Benzine
3 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Benzine. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
American Watchmaker and Jeweler (1892)
A light oil of petroleum used for cleaning movements. For directions for use see Watch Cleaning. BERTHOUD, FERDINAND. A Swiss horologist who was born in 1729 and died in 1807. At the age of nineteen he visited Paris, never afterward leaving it. Saunier says that "his technical training was matured and perfected by contact with the great masters of that day, of whom he subsequently became a rival. He was possessed of a very extensive knowledge and real talent, coupled with indefatigable energy; these are sufficient to explain and justify his great reputation. He published ten quarto volumes on horology. Berthoud did much valuable work, and his name will therefore long remain one of the glories of the horological art." BERTHOUD, LOUIS. A French chronometer maker and nephew of Ferdinand Berthoud. He died in 1813.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
Important: Safety Warning This page directs the use of hazardous substances — such as benzine, gasoline, lye, or strong acids — for household tasks. These materials are highly flammable, corrosive, or poisonous, and the practices described have caused fires, burns, and poisonings. This information has been left in for historical purposes but should not be acted upon. ben'zen, a clear, colorless liquid obtained by the distillation of petroleum. It is closely allied to gasoline and naphtha, which see. It is used principally in the arts to dissolve fats, oils, resins, etc. In the household, benzine is useful for removing accidental daubs of paint, cleaning windows, marbleware, and the like. See Petroleum 2026 Editor's Note: A dangerous confusion lurks in this entry: the petroleum "benzine" described here is easily mixed up with benzene , a different chemical once used just as casually as a household solvent — and now known to cause leukemia. Benzene is tightly regulated today, and the old habit of cleaning gloves and windows with such solvents is long gone. (Ed: BR 2026-07-14)
The Encyclopedia of Founding (1892)
A limpid, oily fluid, resembling oil of turpentine. It is composed of hydrogen and carbon formed during the destructive distillation of coal. It readily dissolves caoutchouc, gutta-percha, wax, camphor, and fats, and is useful for removing grease-spots from silk and woollen. See TAR.