COAL— This subject will be further treated under the heading Fuel. At one time Coal, wood, and char- coal formed the only lieat-producers used in kitchens ; modern discoveries and inventions have, however, intro- duced other agents, such as gas, paraffin and oil, so that these require a special heading, under which their com- parative merits can be discussed. There are many varieties of Coal, some of which are suitable for kitchen ranges with powerful draughts, and some that suit the old-fashioned open grate. Cooley states that the more important kinds of Coal may be classified as follows : (1) Lignite, or brown Coal ; (2) Bituminous, or caking Coal ; the most widely diffused and valuable of English Coals. This class is subdivided into (a) Calcing Coal, which splinters in heating, but the fragments then fuse together in a semi-pasty mass; (b) Cherry Coal or Soft Coal, lustrous in appearance, but does not fuse, although it ignites well and burns rapidly; Coal — continued. (c) Splint, rough, or hard Coal, which is black and glistening, but does not readily ignite, giving off eventually a strong heat ; (d) Gann el, or parrot Coal, which is dense and compact, having a shelly fracture, and taking a polish like jet, and splinters in the fire, and burns clearly and brightly without much draught. Near Edinburgh, at Bathgate, is a curious deposit of Coal, known as “ Boghead Cannel Coal,” or “ Torbane Hill Mineral.” It differs greatly from other Cannel Coal, and is not of much use for kitcheners. (3) Anthra- cite, or stone Coal, which is very hard, dull in appear- ancdj and burns with little flame or smoke, throwing out intense heat, but requiring a strong draught. (4) Steam Coal, resembling Anthracite. In selecting Coal the first consideration will be the grate — what is it capable of burning ? Closed grates, called generally kitcheners, with flues, will burn a Coal or coke that in an open grate would be of no use ; so that where one would burn anthracite another would almost require what is termed “ drawing-room ” Coal. Thus : (1) Lignite, or brown Coal, burns with little flame and much soot-producing smoke, therefore not suitable for kitchen purposes at all. (2) Bituminous, or caking Coal, is the very best for all general purposes, and is sold under a variety of names. It is obtained chiefly from the districts around New- castle and Wigan. The Cherry Coal variety comes principally from Glasgow, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Lancashire. It constitutes the bulk of the great coal fields of North and South Staffordshire, and occurs in Shropshire, Leicestershire and Warwick- shire. (3) Anthracite is obtained from South Wales, Devon- shire and other parts, and (4) Steam Coal, adapted only for steam vessels, is found in South Wales and the Tyne districts. A good kitchen Coal should not be very sul- phurous— more than 2 per cent, renders it unfit for use in open grates. Coals containing excess of mineral should not be used, as they leave a quantity of ash that will occasionally find its way into vessels that are not intended for its reception, and these Coals are very liable to form large clinkers, and cake round the bars or other parts of the plate.

AI-modernized reading of the original text

COAL— This subject will be further treated under the heading Fuel. At one time Coal, wood, and charcoal formed the only lieat-producers used in kitchens ; modern discoveries and inventions have, however, introduced other agents, such as gas, paraffin and oil, so that these require a special heading, under which their comparative merits can be discussed. There are many varieties of Coal, some of which are suitable for kitchen ranges with powerful draughts, and some that suit the old-fashioned open grate. Cooley states that the more important kinds of Coal may be classified as follows : (1) Lignite, or brown Coal ; (2) Bituminous, or caking Coal ; the most widely diffused and valuable of English Coals. This class is subdivided into (a) Calcing Coal, which splinters in heating, but the fragments then fuse together in a semi-pasty mass; (b) Cherry Coal or Soft Coal, lustrous in appearance, but does not fuse, although it ignites well and burns rapidly; Coal — continued. (c) Splint, rough, or hard Coal, which is black and glistening, but does not readily ignite, giving off eventually a strong heat ; (d) Gann el, or parrot Coal, which is dense and compact, having a shelly fracture, and taking a polish like jet, and splinters in the fire, and burns clearly and brightly without much draught. Near Edinburgh, at Bathgate, is a curious deposit of Coal, known as “ Boghead Cannel Coal,” or “ Torbane Hill Mineral.” It differs greatly from other Cannel Coal, and is not of much use for kitcheners. (3) Anthracite, or stone Coal, which is very hard, dull in appearance, and burns with little flame or smoke, throwing out intense heat, but requiring a strong draught. (4) Steam Coal, resembling Anthracite. In selecting Coal the first consideration will be the grate — what is it capable of burning ? Closed grates, called generally kitcheners, with flues, will burn a Coal or coke that in an open grate would be of no use ; so that where one would burn anthracite another would almost require what is termed “ drawing-room ” Coal. Thus : (1) Lignite, or brown Coal, burns with little flame and much soot-producing smoke, therefore not suitable for kitchen purposes at all. (2) Bituminous, or caking Coal, is the very best for all general purposes, and is sold under a variety of names. It is obtained chiefly from the districts around Newcastle and Wigan. The Cherry Coal variety comes principally from Glasgow, Staffordshire, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Lancashire. It constitutes the bulk of the great coal fields of North and South Staffordshire, and occurs in Shropshire, Leicestershire and Warwickshire. (3) Anthracite is obtained from South Wales, Devonshire and other parts, and (4) Steam Coal, adapted only for steam vessels, is found in South Wales and the Tyne districts. A good kitchen Coal should not be very sulphurous— more than 2 per cent, renders it unfit for use in open grates. Coals containing excess of mineral should not be used, as they leave a quantity of ash that will occasionally find its way into vessels that are not intended for its reception, and these Coals are very liable to form large clinkers, and cake round the bars or other parts of the plate.

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