1,000 cu. ft.,
with oil at 21/4c. a gallon. At double this price the gas would cost but
10c., and show that in practice, foot for foot, it equals natural gas.

Fuel gas means a larger investment of capital than does any of the
other modes of brick burning, and is, therefore, not within the reach
of the entire trade. The cost of appliances for burning brick with
crude oil is not very large, and as all grate bars, iron frames, and
doors can be dispensed with in the use of crude oil fuel, the cost of
an oil-burning equipment is but little in excess of an equipment of
grates, etc., for coal-burning kilns.

At works using small amounts of fuel, especially if cost of fuel bears
but a small proportion to total cost of the manufactured product, oil
will be in the future very largely used. It is clean, as compared with
coal, can be easily handled, and when carefully used in small
quantities, is safe. There are several methods of burning oil that are
well adapted to the use of brick manufacturers and other fuel
consumers.

The Pennsylvania Railroad made some very thorough experiments on the
use of petroleum in their locomotives, and while the results obtained
are reported to have been satisfactory, it was the opinion of those
having the experiments in charge that the demand for the Pennsylvania
Railroad alone, were it to change its locomotives from coal to oil,
would consume all the surplus and send up the price of oil to a figure
that would compel a return to coal.

It is true that production has enormously increased in the last three
years, and the promise for the near future is that a high rate will be
maintained. It is further true that the production of Russia has
increased enormously, and will probably be larger this year than ever
before. This Russian oil must go to markets and supply demands that
have been met by American oil, and this will still further increase
the amount of oil available for fuel purposes.

There is no doubt, therefore, that petroleum has a future for fuel
uses. Many brick manufacturers are ready to use it, notwithstanding
the possibility of an advance in its cost.

While there are some objections to the use of petroleum as a fuel,
growing chiefly out of the risk attending its storage and conveyance
to the point of consumption, it is undoubtedly true that the chief
objection is the fear that with the increased demand that would follow
any extended use for this purpose would come an increase in p