The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-09-26
PEACH STONES
 USED FOR GAS MASKS FOR ARMY
Ground and Burned to Char coal They Are Very I'm portant Part of Soldiers Protection.

Why does the government want beach stones? What does it do with them? These questions are invariably asked of parents by children who re- port that their particular rcpm at school is engaged in an intense com petition against the other rooms in the effort to collect as many peach pits as possible. Even the adults have noticed the containers for the contribution of peace stones, which stand in prominent places, in front Of department stores and on corners. The children are not satisfied with the answer that Uncle Sam Is using peach stones in gas masks. As one young philosopher apty expressed it: T should think the tIoys would rather have the whole peach inside their faces, than only the stone outside it." The peach pit is indeed being used in gas masks, but not as a peach pit. It is the burned peach stone, in the form of charcoal that the govern ment Is using in the masks for the soldiers.
 Peach pits make the best grade of absorbent charcoal it has yet been possible to produce. This charcoal is used in the respirators of gas masks to absorb noxious gases. So states Mir J. J. Willaman, a member of the Minnesota section of the American Chemical Society.
 How does charcoal act and why Is it used? Charcoal is exceedingly DOT ous. It is produced by subjecting wood, dried blood and other organic material, to the action of fire. So roasted, such material undergoes a process of decomposition. Two parts result; one gaseous, which passes off from the retorts into the air; the other, solid matter which remains as charcoal. During the process each minute cell of the material, as well as each part of every cell, have given off the gas which was part of its structure. Thus minute pores are left all through the charcoal, formerly filled with gas. Our ordinary wood charcoal is very bulky for It's weight, because 1t contains these innumerable fine pores.
 It Is we'll known that this highly porous charcoal is a natural absorb ent of certain gases. If a basketful is thrown into a privy vault, it ab- sorbs all the disagreeable smelling gases. Vast quantities of charcoal are used in clarifying, decoloring and fill tering the juices of beet and cane su- gars. Most drugs have to be bone blacked by the use of charcoal before the white product which is commer- cially desirable Is obtained. Many people are familiar with the use o1 charcoal tablets for the purpose o1 removing distressing digestive gases.
 Tn the gas mask, charcoal is neces. sary because of its power of absorp- ton. When, through the use of poi uonous gas, the gas mask Is neces- sary, the air which the wearer of the mask breathes, comes through a boZ containing charcoal and other chem. icals. Passing through the charcoal the noxious gas is retained in the DOT pus material, the air which comes t the lungs of the wearer of the masl is purified. In the case of the earl! British mask, the nose was clampeC and all breathing done through tn mouth. A mouth piece at the end O a pipe which led from the box hold ing the charcoal and chemicals wa firmly gripped by the teeth Thi mask was good for AS hours. Then tn charcoal box had to be renewed. Il the newer American mask the nos clamping has been done away with but the same principle is followed.
 The more active the charcoal, tn greater will be the absorbing powe of the box containing it. Charcoal from all materials are not equally ef fective. Before charcoal could b successfully used in gas masks it wa necessary to produce a very activ form. The charcoal made from tn hard, compact. dence substance of tn stones of fruits and nuts was foun to possess the most ideal qualities fo use in gas masks. A given quantit of the charcoal made from sue stones will be more porous and nor responsive to the absorption of pol sonous gases than any other obtain able Thus the more fruit and nu stones are saved, the better off wi be the government in furnishing tn soldiers with gas masks to repel tn deadly gases thrown at them by tn Germans.
 There are of course other vegetab, substances of compact, dense natu that could be employed as materia for making charcoal for this Durnos