The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-02-09
CONWAY'S STAND
Fire Chief Says Commission
ers Must Take Respon-
sibility Of Aoetylene
i Accidents.
STORING PERMIT GRANTED
Four Hundred Pounds of Car
bide of Calcium to be Kept.
in Concord Street.

The Board of Fire Commissioners, at a
meeting last evening, granted MI. Eu-
gene B~ournonville, of No. % Concord
street, permit to store 400 pounds of car
bide of calcium at his factory at the
above address, which is in the locality of
Hoboken avenue and Fleet street.
Before the permit was granted Clerk Es-
Textbook read a typewriter statement
about the use of acetylene gas and carbide
of calcium prepared by Mr.. Bournonville-
1t read as follows
Compared with other illuminants such
as coal gas, kerosene, gasoline, etc., 1 as
sert that acetylene gas under normal pres
sure is 80 per cent. less dangerous. II a
room of 10x1Vx1V and, therefore. of 1000
cubic feet capacity, be Theoretically closed
s per cent. or so cubic feet of acetylene
gas are required before it could even be
ignited- With only that quantity OF
a~cetylene it could not be exploded. The
explosive point begins at 6 per cent. and
ends at 20 per cent. of acetylene in this.
For a room of the size above stated 60 TO
200 cubic feet of acetylene gas, it must
be thoroughly mixed with its air or else
explosion is absolutely impossible. When
more than 20 per cent. of acetylene gas is
mixed with air no explosion will occur,
but there results a yellow smoky hame
with very little heat.
when acetylene gas is pure and not
mixed with air it is impossible to ignite
it. The greatest explosive force is pro-
duced through the mixture of one part
of acetylene and nine parts of air or 10
per cent. We, therefore, get these re-
sults:l to 4 per cent of a~cetylene gas
mixed with air cannot be ignited or ex-
ploded; 4 to S per cent. of acetylene in
air can be ignited but not exploded; 6 to
20 per cent of acetylene in air is the ex-
plosivs mixture with greatest force at 10
per cent. Above 20 per cent. of acetylene
In air cannot be exploded but only ignited.
SIN a place like my factory, which is
10ox30feet and 10 feet high, or Sc. 1000 cubic
feet. it would require 1850 cubic feet Of
acetylene gas evenly mixed witt air be-
fore 1t could even be ignited. 1t could
not then be exploded Since the Mont
gomery street explosion almost every
body in Jersey City seems. to confound
acetylene gas with liquifed acetylene.
There is as much difference between the
two as there is between cotton and gun
cotton. If one is dangerous, the other is
perfectly harmless, and can be easily I'M
derstood when the public considers that
over forty tons of carbide of calcium are
manufactured daily and consumed by all
classes of people, and how seldom If ever,
an explosion of acetylene gas occurs, and
that no accident has ever occurred from
carbide, then the harmlessness of acety-
lyme, or carbide, becomes apparent. Car
bide of calcium will produce about five
cubic feet of gas per pound. 1t is
absolutely harmless and safe to handle.
If water comes in contact with it, it will
produce gas but no flame If not ignited
by q separate fame. If SO ignited the
gas will burn quietly until he water
has given out. If more water is added
it will burn until the carbide has given
all its gas. 1t then burns in the same
manner tina a leak of coal gas through
a broken pipe would, IL ignited and not
be more dangerous. It will simply burn,
not explode. The only difference is that
when the carbide has given all its gas
it will stop of itself but the gas coming
out Of the gas pipe will keep burning
until the pipe be plugged up and the
further difference that the acetylene will
burn with scarcely any heat.
I'm short. acetylene gas and carbide are
harmless. But the name is terrific. The
public can readily understand that it is
to the interest Of some parties to frighten
people about this wonderful product and
the public has not had the real facts.
sc. BoURNoNvTLUE.
ss22 Concord street, Jersey City"
Now. Chief Conway is not in favor of
storing this stuff in the city limits. and
he has notified the Commissioners about
his ideas. When he learned the stuff was
stored on Concord street, he sent Captain
n. o. Bissell to Investigate it. The Chief
at once notified the Commissioners and
said he hoped a permit would not be
granted, as the people in the ~neighbor-
hood were making all kinds of COM
plants. The. people still have recollec-
ton of the disastrous explosion that took
place over a year g at Montgomery
ana Fremont streets, resulting in two
deaths and damaging property for fully
a quarter of a mile.
Chief Conway, when interviewed this
morning, said
II wish to say that the Commissioners
have made a serious mistake by granting
this permit to store the stuff on Con-
cord street or any other street within
the city limits. They should be COMPEL
ed to locate on the meadows, where they
would be out of LANCER to the people OF
the city.
sIf a fire occurred in a building of this
kind I would have to be the one to order
the men into it, and / wish to state right
now that if any accidents occur the Com
missioners and not I will assume the re-
sponsibility."
After the permit was granted there was
no discussion, as the Commissioners think
the stuff used by Mr.. B"ournonVlle is per-
fectly harmless.
The Board appointed Frederick Peters
hoseman of Engine Company No. A., to
fill the vacancy caused by the resignation
Of Walter H. Farrier. Farrier was only
connected with the department six
months.
Since the first of January there have
been Al permits issued for the use OF
Kerosene, IA for %naphtha and 3 for gun
powder. The Crew Levick Co.. asked per-
mission to store 10000 gallons of kerosene
at Hoboken avenue and street
it was referred to the Committee on CUM
bustibles.
Chief Conway reported having received
26 alarms, of which % were telegraph, in
the last two weeks. The meeting adj
journed until February %.
COURT CALENDARS.