The vapors and gases from the furnace pass away to large copper condensers—­the first of which contains hot and the second cold water—­and finally pass away into the air.

As the phosphorus forms, it distills off from the mixture, and the residue forms a liquid slag at the bottom of the furnace.  Fresh phosphorus yielding material is then introduced at the top.  In this way the operation is a continuous one, and may be continued for days without intermission.

The charges for the furnace are made up with raw material, i.e., native phosphates without any previous chemical treatment, and the only manufactured material necessary—­if such it may be called—­is the carbon to effect the reduction of the ores.

The crude phosphorus obtained in the condensers is tolerably pure, and is readily refined in the usual way.

Dr. Readman and Mr. Parker have found that it is more advantageous to use a series of furnaces instead of sending the entire current through one furnace.  These furnaces will each yield about 11/2 cwt. of phosphorus per day.

Analyses of the slag show that the decomposition of the raw phosphates is very perfect, for the percentage of phosphorus left in the slag seldom exceeds 1 per cent.—­Chemical Trade Journal.

* * * * *

NEW BLEACHING APPARATUS.

The apparatus forming the subject of this invention was designed by Francis A. Cloudman, Erwin B. Newcomb, and Frank H. Cloudman, of Cumberland Mills, Me., and comprises a series of tanks or chests, two or more in number, through which the material to be bleached is caused to pass, being transferred from one to the next of the series in order, while the bleaching agent is caused to pass through the series of chests in the reverse order, and thus acts first and at full strength upon the materials which have previously passed through all but the last one of the series of chests and have already been subjected to the bleaching agent of less strength.

For convenience, the chest in which the material is first introduced will be called the “first of the series” and the rest numbered in the order in which the material is passed from one to the other, and it will be understood that any desired number may be used, two, however, being sufficient to carry on the process.

The invention is shown embodied in an apparatus properly constructed for treating pulp used for the manufacture of paper, and for convenience the material to be bleached will be hereinafter referred to as the pulp, although it is obvious that similar apparatus might be used for bleaching other materials, although the apparatus might have to be modified to adapt it for conveying other materials of different nature than pulp from one bleaching chest to the other and for separating out the bleaching liquid and conveying it from one chest to the other in the reverse order to that in which the material passes from one chest to the next.