KEROSENE. A rock or earth oil. Morse V. Ins. Co., 30 Wis. 534, 11 Am. Rep. 587.
It is, in a commercial sense, a refined coal or earth oil, and is embraced within those terms as used in an insurance policy. Ben nett v. Ins. Co., 81 N. Y. 273, 37 Am. Rep. 501. It is not petroleum, but made from the lat ter by a process of a distillation and refine ment. Bennett v. Ins. Co., 81 N. Y. 273, 37 Am. Rep. 501.
A court will not take judicial notice that kerosene is an "inflammable fluid" within the meaning of an insurance, policy, it must be proved as a fact ; Wood v. Ins. Co., 46 N. Y. 421; nor that it. comes under the words "burning fluid" ; Mark v. Ins. Co., 24 Hun -(N. Y.) 565. See Morse v. Ins. Co., 30 Wis. 534, 11 Am. Rep. 587.
It is a question for the jury whether kero sene is a burning fluid or chemical oil'; Mears v. Ins. Co., 92 Pa. 15, 37 Am. Rep. 647 ; or a drug ; Carrigan v. Ins. Co., 53 Vt. 418, 38 Am. Rep. 687 ; where the court, after quoting Webster's definition of a drug, as "any mineral substance used in chemical operations," declined to say as matter of law that benzine is not included in that term. See RISKS AND PERILS ; OIL; NEGLI GENCE; MINES AND MINING; GAS.
KEY. An instrument made for closing and opening a lock.
The keys of a house are considered as real estate, and descend to the heir with the in heritance ; 11 Co. 50 b; 30 E. L. & Eq. 598 ;
but although they follow the inheritance, they are not fixtures, so far as that the tak ing of them is not larceny ; Hoskins v. Tor rence, 5 Blackf. (Ind.) 417, 35 Am. Dec. 129 ; 5 Taunt. 518.
When the keys of a warehouse are deliv ered to a purchaser of goods locked up there, with a view of effecting a delivery of such goods, the delivery is complete. The doc trine of the civil law is the same; Dig. 41. 1. 9. 6; 18. 1. 74; Benj. Sales, 6th Am. ed. § 1043; 3 Term 464. See DONATIO MORTIS CAUSA ; GIFT.
Keys are implements of housebreaking within statute 14 & 15 Viet. c. 19, § 1; for, though commonly used for lawful purposes they are capable of being employed for pur poses housebreaking ; and it is a question for the jury whether the person found in possession of them by night had them with out lawful excuse, with the intention of us ing them as implements of housebreaking; 3 C. & K. 250 ; and the statute 'was held to include skeleton, or any other kind of key used for purposes of housebreaking ; id. En tering by a key left in the door locked on the outside is not housebreaking ; 1 Swint. Jus. Cas. 433. See BURGLARY.