The Saint Paul globe., 1904-06-19

PROVES GASOLINE
DOES NOT EXPLODE
Oil Expert Exhibits Its IdiOsyn-
craCieS Next Door To Fire
Headquarters

The reckless use of gasoline caused
a dozen fires yesterday afternoon in a
tent close to fire headquarters, on the
north side of Eighth street, between
Minnesota and Cedar streets. Each
time the flames were extinguished by
w. j. HoIton, without calling upon
Chief John Jackson and other members
of the fire department, who were pres
ent
Mr.. HOlton himself set the fires. He
poured gasoline over a burning gaso-
line stove; he sprinkled gasoline over
the floor and threw lighted matches in
the fluid; he thrust a lighted match
Into a,sean of gasoline-an to demon
strate that gasoline seldom explodes.
but that no treatment with patent
mon Explosive" compounds can make
gasoline any less dangerous.
d. AS an acknowledged representative
of the Standard Oil company, Mr.. Hoi-
ton declared that the company desired
to protect the public against deception.
1t wished hOuseholders, and especially
women to know that they could not
buy any chemical compound that would
render gasoline the least bit safer to
handle.
= On the other hand. the public was
mistaken, said Mr.. Holton, in believing
that gasoline stoves ever explode, or
that the majority of gasoline fires are
the result of explosions
= The sO-called gasoline f1res,' in
sisted Mr.. Holten, "are fires-sudden
fires, treacherous fires, extremely dan
gerous fires-but they are fires, never
theless, and not explosions"
Cites a Case
For example" continued the demon
-f~,f ,fCTz eInt1 rOIa,x I-nn
I'm going to get dinner; l put gasoline
in the tank of this stOve-the gasoline
I've just treated with that non-explo-
sive cOmpound-I turn the gasoline on;
then l go into the next room to get a
match or look at the clock, or pull the
cat out of the baby'S hair; then / come
back and strike a match. I don't notice
that the gasoline has been dripping
from this burner and running all over
this stove. No, look out the window
and wonder who that is calling on Mrs.
Brown; I touch the match to the burn
er-
"A flash of fame rises three feet
above the stove. Well, if l were wear
ing light dress, or a big pompadour.
l should probably be on fire myself
now. I'd try to throw the stove out in
the street; the fire department and the
doctor would cOme-or perhaps the
coroner; and the newspapers would re-
port next day, Another Gasoline Ex-
plOsiOn.'
But it wasn't an explosion You
could see that yourselves. And SO long
as I've escaped the first fame and the
fire hasn't spread, it is perfectly safe
for me to stay right here and wait till
the. fame dies down-it's almost out
now, you see.
NO the gasoline didn't explode. It's
very hard to explode. l can't explode
this can of gasoline by taking out the
cork and dropping this lighted match
into the can. The gasoline won't even
burn inside the can, but only outside
around the openings. 1t won't burn
anywhere except in contact with air,
and it throws off such heavy gas in
side the can that there is no air left
inside. So long as there is an opening
in a can Of gasoline or in the reser-
-VOir of a gasoline stove, neither the
can or the reservoir will explode, even
If there are flames all around them"
Can Contained Itself
h, Mr.. Houlton poured a quantity of
gasoline on the floor, placed the open,
ha1f-flled can in the middle and set
fire to the gasoline. It blaZed fiercely,
tiEgl1ng the cheeks of spectators, but
the exposed can did not explode.
There's only two ways of exploding
gasoline" he continued, "alloW it to be-
come mixed with air in the proportion
of six parts air to one of gasoline; or
cork it up tightly and set fire beneath
1t. I'll put these few drops of gasoline
the doctored, anti-eXplosive kind
into this empty can; shake the can Che
shook IT'D to mingle the gasoline with
the air; then touch match''-when
the match approached the mouth Of the
can the gasoline exclaimed puff in a
loud tone.
'Or 1 could cork up this gallon of
gasoline and set it on the fire-but 1
guess I'll not do that today"
In his several tests the demonstration
used alternately ordinary gasoline and
gasoline which, he said, had been doc
tored" with anti explosive compounds;
the result was the same. He offered to
use any gasoline that any spectator
might furnish.
He wished to impress on people, he
said, that gasoline cannot be doctor
ed to become less infammabIe: but
that there was no danger of an explo-
sion, unless a closed can or reservoir
was exposed to flame, or unless a
Iiame meets the heavy gas from gaso-
line, as when gasoline leaks from a
circulate
A blaze was needed to light gasoline:
II was not to be excited by coal. Mr..
Holton lighted a cigar, puffed it into a.
r!ch glow, and then extinguished the
cigar in pool of gasoline
IL npo! CdHl don Is closed the DEM
onStration.
Don't run away, if you escape the
nfst blaze from a burning gasoline
stove; the flame will burn out and tbe
reservoir, unless tightly closed, will
never explode. Don't try to throw the
Stove or the reservoir out of the house
DonL Lon. ever permit the reservoir to be
tightly closed when in use Don't 1yea11
gasoLne IN cellar, closet or anywhere
tnat the air does not circulate freeIv:
the gas from a leak may explode. Keen
gasollne out of doors always. Don't he
airald TO carry an open can of gasoline
from a burning building.