Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-07-19
Valuable Astor Invention.

| Hundreds of acres of swamp land
throughout New England, much of
| which is regarded as practically
worthless, will be given an active mar
ket value if the machine invented by
| Colonel John Jacob Aston for produc-
ing gas from peat proves to be sue
| cessful.
| Such a cOntrivance would press into
use various boys in the immediate
vicinity of Boston and would cores
| pondingly enrich their owners. Ex
perts have variously appraised the
valuation of the unused peat supply
of America at from $5O,O0O,0OO to
| 500, 100000.
| AS soon as he has perfected his
process Colonel Astor will give it to
the public for general use. He says
| many farmers have an abundance Of
| peat on their land which they could
| gather at the simple expense of dig
| ging He believes they can generate
at low cost enough gas in one of his
machines, which will sell for reason
able sum, to run farm machines and
| implements and light and heat their
| homes and barns.
Peat has never been as popular in
| this country as abroad. Many coun-
| tries in Europe have for centuries used
| "eat extensively as fuel, but all at
| tempts to introduce it in this country
have failed
Champions of the mud that burns
are confident that the idle peat sup
ply of the United States will even
| tually be brought into systematic use
| They think that some invention which
| will dispose of the disagreeable fea-
ture for its preparation as fuel. such
as drying and the like, would quickly
dispel the public prejudice directed
| against it in this country
| The United States is honeycombed
| with peat boys, as are many Euro
| oean countries. There are millions Of
| acres of peat swamps in this country.
| embracing some of the richest boys
in the world. They are not even sur
passed by the celebrated peat deposits
of Ireland.
New England has a generous share
| Of this marsh fuel. Massachusetts, is
particularly rich in it. The tracts
| nearest Boston are those in Cambridge.
Everett. Canton, Stoughton, Norwood,
| Hanson and many other adjacent
| towns. The southeastern part of
Massachusetts along Cape Cod abounds
| in peat.
Representative members Of the
American Peat Society are talking of
holding meeting in Boston in Sep
| TENDER to discuss the situation. AS far
| back as 1866 peat fuel in brick form
was used on the old Western Railway
of Massachusetts. 1t was found to de-
velop good heat and made no SCOT
| dust or clnkers, but the engineers and
iremen protested. Four years ago a
New England railroad company used
peat on it's shifting and suburban en-
gines' as a test. The new fuel sent
the locomotives along all right.
Many unsuccessful attempts have
been made in Sweden to make pro
Queer gas" from peat. Theoretically
peat is better fitted to make producer
it contains and the carbonaceous
character of its solid portions fit it
Tor this, but it's porous texture has
proved the big obstacle in all tests,
the heat conducting qualities of peat
are so poor that when Heated in pro-
Queer a portion of the fuel will be
consumed before certain other portions
have really been heated to any great
degree.
The extractor of gas from peat is
only one of several inventions made
| ny Colonel Aston He invented a
marine turbine, an ingenious bicycle