It's a lubricator for the timing gears. It screws into the end of the oil passage in the block. It has a small hole drilled in the side so the oil squirts onto the gears. No, it's not a good idea to run without it!
Jerry


"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln
Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt!
There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway
Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!