The Sun.
London, England, 1822-09-11 00:00:00

WOODEN WICK'D CANDLES.

[FROM THE AMERICAN FARMER.
London County, N'a, illarch lB2'.
•
To THE EDITOR.-Sir, I have taken the liberty of in-
dosing you the result of an experiment made in the use of can-
dles : one of which was made with a wooden wick, the other
in the usual way with cotton. The candles were made at the
same time, moulded in the same sized moulds, exactly equal
weight, both set on fire at the same moment, and placed upon
the same table.

That which was made with a wooden wick lasted seven hours,
the other five; affording equal light.
The size of the candles were about six to the pound, the
wood used was a part of a cypress shingle, and prepared after
the following manner, viz.—
The wood was split to the size of a rye straw, and made
round, so that the coat of cotton which was applied, might be
more easily put on by rolling the stick upon a card which con-
tained the cotton, and which had been previously well carded.
The stick was then rolled upon a table, to cause the cotton
to adhere closely, and then was .about the size of a common
quill ; it was then placed in the mould and the tallow poured
in. The stick must be somewhat longer than the mould, as
the candle must be drawn with pinchers.
Agreeably to the foregoing experiment, a pound of candles
will last forty-two hours, when they would only last thirty made
after the usual way.
One pound of raw cotton is sufficient, with the wooden wick,
for 1601bs. of candles. Another great advantage in using die
wooden wick is, that the candle will not fall in warm weather,
nor will it be so easily affected by the air.
If you think proper to give the above to the public through
your widely circulated and very useful paper, I shall be pleased ;
convinced as I am of the great advantage which will be derived
from the use of wooden wicks generally.
The idea is not original with me, bat derived from the first
volume of The Domestic Pticyclopceditt, page 499.

LADY ELIZABETH HASTINGS.—OH the death
Of GEORGE Earl of HADDINGTON, his sister, Lady ELIZA-
BETH HASTINGS, succeeded to a fortune, not so great as to
be called splendid, yet sufficient to enable her to afford an illus-
trious example of active goodness and beneficence. She fixed
her principal residence at Ledstone-house, Yorkshire, where
she became the patroness of merit, the benefactress of the in-
digent, and the intelligent friend and counsellor of the surround-
ing neighbOurhood. Temperate, chaste, and simple, in her
habits, she devoted her time, her fortune, and the powers of
her understanding, which were of a high order, to the be-
nefit and happness, of all around her. " Her cares," says
her biographer, " extended even to the animal creation, while
over her domestics she presided with the dispositions of a
parent, providing for the improvement of their minds, the de-
cency of their behaviour, and the propriety of their manners.
She would have the skill and contrivance of every artificer
used in her houses, employed for the case of her servants, and
that they might suffer no inconvenience or hardship. Besides
providing for the order, harmony, and peace of her family,
she kept great elegance in and about her house, that her
poor neighbours might not fall into idleness and poverty,
for want of employment ; and while she thus tenderly re-
garded the poor, she would visit those in the higher ranks,
lest they should accuse her of pride, or superciliousness."
Her system of benevolence was at once judicious and exten-
sive. Her benefactions wore not confined to the neighbourhood
in which she lived, to many families in various parts of the
kingdom she gave large annual allowances. To this may be
added her munificence to her relations and friends, her remis-
sion of sums due to her in cases of persons in distressed cir-
cumstances, and the noble hospitality of her establishment.
To one relation she allowed five hundred pounds annually ;
to another she presented a gift of three thousand pounds ;
and to a third, three hundred guineas. She acted also
with great liberality towards a 'young lady whose fortune
had been nearly lost in the South Sea scheme; erected and
endowed four charity schools ; gave one thousand pounds for
building a new church at Leeds ; besides leaving at her death,
many considerable sums for charitable and public uses. Yet
will it be believed ? the whole of this lady's fortune fell short
of three thousand pounds a year !

THE ARM Y.

It is understood that Lord EDWARD Sommt.
SET will be appointed Colonel of the 17th Light
Dragoons, vice General DELANCEY, deceased.

Lieut.-General Sir GEORGE WALKER, G.C.B. is to suc-
ceed the late Lieut.-General Sir HILDEBRAND OAKES, Bart.
G.C.B. as Colonel of 52d Light Infantry.
Major-General Sir DENIS PACK, K.C.B. is to succeed to
the Colonelcy of the 84th Regiment, vice Lieut.-General
WALKER, appointed to the 52d Light Infantry.
It is also understood, that Lord Hui. will be appointed
Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance, vice the late Lieutenant-
General OAKES.