CAMPHINE LAMPS. Camphine is very pure spirit of turpentine, obtained by the dis tillation of common turpentine. Turpentine is very cheap in the United States, and cam phine is there much used for lighting; and when the duty on turpentine was reduced in England a few years ago, the use of camphine became familiarized among us—one of the many proofs how much influence fiscal laws have upon manufactures.
The light produced from camphine is very pure and brilliant ; and the modes of applying the liquid to this purpose have given rise to various forms of lamp which are now familiar; such as the ' Vesta,' the 'Imperial,' the 'Vic toria,' the 'Gem,' the ' Paragon,' and many others. All lamp-oils contain some oxygen, which neutralizes a part of the hydrogen and carbon ; and also some oxide or other sub stance which damps the brilliancy of the flame; whereas rectified camphine, being composed almost wholly of hydrogen and car bon, contains nothing but what is susceptible of combustion. The best camphine is ob tained, as stated, from turpentine ; but tar and naphtha, if subjected to careful distillation and rectification, will yield very fair cam phine.
In using carnphine for lamps, certain pre. cautions are necessary. Camphine is so ex tremely inflammable, that the arrangements of a common oil-lamp would not be available without danger of accident. All the camphine
lamps present in common a reservoir, gene rally of glass, placed between the supporting pillar and the burner ; the spirit is contained in this reservoir, and a cotton wick dips down into it. The chief points in which the various camphine lamps differ are in the arrangement for admitting air to the flame. In Young's Vesta' lamp, the cotton wick hangs down from the burner into the camphine, so as to supply itself by capillary attraction, without the intervention of any metallic or heat-con ducting substance.
As a question of art-manufactures, many camphine lamps are now made of very ele gant forms. The last Birmingham Exposi tion was rich in specimens ; and we may rea sonably expect that the Great Exhibition of 1851 will not be deficient in this respect.
A very elegant application has been made of the gas produced from camphine. The gas can be made with a small apparatus, and with little difficulty ; and the jot which it produces is very pure and brilliant. The camphine is heated in a retort set in a small furnace ; and the gas, escaping from the retort, is purified by passing through certain liquids. This gas has been found useful for lighting railway stations and other buildings, too far distant from ordinary gas-works.