The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1903-10-14
NO OFFICIAL TRIALS
OF SMOKE CONSUMERS
Commissioners Deny Petit
ton of o. G. Staples.
NOTHING GAINED BY TESTS
Variations in Furnaces Make It Impos-
slble for Any One Device to Be
of General Value.

Commissioner mcfarland today ap-
proved recommendation of Health Of
hcer woodward, denying a petition sign
ed by o. G. Staples and others. that a
test be made of at least four of the diff
terent and most reputable inventions for
the prevention of smoke In support
Of his adverse recommendation, Dr.
Woodward says:
me prevention of smoke depends up
on the proper application Of certain
principles governing combustion. which
and more or less thoroughly understood.
The application or these principles IN
wolves three factors. First. the device
In which combustion is to take place.
including all accessories thereto; second.
The material to be burned; and, third
the method and conditions under which
the device and material referred to
above are manipulated.
Fixing a Standard.
I'm order, therefore. for the results
OF any trial of smoke preventing de-
vices TO be of general value, a definite
standard would have to be fixed for
each OF these three factors. and the
test would necessarily involve the deter
mination not only Of the effectiveness of
each smoke preventing device, under
these standard conditions. but also the
result OF every possible, or at least
every probable, variation from the &C
cepted standard, individually and in
combination. To apply TO any individ-
ual furance the data developed as the
result of such a test would require a
technical knowledge far in excess of
that possessed by the average citizen.
and those who possess such a technical
knowledge as would enable them to
make such application, would doubtless
be able TO accomplish equally satisfac-
tory results without the proposed In
vestigation, through the knowledge
which they now possess. and by refer
ence to the technical literature with
which they must be more or less famil-
lar.
Variations in Furnaces.
The petition presented by Messrs.
Staples ct al is apparently based on
the presumption that there is one
smoke-preventing device that is better
than all others. and the discovery Of
which Will either prove a panacea for
all the supposed hardships now arising
out Of the attempted abatement of the
smoke nuisance or that failure TO find
any such device as the result OF an
official test viii prove equally Il pana-
cea, in that it viii do away with pres
ent attempts to prevent the emission
of dense and thick, black or gray
smoke. AS. however. may readily be
seen from an examination OF the pre-
ceding paragraph, that which is the
best device in one place may not be the
best in another. the prevention OF smoke
lat any particular establishment being
a problem depending upon the applica-
ton Of general principles, and the an
swer to which cannot be promised from
the casual observation OF the points of
similarity and difference between that
plant and any other. And the expert
knowledge which would bring about the
prevention of smoke at any particular
plant after the proposed investigation
had been made would, It is believed, be
able TO accomplish the same result
without such investigation