. LII a farmer raises
| his own wood he can afford to have at
least one open fire in his house during
! the winter season. This will insure a
cheerful room. Large logs, knots. and
even portions of stumps can be burned
in an open fireplace. An open wood
fire is luxury which any farmer can
enjoy if he takes the trouble to plant
trees. White wood, silver-leaved pop
lars, and willow trees will grow from
cuttings and will furnish fuel in few
years from the time they are stuck in
/ to the soil. - Chicago Times.