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ALCOHOL.— Pontifex’s Still,

boiler, A, with an elongated conical head, D ; thepreparer, n, into which the wash is introduced, bythe funnel-basin, c; and the condenser, e, wherethe spirituous vapour is liquefied in passing throughthe numerous convolutions of the worm, a. Thepeculiarity of this form of still consists in the com-

munication of the pipe, d, with the preparer, b, bywhich means the vapour from A is partially condensedin the preparer. The vapour is carried to within afew inches of the bottom of the vessel, b, as shownin the figure by the dotted continuation of D; theliquor in b is heated by the steam condensed in it,as well as by the alcohol which passes through it

uncondensed to the worm, a. By this arrangementfuel is economized, and a strong spirit is procuredat one distillation.

Fig. 46 shows Pontifex’s still, now generally usedfor rum in the West Indies and elsewhere. Thestill is of copper, with a discharge pipe and cock, anda manhole for cleaning, &c. The still isshown set in brickwork and heated by fire,but sometimes it is fitted with an outercasing or jacket of iron, and steam passedbetween the still and the jacket—the heatnecessary for distillation being thus obtainedwithout the direct action of fire. On thetop of the still is a conical head of copper,with a neck and arm leading to the nextpart of the apparatus, which consists of twocopper cylindrical vessels, usually called“ retorts ” by the distiller. Each retort isfitted with a discharge cock and manhole,and in the best construction the top or coveris a few inches below the top of the sides,leaving what is termed a “ water chamber.”To the retort next the still a small pipe isattached, through which cold water is rimto the water chamber, and discharged onthe other side, as shown. The same thingis also done with the second retort. The useof these water chambers will presently beseen. The arm pipe that enters the topof the first retort is continued to within afew inches of the bottom. The pipe fromthe first to second retort is taken from thetop of the first, but is continued downnearly to the bottom of the second, in thesame manner as the arm pipe in the firstretort.

These retorts are on the same principle asWodlfe’s bottles (Fig. 7). A pipe is takenfrom the top of the second retort, and leadsto an ordinary condensing worm made ofcopper or pewter, placed in a tank, frequentlymade of bricks, through which cold wateris kept flowing. The lower end of theworm passes through the tank for discharg-ing the spirit.

The following is a practical descriptionof the method of rum distilling, as con-ducted in the West Indies , with a still likethat just described:—Wash, from whichrum is distilled, is composed of sugar skim-mings (4 parts), lees of still (5 parts), andmolasses (1 part) (the total quantity beingthe same as the charging capacity of thestill to be used), the materials being mixedin a vessel called the “ mixing cistern.”

The lees of still is a term for the residue leftin the still after distillation; and when commencing, ofcourse, no lees are on hand, and then water shouldbe substituted. The wash is pumped into the fer-menting vat, and there fermented; the vats areskimmed twice a day during fermentation, whichusually occupies fully a week, and when that is com-pleted the fermented wash is ready for the still. The