Show MOLASSES AND PETROLEUM ahr are carried as alternate cargie la the same tanks about all the molasses which comes from cuba to the united states is brought in the same tanks in steamships that are used to carry petroleum as a return cargo says the new york tribune the ships tanks are about sixteen feet deep and have a neck seven feet deep they are pumped full of oil at or philadelphia then taken to havana and the oil is pumped out into the tanks of the refining plants there molasses is brought from the interior of the island in huge hogsheads hog which are emptied into the storage tanks A suction pump about ten thousand gallons an hour fills each ships fanks to within about two feet of the top that amount of space being required for the expansion 0 the molasses it might be ed that the petroleum would have a bad effect on the molasses but it has been shown that the contrary is the case and as nearly one half the importation is made into rum and the balance refined into sugar a little oil is not of much account the tanks are cleaned after the molasses has been pumped out by turning ina powerful steam jet which washes down the sides and liquefies whatever molasses may be left in the bottom of the tank and the suction pump finishes the work A cargo of molasses which formerly required ten or twelve days can now be unloaded in forty eight hours while the difference in the cost of handling to say nothing of the saving of time amounts to a largo sum the first attempt at handling molasses in bulk was made by the brig novelty in 1877 she was fitted with a lining and her whole hold was used without partitions she made several trips between matanzas and boston but was not successful as a dividend earner since the present system of dividing a vessels hold into tanks was devised and put in practice on steamers the profits of the trade and the steamship companies have largely increased |