The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1891-03-19

Yesterday in the Office OF secretary O.
state.
ooMPTRoLLER's DEPARTMENT..
Comptroller Mccall yesterday re-
deemed $4,000 seven per cent state
frontier bonds and issued $4,000 Of
five per cent bonds which were sold
to the following funds
w Blind Asylum. NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. SuUI
School Fund. Observation-Disclosures. 1,OW
Comal county redeemed ST. ,OOO
bridge bond and paid $1l3 interest.
GEOLOGICAL DEPARTMENT.
@ Prof. Dumble received more letters
yesterday asking for copies of his re-
port. 1t is very evident that another
edition of it should be printed.
The following in regard to lignites
is of Importance to the people Of
Austin, as the city is but a short
F. distance from the Ignite fields 1t is
from advance sheets of report now
being prepared in the geological de-
partment.
After giving the location Of the lig-
\ mite fields in the state, the report al
ludes to their value and says:
''In Europe, where fuel is scarcer
than here, lignites of much poorer
quality than our average deposits are
successfully used, not only as fuel
for domestic purposes, but also for
smelling
The tact that lignites have not been
used in the United States is taken by
some as an evidence of their worth
lessness, but il we turn to Europe we
find that their usefulness is of the
highest character. From the Jahres
Berichte der Chemischen Techno-
ilogie,+ by DR.. R. Wagner QS55 to
1880, have had careful compila-
ton made of the progress of the lig-
mite industry in Germany. From this
we learn that although the German
lignites are inferior to those OF Texas,
as proved by numerous chemical an
..lyses, they are in use for every pur
y pose for which bituminous coal is
available, and for some to which such
coal is not suiteG. Their principal
use :, mutually, as fuel. They are
: 49, the natural state, or raw" IN
gylaces for household purposes, and
9 also to very large extent IN SienSSYnS'
Regeneration furnaces; and, evenS.
X connection, with cake made rom the
IA lignites t. ofase " heers much as forty
to seven into Cco.the> G'raw Ignite is
used in theing herhg of iron ores in
furn aces of suyePle construction.
Raw Egui,es are also used IN the
conversion of iron into steel by the
Bessemer process, but require small
addition OF coke for this purpose.
r For general fuel purposes, however
the lisnites are manufactured into
brioueLtes, or coal bricks, of different
sizes, by Pulverjzing them, evaporat-
ing the surplus water, and compress
ing them under presses similar to
those used in the manufacture OF
pressed brick. Many of the German
lignites contaia as much as thirty to
~ FORTY per cent of water, and the heat
a which is necessary to drive this OIL
acts on the chemical elements OF the
Ignite and develops the bituminous
mstter sufficiently for it to serve as
Y bond or cement unuer the semi fusion
+ caused by the heavy pressure wnlcn If
"A applied to make it cohere. SUCH coals
IA do not form their own cement II
@ this way are made to cohere by tine
addition of various cementing mate
rails. such as bituu en-, coal, tar, pitch
starch, potatoes, clay, etc.
Lignites prepa1' d in this way are
fully equal to ordinary bitumlnou
coal as fuel for all purposes, and pos
sess, in addition, several lmportan
advantages. They are more compact
and are in the regular form of block
which can be stored in four-tifths thu
amount of space occupied by the amt
weight of coal. They are muci
cleaner to handle, and the waste II
handling, which in the case OF btu
mnous coal is often as much a.
twenty per cent, is very little. .
Owing to its physical structure i
hurns with great regularity and with
out clinkers, making it very desir
s lilo steam fuel. For these reasons i
is SO often ss11 preferred to bituminous coal
Coke of excellent quality is made
from lignites in ovens properly con-
structed for the purpose. These oven'
are of various designs suited to differ
emit characters of Ignite, but all &C
complish similar results, and the cox
thus produced is used for all purposes
FOR which other cokes are adapted.
Illuminating gas OF very Superior
onality is manufactured from lignites
and is in use in many German man.
ufactories. ,.
other important industries. Up tt
the time of the discovery OF the oil
ields OF America and the great de-
= Ssits of mineral wax, or ozocerite
no IGNITE was the principal source o.