The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1872-10-12 00:00:00

A NEW HOUSE-GAS.

In London, on Thursday afternoon in last week, a
large number of gentlemen connected with various
branches of science, industry, and commerce assembled
by invitation in a room of the new building in Change-
alley, Cornhill, to inspect a discovery which bids fair
to produce a wholesome change in every household.
The object submitted to inspection was a new gas of
high illuminating power, claimed to be produced at ato
small a cost, with so little difficulty and danger, and at
the same tints so rapidly, that--if further experience
does not prove it to possess some highly dangerous or
injurious quality—it must drive the common coal gas
off the field as completely as coal gas has expelled oil
(says the Daily News, from which we are quoting).
On one side of the room there had been erected a
row of ordinary gaslamps, fitted with the argand and
batewing burners. In the centre of the room a six-
foot candelabra supported an argand burner of ten
times the ordinary size. In a corner there had also
been fixed bellows, resembling those of a church organ,
which were being slowly moved by an attendant. By
the side of these bellows there were two square metal
boxes, measuring between a foot and a foot and a-half
each way, and connected by pipes with the bellows on
one side, and with the burners on the other. This
simple apparatus was all the patentees of the new gas
had to show, and with it they supplied the forty jets in
the room with a brilliant light, and undertake to
supply the same with very little additional trouble
for illuminating half the City of London. In another
corner of the room the process was atilt more clearly
shown. On a small table stood a miniature gaso-
meter, capable of containing one cubic foot of gas. In
shape it resembled those huge unsightly cylinders that
supply the place of artistic monuments in our great
city, and its base rested in a second cylinder, filled
with water. A pipe connected the interior with a
glass vessel, containing gasogen, the liquid from which
the gas is formed, while a second pipe admitted the
atmospheric air into this gasogen-holder. Weights
being attached to the cylinder caused it to rise slowly,
and simultaneously by the vacuum thereby produced
the atmospheric air was heard to bubble through the
liquid. At the other side an argand burner had been
attached, from which the gas thus formed was in-
stantly burned with a bright flame, compaged with
which the coal-gas burner of the same size, placed for
comparison immediately beside it, emitted a yellowish
and less illuminating light.
The gas generated in this simple manner from
gasogen, while giving a brighter light, rises with only
half the velocity of ordinary gas, and its consumption
therefore lasts twice as long. The liquid compound
gasogen is procured by means of ordinary distillation
from mineral oils, and is mixed with a small portion of
dissolo ed resin, gum, or other dydro-carbons. The
facility with which these mineral oils can be distilled,
and their practically unlimited abundance, renders the
gain:igen extremely cheap. It has been calculated that
a gallon, which will be sufficient to manufacture more
than a thousand cubic feet of rag, can be delivered for
less than two shillings, and as this quantity of gas will
burn as long as two thousand cubic feet of ordinary coal-
gets, the cost will be as one shilling to four and sixpence.
To this, no doubt, will have to be added the expenses of
fitting and the rent of meter, but these cannot be very
considerable, anti every consumer will then be indepen-
dent, Anti if he chooses can manufacture his own gas in
his cwn cellar, and defy the strikes of miners and gas-
workers. Another, and equally great advantage of the
new product is the entire absence of those impurities,
such as sulphuretted hydrogen, hydroeulphate or sulp-
hide of ammonia, carbonate of ammonia, and carbonic
acid, which are offensive constituents in the present
coal gas, and render it inadmissable in those apartments
where valuable pictures, gilding, and furniture are
readily tainted by their action. The odour of the air
gas is not disagreeable, partaking largely of that of
ether, but it is strong enough to indicate an escape. It
would be a crowning attribute if the patentees could
assure us that it is not explosive, but all they can affirm
is that it is not more explosive than coal gas, and does
not therefore require more care in its management.
It is almost needless to point out what immense
benefit this invention will confer, not only on towns,
but on outlying' districts, lighthouses, and isolated
dwellings. Railways and ships will probably give it
a hearty welcome, and there seems to be some anticipa-
tion that it may even supersede coal for many purposes
of heating. Nor need the gas companies fear that their
occupation is gone. A mixture of one-third of air
gas, with one-third coal gas and one-third atmospheric
air was also burned in the room and produced a light
of wonderful brilliancy, while it was stated that the
impurities were reduced to one-third.
At a collation which was afterwards given at the
Cannon-street Hotel, the Chairman, Sir John Murray,
called upon Major-General C. Scott to explain the in-
vention. In a brief address the latter gentleman
stated most of the facts given above, acknowledg-
ing that he was indebted for his information to the
indefatigable industry and scientific attainments of
Messrs. Harrieon. Ile also stated that a complete
qualitative and quantitative analysis had been made
by Mr. Henry Child, who had made gas analysis his
special study, and that it had also been subjected to
numerous tests by gentlemen thoroughly qualified to
determine its properties with regard to illumination,
combustion, explosion, and decomposition, and that
their reports have proved highly satisfactory.