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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..81a7acd --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #62726 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/62726) diff --git a/old/62726-0.txt b/old/62726-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 128e0a8..0000000 --- a/old/62726-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4560 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Rollo's Philosophy [Fire], by Jacob Abbott - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Rollo's Philosophy [Fire] - The Rollo Series - -Author: Jacob Abbott - -Release Date: July 22, 2020 [EBook #62726] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROLLO'S PHILOSOPHY [FIRE] *** - - - - -Produced by Richard Tonsing, David Edwards and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -book was produced from images made available by the -HathiTrust Digital Library.) - - - - - - - - - -[Illustration: The ROLLO BOOKS by JACOB ABBOTT. NEW YORK: T. Y. CROWELL -& CO.] - -[Illustration: SO HE TOOK UP A SMALL COAL OF FIRE.—Page 97.] - - - - - ROLLO’S PHILOSOPHY. - [FIRE.] - -[Illustration] - - THE ROLLO SERIES - - IS COMPOSED OF FOURTEEN VOLUMES, VIZ.: - - Rollo Learning to Talk. - Rollo Learning to Read. - Rollo at Work. - Rollo at Play. - Rollo at School. - Rollo’s Vacation. - Rollo’s Experiments. - Rollo’s Museum. - Rollo’s Travels. - Rollo’s Correspondence. - Rollo’s Philosophy—Water. - Rollo’s Philosophy—Air. - Rollo’s Philosophy—Fire. - Rollo’s Philosophy—Sky. - - A NEW EDITION, REVISED BY THE AUTHOR. - -[Illustration] - - NEW YORK - THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO. - PUBLISHERS - - - - - Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, by - PHILLIPS, SAMPSON & CO., - In the Clerk’s Office of the District Court of the District of - Massachusetts. - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - PREFACE. - - -The main design in view, in the discussions which are offered to the -juvenile world, under the title of THE ROLLO PHILOSOPHY, relates rather -to their effect upon the little reader’s habits of thinking, reasoning, -and observation, than to the additions they may make to his stock of -knowledge. The benefit which the author intends that the reader shall -derive from them, is an influence on the cast of his intellectual -character, which is receiving its permanent form during the years to -which these writings are adapted. - -The acquisition of knowledge, however, though in this case a secondary, -is by no means an unimportant object; and the discussion of the several -topics proceeds accordingly, with regularity, upon a certain system of -classification. This classification is based upon the more obvious -external properties and relations of matter, and less upon those, which, -though they are more extensive and general in their nature, and, -therefore, more suitable, in a strictly scientific point of view, for -the foundations of a system, are less apparent, and require higher -powers of generalization and abstraction, and are, therefore, less in -accordance with the genius and spirit of the _Rollo_ philosophy. - -As teachers have, in some cases, done the author the honor to introduce -some of the preceding works of this class into their schools, as reading -books, &c., considerable reference has been had to this, in the form and -manner of the discussion, and questions have been added to facilitate -the use of the books in cases where parents or teachers may make the -reading of them a regular exercise of instruction. - - - - - CONTENTS. - - - CHAPTER I. - Page - SLOW COMBUSTION 9 - - CHAPTER II. - LAMP-LIGHTING 21 - - CHAPTER III. - BURNING IRON 36 - - CHAPTER IV. - FIRE IN THE PASTURE 54 - - CHAPTER V. - THEORY AND PRACTICE 70 - - CHAPTER VI. - GUNPOWDER 85 - - CHAPTER VII. - THE ALARM 102 - - CHAPTER VIII. - RADIATION AND CONDUCTION 116 - - CHAPTER IX. - RADIATION 130 - - CHAPTER X. - CONDITION 142 - - CHAPTER XI. - THE RIDE HOME 155 - - CHAPTER XII. - THE CONFLAGRATION 165 - - - - - THE ROLLO PHILOSOPHY. - - - FIRE. - - - - - CHAPTER I. - SLOW COMBUSTION. - - -The way in which it happened that Rollo’s father first began to explain -to him something about the nature of fire, was this: It was one evening -early in the autumn. Dorothy was going away to visit one of her friends, -and Rollo was waiting for Jonas to come out, and see the fire-flies, or -lightning-bugs, as he called them, which were flying about the yard. But -Jonas did not come as soon as Rollo had expected, and so he went into -the kitchen to see what had become of him. He found that, as Dorothy was -rather late for her visit, and still had her kitchen fire to cover up, -Jonas was just offering to cover it up for her, so that she could go at -once without any further delay. So Rollo came in, and stood by the -kitchen hearth to see Jonas cover up the fire. - -The fire had nearly burned out, but it had left quite a large bed of -embers, and a few coals among them. Jonas took the long-handled iron -shovel, which belonged to the kitchen fire, and with it he drew forward -all these coals and embers, so as to leave the back part of the hearth -bare. Then he took the tongs, and with the tongs he gathered out from -the hot ashes all the coals which he could find among the ashes, and put -them back upon the bare place which he had made upon the hearth. He -spread them evenly over it in a row against the back of the chimney. - -“What are you going to do, Jonas?” said Rollo. - -“I am going to cover up a stick of wood,” replied Jonas. - -So Jonas opened a small door which led to a little wood closet by the -side of the fire, and took out a short stick of wood, flat on one side -and round on the other. It was a stick which was round first, but Jonas -had split it in two. It was part of a great branch of a tree, large -enough to make a good log, only Jonas saw that it would split easily, -and so he had split it in two. The other half of it was still in the -wood closet. - -“This is just the stick,” said Jonas. - -“Why?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, the lower side is flat,” said Jonas, “to lie upon the coals, and -the top is round, so that I can cover it all up the easier.” - -So Jonas laid the stick down, with the flat side against the coals, and -the round side outwards. Then with the great shovel he began to shovel -the ashes and embers back over it. He put all the hot embers in first, -and then the ashes, and he tried to cover up the stick entirely; but -there was not quite ashes enough. One of the ends remained out. - -“There, Jonas,” said Rollo, “now come.” - -“No,” said Jonas, “I must cover the stick all up.” - -“O, that little end won’t do any harm,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said Jonas, “because, when the stick burns down, that place would -make a hole, and let too much air in.” - -“Don’t you want any air to get in?” said Rollo. - -“Very little,” said Jonas. “I want a very slow combustion to go on until -to-morrow morning, and then there will be a good bed of coals for -Dorothy.” - -“I don’t see why you take so much pains to cover up a stick of wood,” -said Rollo. “You might light a fire with your tinder-box.” - -“But it takes a great deal longer to make a good fire with a tinder-box, -than when we have a good bed of coals.” - -“Then take a friction match,” said Rollo. “I can light a friction match -in half a minute.” - -“You can light the match, but not build a fire. It takes a long time -with a match light to get heat enough to set large sticks of wood on -fire; but, with a bed of burning coals, we can do it very soon.” - -“You might have some sticks and shavings for kindling,” said Rollo, “and -they will burn quick.” - -“Yes,” said Jonas, “but it is more trouble to prepare sticks and -shavings every night, than it is to cover up a stick of wood.” - -While Jonas had been saying these things, he had taken more ashes from -the ash-hole, and had covered the stick over entirely. He then put away -the shovel, and was brushing up the hearth, when Rollo, after standing a -moment, as if in thought, said,— - -“Jonas, what do you mean by _combustion_?” - -“Did I say _combustion_?” rejoined Jonas. - -“Yes, you said you wanted slow _combustion_.” - -“Well, I meant burning. I want the wood to burn slowly all night.” - -“Then why did not you say _burning_,” said Rollo, “so that I could -understand you. I don’t see where you get all your learned words. I -suppose it is out of some of your books.” - -“Yes,” said Jonas, “they call it _combustion_ in the books that I read, -but I don’t know exactly why. I think there must be some difference -between _combustion_ and _burning_, but I don’t know exactly what it -is.” - -“I mean to ask my father,” said Rollo. - -“But do you expect that that stick of wood will burn, Jonas?” continued -Rollo, after a moment’s pause. - -“Yes,” said Jonas, “it will burn slowly. A little air will get through -the ashes so as just to keep it burning slowly. It is very dry.” - -“Suppose that there could not any air get through at all?” said Rollo. - -“Why, then,” said Jonas, “it couldn’t burn at all. It would go out. -Sometimes I have buried up a fire so deep in ashes that it has gone out, -and then I find nothing but black coals there in the morning, when I -rake it open. That’s the way they make charcoal.” - -“How?” said Rollo. - -But Jonas had no opportunity to answer this question then, for they were -just going out into the yard when Rollo asked it, and the attention of -both the boys was attracted to the fire-flies. They, however, soon had -looked at the fire-flies as much as they wished. Rollo tried to catch -one, but he could not. He would see a flash at a little distance from -him, and he would run to the place with his cap in the air; but, by the -time that he got there, the fire-fly would of course have gone on to -another place, though Rollo could not tell where, without waiting to see -him flash again. Then he had to run again; but before he got to this -second place the fire-fly would be gone again. One of the fire-flies led -him a zigzag chase, in this way, all around the yard, and finally -flashed at last just over the garden fence, so that Rollo gave up in -despair. - -In the meantime, Jonas had gone to the barn; and now Rollo went to see -what had become of him. He found him shutting the doors up for the -night, and then they both came back towards the house, and sat down upon -the edge of the platform, under the piazza, and Rollo asked Jonas to -tell him how they made charcoal. - -“Why, they only bury up wood, as I did my log, lightly, so that enough -air can get in, until it is burnt through; and then they cover it up -tight, so that no air can get in, and so it goes out; and when it is all -cold, they open it, and find the heap is all black coals.” - -“How big a heap do they make?” asked Rollo. - -“O, they make a very large heap, sometimes,” said Jonas; “as big as -this.” So Jonas rose from his seat, and marked out a circle in the yard -with a stick, which he had in his hand, in order to show Rollo how large -a heap they make, when they pile up wood for a charcoal bed. - -“And how high do they make it?” asked Rollo. - -“As high as _that_” said Jonas; and he reached his stick up in the air -as high as he could, to show Rollo how high the heap was. - -“That must take a great deal of wood,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said Jonas, “and when it is turned into charcoal, they get a -great many loads of it.” - -“How do they get ashes enough to cover it up?” asked Rollo. - -“O, they don’t cover it with ashes,” said Jonas; “they cover it with -turf.” - -“With turf?” repeated Rollo. - -“Yes,” said Jonas, “turf is the best thing to cover the heap with. If -they had ashes, it would be very troublesome to put it on, and then it -would be sliding down, and letting the fire break out. But they cut -square pieces of turf, and cover the heap all over with them, very -tight, and so only just air enough gets in to keep the fire slowly -burning.” - -“Slow combustion?” said Rollo. - -“Yes, slow combustion,” said Jonas. - -“How do you set it on fire?” asked Rollo. - -“I believe they leave a hole in the middle,” said Jonas, “from the top -down to the bottom, and then they put the fire down there.” - -“I wonder if I couldn’t make a charcoal bed,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied Jonas, “you might make a little one, I suppose.” - -“How should I do it?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, you might take some dry wood from the shed, and wheel it down the -lane, and through the gate into the pasture. Then you might take a -spade, and cut up some turf, though that would be rather hard work for -you.” - -“I wish you would cut the turf for me,” said Rollo. - -“Well,” said Jonas, “perhaps I will. Then you must hollow out a little -place in the bare spot I make by taking up the turf, and make your pile -of wood there, leaving a hole in the middle.” - -“How can I leave a hole?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, you can take three short pieces of board, as long as you intend -the height of your pile to be, and stand them up on the ground, so as to -leave a three-cornered space between them, and then pile your wood -around the three boards.” - -“So I can,” said Rollo. - -“Your wood must be small,” continued Jonas, “or else you can’t pile it -very snugly in a small pile. You had better take small round sticks, and -saw them short, and lean them up against your boards all around, and so -make a snug pile. After the pile is ready, you must bank up a little -against the bottom of your heap with the loose earth, and then begin to -put on the turf. But that will be a nice business.” - -“Why?” asked Rollo. - -“Because you must fit them carefully all around; and, as the heap will -be round, and will grow smaller towards the top, square pieces of turf -will not fit. You will have to cut them into shape with a knife. You can -get an old knife to cut them with, and so fit them together. But you -must fit them together well, or the air will get in, and your heap of -wood will blaze up, and so it will be spoiled for charcoal.” - -“I can make it tight,” said Rollo, “I know. I’ll shave away the sides of -every turf, till it fits its place exactly.” - -“There must be some air,” said Jonas, “or else the wood will not burn at -all. You must leave a few holes around at the bottom, to let a little -air in, then you can plug some of them up, if you find the fire burns -too fast.” - -“Well,” said Rollo, “I mean to make some charcoal some day. I’ll get my -cousin James to come and help me. I’ll begin to saw up some wood for it -to-morrow. - -“But, then, Jonas,” he continued, after a moment’s pause, “what good -will the charcoal do me when I get it made?” - -“O, I don’t know,” said Jonas; “I wasn’t thinking of your getting any -good from the charcoal. All the advantage would be, the pleasure of -making it.” - -“Isn’t there anything I can do with it,” said Rollo, “when I get it -made? What is charcoal good for?” - -“It makes a very hot fire. They use it when they want a great heat. -Blacksmiths use it in their forges.” - -“I wish I had a little forge,” said Rollo. - -“They use it to make gunpowder, too,” said Jonas. - -“How?” said Rollo. - -“Why, they take some charcoal, and some sulphur, and some saltpetre, and -pound it up together, and it makes gunpowder.” - -“That’s what I’ll do with my charcoal,” said Rollo, jumping up from his -seat. “I’ll make some gunpowder. I’ll ask my mother to give me some -sulphur and saltpetre, and I’ll make some gunpowder.” - - - QUESTIONS. - - What was the condition of the fire, on the evening when it was left - to Jonas to cover up? Describe the arrangements which he made for - covering up the fire. What was the shape of the stick of wood? Why - was this form convenient for the purpose? What plan did Rollo - propose, instead of covering up the fire? What objection did Jonas - make to this plan? What term did Jonas use to designate the process - which would go forward, during the night, under the ashes? What did - he say that _combustion_ meant? Would any air at all be necessary - for the slow combustion? How was the necessary air to get access to - the wood? Why could not Rollo catch the fire-flies? How did Jonas - describe the process of making charcoal? What did he say were the - uses of charcoal? To which of these uses did Rollo intend to put his - charcoal, if he should succeed in making any? - - - - - CHAPTER II. - LAMP-LIGHTING. - - -Rollo did not think to ask his father the reason why the philosophers -use such learned language, or, as he expressed it, such hard words, for -several days. Perhaps he never would have thought of it again, if his -father had not happened to use the word _combustible_ one evening, which -reminded him of the term _combustion_, which Jonas had used. The -occasion on which his father used the word was this,— - -One evening, Rollo’s mother was trying to light a little lamp, to go -into her bedroom for something that she wanted. There were, usually, in -a little vase upon the mantel-piece, some lamp-lighters, which were -long, slender rolls of paper, that Rollo had rolled up for this purpose. -They were kept in this vase upon the mantel-piece in order to be always -ready for use. But the vase was now empty. The last lamp-lighter had -been used; and so Rollo’s mother folded up a small piece of paper, and -attempted to light the little lamp, which she was going to carry into -the bedroom, with that. - -But the wick would not take fire, and Rollo saw that, while his mother -was continuing her efforts to make it burn, the flame of the paper was -gradually creeping up nearer and nearer to her fingers. At last, finding -that there would soon be danger of burning her fingers, she walked -across the room towards a window which was open, still endeavoring to -light the lamp. But it was all in vain. She reached the window just in -time to throw the end of the paper out, and save her fingers from being -burned. - -“Why won’t it light?” said Rollo. - -Rollo’s father was sitting upon the sofa, taking his rest after the -labors of the day; and when he saw that the lamp failed of being -lighted, he said,— - -“You will have to get a longer lamp-lighter, unless you have got some -spirits of turpentine to put upon the wick.” - -“Spirits of turpentine?” repeated Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father. “In hotels, where they have a great many lamps -to light, they have a little bottle of spirits of turpentine with a wire -running down into it; and, when they take out the wire, a little drop of -the spirits of turpentine hangs to the end of it, and they touch this to -the wick, and then it will light very quick.” - -“Why, sir?” asked Rollo. - -“Because spirits of turpentine is very combustible, or rather -inflammable.” - -“That means it will burn very easily, I suppose,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father. - -“That makes me think of something Jonas said, which I was going to ask -you,” said Rollo. “He said that, in books, burning was always called -_combustion_, and I told him I meant to ask you why they couldn’t as -well call it _burning_.” - -“I don’t think that Jonas said exactly that,” said his father. - -“Yes, sir, he did,” replied Rollo; “at least, I understood him so.” - -“It is true, no doubt,” added his father, “that, in philosophical books, -philosophical terms are very often used, instead of the common language -which we ordinarily employ.” - -“Why are they, father?” said Rollo. “I think the common words are a -great deal easier to understand.” - -“Yes,” said his father, “but they are not precise in their -signification. They are vague and ambiguous, and so philosophers, when -they wish to speak accurately, employ other terms, which have an exact -signification.” - -Rollo looked perplexed. He did not understand at all what his father -meant. In the meantime, his mother had brought a fresh bundle of -lamp-lighters from the closet, and had lighted her lamp with one of -them, and was just going away. As she was going out, however, she said -to her husband,— - -“Please to wait a minute, until I come back, for I should like to hear -what you are going to say.” - -“Well,” said he; “and you, Rollo, may come and sit down by me, and I -will explain it to you when mother comes back.” - -So Rollo came and took a seat on the sofa by the side of his father, -saying,— - -“Father, I wish you would have a bottle of spirits of turpentine for us -to light our lamps by.” - -“It is not of much advantage in a family,” said his father, “where the -lamps are lighted in various parts of the house, and only a few in all -to be lighted. But where there are a great many, it is quite a saving of -time to have a little spirits of turpentine to tip the wicks with. In an -illumination they always touch the wicks so, and by that means they can -light up suddenly.” - -“But, father, why will the wick light any quicker?” - -“Why, different substances take fire at different temperatures. For -instance, if you were to put a little heap of sulphur, and another -little heap of sawdust, on a shovel together, and put them over a fire, -so as to heat them both equally, the sulphur would take fire very soon, -but the sawdust would not until the shovel was very nearly red hot. So -if you were to put oil in a little kettle over the fire, and spirits of -turpentine in another kettle, and have the fire the same under both, the -spirits of turpentine would inflame long before the oil. There is a -great difference in different substances, in regard to the temperature -at which they inflame.” - -“What do you mean by _temperature_, father?” said Rollo. - -“Why, _heat_,” said his father. - -“Then why don’t you say _heat_?” said Rollo. - -His father laughed. - -“What are you laughing at, father?” said Rollo. - -“Why, that’s the same question that you asked me at first, and I -promised to wait till mother came before I explained it. So we will wait -until she comes.” - -They did not have to wait long, for Rollo’s mother soon returned; and -she put out her lamp by means of a little extinguisher which was -attached to the stem of the lamp itself. Then she sat down at the table, -by the light of a great lamp which was burning upon it, and took out her -work. - -Rollo’s father then repeated to her what he had just been telling Rollo, -namely, that different substances took fire at different degrees of -heat; and he said that it would be a very interesting experiment to take -a long iron bar, and put a small quantity of several different -substances upon it, in a row, and then heat the bar gradually, from end -to end all alike, until it was very hot, and so see in what order the -various substances would take fire. - -“I would have,” said he, “phosphorus, sulphur, sawdust, charcoal, -saltpetre, oil,—we should have to make a little hollow in the iron for -the oil,—alcohol, spirits of turpentine, and perhaps other things. The -phosphorus would take fire first, I suppose, and then perhaps the -sulphur, and others in succession.” - -“Well, father,” said Rollo, “I wish you would. I should like to see the -experiment very much.” - -“No,” said his father, “I cannot actually try such an experiment as -that. I could not get such a bar very conveniently; and, if I had the -bar and all the substances, I could not heat the bar exactly equally. It -could not be done very well, except in a chemical laboratory. But it -would be a very pretty experiment, if it could be performed.” - -“Is there a very great difference,” said Rollo’s mother, “in the degree -of heat necessary to set fire to these different things?” - -“Yes,” said Mr. Holiday, “I believe the difference is very great. -Phosphorus inflames below the heat of boiling water, but it takes almost -a red heat to set wood on fire. And iron will not take fire till it is -white hot.” - -“Iron?” said Rollo, with surprise. - -“Yes,” said his father, “iron will take fire and burn as well as wood, -if you heat it hot enough.” - -“I never knew that,” said Rollo. - -“The ends of the tongs and of the andirons do not burn,” said his -father, “simply because the fire is never hot enough to set such a large -piece of iron on fire. But if we heat the end of a bar of iron very hot -indeed in a furnace, it will take fire and burn; and so, if we take a -very minute piece of iron, as big as the point of a pin, a common fire -would be sufficient to heat that hot enough to set it on fire.” - -“Well, father,” said Rollo, “let us try it.” - -“If we had some iron filings, we might sprinkle them in the fire, or -even in the flame of a lamp, and they would burn.” - -“I wish I had some filings,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father, “they burn beautifully.” - -“How can I get some?” asked Rollo. - -“You can get some at a blacksmith’s shop,” said his father. “The filings -commonly accumulate behind the vice, and you can get plenty of them -there. The next time you go by a blacksmith’s shop, you had better go in -and ask him to give you some.” - -“Well,” said Rollo, “so I will.” - -“And now do you understand,” said his father, “why it is that you can -light a lamp more easily when there is a little spirits of turpentine on -the wick?” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo. “The spirits of turpentine need not get so hot -before it catches fire, and so you don’t have to hold the lamp-lighter -so long, and burn your fingers.” - -“Will oil always take fire when it gets to a certain degree of heat?” -asked Rollo’s mother. - -“Yes,” said his father, “I suppose so.” - -“And yet,” said she, “the lamp seems to take fire much more easily at -some times, than at others.” - -“Yes,” said Mr. Holiday, “that is true. If the wick is cut square -across, and rises up only a very little way above the tube, it is very -difficult to light it, because the tube itself and the oil below keep -the upper end of the wick cool. It is very hard to heat it, in that -case, hot enough to set it on fire. But if the wick projects -considerably out of the tube, then it is out of the way of the cooling -influence of the metal, and you can heat the upper end more easily.” - -“I never thought of that,” said Rollo. - -“That is the operation of it,” said his father. “And if you push the -wick open a little, so as to separate some of the fibres of it from the -rest, then it will take fire more easily still; because the small part -which is separated, is more easily heated up to the necessary point, -than it was when it was closely in contact with the rest, and so kept -cool by it. That is the reason why a thin shaving takes fire so much -more easily than the outside of a large piece of wood. The outside of a -large piece is kept cool by the parts of the wood behind it, which touch -it, while the shaving is heated through very soon.” - -“I didn’t know that before,” said Rollo. - -“In the cities,” continued his father, “the lamp-lighters, that trim and -light the street lamps, always cut the wick off, when they trim the -lamps, in a slanting direction, so as to leave a point of the wick -projecting up on one side. This point will light very easily, for it -stands by itself, somewhat apart from the rest, and so is not kept cool -by the rest of the wick. Then, when they put in their great, blazing -torch, it heats this point to the degree necessary to inflame the oil -very easily. - -“There is one thing more I want to tell you, and that will be all I have -to say about lamps to-night; and that is, to explain to you the -philosophy of putting them out. You must understand that two things are -necessary to carry on combustion or burning. First, there must be air; -and secondly, the body burning must be kept above a certain degree of -heat. Now, if you either suddenly shut off the air from the substance -that is burning, or suddenly _cool_ the substance, it will go out. For -instance, the wick,—you have to heat it to a certain degree before it -will take fire. Now, if, after it is burning, you suddenly cool it below -that degree, it will go out; or if you shut out the air from it, then it -will go out; for it cannot burn unless it continues hot, and unless it -continues to have a supply of air. - -“Now, when we blow out a lamp, we stop the burning by cooling it. The -cool air which we blow against it, suddenly cools the upper end of the -wick below the point of combustion, and so it goes out. On the other -hand, when we put it out by an extinguisher, we stop the burning by -means of shutting out the air. Either mode will stop the combustion.” - -“And how is it when we put on water?” asked Rollo’s mother. - -“Why, that is somewhat different from either,” said Mr. Holiday, “or -rather it is both combined. There is something very curious in the -operation of water upon fire; that I must explain some other day, for -now it is time for Rollo to go to bed.” - - - QUESTIONS. - - What was the difficulty in lighting the lamp, as described in the - beginning of this chapter? What method did Mr. Holiday say was - sometimes adopted in hotels to make the lamps light quick? Why would - this make them light more easily? What question did Rollo ask his - father in respect to the use of philosophical language? Why did not - his father answer the question immediately? Do all substances take - fire at the same temperature? What substances take fire with the - least degree of heat? What experiment did Mr. Holiday describe which - he said would show this very distinctly? Why could not he perform - this experiment? Will iron burn? Why do not bars of iron burn in a - common fire? How did Mr. Holiday propose to show that iron would - burn? How did he propose that Rollo should get some iron filings? - - - - - CHAPTER III. - BURNING IRON. - - -When Rollo went out into the kitchen that evening to get his safety -lamp,—the one which he usually took to go to bed,—he found Jonas sitting -at the kitchen table reading; and while he was lighting his lamp, he -asked Jonas if he would not get him some iron filings the next time he -went near any blacksmith’s shop. Jonas asked him what he wanted of iron -filings, and he said he wanted them to burn. He then repeated to him -what his father had said in respect to the combustibility of iron. - -“I can make iron filings enough for that experiment in five minutes,” -said Jonas. - -“How?” said Rollo. - -“With a file,” replied Jonas. - -“Well,” said Rollo; and without waiting to hear anything further, he ran -back to the parlor to ask his mother to let him sit up long enough to -see Jonas make a few iron filings to try the experiment. - -“Won’t it do as well to-morrow morning?” asked his mother. - -“The scintillations will look brighter in the evening,” said Mr. -Holiday. - -“Very well, then,” added his mother, “go, and, if Jonas succeeds in his -experiment, ask him to send some filings in to us.” - -So Rollo went out to find Jonas again. Jonas was gone. Dorothy said that -he had gone after a file. In a few minutes he returned, with a file in -one hand, and a large iron spike in the other. - -“What is the spike for?” asked Rollo. - -“Only for a piece of iron to file,” replied Jonas. So saying, he took a -small piece of paper out of a drawer, and laid it upon the table. Then -he rested one end of the spike upon the paper, and, holding the other -end in his hand, he filed it several times in such a way, that the -filings fell down upon the paper. - -“What fine filings!” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said Jonas; “the file is almost worn out, and it does not cut -very well.” - -Rollo looked upon the paper. There were quite a number of small, black -points upon it like grains of very fine sand. Jonas then took up the -paper carefully by the two sides, bending the two sides upward at the -same time, to keep the filings in the middle of the paper. In this way -he raised the paper above the lamp, which was upon the table before him, -and then holding it in an inclined position, he let the sand slide down -into the flame of the lamp. To Rollo’s surprise and delight, it produced -a column of sparkles rising up from the flame, which were of the -greatest brilliancy and beauty. - -“Yes,” said Rollo, “they burn, they burn most beautifully. File me some -more, Jonas, and let me carry them in and show them to my mother.” - -Jonas accordingly filed some more filings, and Rollo went in with them -very eagerly, to show to his mother. - -“Just look,” said Rollo; and so saying, he held the paper over the lamp -in such a manner as to let the filings slide down into the flame just as -Jonas had done. The experiment succeeded perfectly well, as it had done -before. - -“So you see that it will burn,” said Mr. Holiday, “if you heat it hot -enough.” - -“If you make it small enough, you mean,” said Rollo. - -“I suppose the smallness of the particles is of no consequence,” replied -his father, “excepting to make it easier to heat them.” - -“Why, father,” said Rollo, “I might put the end of a knitting-needle in -the lamp, and I don’t see why it wouldn’t become as hot as one of the -iron filings.” - -“Because,” said his father, “a part of the heat would be conveyed away -through the knitting-needle towards your hand, and that would keep the -end which was in the flame cooler.” - -“Would it, sir,” asked Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father. “The heat moves off very fast in such a case. -You know, if you take a pin between your fingers, and hold the head of -it in the lamp, the heat will almost immediately move along the metal, -so as to heat the end that you are holding, and burn you.” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “I have got burned so, very often.” - -“And of course much more heat would be conveyed away when the metal was -as thick as a knitting-needle.” - -“Well, father,” said Rollo, “suppose a piece of the knitting-needle was -broken off, and made so small that it could all be in the flame; then -would it burn?” - -“How could you keep it there?” asked his father. - -“Why—I don’t know,” said Rollo, hesitating. “Couldn’t we contrive some -way to keep it there?” - -“I don’t know of any way.” - -“Couldn’t we put it on the end of the wick?” asked Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father, “perhaps we might; but then the end of the wick -is cool, and that would cool it.” - -“O, father,” said Rollo, in a tone of great surprise, “the end of the -wick cool, when it is right in the middle of the blaze!” - -“I mean,” replied his father, “that it is cool compared with the heat -necessary for inflaming the iron. It would feel very hot to your -fingers, I have no doubt, for it is filled with boiling oil. But then -even the heat of boiling oil is less than that necessary to inflame -iron; and so the contact of the wick with such a piece of iron as you -propose, would keep it cool, or rather keep it from getting hot enough -to take fire.” - -“Suppose there was any way,” said Rollo’s mother, “of suspending a piece -of iron as large as the end of a knitting-needle in the lamp; do you -think it would take fire?” - -“No,” said Mr. Holiday, “I don’t think it would be heated hot enough. -For some reason or other, I don’t understand exactly what, a large piece -of iron cannot be heated very hot in a small fire, even if the fire -entirely covers it. I don’t think that any fragment of iron much larger -than one of Jonas’s filings could be heated in a lamp so as to take -fire. But it could be heated hot enough in a forge. The end of the iron -which a blacksmith heats is often in a state of combustion when he takes -it out of the fire.” - -“There, now, father,” said Rollo, “you have not explained to me yet -about combustion and burning.” - -“No,” said his father; “we had almost forgotten that. I will explain it -now. It will only take a few minutes. Let me see—I began to tell you -didn’t I?” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “but I couldn’t understand very well.” - -“I was telling you that the language which we use in common conversation -is not precise. It is often ambiguous.” - -“What does that mean, sir?” said Rollo. - -“Why, language is ambiguous when it has two meanings,” said his father. -“For instance, the word _burning_ is used in conversation to express two -or three very different things. If you put your finger upon hot iron, -you say you have burned it. _Burn_, in that case, is the name of a -painful feeling. But if you say you burned a piece of paper, you mean -that you put it into the fire, and allowed it to be consumed. In that -case, _burning_, instead of being the name of a painful feeling, is the -name of a peculiar process by which the paper is consumed and destroyed. -Thus the word _burn_ is used to denote two very different effects. In -fact, it is used in other senses besides these.” - -“What others, sir?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, when we say that a little girl was out in the sun, and burned her -face and neck, we do not mean that her face and neck were consumed, or -that they felt a painful sensation,—but that the skin was reddened by -the sun’s heat. So, when we say that the grass was all burned up in the -drought, we mean that it was dried and withered. Thus _burned_ and -_burning_ are used to denote a great variety of effects produced by -heat, which effects are very different from each other in their nature. -So that, you see, when we are going to speak philosophically of that -peculiar process by which bodies are actually consumed by fire, it -becomes necessary to have some term to denote that process alone, and -not all the other kinds of burning. Now, the word the philosophers use -for this purpose is _combustion_. The burning of a stick of wood upon -the fire is combustion, but the burning of your finger against a hot -iron is not combustion, and the burning of bricks in a brick kiln is not -combustion.” - -“Nor the burning of the grass in the drought,” said Rollo. - -“No,” said his father. “Thus you see that _combustion_ is a term of -precise and definite meaning; it denotes a particular process, and that -alone. But _burning_ is a vague and ambiguous term; it has a great many -meanings, or, rather, it stands for a great many different effects, very -much unlike in their character. In fact, they seem to be alike in no -respect, except that they are all produced by heat.” - -“Yes, father,” said Rollo, “I understand.” - -“Sometimes,” added his father, “the word used in common life doesn’t -mean enough, instead of meaning too much. For example, there is the word -_freeze_. What is the meaning of the word _freeze_?” - -“Why, it means,” said Rollo,—“freeze?—it means—water turning into ice.” - -“Yes,” replied his father; “when water is cooled below a certain point, -it becomes solid. It is just so with lead. Melted lead, when it is -cooled below a certain point, becomes solid. The hardening of the melted -lead into solid lead, and the hardening of water into ice, as they cool, -seem to be phenomena of precisely the same character, and yet the word -_freeze_ applies only to one. We say the water freezes, but we can’t say -the lead freezes.” - -“Why not, sir?” asked Rollo. - -“Because it is not the customary use of the word. If we use the terms of -common life, we must use them as they are customarily used, or we shall -not be understood. _Freezing_, therefore, will not answer to express all -cases of the hardening of a liquid by cold, because that is a term which -is only applied to a few of the cases. Now, philosophers want a term -which will apply to all the cases of the same kind.” - -“And what is their word?” asked Rollo. - -“_Congelation_,” replied his father. - -“Congelation?” repeated Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father. “When water becomes ice, the philosophers say it -_congeals_. So when lead hardens in cooling, they say it _congeals_. -Different substances congeal at very different degrees of heat. If we -had melted iron and melted lead, equally hot, and let them cool -together, the iron would congeal first; and if they continued cooling, -by and by the lead would congeal. Water would remain liquid long after -lead would congeal; but if it was placed where it would grow colder and -colder, the temperature would at last reach the point where water would -congeal too. But whatever the liquid is, and whatever the point is at -which it changes from a liquid to a solid form, it is called -_congealing_.” - -“And the word _freezing_, then, is only used in respect to water,” said -Rollo’s mother. - -“Why, yes,” said Mr. Holiday; “we speak of other things freezing beside -water; but it is only such things as become solid under great degrees of -cold. We say ink freezes, and oil, and if it were cold enough to freeze -brandy, or mercury, we should say they were frozen. But substances that -harden when they are not very cold, as lead or wax, are not said to -freeze.” - -“Thus you observe,” continued Rollo’s father, “in common language words -are not used in a precise and definite manner. Their meaning is -determined by the outward and visible effects that we see, and not by -the real nature of the causes. Thus a great many different effects are -called _burning_, in common language, because they are all effects -produced in various ways by heat. But the terms used by philosophers are -definite and precise, each one being confined to one specific process or -phenomenon.” - -“Father,” said Rollo, “I want to see the iron filings burn again, and I -am going out to ask Jonas to file a few more.” - -“Very well,” said his father. - -So Rollo went out to get Jonas to make him some more filings, and Jonas -did so. Presently Rollo returned bringing the paper in very carefully, -with the filings upon it. He put them down upon the table, and his -father contrived, by bending the paper in different directions, to -gather all the filings together into the middle of it, and then, with -the point of his penknife, he took up a few of the filings at a time, -and let them drop upon the flame of the lamp. The burning of the filings -produced, as before, the most brilliant scintillations. - -“What bright sparkles!” said Rollo. - -“Yes, it is very inflammable indeed,” said his mother. - -Here Mr. Holiday dropped more filings upon the flame, from the point of -his knife. - -“Does _inflammable_ mean,” continued his mother, “that a thing takes -fire easily, or that it burns with a great flame when it does take -fire?” - -“I don’t know,” said Mr. Holiday; “I never thought of that distinction. -Some things take fire very easily, but don’t make a great flame. There’s -sulphur, for instance; it takes fire before it gets very hot, but it -burns with a very small and faint flame.” - -“Let us try it, father,” said Rollo. - -“We can’t try it very well, because there is no fire. I suppose the fire -in the kitchen is covered up. But if there was a fire, and we were to -put a little sulphur upon a shovel, and a small piece of paper by the -side of it, and hold them over the fire, we should find that the sulphur -would take fire before the paper would even begin to be scorched; but it -would make only a very small blue flame. The paper would not take fire -nearly as easily; but we should find that when it did take fire, it -would make a much larger and brighter flame.” - -“I wish you would try it, father,” said Rollo; “you can uncover the -coals in the kitchen, and find fire enough.” - -“Well,” said his father, “I will.” - -His father accordingly rose from his seat, and asked Rollo to go into -the kitchen, and get the shovel, and bring it to the medicine closet. -While Rollo was getting the shovel, his father went to the closet, and -took down a little jar half filled with sulphur. When Rollo brought him -the shovel, he took out a little of the sulphur upon the point of his -knife, and laid it upon the shovel. He also took a small piece of paper, -and laid it upon the shovel by the side of the sulphur. Rollo then led -the way to the kitchen, followed by his father with the shovel, and his -mother came behind. - -They opened the coals a little, and placed the shovel upon them. Jonas -and Dorothy looked on with great interest, wondering what they were -going to do. The sulphur began to melt almost immediately after the -shovel was placed upon the coals; and, in a very short time, Rollo -observed a faint blue spot on the place where the sulphur had been -lying. - -“There,” said his father, “see what a small flame.” - -“Yes,” said Rollo; “it is nothing but a little blue spot.” - -“And the paper is just as whole and white as ever it was.” - -“Let us wait till the paper gets hot enough to burn.” - -“I don’t think it would ever get hot enough to burn,” replied his -father, “over such a fire as that. I must light it in the lamp.” So he -waited a few minutes until the sulphur was entirely consumed, for he -said that he did not wish to have any of the fumes get into the room; -and then he dropped the paper off from the shovel down upon the hearth, -and Rollo picked it up. His father lighted it in the lamp, and then -placed it upon the shovel to see it burn, in order that Rollo might -compare the magnitude of the flame which was produced with that of the -sulphur. Of course, such a small piece of paper did not make a large -flame, but it was four or five times as large as that produced by the -sulphur. - -“Now the question is,” said Mr. Holiday, “which is most inflammable,—the -sulphur, because it inflames most easily, or the paper, because it makes -the greatest flame when it does take fire?” - -“I should think the paper,” said Rollo. - -“There is alcohol,” said Mr. Holiday, “which takes fire very easily, but -it burns with a very pale and light flame. Oil must be heated much -hotter before it will burn; but, when it does burn, it gives a large and -bright flame; so that oil is good for lamps, it gives so much light when -it burns. - -“Spirits of turpentine,” continued Mr. Holiday, “inflames easily, and -burns brightly too. So does phosphorus.” - -“What is phosphorus?” said Rollo. - -“Why, it is a substance that burns very easily. It looks like wax, but -it burns very easily, and with a very bright flame indeed. It takes fire -before it is as hot as boiling water.” - -“I wish I had some phosphorus,” said Rollo. - -“They keep it at the apothecaries, sometimes,” said his father. - -“I wish you’d buy a little, father,” said Rollo, “and bring it home, and -let me see it burn. Does it cost much?” - -“I don’t know,” said his father, “how much it costs. Only it is -troublesome to keep it. It must be kept under water.” - -“Why, sir?” said Rollo. - -“To keep it from taking fire. Even the sun shining upon it would heat it -hot enough to set it on fire.” - -“O father!” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father; “and so, for safety, they make it in the shape -of sticks, and keep it in a phial filled with water.” - -“Well, father,” said Rollo, “I wish you would get a little in a phial, -and let me put a piece of it upon a paper in the sun, and let me see it -catch fire.” - -“I’ll think of it,” said his father, “next time I go into town. But -phosphorus, you see, is certainly very inflammable, because it takes -fire very easily, and burns brightly too. But I don’t know which would -be said to be most inflammable, sulphur or resin; for instance, sulphur -inflames the quickest, but resin will make altogether the greatest -blaze.” - -“I should think the resin,” said Rollo. - -“We can’t tell by reasoning about it,” said his father; “it depends on -the usage of the word. We will go into the other room, and look in the -dictionary.” - -So saying, they all went into the parlor again, and looked into the -dictionary, to learn the precise meaning of the word, _inflammable_. The -definition given was, “easily kindled into a flame.” - -“Then,” said Mr. Holiday, “if this definition is correct, the sulphur -and the alcohol are most inflammable, because they are most easily -kindled.” - -Just then the clock struck, and Rollo’s mother said,— - -“Why, Rollo, it is half an hour past your bedtime.” - -So Rollo bade his father and mother good night, and went out into the -kitchen once more to get his safety-lamp, to go to bed. He stopped, -however, a moment, as he was going out of the door, to say,— - -“Now, father, be sure and not forget to buy me some phosphorus.” - - - QUESTIONS. - - What did Jonas say when Rollo told him about burning the iron - filings? How did he make the filings? Did the experiment of burning - them succeed? Why will not a large piece of iron burn in the flame - of a lamp? What did Mr. Holiday say to Rollo’s proposal to hold the - end of a knitting-needle in the lamp? Why will not the terms that - are employed in common conversation answer for philosophical use? - What is the meaning of _ambiguous_? What are the different meanings - of the word burn? What is the difference between the words _freeze_ - and _congeal_ in respect to the extent of their meaning? What - question did Rollo’s mother ask in respect to the meaning of the - word _inflammable_? What did Mr. Holiday say? What experiment did he - perform to illustrate the two meanings? How was the question at last - decided? - - - - - CHAPTER IV. - FIRE IN THE PASTURE. - - -A few days after Rollo’s father gave him the instructions on the subject -of combustion which are contained in the last chapter, Rollo saw Jonas -going across the yard about the middle of the afternoon, with a lantern -in his hand. Of course Rollo called out to him with the usual question -in such cases,— - -“Where are you going, Jonas?” - -“I’m going out into the pasture to set some heaps on fire.” - -“Well,” said Rollo, “and I’ll go too.” - -Rollo ran into the parlor to ask his mother if he might go too. He -happened to meet his father just coming in at the front door. He -accordingly asked him instead. - -“Yes,” said his father, “but I’m rather afraid to have the heaps set on -fire this afternoon. I am afraid that the fire will run.” - -“Run?” repeated Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father. “Tell Jonas he must be very careful not to -let the fire get away from him.” - -Rollo ran off in pursuit of Jonas. When he got to the back yard again, -he saw Jonas going down the lane almost out of sight. - -“Jonas!” said Rollo, calling out as loud as he could, “Jo—nas!” - -So saying, he ran off after him. He clambered over the great gate which -led into the lane, because he thought that he could climb over it -quicker than open it. As soon as he reached the ground on the other -side, he ran on, calling out,— - -“Jonas! Jonas!” - -But Jonas did not seem to hear him. At any rate he did not stop. On the -contrary, Rollo was himself stopped, by hearing a voice behind him, as -if near the house, calling,— - -“Rollo! Rollo!” - -Rollo turned to see who it was. It was his cousin James, who was running -towards him with all speed. Rollo waited for him to come up. James tried -to open the gate, but could not. - -“Climb over,” said Rollo. - -So James climbed over, and soon reached the place where Rollo was -standing, and the two boys walked on together. James said that he had -come to play with Rollo that afternoon. Rollo said that he was very -glad, and he told James that he and Jonas were going to make some fires -in the pasture. - -The heaps which Jonas was going to set on fire, were heaps of decayed -wood, consisting of old stumps, logs, and roots, and other rubbish which -he had gathered up from the ground and piled up in the pasture some -weeks before. By being left in heaps, so that the sun and air had free -access to them, they had become thoroughly dry, and were all ready to -burn with a touch. There were not a great many of the heaps, for it was -only a small part of the pasture which had such logs and stumps left in -it. The place was on the side of a deep dell, with a brook flowing -through the middle of it at the bottom. Rollo and James crossed the -brook upon a log, and then ascended the steep side of the hill, among -the heaps which Jonas was burning. - -Jonas had set two heaps on fire and was just putting a burning brand -into the third heap. Rollo and James wanted Jonas to let them set the -heaps on fire. He told them that they might; and the boys accordingly -went to work, taking brands from the heaps which were already burning, -and carrying them to the others. The heaps were not only very dry, but -quite hot, on account of the influence of the rays of the sun beating -upon them; and, besides this, there was a fresh breeze blowing, which -made the fires burn up very fiercely. The fires which had been first -made soon became so hot, that the boys could not get near them to take -any brands from them. - -Thus they went along from heap to heap, setting them on fire, only Jonas -succeeded in setting them on fire much faster than James and Rollo. -Jonas looked around at them at one time, and he found them endeavoring -to kindle a fire at a large heap which had been built up around a tall -stump. The stump was twice as high as Rollo’s head. Rollo and James were -kneeling down upon the ground, and blowing the end of the brand, by -which they were trying to kindle the fire. But they did not succeed. -Instead of that, the wind blew the smoke into their faces. - -“Make the fire on the windward side,” said Jonas. - -“Which is the windward side?” said James. - -“The side that the wind blows against,” replied Jonas. - -“Yes,” said Rollo, speaking to James, “we have got our fire on the wrong -side. Let us move it round to the other side, and the wind will blow it -for us.” - -So they took up their brands, and put them upon the other side of the -heap. The wind fanned them a little, but did not make them blaze. - -“Just put some dry pieces on,” said Jonas, “and leave them. As soon as -they get heated a little, they’ll blaze.” - -The boys followed Jonas’s direction, and, after putting a few dry pieces -upon the smoking brands, they left this heap, and went to another; -though they had first to go back to one which was on fire, and get some -more brands. - -“How do you set them on fire so fast, Jonas?” said Rollo. - -“Why, I don’t stop to watch them,” said Jonas, “to see them burn. I put -a brand down upon the windy side of the heap, and then cover it with dry -pieces, and leave it, and let it burn up in its own time. It will burn -as soon as it has time to get heated.” - -“Yes, James,” said Rollo; “my father explained it to me. When wood gets -heated above a certain point of heat, it takes fire. Sulphur takes fire -before it gets heated so hot.” - -“O Jonas,” said Rollo, “why didn’t you pile up this heap?” - -Rollo had come to a place where there was a long log lying upon the -ground, broken to pieces and decayed, and near it several fragments of -roots and stumps scattered around. - -“O, come away, come away from there, Rollo,” said Jonas; “there is a -wasp’s nest there.” - -Rollo and James ran off back towards Jonas. - -“A wasp’s nest?” said James. - -“Yes,” said Jonas. “I began to pile up that wood, and heard a buzzing -under the log; and I looked down, and saw some wasps buzzing about a -hole. We must burn up the wasp’s nest.” - -“Well,” said Rollo, “come and do it now.” - -Jonas was coming to burn up the wasp’s nest; but, as he was passing -along towards it, his attention was suddenly arrested at seeing that the -flames from one of the fires were beginning to spread rapidly upon the -ground. There was quite a large circle in the grass, which had been -burned over and blackened, and, at the outer edges of it, the flames -were still spreading rapidly,—driven by the wind. - -“Look! look!” said Jonas; “our fire is running.” - -“Yes,” said James; “it is burning up all the grass.” - -Jonas ran to the edge of the circle, and began trampling upon the -flames, to put them out. The flames were very light, for the grass was -thin, and so the fire was easily extinguished at any one spot; but, -while Jonas was putting it out in one place, it was spreading in -another, and he could not put it out so perfectly but that it would -flame up and begin to spread again when he went to another place. James -and Rollo stood by somewhat frightened, and not knowing what to do. - -[Illustration: “NO,” SAID JONAS; “WE MUST WHIP IT OUT.”—Page 63.] - -“We must get some water,” said Rollo, “from the brook. I’ll go and get a -pail.” - -“No, a watering-pot,” said James, “a watering-pot will be best. Let’s go -and get a watering-pot.” - -“No,” said Jonas; “we must whip it out with bushes. I’ll cut some -bushes. Come down here with me.” - -So Jonas ran down to the bank of the brook, where there were a number of -low fir-trees growing. Now, the leaves of the fir-tree are very small -and slender, but they stand very thick upon the branches, so that they -make a very thick and heavy foliage. Jonas cut off a branch of the -fir-tree, and gave it to Rollo. Then he cut off another for James, and -another larger for himself; and, armed with these, the boys hastened -back to the fire. - -They began to whip and brush the little line of flame, and they found -that they could put it out very easily. Every blow which Jonas struck, -extinguished a line of the fire as long as his branch. Rollo and James -threshed the ground with great vigor, too, and they put out a great deal -of the fire. In fact, they soon extinguished all the flames which were -creeping up the side of the hill from this first fire, except at one -end, where it had got into some thistles, which Jonas had mowed down -some time before, and which were now lying upon the ground dry and warm, -and so thick that they made quite a hot fire. Rollo was whipping upon -these thistles, when Jonas said,— - -“Stop, Rollo; it is of no use to whip such a hot fire as that; it is -only wasting your strength.” - -“Then we can’t stop it,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said Jonas; “wait until it has gone over the thistles, and burned -them up, and then it will come to the thin grass beyond, and there we -can whip it out.” - -So the boys stopped to rest while the thistles were burning, surveying, -in the meantime, the large space which had been burned over, and which -looked scorched and blackened. - -“Now, all that grass is spoiled,” said Rollo. - -“O, no,” said Jonas; “it hasn’t hurt the grass. It has only burned the -dry tops and the weeds. The roots of the grass are all safe, and the -ashes left by the fire will make them grow all the better next summer.” - -“Then, Jonas, let’s burn the ground all over.” - -“No,” said Jonas; “if so large a surface gets on fire, we can’t stop it, -till it runs into the fence, and sets that on fire,—or else gets over -into the other field.” - -So saying, Jonas pointed to a large level field or pasture over the -fence, where the grass and weeds were much higher than where they were. -The grass and weeds in this other field extended back some distance to a -piece of woods; and Jonas said that, if the fire got into the woods, he -could not tell how far it would go, or what mischief it would do. “So -you see we must be sure and not let the fire get away from us,” said he. - -Just then, Jonas saw that the fire was beginning to spread from another -of the heaps; and he went to it to watch it. He said he was going to let -it run a little way before he put it out, for he knew that if a piece of -the ground around the heap was once burned over, the fire would not -spread again from the heap. - -So he waited, and, when the circle from that heap had become as large as -he wished, he and the boys whipped it out; and then they went back to -the first fire, which was now getting beyond the thistles, so that they -whipped that out too. Rollo and James felt much relieved, now that they -perceived that, by the aid of their fir-branches, they had the fires so -entirely under their control. - -About this time, Rollo saw his father coming through the trees, on the -other side of the brook. His father had been a little afraid that Jonas -would get into difficulty with his fires, and had come out to see. He -found, however, that Jonas knew how to manage the business. He took a -branch, and began to help the three boys whip the fires, as fast as they -spread beyond the limits which they concluded to allow them. - -“I didn’t know that the grass would burn so before,” said Rollo. - -“It will not,” said his father, “unless it is both hot and windy. This -is an illustration of what I explained to you the other day. When grass -is heated above a certain point it takes fire. Now, when one blade of -grass is burning, it does not usually produce heat enough to raise the -next one to such a degree of heat that it will take fire; but this -afternoon it will; for now the heat of one little tuft burning is enough -to heat the next one sufficiently to cause it to take fire, because it -is already partly heated by the sun.” - -“And the wind helps,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father, “the wind helps in two ways. It blows up the -grass that is burning, and makes a greater fire of it, and then it blows -the hot air and flame against the grass next to it. Thus it makes the -heat greater, and at the same time drives it against the fresh grass. I -presume this fire would not spread at all if there was no wind. You see, -in fact, that it does not spread much in any direction, except where the -wind blows it.” - -“And if there _was_ a wind, and yet the grass was not hot, would it -spread then?” - -“No,” said his father, “I presume not. For instance, in the evening, -when the ground and grass are cool, I don’t think the fire would run on -the ground. That is, I don’t think the heat of one row of blades would -heat the next row enough to make them take fire, unless they were partly -heated by the sun beforehand.” - -“I should like to try it some windy evening,” said Rollo. - -“There would be the dew in the evening also, which would tend to prevent -the fire’s running.” - -By this time, all the heaps had been set on fire, and the circle of fire -which spread out from each one had been whipped out; so that there was -now not much danger that the fire would spread, and Mr. Holiday went -away. Jonas, however, said that he must stay and watch the heaps, and -Rollo and James concluded to stay with him. But, after a short time, -they became tired of poking the embers; and so Rollo proposed to James -to go with him, and help him make some charcoal. - -“I have learned how they make charcoal,” said Rollo. - -“Well,” said James, “I’ll go; but what good will charcoal do us?” - -“Why, we can make gunpowder out of it,” said Rollo. - -“Well,” said James, “I should like to make some gunpowder very much.” - -So the boys went away towards the house, to get the wood to make their -charcoal. - - - QUESTIONS. - - What objection did Mr. Holiday make at first, to having the heaps - set on fire? How was Rollo arrested when he was in pursuit of Jonas? - What were the heaps composed of which Jonas was going to set on - fire? In what condition were they in respect to inflammability? Was - there anything besides their dryness which made them particularly - inflammable at this time? Describe Rollo’s attempt to set a heap on - fire. What course did Jonas pursue? Describe the appearances - exhibited when the fire began to run. How did Rollo’s father explain - to the boys the causes which made the fire run in the grass that - afternoon more than at any other time? Describe the mode which Jonas - adopted to stop the progress of the fire in the grass. Did he always - stop it as soon as it first began to run? Why not? - - - - - CHAPTER V. - THEORY AND PRACTICE. - - -There is a great difference between understanding theoretically how a -thing is done, and being able actually to do it; for, in practice, -various difficulties are apt to occur, which are not foreseen by one who -knows only the theory. Rollo and James found this to be the case, in -their efforts to make charcoal. Rollo felt very confident that he -understood the whole process perfectly, and that he should find no -difficulty whatever in carrying it through successfully. He was not -aware how many difficulties occur in the practical execution of what -appears beforehand to be attended with no difficulty at all. - -“Are you sure you can make charcoal?” said James. - -“Yes,” said Rollo, “I know I can. Jonas told me everything which I must -do. First, we must get some short sticks of wood.” - -He and James went to the shed, and selected some pieces of wood, which -Rollo said would be suitable for their charcoal bed. He put them into a -small saw-horse, which Jonas had made for him to saw wood in, and -without much difficulty he sawed a sufficient quantity. James put the -sticks into Rollo’s little wheelbarrow as fast as they were sawed. It -was not very long before the wheelbarrow was filled nearly full. - -“Come, Rollo,” said James; “here is enough.” - -“No,” said Rollo; “let us fill the wheelbarrow full.” - -“Why, Rollo,” said James, “you’ve got enough already to make a barrel of -gunpowder.” - -“O, it won’t all come into gunpowder,” said Rollo; “some of the wood -will burn up, I expect. You see we are going to have slow combustion.” - -“Slow what?” said James. - -“Slow combustion,” replied Rollo; “don’t you know what _combustion_ -means?” - -“No,” said James. - -“It means _burning_; that is, one kind of burning. You see there are a -great many kinds of burning. Combustion is when it burns all up. If you -put your finger in the fire and burn it, it doesn’t burn up, does it?” - -“I suppose it would, if I held it in long enough,” said James. - -“Yes,” said Rollo—“but,——there, I think we’ve got enough now. If you’ll -be wheeling it along, I’ll go and get some fire.” - -So James wheeled the wheelbarrow along towards the gate, and Rollo went -into the house after some fire. He found that the lantern was not there, -for Jonas had carried it into the pasture; and as Dorothy said that it -would not be safe for him to carry any coals out, on such a windy day, -he took some matches of the kind that take fire by being rubbed against -any thing hard, and went along after James. - -Rollo had intended to ask Jonas to cut him some turf, to cover his -charcoal bed with; but he had not done it yet, and so he got a spade to -carry along with him, thinking that he and James could cut the turf -themselves. The spade was rather heavy to carry, and so he took hold of -the handle, and dragged it along, letting the blade trail upon the -ground. He overtook James at the great gate. - -They passed through the gate, and went on, James trundling the -wheelbarrow, and Rollo following him with the spade. At last, they came -to the place where Rollo had determined to have his charcoal bed. It was -a smooth piece of grass ground, a short distance beyond the garden, and -so far from any fence that there was no danger of setting the fences on -fire. It was, in fact, a very suitable place. Rollo had selected it with -great discretion. - -“And now,” said Rollo, “the first thing is to dig up some turf. We want -some large pieces of turf.” - -“What for?” said James. - -“Why, to cover up our charcoal with.” - -“What do you want to cover it up for?” said James. “Besides, I should -think you would want to _make_ it, before you cover it up.” - -“Why, that is the _way_ we make it,” said Rollo; “we have to cover the -wood up with turf.” - -“O, the wood,” said James, “you said the charcoal.” - -“No, the wood,” replied Rollo; “we want to cover up the wood.” - -“Then it won’t burn,” said James, “if you cover it all up with turf.” - -“Yes,” replied Rollo; “it will burn very slowly. We don’t want it to -burn fast. That is the very reason why we cover it up with turf, to keep -it from burning fast.” - -“I should think it would be best to pour a little water on it,” said -James, “if it was burning too fast.” - -“No,” said Rollo; “we must cover it up with turf. Jonas said so. And I -must cut it.” - -So Rollo began to cut turf with his spade. He found it, however, very -hard. It is very hard work to cut turf. After he had cut a square place -out, it was very difficult to crowd the spade under it, so as to get the -piece of turf out. He, however, succeeded in cutting one piece; and then -the next was easier. After working patiently for about a quarter of an -hour, stopping occasionally to rest, and to wish that Jonas would come -and finish cutting the turf for him, he succeeded in laying bare a spot -of ground large enough for his coal bed; and, on looking at the pieces -of turf which he had got off, he could not but hope that they might -possibly be enough to cover his wood with. At any rate, he thought he -would try it; for he could cut more, he said, if at last he found that -he should want more. He therefore began to pile up his wood in the spot -left bare by the removal of the turf. - -“We must leave a hole down in the middle,” said he to James, “to put the -fire in. I ought to have had some boards for it.” - -Rollo wanted James to go up to the house, and get some short boards; but -James said that he did not know where he could find any, and finally -Rollo concluded to make the hole as well as he could by leaving a space, -in piling the wood. He succeeded pretty well in doing this. In fact, he -piled his heap very well, making it compact and snug, and rounding it up -on the top as Jonas had directed, so that it could be easily covered -with the turf. - -“Now,” said Rollo, “we will cover it up. You hand me the pieces of turf, -James, and I will put them on.” - -James handed Rollo one large piece of turf, and Rollo placed it against -the side of his heap of wood. He then brought him a second, and Rollo -attempted to place it next to the first, but it did not fit very well. - -“There now,” said Rollo, “I haven’t got any knife.” - -“What do you want a knife for?” asked James. - -“To cut off some of this turf, and make it fit into its place.” - -“Must you make it fit exactly?” asked James. - -“Yes,” said Rollo; “so Jonas said. But I can cut it with the spade.” - -So Rollo laid down the piece of turf upon the ground, and attempted to -cut away one side of it with the spade. He could not do it very well. He -was not strong enough to do it with one blow, and, in striking down the -spade upon it repeatedly, he could not always hit the same place; and so -he mangled the edge, and bruised it to pieces. However, it fitted better -than it did before, though there was still an interstice left, at the -lower corner, between the two pieces of turf and the ground. - -“It doesn’t fit exactly,” said Rollo; “but no matter. There must _some_ -air get in.” - -He placed the other pieces of turf in a row around the heap. After he -had gone all around, there were some left, but not enough to cover the -top over. They, however, covered it as well as they could, and then -Rollo said he would kindle the fire and put it in; and then, while it -was getting a burning, he would cut some more turf, and finish covering -it. - -They had some difficulty in getting fire. In the first place, the match -would not light. Rollo did not see any thing to rub it upon but the -handle of the spade, and that was so smooth and glossy, from long use, -that it did not produce friction enough to inflame the match. Finally, -James rubbed one of the matches upon the side of the wheelbarrow, and -that lighted it; but then they had no kindling ready, and, of course, as -the large sticks of wood could not be lighted by a match, James, after -holding it until it was just ready to burn his fingers, threw it down. -Then Rollo did what he ought to have done before. He collected together -some leaves and dried grass, and splinters of wood, which he found lying -about, so as to have some combustibles ready when the next match should -be lighted. By this means they soon had a little fire at a short -distance from the heap of wood which they had prepared for their -charcoal bed. - -As soon as their fire began to burn, they attempted to move it into the -hole in the middle of the heap of wood. They took off the little sticks -and chips from the fire, which were blazing at one end, and dropped them -one by one into the hole. - -“I don’t believe the fire will burn down in that hole,” said James. - -“Yes it will,” replied Rollo. “That’s the way they always set the -charcoal beds on fire.” - -But, notwithstanding Rollo’s confidence, the chips and sticks, though -they had burned very freely while in the open air above, did not appear -at all inclined to burn in the hole. One reason was, that the boys did -not wait long enough for them to get well heated. The ends which were -together were on fire, it is true; but the other ends were cold, and the -heap of wood was cold, so that every little brand, though it was blazing -when the boys took it off the fire, was at once chilled below the point -at which combustion continues as soon as it was dropped into the hole. -Consequently, after they had dropped all the pieces in, they saw nothing -but smoke come out, and even the smoke grew dim. - -“It is all going out,” said James. - -“We must make a bigger fire,” said Rollo. “I wish I had a pair of tongs -here to take out the old sticks, and then we would make a bigger fire.” - -But Rollo had no tongs; and so he was obliged to take down his pile in -part, in order to get the dead brands out of the middle of it. Then they -built another little fire. They waited for this until it was much -hotter; and so they succeeded at last in getting a little fire to burn -in the middle of their heap of wood. - -“As soon as it begins to burn pretty well,” said Rollo, “I must cover it -all up with sods.” - -“Then that will put it all out,” said James, “I know.” - -“No,” said Rollo; “it will only make it burn slow.” - -“_I_ think it will put it all out,” replied James. - -Rollo himself had some misgivings whether his wood would really burn -very well, when all covered up with turf, and he thought that at any -rate he would let it get well on fire before he put the turf on. In the -mean time, he took the spade, and began to cut the turf, to have it -ready. - -He found it now very hard to cut the turf,—both because he was tired of -cutting it, and also because he had now to begin in a new place, as his -woodpile covered the place which he had taken the turf off from before. -It is always harder to cut the first turf than it is those that come -afterwards. - -Rollo succeeded in getting one or two more pieces, and as soon as the -heap of wood seemed to be pretty well on fire, he put these pieces on -over the top; but they were not enough to cover it, and as the fire -increased, the flames came up more and more from the spaces left -uncovered. - -“O dear me!” said Rollo. “I can’t cut the turf fast enough to cover it.” - -“Shovel up some earth, and put on,” said James. - -[Illustration: SO ROLLO BEGAN TO SHOVEL UP THE EARTH.—Page 81.] - -So Rollo began to shovel up the earth from the place which he had made -bare by taking off the turf, and to throw it upon the fire. This had an -immediate effect in suppressing the flames which were breaking out; and -by continuing to throw on earth, he at length got the fire fairly -subdued. The earth did not cover the heap. It slid down among the -interstices of the wood, and smothered the fire, so that pretty soon -Rollo thought that the fire was burning slowly enough to make charcoal. - -“If we had some water in a watering-pot, that would be better,” said -James. - -“So it would,” said Rollo. - -“Then we could make the fire burn just as slowly as we pleased,” said -James. - -“Yes,” said Rollo; “let us go and get a watering-pot. We can get back -before it burns up again.” - -“Well,” said James; “and we’ll carry up the wheelbarrow and the spade.” - -So Rollo took the wheelbarrow, and James the spade, and they walked -along towards the house, talking about what they should do with their -gunpowder when they had got it made. They came at length to a narrow -place in the walk, where James walked on before, Rollo following him -with the wheelbarrow. Rollo trundled the wheelbarrow along very close to -James’s heels, and so James, to avoid it, ran on. Rollo followed, -pursuing him, and so James, to escape, ran off upon the grass, to get -out of Rollo’s way. But Rollo still followed him, both boys making the -air resound with shouts of laughter, until, at length, James, finding -that he was still pursued, turned around, and planted the blade of the -spade upon the ground, just before the wheel of the wheelbarrow. The -wheel ran up against it, and was stopped, and thus James was protected. - -The boys amused themselves in this way for some time, entirely -forgetting about their watering-pot. After satisfying themselves, -however, with this fun, they began to move along towards the house. They -found Rollo’s little watering-pot, and they carried it to the pump to -fill it with water. They got into a great frolic at the pump, too. James -would hold the watering-pot, while Rollo pumped, and then, when it was -full he made believe try to sprinkle Rollo, to pay him, as he said, for -running over him with his wheelbarrow. Rollo would run off around the -yard, and James after him, holding up the watering-pot, with the spout -elevated, ready to discharge a shower of water upon him, if he could -only get near. When he got pretty near, he would tip up the -watering-pot, and out would pour the water in a great number of curving -jets, which spouted out towards Rollo, as he ran. When the water from -the watering-pot was exhausted by this operation, they would go back to -the pump, and fill it again. In the mean time, the wood of their -charcoal bed was all burning away. - -It was an hour, in fact, before they got back to the charcoal bed; and -when they reached it, it was a mere bed of embers and ashes. The -combustion, instead of having been slow, had gone on with great violence -and rapidity, and the wood was entirely consumed. Rollo and James looked -upon it for a few minutes in silence. - -“We’ll put it out now, at any rate,” said Rollo; and he took the -watering-pot out of James’s hand, and began to pour the water upon the -burning bed before him. It made a great hissing and steaming; and, when -he had done, the boys had before them plenty of hot mud, made of ashes -and water, but no charcoal. - - - QUESTIONS. - - What preparations did James and Rollo make for their charcoal bed? - Did they find it difficult or easy to cut the turf? How did they - arrange the wood? Did Rollo begin right to cover the wood with turf? - What was the first difficulty which he encountered? What tool would - have been best for cutting the turf into the right form? What tool - did Rollo attempt to use instead? What was the difficulty in the - operation of it? What plan was at length proposed for checking the - combustion, instead of putting on a tight covering of turf? Why did - they leave their work and go to the house? What detained them on - this expedition? In what condition did they find the charcoal bed on - their return? - - - - - CHAPTER VI. - GUNPOWDER. - - -When Rollo and James went home it was nearly tea-time, and they found -Jonas just coming from the pasture. They told him of the ill success of -their experiment in charcoal-making, with countenances expressive of -great disappointment and chagrin. - -“It is no matter,” said Jonas; “you have had your afternoon’s amusement, -and that’s all you want, isn’t it?” - -“No, indeed,” said Rollo; “by no means.” - -“Why, what else do you want?” asked Jonas. - -“Why, we want some gunpowder,” said James. “We are going to make our -charcoal into gunpowder.” - -“You needn’t have made a charcoal bed for that,” said Jonas. “You can -get all the charcoal you want to make gunpowder with, out of the kitchen -fire.” - -“The kitchen fire!” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied Jonas. “You can pick up plenty of little black coals in -the corners.” - -“Will they do?” asked James. - -“Yes,” said Jonas; “why not?” - -“I didn’t know that they were charcoal,” rejoined James. - -“Yes,” said Jonas. - -“And will you help us make our gunpowder?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, it is rather a dangerous business,” said Jonas. - -“Why, we will be very careful, you know, Jonas, not to get blown up,” -said Rollo. - -“O, I’m not afraid of getting blown up with any gunpowder you can make. -That wasn’t the kind of danger I was thinking of.” - -“What danger then?” said Rollo. - -“Why, danger of getting the sulphur on your clothes, and smutting your -face with the charcoal.” - -“Why, Jonas,” replied Rollo, “if we get the sulphur on our clothes, we -will brush it off again; and, as to the smutting, we won’t touch the -charcoal to our faces.” - -“It is very difficult,” replied Jonas, “to have any thing to do with -charcoal, without getting blacked with it. You can hardly look at it -without crocking your face.” - -“O Jonas,” said James, “_I_ could, I know.” - -“Then, besides,” continued Jonas, “you can’t brush the sulphur off your -clothes. If you once get it on, some of it will stay, and your clothes -will always smell of sulphur whenever you come near a fire. I don’t -think that your mother would be willing that you should have any thing -to do with sulphur and charcoal.” - -“I mean to ask her,” said Rollo. - -Rollo went in to ask his mother, but he found that tea was ready, and so -he and James went in and took their places at the tea-table. When the -boys proposed their plan of making gunpowder, they found Rollo’s mother, -as Jonas had supposed, quite averse to any such operations. However, -when his father came in and heard their conversation on the subject, he -said that he would take charge of the business, and then his mother -would have no objection. - -“Well, sir,” said Rollo, “I’m glad of that; for perhaps Jonas wouldn’t -know how to make it.” - -“He can prepare the materials, at any rate,” said his father. “So, after -tea, you may go out and ask him to get three tea-cups, and to put about -three or four tablespoonfuls of sulphur in one, and of saltpetre in -another, and charcoal in another. Only the saltpetre and the charcoal -must be pulverized.” - -“Pulverized?” said Rollo; “what do you mean by that?” - -“Why, powdered,—that is, pounded up very fine.” - -“How shall he pound them?” said Rollo. - -“In the iron mortar,” said his mother. “Dorothy will give it to him.” - -“And when they are all ready,” continued Rollo’s father, “come and tell -me.” - -Accordingly, immediately after tea, Rollo and James went out to give -Jonas the directions about preparing the materials. Dorothy gave Jonas -the mortar. She also brought out three tea-cups, and put them upon the -kitchen table. Jonas picked up from the corner of the fireplace a few -small coals, and put them into the mortar and then, took up the pestle. - -“O, more,” said Rollo; “we want more than that.” - -“Yes,” said Jonas; “but we must take a little at a time.” - -“Why?” asked Rollo. - -“Because,” replied Jonas, “if I put much into the mortar at once, I -can’t make it fine. I must only have a little, and then the pestle and -the bottom of the mortar come close together, and so it grinds up the -smallest pieces.” - -When Jonas had pounded up the charcoal which he had put in at first, he -poured the black powder out into one of the tea-cups, and then put in -more charcoal, which he powdered as before. He proceeded in this way -until he had filled one of the tea-cups nearly half full. He then washed -out the mortar, and put it down to the fire to dry. Then he took a glass -jar, which Dorothy had brought him from the closet, and which was nearly -full of a substance which looked like salt, and poured some of it into -the mortar. - -“Is that the saltpetre?” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied Jonas. - -“It looks like salt,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” rejoined Jonas, “and tastes a little like salt.” - -Rollo and James both wanted to taste a little of the saltpetre, and they -did. In the mean time, Jonas had poured some of it into the mortar, and -was grinding it up with his pestle; and, when Rollo asked him where -saltpetre came from, and what it was for, Jonas said he did not know any -thing at all about it, and went on pounding and grinding with his -pestle. - -Dorothy now brought out another jar, containing sulphur; and as soon as -Jonas had finished pulverizing his saltpetre, and had put it all into -its cup, he poured out some of the sulphur into the third cup. The jars -and the mortar were now put away, and Jonas got two sheets of -wrapping-paper, and put upon the table, for he said he thought it -probable that they might want some, in trying the powder. - -“I expect your father will want a pair of scales, too,” said Jonas. - -“What for?” asked Rollo. - -“To weigh out the materials,” replied Jonas. “I don’t know what the -proportions are; but I suppose that they must be mixed in right -proportions.” - -“What are the right proportions?” asked Rollo. - -“I don’t know,” said Jonas, “but I suppose your father will know.” - -“Well,” said Rollo, “I’ll go and call him.” - -So Rollo went in, and told his father that they were all ready. He found -his father at the library looking at a large book. - -“Come, father,” said Rollo. - -“Seventy-five parts of saltpetre,” said his father, reading out of his -great book, and appearing not to pay any attention to what Rollo -said,—“seventy-five parts of saltpetre, eleven and a half of sulphur, -and thirteen and a half of charcoal. Seventy-five to eleven, that is, -about seven to one. Say, six times as much saltpetre as of each of the -other two. That will be near enough.” - -“Come, father,” said Rollo again; “we’re all ready.” - -“Yes,” said his father, “I’ll come.” - -Rollo returned into the kitchen, and his father followed him. His mother -came, too, for she wanted to see them make the gunpowder. Jonas asked -Mr. Holiday if he should want a pair of scales. - -“No,” said he, “we can guess at the proportions near enough. We can’t -expect to make very good gunpowder.” - -“Why not, sir?” said Rollo; “the things are all good that we are going -to make it of.” - -“Very likely,” said his father; “but we cannot make them fine -enough,—nor mix them intimately.” - -“Why, father,” said Rollo, “Jonas has made them very fine indeed.” - -“Yes, I have no doubt that he has pulverized them as well as it can be -done in a mortar. But it is not possible to make them as fine in that -way as they do in the powder-mills. Then, to mix them properly, they -ought to be wet and ground together a long time. We can’t stop to do -that. - -“And now, first,” he continued, “I want you all to observe how these -various materials will burn by themselves, and then see how differently -they will burn together.” - -Mr. Holiday then took up a coal of fire, and put it upon the shovel; and -he asked Jonas to hold it for him in the fireplace, under the throat of -the chimney, so that the smoke and fumes might not come out into the -room. He then took from the cup which had the sulphur in it, a little of -the sulphur upon the point of his knife, and laid it down gently upon -the coal of fire. It burned with a very small and faint blue flame. It -burned very slowly, and the flame continued for some time; but the flame -was not much bigger than the sulphur itself which caused it. - -He then tried the same experiment with the saltpetre. The effect was -very different, though in this case there was scarcely any flame. It -made a little faint flash, accompanied with a slight crackling sound. -Then he tried the charcoal, but it did not appear to burn at all. It lay -in a little black heap upon the burning coal, just as Mr. Holiday put it -on. After a time, however, it began to grow red upon the under side, and -finally became red throughout; and then it could hardly be distinguished -in appearance from the coal which it was lying upon. - -“So you see,” said Mr. Holiday, “that these three ingredients are not -very combustible by themselves; at least, they burn very quietly, and -with very little flame. Now, we will mix them together. We want a -tea-spoon Dorothy.” - -Dorothy brought a tea-spoon. - -“And the mortar. I can mix them better in the mortar.” - -So Dorothy brought the mortar, too. Mr. Holiday measured out six -tea-spoonfuls of saltpetre from the cup which contained that ingredient, -and put it into the mortar. - -“There must be about six times as much saltpetre as sulphur and -charcoal,” said he. “That is not exact, but it will be near enough, I -presume. Now, I will put in one tea-spoonful of sulphur and one of -charcoal. I suppose, however, I ought to go by the weight, and not by -bulk.” - -“What do you mean by that, sir?” said James. - -“Why, it ought to be six times as much saltpetre by weight, and not by -measure. It wouldn’t take six tea-spoonfuls of saltpetre to weigh six -times as much as one tea-spoonful of sulphur, I presume; for I should -think saltpetre is much heavier. I suppose saltpetre is heavier than -either sulphur or charcoal. So I will put in two tea-spoonfuls of -sulphur, and two of charcoal, to make up for their lightness.” - -“I should think it would be better to weigh them,” said Rollo. - -“Yes, it would be rather better, but it would take more time, and we -will see how our gunpowder burns without being exact in the proportions; -and if it does not succeed, then perhaps I will try again, and weigh out -the ingredients, and see if it makes the gunpowder any better.” - -While saying this, Mr. Holiday had been gently rubbing and mixing the -powders in the mortar. He said he must rub them gently, for, as the -pestle and mortar were both of iron, if he rubbed hard, he might -possibly set his gunpowder on fire. - -“O father,” said Rollo, “I don’t believe it would take fire by just -rubbing in a mortar.” - -“No,” said his father, “I don’t think it would, myself; but it might, -possibly. I have heard of powder-mills taking fire by the friction of -the mills in grinding the powder,—though I don’t suppose it would be -possible to set fire to any such powder as we can make, by rubbing it in -a mortar. Still it is well to be on the safe side.” - -After Mr. Holiday had mixed the compound sufficiently, he poured it out -of the mortar upon the sheet of brown paper which Jonas had prepared. - -“Is that gunpowder?” said Rollo, in a tone of incredulity. - -“I think it is somewhat doubtful myself,” replied his father. - -“It does not look like gunpowder,” said Rollo’s mother. - -This was true. The substance before them was different in its appearance -from gunpowder in two respects. It was not _grained_ like gunpowder, but -was fine and impalpable, like dust. Then it was of a lighter color. -Mixing so much saltpetre, which was white, with the charcoal and -sulphur, prevented its being so dark as common gunpowder. At least, Mr. -Holiday thought that this was the reason, and he suspected that, in some -way or other, he had got too much of the saltpetre in his composition. -At any rate, the powder looked like nothing but a heap of gray dust. - -“The proof of the pudding is the taste,” said he; “so we’ll try it.” - -He accordingly took up about half a tea-spoonful of the gunpowder, and -put it upon the shovel, and he asked Jonas to hold it in the fireplace, -so that, if it did burn, the smoke might go up chimney. Rollo wanted to -touch it, and his father gave him leave. So he took up a small coal of -fire with the tongs, and touched the top of the little heap. To their -great pleasure and surprise, it blazed up suddenly and violently. - -“Yes,” said Rollo, “it’s gunpowder! It’s real gunpowder, I do believe!” - -“Let me touch some of it,” said James. - -Mr. Holiday put another half tea-spoonful upon the shovel and let James -touch it. It flamed up like real gunpowder, just as before. - -“The great peculiarity of gunpowder,” said Mr. Holiday, “is, that it -burns without air. Other combustibles, when shut up in a confined space, -will not burn. If they are set on fire previously, they go out when they -are closely shut up from the air. But gunpowder burns the more violently -the more closely it is shut up. There seems to be something in some of -the ingredients which takes the place of air; so that, when people drill -a hole in a solid rock, and pour gunpowder down to the very bottom of -it, in a place where nothing else would burn, and then ram down pounded -bricks into the top of the hole, so that no air can get in, if they get -fire to the gunpowder, it will burn there more fiercely than any where, -and tear the rock to pieces.” - -“How do they get the fire down?” asked Rollo. - -“They put a wire in,” replied his father, “before they put in the -bricks; and then when the bricks are pounded in hard, they draw up the -wire, and that leaves a little hole extending down to the powder. Then -they pour fresh powder into the hole, and put shavings on the top, and -then set the shavings on fire, and run away.” - -“I should like to see them blow up a rock,” said Rollo. - -“We must make an artificial rock for our gunpowder,” replied his father, -“and see if our powder will burst it. I’ll try, if you will go into the -other room, and get the ball of twine out of the drawer.” - -While Rollo was gone after the ball of twine, his father took a piece of -strong wrapping-paper, which Jonas got for him, and, bending it around -over his hand in a peculiar manner, he formed it into a conical sort of -cup, into which he poured the gunpowder which he had made. This paper -cup was pointed at the bottom, growing larger and larger upwards. He -then folded over the upper part, so as to enclose the powder completely; -and, when Rollo brought the twine, he began to wind the twine around it, -as if he was going to tie it up. Rollo and James expected that he was -going pretty soon to cut off the string, and tie it; but instead of -that, he went on winding it up like a ball. After he had carried the -string round a number of times, he began to wind it tighter and tighter, -taking care, however, always not to pass the twine over the little tip -or apex of the cone. By this means, in a short time the whole paper was -covered in every part with the twine except the apex, which remained -exposed. - -“There,” said he, when he had finished, “I have enclosed the powder now -in this ball, and confined it tight. We can imagine this to be a rock. -The air cannot get at it. If it burns at all, it must burn by means of -its internal composition. Now we will go out and set it on fire. Jonas -must get a short board and a few shavings.” - -While Jonas was gone after the board and shavings, Mr. Holiday made a -little more gunpowder in the mortar for priming, as he said. When it was -ready, they went out to the door, where they found Jonas with a board, -and a little basket of shavings. - -Mr. Holiday put the board down upon the ground at a little distance from -the door. Then he placed his wound parcel of gunpowder upon the board, -with the tip down. With his penknife he made a little opening into the -gunpowder at the tip, so that a little of it came out upon the board. He -then poured his priming down at the same place, and laid the shavings -carefully upon it. He finally folded up a paper, and lighted it in the -house, and came up cautiously and lighted the shavings. The others all -stood upon the piazza looking on, and Mr. Holiday himself, as soon as he -saw the shavings began to burn, retreated to the same place of security. -The shavings burned slowly for some time. The flame approached nearer -and nearer to the charge; for a minute, the flame seemed to come from -the very apex of the cone, and Rollo had just come to the conclusion -that the powder would not go off, when suddenly there was a flash and a -great puff of smoke, and immediately after a loud explosion. The -children ran to the spot and found that the ball in which the gunpowder -had been enveloped, was torn all to pieces, and the fragments of the -twine were slowly burning. - - - QUESTIONS. - - Why was Rollo particularly sorry that he failed in making the - charcoal? What did Jonas tell him? What dangers did Jonas anticipate - in his making gunpowder? What did his father say to his request? - What preliminary arrangements were made? What is the meaning of - _pulverize_? Of _impalpable_? How did Jonas pulverize the charcoal? - How did Rollo find his father employed, when he went to call him? - What did his father say that the proportions were? Did he attempt to - be exact? Did he suppose that the parts ought to be measured by bulk - or by weight? Which did he think was the heaviest of the materials? - How did he make allowance for this? What was the success of the - experiment? How did their gunpowder differ from real gunpowder in - appearance? In what respect does gunpowder differ from other highly - combustible substances? How did Mr. Holiday confine his gunpowder, - to show whether it had the property of burning without a supply of - air? - - - - - CHAPTER VII. - THE ALARM. - - -After the explosion, James said that it was time for him to go home. It -was about sundown. Rollo said that he would go home with him to keep him -company, if his mother would let him. She had no objection, and Rollo -and James went away together. - -Rollo went with James to the door of the house where James lived, and -then, bidding him good night, he left him, and began to return. When he -had got about half way home, he saw a lady and a gentleman coming along -the road. As he approached nearer to them, he found that it was his -father and mother, taking a walk. Rollo joined them. They said, however, -that they had walked far enough, and so in a few minutes they turned -round, and went towards home. - -“Didn’t our gunpowder go pretty well, father?” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father, “better than I expected it would, without -being more accurate in our proportions.” - -“It was a very good experiment, I think,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father, “it was a good experiment, and it will prove -useful to you, if it impresses upon your mind the nature of that -property of gunpowder on which its power depends; namely, that its -combustion is within itself. It doesn’t need the outward air.” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo. - -“There are other things that are more inflammable than gunpowder; that -is, they will take fire more easily, and make a greater flame; but they -cannot burn unless they have air. There is phosphorus, for example; it -will take fire a great deal more easily than gunpowder, and I believe it -will make a greater flame; but it must have air, and it can’t burn any -faster than fresh air can get to it.” - -“Then phosphorus will take fire easier than gunpowder,” said Rollo’s -mother. - -“Yes,” said Mr. Holiday; “that is, with a less degree of heat. I presume -that, if I were to rub phosphorus in a mortar, it would almost certainly -take fire. These friction matches are made of some composition of -phosphorus, and the heat of rubbing the end upon a board is enough to -set the composition on fire. But gunpowder would not burn by being -rubbed so. But still, though less heat is required to inflame phosphorus -than gunpowder, still air is necessary for the phosphorus, and it is not -necessary for gunpowder; so that gunpowder will burn in confined places -when phosphorus will not. - -“Suppose, for instance,” continued Mr. Holiday, “that we had a barrel of -phosphorus and a barrel of gunpowder, both open at the top, and were to -set them on fire. The gunpowder would burn at once from the top to the -bottom at a single flash, without any help from the outward air. The -phosphorus would take fire on the top, and burn down gradually, as fast -as the air could come to the flame. It would burn very fast and -furiously, and I think it likely it would make, in all, a greater flame -than the gunpowder. But then it would burn gradually and only as fast as -it could get a supply of fresh air; so that if, while it was burning, -men were to come and cover it all over with wet blankets, so as to keep -away the air, it would smother it, and put it all out.” - -“The _water_ of the wet blankets would put it out,” said Rollo. - -“No,” said his father; “it would be the same with any thing dry, if it -would keep out the air. I presume, if a great quantity of dry sand was -poured over it, it would put it out. But wet blankets or dry sand put -over a barrel of gunpowder, even if we could have time to do it, would -have no effect at all in stopping the burning; for the burning is not -dependent upon the outward air at all; the combustion is entirely within -itself; that is the essential peculiarity of gunpowder, on which all its -powers depend.” - -“I don’t see why it should burst open what it is confined in, after -all,” said Rollo’s mother. - -“Nor I,” said Rollo. “I should think it might burn up, without tearing -things to pieces.” - -“I don’t know myself,” replied Mr. Holiday, “exactly why it has such an -expansive force. I’ll look in some book, when I get home, and see if I -can find an explanation of it. But, at any rate, you see the difference -in the manner of its burning. Now, there is wood, for example; it burns -by degrees, as fast as the fresh air can come to it. When you put a -stick of wood upon the fire, if it is dry and warm, and the fire is hot, -first the outside takes fire. This burns because the air can get access -to it. But the inside does not burn at all. If we were to take a stick -off the fire, after it had been burning for half an hour, and saw it in -two, we should find the middle as sound and solid as ever.” - -“Should we sir?” said Rollo; “I should expect to find it all black -coals.” - -“No,” replied his father. “The blackness only extends in a very little -distance; and the wood within is not burned any faster than the outside -gets burned off out of the way, so as to let the air come to the inner -layers, one after another. - -“And there is a very curious contrivance in nature,” continued Mr. -Holiday, “for supplying the fire all the time with fresh air.” - -“What is it?” asked Rollo’s mother. - -“Why, air is so constituted, that heat swells it, and makes it lighter; -so that the air that is next to the outer layer of the wood, when the -wood first begins to burn, becomes heated, and swells, and so, growing -lighter, it immediately rises and goes out of the way, and a new supply -of good, fresh air comes in to take its place. By the time that this is -no longer good to promote the burning, it gets heated and rises; and so, -there is a constant stream of hot air, that has passed through the fire, -rising, and fresh air coming in to take its place. That is the reason, -Rollo, why we have chimneys in a house. A chimney is nothing but an -opening over a fire, so that the air can rise up through it as fast as -it passes through the fire, and all the smoke and sparks pass up too.” - -“I thought a chimney was only to let the smoke up,” said Rollo. - -“No,” replied his father, “that is not all, by any means. If a fire made -no smoke, it would still be almost as necessary as it is now to have a -chimney. In fact, some fires do not make any smoke; some kinds of coal, -dug out of the ground, do not make any smoke, and charcoal fires do not -make any smoke; but still it is always necessary in such cases to have -chimneys. - -“Because,” he continued, “you must understand, that air gets changed in -passing through a fire, so that it will not answer afterwards either to -breathe, or to make a fire burn again; and therefore there must be some -way for it to escape, not only out of the way of the fire, but also out -of the room where people want to live and breathe. There is always such -a stream of air rising up from every fire, great or small, even from a -lamp.” - -“Why, father, is a lamp a fire?” said Rollo. - -“Certainly,” said his father, “it is a small fire made by burning oil on -the top of a wick, and the hot air rises in a constant stream above it. -So in a room, if there was no chimney over the fire, all the air that -had passed through the fire, and become heated, would ascend to the top -of the room. I saw the proof of this once, in a very singular manner.” - -“How was it, sir?” said Rollo. - -“It was one day when I was travelling. It was in the winter. I came to a -hotel and was going up stairs to my room just before dinner. When I got -to the head of the stairs, and was about going along the passage-way to -my room, I saw, a little way before me, a door open, which led into -another room; and there was a thick stream of white smoke, pouring out -in the most beautiful manner, at the upper part of the door, and falling -up to the ceiling.” - -“Falling _up_!” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father. “It looked precisely like a little waterfall, -falling up. There was no smoke at all coming out, except close to the -top of the door; and, as soon as it got out, it went up to the ceiling -of the entry, and from that it spread all around like water. It was very -beautiful, but I had not time to stop to admire it, for I presumed that -the room was on fire.” - -“And did you cry fire?” said Rollo. - -“No,” replied his father. “It is never best to call out for help, unless -you are sure you need it. My room was very near. I remembered that my -pitcher was full of water in my wash-stand. I ran and got the pitcher, -and went into the room which the smoke was coming from. I saw a great -blazing by the side of the fireplace.” - -“And did you run and pour your water on?” said Rollo. - -“No,” replied Mr. Holiday; “I didn’t pour it on, for in that case a -great deal of it would have all run down upon the floor, and been -wasted. I went up to the place, and put my hand into the pitcher, and -began to sprinkle the water on as fast as I could, and it put the fire -right out at once.” - -“What was it that was burning?” asked Rollo. - -“A basket of chips,” replied his father. - -“A basket of chips!” repeated Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father. “It seems that the man who occupied that room -had gone out without taking down his fire, and he had left a small -basket, with a few chips in the bottom of it, near the corner. Now, -while he was gone, one of the sticks of wood had burned off, and the two -ends outside of the andirons, not having been burned at all, were heavy; -and so the ends of the stick fell over, one on one side and the other on -the other. The stick which fell over towards the basket, threw a coal -against it and set it on fire; and the basket, being very dry and thin, -burned very fast. Scarcely any thing of the size makes a greater blaze, -than a basket, for it is thin, and of such a form that the air can get -to it on both sides.” - -“That was a narrow escape,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father, “I think it was.” - -“And I expect the landlord thanked you for saving his house from burning -up,” said Rollo. - -“On the contrary,” replied his father, “I had a scolding.” - -“A scolding!” exclaimed Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father; “I stepped out into the entry, and asked the -chamber-maid who was there, if she would go and ask the landlord to come -up into that room. When he came, I pointed to the wet and blackened -ruins of the basket, and said,— - -“‘We came very near having a fire, sir.’” - -“And what did he say?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, he thought that it was my room, and he was quite angry, and began -to scold me for being so careless as to leave that basket so near the -fire.” - -“And what did you say?” asked Rollo. - -“Nothing,” replied his father. - -“Nothing!” exclaimed Rollo. - -“No, I did not say any thing at all. I listened to hear all that he had -to say, and then I went away to my room.” - -“Why didn’t you tell him?” said Rollo. - -“I thought I would let him find out in his own way,” replied his father. - -“And did he find out?” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father. “He came to me after dinner, and made a very -humble apology. He told me that he was very sorry for what he had said, -but that he supposed that that was my room.” - -“And what did you tell him?” asked Rollo. - -“I told him it was of no consequence,—and that a man who allowed himself -to condemn before he made inquiry, must expect to fall into some -mistakes.” - - - QUESTIONS. - - Under what circumstances did Rollo find himself taking a walk with - his father and mother? What did Rollo’s father say was the peculiar - and essential property of gunpowder? Which is more inflammable, - phosphorus or gunpowder? How did Mr. Holiday illustrate this? What - did Mr. Holiday say about the expansive force of burning gunpowder? - By what process are fresh supplies of air furnished to fires? Why - does the air which has once passed through the fire rise? What is a - chimney for? Would a chimney be necessary if a fire made no smoke? - Relate the incident which occurred to Mr. Holiday at the tavern. - What example of prudence and presence of mind is furnished by this - case? What example of hasty judgment? What example of patient - forbearance? - - - - - CHAPTER VIII. - RADIATION AND CONDUCTION. - - -There are two ways by which the heat or the warmth of one body passes -off to the other bodies around it. One is called _radiation_, the other -_conduction_. Rollo learned the meaning of these terms, and the -distinction between them, under the following circumstances:— - -One pleasant morning, late in the autumn, Rollo’s father said that he -was going away on some business, about fifteen miles, and he told -Rollo’s mother that, if she would like to take a ride, he should be very -glad to have her go too. She said that she should like to go very much, -and she proposed that Rollo should go with them. Mr. Holiday had no -objection to this arrangement, and accordingly Jonas was ordered to put -both horses into the carryall, and bring it up to the front door. - -“And, on the whole, Jonas,” said Mr. Holiday, “you may go with us too, -and that will relieve me of all care of the horses.” - -There were two seats to the carryall. Rollo sat with Jonas on the front -seat, and his father and mother behind. They had a very pleasant ride in -the forenoon, but at noon it looked rather cloudy, as if it might be -going to rain. Rollo said he was afraid that it would rain before they -should get home. - -“No matter for that,” said Jonas. - -“Why, then we shall get wet,” said Rollo. - -“No matter for that,” said Jonas. - -They were detained longer than they had expected to be at the place -where Mr. Holiday had his business to do, so that it was rather late -when they set out on their return home. After they had rode about an -hour, it looked still more like rain, and at length, Rollo felt a little -drop upon his cheek. He said, in a complaining tone,— - -“There, Jonas, it _is_ going to rain, for it begins to sprinkle now.” - -“Rollo,” said Jonas, “when it rains, the best way is to let it rain; for -there is no knowing what good may come of it.” - -“I don’t think any good can come to us,” said Rollo, “to be out in this -storm, and night coming on. I should think that you might drive faster.” - -Jonas was driving pretty fast, and the rattling of the wheels made so -much noise, that Rollo’s father and mother did not hear what he and -Jonas were saying. Nor did Rollo hear the conversation in which his -father and mother were engaged. They were, in fact, discussing the -expediency of not attempting to get home that evening, but of stopping, -instead, at a little village a few miles before them. As it was growing -cold and late, and as there was every appearance of an approaching -storm, they concluded to do this; and so, to Rollo’s surprise, when they -came into the village, his father said to Jonas,— - -“Jonas, you may drive up to this hotel on the right; we are going to -stop here for the night.” - -Jonas and Rollo were both glad to hear this. Jonas drove up to the door, -and Rollo and his father and mother were soon transferred from their -places in the carryall, which were beginning to be cold, and cheerless, -and uncomfortable, to a pleasant little parlor, with a bright fire in -the fireplace, and a table in the middle of the room spread for tea. - -Now, it happened that, in this little parlor, the fire was made in what -might be called a fireplace-stove, that is, a stove made in the form of -a fireplace. It stood out upon the hearth, and from the top of it a -stove pipe ascended towards the top of the room, and there passed back -into the chimney. - -The fire was not built in this room until the party which was to occupy -it arrived, but the room became warm very quick. Rollo was surprised -that the room became warm so quick, and his father said that such an -arrangement as that, namely, a stove standing out upon the hearth, with -a pipe above, warmed a room very quickly; and one reason was, that it -operated by conduction as well as by radiation, whereas a fire in a -common fireplace could only warm the room by radiation. Then Rollo -wanted to know what _conduction_ and _radiation_ meant. His father -explained them to him while they were waiting for the tea to be brought -in. - -“There are two ways by which heat moves,” said his father. “One way is -by shooting swiftly through the air like light. Hold your hand up before -the fire.” - -So Rollo held his hand up before the fire as his father had directed. - -“Do you feel the warmth of the fire upon your hand?” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo. - -“The heat comes from the fire to your hand very swiftly through the air, -and makes your hand feel warm.” - -“How do you know it comes so swift, sir?” said Rollo. - -“I will show you,” said his father. - -So his father looked about the room, and he saw a large book lying upon -a table between the windows. He got the book, and brought it to the -fire. - -“Now,” said he, “I will hold the book between your hand and the fire. -Then the heat cannot come to your hand.” - -So Mr. Holiday held the book between Rollo’s hand and the fire, and -Rollo said that he could not feel the heat. - -“Now,” said his father, “I will take the book away suddenly, and we will -observe what will be the effect. If the heat moves slowly through the -air, it will be some time before you begin to feel the warmth; but if it -shoots through to your hand quick, you will feel it immediately.” - -So saying, Mr. Holiday suddenly withdrew the book. - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “I feel it immediately.” - -Rollo’s father then told him to go back from the fire as far as he could -go, and still feel the heat upon his hand, and then he interposed the -book between the fire and his hand just as before. Rollo still found -that he could feel the heat from the fire instantly, after his father -took the book away. - -“Now, that is radiation,” said Mr. Holiday. - -“Radiation?” replied Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father. “Heat radiates from a fire, in all directions, -through the air. Heat radiates, too, from all bodies that are hot, or -warmer than the air around them. Go and hold your hand near the stove -pipe, and see if you can feel the heat radiating from the stove.” - -Rollo did so. He said he could feel the heat very plainly, though he had -to hold his hand nearer than was necessary when he was feeling the heat -of the fire. - -“Yes,” said his father; “that is because the pipe is not so hot as the -fire. If the pipe was as hot as the fire, it would be red hot, and then -you could feel the radiation as far as you do that of the fire. However, -there is some radiation, though the pipe is not very hot. There is -always radiation when the thing is warmer than the air around it. There -is radiation from your face.” - -Here Rollo put his hand up towards his face, to try whether he could -feel the radiation. - -“You can’t feel it very well with your hand,” said his father, “because -your hand is warm, and so that radiates too. But if you hold your hand -up very near to your face, perhaps you will feel both to be warmer, for -your hand will radiate to your face, and your face will radiate to your -hand.” - -Rollo then put his hand up very near to his cheek, and, after holding it -there a minute, he said that he perceived that it felt warm. - -“At any rate,” said his father, “you understand what radiation is. The -heat that comes from the sun is radiated.” - -“Yes, father,” said Rollo, “I understand what radiation is; now tell me -about conduction.” - -“Very well,” said his father; “suppose you had an iron crowbar here, and -should put one end into the fire, among the burning coals, and let it -remain there while you took hold of the other end with your hand. Now, -the heat would gradually extend along the bar, from the hot end in the -fire towards your hand, through the substance of the iron.” - -“Would it, sir?” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father; “so that at last the end in your hand would -begin to feel hot. Did you never try it with a pin in the lamp?” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “if I hold a pin in the lamp, it burns my -fingers.” - -“The heat,” said his father, “is conducted along through the pin to your -fingers. There is a radiation from the lamp at the same time, but the -radiation is not enough to burn you at that distance. That is, if you -hold your finger near the lamp, as near as the length of a pin, you -would feel the warmth produced by the radiation of the heat through the -air, but it would not be enough to burn you. But when you take a pin, -and put one end into the flame, it conducts off a great deal more heat -than will come by radiation, and your fingers are burned. But then it -takes more time for the heat to come along the pin, than for it to come -through the air. Thus, in that case, the heat that is radiated comes -very quick, though there is but little that comes; while that which is -conducted comes slowly, but in a great quantity.” - -“It burns me pretty quick, father,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father, “because the pin is very short. But if it was -a knitting-needle, or an iron rod longer still, it would take some time -for the heat to pass from one end to the other. Heat moves quickly by -radiation, and slowly by conduction. - -“Now, if you should go to the stove,” continued Mr. Holiday, “and put -your hand upon it, you would burn it by conduction; that is, the heat -would be conducted through the iron to your hand. But if you should hold -your hand before the fire so near that the heat would come from the -coals through the air to it, burning you, then you burn your hand by -radiation. - -“But you must understand,” continued his father, “that there may be -conduction from air, as well as from iron. If you come into a room which -is very warm,—that is, where all the air in it is very warm, although -the fire may be gone out,—then the warmth you feel comes to your face -and hands by conduction from the air which touches your face and hands, -just as your hand would be burned by touching the iron that is hot. But -if you come into a room where the air is not very warm, but where there -is a great blazing fire, then you feel warmed by radiation. Do you -understand this?” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo. “I believe I do.” - -“I will ask you some questions then, and see if you can answer them. -When we toast bread, is the heat applied by radiation or conduction?” - -“By——radiation, sir,” said Rollo. - -“Yes; when we bake bread in an oven, is it by radiation or conduction?” - -“By conduction,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father, “because you perceive that the fire has all been -taken out from the oven, and the bread is baked by the heat of the air -which surrounds it. I don’t know but that there may be also some -radiation from the sides of the oven, which are very hot; but no doubt a -great deal of the heat is conveyed to the bread by conduction. - -“When things are boiled, is the heat applied by radiation or -conduction?” said his father. - -“By conduction from the water,” said Rollo. - -“Yes; and when they are roasted?” - -“By radiation,” replied Rollo. - -“Very well,” rejoined his father. “I believe you understand the -distinction very well. Some other time, I will tell you more about both -radiation and conduction. But now I see the tea is coming in.” - -Rollo looked around, and saw a girl coming in, bringing a waiter with -two tea-pots upon it, and a plate of toast covered with a bright cover, -and some other things. She put them all upon the table, and then said to -Mr. Holiday,— - -“Your tea is ready, sir.” - -So Rollo and his father and mother took their places at the tea-table to -eat their supper. Nothing more was said on the subject, until, just -before they rose from the table, Rollo happened to think that his father -had said, at first, that a stove like the one in that room warmed the -room both by radiation and conduction, and he asked his father how that -was. - -“In the first place,” replied his father, “it warms the room by -radiation just like any other fire, as you observed by holding your hand -before it. But then it also warms the air in the room by conduction, in -this way; the heat of the fire heats the iron of the stove and of the -pipe. The heat is conducted through the iron to the outside, and there -some of it radiates, and the rest is conducted into the air which -happens to touch it. Exactly as if you put your hand against the stove -pipe, the heat is conducted through to your hand. So it is conducted to -the air, which touches the pipe. This air becomes heated, and swells, -and so grows light, and rises out of the way, and more cold air comes in -to the stove pipe, and gets heated in the same way by conduction. So the -air is continually coming up against the stove and pipe at all parts, -and it gets heated by conduction, and then rises and floats away over -the room, and thus helps warm the room. But in a common fireplace all -the heat which is conducted off goes back among the bricks of the -chimney, and does not help warm the room. If we had a light tuft of down -or cotton, and were to put it near the pipe, perhaps it would be carried -up to the top of the room, by the current of air which is heated by -conduction of the pipe.” - -“I wish I had a tuft to try it,” said Rollo. “It would be a very good -experiment.” - -Rollo had no tuft, but he had that evening an opportunity to witness the -effect of the ascending current of heated air, in a way which he did not -anticipate; for, after tea, they had the table out, for Rollo’s father -to do some writing, while his mother sat in a rocking-chair near, -reading. Rollo wanted to write, and so his father let him have a pen and -ink. He said that he would write a little note to his cousin Lucy. It -was a very small note, on a little piece of paper, and when he had -written down one side, he undertook to dry what he had written by means -of the radiation from the lamp, and accordingly held up his paper very -near the flame of the lamp, upon one side. The writing, however, did not -seem to dry very fast, and in changing the position of it, he held it -over the flame, though so high that he thought that there was no danger -of burning it. But the current of heated air which rises upward from a -fire, even so small a fire as the flame of a lamp, is hotter, and rises -higher, than most children would suppose. At any rate, before Rollo was -aware of the danger, his note was on fire, and he was obliged to turn -around suddenly, and throw his paper upon the hearth, to escape burning -his fingers. - - - QUESTIONS. - - In what two ways is heat conveyed from one body to another? Relate - the circumstances which led Rollo and his father and mother to spend - the night at a tavern. What sort of a stove did they find in the - little parlor? What is radiation of heat? How did Mr. Holiday - demonstrate it to Rollo? How did he prove that heat passes swiftly - when it is radiated? How did Mr. Holiday explain and illustrate - conduction? By which mode is the greatest quantity of heat conveyed? - Which communicates heat most rapidly? What were some of the - questions which Mr. Holiday put to Rollo to ascertain whether he - understood the distinction? What incident occurred to Rollo in the - evening? - - - - - CHAPTER IX. - RADIATION. - - -When Rollo awoke the next morning, he found that the storm was over, and -he was very glad to see that there was a prospect of a pleasant ride -home. He heard a sound as of voices in the yard, under the window of the -chamber where he slept. He looked out, and saw a large yard near the -stables, with a pump upon one side of it. Before the pump was a large -trough, nearly full of water. At one end of the trough there was a cow -drinking. Jonas was coming from one of the stables leading a horse. He -was going to let him drink. There was a boy at the pump, at work pumping -water, to keep the trough full while the animals were drinking. - -“I mean to go down there,” said Rollo to himself. - -He accordingly finished dressing himself as soon as he could, and went -down into the yard. - -“Let me pump,” said Rollo to the boy. - -“Well,” said the boy, “and I’ll go and be putting down the hay.” - -So the boy left Rollo at the pump, and went off towards the stable. - -“What does he mean by putting down the hay?” said Rollo to Jonas. For -Jonas had by this time come to the trough, and his horse was beginning -to drink. - -“You pump too fast, Rollo,” said Jonas; “you make the trough run over.” - -“Well,” said Rollo, “and does that do any hurt?” - -“No,” replied Jonas, “only it exhausts your strength to no purpose, and -by and by you’ll be tired, and can’t pump at all.” - -“Then I’ll pump slower,” said Rollo. - -So Rollo began to pump more slowly. Presently the cow went away, and two -oxen came, one after the other, from the barn. The boy had let them out. -Rollo went on talking with Jonas, pumping very slowly indeed, so that he -did not supply water as fast as the animals drank it. The surface of the -water in the trough began to subside, and then Jonas called upon Rollo -to pump faster. - -“O dear me, Jonas!” said Rollo; “you are very hard to be suited.” - -“Yes,” replied Jonas, “I am. If a boy undertakes to do any thing, I want -him to do it right,—and that is hard. There are two wrong ways to do a -thing, and one right way. First you pump too fast, and then too slow; -whereas I want you to pump just right.” - -“And how should I pump?” said Rollo. - -“Why, I want you to have the pumping and the drinking exactly in -equilibrium.” - -“In equilibrium?” repeated Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied Jonas; “that is, you must supply water from the pump just -as fast as the horse and the oxen drink it, and so keep it at the same -level in the trough. Thus you’ll keep the supply and the consumption in -equilibrium.” - -“Well,” said Rollo. So he pumped a little faster, until he got the -trough nearly full, and then he noticed the point on the inside of the -trough where the surface of the water stood. When he found that the -water was rising above that point, he relaxed his efforts a little until -it sank again; and when he found that it was falling below, he pumped -harder. Thus he contrived to keep the supply very nearly equal to the -consumption. - -[Illustration: ROLLO WARMING HIS HANDS BY THE FIRE—Page 133.] - -It was pretty cold that morning, and, after Rollo had pumped for some -time, his hands became cold. So he went into the house. He found his -father and mother in the little parlor where they had been the evening -before. There was a good fire in the stove, and Rollo held his hands up -before it, and warmed them by the radiation. The breakfast-table was -set, and before long a girl came in bringing in the breakfast. Among the -other things was a little copper tea-kettle, with a heater to set it -upon, in order to keep the water hot. The heater was made in this way: -There was a sort of pan of planished tin, large enough for the -tea-kettle to be set into it. In the middle of this pan was a round -cavity, with a bottom and sides of sheet iron, and there was a piece of -cast iron, about half an inch thick, made to fit into this cavity. This -piece of cast iron was to be heated in the fire, and then put into its -place with the tongs, and then the tea-kettle was to be put over it, in -the pan, in such a manner that the bottom of the tea-kettle rested upon -the top of the heater. - -Rollo was very much interested in this apparatus. It was placed upon a -corner of the table, near the waiter, and Rollo’s attention was first -attracted to it by observing that the tea-kettle continued to boil a -little on the table. He could not think what made it boil; and, as they -were about sitting down to the table, his father began to explain it to -him. - -“The heater, you observe,” said he to Rollo, “furnishes heat to the -tea-kettle by conduction, to supply the waste by radiation.” - -“What, sir?” said Rollo. He did not understand his father very well. - -“Why, the tea-kettle loses its heat by radiation principally, and the -heater supplies it by conduction, and so one restores what is lost by -the other.” - -“I don’t understand it, exactly,” said Rollo. - -“Well,” said his father, “I’ll explain it to you presently, alter we -have taken our seats at the table.” - -Accordingly, when they were all seated at the table, Rollo asked his -father about the operation of the heater and the tea-kettle. - -“Well,” replied his father, “I will explain it to you. It is a very good -apparatus to illustrate the subject. The tea-kettle is a radiator, and -the heater is a conductor, and so they show both modes of conveying -heat. - -“For,” continued his father, “as the sides of the tea-kettle do not come -in contact with any thing but the air, they do not conduct away the heat -much; for the air does not take heat easily by conduction. But the -tea-kettle radiates heat continually. If you put your hand near it, you -will feel the heat passing off into the air all around.” - -Here Rollo, who was seated not very far from the tea-kettle, put out his -hand towards it to feel the radiation. - -“The tea-kettle would conduct away the heat very fast, if there was any -thing touching it all around, which would take heat easily by -conduction.” - -“How fast?” said Rollo. - -“Why, if you were to put your hands to it, clasping it all around, the -heat would be conducted very fast into your hand, and you would be -burned. Your hands would receive the heat readily by conduction, but the -air does not. - -“And the tea-kettle,” continued his father, “does not radiate the heat -very fast, because it is a bad radiator. It is made so on purpose.” - -“What do you mean by a _bad_ radiator, father?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, all white, and bright, and polished surfaces radiate very -little,—and all dark, and dull, and rough surfaces radiate very fast. So -the bright surfaces are called bad radiators, and those that are of dark -color and dull, are called good radiators. A bright tea-pot, made of -metal, is a bad radiator, and that makes a good tea-pot.” - -Rollo laughed. - -“Its being so bright prevents its radiating the heat of the water within -it very fast away, and so the water keeps hot longer. But a stove pipe, -which is of dark color, and not polished, is a good radiator. They make -them so on purpose. A stove pipe made of some bright metal would look a -great deal better, but it would not warm the room so well.” - -“But, father,” said Rollo, “this copper tea-kettle isn’t white, nor very -bright.” - -“No,” said his father, “it is not very bright: but the surface is -polished, you see, somewhat, and this prevents its radiating much. Still -it radiates more of the heat than it would if it was of silver, and -polished as bright as possible. But a common iron tea-kettle, black upon -the outside, would radiate heat much faster than this one. - -“There is another thing for you to understand and remember,” continued -his father; “and that is, that those substances which radiate heat best, -also _receive_ heat by radiation the best.” - -“I don’t know exactly what you mean by receiving heat by radiation, -sir,” said Rollo. - -“Suppose,” said his father, “that we were to cut out a square piece of -sheet iron, such as the stove pipe is made of, as large as the palm of -my hand, and also a piece of silver, like that which a tea-pot is -sometimes made of, and have it polished as perfectly as possible. -Suppose, then, that we were to carry both of these out, and lay them -down in the sun. Or suppose we hold them up before the fire, so that -they would receive the radiation from the fire. Now the iron plate would -receive the rays of heat more rapidly than the other, and become hot the -soonest.” - -“Would it, sir?” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father; “or, if you were to lay them down in the sun -out of doors, the effect would be the same.” - -“I wish we had such pieces to try it,” said Rollo. - -“Did not you ever observe how cold bright brass andirons are, long after -the fire has been built in the fireplace?” - -“I have,” said Rollo’s mother. - -“So have I, sir,” said Rollo. - -“It is because they are polished, and so are neither good to radiate nor -to receive radiation. There is another way by which the same principle -is illustrated in the spring of the year, when the snow is melting away. -Every little leaf, or stick, or insect, that happens to light upon the -snow, soon sinks down.” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo, “the bees do. Last spring, when I went out in -the pasture on the crust one morning, I found a great many bees all down -at the bottom of little holes in the snow. I couldn’t think how they -happened to get into those little holes.” - -“The holes were made by the heat of the sun,” said his father, “after -the bee fell. The bee is of dark color, and his body receives the -radiation of the sun much better than the snow, which is polished.” - -“The snow polished?” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father. “The snow is composed of flakes, and the flakes -of a great number of little needle-like crystals, and all these crystals -are polished, so that they do not radiate well, nor receive radiation -well. Therefore the heat of the sun has not much effect upon a pure snow -bank. But the body of the bee is a good radiator, and also a good -receiver of radiation. So it gets warm, and that melts the snow under -it, and then it sinks down, so that after a time it gets down to the -bottom of a little pit, which it has made itself.” - -“That’s very curious,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father; “and it is so with every little stick, or sprig, -or dry leaf, which happens to fall upon the snow. You could see the -effect more distinctly still, if you were to put a bright piece of tin, -and a piece of sheet iron, like stove pipe of the same size, upon the -snow in the sun. The iron would receive the radiation, and get warm, and -would sink down in the snow, but the tin would not receive the -radiation.” - -“Wouldn’t it receive any at all?” asked Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father, “it would receive some, I’ve no doubt, but -perhaps not more than the snow itself would on each side of it; and so -the snow that was all around it would melt away as fast as that which -was under it, and thus would not make any pit or depression in the snow, -as the black iron would.” - -“But I have observed,” said Rollo’s mother, “that, in the spring of the -year, wherever there are chips or shavings upon the snow, in the yard, -it does not melt away under them, as fast as it does in other places.” - -“Yes, father,” said Rollo, “and hay too. Last year, there was some hay -left at the post where Jonas tied the horse; and, after the snow was all -gone from the rest of the yard, I raked that hay away, and I found a -great deal of ice under it.” - -“Yes,” said his father, “I’ve no doubt of it. That depends upon another -principle. But we shall not have time to talk about that now; I will -tell you about it after we get into the carryall.” - -In fact, they had by this time nearly finished their breakfast; and so, -after a few minutes more, they rose from the table, and Rollo went out -to tell Jonas that they should be ready to go whenever the horses were -harnessed. In about fifteen minutes, Jonas drove up to the door, and -they got into the carryall and set out for home. - - - QUESTIONS. - - What did Rollo observe in the yard when he looked out the window the - next morning? What were the difficulties in Rollo’s pumping? What - apparatus attracted Rollo’s attention at the breakfast-table? - Describe its construction. How did Mr. Holiday explain the operation - of it? What sort of surfaces radiate fast? What sort of surfaces - radiate slowly? What examples did Mr. Holiday mention to illustrate - this? Describe the appearances on the snow in the spring of the - year, which were mentioned by Rollo. - - - - - CHAPTER X. - CONDUCTION. - - -Very soon after Jonas had driven out of the village, Mr. Holiday went on -with his explanation. Rollo sat, as before, upon the front seat; but, by -turning a little in his seat, he could hear what his father said very -well. - -“Let us see,” said his father; “where did we leave off?” - -“About the chips,” said Rollo’s mother. - -“And the hay,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father. “We’ll take the case of the hay. Should you -think, from what I told you, that hay would be a good or bad radiator?” - -“Good,” said Rollo. - -“Why?” asked his father. - -“Because,” replied Rollo, “it is not bright and polished.” - -“Right,” said his father. “And should you think that it would be a good -or a bad receiver of radiation?” - -“Good,” replied Rollo again. - -“Yes,” added his father, “because all those surfaces which are good -radiators, are good receivers of radiation.” - -“Only,” said Rollo, “the snow doesn’t melt under it. It all turns to -ice.” - -“True,” said his father. “How thick was the hay in the place that you -refer to? that is, how much was there, and how thick a covering did it -make upon the ground?” - -“Not very thick,” replied Rollo. - -“An inch?” asked his father. - -“O, yes, sir, more than an inch.” Here Rollo held his two hands at a -little distance apart, in order to show his father how thick the -covering of hay was. It might have been three or four inches, though it -is not probable that Rollo’s recollection of it was very exact. - -“Very well,” said his father; “we will call it three inches. Now, you -must remember that the sun shines only upon the upper surface of the -hay, and, if it is ever so good a receiver of radiation, it is only the -upper surface that can be warmed by the direct rays. In order to melt -the snow, the hay has not only got to receive the heat from the sun by -radiation on the upper surface, but it has also got to convey it down -through this space of three inches by conduction. Now a substance may be -a very good radiator, and a very good receiver of radiation, while it is -a very bad conductor. And this is the case exactly with hay. It receives -radiation very well, and so the top gets warm under the rays of the sun; -but it _conducts_ very slowly, and so the bottom keeps cool, although -the top is warm. So, you see, a single blade of hay, laid upon the snow -under the rays of the sun, would make the snow melt the faster; but a -layer of it three inches thick would keep it from melting. A layer of -two feet thick would perhaps keep it from melting all summer.” - -“Why, father,” said Rollo, “I should think it would make it warmer.” - -“No,” said his father; “it would keep the warmth from getting to it, -because it is a slow conductor. If any thing already warm is covered up -in hay, it keeps it from getting cool; if any thing already cool is -covered up, it keeps it from getting warm.” - -“What things are good conductors?” asked Rollo’s mother. - -“The metals,” said his father, “are the best.” - -“If they are polished?” asked Rollo. - -“Whether they are polished or not,” replied his father. “I do not know -that that makes any difference. Because, you see, in being conducted, -the heat moves through the middle of the body, and not along its surface -so much; and I don’t know that the character of the surface is of much -importance. Some metals conduct better than others. The philosophers -have a curious kind of an instrument to show the different conducting -powers of different substances.” - -“What is it, father?” said Rollo. - -“Why, they have a small iron plate——” - -“Round?” asked Rollo. - -“No, square,” replied his father. - -“I thought plates were always round,” said Rollo. - -“No,” replied his father; “a plate, in philosophical language, is any -flat and comparatively thin piece of metal, or other such substance, -whatever its shape may be. This plate that I was speaking of is square, -or oblong,—I believe it is oblong,—and it is about as large as my hand, -and perhaps half an inch thick. - -“In this plate,” continued his father, “there are drilled a number of -little holes.” - -“How many, sir?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, perhaps eight,” said his father. “They are in a row, running along -the middle of the plate. The holes are about a quarter of an inch in -diameter.” - -“How much is that?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, I should think a common lead pencil might be a quarter of an inch -in diameter. The holes are of such a size that you could just put a lead -pencil in before it is cut.” - -“Are the holes bored entirely through the plate?” asked Rollo’s mother. - -“No,” replied his father, “a little more than half through.” - -“Then,” continued he, “they have a number of little rods made of -different substances,—such substances as they wish to try, in respect to -their conducting power. One is made of brass, one of iron, one of glass, -one of wood, &c., and these are fitted into the holes. That is, one end -of each rod is made just large enough to go into its hole and take out, -and yet not be loose in it. - -“The upper ends of these rods are hollowed out a little, so as to form -small cavities or cups, to put some phosphorus into.” - -“What is that for?” asked Rollo. - -“I’ll tell you,” said his father. “When they are going to use the -instrument, they put all the rods into their sockets, and a little bit -of phosphorus into the top of each one, in the cavity. Each piece of -phosphorus is about as big as the head of a pin. Now, when these rods -are all arranged in this way, the whole apparatus is put upon some hot -place, where the whole plate will be heated alike, as, for example, upon -the top of a stove. The heat from the stove is conducted into the iron -plate; from the iron plate it is conducted into the ends of the rods -which are in the sockets; thence it is conducted up the rods towards the -phosphorus at the tops of them, only it goes up much more slowly through -some than through others. And we can tell which rod conducts the heat -the most rapidly, for the phosphorus upon the top of that rod will be -the first to take fire.” - -“Will the phosphorus take fire?” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied his father. “If the stove is pretty hot, enough heat will -be conducted up the rods to set the phosphorus on fire. It will look as -if the tops of the rods were getting on fire. First one will blaze up, -and then another, and then another, according as the rods convey the -heat up more or less readily. Perhaps the phosphorus upon the top of the -glass or wooden rod will not take fire at all.” - -“I should think,” said Rollo, “that the heat would get up some time or -other, if it went up ever so slowly.” - -“No,” said his father, “for some of the heat is conveyed off into the -air, up and down the sides of the rods; and so, if the rods are very -long, or if they are very bad conductors, they would radiate the heat -from their sides so fast that not enough would get up to the top to set -the phosphorus on fire.” - -“What is the slowest conductor of heat?” said Rollo. - -“The air is a very slow conductor,” replied his father, “if we can only -keep it still. So is wood. A heap of shavings is a very slow conductor, -because it consists of wood and air together.” - -“How is that?” said Rollo. - -“Why, the little interstices between the shavings are all filled with -air; and the heat, in passing through, has to go through the thickness -of a shaving first, and then through a small space of air; then through -another shaving, and then a little more air; and so it works its way -along very slowly, and with great difficulty. Therefore, if any thing is -covered with shavings, heat neither gets into it nor out of it very -easily. It is the same with hay.” - -“Only the blades of hay are not wood,” said Rollo. - -“Not exactly,” replied his father, “and yet they are very near it. The -fibres of the stems of grass are very similar to the fibres of wood. At -any rate, they are both slow conductors; so that hay, like shavings, -will keep the heat from coming away from any thing that is hot, and from -getting into any thing that is cool.” - -“It is very strange,” said Rollo, “that the same thing should be good to -keep things hot, and to keep them cool too.” - -“I don’t know,” said his father, “that it is very strange, if we -consider how it operates. It keeps the heat from passing either way. Hay -has no warmth in itself. If you put hay about your feet when you are -riding, it will keep them warm, because the warmth is in your feet -already, and the hay keeps it from going away. On the other hand, if you -put hay around a lump of ice, it will keep it cool, because the ice -cannot melt unless some heat gets into it from the sun and air, and the -hay impedes the progress of the heat in going in, as well as in coming -out. It is just so with furs or blankets. They don’t make things warm. -They only keep them from getting cold.” - -“But, father,” said Rollo, “if my feet were very cold, and I were to -wrap them up in blankets, wouldn’t it make them grow warm?” - -“Yes,” said his father, “they would grow warm, but not because of any -warmth in the blankets. The warmth would be produced in your body by the -blood, and the blankets would keep it from escaping. That is all. -Blankets and furs would be the best things to put up ice in, to keep it -cool. They keep the heat from going off from our bodies, and so, in the -same way, they would keep heat from going in from the sun and air to the -ice.” - -“Why don’t they keep ice so, then?” said Rollo. - -“Because it would be very expensive. Shavings, and tan, and such things, -will do nearly as well, and they are a great deal cheaper. Branches of -trees would do very well, if the leaves were on. Once I heard of a boy -who made an ice-nest, that kept the ice all summer.” - -“How did he do it, sir?” said Jonas. - -“Why, he found a little hollow on the north side of a hill, and he -covered the bottom of it with hemlock branches a foot thick. Then he -piled up square blocks of ice upon the branches till he made a pyramid -of ice as high as his head, and as large on the bottom as a large table. -Then he heaped up straw and shavings all around it till the ice was -covered very thick. He also contrived to put some sheets of bark over -it, to keep the rain off; and thus he kept his ice nearly all summer.” - -“I should like to try it,” said Jonas. - -“It would be better for you to make a little building,” said Mr. -Holiday; “that would be much more convenient to get into. You would only -have to make the walls double, and fill the space between with tan, or -shavings, or straw, or any other substance like that, to keep the heat -out.” - -“Let us do it, Jonas,” said Rollo. “I should like a little ice-house -very much.” - -Rollo’s mother said that she wished Jonas would; so it was settled that -he was to try and see if he could make an ice-house. - - - QUESTIONS. - - What phenomenon that Rollo had observed was it that Mr. Holiday was - going to explain when they were seated in the carryall? Did they - conclude that hay would be a good or bad radiator?—a good or bad - receiver of radiation? How, then, did Mr. Holiday account for the - snow and ice melting so slowly under it? What was the object of the - philosophical instrument constructed? What are some of the best - conductors of heat? What substances are slow conductors? Describe - the plan which the boy devised for keeping ice all summer. - - - - - CHAPTER XI. - THE RIDE HOME. - - -After the conversation recorded in the foregoing chapter, the party in -the carryall rode on for some time in silence. They were going towards -the east, and the morning sun shone very pleasantly upon them, so that -it was not cold riding. The air had been frosty early in the morning, -but the rays of the sun brought so much warmth with them that they -enjoyed their ride very much. After some time, Rollo’s father began to -speak again of the conductive powers of different substances, thus:— - -“I think it probable that the fibres of wool and of fur are better -non-conductors of heat than the fibres of wood, and grass, and straw, -and other vegetable substances.” - -Rollo did not at first understand what his father meant by -_non-conductors_. He had not heard him use that term before. So he asked -him what it meant. His father told him that, as people often wanted to -employ substances which would not easily conduct heat, they had frequent -occasion to use a word adapted to denote such substances as were -suitable to such a purpose, and that _non-conductors_ was the term which -was so used. - -“There are two reasons,” said he, “why I think it probable that the -fibres of the covering of animals are better non-conductors—that is, -that they conduct heat more slowly—than vegetable fibres. I should like -to have you tell me whether you think they are satisfactory.” - -“Well, sir,” said Rollo, “if you will tell us what the reasons are.” - -“First, tell me of all the substances that you can think of which are -composed of animal fibres.” - -“Fur,” said Rollo, “and wool.” - -“And hair,” said his mother. - -“Yes,” said his father, “and woollen cloth, and blankets, and carpets, -and flannel, are made of such animal fibres. Now, can you tell me of any -substances which are composed of vegetable fibres?” - -“Hay,” said Rollo; and then he paused. He could not think of any others. - -“Cotton,” said his father, “and flax. They are vegetable fibres; and -cotton cloth, and linen, and paper, are fabrics made of vegetable -fibres. Now, there are two reasons which make me think that the animal -fibres are better non-conductors than the vegetable. One is, that they -are expressly intended for non-conductors, and therefore would probably -be so formed as most perfectly to answer their design. - -“For you see,” continued Mr. Holiday, “that the wool, and the fur, and -the hair, of animals is generally intended as a covering to protect them -from the cold. That is, it is intended to keep the heat of the body from -passing off, and being wasted in the air. Therefore they must be -non-conductors of heat, in order to answer this design. Now, we find -that everything in nature is admirably adapted to answer its design, and -therefore we should expect that these substances, which are expressly -intended to confine heat, would be the best non-conductors of heat in -nature. That is one reason.” - -“I think it is a very good reason,” said Rollo’s mother. - -“So do I,” said Rollo. - -“The other reason is this,” continued Mr. Holiday. “All the substances -made of the vegetable fibres feel colder to the touch in cold weather -than those made of animal fibres. For example, suppose you were to go, -in a very cold night, into a room where there was no fire, and put one -hand into a bed between the sheets, and the other between the -blankets,—which would feel the coldest?” - -“The sheets,” said Rollo, “a great deal.” - -“And the reason why they would feel coldest must be,” said Mr. Holiday, -“that they conduct away the heat from your hand the fastest, which shows -that they are better conductors of heat. If you were to put your hand -upon iron in such a room, it would feel colder still, because the iron -is a better conductor of heat than the vegetable fibres which the sheet -is manufactured from. - -“In the same manner,” continued Mr. Holiday, “a bare wooden floor feels -colder than one with a carpet upon it. Now, in the case of a bare floor, -it is vegetable fibre which conveys away the heat, and in the carpet, if -it is a woollen carpet, it is animal fibre. But a stone floor would feel -colder than a wooden one.” - -“A painted floor is very cold,” said Rollo’s mother. - -“Yes,” said Mr. Holiday; “paint is made of some metallic preparation -generally, which is a better conductor than wood. All the metals are -much better conductors than wood. That is the reason why they have -wooden handles to tea-pots and other such vessels, because a handle of -metal would conduct so much heat from the hot water to the hand, that we -could not hold it.” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “and the handle to the little tea-kettle at the -tavern was a wooden one. I did not know what it was for.” - -“It was to keep the heat from coming to your hand when you pour out the -water. If the handle had been of copper, it would have been necessary to -have a non-conductor to put around it, to keep the heat from coming out -of the handle.” - -“I never heard of such a thing,” said Rollo. - -“Haven’t you?” said his father. “They make them sometimes, and it is a -very ingenious contrivance.” - -“How do they make them?” said Rollo. - -“They make them of some substance formed of animal fibre,” said his -father, “because that makes the best non-conductor. The article, when -ready, can be put upon any handle which is likely to get hot, and, being -a non-conductor, it stops the heat from coming from the handle to your -hand. You can take up any hot thing by means of it,—unless it is hot -enough to burn the animal fibre of which the non-conductor is composed.” - -“I wish that I could see one,” said Rollo. - -“Well,” said his father, “you can, when you get home. Dorothy has got -one, I dare say.” - -“Dorothy!” repeated Rollo. - -“Yes,” said his father. “She calls it a _holder_.” - -“O, a holder,” said Rollo. “I did not know you meant a holder.” - -“Why, a holder is a non-conductor made of animal fibre, and intended -only to stop the passage of the heat from the iron handle to your hand.” - -“I thought it was only to keep our hands from touching the handle.” - -“No,” said his father, “for an iron holder would do that; but an iron -holder would soon get hot, and be of no use. That is, an iron holder -would allow the heat to pass across very soon to your hand. It must be a -non-conducting holder. - -“And now,” continued Mr. Holiday, “you understand fully the philosophy -of the copper tea-kettle. The iron heater was the reservoir of heat. As -it was a good conductor, it conveyed the heat rapidly into the bottom of -the tea-kettle, and so into the water. The water, being a good -conductor, conveyed the heat to the sides of the tea-kettle, but they -were made bright and polished, so that they should not radiate it fast -into the air. Still, however, they radiated the heat considerably; but -the waste was supplied by fresh heat from the heater. At first, the heat -came faster from the heater than it was radiated from the sides of the -kettle, and so the water was made to boil. But gradually the heater -became less hot, and so did not conduct heat so fast into the bottom of -the tea-kettle,—until, at length, there was a time when the supply was -just equal to the waste; that is, the heat was conducted in just as fast -as it was dissipated by radiation, and the temperature was kept at the -same point.” - -“That was something like my pumping, Jonas,” said Rollo. - -Jonas nodded his head, but did not speak, as he did not wish to -interrupt Mr. Holiday. - -“At length,” he continued, “the supply by conduction became less than -the radiation, and so the water began to cool, and probably, when we -left the table, the water had cooled considerably below the boiling -point. I think it likely it would have been better to have made the -heater of some other substance than iron,—something that is not so good -a conductor.” - -“Why, sir?” asked Rollo. - -“Because,” said Mr. Holiday, “in that case it would not have -communicated its heat so fast, and so the supply would have lasted -longer. The iron is so good a conductor, that at first it poured its -heat up through the bottom of the tea-kettle in such quantities as to -make the water boil. This was more than was wanted, and the heat at -first was wasted. In consequence of this, after a time it became too -cool, and did not heat the water enough. Now, if it had been made of -something which was not a good conductor, it would have parted with its -heat more slowly at first, and so the heat would have lasted longer.” - -“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “and what would have been good?” - -“Soapstone is a very good non-conductor,” said Mr. Holiday. “But then, -perhaps soapstone would have got bruised and broken by constant use, and -by heating and cooling. It isn’t a very hard kind of stone. I think it -probable that iron is, on the whole, the best.” - -Rollo learned nothing more on the subject of heat during this ride, for -very soon after this they began to draw towards home. After they had -arrived, and the horses had been taken care of, he and Jonas went to -look about for a good place to build the proposed ice-house. - - - QUESTIONS. - - What two classes of non-conductors were the subjects of conversation - on the ride home? Name some examples of animal fibres; of vegetable - fibres. Name some examples of fabrics composed of animal fibres; of - vegetable fibres. Which class of substances did Mr. Holiday suppose - were best non-conductors? What was the first reason which he - gave?—the second reason? What did Mr. Holiday say, further, in - respect to the operation of the heater? What was the point of - analogy between the operation of the heater and Rollo’s pumping? - What was the objection to iron as the material for the heater? What - other substance did Mr. Holiday suggest? What objection to soapstone - did he think of? - - - - - CHAPTER XII. - THE CONFLAGRATION. - - -One night, some months after the occurrences related in the last few -chapters, Rollo had an opportunity of witnessing with Jonas a great -conflagration in the city. This incident may very properly be described -in this volume, which relates to the phenomena of fire. - -Jonas and Rollo had gone to the city on some business for Mr. Holiday. -Jonas’s orders were to return that night if he could get through with -his business; if not, to wait until the next day. It happened that he -could not get through with his business, for the man whom he wished to -see was not at home. They said he would be at home that night, and that -Jonas could see him early the next morning. So they had to spend the -night in the city. They took a walk in the evening, doing some errands, -and looking at the curious things in the shop windows; and at last they -went back to the hotel, and retired to bed. Jonas had engaged a room for -himself very near Rollo’s room. - -Rollo did not go to sleep for some time, his mind being somewhat excited -by the novelty of the scenes which he had been witnessing, and by the -strange place in which he was now trying to go to sleep. At length, -however, he got asleep, and dreamed that he was buying a large and -beautiful rocking-horse for Nathan, at one of the toy-shops in the -city,—and was just mounting the rocking-horse to take a little ride -himself, when his visions were disturbed by hearing some strange, -confused, and terrifying sounds. He started up and listened. There -seemed to be a great sound in the street, and a bright light was -flashing and moving upon the wall over his head. He also heard a noise -at the door of his room; and, before he had time to consider what all -this disturbance meant, he heard Jonas’s voice, saying in a gentle -tone,— - -“Rollo.” - -“What?” said Rollo, eagerly. - -“Don’t be frightened. It’s only a fire.” - -“A fire! where?” said Rollo. - -“I don’t know where it is,” replied Jonas. - -Rollo listened a moment, and he could hear the city bells ringing in -very mournful and alarming tones, some near, and some at a distance. -There was one belonging to a church nearly opposite to the hotel, which -sounded very loud and near. The flashing light upon the wall moved -gradually along the room, and then disappeared; and soon after another -came in on the opposite side, and moved along the wall in the same -manner. Rollo could hear the sound of a great uproar in the street -below, consisting of confused but loud and hoarse voices, the heavy -rattling of wheels, and a bell which sounded in a very peculiar manner -as it moved along the street, as if it was rung by being jolted and -jarred. - -Rollo and Jonas went to the window to look out. It was a dark and cloudy -night, and the window was very high from the street, as Rollo’s room was -in one of the upper stories of the house. Still they could look down -upon the street below, and see that it was filled with a torrent of men, -moving along in a hurried manner, the whole mass being illuminated by -great torches which some of the men carried in their hands. They were -dragging along a fire engine, which thundered over the pavement as they -ran, in the most terrifying manner. - -“Let’s go and see the fire,” said Rollo. - -“Well,” said Jonas, “we might; only perhaps there may not be any fire. -Perhaps it is only an alarm.” - -“No matter,” said Rollo; “let us go and see the alarm.” - -Rollo knew that to witness the scene of noise and excitement in the -street, would interest him very much, even if there was no house on -fire. - -“Well,” said Jonas, “dress yourself as quick as you can, and I’ll come -in again when I’m ready.” - -Jonas accordingly went out, and finished making his preparations, and -then returned. He required Rollo to put on his great-coat, for he said -there would be danger of taking cold in standing still in the chill -evening air, to look at the fire if they should find one. When they were -ready, they hurried down stairs. - -The street seemed to be nearly still when they left Rollo’s room; but, -when they issued from the hotel, and stepped out upon the sidewalk, they -heard the sound of noise and uproar approaching again. They looked in -the direction from which the sound came, and saw a great torch coming -along the street, which flamed, and flashed, and illuminated the -pavements and the buildings on each side of it. It was followed by a -long, double line of men and boys, with other torches and lights at -intervals, pulling upon a rope; and farther behind they heard a very -heavy, lumbering sound of wheels, and a sort of confused roar of voices -mingling with it. It was another fire engine. It approached with great -rapidity, and a crowd of men and boys attended and followed it, so large -as to fill the street full; and, brushing rudely by Jonas and Rollo on -the sidewalk, they filled the air with their loud but hoarse and hollow -shouts. “Ahead with her! ahead with her!” - -Rollo could not see the engine, for the street was perfectly filled, -while it passed, with a dense crowd of men and boys, all running along -by its side. Rollo thought that some of them would certainly get run -over. - -“We’ll go a little slower,” said Jonas, “till the engine gets by, and -then we shall have more room.” - -“No,” said Rollo, “let’s keep up. I want to see where they will go.” - -“Well,” said Jonas,——“O, there’s the fire.” - -Rollo looked forward where Jonas pointed. He saw, through the opening -between some tall buildings before them, a faint light in the sky. He -saw it however only for a few moments; for, as they passed on, the -towering walls of the city buildings intervened again, and hid it from -their view. - -Pretty soon, however, at a turn of the street they came in view of the -light again; and now it looked much brighter than before. It spread -upwards, in fact, and illuminated a considerable part of the sky. The -sight of the light appeared to animate the engine-men, for they began to -run on faster than before, the heavy lumbering of the wheels, and the -shouts of, “Ahead with her!” sounding louder than ever. Opposite to -where Rollo and Jonas were, there was a light, tossing and dancing upon -the top of a tall pole, representing the number _ten_ in figures of -fire. - -“O Jonas,” said Rollo, “look at that _ten_.” - -“Yes,” said Jonas, “that is the number of the engine.” - -“How can they make such fiery figures?” - -“Why, they put the lamp in a glass lantern, and they paint the glass -black, all except a place left bare, of the shape of the figure which -they wish to have, and so the light shines through where the glass is -not painted, and that makes the figures of fire.” - -Just then Rollo heard sounds of new uproar and confusion approaching by -another street. He looked in the direction, and saw an engine coming -with its long lines of men and its great crowds, its torches and its -thundering sounds. The great mass seemed to be coming on with prodigious -momentum. They were coming down into the street where they were, and -Rollo thought that they would certainly run over No. 10. When they -approached the junction of the streets, and saw that the street which -they were coming into was already filled up with another engine and the -crowds about it, they did not stop, but kept rushing on, and swept -around the corner directly into the crowd, where all became mixed and -mingled together, making confusion worse confounded. The crowd became so -dense that Rollo and Jonas could not have got along at all, were it not -that the crowd itself was moving on; and so every body that was among -them was necessarily borne onwards too. - -Just then Rollo heard a very loud and hoarse voice calling out, “Hold -on, No. 10! Hold on, No. 10!” - -“What’s that?” said Rollo. - -“That’s a man with a speaking-trumpet,” said Jonas. - -“What does he mean by _hold on_?” - -“He means _stop_,” replied Jonas. “He wants No. 10 engine to stop here.” - -The cry of the engineer, “Hold on, No. 10!” was repeated and reechoed by -a great many other voices in the crowd, though it was mingled and -confounded with many other noises, such as the rumbling of the wheels -upon the pavement, the _dinging_ of the engine bells, and shouts and -outcries from a hundred voices. At last, however, the men and boys -attached to No. 10 seemed to understand that they were to “_hold on_;” -and, accordingly, the engine gradually came to a stand, while the other, -which was No. 6, as Rollo learned from a bright figure 6 which he saw -tossing about in the air over the heads of those who were drawing it, -moved on. - -The men about No. 10 took out some long handles, which were secured by -the side of the engine, and passed them through some iron rings, fitted -to receive them; and then they all took hold, ten or fifteen men on each -side ready to work the engine. Presently the order was given in the same -hoarse and hollow voice from the speaking-trumpet, “Play away, No. 10!” -and immediately the men began to work the long handles up and down, with -quick and heavy strokes. - -“Why, Jonas,” said Rollo, “what are they doing?” - -“They are working this engine,” said Jonas. - -“What for?” said Rollo; “they are not near the fire.” - -“I suppose there is a reservoir near here,” said Jonas, “and they are -driving the water from it along towards some engine that is near the -fire.” - -“How does the water go?” said Rollo. - -“In a hose,” said Jonas. - -“What is a hose?” asked Rollo. - -“It is a long leather pipe or tube. Come out this way, and we shall find -it, I suppose, lying along the street.” - -So the boys pushed their way along beyond the engine, and presently the -fire itself burst upon their view in all its glory. It was a store,—one -of the stores of a block which extended along the whole street. The -front was of brick, and the walls between the different stores of the -block were also of brick, so that nothing but the inside and the roof -could burn. But the whole interior of the building was on fire, the -flames issuing from the windows, and rising in a great, bright, roaring -pyramid above the roof, far up into the dark sky. The whole street, -except exactly opposite to the fire, where it was too hot for persons to -stand, was filled with men whose faces, which were all turned towards -the fire, were so brightly illuminated by the light, that Rollo could -see them more distinctly than if it had been day. From the midst of a -dense crowd just beyond the fire, Rollo saw a slender white thread of -water mounting up in a beautiful curve, and falling over upon the -flames. It was the jet from an engine; but it seemed to produce no -effect upon the flame whatever. - -“There is the hose,” said Jonas, suddenly. - -Rollo turned away from the fire to look at the hose which Jonas pointed -out to him, lying upon the pavement. There were a great many persons -coming and going, so that he could not see very well; but he perceived a -long pipe of leather lying along the street, in a serpentine direction, -and swelled out with the water which the engine was driving through it, -as if it was just ready to burst. - -“It looks like a snake,” said Rollo. - -“Yes, and it hisses like a snake too,” replied Jonas. - -Rollo listened, and he could just hear a hissing sound mingling with all -the other noises. He stepped out into the street to see how the hissing -sound was produced. - -They found that at one of the joints of the hose there was a little -leak, and the water spouted from it in a stream, which, though it was -very small and slender, mounted as high as Rollo’s head. The light from -the fire shone so brightly upon this part of the street that Rollo could -see the operation very distinctly. - -Jonas thought that it was not very safe for them to remain in the midst -of the road much longer; so they went back to the sidewalk, and then -began to move along towards the fire. The crowd was so dense that they -could not get along very well; but at last they came to a place where -they got up upon some steps, where they could see pretty well, only that -Rollo was not tall enough. There were many others standing upon the -steps, and Rollo could not see very well over their shoulders. There -was, however, a pretty high stone post at the top of the flight of -steps, and very near the house, where Jonas thought that perhaps Rollo -could sit, if he could get him up there. Rollo was afraid that the place -was not wide enough, for there was a ball upon the post, and he could -only sit upon that part of the top of the post which was upon one side -of the ball. - -However, Rollo was so desirous of seeing them put out the fire, that he -concluded to try, and so Jonas helped him climb up. He found the place a -better one than he had expected. He clasped one hand around the ball, -and he rested the other upon Jonas’s shoulder and by this means he found -that he had a firm and comfortable seat; and the fire, with all the -operations connected with it, were in full view before him. - -Just as he got established in his seat, he saw a stream from another -engine beginning to issue from its pipe, and to rise up towards the -building. The man who held the pipe stood upon the top of the engine, -and he held it in such a way as to direct it towards one of the upper -windows. Rollo could see the red flame through the window, as the -shutter had been burned, and all the glass had fallen away; and, now and -then, a great puff of flame would come out, when any momentary change in -the wind drove the fire in that direction. The stream of water went -directly in at the window. At first, it produced very little effect; but -presently he observed that it began to deaden the redness of the fire -just within the window. Rollo thought that this engine was far more -powerful than the one which he had noticed before. That still continued -to play around behind the building. Rollo occasionally got a glimpse of -other jets, coming from engines which were standing on that side. -Sometimes these jets came away over the top of the building, and Rollo -could see them broken into drops as their force was spent, but still -shooting forward through the flames in regular pulsations, produced by -the successive strokes of the engines from which they came. - -By all these means, the fire was soon perceptibly diminished. The window -into which the engine was playing soon ceased to look red at all; and -presently Rollo saw a tall ladder rising slowly above the heads of the -crowd. The lower end of it was nearly under the window, which he had -been noticing, while the other end extended almost across the street, -and slowly rose. Rollo was expecting every moment to see it fall back -upon the heads of the people who were under it; but it did not. It -ascended slowly and steadily, until the upper end passed over, and fell -against the building, a little above the window. In a moment, a man -appeared at the foot, climbing up the rounds laboriously, as if he was -carrying up a burden which made him mount with difficulty. Rollo saw, -pretty soon, that he had an engine pipe in his hands; and presently he -observed that it was the same man whom he had seen before, holding the -pipe of the engine, and directing the stream into the window. The man -ascended slowly, dragging up the pipe, and the hose which was attached -to the bottom of it, until, at length, when the hose became so long that -he could not lift it any farther, another man took hold below, and -presently another; and at last there were four men at different parts of -the ladder, all lifting up the hose. - -When the man at the top got the pipe up opposite to the window, he -pointed it in, and then Rollo could see him looking down, and -gesticulating very violently to those below. He seemed to be calling out -to them; but there was so much noise that Rollo could not hear what he -said. However, presently the man turned around towards the building -again, and seemed to be attending to his pipe, and Rollo could see that -the water was spouting through it very furiously into the building. - -By this time, the fire had been so much deadened, by the various jets of -water which had been poured upon it from all sides, that the flames no -longer ascended above the roof, but, instead of flame, there was a tall -column of dense white smoke, illuminated by the embers which still -glowed below. Rollo and Jonas remained nearly half an hour, watching the -progress of the extinguishing of the fire; and then, as Rollo began to -feel his seat somewhat uncomfortable, they returned together to the -hotel. Rollo said he wondered that the other buildings did not take -fire; but Jonas told him that bricks were a pretty good non-conductor of -heat, and that, if the walls which divided such a block were of proper -thickness, one store was often burned out of the block, without setting -fire to the adjoining buildings. - - - QUESTIONS. - - Under what circumstances did Rollo first hear the alarm of fire? - What did he observe in the street when he looked out the window? - What is a reservoir? How was the water conveyed from the reservoir - to the vicinity of the fire? Describe the successive steps of the - process by which the fire was extinguished. What did Jonas say in - regard to the reason why the fire was not communicated to the other - buildings of the block? - - - - - CHAPTER XIII. - THE FIRE IN THE WOODS. - - -When Rollo and Jonas reached home the next day, Rollo gave Dorothy an -account of the conflagration which they had witnessed in the city. - -Dorothy did not appear quite so much interested in his narrative as -Rollo had expected. There are, in fact, a great many scenes which it is -very interesting to witness, but which it is very uninteresting to hear -described. This is a distinction which a great many travellers, older -and more experienced than Rollo, are apt to forget. Or rather it is one -that they do not understand at all. They attempt to describe to their -friends scenes of grandeur or sublimity which impressed their minds very -strongly when they witnessed them, and are surprised to find that they -cannot make a similar impression upon others by means of the -description. - -Besides, Rollo’s account was confused and indistinct. It is possible to -create a strong impression upon the mind by a description of a storm, or -of a conflagration, or of any other grand scene. But, then, the -description must be given skilfully. It must be clear and distinct, and -the several circumstances which contributed most to the production of -the general effect, must be presented fully to the mind, and in a -regular and proper manner. This Rollo failed to do. He was not -experienced in the description of complicated scenes. - -Accordingly, when he got through with his narrative, and perceived that -Dorothy did not enter at all into the enthusiasm with which he related -it, he paused a moment, and then said,— - -“Did you ever see a fire in a great city, Dorothy?” - -“No,” said Dorothy. - -“Well, it is a very grand sight, I can assure you,” said Rollo. “I don’t -believe _you_ ever saw such a grand sight, in your life.” - -“Yes, I have,” said Dorothy. - -“What?” asked Rollo. - -“A fire in the woods,” replied Dorothy. - -“O Dorothy!” said Rollo; “a fire in the woods is nothing at all, -compared to a fire in a city. I know, because Jonas and I have built -fires in the woods a hundred times.” - -“O, I don’t mean your little bonfires,” replied Dorothy. “I mean great -fires, when the woods are burning themselves, for miles and miles all -around.” - -“Do the woods get on fire like that?” asked Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied Dorothy. “I remember one fire, in the woods, when I was a -little girl, that came very near burning my father’s house. I was quite -a little girl.” - -“How old?” asked Rollo. - -“About seven years,” said Dorothy. “It was when my father lived in his -log-house in the square opening.” - -“What do you mean by that?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, my father made his cut-down square. There were just five acres.” - -“What is a cut-down?” asked Rollo. - -“The piece where he cut down the trees,” said Dorothy, “to make a -clearing. First they fall the trees, and then it is called a _cut-down_. -They let the trees lie all summer, until they get perfectly dry, and -then they set them on fire, and burn them. When my father had got his -five-acre piece cleared, he built a log-house upon it, and there we -lived. The opening was full of stumps, and the woods were all around it, -the stems of the trees standing up thick and close together, like a -wall. We could not see out of the opening any where, except a little way -down the road.” - -“And did you live there all alone?” asked Rollo. - -“O, no,” said Dorothy; “there were my father and mother, and my brother; -only my father and brother used to be away almost all the time, at -work.” - -“Well,” said Rollo, “tell me about the fire.” - -“Why, the first that we knew of it, was, that I saw one day a great -white smoke rolling up over the tops of the trees, to the north of our -house. I asked my mother to come and look at it, and she did. She said -she guessed that John Williams was burning off his piece.” - -“Who was John Williams?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, he was one of our neighbors. He lived about two miles off, and had -been falling a piece of woods that spring, for a crop of wheat. - -“I watched the smoke for some time,” continued Dorothy, “and at length -it grew smaller and smaller, and finally I could see nothing but a haze. -But, that night, I went out, about nine o’clock, to see if my chickens -were all safe,—for there were some foxes about at that time,—and I saw -that the sky looked red in that direction; so I knew that the fire had -not all gone out.” - -“Was that the time,” interrupted Rollo, “when you had your hen-coop in a -stump?” - -“Why? did I ever tell you about that?” asked Dorothy. - -“Yes,” replied Rollo, “you told me about your hen’s laying her eggs in -an old hollow stump; and then your brother made a coop there, for the -chickens.” - -“Yes,” rejoined Dorothy, “that was at the same time. The next morning, I -saw the smoke coming up again. It was not so thick as it had been the -day before, when the fire first began to burn; but it seemed to spread -over a larger space.” - -“Had the fire got into the woods?” asked Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied Dorothy. “My father told us, when he got home that day to -dinner, that John Williams had let his fire get away from him, and that -it had got into a fine growth of sugar maples, and was making sad work. - -“My mother asked him if there was not any danger that it would get over -to our land; but my father said no, not unless the wind should come in -strong from the northward. But he said he thought there would be a -shower that afternoon, and that would put it out.” - -“And was there a shower?” asked Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied Dorothy; “only the cloud brought more wind than rain, and -so it fanned up the fire more than it extinguished it. The rain, in -fact, only sprinkled the tops of the trees, leaving all the dry logs, -stumps, leaves, and branches, which lay about upon the ground, as dry as -ever. After the shower, there was a good fresh breeze all the evening; -and about nine o’clock that evening, when we went to bed, the whole sky -in that quarter was of a burning red, as if the heavens were on fire.” - -“I should have thought you would have been afraid to go to bed,” said -Rollo. - -“No,” said Dorothy; “for the wind went down about nine o’clock, and, -though the fire looked very bright, my father said it would not spread -any more.” - -“How did it look the next morning?” asked Rollo. - -“It only looked smoky,” replied Dorothy. “In fact, we never could see -any light in the daytime; nothing but smoke. When there was a wind, the -smoke increased; and then, if night came on, the sky looked bright and -glowing; but if there was not any wind, the fire seemed to die away. -Once I thought it was all out.” - -“And wasn’t it?” asked Rollo. - -“No,” replied Dorothy; “my father said that nothing but a good rain -would put it out.” - -“Why did not your father go,” asked Rollo, “and put it out with some -buckets of water?” - -“Buckets of water, child!” said Dorothy; “do you suppose that you can -put out a fire in the woods with buckets of water?” - -“Why, no,” said Rollo, “I suppose not. But they could put it out with -such engines as we saw in the city; I know they could.” - -“You know a great many things that I don’t,” said Dorothy. “However, we -did not have any engines, and so there was nothing to do but to wait for -rain. But it happened to be a dry time just then, and there was not any -rain for a week; and so the fire continued, sometimes burning up bright, -and sometimes dying away, but all the time drawing gradually nearer to -our house. - -“At last, one night it got so near that my father said that he did not -know but that he ought to sit up and keep watch; but the wind shifted -before bedtime, and blew it off in another direction, and so he went to -bed. - -“But about midnight I heard a great noise, which waked me up. I opened -my eyes, and looked around, and I saw a great light shining through the -cracks.” - -“What cracks?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, the cracks between the slabs.” - -“Where were the slabs?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, the upper part of the house was made of slabs, and there were -cracks between them, where I could see out.” - -“I should think the wind and rain would come in,” said Rollo. - -“Yes,” replied Dorothy; “so they did, when it was stormy, but not enough -to do any harm, because I could always move my bed away from the side -where the wind blew; only in the winter the snow used to blow away in to -my bed, wherever I put it. But that did not do any harm, because the -snow would shake all off again.” - -“Was not there any window in your chamber?” asked Rollo. - -“Why, it was not a chamber exactly,” replied Dorothy; “we called it a -_loft_. There was a window left in one end, but that was fastened up by -a board. So I could only see the lights through the cracks.” - -“What was the noise that you heard?” asked Rollo. - -“It was the noise that my father made calling up my brother, and running -out. Then, besides, there was a great roaring and crackling of the -flames. I got up, and dressed myself, and ran down stairs, and I found -the woods all on fire close by our house.” - -“Why, I thought your house was in the middle of the opening,” said -Rollo. - -“No,” replied Dorothy; “it was upon one side of the opening,—pretty near -the woods. There was a brush fence running along at the edge of the -woods, and a log fence leading from the brush fence to our barnyard. The -brush fence was all on fire, and it was blazing up very high, and beyond -it, in the woods, the ground was covered in every direction with heaps -of logs, and branches, and old trees, all on fire, and burning -furiously. The air was full of smoke and sparks, and the wind was -driving them directly towards our house and barn. - -“Just then I heard behind me a great crackling, which burst out very -loud and suddenly. I looked to see what it was, and I found that the -fire had got into the top of a great hemlock-tree, and it was blazing -away from the top to the bottom of it. But I had no time to stand -looking at it, for my father told me to go and get some water at the -spring, and then to watch, and look all about the yard, and if I saw the -fire catching any where to put it out.” - -“Why did not he do that himself?” asked Rollo. - -“O, he had to go,” replied Dorothy, “and pull the log fence to pieces; -for the fire was creeping along the log fence towards our barn. The barn -was full of hay, which my father had got in only a few weeks before, and -there was a great haystack in the barnyard besides; and if these should -get on fire, the house would probably go too, for the house was very -near.” - -“And did they get on fire?” asked Rollo. - -“No,” replied Dorothy; “my father pulled away the log fence, and then -the fire could not get to the house and barn in any way except by sparks -through the air. And to keep the sparks from catching on the roof, he -got up upon the barn, and my brother got upon the house; and then my -mother brought them water from the spring. So they wet the roofs all -over. Once a spark lighted on the haystack, and set it on fire; but my -father saw it smoking, and he came down quick from the barn, and carried -the ladder to the haystack, and climbed up, and put it out with his pail -of water. There was another spark, too, which caught upon the chips in -the yard, near the woodpile; and _I_ put that out.” - -“How long did you have to stay?” asked Rollo. - -“O, till the morning,” said Dorothy, “and then the wind died all away. -And in the course of that day, there came on a rain storm, and it put -the fires out. But when I first came out to see it that night, I can -tell you the sight was very terrible.” - -“Yes,” said Rollo. “I think it must have been as terrible as the fire in -the city.” - -“It was very lonesome too,” said Dorothy; “only us four fighting such a -great fire.” - -“What should you have done,” asked Rollo, “if your house had taken fire, -and got burned down?” - -“O, my father would have built us a camp, and we should have lived in -that until he could have time to build us another house. But then I -don’t know what we should have done for hay all the next winter for our -oxen and cows. Father was much more afraid for the barn than for the -house.” - -“O Dorothy!” said Rollo. “Why, there was all the furniture in the house, -and that would have been burned up.” - -“No,” replied Dorothy, “there was not much furniture; and what there was -we could have got out while the house was burning. The hay was the great -thing—the winter’s stock of hay.” - -And thus ended Dorothy’s account of the fire in the woods. - - - QUESTIONS. - - To whom did Rollo attempt to describe the fire which he had - witnessed in the city? How did he succeed in the description? What - was the difficulty? What scene did Dorothy attempt to describe to - Rollo? What is a _cut-down_? In what sort of a place did her father - live when the fire in the woods occurred? How did the fire first - take? What was its progress the first day? What appearances did it - present to Dorothy? How did they hope that it would be extinguished? - Describe what took place on the night when the fire reached the - clearing. - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES - - - 1. Silently corrected typographical errors and variations in spelling. - 2. Archaic, non-standard, and uncertain spellings retained as printed. - 3. Enclosed italics font in _underscores_. - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Rollo's Philosophy [Fire], by Jacob Abbott - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROLLO'S PHILOSOPHY [FIRE] *** - -***** This file should be named 62726-0.txt or 62726-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/7/2/62726/ - -Produced by Richard Tonsing, David Edwards and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -book was produced from images made available by the -HathiTrust Digital Library.) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Rollo's Philosophy [Fire] - The Rollo Series - -Author: Jacob Abbott - -Release Date: July 22, 2020 [EBook #62726] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROLLO'S PHILOSOPHY [FIRE] *** - - - - -Produced by Richard Tonsing, David Edwards and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -book was produced from images made available by the -HathiTrust Digital Library.) - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class='tnotes covernote'> - -<p class='c000'><b>Transcriber’s Note:</b></p> - -<p class='c000'>The cover image was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_001.jpg' alt='The ROLLO BOOKS by JACOB ABBOTT. NEW YORK: T. Y. CROWELL & CO.' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<div class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_002.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic002'> -<p>SO HE TOOK UP A SMALL COAL OF FIRE.—Page <a href='#Page_97'>97</a>.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='titlepage'> - -<div> - <h1 class='c001'>ROLLO’S PHILOSOPHY.<br /> <span class='xlarge'>[FIRE.]</span></h1> -</div> - -<div class='figcenter id003'> -<img src='images/i_003a.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c0'> -<div class='nf-center c002'> - <div><span class='large'>THE ROLLO SERIES</span></div> - <div class='c002'><span class='small'>IS COMPOSED OF FOURTEEN VOLUMES, VIZ.:</span></div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c0'> - <div class='nf-center'> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo Learning to Talk.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo Learning to Read.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo at Work.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo at Play.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo at School.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Vacation.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Experiments.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Museum.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Travels.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Correspondence.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Philosophy—Water.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Philosophy—Air.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Philosophy—Fire.</span></div> - <div><span class='small'>Rollo’s Philosophy—Sky.</span></div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c0'> - <div class='nf-center'> - <div><span class='small'>A NEW EDITION, REVISED BY THE AUTHOR.</span></div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='figcenter id004'> -<img src='images/i_003b.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c0'> - <div class='nf-center'> - <div>NEW YORK</div> - <div>THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO.</div> - <div>PUBLISHERS</div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c0'> -<div class='nf-center c003'> - <div>Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1855, by</div> - <div>PHILLIPS, SAMPSON & CO.,</div> - <div>In the Clerk’s Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts.</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='pbb'> - <hr class='pb c002' /> -</div> -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_5'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>PREFACE.</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The main design in view, in the discussions -which are offered to the juvenile world, under -the title of <span class='sc'>The Rollo Philosophy</span>, relates -rather to their effect upon the little reader’s -habits of thinking, reasoning, and observation, -than to the additions they may make to his stock -of knowledge. The benefit which the author -intends that the reader shall derive from them, -is an influence on the cast of his intellectual -character, which is receiving its permanent form -during the years to which these writings are -adapted.</p> - -<p class='c006'>The acquisition of knowledge, however, though -in this case a secondary, is by no means an -unimportant object; and the discussion of the -several topics proceeds accordingly, with regularity, -upon a certain system of classification. -This classification is based upon the more obvious -external properties and relations of matter, -<a id='Page_6'></a>and less upon those, which, though they are -more extensive and general in their nature, and, -therefore, more suitable, in a strictly scientific -point of view, for the foundations of a system, -are less apparent, and require higher powers of -generalization and abstraction, and are, therefore, -less in accordance with the genius and -spirit of the <i>Rollo</i> philosophy.</p> - -<p class='c006'>As teachers have, in some cases, done the -author the honor to introduce some of the preceding -works of this class into their schools, as -reading books, &c., considerable reference has -been had to this, in the form and manner of the -discussion, and questions have been added to -facilitate the use of the books in cases where -parents or teachers may make the reading of -them a regular exercise of instruction.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_7'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CONTENTS.</h2> -</div> - -<table class='table0' summary='CONTENTS'> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER I.</td></tr> - <tr> - <th class='c008'></th> - <th class='c009'><span class='small'>Page</span></th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Slow Combustion</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_9'>9</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER II.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Lamp-Lighting</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_21'>21</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER III.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Burning Iron</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_36'>36</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER IV.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Fire in the Pasture</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_54'>54</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER V.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Theory and Practice</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_70'>70</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VI.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Gunpowder</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_85'>85</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VII.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>The Alarm</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_102'>102</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'><a id='Page_8'></a>CHAPTER VIII.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Radiation and Conduction</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_116'>116</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER IX.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Radiation</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_130'>130</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER X.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>Condition</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_142'>142</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER XI.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>The Ride Home</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_155'>155</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER XII.</td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='sc'>The Conflagration</span></td> - <td class='c009'><a href='#Page_165'>165</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - - -<div class='chapter ph1'><a id='Page_9'></a> - -<div class='nf-center-c0'> -<div class='nf-center c003'> - <div><span class='xlarge'>THE ROLLO PHILOSOPHY.</span></div> - <div class='c010'>FIRE.</div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER I.<br /> <span class='large'>SLOW COMBUSTION.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The way in which it happened that Rollo’s -father first began to explain to him something -about the nature of fire, was this: It -was one evening early in the autumn. Dorothy -was going away to visit one of her -friends, and Rollo was waiting for Jonas to -come out, and see the fire-flies, or lightning-bugs, -as he called them, which were flying -about the yard. But Jonas did not come as -soon as Rollo had expected, and so he went -into the kitchen to see what had become of -him. He found that, as Dorothy was rather -late for her visit, and still had her kitchen -fire to cover up, Jonas was just offering to -cover it up for her, so that she could go at -<a id='Page_10'></a>once without any further delay. So Rollo -came in, and stood by the kitchen hearth to -see Jonas cover up the fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>The fire had nearly burned out, but it -had left quite a large bed of embers, and a -few coals among them. Jonas took the -long-handled iron shovel, which belonged to -the kitchen fire, and with it he drew forward -all these coals and embers, so as to -leave the back part of the hearth bare. -Then he took the tongs, and with the tongs -he gathered out from the hot ashes all the -coals which he could find among the ashes, -and put them back upon the bare place -which he had made upon the hearth. He -spread them evenly over it in a row against -the back of the chimney.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What are you going to do, Jonas?” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I am going to cover up a stick of wood,” -replied Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Jonas opened a small door which led -to a little wood closet by the side of the fire, -and took out a short stick of wood, flat on -one side and round on the other. It was a -stick which was round first, but Jonas had -split it in two. It was part of a great -<a id='Page_11'></a>branch of a tree, large enough to make a -good log, only Jonas saw that it would split -easily, and so he had split it in two. The -other half of it was still in the wood closet.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“This is just the stick,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, the lower side is flat,” said Jonas, -“to lie upon the coals, and the top is round, -so that I can cover it all up the easier.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Jonas laid the stick down, with the -flat side against the coals, and the round -side outwards. Then with the great shovel -he began to shovel the ashes and embers -back over it. He put all the hot embers -in first, and then the ashes, and he tried to -cover up the stick entirely; but there was -not quite ashes enough. One of the ends -remained out.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There, Jonas,” said Rollo, “now come.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Jonas, “I must cover the -stick all up.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, that little end won’t do any harm,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas, “because, when the -stick burns down, that place would make a -hole, and let too much air in.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Don’t you want any air to get in?” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_12'></a>“Very little,” said Jonas. “I want a -very slow combustion to go on until to-morrow -morning, and then there will be a -good bed of coals for Dorothy.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t see why you take so much pains -to cover up a stick of wood,” said Rollo. -“You might light a fire with your tinder-box.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But it takes a great deal longer to make -a good fire with a tinder-box, than when -we have a good bed of coals.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then take a friction match,” said Rollo. -“I can light a friction match in half a -minute.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“You can light the match, but not build -a fire. It takes a long time with a match -light to get heat enough to set large sticks -of wood on fire; but, with a bed of burning -coals, we can do it very soon.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“You might have some sticks and shavings -for kindling,” said Rollo, “and they -will burn quick.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas, “but it is more trouble -to prepare sticks and shavings every night, -than it is to cover up a stick of wood.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>While Jonas had been saying these things, -he had taken more ashes from the ash-hole, -<a id='Page_13'></a>and had covered the stick over entirely. -He then put away the shovel, and was -brushing up the hearth, when Rollo, after -standing a moment, as if in thought, said,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Jonas, what do you mean by <i>combustion</i>?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Did I say <i>combustion</i>?” rejoined Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, you said you wanted slow <i>combustion</i>.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well, I meant burning. I want the -wood to burn slowly all night.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then why did not you say <i>burning</i>,” -said Rollo, “so that I could understand -you. I don’t see where you get all your -learned words. I suppose it is out of some -of your books.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas, “they call it <i>combustion</i> -in the books that I read, but I don’t -know exactly why. I think there must -be some difference between <i>combustion</i> and -<i>burning</i>, but I don’t know exactly what it -is.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I mean to ask my father,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But do you expect that that stick of -wood will burn, Jonas?” continued Rollo, -after a moment’s pause.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas, “it will burn slowly. -<a id='Page_14'></a>A little air will get through the ashes so as -just to keep it burning slowly. It is very -dry.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Suppose that there could not any air -get through at all?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, then,” said Jonas, “it couldn’t -burn at all. It would go out. Sometimes -I have buried up a fire so deep in ashes that -it has gone out, and then I find nothing but -black coals there in the morning, when I -rake it open. That’s the way they make -charcoal.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>But Jonas had no opportunity to answer -this question then, for they were just going -out into the yard when Rollo asked it, and -the attention of both the boys was attracted -to the fire-flies. They, however, soon had -looked at the fire-flies as much as they -wished. Rollo tried to catch one, but he -could not. He would see a flash at a little -distance from him, and he would run to the -place with his cap in the air; but, by the time -that he got there, the fire-fly would of course -have gone on to another place, though Rollo -could not tell where, without waiting to see -him flash again. Then he had to run again; -<a id='Page_15'></a>but before he got to this second place the -fire-fly would be gone again. One of the -fire-flies led him a zigzag chase, in this way, -all around the yard, and finally flashed at -last just over the garden fence, so that -Rollo gave up in despair.</p> - -<p class='c006'>In the meantime, Jonas had gone to the -barn; and now Rollo went to see what had -become of him. He found him shutting -the doors up for the night, and then they -both came back towards the house, and sat -down upon the edge of the platform, under -the piazza, and Rollo asked Jonas to tell -him how they made charcoal.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, they only bury up wood, as I did -my log, lightly, so that enough air can get -in, until it is burnt through; and then -they cover it up tight, so that no air can -get in, and so it goes out; and when it is -all cold, they open it, and find the heap is -all black coals.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How big a heap do they make?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, they make a very large heap, sometimes,” -said Jonas; “as big as this.” So -Jonas rose from his seat, and marked out a -circle in the yard with a stick, which he -<a id='Page_16'></a>had in his hand, in order to show Rollo how -large a heap they make, when they pile up -wood for a charcoal bed.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And how high do they make it?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“As high as <i>that</i>” said Jonas; and he -reached his stick up in the air as high as he -could, to show Rollo how high the heap -was.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That must take a great deal of wood,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas, “and when it is turned -into charcoal, they get a great many loads -of it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How do they get ashes enough to cover -it up?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, they don’t cover it with ashes,” said -Jonas; “they cover it with turf.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“With turf?” repeated Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas, “turf is the best thing -to cover the heap with. If they had ashes, -it would be very troublesome to put it on, -and then it would be sliding down, and -letting the fire break out. But they cut -square pieces of turf, and cover the heap -all over with them, very tight, and so only -just air enough gets in to keep the fire -slowly burning.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_17'></a>“Slow combustion?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, slow combustion,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How do you set it on fire?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I believe they leave a hole in the middle,” -said Jonas, “from the top down to -the bottom, and then they put the fire down -there.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wonder if I couldn’t make a charcoal -bed,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Jonas, “you might make -a little one, I suppose.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How should I do it?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, you might take some dry wood -from the shed, and wheel it down the lane, -and through the gate into the pasture. -Then you might take a spade, and cut up -some turf, though that would be rather -hard work for you.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish you would cut the turf for me,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Jonas, “perhaps I will. -Then you must hollow out a little place in -the bare spot I make by taking up the turf, -and make your pile of wood there, leaving -a hole in the middle.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How can I leave a hole?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, you can take three short pieces -<a id='Page_18'></a>of board, as long as you intend the height -of your pile to be, and stand them up on -the ground, so as to leave a three-cornered -space between them, and then pile your -wood around the three boards.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“So I can,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Your wood must be small,” continued -Jonas, “or else you can’t pile it very snugly -in a small pile. You had better take small -round sticks, and saw them short, and lean -them up against your boards all around, -and so make a snug pile. After the pile is -ready, you must bank up a little against -the bottom of your heap with the loose -earth, and then begin to put on the turf. -But that will be a nice business.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because you must fit them carefully all -around; and, as the heap will be round, -and will grow smaller towards the top, -square pieces of turf will not fit. You will -have to cut them into shape with a knife. -You can get an old knife to cut them with, -and so fit them together. But you must fit -them together well, or the air will get in, -and your heap of wood will blaze up, and -so it will be spoiled for charcoal.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_19'></a>“I can make it tight,” said Rollo, “I -know. I’ll shave away the sides of every -turf, till it fits its place exactly.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There must be some air,” said Jonas, -“or else the wood will not burn at all. You -must leave a few holes around at the bottom, -to let a little air in, then you can plug some -of them up, if you find the fire burns too -fast.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Rollo, “I mean to make -some charcoal some day. I’ll get my cousin -James to come and help me. I’ll begin to -saw up some wood for it to-morrow.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But, then, Jonas,” he continued, after a -moment’s pause, “what good will the charcoal -do me when I get it made?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, I don’t know,” said Jonas; “I wasn’t -thinking of your getting any good from the -charcoal. All the advantage would be, the -pleasure of making it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Isn’t there anything I can do with it,” -said Rollo, “when I get it made? What is -charcoal good for?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It makes a very hot fire. They use it -when they want a great heat. Blacksmiths -use it in their forges.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish I had a little forge,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_20'></a>“They use it to make gunpowder, too,” -said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, they take some charcoal, and -some sulphur, and some saltpetre, and -pound it up together, and it makes gunpowder.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That’s what I’ll do with my charcoal,” -said Rollo, jumping up from his seat. “I’ll -make some gunpowder. I’ll ask my mother -to give me some sulphur and saltpetre, and -I’ll make some gunpowder.”</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>What was the condition of the fire, on the evening -when it was left to Jonas to cover up? Describe the -arrangements which he made for covering up the fire. -What was the shape of the stick of wood? Why was -this form convenient for the purpose? What plan did -Rollo propose, instead of covering up the fire? What -objection did Jonas make to this plan? What term -did Jonas use to designate the process which would go -forward, during the night, under the ashes? What did -he say that <i>combustion</i> meant? Would any air at all -be necessary for the slow combustion? How was the -necessary air to get access to the wood? Why could -not Rollo catch the fire-flies? How did Jonas describe -the process of making charcoal? What did he say -were the uses of charcoal? To which of these uses -did Rollo intend to put his charcoal, if he should succeed -in making any?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_21'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER II.<br /> <span class='large'>LAMP-LIGHTING.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Rollo did not think to ask his father the -reason why the philosophers use such learned -language, or, as he expressed it, such hard -words, for several days. Perhaps he never -would have thought of it again, if his father -had not happened to use the word <i>combustible</i> -one evening, which reminded him of the -term <i>combustion</i>, which Jonas had used. -The occasion on which his father used the -word was this,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>One evening, Rollo’s mother was trying to -light a little lamp, to go into her bedroom -for something that she wanted. There were, -usually, in a little vase upon the mantel-piece, -some lamp-lighters, which were long, -slender rolls of paper, that Rollo had rolled -up for this purpose. They were kept in -this vase upon the mantel-piece in order to -be always ready for use. But the vase was -now empty. The last lamp-lighter had been -<a id='Page_22'></a>used; and so Rollo’s mother folded up a -small piece of paper, and attempted to light -the little lamp, which she was going to carry -into the bedroom, with that.</p> - -<p class='c006'>But the wick would not take fire, and -Rollo saw that, while his mother was continuing -her efforts to make it burn, the -flame of the paper was gradually creeping -up nearer and nearer to her fingers. At -last, finding that there would soon be danger -of burning her fingers, she walked across -the room towards a window which was open, -still endeavoring to light the lamp. But it -was all in vain. She reached the window -just in time to throw the end of the paper -out, and save her fingers from being burned.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why won’t it light?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo’s father was sitting upon the sofa, -taking his rest after the labors of the day; -and when he saw that the lamp failed of -being lighted, he said,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“You will have to get a longer lamp-lighter, -unless you have got some spirits of -turpentine to put upon the wick.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Spirits of turpentine?” repeated Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father. “In hotels, where -they have a great many lamps to light, they -<a id='Page_25'></a>have a little bottle of spirits of turpentine -with a wire running down into it; and, -when they take out the wire, a little drop of -the spirits of turpentine hangs to the end of -it, and they touch this to the wick, and then -it will light very quick.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, sir?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because spirits of turpentine is very -combustible, or rather inflammable.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That means it will burn very easily, I -suppose,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That makes me think of something Jonas -said, which I was going to ask you,” -said Rollo. “He said that, in books, burning -was always called <i>combustion</i>, and I told -him I meant to ask you why they couldn’t -as well call it <i>burning</i>.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t think that Jonas said exactly -that,” said his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir, he did,” replied Rollo; “at -least, I understood him so.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It is true, no doubt,” added his father, -“that, in philosophical books, philosophical -terms are very often used, instead of the -common language which we ordinarily employ.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_26'></a>“Why are they, father?” said Rollo. “I -think the common words are a great deal -easier to understand.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “but they are not -precise in their signification. They are -vague and ambiguous, and so philosophers, -when they wish to speak accurately, employ -other terms, which have an exact signification.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo looked perplexed. He did not understand -at all what his father meant. In -the meantime, his mother had brought a -fresh bundle of lamp-lighters from the closet, -and had lighted her lamp with one of them, -and was just going away. As she was going -out, however, she said to her husband,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Please to wait a minute, until I come -back, for I should like to hear what you are -going to say.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said he; “and you, Rollo, may -come and sit down by me, and I will explain -it to you when mother comes back.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo came and took a seat on the sofa -by the side of his father, saying,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Father, I wish you would have a bottle -of spirits of turpentine for us to light our -lamps by.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_27'></a>“It is not of much advantage in a family,” -said his father, “where the lamps are lighted -in various parts of the house, and only a few -in all to be lighted. But where there are a -great many, it is quite a saving of time to -have a little spirits of turpentine to tip the -wicks with. In an illumination they always -touch the wicks so, and by that means they -can light up suddenly.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But, father, why will the wick light any -quicker?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, different substances take fire at -different temperatures. For instance, if you -were to put a little heap of sulphur, and -another little heap of sawdust, on a shovel -together, and put them over a fire, so as to -heat them both equally, the sulphur would -take fire very soon, but the sawdust would -not until the shovel was very nearly red hot. -So if you were to put oil in a little kettle -over the fire, and spirits of turpentine in -another kettle, and have the fire the same -under both, the spirits of turpentine would -inflame long before the oil. There is a -great difference in different substances, in -regard to the temperature at which they -inflame.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_28'></a>“What do you mean by <i>temperature</i>, father?” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, <i>heat</i>,” said his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then why don’t you say <i>heat</i>?” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>His father laughed.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What are you laughing at, father?” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, that’s the same question that you -asked me at first, and I promised to wait till -mother came before I explained it. So we -will wait until she comes.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>They did not have to wait long, for Rollo’s -mother soon returned; and she put out her -lamp by means of a little extinguisher which -was attached to the stem of the lamp itself. -Then she sat down at the table, by the light -of a great lamp which was burning upon it, -and took out her work.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo’s father then repeated to her what -he had just been telling Rollo, namely, that -different substances took fire at different degrees -of heat; and he said that it would be -a very interesting experiment to take a long -iron bar, and put a small quantity of several -different substances upon it, in a row, and -then heat the bar gradually, from end to end -<a id='Page_29'></a>all alike, until it was very hot, and so see in -what order the various substances would -take fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I would have,” said he, “phosphorus, -sulphur, sawdust, charcoal, saltpetre, oil,—we -should have to make a little hollow in -the iron for the oil,—alcohol, spirits of turpentine, -and perhaps other things. The -phosphorus would take fire first, I suppose, -and then perhaps the sulphur, and others in -succession.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well, father,” said Rollo, “I wish you -would. I should like to see the experiment -very much.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father, “I cannot actually -try such an experiment as that. I could not -get such a bar very conveniently; and, if I -had the bar and all the substances, I could -not heat the bar exactly equally. It could -not be done very well, except in a chemical -laboratory. But it would be a very pretty -experiment, if it could be performed.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Is there a very great difference,” said -Rollo’s mother, “in the degree of heat necessary -to set fire to these different things?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Mr. Holiday, “I believe the -difference is very great. Phosphorus inflames -<a id='Page_30'></a>below the heat of boiling water, but it takes -almost a red heat to set wood on fire. And -iron will not take fire till it is white hot.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Iron?” said Rollo, with surprise.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “iron will take fire -and burn as well as wood, if you heat it hot -enough.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I never knew that,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The ends of the tongs and of the andirons -do not burn,” said his father, “simply because -the fire is never hot enough to set such -a large piece of iron on fire. But if we heat -the end of a bar of iron very hot indeed in a -furnace, it will take fire and burn; and so, -if we take a very minute piece of iron, as big -as the point of a pin, a common fire would -be sufficient to heat that hot enough to set -it on fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well, father,” said Rollo, “let us try it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“If we had some iron filings, we might -sprinkle them in the fire, or even in the flame -of a lamp, and they would burn.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish I had some filings,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “they burn beautifully.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How can I get some?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_31'></a>“You can get some at a blacksmith’s -shop,” said his father. “The filings commonly -accumulate behind the vice, and you -can get plenty of them there. The next -time you go by a blacksmith’s shop, you had -better go in and ask him to give you some.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Rollo, “so I will.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And now do you understand,” said his -father, “why it is that you can light a lamp -more easily when there is a little spirits of -turpentine on the wick?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo. “The spirits of -turpentine need not get so hot before it -catches fire, and so you don’t have to hold -the lamp-lighter so long, and burn your fingers.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Will oil always take fire when it gets to -a certain degree of heat?” asked Rollo’s -mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “I suppose so.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And yet,” said she, “the lamp seems to -take fire much more easily at some times, -than at others.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Mr. Holiday, “that is true. -If the wick is cut square across, and rises -up only a very little way above the tube, it -is very difficult to light it, because the tube -<a id='Page_32'></a>itself and the oil below keep the upper end -of the wick cool. It is very hard to heat it, -in that case, hot enough to set it on fire. -But if the wick projects considerably out of -the tube, then it is out of the way of the -cooling influence of the metal, and you can -heat the upper end more easily.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I never thought of that,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That is the operation of it,” said his -father. “And if you push the wick open a -little, so as to separate some of the fibres of -it from the rest, then it will take fire more -easily still; because the small part which is -separated, is more easily heated up to the -necessary point, than it was when it was -closely in contact with the rest, and so kept -cool by it. That is the reason why a thin -shaving takes fire so much more easily than -the outside of a large piece of wood. The -outside of a large piece is kept cool by the -parts of the wood behind it, which touch it, -while the shaving is heated through very -soon.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I didn’t know that before,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“In the cities,” continued his father, -“the lamp-lighters, that trim and light the -street lamps, always cut the wick off, when -<a id='Page_33'></a>they trim the lamps, in a slanting direction, -so as to leave a point of the wick projecting -up on one side. This point will light very -easily, for it stands by itself, somewhat -apart from the rest, and so is not kept cool -by the rest of the wick. Then, when they -put in their great, blazing torch, it heats -this point to the degree necessary to inflame -the oil very easily.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There is one thing more I want to tell -you, and that will be all I have to say about -lamps to-night; and that is, to explain to -you the philosophy of putting them out. -You must understand that two things are -necessary to carry on combustion or burning. -First, there must be air; and secondly, -the body burning must be kept above a certain -degree of heat. Now, if you either -suddenly shut off the air from the substance -that is burning, or suddenly <i>cool</i> the substance, -it will go out. For instance, the -wick,—you have to heat it to a certain -degree before it will take fire. Now, if, -after it is burning, you suddenly cool it -below that degree, it will go out; or if you -shut out the air from it, then it will go out; -for it cannot burn unless it continues hot, -<a id='Page_34'></a>and unless it continues to have a supply -of air.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now, when we blow out a lamp, we -stop the burning by cooling it. The cool -air which we blow against it, suddenly -cools the upper end of the wick below the -point of combustion, and so it goes out. -On the other hand, when we put it out by -an extinguisher, we stop the burning by -means of shutting out the air. Either mode -will stop the combustion.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And how is it when we put on water?” -asked Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, that is somewhat different from -either,” said Mr. Holiday, “or rather it is -both combined. There is something very -curious in the operation of water upon fire; -that I must explain some other day, for now -it is time for Rollo to go to bed.”</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>What was the difficulty in lighting the lamp, as -described in the beginning of this chapter? What -method did Mr. Holiday say was sometimes adopted in -hotels to make the lamps light quick? Why would -this make them light more easily? What question did -<a id='Page_35'></a>Rollo ask his father in respect to the use of philosophical -language? Why did not his father answer the -question immediately? Do all substances take fire at -the same temperature? What substances take fire -with the least degree of heat? What experiment did -Mr. Holiday describe which he said would show this -very distinctly? Why could not he perform this experiment? -Will iron burn? Why do not bars of iron -burn in a common fire? How did Mr. Holiday propose -to show that iron would burn? How did he propose -that Rollo should get some iron filings?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_36'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER III.<br /> <span class='large'>BURNING IRON.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>When Rollo went out into the kitchen -that evening to get his safety lamp,—the -one which he usually took to go to bed,—he -found Jonas sitting at the kitchen table -reading; and while he was lighting his lamp, -he asked Jonas if he would not get him -some iron filings the next time he went -near any blacksmith’s shop. Jonas asked -him what he wanted of iron filings, and he -said he wanted them to burn. He then -repeated to him what his father had said in -respect to the combustibility of iron.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I can make iron filings enough for that -experiment in five minutes,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“With a file,” replied Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Rollo; and without waiting -to hear anything further, he ran back to the -parlor to ask his mother to let him sit up -<a id='Page_37'></a>long enough to see Jonas make a few iron -filings to try the experiment.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Won’t it do as well to-morrow morning?” -asked his mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The scintillations will look brighter in -the evening,” said Mr. Holiday.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Very well, then,” added his mother, “go, -and, if Jonas succeeds in his experiment, -ask him to send some filings in to us.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo went out to find Jonas again. -Jonas was gone. Dorothy said that he had -gone after a file. In a few minutes he -returned, with a file in one hand, and a -large iron spike in the other.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What is the spike for?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Only for a piece of iron to file,” replied -Jonas. So saying, he took a small piece -of paper out of a drawer, and laid it upon -the table. Then he rested one end of the -spike upon the paper, and, holding the -other end in his hand, he filed it several -times in such a way, that the filings fell -down upon the paper.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What fine filings!” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas; “the file is almost -worn out, and it does not cut very well.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo looked upon the paper. There were -<a id='Page_38'></a>quite a number of small, black points upon -it like grains of very fine sand. Jonas then -took up the paper carefully by the two sides, -bending the two sides upward at the same -time, to keep the filings in the middle of -the paper. In this way he raised the paper -above the lamp, which was upon the table -before him, and then holding it in an inclined -position, he let the sand slide down -into the flame of the lamp. To Rollo’s surprise -and delight, it produced a column of -sparkles rising up from the flame, which -were of the greatest brilliancy and beauty.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo, “they burn, they burn -most beautifully. File me some more, Jonas, -and let me carry them in and show them to -my mother.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas accordingly filed some more filings, -and Rollo went in with them very eagerly, -to show to his mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Just look,” said Rollo; and so saying, -he held the paper over the lamp in such a -manner as to let the filings slide down into -the flame just as Jonas had done. The -experiment succeeded perfectly well, as it -had done before.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_39'></a>“So you see that it will burn,” said Mr. -Holiday, “if you heat it hot enough.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“If you make it small enough, you mean,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I suppose the smallness of the particles -is of no consequence,” replied his father, -“excepting to make it easier to heat them.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, father,” said Rollo, “I might put -the end of a knitting-needle in the lamp, -and I don’t see why it wouldn’t become as -hot as one of the iron filings.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because,” said his father, “a part of the -heat would be conveyed away through the -knitting-needle towards your hand, and that -would keep the end which was in the flame -cooler.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Would it, sir,” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father. “The heat moves -off very fast in such a case. You know, if -you take a pin between your fingers, and -hold the head of it in the lamp, the heat -will almost immediately move along the -metal, so as to heat the end that you are -holding, and burn you.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “I have got burned -so, very often.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And of course much more heat would be -<a id='Page_40'></a>conveyed away when the metal was as thick -as a knitting-needle.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well, father,” said Rollo, “suppose a -piece of the knitting-needle was broken off, -and made so small that it could all be in -the flame; then would it burn?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How could you keep it there?” asked -his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why—I don’t know,” said Rollo, hesitating. -“Couldn’t we contrive some way -to keep it there?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t know of any way.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Couldn’t we put it on the end of the -wick?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “perhaps we -might; but then the end of the wick is -cool, and that would cool it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, father,” said Rollo, in a tone of great -surprise, “the end of the wick cool, when it -is right in the middle of the blaze!”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I mean,” replied his father, “that it is -cool compared with the heat necessary for -inflaming the iron. It would feel very hot -to your fingers, I have no doubt, for it is -filled with boiling oil. But then even the -heat of boiling oil is less than that necessary -to inflame iron; and so the contact of the -<a id='Page_41'></a>wick with such a piece of iron as you propose, -would keep it cool, or rather keep it -from getting hot enough to take fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Suppose there was any way,” said Rollo’s -mother, “of suspending a piece of iron -as large as the end of a knitting-needle in -the lamp; do you think it would take fire?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Mr. Holiday, “I don’t think -it would be heated hot enough. For some -reason or other, I don’t understand exactly -what, a large piece of iron cannot be heated -very hot in a small fire, even if the fire entirely -covers it. I don’t think that any -fragment of iron much larger than one of -Jonas’s filings could be heated in a lamp so -as to take fire. But it could be heated hot -enough in a forge. The end of the iron -which a blacksmith heats is often in a state -of combustion when he takes it out of the -fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There, now, father,” said Rollo, “you -have not explained to me yet about combustion -and burning.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father; “we had almost -forgotten that. I will explain it now. It -will only take a few minutes. Let me see—I -began to tell you didn’t I?”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_42'></a>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “but I couldn’t -understand very well.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I was telling you that the language -which we use in common conversation is -not precise. It is often ambiguous.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What does that mean, sir?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, language is ambiguous when it -has two meanings,” said his father. “For -instance, the word <i>burning</i> is used in conversation -to express two or three very different -things. If you put your finger upon hot -iron, you say you have burned it. <i>Burn</i>, -in that case, is the name of a painful feeling. -But if you say you burned a piece of -paper, you mean that you put it into the fire, -and allowed it to be consumed. In that -case, <i>burning</i>, instead of being the name of -a painful feeling, is the name of a peculiar -process by which the paper is consumed and -destroyed. Thus the word <i>burn</i> is used to -denote two very different effects. In fact, it -is used in other senses besides these.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What others, sir?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, when we say that a little girl was -out in the sun, and burned her face and -neck, we do not mean that her face and -neck were consumed, or that they felt a -<a id='Page_43'></a>painful sensation,—but that the skin was -reddened by the sun’s heat. So, when we -say that the grass was all burned up in the -drought, we mean that it was dried and -withered. Thus <i>burned</i> and <i>burning</i> are -used to denote a great variety of effects -produced by heat, which effects are very -different from each other in their nature. -So that, you see, when we are going to speak -philosophically of that peculiar process by -which bodies are actually consumed by fire, -it becomes necessary to have some term to -denote that process alone, and not all the -other kinds of burning. Now, the word the -philosophers use for this purpose is <i>combustion</i>. -The burning of a stick of wood -upon the fire is combustion, but the burning -of your finger against a hot iron is not combustion, -and the burning of bricks in a brick -kiln is not combustion.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Nor the burning of the grass in the -drought,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father. “Thus you see -that <i>combustion</i> is a term of precise and definite -meaning; it denotes a particular process, -and that alone. But <i>burning</i> is a -vague and ambiguous term; it has a great -<a id='Page_44'></a>many meanings, or, rather, it stands for a -great many different effects, very much unlike -in their character. In fact, they seem -to be alike in no respect, except that they -are all produced by heat.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, father,” said Rollo, “I understand.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Sometimes,” added his father, “the -word used in common life doesn’t mean -enough, instead of meaning too much. For -example, there is the word <i>freeze</i>. What is -the meaning of the word <i>freeze</i>?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, it means,” said Rollo,—“freeze?—it -means—water turning into ice.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father; “when water -is cooled below a certain point, it becomes -solid. It is just so with lead. Melted lead, -when it is cooled below a certain point, becomes -solid. The hardening of the melted -lead into solid lead, and the hardening of -water into ice, as they cool, seem to be phenomena -of precisely the same character, and -yet the word <i>freeze</i> applies only to one. -We say the water freezes, but we can’t say -the lead freezes.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why not, sir?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because it is not the customary use of -the word. If we use the terms of common -<a id='Page_45'></a>life, we must use them as they are customarily -used, or we shall not be understood. -<i>Freezing</i>, therefore, will not answer to express -all cases of the hardening of a liquid -by cold, because that is a term which is only -applied to a few of the cases. Now, philosophers -want a term which will apply to all -the cases of the same kind.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And what is their word?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“<i>Congelation</i>,” replied his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Congelation?” repeated Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father. “When water -becomes ice, the philosophers say it <i>congeals</i>. -So when lead hardens in cooling, they say -it <i>congeals</i>. Different substances congeal at -very different degrees of heat. If we had -melted iron and melted lead, equally hot, -and let them cool together, the iron would -congeal first; and if they continued cooling, -by and by the lead would congeal. Water -would remain liquid long after lead would -congeal; but if it was placed where it -would grow colder and colder, the temperature -would at last reach the point where -water would congeal too. But whatever -the liquid is, and whatever the point is at -which it changes from a liquid to a solid -form, it is called <i>congealing</i>.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_46'></a>“And the word <i>freezing</i>, then, is only -used in respect to water,” said Rollo’s -mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, yes,” said Mr. Holiday; “we -speak of other things freezing beside water; -but it is only such things as become solid -under great degrees of cold. We say ink -freezes, and oil, and if it were cold enough -to freeze brandy, or mercury, we should say -they were frozen. But substances that -harden when they are not very cold, as lead -or wax, are not said to freeze.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Thus you observe,” continued Rollo’s -father, “in common language words are not -used in a precise and definite manner. Their -meaning is determined by the outward and -visible effects that we see, and not by the -real nature of the causes. Thus a great -many different effects are called <i>burning</i>, -in common language, because they are all -effects produced in various ways by heat. -But the terms used by philosophers are definite -and precise, each one being confined to -one specific process or phenomenon.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Father,” said Rollo, “I want to see the -iron filings burn again, and I am going out -to ask Jonas to file a few more.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_47'></a>“Very well,” said his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo went out to get Jonas to make -him some more filings, and Jonas did so. -Presently Rollo returned bringing the paper -in very carefully, with the filings upon it. -He put them down upon the table, and his -father contrived, by bending the paper in -different directions, to gather all the filings -together into the middle of it, and then, with -the point of his penknife, he took up a few -of the filings at a time, and let them drop -upon the flame of the lamp. The burning -of the filings produced, as before, the most -brilliant scintillations.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What bright sparkles!” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, it is very inflammable indeed,” said -his mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Here Mr. Holiday dropped more filings -upon the flame, from the point of his knife.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Does <i>inflammable</i> mean,” continued his -mother, “that a thing takes fire easily, or -that it burns with a great flame when it does -take fire?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t know,” said Mr. Holiday; “I -never thought of that distinction. Some -things take fire very easily, but don’t make -a great flame. There’s sulphur, for instance; -<a id='Page_48'></a>it takes fire before it gets very hot, but it -burns with a very small and faint flame.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Let us try it, father,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“We can’t try it very well, because there -is no fire. I suppose the fire in the kitchen -is covered up. But if there was a fire, and -we were to put a little sulphur upon a shovel, -and a small piece of paper by the side of it, -and hold them over the fire, we should find -that the sulphur would take fire before the -paper would even begin to be scorched; but -it would make only a very small blue flame. -The paper would not take fire nearly as -easily; but we should find that when it did -take fire, it would make a much larger and -brighter flame.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish you would try it, father,” said -Rollo; “you can uncover the coals in the -kitchen, and find fire enough.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said his father, “I will.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>His father accordingly rose from his seat, -and asked Rollo to go into the kitchen, and -get the shovel, and bring it to the medicine -closet. While Rollo was getting the shovel, -his father went to the closet, and took down -a little jar half filled with sulphur. When -Rollo brought him the shovel, he took out a -<a id='Page_49'></a>little of the sulphur upon the point of his -knife, and laid it upon the shovel. He also -took a small piece of paper, and laid it upon -the shovel by the side of the sulphur. Rollo -then led the way to the kitchen, followed by -his father with the shovel, and his mother -came behind.</p> - -<p class='c006'>They opened the coals a little, and placed -the shovel upon them. Jonas and Dorothy -looked on with great interest, wondering -what they were going to do. The sulphur -began to melt almost immediately after the -shovel was placed upon the coals; and, in a -very short time, Rollo observed a faint blue -spot on the place where the sulphur had been -lying.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There,” said his father, “see what a -small flame.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo; “it is nothing but a -little blue spot.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And the paper is just as whole and white -as ever it was.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Let us wait till the paper gets hot enough -to burn.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t think it would ever get hot -enough to burn,” replied his father, “over -such a fire as that. I must light it in the -<a id='Page_50'></a>lamp.” So he waited a few minutes until -the sulphur was entirely consumed, for he -said that he did not wish to have any of the -fumes get into the room; and then he -dropped the paper off from the shovel down -upon the hearth, and Rollo picked it up. -His father lighted it in the lamp, and then -placed it upon the shovel to see it burn, in -order that Rollo might compare the magnitude -of the flame which was produced with -that of the sulphur. Of course, such a small -piece of paper did not make a large flame, -but it was four or five times as large as that -produced by the sulphur.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now the question is,” said Mr. Holiday, -“which is most inflammable,—the sulphur, -because it inflames most easily, or the paper, -because it makes the greatest flame when it -does take fire?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I should think the paper,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There is alcohol,” said Mr. Holiday, -“which takes fire very easily, but it burns -with a very pale and light flame. Oil must -be heated much hotter before it will burn; -but, when it does burn, it gives a large and -bright flame; so that oil is good for lamps, -it gives so much light when it burns.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_51'></a>“Spirits of turpentine,” continued Mr. -Holiday, “inflames easily, and burns brightly -too. So does phosphorus.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What is phosphorus?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, it is a substance that burns very -easily. It looks like wax, but it burns very -easily, and with a very bright flame indeed. -It takes fire before it is as hot as boiling -water.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish I had some phosphorus,” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“They keep it at the apothecaries, sometimes,” -said his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish you’d buy a little, father,” said -Rollo, “and bring it home, and let me see -it burn. Does it cost much?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t know,” said his father, “how -much it costs. Only it is troublesome to -keep it. It must be kept under water.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, sir?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“To keep it from taking fire. Even the -sun shining upon it would heat it hot enough -to set it on fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O father!” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father; “and so, for safety, -they make it in the shape of sticks, and keep -it in a phial filled with water.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_52'></a>“Well, father,” said Rollo, “I wish you -would get a little in a phial, and let me put -a piece of it upon a paper in the sun, and -let me see it catch fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I’ll think of it,” said his father, “next -time I go into town. But phosphorus, you -see, is certainly very inflammable, because it -takes fire very easily, and burns brightly too. -But I don’t know which would be said to -be most inflammable, sulphur or resin; for -instance, sulphur inflames the quickest, but -resin will make altogether the greatest -blaze.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I should think the resin,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“We can’t tell by reasoning about it,” -said his father; “it depends on the usage of -the word. We will go into the other room, -and look in the dictionary.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So saying, they all went into the parlor -again, and looked into the dictionary, to -learn the precise meaning of the word, <i>inflammable</i>. -The definition given was, “easily -kindled into a flame.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then,” said Mr. Holiday, “if this definition -is correct, the sulphur and the alcohol -are most inflammable, because they are most -easily kindled.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_53'></a>Just then the clock struck, and Rollo’s -mother said,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, Rollo, it is half an hour past your -bedtime.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo bade his father and mother good -night, and went out into the kitchen once -more to get his safety-lamp, to go to bed. -He stopped, however, a moment, as he was -going out of the door, to say,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now, father, be sure and not forget to -buy me some phosphorus.”</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>What did Jonas say when Rollo told him about burning -the iron filings? How did he make the filings? Did -the experiment of burning them succeed? Why will -not a large piece of iron burn in the flame of a lamp? -What did Mr. Holiday say to Rollo’s proposal to hold -the end of a knitting-needle in the lamp? Why will -not the terms that are employed in common conversation -answer for philosophical use? What is the meaning -of <i>ambiguous</i>? What are the different meanings of the -word burn? What is the difference between the words -<i>freeze</i> and <i>congeal</i> in respect to the extent of their meaning? -What question did Rollo’s mother ask in respect -to the meaning of the word <i>inflammable</i>? What did Mr. -Holiday say? What experiment did he perform to -illustrate the two meanings? How was the question at -last decided?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_54'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER IV.<br /> <span class='large'>FIRE IN THE PASTURE.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>A few days after Rollo’s father gave him -the instructions on the subject of combustion -which are contained in the last chapter, -Rollo saw Jonas going across the yard about -the middle of the afternoon, with a lantern -in his hand. Of course Rollo called out to -him with the usual question in such cases,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Where are you going, Jonas?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I’m going out into the pasture to set -some heaps on fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Rollo, “and I’ll go too.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo ran into the parlor to ask his mother -if he might go too. He happened to meet -his father just coming in at the front door. -He accordingly asked him instead.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “but I’m rather -afraid to have the heaps set on fire this afternoon. -I am afraid that the fire will run.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Run?” repeated Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father. “Tell Jonas -<a id='Page_55'></a>he must be very careful not to let the fire -get away from him.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo ran off in pursuit of Jonas. When -he got to the back yard again, he saw Jonas -going down the lane almost out of sight.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Jonas!” said Rollo, calling out as loud -as he could, “Jo—nas!”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So saying, he ran off after him. He clambered -over the great gate which led into the -lane, because he thought that he could climb -over it quicker than open it. As soon as he -reached the ground on the other side, he ran -on, calling out,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Jonas! Jonas!”</p> - -<p class='c006'>But Jonas did not seem to hear him. At -any rate he did not stop. On the contrary, -Rollo was himself stopped, by hearing a -voice behind him, as if near the house, -calling,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Rollo! Rollo!”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo turned to see who it was. It was -his cousin James, who was running towards -him with all speed. Rollo waited for him -to come up. James tried to open the gate, -but could not.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Climb over,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>So James climbed over, and soon reached -<a id='Page_56'></a>the place where Rollo was standing, and the -two boys walked on together. James said -that he had come to play with Rollo that -afternoon. Rollo said that he was very glad, -and he told James that he and Jonas were -going to make some fires in the pasture.</p> - -<p class='c006'>The heaps which Jonas was going to set -on fire, were heaps of decayed wood, consisting -of old stumps, logs, and roots, and other -rubbish which he had gathered up from the -ground and piled up in the pasture some -weeks before. By being left in heaps, so -that the sun and air had free access to them, -they had become thoroughly dry, and were -all ready to burn with a touch. There were -not a great many of the heaps, for it was -only a small part of the pasture which had -such logs and stumps left in it. The place -was on the side of a deep dell, with a brook -flowing through the middle of it at the bottom. -Rollo and James crossed the brook -upon a log, and then ascended the steep side -of the hill, among the heaps which Jonas -was burning.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas had set two heaps on fire and was -just putting a burning brand into the third -heap. Rollo and James wanted Jonas to let -<a id='Page_57'></a>them set the heaps on fire. He told them -that they might; and the boys accordingly -went to work, taking brands from the heaps -which were already burning, and carrying -them to the others. The heaps were not -only very dry, but quite hot, on account of -the influence of the rays of the sun beating -upon them; and, besides this, there was a -fresh breeze blowing, which made the fires -burn up very fiercely. The fires which had -been first made soon became so hot, that the -boys could not get near them to take any -brands from them.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Thus they went along from heap to heap, -setting them on fire, only Jonas succeeded -in setting them on fire much faster than -James and Rollo. Jonas looked around at -them at one time, and he found them endeavoring -to kindle a fire at a large heap -which had been built up around a tall stump. -The stump was twice as high as Rollo’s -head. Rollo and James were kneeling -down upon the ground, and blowing the -end of the brand, by which they were trying -to kindle the fire. But they did not -succeed. Instead of that, the wind blew the -smoke into their faces.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_58'></a>“Make the fire on the windward side,” -said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Which is the windward side?” said -James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The side that the wind blows against,” -replied Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo, speaking to James, -“we have got our fire on the wrong side. -Let us move it round to the other side, and -the wind will blow it for us.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So they took up their brands, and put -them upon the other side of the heap. The -wind fanned them a little, but did not -make them blaze.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Just put some dry pieces on,” said -Jonas, “and leave them. As soon as they -get heated a little, they’ll blaze.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>The boys followed Jonas’s direction, and, -after putting a few dry pieces upon the -smoking brands, they left this heap, and -went to another; though they had first to -go back to one which was on fire, and get -some more brands.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How do you set them on fire so fast, -Jonas?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, I don’t stop to watch them,” said -Jonas, “to see them burn. I put a brand -<a id='Page_59'></a>down upon the windy side of the heap, and -then cover it with dry pieces, and leave it, -and let it burn up in its own time. It will -burn as soon as it has time to get heated.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, James,” said Rollo; “my father -explained it to me. When wood gets heated -above a certain point of heat, it takes fire. -Sulphur takes fire before it gets heated so -hot.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O Jonas,” said Rollo, “why didn’t you -pile up this heap?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo had come to a place where there -was a long log lying upon the ground, -broken to pieces and decayed, and near it -several fragments of roots and stumps scattered -around.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, come away, come away from there, -Rollo,” said Jonas; “there is a wasp’s nest -there.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo and James ran off back towards -Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“A wasp’s nest?” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas. “I began to pile up -that wood, and heard a buzzing under the -log; and I looked down, and saw some -wasps buzzing about a hole. We must -burn up the wasp’s nest.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_60'></a>“Well,” said Rollo, “come and do it -now.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas was coming to burn up the wasp’s -nest; but, as he was passing along towards -it, his attention was suddenly arrested at -seeing that the flames from one of the fires -were beginning to spread rapidly upon the -ground. There was quite a large circle in -the grass, which had been burned over and -blackened, and, at the outer edges of it, the -flames were still spreading rapidly,—driven -by the wind.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Look! look!” said Jonas; “our fire is -running.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said James; “it is burning up all -the grass.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas ran to the edge of the circle, and -began trampling upon the flames, to put -them out. The flames were very light, for -the grass was thin, and so the fire was easily -extinguished at any one spot; but, while -Jonas was putting it out in one place, it was -spreading in another, and he could not put -it out so perfectly but that it would flame -up and begin to spread again when he went -to another place. James and Rollo stood -by somewhat frightened, and not knowing -what to do.</p> - -<div class='figcenter id001'> -<a id='Page_61'></a><img src='images/i_059.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic002'> -<p>“NO,” SAID JONAS; “WE MUST WHIP IT OUT.”—Page <a href='#Page_63'>63</a>.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_63'></a>“We must get some water,” said Rollo, -“from the brook. I’ll go and get a pail.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No, a watering-pot,” said James, “a -watering-pot will be best. Let’s go and get -a watering-pot.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Jonas; “we must whip it out -with bushes. I’ll cut some bushes. Come -down here with me.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Jonas ran down to the bank of the -brook, where there were a number of low -fir-trees growing. Now, the leaves of the -fir-tree are very small and slender, but they -stand very thick upon the branches, so that -they make a very thick and heavy foliage. -Jonas cut off a branch of the fir-tree, and -gave it to Rollo. Then he cut off another -for James, and another larger for himself; -and, armed with these, the boys hastened -back to the fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>They began to whip and brush the little -line of flame, and they found that they could -put it out very easily. Every blow which -Jonas struck, extinguished a line of the fire -as long as his branch. Rollo and James -threshed the ground with great vigor, too, -<a id='Page_64'></a>and they put out a great deal of the fire. In -fact, they soon extinguished all the flames -which were creeping up the side of the hill -from this first fire, except at one end, where -it had got into some thistles, which Jonas -had mowed down some time before, and -which were now lying upon the ground dry -and warm, and so thick that they made -quite a hot fire. Rollo was whipping upon -these thistles, when Jonas said,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Stop, Rollo; it is of no use to whip such -a hot fire as that; it is only wasting your -strength.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then we can’t stop it,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas; “wait until it has -gone over the thistles, and burned them up, -and then it will come to the thin grass -beyond, and there we can whip it out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So the boys stopped to rest while the -thistles were burning, surveying, in the -meantime, the large space which had been -burned over, and which looked scorched -and blackened.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now, all that grass is spoiled,” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, no,” said Jonas; “it hasn’t hurt the -grass. It has only burned the dry tops and -<a id='Page_65'></a>the weeds. The roots of the grass are all -safe, and the ashes left by the fire will make -them grow all the better next summer.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then, Jonas, let’s burn the ground all -over.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Jonas; “if so large a surface -gets on fire, we can’t stop it, till it runs into -the fence, and sets that on fire,—or else gets -over into the other field.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So saying, Jonas pointed to a large level -field or pasture over the fence, where the -grass and weeds were much higher than -where they were. The grass and weeds in -this other field extended back some distance -to a piece of woods; and Jonas said that, if -the fire got into the woods, he could not tell -how far it would go, or what mischief it -would do. “So you see we must be sure and -not let the fire get away from us,” said he.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Just then, Jonas saw that the fire was beginning -to spread from another of the heaps; -and he went to it to watch it. He said he -was going to let it run a little way before he -put it out, for he knew that if a piece of the -ground around the heap was once burned -over, the fire would not spread again from the -heap.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_66'></a>So he waited, and, when the circle from -that heap had become as large as he wished, -he and the boys whipped it out; and then -they went back to the first fire, which was -now getting beyond the thistles, so that they -whipped that out too. Rollo and James felt -much relieved, now that they perceived that, -by the aid of their fir-branches, they had the -fires so entirely under their control.</p> - -<p class='c006'>About this time, Rollo saw his father coming -through the trees, on the other side of -the brook. His father had been a little -afraid that Jonas would get into difficulty -with his fires, and had come out to see. He -found, however, that Jonas knew how to -manage the business. He took a branch, -and began to help the three boys whip the -fires, as fast as they spread beyond the limits -which they concluded to allow them.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I didn’t know that the grass would burn -so before,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It will not,” said his father, “unless it is -both hot and windy. This is an illustration -of what I explained to you the other day. -When grass is heated above a certain point -it takes fire. Now, when one blade of grass -is burning, it does not usually produce heat -<a id='Page_67'></a>enough to raise the next one to such a degree -of heat that it will take fire; but this afternoon -it will; for now the heat of one little -tuft burning is enough to heat the next one -sufficiently to cause it to take fire, because -it is already partly heated by the sun.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And the wind helps,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father, “the wind -helps in two ways. It blows up the grass -that is burning, and makes a greater fire of -it, and then it blows the hot air and flame -against the grass next to it. Thus it makes -the heat greater, and at the same time -drives it against the fresh grass. I presume -this fire would not spread at all if there -was no wind. You see, in fact, that it does -not spread much in any direction, except -where the wind blows it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And if there <i>was</i> a wind, and yet the -grass was not hot, would it spread then?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father, “I presume not. -For instance, in the evening, when the -ground and grass are cool, I don’t think -the fire would run on the ground. That is, -I don’t think the heat of one row of blades -would heat the next row enough to make -them take fire, unless they were partly -heated by the sun beforehand.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_68'></a>“I should like to try it some windy evening,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There would be the dew in the evening -also, which would tend to prevent the fire’s -running.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>By this time, all the heaps had been set -on fire, and the circle of fire which spread -out from each one had been whipped out; -so that there was now not much danger -that the fire would spread, and Mr. Holiday -went away. Jonas, however, said that he -must stay and watch the heaps, and Rollo -and James concluded to stay with him. -But, after a short time, they became tired -of poking the embers; and so Rollo proposed -to James to go with him, and help -him make some charcoal.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I have learned how they make charcoal,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said James, “I’ll go; but what -good will charcoal do us?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, we can make gunpowder out of -it,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said James, “I should like to -make some gunpowder very much.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So the boys went away towards the house, -to get the wood to make their charcoal.</p> - -<div> - <a id='Page_69'></a> - <h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>What objection did Mr. Holiday make at first, to having -the heaps set on fire? How was Rollo arrested -when he was in pursuit of Jonas? What were the -heaps composed of which Jonas was going to set on -fire? In what condition were they in respect to inflammability? -Was there anything besides their dryness -which made them particularly inflammable at this time? -Describe Rollo’s attempt to set a heap on fire. What -course did Jonas pursue? Describe the appearances -exhibited when the fire began to run. How did Rollo’s -father explain to the boys the causes which made the -fire run in the grass that afternoon more than at any -other time? Describe the mode which Jonas adopted -to stop the progress of the fire in the grass. Did he -always stop it as soon as it first began to run? Why -not?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_70'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER V.<br /> <span class='large'>THEORY AND PRACTICE.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>There is a great difference between understanding -theoretically how a thing is -done, and being able actually to do it; for, -in practice, various difficulties are apt to -occur, which are not foreseen by one who -knows only the theory. Rollo and James -found this to be the case, in their efforts to -make charcoal. Rollo felt very confident -that he understood the whole process perfectly, -and that he should find no difficulty -whatever in carrying it through successfully. -He was not aware how many difficulties -occur in the practical execution of -what appears beforehand to be attended -with no difficulty at all.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Are you sure you can make charcoal?” -said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo, “I know I can. Jonas -told me everything which I must do. First, -we must get some short sticks of wood.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_71'></a>He and James went to the shed, and -selected some pieces of wood, which Rollo -said would be suitable for their charcoal -bed. He put them into a small saw-horse, -which Jonas had made for him to saw wood -in, and without much difficulty he sawed a -sufficient quantity. James put the sticks -into Rollo’s little wheelbarrow as fast as -they were sawed. It was not very long -before the wheelbarrow was filled nearly -full.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Come, Rollo,” said James; “here is -enough.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Rollo; “let us fill the wheelbarrow -full.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, Rollo,” said James, “you’ve got -enough already to make a barrel of gunpowder.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, it won’t all come into gunpowder,” -said Rollo; “some of the wood will burn -up, I expect. You see we are going to have -slow combustion.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Slow what?” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Slow combustion,” replied Rollo; “don’t -you know what <i>combustion</i> means?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It means <i>burning</i>; that is, one kind of -<a id='Page_72'></a>burning. You see there are a great many -kinds of burning. Combustion is when it -burns all up. If you put your finger in the -fire and burn it, it doesn’t burn up, does -it?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I suppose it would, if I held it in long -enough,” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo—“but,——there, I -think we’ve got enough now. If you’ll -be wheeling it along, I’ll go and get some -fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So James wheeled the wheelbarrow along -towards the gate, and Rollo went into the -house after some fire. He found that the -lantern was not there, for Jonas had carried -it into the pasture; and as Dorothy said -that it would not be safe for him to carry -any coals out, on such a windy day, he took -some matches of the kind that take fire by -being rubbed against any thing hard, and -went along after James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo had intended to ask Jonas to cut -him some turf, to cover his charcoal bed -with; but he had not done it yet, and so -he got a spade to carry along with him, -thinking that he and James could cut the -turf themselves. The spade was rather -<a id='Page_73'></a>heavy to carry, and so he took hold of the -handle, and dragged it along, letting the -blade trail upon the ground. He overtook -James at the great gate.</p> - -<p class='c006'>They passed through the gate, and went -on, James trundling the wheelbarrow, and -Rollo following him with the spade. At -last, they came to the place where Rollo had -determined to have his charcoal bed. It -was a smooth piece of grass ground, a short -distance beyond the garden, and so far from -any fence that there was no danger of setting -the fences on fire. It was, in fact, a -very suitable place. Rollo had selected it -with great discretion.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And now,” said Rollo, “the first thing -is to dig up some turf. We want some -large pieces of turf.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What for?” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, to cover up our charcoal with.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What do you want to cover it up for?” -said James. “Besides, I should think you -would want to <i>make</i> it, before you cover it -up.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, that is the <i>way</i> we make it,” said -Rollo; “we have to cover the wood up -with turf.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_74'></a>“O, the wood,” said James, “you said -the charcoal.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No, the wood,” replied Rollo; “we want -to cover up the wood.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then it won’t burn,” said James, “if -you cover it all up with turf.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Rollo; “it will burn very -slowly. We don’t want it to burn fast. -That is the very reason why we cover it up -with turf, to keep it from burning fast.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I should think it would be best to pour -a little water on it,” said James, “if it was -burning too fast.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Rollo; “we must cover it up -with turf. Jonas said so. And I must cut -it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo began to cut turf with his spade. -He found it, however, very hard. It is very -hard work to cut turf. After he had cut a -square place out, it was very difficult to -crowd the spade under it, so as to get the -piece of turf out. He, however, succeeded -in cutting one piece; and then the next -was easier. After working patiently for -about a quarter of an hour, stopping occasionally -to rest, and to wish that Jonas -would come and finish cutting the turf for -<a id='Page_75'></a>him, he succeeded in laying bare a spot of -ground large enough for his coal bed; and, -on looking at the pieces of turf which he -had got off, he could not but hope that they -might possibly be enough to cover his wood -with. At any rate, he thought he would -try it; for he could cut more, he said, if at -last he found that he should want more. -He therefore began to pile up his wood in -the spot left bare by the removal of the -turf.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“We must leave a hole down in the middle,” -said he to James, “to put the fire in. -I ought to have had some boards for it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo wanted James to go up to the -house, and get some short boards; but -James said that he did not know where he -could find any, and finally Rollo concluded -to make the hole as well as he could by -leaving a space, in piling the wood. He -succeeded pretty well in doing this. In -fact, he piled his heap very well, making it -compact and snug, and rounding it up on the -top as Jonas had directed, so that it could -be easily covered with the turf.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now,” said Rollo, “we will cover it up. -You hand me the pieces of turf, James, and -I will put them on.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_76'></a>James handed Rollo one large piece of -turf, and Rollo placed it against the side of -his heap of wood. He then brought him a -second, and Rollo attempted to place it next -to the first, but it did not fit very well.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There now,” said Rollo, “I haven’t got -any knife.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What do you want a knife for?” asked -James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“To cut off some of this turf, and make -it fit into its place.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Must you make it fit exactly?” asked -James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo; “so Jonas said. But -I can cut it with the spade.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo laid down the piece of turf upon -the ground, and attempted to cut away one -side of it with the spade. He could not do -it very well. He was not strong enough to -do it with one blow, and, in striking down -the spade upon it repeatedly, he could not -always hit the same place; and so he mangled -the edge, and bruised it to pieces. -However, it fitted better than it did before, -though there was still an interstice left, at -the lower corner, between the two pieces of -turf and the ground.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_77'></a>“It doesn’t fit exactly,” said Rollo; “but -no matter. There must <i>some</i> air get in.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>He placed the other pieces of turf in a -row around the heap. After he had gone -all around, there were some left, but not -enough to cover the top over. They, however, -covered it as well as they could, and -then Rollo said he would kindle the fire and -put it in; and then, while it was getting a -burning, he would cut some more turf, and -finish covering it.</p> - -<p class='c006'>They had some difficulty in getting fire. -In the first place, the match would not light. -Rollo did not see any thing to rub it upon -but the handle of the spade, and that was so -smooth and glossy, from long use, that it did -not produce friction enough to inflame the -match. Finally, James rubbed one of the -matches upon the side of the wheelbarrow, -and that lighted it; but then they had no -kindling ready, and, of course, as the large -sticks of wood could not be lighted by a -match, James, after holding it until it was -just ready to burn his fingers, threw it down. -Then Rollo did what he ought to have done -before. He collected together some leaves -and dried grass, and splinters of wood, which -<a id='Page_78'></a>he found lying about, so as to have some -combustibles ready when the next match -should be lighted. By this means they soon -had a little fire at a short distance from the -heap of wood which they had prepared for -their charcoal bed.</p> - -<p class='c006'>As soon as their fire began to burn, they -attempted to move it into the hole in the -middle of the heap of wood. They took -off the little sticks and chips from the fire, -which were blazing at one end, and dropped -them one by one into the hole.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t believe the fire will burn down -in that hole,” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes it will,” replied Rollo. “That’s -the way they always set the charcoal beds -on fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>But, notwithstanding Rollo’s confidence, -the chips and sticks, though they had burned -very freely while in the open air above, did -not appear at all inclined to burn in the -hole. One reason was, that the boys did -not wait long enough for them to get well -heated. The ends which were together -were on fire, it is true; but the other ends -were cold, and the heap of wood was cold, -so that every little brand, though it was -<a id='Page_79'></a>blazing when the boys took it off the fire, -was at once chilled below the point at which -combustion continues as soon as it was -dropped into the hole. Consequently, after -they had dropped all the pieces in, they saw -nothing but smoke come out, and even the -smoke grew dim.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It is all going out,” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“We must make a bigger fire,” said Rollo. -“I wish I had a pair of tongs here to take -out the old sticks, and then we would make -a bigger fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>But Rollo had no tongs; and so he was -obliged to take down his pile in part, in -order to get the dead brands out of the middle -of it. Then they built another little fire. -They waited for this until it was much hotter; -and so they succeeded at last in -getting a little fire to burn in the middle of -their heap of wood.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“As soon as it begins to burn pretty well,” -said Rollo, “I must cover it all up with -sods.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then that will put it all out,” said -James, “I know.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Rollo; “it will only make it -burn slow.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_80'></a>“<i>I</i> think it will put it all out,” replied -James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo himself had some misgivings whether -his wood would really burn very well, when -all covered up with turf, and he thought -that at any rate he would let it get well on -fire before he put the turf on. In the mean -time, he took the spade, and began to cut -the turf, to have it ready.</p> - -<p class='c006'>He found it now very hard to cut the -turf,—both because he was tired of cutting -it, and also because he had now to begin in -a new place, as his woodpile covered the -place which he had taken the turf off from -before. It is always harder to cut the first -turf than it is those that come afterwards.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo succeeded in getting one or two -more pieces, and as soon as the heap of wood -seemed to be pretty well on fire, he put -these pieces on over the top; but they were -not enough to cover it, and as the fire increased, -the flames came up more and more -from the spaces left uncovered.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O dear me!” said Rollo. “I can’t cut -the turf fast enough to cover it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Shovel up some earth, and put on,” said -James.</p> - -<div class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_079.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic002'> -<p>SO ROLLO BEGAN TO SHOVEL UP THE EARTH.—Page <a href='#Page_81'>81</a>.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_81'></a>So Rollo began to shovel up the earth -from the place which he had made bare by -taking off the turf, and to throw it upon the -fire. This had an immediate effect in suppressing -the flames which were breaking out; -and by continuing to throw on earth, he at -length got the fire fairly subdued. The -earth did not cover the heap. It slid down -among the interstices of the wood, and -smothered the fire, so that pretty soon Rollo -thought that the fire was burning slowly -enough to make charcoal.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“If we had some water in a watering-pot, -that would be better,” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“So it would,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then we could make the fire burn just -as slowly as we pleased,” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo; “let us go and get a -watering-pot. We can get back before it -burns up again.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said James; “and we’ll carry up -the wheelbarrow and the spade.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo took the wheelbarrow, and James -the spade, and they walked along towards -the house, talking about what they should -do with their gunpowder when they had got -it made. They came at length to a narrow -<a id='Page_82'></a>place in the walk, where James walked on -before, Rollo following him with the wheelbarrow. -Rollo trundled the wheelbarrow -along very close to James’s heels, and so -James, to avoid it, ran on. Rollo followed, -pursuing him, and so James, to escape, ran -off upon the grass, to get out of Rollo’s way. -But Rollo still followed him, both boys -making the air resound with shouts of -laughter, until, at length, James, finding that -he was still pursued, turned around, and -planted the blade of the spade upon the -ground, just before the wheel of the wheelbarrow. -The wheel ran up against it, and -was stopped, and thus James was protected.</p> - -<p class='c006'>The boys amused themselves in this way -for some time, entirely forgetting about their -watering-pot. After satisfying themselves, -however, with this fun, they began to move -along towards the house. They found -Rollo’s little watering-pot, and they carried -it to the pump to fill it with water. They -got into a great frolic at the pump, too. -James would hold the watering-pot, while -Rollo pumped, and then, when it was full he -made believe try to sprinkle Rollo, to pay -him, as he said, for running over him with -<a id='Page_83'></a>his wheelbarrow. Rollo would run off -around the yard, and James after him, holding -up the watering-pot, with the spout elevated, -ready to discharge a shower of water -upon him, if he could only get near. When -he got pretty near, he would tip up the -watering-pot, and out would pour the water -in a great number of curving jets, which -spouted out towards Rollo, as he ran. When -the water from the watering-pot was exhausted -by this operation, they would go -back to the pump, and fill it again. In the -mean time, the wood of their charcoal bed -was all burning away.</p> - -<p class='c006'>It was an hour, in fact, before they got -back to the charcoal bed; and when they -reached it, it was a mere bed of embers and -ashes. The combustion, instead of having -been slow, had gone on with great violence -and rapidity, and the wood was entirely consumed. -Rollo and James looked upon it for -a few minutes in silence.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“We’ll put it out now, at any rate,” said -Rollo; and he took the watering-pot out of -James’s hand, and began to pour the water -upon the burning bed before him. It made -a great hissing and steaming; and, when -<a id='Page_84'></a>he had done, the boys had before them -plenty of hot mud, made of ashes and water, -but no charcoal.</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>What preparations did James and Rollo make for -their charcoal bed? Did they find it difficult or easy -to cut the turf? How did they arrange the wood? -Did Rollo begin right to cover the wood with turf? -What was the first difficulty which he encountered? -What tool would have been best for cutting the turf -into the right form? What tool did Rollo attempt to -use instead? What was the difficulty in the operation -of it? What plan was at length proposed for checking -the combustion, instead of putting on a tight covering -of turf? Why did they leave their work and go to the -house? What detained them on this expedition? In -what condition did they find the charcoal bed on their -return?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_85'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER VI.<br /> <span class='large'>GUNPOWDER.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>When Rollo and James went home it -was nearly tea-time, and they found Jonas -just coming from the pasture. They told -him of the ill success of their experiment in -charcoal-making, with countenances expressive -of great disappointment and chagrin.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It is no matter,” said Jonas; “you have -had your afternoon’s amusement, and that’s -all you want, isn’t it?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No, indeed,” said Rollo; “by no means.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, what else do you want?” asked -Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, we want some gunpowder,” said -James. “We are going to make our charcoal -into gunpowder.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“You needn’t have made a charcoal bed -for that,” said Jonas. “You can get all the -charcoal you want to make gunpowder with, -out of the kitchen fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_86'></a>“The kitchen fire!” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Jonas. “You can pick -up plenty of little black coals in the corners.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Will they do?” asked James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas; “why not?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I didn’t know that they were charcoal,” -rejoined James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And will you help us make our gunpowder?” -asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, it is rather a dangerous business,” -said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, we will be very careful, you know, -Jonas, not to get blown up,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, I’m not afraid of getting blown up -with any gunpowder you can make. That -wasn’t the kind of danger I was thinking of.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What danger then?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, danger of getting the sulphur on -your clothes, and smutting your face with -the charcoal.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, Jonas,” replied Rollo, “if we get -the sulphur on our clothes, we will brush it -off again; and, as to the smutting, we won’t -touch the charcoal to our faces.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It is very difficult,” replied Jonas, “to -<a id='Page_87'></a>have any thing to do with charcoal, without -getting blacked with it. You can hardly -look at it without crocking your face.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O Jonas,” said James, “<i>I</i> could, I -know.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then, besides,” continued Jonas, “you -can’t brush the sulphur off your clothes. If -you once get it on, some of it will stay, and -your clothes will always smell of sulphur -whenever you come near a fire. I don’t -think that your mother would be willing -that you should have any thing to do with -sulphur and charcoal.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I mean to ask her,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo went in to ask his mother, but he -found that tea was ready, and so he and -James went in and took their places at the -tea-table. When the boys proposed their -plan of making gunpowder, they found -Rollo’s mother, as Jonas had supposed, quite -averse to any such operations. However, -when his father came in and heard their -conversation on the subject, he said that he -would take charge of the business, and then -his mother would have no objection.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well, sir,” said Rollo, “I’m glad of -that; for perhaps Jonas wouldn’t know -how to make it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_88'></a>“He can prepare the materials, at any -rate,” said his father. “So, after tea, you -may go out and ask him to get three tea-cups, -and to put about three or four tablespoonfuls -of sulphur in one, and of saltpetre -in another, and charcoal in another. Only -the saltpetre and the charcoal must be pulverized.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Pulverized?” said Rollo; “what do you -mean by that?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, powdered,—that is, pounded up -very fine.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How shall he pound them?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“In the iron mortar,” said his mother. -“Dorothy will give it to him.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And when they are all ready,” continued -Rollo’s father, “come and tell me.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Accordingly, immediately after tea, Rollo -and James went out to give Jonas the -directions about preparing the materials. -Dorothy gave Jonas the mortar. She also -brought out three tea-cups, and put them -upon the kitchen table. Jonas picked up -from the corner of the fireplace a few small -coals, and put them into the mortar and -then, took up the pestle.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, more,” said Rollo; “we want more -than that.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_89'></a>“Yes,” said Jonas; “but we must take a -little at a time.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because,” replied Jonas, “if I put much -into the mortar at once, I can’t make it fine. -I must only have a little, and then the pestle -and the bottom of the mortar come close -together, and so it grinds up the smallest -pieces.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>When Jonas had pounded up the charcoal -which he had put in at first, he poured the -black powder out into one of the tea-cups, -and then put in more charcoal, which he powdered -as before. He proceeded in this way -until he had filled one of the tea-cups nearly -half full. He then washed out the mortar, -and put it down to the fire to dry. Then -he took a glass jar, which Dorothy had -brought him from the closet, and which was -nearly full of a substance which looked like -salt, and poured some of it into the mortar.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Is that the saltpetre?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It looks like salt,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” rejoined Jonas, “and tastes a little -like salt.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo and James both wanted to taste a -<a id='Page_90'></a>little of the saltpetre, and they did. In the -mean time, Jonas had poured some of it into -the mortar, and was grinding it up with his -pestle; and, when Rollo asked him where -saltpetre came from, and what it was for, -Jonas said he did not know any thing at all -about it, and went on pounding and grinding -with his pestle.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Dorothy now brought out another jar, -containing sulphur; and as soon as Jonas -had finished pulverizing his saltpetre, and -had put it all into its cup, he poured out -some of the sulphur into the third cup. -The jars and the mortar were now put -away, and Jonas got two sheets of wrapping-paper, -and put upon the table, for he said he -thought it probable that they might want -some, in trying the powder.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I expect your father will want a pair of -scales, too,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What for?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“To weigh out the materials,” replied -Jonas. “I don’t know what the proportions -are; but I suppose that they must be mixed -in right proportions.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What are the right proportions?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_91'></a>“I don’t know,” said Jonas, “but I suppose -your father will know.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Rollo, “I’ll go and call -him.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo went in, and told his father -that they were all ready. He found his -father at the library looking at a large book.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Come, father,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Seventy-five parts of saltpetre,” said his -father, reading out of his great book, and -appearing not to pay any attention to what -Rollo said,—“seventy-five parts of saltpetre, -eleven and a half of sulphur, and thirteen -and a half of charcoal. Seventy-five -to eleven, that is, about seven to one. Say, -six times as much saltpetre as of each of -the other two. That will be near enough.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Come, father,” said Rollo again; “we’re -all ready.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “I’ll come.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo returned into the kitchen, and his -father followed him. His mother came, too, -for she wanted to see them make the gunpowder. -Jonas asked Mr. Holiday if he -should want a pair of scales.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said he, “we can guess at the proportions -<a id='Page_92'></a>near enough. We can’t expect to -make very good gunpowder.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why not, sir?” said Rollo; “the things -are all good that we are going to make -it of.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Very likely,” said his father; “but we -cannot make them fine enough,—nor mix -them intimately.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, father,” said Rollo, “Jonas has -made them very fine indeed.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, I have no doubt that he has pulverized -them as well as it can be done in a -mortar. But it is not possible to make -them as fine in that way as they do in the -powder-mills. Then, to mix them properly, -they ought to be wet and ground together -a long time. We can’t stop to do that.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And now, first,” he continued, “I want -you all to observe how these various materials -will burn by themselves, and then see -how differently they will burn together.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Mr. Holiday then took up a coal of fire, -and put it upon the shovel; and he asked -Jonas to hold it for him in the fireplace, -under the throat of the chimney, so that -the smoke and fumes might not come out -into the room. He then took from the cup -<a id='Page_93'></a>which had the sulphur in it, a little of the -sulphur upon the point of his knife, and -laid it down gently upon the coal of fire. -It burned with a very small and faint blue -flame. It burned very slowly, and the flame -continued for some time; but the flame was -not much bigger than the sulphur itself -which caused it.</p> - -<p class='c006'>He then tried the same experiment with -the saltpetre. The effect was very different, -though in this case there was scarcely any -flame. It made a little faint flash, accompanied -with a slight crackling sound. Then -he tried the charcoal, but it did not appear -to burn at all. It lay in a little black heap -upon the burning coal, just as Mr. Holiday -put it on. After a time, however, it began -to grow red upon the under side, and finally -became red throughout; and then it could -hardly be distinguished in appearance from -the coal which it was lying upon.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“So you see,” said Mr. Holiday, “that -these three ingredients are not very combustible -by themselves; at least, they burn -very quietly, and with very little flame. -Now, we will mix them together. We want -a tea-spoon Dorothy.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_94'></a>Dorothy brought a tea-spoon.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And the mortar. I can mix them better -in the mortar.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Dorothy brought the mortar, too. Mr. -Holiday measured out six tea-spoonfuls of -saltpetre from the cup which contained that -ingredient, and put it into the mortar.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There must be about six times as much -saltpetre as sulphur and charcoal,” said he. -“That is not exact, but it will be near -enough, I presume. Now, I will put in one -tea-spoonful of sulphur and one of charcoal. -I suppose, however, I ought to go by the -weight, and not by bulk.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What do you mean by that, sir?” said -James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, it ought to be six times as much -saltpetre by weight, and not by measure. -It wouldn’t take six tea-spoonfuls of saltpetre -to weigh six times as much as one tea-spoonful -of sulphur, I presume; for I should -think saltpetre is much heavier. I suppose -saltpetre is heavier than either sulphur or -charcoal. So I will put in two tea-spoonfuls -of sulphur, and two of charcoal, to make -up for their lightness.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_95'></a>“I should think it would be better to -weigh them,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, it would be rather better, but it -would take more time, and we will see how -our gunpowder burns without being exact -in the proportions; and if it does not succeed, -then perhaps I will try again, and -weigh out the ingredients, and see if it -makes the gunpowder any better.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>While saying this, Mr. Holiday had been -gently rubbing and mixing the powders in -the mortar. He said he must rub them -gently, for, as the pestle and mortar were -both of iron, if he rubbed hard, he might -possibly set his gunpowder on fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O father,” said Rollo, “I don’t believe -it would take fire by just rubbing in a mortar.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father, “I don’t think it -would, myself; but it might, possibly. I -have heard of powder-mills taking fire by -the friction of the mills in grinding the powder,—though -I don’t suppose it would be -possible to set fire to any such powder as -we can make, by rubbing it in a mortar. -Still it is well to be on the safe side.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>After Mr. Holiday had mixed the compound -<a id='Page_96'></a>sufficiently, he poured it out of the -mortar upon the sheet of brown paper which -Jonas had prepared.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Is that gunpowder?” said Rollo, in a -tone of incredulity.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I think it is somewhat doubtful myself,” -replied his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It does not look like gunpowder,” said -Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>This was true. The substance before -them was different in its appearance from -gunpowder in two respects. It was not -<i>grained</i> like gunpowder, but was fine and -impalpable, like dust. Then it was of a -lighter color. Mixing so much saltpetre, -which was white, with the charcoal and sulphur, -prevented its being so dark as common -gunpowder. At least, Mr. Holiday -thought that this was the reason, and he -suspected that, in some way or other, he had -got too much of the saltpetre in his composition. -At any rate, the powder looked like -nothing but a heap of gray dust.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The proof of the pudding is the taste,” -said he; “so we’ll try it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>He accordingly took up about half a tea-spoonful -of the gunpowder, and put it upon -<a id='Page_97'></a>the shovel, and he asked Jonas to hold it in -the fireplace, so that, if it did burn, the -smoke might go up chimney. Rollo wanted -to touch it, and his father gave him leave. -So he took up a small coal of fire with the -tongs, and touched the top of the little heap. -To their great pleasure and surprise, it -blazed up suddenly and violently.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo, “it’s gunpowder! It’s -real gunpowder, I do believe!”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Let me touch some of it,” said James.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Mr. Holiday put another half tea-spoonful -upon the shovel and let James touch it. It -flamed up like real gunpowder, just as before.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The great peculiarity of gunpowder,” -said Mr. Holiday, “is, that it burns without -air. Other combustibles, when shut up in -a confined space, will not burn. If they are -set on fire previously, they go out when -they are closely shut up from the air. But -gunpowder burns the more violently the -more closely it is shut up. There seems to -be something in some of the ingredients -which takes the place of air; so that, when -people drill a hole in a solid rock, and pour -gunpowder down to the very bottom of it, -<a id='Page_98'></a>in a place where nothing else would burn, -and then ram down pounded bricks into the -top of the hole, so that no air can get in, if -they get fire to the gunpowder, it will burn -there more fiercely than any where, and -tear the rock to pieces.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How do they get the fire down?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“They put a wire in,” replied his father, -“before they put in the bricks; and then -when the bricks are pounded in hard, they -draw up the wire, and that leaves a little -hole extending down to the powder. Then -they pour fresh powder into the hole, and -put shavings on the top, and then set the -shavings on fire, and run away.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I should like to see them blow up a -rock,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“We must make an artificial rock for -our gunpowder,” replied his father, “and -see if our powder will burst it. I’ll try, if -you will go into the other room, and get -the ball of twine out of the drawer.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>While Rollo was gone after the ball of -twine, his father took a piece of strong -wrapping-paper, which Jonas got for him, -and, bending it around over his hand in a peculiar -<a id='Page_99'></a>manner, he formed it into a conical sort -of cup, into which he poured the gunpowder -which he had made. This paper cup -was pointed at the bottom, growing larger -and larger upwards. He then folded over -the upper part, so as to enclose the powder -completely; and, when Rollo brought the -twine, he began to wind the twine around -it, as if he was going to tie it up. Rollo -and James expected that he was going -pretty soon to cut off the string, and tie it; -but instead of that, he went on winding it -up like a ball. After he had carried the -string round a number of times, he began -to wind it tighter and tighter, taking care, -however, always not to pass the twine over -the little tip or apex of the cone. By this -means, in a short time the whole paper was -covered in every part with the twine except -the apex, which remained exposed.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There,” said he, when he had finished, -“I have enclosed the powder now in this -ball, and confined it tight. We can imagine -this to be a rock. The air cannot get at it. -If it burns at all, it must burn by means of -its internal composition. Now we will go -out and set it on fire. Jonas must get a -short board and a few shavings.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_100'></a>While Jonas was gone after the board and -shavings, Mr. Holiday made a little more -gunpowder in the mortar for priming, as he -said. When it was ready, they went out to -the door, where they found Jonas with a -board, and a little basket of shavings.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Mr. Holiday put the board down upon the -ground at a little distance from the door. -Then he placed his wound parcel of gunpowder -upon the board, with the tip down. -With his penknife he made a little opening -into the gunpowder at the tip, so that a little -of it came out upon the board. He then -poured his priming down at the same place, -and laid the shavings carefully upon it. He -finally folded up a paper, and lighted it in -the house, and came up cautiously and -lighted the shavings. The others all stood -upon the piazza looking on, and Mr. Holiday -himself, as soon as he saw the shavings began -to burn, retreated to the same place of -security. The shavings burned slowly for -some time. The flame approached nearer -and nearer to the charge; for a minute, the -flame seemed to come from the very apex -of the cone, and Rollo had just come to the -conclusion that the powder would not go -<a id='Page_101'></a>off, when suddenly there was a flash and a -great puff of smoke, and immediately after -a loud explosion. The children ran to the -spot and found that the ball in which the -gunpowder had been enveloped, was torn -all to pieces, and the fragments of the twine -were slowly burning.</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>Why was Rollo particularly sorry that he failed in -making the charcoal? What did Jonas tell him? -What dangers did Jonas anticipate in his making gunpowder? -What did his father say to his request? What -preliminary arrangements were made? What is the -meaning of <i>pulverize</i>? Of <i>impalpable</i>? How did Jonas -pulverize the charcoal? How did Rollo find his father -employed, when he went to call him? What did his -father say that the proportions were? Did he attempt -to be exact? Did he suppose that the parts ought to be -measured by bulk or by weight? Which did he think -was the heaviest of the materials? How did he make -allowance for this? What was the success of the experiment? -How did their gunpowder differ from real -gunpowder in appearance? In what respect does gunpowder -differ from other highly combustible substances? -How did Mr. Holiday confine his gunpowder, to -show whether it had the property of burning without a -supply of air?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_102'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER VII.<br /> <span class='large'>THE ALARM.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>After the explosion, James said that it -was time for him to go home. It was about -sundown. Rollo said that he would go -home with him to keep him company, if his -mother would let him. She had no objection, -and Rollo and James went away together.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo went with James to the door of the -house where James lived, and then, bidding -him good night, he left him, and began to -return. When he had got about half way -home, he saw a lady and a gentleman coming -along the road. As he approached -nearer to them, he found that it was his -father and mother, taking a walk. Rollo -joined them. They said, however, that -they had walked far enough, and so in a -few minutes they turned round, and went -towards home.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_103'></a>“Didn’t our gunpowder go pretty well, -father?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father, “better than -I expected it would, without being more -accurate in our proportions.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It was a very good experiment, I think,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father, “it was a good -experiment, and it will prove useful to you, -if it impresses upon your mind the nature -of that property of gunpowder on which its -power depends; namely, that its combustion -is within itself. It doesn’t need the outward -air.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There are other things that are more -inflammable than gunpowder; that is, they -will take fire more easily, and make a -greater flame; but they cannot burn unless -they have air. There is phosphorus, for example; -it will take fire a great deal more -easily than gunpowder, and I believe it will -make a greater flame; but it must have air, -and it can’t burn any faster than fresh air -can get to it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then phosphorus will take fire easier -than gunpowder,” said Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_104'></a>“Yes,” said Mr. Holiday; “that is, with -a less degree of heat. I presume that, if I -were to rub phosphorus in a mortar, it -would almost certainly take fire. These -friction matches are made of some composition -of phosphorus, and the heat of -rubbing the end upon a board is enough to -set the composition on fire. But gunpowder -would not burn by being rubbed so. But -still, though less heat is required to inflame -phosphorus than gunpowder, still air is -necessary for the phosphorus, and it is not -necessary for gunpowder; so that gunpowder -will burn in confined places when -phosphorus will not.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Suppose, for instance,” continued Mr. -Holiday, “that we had a barrel of phosphorus -and a barrel of gunpowder, both open -at the top, and were to set them on fire. -The gunpowder would burn at once from -the top to the bottom at a single flash, -without any help from the outward air. -The phosphorus would take fire on the top, -and burn down gradually, as fast as the air -could come to the flame. It would burn -very fast and furiously, and I think it likely -it would make, in all, a greater flame than -<a id='Page_105'></a>the gunpowder. But then it would burn -gradually and only as fast as it could get a -supply of fresh air; so that if, while it was -burning, men were to come and cover it all -over with wet blankets, so as to keep away -the air, it would smother it, and put it all -out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The <i>water</i> of the wet blankets would -put it out,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father; “it would be the -same with any thing dry, if it would keep -out the air. I presume, if a great quantity -of dry sand was poured over it, it would -put it out. But wet blankets or dry sand -put over a barrel of gunpowder, even if we -could have time to do it, would have no -effect at all in stopping the burning; for -the burning is not dependent upon the outward -air at all; the combustion is entirely -within itself; that is the essential peculiarity -of gunpowder, on which all its powers -depend.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t see why it should burst open -what it is confined in, after all,” said Rollo’s -mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Nor I,” said Rollo. “I should think it -might burn up, without tearing things to -pieces.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_106'></a>“I don’t know myself,” replied Mr. Holiday, -“exactly why it has such an expansive -force. I’ll look in some book, when I get -home, and see if I can find an explanation -of it. But, at any rate, you see the difference -in the manner of its burning. Now, -there is wood, for example; it burns by -degrees, as fast as the fresh air can come to -it. When you put a stick of wood upon -the fire, if it is dry and warm, and the fire -is hot, first the outside takes fire. This -burns because the air can get access to it. -But the inside does not burn at all. If we -were to take a stick off the fire, after it had -been burning for half an hour, and saw it -in two, we should find the middle as sound -and solid as ever.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Should we sir?” said Rollo; “I should -expect to find it all black coals.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied his father. “The blackness -only extends in a very little distance; -and the wood within is not burned any faster -than the outside gets burned off out of the -way, so as to let the air come to the inner -layers, one after another.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And there is a very curious contrivance -in nature,” continued Mr. Holiday, “for -<a id='Page_107'></a>supplying the fire all the time with fresh -air.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What is it?” asked Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, air is so constituted, that heat -swells it, and makes it lighter; so that the -air that is next to the outer layer of the -wood, when the wood first begins to burn, -becomes heated, and swells, and so, growing -lighter, it immediately rises and goes out of -the way, and a new supply of good, fresh -air comes in to take its place. By the time -that this is no longer good to promote the -burning, it gets heated and rises; and so, -there is a constant stream of hot air, that -has passed through the fire, rising, and fresh -air coming in to take its place. That is the -reason, Rollo, why we have chimneys in a -house. A chimney is nothing but an opening -over a fire, so that the air can rise up -through it as fast as it passes through the -fire, and all the smoke and sparks pass -up too.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I thought a chimney was only to let the -smoke up,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied his father, “that is not all, -by any means. If a fire made no smoke, it -would still be almost as necessary as it is -<a id='Page_108'></a>now to have a chimney. In fact, some fires -do not make any smoke; some kinds of coal, -dug out of the ground, do not make any -smoke, and charcoal fires do not make any -smoke; but still it is always necessary in -such cases to have chimneys.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because,” he continued, “you must understand, -that air gets changed in passing -through a fire, so that it will not answer -afterwards either to breathe, or to make a -fire burn again; and therefore there must -be some way for it to escape, not only out -of the way of the fire, but also out of the -room where people want to live and breathe. -There is always such a stream of air rising -up from every fire, great or small, even from -a lamp.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, father, is a lamp a fire?” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Certainly,” said his father, “it is a small -fire made by burning oil on the top of a -wick, and the hot air rises in a constant -stream above it. So in a room, if there was -no chimney over the fire, all the air that had -passed through the fire, and become heated, -would ascend to the top of the room. I saw -the proof of this once, in a very singular -manner.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_109'></a>“How was it, sir?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It was one day when I was travelling. -It was in the winter. I came to a hotel -and was going up stairs to my room just -before dinner. When I got to the head of -the stairs, and was about going along the -passage-way to my room, I saw, a little way -before me, a door open, which led into -another room; and there was a thick stream -of white smoke, pouring out in the most -beautiful manner, at the upper part of the -door, and falling up to the ceiling.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Falling <i>up</i>!” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father. “It looked precisely -like a little waterfall, falling up. -There was no smoke at all coming out, -except close to the top of the door; and, as -soon as it got out, it went up to the ceiling -of the entry, and from that it spread all -around like water. It was very beautiful, -but I had not time to stop to admire it, for -I presumed that the room was on fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And did you cry fire?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied his father. “It is never -best to call out for help, unless you are -sure you need it. My room was very near. -I remembered that my pitcher was full of -<a id='Page_110'></a>water in my wash-stand. I ran and got the -pitcher, and went into the room which the -smoke was coming from. I saw a great -blazing by the side of the fireplace.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And did you run and pour your water -on?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied Mr. Holiday; “I didn’t -pour it on, for in that case a great deal of it -would have all run down upon the floor, and -been wasted. I went up to the place, and -put my hand into the pitcher, and began to -sprinkle the water on as fast as I could, and -it put the fire right out at once.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What was it that was burning?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“A basket of chips,” replied his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“A basket of chips!” repeated Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father. “It seems that -the man who occupied that room had gone -out without taking down his fire, and he -had left a small basket, with a few chips in -the bottom of it, near the corner. Now, -while he was gone, one of the sticks of -wood had burned off, and the two ends outside -of the andirons, not having been burned -at all, were heavy; and so the ends of the -stick fell over, one on one side and the -<a id='Page_113'></a>other on the other. The stick which fell -over towards the basket, threw a coal against -it and set it on fire; and the basket, being -very dry and thin, burned very fast. -Scarcely any thing of the size makes a -greater blaze, than a basket, for it is thin, -and of such a form that the air can get to -it on both sides.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That was a narrow escape,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father, “I think it -was.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And I expect the landlord thanked you -for saving his house from burning up,” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“On the contrary,” replied his father, “I -had a scolding.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“A scolding!” exclaimed Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father; “I stepped out -into the entry, and asked the chamber-maid -who was there, if she would go and ask the -landlord to come up into that room. When -he came, I pointed to the wet and blackened -ruins of the basket, and said,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“‘We came very near having a fire, sir.’”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And what did he say?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, he thought that it was my room, -and he was quite angry, and began to scold -<a id='Page_114'></a>me for being so careless as to leave that -basket so near the fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And what did you say?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Nothing,” replied his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Nothing!” exclaimed Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No, I did not say any thing at all. I -listened to hear all that he had to say, and -then I went away to my room.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why didn’t you tell him?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I thought I would let him find out in -his own way,” replied his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And did he find out?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father. “He came to -me after dinner, and made a very humble -apology. He told me that he was very -sorry for what he had said, but that he supposed -that that was my room.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And what did you tell him?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I told him it was of no consequence,—and -that a man who allowed himself to condemn -before he made inquiry, must expect -to fall into some mistakes.”</p> - -<div> - <a id='Page_115'></a> - <h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>Under what circumstances did Rollo find himself taking -a walk with his father and mother? What did Rollo’s -father say was the peculiar and essential property of gunpowder? -Which is more inflammable, phosphorus or gunpowder? -How did Mr. Holiday illustrate this? What -did Mr. Holiday say about the expansive force of burning -gunpowder? By what process are fresh supplies of -air furnished to fires? Why does the air which has once -passed through the fire rise? What is a chimney for? -Would a chimney be necessary if a fire made no smoke? -Relate the incident which occurred to Mr. Holiday at the -tavern. What example of prudence and presence of -mind is furnished by this case? What example of hasty -judgment? What example of patient forbearance?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_116'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER VIII.<br /> <span class='large'>RADIATION AND CONDUCTION.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>There are two ways by which the heat -or the warmth of one body passes off to the -other bodies around it. One is called <i>radiation</i>, -the other <i>conduction</i>. Rollo learned -the meaning of these terms, and the distinction -between them, under the following circumstances:—</p> - -<p class='c006'>One pleasant morning, late in the autumn, -Rollo’s father said that he was going away -on some business, about fifteen miles, and he -told Rollo’s mother that, if she would like to -take a ride, he should be very glad to have -her go too. She said that she should like to -go very much, and she proposed that Rollo -should go with them. Mr. Holiday had no -objection to this arrangement, and accordingly -Jonas was ordered to put both horses into -the carryall, and bring it up to the front -door.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And, on the whole, Jonas,” said Mr. -<a id='Page_117'></a>Holiday, “you may go with us too, and that -will relieve me of all care of the horses.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>There were two seats to the carryall. -Rollo sat with Jonas on the front seat, and -his father and mother behind. They had a -very pleasant ride in the forenoon, but at -noon it looked rather cloudy, as if it might -be going to rain. Rollo said he was afraid -that it would rain before they should get -home.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No matter for that,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, then we shall get wet,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No matter for that,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>They were detained longer than they had -expected to be at the place where Mr. Holiday -had his business to do, so that it was -rather late when they set out on their return -home. After they had rode about an hour, -it looked still more like rain, and at length, -Rollo felt a little drop upon his cheek. He -said, in a complaining tone,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There, Jonas, it <i>is</i> going to rain, for it -begins to sprinkle now.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Rollo,” said Jonas, “when it rains, the -best way is to let it rain; for there is no -knowing what good may come of it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t think any good can come to us,” -<a id='Page_118'></a>said Rollo, “to be out in this storm, and -night coming on. I should think that you -might drive faster.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas was driving pretty fast, and the -rattling of the wheels made so much noise, -that Rollo’s father and mother did not hear -what he and Jonas were saying. Nor did -Rollo hear the conversation in which his -father and mother were engaged. They -were, in fact, discussing the expediency of -not attempting to get home that evening, -but of stopping, instead, at a little village a -few miles before them. As it was growing -cold and late, and as there was every appearance -of an approaching storm, they concluded -to do this; and so, to Rollo’s surprise, -when they came into the village, his -father said to Jonas,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Jonas, you may drive up to this hotel on -the right; we are going to stop here for the -night.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas and Rollo were both glad to hear -this. Jonas drove up to the door, and Rollo -and his father and mother were soon transferred -from their places in the carryall, -which were beginning to be cold, and cheerless, -and uncomfortable, to a pleasant little -<a id='Page_119'></a>parlor, with a bright fire in the fireplace, -and a table in the middle of the room spread -for tea.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Now, it happened that, in this little parlor, -the fire was made in what might be -called a fireplace-stove, that is, a stove made -in the form of a fireplace. It stood out -upon the hearth, and from the top of it a -stove pipe ascended towards the top of the -room, and there passed back into the chimney.</p> - -<p class='c006'>The fire was not built in this room until -the party which was to occupy it arrived, -but the room became warm very quick. -Rollo was surprised that the room became -warm so quick, and his father said that such -an arrangement as that, namely, a stove -standing out upon the hearth, with a pipe -above, warmed a room very quickly; and -one reason was, that it operated by conduction -as well as by radiation, whereas a fire -in a common fireplace could only warm the -room by radiation. Then Rollo wanted to -know what <i>conduction</i> and <i>radiation</i> meant. -His father explained them to him while -they were waiting for the tea to be brought -in.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_120'></a>“There are two ways by which heat -moves,” said his father. “One way is by -shooting swiftly through the air like light. -Hold your hand up before the fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo held his hand up before the fire -as his father had directed.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Do you feel the warmth of the fire upon -your hand?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The heat comes from the fire to your -hand very swiftly through the air, and -makes your hand feel warm.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How do you know it comes so swift, -sir?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I will show you,” said his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>So his father looked about the room, and -he saw a large book lying upon a table between -the windows. He got the book, and -brought it to the fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now,” said he, “I will hold the book -between your hand and the fire. Then the -heat cannot come to your hand.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Mr. Holiday held the book between -Rollo’s hand and the fire, and Rollo said -that he could not feel the heat.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now,” said his father, “I will take the -book away suddenly, and we will observe -<a id='Page_121'></a>what will be the effect. If the heat moves -slowly through the air, it will be some time -before you begin to feel the warmth; but -if it shoots through to your hand quick, you -will feel it immediately.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So saying, Mr. Holiday suddenly withdrew -the book.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “I feel it immediately.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo’s father then told him to go back -from the fire as far as he could go, and still -feel the heat upon his hand, and then he interposed -the book between the fire and his -hand just as before. Rollo still found that -he could feel the heat from the fire instantly, -after his father took the book away.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now, that is radiation,” said Mr. Holiday.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Radiation?” replied Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father. “Heat radiates -from a fire, in all directions, through the air. -Heat radiates, too, from all bodies that are -hot, or warmer than the air around them. -Go and hold your hand near the stove pipe, -and see if you can feel the heat radiating -from the stove.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo did so. He said he could feel the -<a id='Page_122'></a>heat very plainly, though he had to hold his -hand nearer than was necessary when he -was feeling the heat of the fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father; “that is because -the pipe is not so hot as the fire. If the -pipe was as hot as the fire, it would be red -hot, and then you could feel the radiation -as far as you do that of the fire. However, -there is some radiation, though the pipe is -not very hot. There is always radiation -when the thing is warmer than the air -around it. There is radiation from your -face.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Here Rollo put his hand up towards his -face, to try whether he could feel the radiation.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“You can’t feel it very well with your -hand,” said his father, “because your hand -is warm, and so that radiates too. But if -you hold your hand up very near to your -face, perhaps you will feel both to be -warmer, for your hand will radiate to your -face, and your face will radiate to your -hand.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo then put his hand up very near to -his cheek, and, after holding it there a minute, -he said that he perceived that it felt -warm.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_123'></a>“At any rate,” said his father, “you understand -what radiation is. The heat that -comes from the sun is radiated.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, father,” said Rollo, “I understand -what radiation is; now tell me about conduction.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Very well,” said his father; “suppose -you had an iron crowbar here, and should -put one end into the fire, among the burning -coals, and let it remain there while you took -hold of the other end with your hand. Now, -the heat would gradually extend along the -bar, from the hot end in the fire towards -your hand, through the substance of the -iron.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Would it, sir?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father; “so that at last -the end in your hand would begin to feel -hot. Did you never try it with a pin in the -lamp?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “if I hold a pin -in the lamp, it burns my fingers.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The heat,” said his father, “is conducted -along through the pin to your fingers. There -is a radiation from the lamp at the same time, -but the radiation is not enough to burn you -at that distance. That is, if you hold your -finger near the lamp, as near as the length -<a id='Page_124'></a>of a pin, you would feel the warmth produced -by the radiation of the heat through -the air, but it would not be enough to burn -you. But when you take a pin, and put -one end into the flame, it conducts off a -great deal more heat than will come by radiation, -and your fingers are burned. But -then it takes more time for the heat to come -along the pin, than for it to come through -the air. Thus, in that case, the heat that is -radiated comes very quick, though there is -but little that comes; while that which is -conducted comes slowly, but in a great -quantity.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It burns me pretty quick, father,” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father, “because the -pin is very short. But if it was a knitting-needle, -or an iron rod longer still, it would -take some time for the heat to pass from -one end to the other. Heat moves quickly -by radiation, and slowly by conduction.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Now, if you should go to the stove,” -continued Mr. Holiday, “and put your hand -upon it, you would burn it by conduction; -that is, the heat would be conducted through -the iron to your hand. But if you should -hold your hand before the fire so near that -<a id='Page_125'></a>the heat would come from the coals through -the air to it, burning you, then you burn -your hand by radiation.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But you must understand,” continued -his father, “that there may be conduction -from air, as well as from iron. If you come -into a room which is very warm,—that is, -where all the air in it is very warm, although -the fire may be gone out,—then the warmth -you feel comes to your face and hands by -conduction from the air which touches your -face and hands, just as your hand would be -burned by touching the iron that is hot. -But if you come into a room where the air -is not very warm, but where there is a great -blazing fire, then you feel warmed by radiation. -Do you understand this?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo. “I believe I do.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I will ask you some questions then, and -see if you can answer them. When we -toast bread, is the heat applied by radiation -or conduction?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“By——radiation, sir,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes; when we bake bread in an oven, -is it by radiation or conduction?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“By conduction,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “because you perceive -<a id='Page_126'></a>that the fire has all been taken out -from the oven, and the bread is baked by -the heat of the air which surrounds it. I -don’t know but that there may be also some -radiation from the sides of the oven, which -are very hot; but no doubt a great deal of -the heat is conveyed to the bread by conduction.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“When things are boiled, is the heat applied -by radiation or conduction?” said his -father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“By conduction from the water,” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes; and when they are roasted?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“By radiation,” replied Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Very well,” rejoined his father. “I -believe you understand the distinction very -well. Some other time, I will tell you more -about both radiation and conduction. But -now I see the tea is coming in.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo looked around, and saw a girl coming -in, bringing a waiter with two tea-pots upon -it, and a plate of toast covered with a bright -cover, and some other things. She put -them all upon the table, and then said to -Mr. Holiday,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Your tea is ready, sir.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo and his father and mother took -<a id='Page_127'></a>their places at the tea-table to eat their supper. -Nothing more was said on the subject, -until, just before they rose from the table, -Rollo happened to think that his father had -said, at first, that a stove like the one in -that room warmed the room both by radiation -and conduction, and he asked his father -how that was.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“In the first place,” replied his father, -“it warms the room by radiation just like -any other fire, as you observed by holding -your hand before it. But then it also -warms the air in the room by conduction, in -this way; the heat of the fire heats the iron -of the stove and of the pipe. The heat is -conducted through the iron to the outside, -and there some of it radiates, and the rest is -conducted into the air which happens to -touch it. Exactly as if you put your hand -against the stove pipe, the heat is conducted -through to your hand. So it is conducted -to the air, which touches the pipe. This air -becomes heated, and swells, and so grows -light, and rises out of the way, and more -cold air comes in to the stove pipe, and gets -heated in the same way by conduction. So -the air is continually coming up against the -stove and pipe at all parts, and it gets -<a id='Page_128'></a>heated by conduction, and then rises and -floats away over the room, and thus helps -warm the room. But in a common fireplace -all the heat which is conducted off goes -back among the bricks of the chimney, and -does not help warm the room. If we had a -light tuft of down or cotton, and were to -put it near the pipe, perhaps it would be -carried up to the top of the room, by the -current of air which is heated by conduction -of the pipe.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish I had a tuft to try it,” said Rollo. -“It would be a very good experiment.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo had no tuft, but he had that evening -an opportunity to witness the effect of the -ascending current of heated air, in a way -which he did not anticipate; for, after tea, -they had the table out, for Rollo’s father to -do some writing, while his mother sat in a -rocking-chair near, reading. Rollo wanted -to write, and so his father let him have a -pen and ink. He said that he would write -a little note to his cousin Lucy. It was a -very small note, on a little piece of paper, -and when he had written down one side, he -undertook to dry what he had written by -means of the radiation from the lamp, and -accordingly held up his paper very near the -<a id='Page_129'></a>flame of the lamp, upon one side. The -writing, however, did not seem to dry very -fast, and in changing the position of it, he -held it over the flame, though so high that -he thought that there was no danger of -burning it. But the current of heated air -which rises upward from a fire, even so -small a fire as the flame of a lamp, is hotter, -and rises higher, than most children would -suppose. At any rate, before Rollo was -aware of the danger, his note was on fire, -and he was obliged to turn around suddenly, -and throw his paper upon the hearth, to -escape burning his fingers.</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>In what two ways is heat conveyed from one body to -another? Relate the circumstances which led Rollo -and his father and mother to spend the night at a tavern. -What sort of a stove did they find in the little -parlor? What is radiation of heat? How did Mr. -Holiday demonstrate it to Rollo? How did he prove -that heat passes swiftly when it is radiated? How did -Mr. Holiday explain and illustrate conduction? By -which mode is the greatest quantity of heat conveyed? -Which communicates heat most rapidly? What were -some of the questions which Mr. Holiday put to Rollo -to ascertain whether he understood the distinction? -What incident occurred to Rollo in the evening?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_130'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER IX.<br /> <span class='large'>RADIATION.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>When Rollo awoke the next morning, he -found that the storm was over, and he was -very glad to see that there was a prospect -of a pleasant ride home. He heard a sound -as of voices in the yard, under the window -of the chamber where he slept. He looked -out, and saw a large yard near the stables, -with a pump upon one side of it. Before -the pump was a large trough, nearly full of -water. At one end of the trough there was -a cow drinking. Jonas was coming from -one of the stables leading a horse. He was -going to let him drink. There was a boy -at the pump, at work pumping water, to -keep the trough full while the animals were -drinking.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I mean to go down there,” said Rollo -to himself.</p> - -<p class='c006'>He accordingly finished dressing himself -as soon as he could, and went down into -the yard.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_131'></a>“Let me pump,” said Rollo to the boy.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said the boy, “and I’ll go and -be putting down the hay.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So the boy left Rollo at the pump, and -went off towards the stable.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What does he mean by putting down -the hay?” said Rollo to Jonas. For Jonas -had by this time come to the trough, and -his horse was beginning to drink.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“You pump too fast, Rollo,” said Jonas; -“you make the trough run over.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Rollo, “and does that do -any hurt?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied Jonas, “only it exhausts -your strength to no purpose, and by and by -you’ll be tired, and can’t pump at all.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then I’ll pump slower,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>So Rollo began to pump more slowly. -Presently the cow went away, and two oxen -came, one after the other, from the barn. -The boy had let them out. Rollo went on -talking with Jonas, pumping very slowly indeed, -so that he did not supply water as fast -as the animals drank it. The surface of the -water in the trough began to subside, and -then Jonas called upon Rollo to pump faster.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O dear me, Jonas!” said Rollo; “you are -very hard to be suited.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_132'></a>“Yes,” replied Jonas, “I am. If a boy -undertakes to do any thing, I want him to -do it right,—and that is hard. There are -two wrong ways to do a thing, and one right -way. First you pump too fast, and then too -slow; whereas I want you to pump just -right.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And how should I pump?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, I want you to have the pumping -and the drinking exactly in equilibrium.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“In equilibrium?” repeated Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Jonas; “that is, you must -supply water from the pump just as fast as -the horse and the oxen drink it, and so keep -it at the same level in the trough. Thus -you’ll keep the supply and the consumption -in equilibrium.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Rollo. So he pumped a -little faster, until he got the trough nearly -full, and then he noticed the point on the -inside of the trough where the surface of the -water stood. When he found that the water -was rising above that point, he relaxed his -efforts a little until it sank again; and when -he found that it was falling below, he -pumped harder. Thus he contrived to keep -the supply very nearly equal to the consumption.</p> - -<div class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_131.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic002'> -<p>ROLLO WARMING HIS HANDS BY THE FIRE—Page <a href='#Page_133'>133</a>.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_133'></a>It was pretty cold that morning, and, after -Rollo had pumped for some time, his hands -became cold. So he went into the house. -He found his father and mother in the little -parlor where they had been the evening -before. There was a good fire in the stove, -and Rollo held his hands up before it, and -warmed them by the radiation. The breakfast-table -was set, and before long a girl -came in bringing in the breakfast. Among -the other things was a little copper tea-kettle, -with a heater to set it upon, in order -to keep the water hot. The heater was -made in this way: There was a sort of -pan of planished tin, large enough for the -tea-kettle to be set into it. In the middle of -this pan was a round cavity, with a bottom -and sides of sheet iron, and there was a piece -of cast iron, about half an inch thick, made -to fit into this cavity. This piece of cast -iron was to be heated in the fire, and then -put into its place with the tongs, and then -the tea-kettle was to be put over it, in the -pan, in such a manner that the bottom of the -tea-kettle rested upon the top of the heater.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo was very much interested in this -apparatus. It was placed upon a corner of -<a id='Page_134'></a>the table, near the waiter, and Rollo’s attention -was first attracted to it by observing -that the tea-kettle continued to boil a little -on the table. He could not think what -made it boil; and, as they were about sitting -down to the table, his father began to explain -it to him.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The heater, you observe,” said he to -Rollo, “furnishes heat to the tea-kettle by -conduction, to supply the waste by radiation.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What, sir?” said Rollo. He did not -understand his father very well.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, the tea-kettle loses its heat by -radiation principally, and the heater supplies -it by conduction, and so one restores what is -lost by the other.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t understand it, exactly,” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said his father, “I’ll explain it to -you presently, alter we have taken our seats -at the table.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Accordingly, when they were all seated at -the table, Rollo asked his father about the -operation of the heater and the tea-kettle.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” replied his father, “I will explain -it to you. It is a very good apparatus to -<a id='Page_135'></a>illustrate the subject. The tea-kettle is a -radiator, and the heater is a conductor, and -so they show both modes of conveying -heat.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“For,” continued his father, “as the sides -of the tea-kettle do not come in contact with -any thing but the air, they do not conduct -away the heat much; for the air does not -take heat easily by conduction. But the -tea-kettle radiates heat continually. If you -put your hand near it, you will feel the heat -passing off into the air all around.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Here Rollo, who was seated not very far -from the tea-kettle, put out his hand towards -it to feel the radiation.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The tea-kettle would conduct away the -heat very fast, if there was any thing touching -it all around, which would take heat -easily by conduction.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How fast?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, if you were to put your hands to -it, clasping it all around, the heat would be -conducted very fast into your hand, and you -would be burned. Your hands would receive -the heat readily by conduction, but -the air does not.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And the tea-kettle,” continued his father, -<a id='Page_136'></a>“does not radiate the heat very fast, because -it is a bad radiator. It is made so on purpose.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What do you mean by a <i>bad</i> radiator, -father?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, all white, and bright, and polished -surfaces radiate very little,—and all dark, -and dull, and rough surfaces radiate very -fast. So the bright surfaces are called bad -radiators, and those that are of dark color -and dull, are called good radiators. A bright -tea-pot, made of metal, is a bad radiator, and -that makes a good tea-pot.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo laughed.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Its being so bright prevents its radiating -the heat of the water within it very fast -away, and so the water keeps hot longer. -But a stove pipe, which is of dark color, and -not polished, is a good radiator. They make -them so on purpose. A stove pipe made of -some bright metal would look a great deal -better, but it would not warm the room so -well.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But, father,” said Rollo, “this copper -tea-kettle isn’t white, nor very bright.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father, “it is not very -bright: but the surface is polished, you see, -<a id='Page_137'></a>somewhat, and this prevents its radiating -much. Still it radiates more of the heat -than it would if it was of silver, and polished -as bright as possible. But a common -iron tea-kettle, black upon the outside, -would radiate heat much faster than this -one.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There is another thing for you to understand -and remember,” continued his -father; “and that is, that those substances -which radiate heat best, also <i>receive</i> heat by -radiation the best.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t know exactly what you mean by -receiving heat by radiation, sir,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Suppose,” said his father, “that we were -to cut out a square piece of sheet iron, such -as the stove pipe is made of, as large as the -palm of my hand, and also a piece of silver, -like that which a tea-pot is sometimes made -of, and have it polished as perfectly as possible. -Suppose, then, that we were to carry -both of these out, and lay them down in -the sun. Or suppose we hold them up before -the fire, so that they would receive the -radiation from the fire. Now the iron plate -would receive the rays of heat more rapidly -<a id='Page_138'></a>than the other, and become hot the soonest.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Would it, sir?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father; “or, if you -were to lay them down in the sun out of -doors, the effect would be the same.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish we had such pieces to try it,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Did not you ever observe how cold -bright brass andirons are, long after the fire -has been built in the fireplace?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I have,” said Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“So have I, sir,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It is because they are polished, and so -are neither good to radiate nor to receive -radiation. There is another way by which -the same principle is illustrated in the -spring of the year, when the snow is melting -away. Every little leaf, or stick, or insect, -that happens to light upon the snow, -soon sinks down.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo, “the bees do. -Last spring, when I went out in the pasture -on the crust one morning, I found a great -many bees all down at the bottom of little -holes in the snow. I couldn’t think how -they happened to get into those little -holes.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_139'></a>“The holes were made by the heat of the -sun,” said his father, “after the bee fell. -The bee is of dark color, and his body receives -the radiation of the sun much better -than the snow, which is polished.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The snow polished?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father. “The snow is -composed of flakes, and the flakes of a great -number of little needle-like crystals, and -all these crystals are polished, so that they -do not radiate well, nor receive radiation -well. Therefore the heat of the sun has not -much effect upon a pure snow bank. But -the body of the bee is a good radiator, and -also a good receiver of radiation. So it gets -warm, and that melts the snow under it, and -then it sinks down, so that after a time it -gets down to the bottom of a little pit, -which it has made itself.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That’s very curious,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father; “and it is so with -every little stick, or sprig, or dry leaf, which -happens to fall upon the snow. You could -see the effect more distinctly still, if you -were to put a bright piece of tin, and a piece -of sheet iron, like stove pipe of the same -size, upon the snow in the sun. The iron -<a id='Page_140'></a>would receive the radiation, and get warm, -and would sink down in the snow, but the -tin would not receive the radiation.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Wouldn’t it receive any at all?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied his father, “it would receive -some, I’ve no doubt, but perhaps not -more than the snow itself would on each -side of it; and so the snow that was all -around it would melt away as fast as that -which was under it, and thus would not -make any pit or depression in the snow, as -the black iron would.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But I have observed,” said Rollo’s -mother, “that, in the spring of the year, -wherever there are chips or shavings upon -the snow, in the yard, it does not melt -away under them, as fast as it does in other -places.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, father,” said Rollo, “and hay too. -Last year, there was some hay left at the -post where Jonas tied the horse; and, after -the snow was all gone from the rest of the -yard, I raked that hay away, and I found a -great deal of ice under it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “I’ve no doubt of -it. That depends upon another principle. -<a id='Page_141'></a>But we shall not have time to talk about -that now; I will tell you about it after we -get into the carryall.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>In fact, they had by this time nearly finished -their breakfast; and so, after a few -minutes more, they rose from the table, and -Rollo went out to tell Jonas that they should -be ready to go whenever the horses were -harnessed. In about fifteen minutes, Jonas -drove up to the door, and they got into the -carryall and set out for home.</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>What did Rollo observe in the yard when he looked -out the window the next morning? What were the difficulties -in Rollo’s pumping? What apparatus attracted -Rollo’s attention at the breakfast-table? Describe its -construction. How did Mr. Holiday explain the operation -of it? What sort of surfaces radiate fast? What -sort of surfaces radiate slowly? What examples did -Mr. Holiday mention to illustrate this? Describe the -appearances on the snow in the spring of the year, which -were mentioned by Rollo.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_142'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER X.<br /> <span class='large'>CONDUCTION.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Very soon after Jonas had driven out of -the village, Mr. Holiday went on with his -explanation. Rollo sat, as before, upon the -front seat; but, by turning a little in his -seat, he could hear what his father said very -well.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Let us see,” said his father; “where did -we leave off?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“About the chips,” said Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And the hay,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father. “We’ll take the -case of the hay. Should you think, from -what I told you, that hay would be a good -or bad radiator?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Good,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why?” asked his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because,” replied Rollo, “it is not bright -and polished.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Right,” said his father. “And should -you think that it would be a good or a bad -receiver of radiation?”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_143'></a>“Good,” replied Rollo again.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” added his father, “because all -those surfaces which are good radiators, are -good receivers of radiation.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Only,” said Rollo, “the snow doesn’t -melt under it. It all turns to ice.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“True,” said his father. “How thick -was the hay in the place that you refer to? -that is, how much was there, and how -thick a covering did it make upon the -ground?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Not very thick,” replied Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“An inch?” asked his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, yes, sir, more than an inch.” Here -Rollo held his two hands at a little distance -apart, in order to show his father how thick -the covering of hay was. It might have -been three or four inches, though it is not -probable that Rollo’s recollection of it was -very exact.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Very well,” said his father; “we will -call it three inches. Now, you must remember -that the sun shines only upon the -upper surface of the hay, and, if it is ever so -good a receiver of radiation, it is only the -upper surface that can be warmed by the -direct rays. In order to melt the snow, the -<a id='Page_144'></a>hay has not only got to receive the heat -from the sun by radiation on the upper surface, -but it has also got to convey it down -through this space of three inches by conduction. -Now a substance may be a very -good radiator, and a very good receiver of -radiation, while it is a very bad conductor. -And this is the case exactly with hay. It -receives radiation very well, and so the top -gets warm under the rays of the sun; but -it <i>conducts</i> very slowly, and so the bottom -keeps cool, although the top is warm. So, -you see, a single blade of hay, laid upon the -snow under the rays of the sun, would make -the snow melt the faster; but a layer of it -three inches thick would keep it from melting. -A layer of two feet thick would perhaps -keep it from melting all summer.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, father,” said Rollo, “I should -think it would make it warmer.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father; “it would keep -the warmth from getting to it, because it is -a slow conductor. If any thing already -warm is covered up in hay, it keeps it from -getting cool; if any thing already cool is -covered up, it keeps it from getting warm.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What things are good conductors?” -asked Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_145'></a>“The metals,” said his father, “are the -best.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“If they are polished?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Whether they are polished or not,” replied -his father. “I do not know that that -makes any difference. Because, you see, in -being conducted, the heat moves through -the middle of the body, and not along its -surface so much; and I don’t know that -the character of the surface is of much -importance. Some metals conduct better -than others. The philosophers have a curious -kind of an instrument to show the -different conducting powers of different -substances.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What is it, father?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, they have a small iron plate——”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Round?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No, square,” replied his father.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I thought plates were always round,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied his father; “a plate, in -philosophical language, is any flat and comparatively -thin piece of metal, or other such -substance, whatever its shape may be. This -plate that I was speaking of is square, or -oblong,—I believe it is oblong,—and it is -<a id='Page_146'></a>about as large as my hand, and perhaps half -an inch thick.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“In this plate,” continued his father, -“there are drilled a number of little holes.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How many, sir?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, perhaps eight,” said his father. -“They are in a row, running along the middle -of the plate. The holes are about a -quarter of an inch in diameter.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How much is that?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, I should think a common lead -pencil might be a quarter of an inch in diameter. -The holes are of such a size that -you could just put a lead pencil in before it -is cut.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Are the holes bored entirely through the -plate?” asked Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied his father, “a little more -than half through.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Then,” continued he, “they have a -number of little rods made of different substances,—such -substances as they wish to -try, in respect to their conducting power. -One is made of brass, one of iron, one of -glass, one of wood, &c., and these are fitted -into the holes. That is, one end of each rod -is made just large enough to go into its hole -and take out, and yet not be loose in it.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_147'></a>“The upper ends of these rods are hollowed -out a little, so as to form small cavities -or cups, to put some phosphorus into.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What is that for?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I’ll tell you,” said his father. “When -they are going to use the instrument, they -put all the rods into their sockets, and a -little bit of phosphorus into the top of each -one, in the cavity. Each piece of phosphorus -is about as big as the head of a pin. -Now, when these rods are all arranged in -this way, the whole apparatus is put upon -some hot place, where the whole plate will -be heated alike, as, for example, upon the -top of a stove. The heat from the stove is -conducted into the iron plate; from the -iron plate it is conducted into the ends of -the rods which are in the sockets; thence -it is conducted up the rods towards the -phosphorus at the tops of them, only it goes -up much more slowly through some than -through others. And we can tell which rod -conducts the heat the most rapidly, for the -phosphorus upon the top of that rod will -be the first to take fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Will the phosphorus take fire?” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_148'></a>“Yes,” replied his father. “If the stove -is pretty hot, enough heat will be conducted -up the rods to set the phosphorus on -fire. It will look as if the tops of the rods -were getting on fire. First one will blaze -up, and then another, and then another, -according as the rods convey the heat up -more or less readily. Perhaps the phosphorus -upon the top of the glass or wooden -rod will not take fire at all.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I should think,” said Rollo, “that the -heat would get up some time or other, if it -went up ever so slowly.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father, “for some of the -heat is conveyed off into the air, up and -down the sides of the rods; and so, if the -rods are very long, or if they are very bad -conductors, they would radiate the heat -from their sides so fast that not enough -would get up to the top to set the phosphorus -on fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What is the slowest conductor of heat?” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The air is a very slow conductor,” replied -his father, “if we can only keep it -still. So is wood. A heap of shavings is a -very slow conductor, because it consists of -wood and air together.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_149'></a>“How is that?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, the little interstices between the -shavings are all filled with air; and the -heat, in passing through, has to go through -the thickness of a shaving first, and then -through a small space of air; then through -another shaving, and then a little more air; -and so it works its way along very slowly, -and with great difficulty. Therefore, if any -thing is covered with shavings, heat neither -gets into it nor out of it very easily. It is -the same with hay.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Only the blades of hay are not wood,” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Not exactly,” replied his father, “and -yet they are very near it. The fibres of the -stems of grass are very similar to the fibres -of wood. At any rate, they are both slow -conductors; so that hay, like shavings, will -keep the heat from coming away from any -thing that is hot, and from getting into any -thing that is cool.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It is very strange,” said Rollo, “that -the same thing should be good to keep -things hot, and to keep them cool too.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t know,” said his father, “that it is -very strange, if we consider how it operates. -<a id='Page_150'></a>It keeps the heat from passing either way. -Hay has no warmth in itself. If you put -hay about your feet when you are riding, -it will keep them warm, because the warmth -is in your feet already, and the hay keeps -it from going away. On the other hand, if -you put hay around a lump of ice, it will -keep it cool, because the ice cannot melt -unless some heat gets into it from the sun -and air, and the hay impedes the progress -of the heat in going in, as well as in coming -out. It is just so with furs or blankets. -They don’t make things warm. They only -keep them from getting cold.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But, father,” said Rollo, “if my feet -were very cold, and I were to wrap them -up in blankets, wouldn’t it make them grow -warm?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “they would grow -warm, but not because of any warmth in -the blankets. The warmth would be produced -in your body by the blood, and the -blankets would keep it from escaping. That -is all. Blankets and furs would be the best -things to put up ice in, to keep it cool. -They keep the heat from going off from -our bodies, and so, in the same way, they -<a id='Page_153'></a>would keep heat from going in from the -sun and air to the ice.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why don’t they keep ice so, then?” -said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because it would be very expensive. -Shavings, and tan, and such things, will do -nearly as well, and they are a great deal -cheaper. Branches of trees would do very -well, if the leaves were on. Once I heard -of a boy who made an ice-nest, that kept -the ice all summer.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How did he do it, sir?” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, he found a little hollow on the -north side of a hill, and he covered the bottom -of it with hemlock branches a foot -thick. Then he piled up square blocks of -ice upon the branches till he made a pyramid -of ice as high as his head, and as large -on the bottom as a large table. Then he -heaped up straw and shavings all around it -till the ice was covered very thick. He -also contrived to put some sheets of bark -over it, to keep the rain off; and thus he -kept his ice nearly all summer.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I should like to try it,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It would be better for you to make a -little building,” said Mr. Holiday; “that -<a id='Page_154'></a>would be much more convenient to get -into. You would only have to make the -walls double, and fill the space between -with tan, or shavings, or straw, or any other -substance like that, to keep the heat out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Let us do it, Jonas,” said Rollo. “I -should like a little ice-house very much.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo’s mother said that she wished Jonas -would; so it was settled that he was to try -and see if he could make an ice-house.</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>What phenomenon that Rollo had observed was it -that Mr. Holiday was going to explain when they were -seated in the carryall? Did they conclude that hay -would be a good or bad radiator?—a good or bad receiver -of radiation? How, then, did Mr. Holiday account -for the snow and ice melting so slowly under it? -What was the object of the philosophical instrument -constructed? What are some of the best conductors of -heat? What substances are slow conductors? Describe -the plan which the boy devised for keeping ice -all summer.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_155'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER XI.<br /> <span class='large'>THE RIDE HOME.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>After the conversation recorded in the -foregoing chapter, the party in the carryall -rode on for some time in silence. They -were going towards the east, and the morning -sun shone very pleasantly upon them, -so that it was not cold riding. The air had -been frosty early in the morning, but the -rays of the sun brought so much warmth -with them that they enjoyed their ride very -much. After some time, Rollo’s father began -to speak again of the conductive powers -of different substances, thus:—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I think it probable that the fibres of -wool and of fur are better non-conductors -of heat than the fibres of wood, and grass, -and straw, and other vegetable substances.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo did not at first understand what his -father meant by <i>non-conductors</i>. He had -not heard him use that term before. So he -asked him what it meant. His father told -<a id='Page_156'></a>him that, as people often wanted to employ -substances which would not easily conduct -heat, they had frequent occasion to use a -word adapted to denote such substances as -were suitable to such a purpose, and that -<i>non-conductors</i> was the term which was so -used.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There are two reasons,” said he, “why -I think it probable that the fibres of the -covering of animals are better non-conductors—that -is, that they conduct heat more -slowly—than vegetable fibres. I should -like to have you tell me whether you think -they are satisfactory.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well, sir,” said Rollo, “if you will tell -us what the reasons are.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“First, tell me of all the substances that -you can think of which are composed of -animal fibres.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Fur,” said Rollo, “and wool.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And hair,” said his mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father, “and woollen cloth, -and blankets, and carpets, and flannel, are -made of such animal fibres. Now, can you -tell me of any substances which are composed -of vegetable fibres?”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_157'></a>“Hay,” said Rollo; and then he paused. -He could not think of any others.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Cotton,” said his father, “and flax. -They are vegetable fibres; and cotton cloth, -and linen, and paper, are fabrics made -of vegetable fibres. Now, there are two -reasons which make me think that the animal -fibres are better non-conductors than -the vegetable. One is, that they are expressly -intended for non-conductors, and -therefore would probably be so formed as -most perfectly to answer their design.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“For you see,” continued Mr. Holiday, -“that the wool, and the fur, and the hair, of -animals is generally intended as a covering -to protect them from the cold. That is, it -is intended to keep the heat of the body -from passing off, and being wasted in the -air. Therefore they must be non-conductors -of heat, in order to answer this design. -Now, we find that everything in nature is -admirably adapted to answer its design, and -therefore we should expect that these substances, -which are expressly intended to -confine heat, would be the best non-conductors -of heat in nature. That is one -reason.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_158'></a>“I think it is a very good reason,” said -Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“So do I,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The other reason is this,” continued Mr. -Holiday. “All the substances made of the -vegetable fibres feel colder to the touch in -cold weather than those made of animal -fibres. For example, suppose you were to -go, in a very cold night, into a room where -there was no fire, and put one hand into a -bed between the sheets, and the other between -the blankets,—which would feel the -coldest?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The sheets,” said Rollo, “a great deal.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And the reason why they would feel -coldest must be,” said Mr. Holiday, “that -they conduct away the heat from your hand -the fastest, which shows that they are better -conductors of heat. If you were to put -your hand upon iron in such a room, it -would feel colder still, because the iron is a -better conductor of heat than the vegetable -fibres which the sheet is manufactured from.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“In the same manner,” continued Mr. -Holiday, “a bare wooden floor feels colder -than one with a carpet upon it. Now, in -the case of a bare floor, it is vegetable fibre -<a id='Page_159'></a>which conveys away the heat, and in the -carpet, if it is a woollen carpet, it is animal -fibre. But a stone floor would feel colder -than a wooden one.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“A painted floor is very cold,” said -Rollo’s mother.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Mr. Holiday; “paint is made -of some metallic preparation generally, -which is a better conductor than wood. -All the metals are much better conductors -than wood. That is the reason why they -have wooden handles to tea-pots and other -such vessels, because a handle of metal -would conduct so much heat from the hot -water to the hand, that we could not hold it.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “and the handle -to the little tea-kettle at the tavern was a -wooden one. I did not know what it was -for.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It was to keep the heat from coming to -your hand when you pour out the water. -If the handle had been of copper, it would -have been necessary to have a non-conductor -to put around it, to keep the heat from coming -out of the handle.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I never heard of such a thing,” said -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_160'></a>“Haven’t you?” said his father. “They -make them sometimes, and it is a very ingenious -contrivance.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How do they make them?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“They make them of some substance -formed of animal fibre,” said his father, -“because that makes the best non-conductor. -The article, when ready, can be put -upon any handle which is likely to get hot, -and, being a non-conductor, it stops the heat -from coming from the handle to your hand. -You can take up any hot thing by means of -it,—unless it is hot enough to burn the -animal fibre of which the non-conductor is -composed.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I wish that I could see one,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said his father, “you can, when -you get home. Dorothy has got one, I dare -say.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Dorothy!” repeated Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said his father. “She calls it a -<i>holder</i>.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, a holder,” said Rollo. “I did not -know you meant a holder.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, a holder is a non-conductor made -of animal fibre, and intended only to stop -the passage of the heat from the iron handle -to your hand.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_161'></a>“I thought it was only to keep our hands -from touching the handle.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said his father, “for an iron holder -would do that; but an iron holder would -soon get hot, and be of no use. That is, an -iron holder would allow the heat to pass -across very soon to your hand. It must be -a non-conducting holder.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And now,” continued Mr. Holiday, “you -understand fully the philosophy of the copper -tea-kettle. The iron heater was the -reservoir of heat. As it was a good conductor, -it conveyed the heat rapidly into -the bottom of the tea-kettle, and so into the -water. The water, being a good conductor, -conveyed the heat to the sides of the tea-kettle, -but they were made bright and polished, -so that they should not radiate it fast -into the air. Still, however, they radiated -the heat considerably; but the waste was -supplied by fresh heat from the heater. At -first, the heat came faster from the heater -than it was radiated from the sides of the -kettle, and so the water was made to boil. -But gradually the heater became less hot, -and so did not conduct heat so fast into -the bottom of the tea-kettle,—until, at -<a id='Page_162'></a>length, there was a time when the supply -was just equal to the waste; that is, the -heat was conducted in just as fast as it was -dissipated by radiation, and the temperature -was kept at the same point.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That was something like my pumping, -Jonas,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas nodded his head, but did not speak, -as he did not wish to interrupt Mr. Holiday.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“At length,” he continued, “the supply -by conduction became less than the radiation, -and so the water began to cool, and -probably, when we left the table, the water -had cooled considerably below the boiling -point. I think it likely it would have been -better to have made the heater of some other -substance than iron,—something that is not -so good a conductor.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, sir?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Because,” said Mr. Holiday, “in that -case it would not have communicated its -heat so fast, and so the supply would have -lasted longer. The iron is so good a conductor, -that at first it poured its heat up -through the bottom of the tea-kettle in such -quantities as to make the water boil. This -was more than was wanted, and the heat at -<a id='Page_163'></a>first was wasted. In consequence of this, -after a time it became too cool, and did not -heat the water enough. Now, if it had -been made of something which was not a -good conductor, it would have parted with -its heat more slowly at first, and so the heat -would have lasted longer.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, sir,” said Rollo; “and what would -have been good?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Soapstone is a very good non-conductor,” -said Mr. Holiday. “But then, perhaps -soapstone would have got bruised and broken -by constant use, and by heating and -cooling. It isn’t a very hard kind of stone. -I think it probable that iron is, on the -whole, the best.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo learned nothing more on the subject -of heat during this ride, for very soon -after this they began to draw towards home. -After they had arrived, and the horses had -been taken care of, he and Jonas went to -look about for a good place to build the -proposed ice-house.</p> - -<div> - <a id='Page_164'></a> - <h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>What two classes of non-conductors were the subjects -of conversation on the ride home? Name some examples -of animal fibres; of vegetable fibres. Name some -examples of fabrics composed of animal fibres; of -vegetable fibres. Which class of substances did Mr. -Holiday suppose were best non-conductors? What was -the first reason which he gave?—the second reason? -What did Mr. Holiday say, further, in respect to the -operation of the heater? What was the point of analogy -between the operation of the heater and Rollo’s -pumping? What was the objection to iron as the -material for the heater? What other substance did -Mr. Holiday suggest? What objection to soapstone -did he think of?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_165'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER XII.<br /> <span class='large'>THE CONFLAGRATION.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>One night, some months after the occurrences -related in the last few chapters, Rollo -had an opportunity of witnessing with Jonas -a great conflagration in the city. This incident -may very properly be described in this -volume, which relates to the phenomena of -fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas and Rollo had gone to the city on -some business for Mr. Holiday. Jonas’s -orders were to return that night if he could -get through with his business; if not, to -wait until the next day. It happened that -he could not get through with his business, -for the man whom he wished to see was not -at home. They said he would be at home -that night, and that Jonas could see him -early the next morning. So they had to -spend the night in the city. They took a -walk in the evening, doing some errands, -and looking at the curious things in the shop -<a id='Page_166'></a>windows; and at last they went back to the -hotel, and retired to bed. Jonas had engaged -a room for himself very near Rollo’s -room.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo did not go to sleep for some time, -his mind being somewhat excited by the -novelty of the scenes which he had been -witnessing, and by the strange place in -which he was now trying to go to sleep. -At length, however, he got asleep, and -dreamed that he was buying a large and -beautiful rocking-horse for Nathan, at one -of the toy-shops in the city,—and was just -mounting the rocking-horse to take a little -ride himself, when his visions were disturbed -by hearing some strange, confused, -and terrifying sounds. He started up and -listened. There seemed to be a great sound -in the street, and a bright light was flashing -and moving upon the wall over his head. -He also heard a noise at the door of his -room; and, before he had time to consider -what all this disturbance meant, he heard -Jonas’s voice, saying in a gentle tone,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Rollo.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What?” said Rollo, eagerly.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Don’t be frightened. It’s only a fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_167'></a>“A fire! where?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I don’t know where it is,” replied Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo listened a moment, and he could -hear the city bells ringing in very mournful -and alarming tones, some near, and some at -a distance. There was one belonging to a -church nearly opposite to the hotel, which -sounded very loud and near. The flashing -light upon the wall moved gradually along -the room, and then disappeared; and soon -after another came in on the opposite side, -and moved along the wall in the same manner. -Rollo could hear the sound of a great -uproar in the street below, consisting of -confused but loud and hoarse voices, the -heavy rattling of wheels, and a bell which -sounded in a very peculiar manner as it -moved along the street, as if it was rung by -being jolted and jarred.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo and Jonas went to the window to -look out. It was a dark and cloudy night, -and the window was very high from the -street, as Rollo’s room was in one of the -upper stories of the house. Still they could -look down upon the street below, and see -that it was filled with a torrent of men, -moving along in a hurried manner, the -<a id='Page_168'></a>whole mass being illuminated by great -torches which some of the men carried in -their hands. They were dragging along a -fire engine, which thundered over the pavement -as they ran, in the most terrifying -manner.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Let’s go and see the fire,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Jonas, “we might; only -perhaps there may not be any fire. Perhaps -it is only an alarm.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No matter,” said Rollo; “let us go and -see the alarm.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo knew that to witness the scene of -noise and excitement in the street, would -interest him very much, even if there was -no house on fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Jonas, “dress yourself as -quick as you can, and I’ll come in again -when I’m ready.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas accordingly went out, and finished -making his preparations, and then returned. -He required Rollo to put on his great-coat, -for he said there would be danger of taking -cold in standing still in the chill evening -air, to look at the fire if they should find -one. When they were ready, they hurried -down stairs.</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_169'></a>The street seemed to be nearly still when -they left Rollo’s room; but, when they -issued from the hotel, and stepped out upon -the sidewalk, they heard the sound of noise -and uproar approaching again. They looked -in the direction from which the sound came, -and saw a great torch coming along the -street, which flamed, and flashed, and illuminated -the pavements and the buildings -on each side of it. It was followed by a -long, double line of men and boys, with -other torches and lights at intervals, pulling -upon a rope; and farther behind they heard -a very heavy, lumbering sound of wheels, -and a sort of confused roar of voices mingling -with it. It was another fire engine. -It approached with great rapidity, and a -crowd of men and boys attended and followed -it, so large as to fill the street full; -and, brushing rudely by Jonas and Rollo on -the sidewalk, they filled the air with their -loud but hoarse and hollow shouts. “Ahead -with her! ahead with her!”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo could not see the engine, for the -street was perfectly filled, while it passed, -with a dense crowd of men and boys, all -running along by its side. Rollo thought -<a id='Page_170'></a>that some of them would certainly get run -over.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“We’ll go a little slower,” said Jonas, -“till the engine gets by, and then we shall -have more room.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Rollo, “let’s keep up. I -want to see where they will go.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Jonas,——“O, there’s the -fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo looked forward where Jonas pointed. -He saw, through the opening between some -tall buildings before them, a faint light in -the sky. He saw it however only for a few -moments; for, as they passed on, the towering -walls of the city buildings intervened -again, and hid it from their view.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Pretty soon, however, at a turn of the -street they came in view of the light again; -and now it looked much brighter than before. -It spread upwards, in fact, and illuminated -a considerable part of the sky. The -sight of the light appeared to animate the -engine-men, for they began to run on faster -than before, the heavy lumbering of the -wheels, and the shouts of, “Ahead with -her!” sounding louder than ever. Opposite -to where Rollo and Jonas were, there -<a id='Page_171'></a>was a light, tossing and dancing upon the -top of a tall pole, representing the number -<i>ten</i> in figures of fire.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O Jonas,” said Rollo, “look at that -<i>ten</i>.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Jonas, “that is the number -of the engine.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How can they make such fiery figures?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, they put the lamp in a glass lantern, -and they paint the glass black, all except -a place left bare, of the shape of the -figure which they wish to have, and so the -light shines through where the glass is not -painted, and that makes the figures of fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>Just then Rollo heard sounds of new uproar -and confusion approaching by another -street. He looked in the direction, and saw -an engine coming with its long lines of men -and its great crowds, its torches and its -thundering sounds. The great mass seemed -to be coming on with prodigious momentum. -They were coming down into the -street where they were, and Rollo thought -that they would certainly run over No. 10. -When they approached the junction of the -streets, and saw that the street which they -<a id='Page_172'></a>were coming into was already filled up with -another engine and the crowds about it, they -did not stop, but kept rushing on, and swept -around the corner directly into the crowd, -where all became mixed and mingled together, -making confusion worse confounded. The -crowd became so dense that Rollo and Jonas -could not have got along at all, were it not -that the crowd itself was moving on; and so -every body that was among them was necessarily -borne onwards too.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Just then Rollo heard a very loud and -hoarse voice calling out, “Hold on, No. 10! -Hold on, No. 10!”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What’s that?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“That’s a man with a speaking-trumpet,” -said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What does he mean by <i>hold on</i>?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“He means <i>stop</i>,” replied Jonas. “He -wants No. 10 engine to stop here.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>The cry of the engineer, “Hold on, No. -10!” was repeated and reechoed by a great -many other voices in the crowd, though it -was mingled and confounded with many -other noises, such as the rumbling of the -wheels upon the pavement, the <i>dinging</i> of -the engine bells, and shouts and outcries -from a hundred voices. At last, however, -<a id='Page_173'></a>the men and boys attached to No. 10 seemed -to understand that they were to “<i>hold on</i>;” -and, accordingly, the engine gradually came -to a stand, while the other, which was No. 6, -as Rollo learned from a bright figure 6 -which he saw tossing about in the air over -the heads of those who were drawing it, -moved on.</p> - -<p class='c006'>The men about No. 10 took out some long -handles, which were secured by the side of -the engine, and passed them through some -iron rings, fitted to receive them; and then -they all took hold, ten or fifteen men on each -side ready to work the engine. Presently -the order was given in the same hoarse and -hollow voice from the speaking-trumpet, -“Play away, No. 10!” and immediately the -men began to work the long handles up -and down, with quick and heavy strokes.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, Jonas,” said Rollo, “what are they -doing?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“They are working this engine,” said -Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What for?” said Rollo; “they are not -near the fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I suppose there is a reservoir near here,” -said Jonas, “and they are driving the water -<a id='Page_174'></a>from it along towards some engine that is -near the fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How does the water go?” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“In a hose,” said Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What is a hose?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It is a long leather pipe or tube. Come -out this way, and we shall find it, I suppose, -lying along the street.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>So the boys pushed their way along beyond -the engine, and presently the fire itself -burst upon their view in all its glory. It -was a store,—one of the stores of a block -which extended along the whole street. The -front was of brick, and the walls between -the different stores of the block were also of -brick, so that nothing but the inside and the -roof could burn. But the whole interior of -the building was on fire, the flames issuing -from the windows, and rising in a great, -bright, roaring pyramid above the roof, far -up into the dark sky. The whole street, -except exactly opposite to the fire, where it -was too hot for persons to stand, was filled -with men whose faces, which were all turned -towards the fire, were so brightly illuminated -by the light, that Rollo could see them -more distinctly than if it had been day. -From the midst of a dense crowd just beyond -<a id='Page_175'></a>the fire, Rollo saw a slender white thread of -water mounting up in a beautiful curve, and -falling over upon the flames. It was the jet -from an engine; but it seemed to produce -no effect upon the flame whatever.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“There is the hose,” said Jonas, suddenly.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo turned away from the fire to look at -the hose which Jonas pointed out to him, -lying upon the pavement. There were a -great many persons coming and going, so -that he could not see very well; but he perceived -a long pipe of leather lying along the -street, in a serpentine direction, and swelled -out with the water which the engine was -driving through it, as if it was just ready to -burst.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It looks like a snake,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, and it hisses like a snake too,” -replied Jonas.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Rollo listened, and he could just hear a -hissing sound mingling with all the other -noises. He stepped out into the street to see -how the hissing sound was produced.</p> - -<p class='c006'>They found that at one of the joints of -the hose there was a little leak, and the water -spouted from it in a stream, which, though -it was very small and slender, mounted as -high as Rollo’s head. The light from the -<a id='Page_176'></a>fire shone so brightly upon this part of the -street that Rollo could see the operation -very distinctly.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Jonas thought that it was not very safe -for them to remain in the midst of the road -much longer; so they went back to the sidewalk, -and then began to move along towards -the fire. The crowd was so dense that they -could not get along very well; but at last -they came to a place where they got up -upon some steps, where they could see pretty -well, only that Rollo was not tall enough. -There were many others standing upon the -steps, and Rollo could not see very well over -their shoulders. There was, however, a pretty -high stone post at the top of the flight of -steps, and very near the house, where Jonas -thought that perhaps Rollo could sit, if he -could get him up there. Rollo was afraid -that the place was not wide enough, for -there was a ball upon the post, and he could -only sit upon that part of the top of the post -which was upon one side of the ball.</p> - -<p class='c006'>However, Rollo was so desirous of seeing -them put out the fire, that he concluded to -try, and so Jonas helped him climb up. He -found the place a better one than he had expected. -He clasped one hand around the -<a id='Page_177'></a>ball, and he rested the other upon Jonas’s -shoulder and by this means he found that he -had a firm and comfortable seat; and the -fire, with all the operations connected with -it, were in full view before him.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Just as he got established in his seat, he -saw a stream from another engine beginning -to issue from its pipe, and to rise up towards -the building. The man who held the pipe -stood upon the top of the engine, and he -held it in such a way as to direct it towards -one of the upper windows. Rollo could see -the red flame through the window, as the -shutter had been burned, and all the glass -had fallen away; and, now and then, a -great puff of flame would come out, when -any momentary change in the wind drove -the fire in that direction. The stream of -water went directly in at the window. At -first, it produced very little effect; but -presently he observed that it began to deaden -the redness of the fire just within the -window. Rollo thought that this engine -was far more powerful than the one which he -had noticed before. That still continued to -play around behind the building. Rollo occasionally -got a glimpse of other jets, coming -from engines which were standing on that -<a id='Page_178'></a>side. Sometimes these jets came away over -the top of the building, and Rollo could see -them broken into drops as their force was -spent, but still shooting forward through -the flames in regular pulsations, produced -by the successive strokes of the engines from -which they came.</p> - -<p class='c006'>By all these means, the fire was soon -perceptibly diminished. The window into -which the engine was playing soon ceased -to look red at all; and presently Rollo saw -a tall ladder rising slowly above the heads -of the crowd. The lower end of it was -nearly under the window, which he had -been noticing, while the other end extended -almost across the street, and slowly rose. -Rollo was expecting every moment to see -it fall back upon the heads of the people -who were under it; but it did not. It -ascended slowly and steadily, until the -upper end passed over, and fell against -the building, a little above the window. -In a moment, a man appeared at the foot, -climbing up the rounds laboriously, as if he -was carrying up a burden which made him -mount with difficulty. Rollo saw, pretty -soon, that he had an engine pipe in his -hands; and presently he observed that it -<a id='Page_179'></a>was the same man whom he had seen before, -holding the pipe of the engine, and directing -the stream into the window. The man -ascended slowly, dragging up the pipe, and -the hose which was attached to the bottom -of it, until, at length, when the hose became -so long that he could not lift it any farther, -another man took hold below, and presently -another; and at last there were four men -at different parts of the ladder, all lifting -up the hose.</p> - -<p class='c006'>When the man at the top got the pipe -up opposite to the window, he pointed it in, -and then Rollo could see him looking down, -and gesticulating very violently to those -below. He seemed to be calling out to -them; but there was so much noise that -Rollo could not hear what he said. However, -presently the man turned around towards -the building again, and seemed to be -attending to his pipe, and Rollo could see -that the water was spouting through it very -furiously into the building.</p> - -<p class='c006'>By this time, the fire had been so much -deadened, by the various jets of water which -had been poured upon it from all sides, that -the flames no longer ascended above the -roof, but, instead of flame, there was a tall -<a id='Page_180'></a>column of dense white smoke, illuminated -by the embers which still glowed below. -Rollo and Jonas remained nearly half an -hour, watching the progress of the extinguishing -of the fire; and then, as Rollo -began to feel his seat somewhat uncomfortable, -they returned together to the hotel. -Rollo said he wondered that the other buildings -did not take fire; but Jonas told him -that bricks were a pretty good non-conductor -of heat, and that, if the walls which -divided such a block were of proper thickness, -one store was often burned out of the -block, without setting fire to the adjoining -buildings.</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>Under what circumstances did Rollo first hear the -alarm of fire? What did he observe in the street when -he looked out the window? What is a reservoir? -How was the water conveyed from the reservoir to the -vicinity of the fire? Describe the successive steps of -the process by which the fire was extinguished. What -did Jonas say in regard to the reason why the fire was -not communicated to the other buildings of the block?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <a id='Page_181'></a> - <h2 class='c004'>CHAPTER XIII.<br /> <span class='large'>THE FIRE IN THE WOODS.</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>When Rollo and Jonas reached home the -next day, Rollo gave Dorothy an account of -the conflagration which they had witnessed -in the city.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Dorothy did not appear quite so much -interested in his narrative as Rollo had expected. -There are, in fact, a great many -scenes which it is very interesting to witness, -but which it is very uninteresting to hear -described. This is a distinction which a -great many travellers, older and more experienced -than Rollo, are apt to forget. Or -rather it is one that they do not understand -at all. They attempt to describe to their -friends scenes of grandeur or sublimity which -impressed their minds very strongly when -they witnessed them, and are surprised to -find that they cannot make a similar impression -upon others by means of the description.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Besides, Rollo’s account was confused and -indistinct. It is possible to create a strong -<a id='Page_182'></a>impression upon the mind by a description -of a storm, or of a conflagration, or of any -other grand scene. But, then, the description -must be given skilfully. It must be clear -and distinct, and the several circumstances -which contributed most to the production -of the general effect, must be presented -fully to the mind, and in a regular and -proper manner. This Rollo failed to do. -He was not experienced in the description -of complicated scenes.</p> - -<p class='c006'>Accordingly, when he got through with -his narrative, and perceived that Dorothy -did not enter at all into the enthusiasm with -which he related it, he paused a moment, -and then said,—</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Did you ever see a fire in a great city, -Dorothy?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Dorothy.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well, it is a very grand sight, I can -assure you,” said Rollo. “I don’t believe -<i>you</i> ever saw such a grand sight, in your -life.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes, I have,” said Dorothy.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“A fire in the woods,” replied Dorothy.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O Dorothy!” said Rollo; “a fire in the -<a id='Page_183'></a>woods is nothing at all, compared to a fire -in a city. I know, because Jonas and I -have built fires in the woods a hundred -times.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, I don’t mean your little bonfires,” -replied Dorothy. “I mean great fires, when -the woods are burning themselves, for miles -and miles all around.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Do the woods get on fire like that?” -asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Dorothy. “I remember -one fire, in the woods, when I was a little -girl, that came very near burning my father’s -house. I was quite a little girl.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How old?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“About seven years,” said Dorothy. “It -was when my father lived in his log-house -in the square opening.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What do you mean by that?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, my father made his cut-down -square. There were just five acres.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What is a cut-down?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“The piece where he cut down the trees,” -said Dorothy, “to make a clearing. First -they fall the trees, and then it is called a -<i>cut-down</i>. They let the trees lie all summer, -<a id='Page_184'></a>until they get perfectly dry, and then they -set them on fire, and burn them. When my -father had got his five-acre piece cleared, he -built a log-house upon it, and there we lived. -The opening was full of stumps, and the -woods were all around it, the stems of the -trees standing up thick and close together, -like a wall. We could not see out of the -opening any where, except a little way down -the road.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And did you live there all alone?” -asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, no,” said Dorothy; “there were my -father and mother, and my brother; only -my father and brother used to be away -almost all the time, at work.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Well,” said Rollo, “tell me about the -fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, the first that we knew of it, was, -that I saw one day a great white smoke -rolling up over the tops of the trees, to the -north of our house. I asked my mother to -come and look at it, and she did. She said -she guessed that John Williams was burning -off his piece.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Who was John Williams?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, he was one of our neighbors. He -<a id='Page_185'></a>lived about two miles off, and had been -falling a piece of woods that spring, for a -crop of wheat.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I watched the smoke for some time,” -continued Dorothy, “and at length it grew -smaller and smaller, and finally I could see -nothing but a haze. But, that night, I went -out, about nine o’clock, to see if my chickens -were all safe,—for there were some foxes -about at that time,—and I saw that the sky -looked red in that direction; so I knew that -the fire had not all gone out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Was that the time,” interrupted Rollo, -“when you had your hen-coop in a stump?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why? did I ever tell you about that?” -asked Dorothy.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Rollo, “you told me about -your hen’s laying her eggs in an old hollow -stump; and then your brother made a coop -there, for the chickens.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” rejoined Dorothy, “that was at -the same time. The next morning, I saw -the smoke coming up again. It was not so -thick as it had been the day before, when -the fire first began to burn; but it seemed -to spread over a larger space.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_186'></a>“Had the fire got into the woods?” -asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Dorothy. “My father -told us, when he got home that day to dinner, -that John Williams had let his fire get -away from him, and that it had got into a -fine growth of sugar maples, and was making -sad work.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“My mother asked him if there was not -any danger that it would get over to our -land; but my father said no, not unless the -wind should come in strong from the northward. -But he said he thought there would -be a shower that afternoon, and that would -put it out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And was there a shower?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Dorothy; “only the cloud -brought more wind than rain, and so it -fanned up the fire more than it extinguished -it. The rain, in fact, only sprinkled the tops -of the trees, leaving all the dry logs, stumps, -leaves, and branches, which lay about upon -the ground, as dry as ever. After the shower, -there was a good fresh breeze all the -evening; and about nine o’clock that evening, -when we went to bed, the whole sky -in that quarter was of a burning red, as if -the heavens were on fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'><a id='Page_187'></a>“I should have thought you would have -been afraid to go to bed,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” said Dorothy; “for the wind went -down about nine o’clock, and, though the -fire looked very bright, my father said it -would not spread any more.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How did it look the next morning?” -asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It only looked smoky,” replied Dorothy. -“In fact, we never could see any light in -the daytime; nothing but smoke. When -there was a wind, the smoke increased; and -then, if night came on, the sky looked -bright and glowing; but if there was not -any wind, the fire seemed to die away. -Once I thought it was all out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And wasn’t it?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied Dorothy; “my father said -that nothing but a good rain would put it -out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why did not your father go,” asked -Rollo, “and put it out with some buckets -of water?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Buckets of water, child!” said Dorothy; -“do you suppose that you can put out -a fire in the woods with buckets of water?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, no,” said Rollo, “I suppose not. -<a id='Page_188'></a>But they could put it out with such engines -as we saw in the city; I know they could.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“You know a great many things that I -don’t,” said Dorothy. “However, we did -not have any engines, and so there was -nothing to do but to wait for rain. But it -happened to be a dry time just then, and -there was not any rain for a week; and so -the fire continued, sometimes burning up -bright, and sometimes dying away, but all -the time drawing gradually nearer to our -house.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“At last, one night it got so near that -my father said that he did not know but -that he ought to sit up and keep watch; -but the wind shifted before bedtime, and -blew it off in another direction, and so he -went to bed.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“But about midnight I heard a great -noise, which waked me up. I opened my -eyes, and looked around, and I saw a great -light shining through the cracks.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What cracks?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, the cracks between the slabs.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Where were the slabs?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, the upper part of the house was -made of slabs, and there were cracks between -them, where I could see out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“I should think the wind and rain would -come in,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” replied Dorothy; “so they did, -when it was stormy, but not enough to do -<a id='Page_189'></a>any harm, because I could always move my -bed away from the side where the wind -blew; only in the winter the snow used to -blow away in to my bed, wherever I put it. -But that did not do any harm, because the -snow would shake all off again.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Was not there any window in your -chamber?” asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, it was not a chamber exactly,” -replied Dorothy; “we called it a <i>loft</i>. -There was a window left in one end, but -that was fastened up by a board. So I -could only see the lights through the -cracks.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What was the noise that you heard?” -asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It was the noise that my father made -calling up my brother, and running out. -Then, besides, there was a great roaring and -crackling of the flames. I got up, and -dressed myself, and ran down stairs, and I -found the woods all on fire close by our -house.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why, I thought your house was in the -middle of the opening,” said Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied Dorothy; “it was upon -one side of the opening,—pretty near the -woods. There was a brush fence running -along at the edge of the woods, and a log -fence leading from the brush fence to our -barnyard. The brush fence was all on fire, -and it was blazing up very high, and beyond -it, in the woods, the ground was covered -<a id='Page_190'></a>in every direction with heaps of logs, -and branches, and old trees, all on fire, and -burning furiously. The air was full of -smoke and sparks, and the wind was driving -them directly towards our house and -barn.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Just then I heard behind me a great -crackling, which burst out very loud and suddenly. -I looked to see what it was, and I -found that the fire had got into the top of a -great hemlock-tree, and it was blazing away -from the top to the bottom of it. But I -had no time to stand looking at it, for my -father told me to go and get some water at -the spring, and then to watch, and look all -about the yard, and if I saw the fire catching -any where to put it out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Why did not he do that himself?” -asked Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, he had to go,” replied Dorothy, -“and pull the log fence to pieces; for the -fire was creeping along the log fence towards -our barn. The barn was full of hay, which -my father had got in only a few weeks before, -and there was a great haystack in the -barnyard besides; and if these should get -on fire, the house would probably go too, -for the house was very near.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“And did they get on fire?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied Dorothy; “my father -pulled away the log fence, and then the fire -could not get to the house and barn in any -<a id='Page_191'></a>way except by sparks through the air. And -to keep the sparks from catching on the -roof, he got up upon the barn, and my -brother got upon the house; and then my -mother brought them water from the spring. -So they wet the roofs all over. Once a -spark lighted on the haystack, and set it on -fire; but my father saw it smoking, and he -came down quick from the barn, and carried -the ladder to the haystack, and climbed -up, and put it out with his pail of water. -There was another spark, too, which caught -upon the chips in the yard, near the woodpile; -and <i>I</i> put that out.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“How long did you have to stay?” asked -Rollo.</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, till the morning,” said Dorothy, -“and then the wind died all away. And in -the course of that day, there came on a rain -storm, and it put the fires out. But when -I first came out to see it that night, I can -tell you the sight was very terrible.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“Yes,” said Rollo. “I think it must have -been as terrible as the fire in the city.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“It was very lonesome too,” said Dorothy; -“only us four fighting such a great -fire.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“What should you have done,” asked -Rollo, “if your house had taken fire, and -got burned down?”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O, my father would have built us a -camp, and we should have lived in that until -he could have time to build us another -<a id='Page_192'></a>house. But then I don’t know what we -should have done for hay all the next winter -for our oxen and cows. Father was much -more afraid for the barn than for the house.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“O Dorothy!” said Rollo. “Why, there -was all the furniture in the house, and that -would have been burned up.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>“No,” replied Dorothy, “there was not -much furniture; and what there was we -could have got out while the house was -burning. The hay was the great thing—the -winter’s stock of hay.”</p> - -<p class='c006'>And thus ended Dorothy’s account of the -fire in the woods.</p> - -<h3 class='c011'>QUESTIONS.</h3> - -<p class='c012'>To whom did Rollo attempt to describe the fire which -he had witnessed in the city? How did he succeed -in the description? What was the difficulty? What -scene did Dorothy attempt to describe to Rollo? What -is a <i>cut-down</i>? In what sort of a place did her father -live when the fire in the woods occurred? How did the -fire first take? What was its progress the first day? -What appearances did it present to Dorothy? How did -they hope that it would be extinguished? Describe -what took place on the night when the fire reached the -clearing.</p> - -<div class='pbb'> - <hr class='pb c002' /> -</div> -<div class='tnotes'> - -<div class='section ph2'> - -<div class='nf-center-c0'> -<div class='nf-center c003'> - <div>TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES</div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - - <ol class='ol_1 c010'> - <li>Silently corrected typographical errors and variations in spelling. - - </li> - <li>Archaic, non-standard, and uncertain spellings retained as printed. - </li> - </ol> - -</div> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Rollo's Philosophy [Fire], by Jacob Abbott - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROLLO'S PHILOSOPHY [FIRE] *** - -***** This file should be named 62726-h.htm or 62726-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/7/2/62726/ - -Produced by Richard Tonsing, David Edwards and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -book was produced from images made available by the -HathiTrust Digital Library.) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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