The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1888-10-27

How few people can intclligibly ex-
plain some of the most 81 binary things
In every day life. An official Of the
city gas-works was heard To say not
long ago. says the St. Paul Dispatch.
that ii lac might Judge by the number
OF times he was asked for information
not more than two people IN ten know
how common Illuminating gas Is made.
They all seem 90 understand he said,
that it comes out Of soft coal, but they
are ignorant Of the process by which IL
is extracted. We do not doubt this mt
all. for. ms we have said 10 you several
times, IL is the very common things
that we are apt TO overlook in our
search for information. You will I'M
derstand therefore. why we select sub
jects 10 talk about with which YOU and
everybody else ought TO be familiar.
Now, let us give you very simple
explanation of gas-making. Break
up piece Of bituminous coal into
small fragments and ill the bowl of a
clay tobacco pipe with them. Cover
the mouth Of the bowl with wet clay
and then thoroughly dry II. Put the
bowl Of the pipe into fire where IL
will get red hot and you will soon see
n yellowish smoke come out of the
stem, and il you touch n match TO the
smoke it will burn brightly. for it is
nothing more nor less than the gas from
the coal.
You can purify and collect this gas
in a very simple way. Fill bottle
with water and turn IL upside down in
bowl Of water. You know the water
will not run out of the bottle because
the air pressure on the water in the
bowl will prevent IT, Put the end of
the pipe stem under the mouth of the
bottle and the gas will bubble up
through the water, and IL the pipe
were large enough To make n great
deal of gas the bottle would he entire
~ filled with il.
You have seen the immense quanti-
ties ofcoke which they have at the gas
works? That IL what is left of the coal
after the gas has been burned out OF
IL. Coke Is carbon, only small part
of what was in the coal having gone
of with the gas. Take the clay cover
ing of your pipe and you will find the
bowl filled with this coke.
Now that is precisely the way gas Is
made ia large quantities nj the gas
works Instead OF using pipe bowls
they use big ret0rts. Heating coal red
hot In a closed rciort is very different
from burning IL in the open air. A
large pipe from the retort carries of
the product of the coal, consisting of
steam, tar. air. and ammonia, as well
as gas. The ammonia aud tar 20 into
tanks and tho gas into coolers, and
then over lime which takes up the acids
ia IL, into the immense iron gas-hold-
ers which you have seen at the works.
These holders are open at the bot
tom, and stand. or rather swing. In
tanks OF water. being adjusted by
means Of weights. As the gas comes
into them they rise up out of the
water. but the bottoms are always sub
merged so that the gas can not escape.
The large gas pipes, on mains, rs they
are called, connect with the holders.
and conduct the gas through the streets
90 the houses where Ii Is used. The
pressure Is given 20 the gas by the
weight Of the iron holders. which are
always bearing down on the gus they
contain.
or the 70.000.0OO feet Of lumber in
cludcd In the Connecticut Lumber Com
pany's last drive of logs. which have
recently passed over Bellows Tails.
7.00c, COO feet stopped at Bellows Falls
TO become paper.