Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1859-10-14
From the Philadelphia North Americana
THE COST OF Gas.

AT a recent public meeting in Glasgow, the
| OBJECT OF which Has to obtain reduction in
The price of gas in that city, some interesting
statements were made as to the price at which
it is furnished in various British cities. The
pres Glasgow is five shillings sterling
per thousand cubic feet-$l ,2l-and it was de-
nanded by the Meeting that it should be rcdu-
ced to three shillings six pence per thousand
teet, or about 80 cents. 1t was stated that the
prices IN 1916 compared as follows with present
prices in the three principal cities:
London feet s., s or about 81 10 to sa1s.
G dsisssPSe'' S S. 3D. e 1 i'sP
LG TsEnasd feet & 81 about espts
Glasgow, Is "s1,si
Thus, while great reduction in the price of
gas has been made at London since 1916, and
considerable change at Liverpool, none what.
ever has occurred at Glasgow, and the public Of
that city. therefore, rghtf1lly claim attention to
thelr representations at the hands of the gas
companies
The coal used at Glasgow is camel, and, in
elaborate calculation of the cost of manufacture
the quantity OF 10000 tons of coal is taken TO
i make quo millions of feet of gas in 365 days
Inc fuLl cost of manufacture is calculated at Is
"a: per 1000 feet, and the selling price should
oe' 1t IS shown, Is 3D. per 1000 feet, or about
80 cents. This estimate embraces the payment
OF five per cent interest on $3.50, 600 capital.
which IS Still said to be el5O,OOO more than the
GlaSgow works are now worth, though their
original cost was 100000
In discussing the subject, strong argument
rs IS mace against corporation gas works, and in
favor of companies. Manchester and Paris are
lighted by works owned by those cities. and the
cost is larger than at Liverpool:
Manchester 4s Cd per thousand feet or about 81 90
Manchester consumed, in 1858, 728 millions of
cubic feet, and Paris 2,O45 millions of cubic
ieet In Philadelphia the city works furnished
I9r consumption 49,, 208, 600 cubic feet, and tho
Nortnern Liberties and Manayunk Gas Com
panles works made quantity of which we
have no note, but probably quite sufficient to
raise the aggregate to $50 millions for the whole
city.
twill strike every one that the cost of gas in
this country is disproportionately large as COM
pared with English cities. It is proved in the
calculations submitted to this Glasgow meeting,
that ii no interest is paid on capital wasted in
the crudlteS of first construction of works, gas
may be furnished at less than fifty cents the
thousand feet All the great works constructed
there as well as here, are thus encumbered with
unprohtably spent capital, which must be earn.
ed oy the e, current use OF gas, unless old works
are wholly abandoned, and strong point
against the purchase by that city of the compa-
ny works at Glasgow, is made on the ground
that the public are entitled to the earliest posi-.
Die release from burdens unwsely incurred, and
that such burdens should not be made perpet-
ual charge for the future
We here pay nearly double tho highest price
paid for gas, as the following comparison will
show:
PhilaaePha, 900 cubic 50 Is
London, ; : o.
Paris, I %
Manchester, tI M
Glasgow. al
liverpool, a.. ...:.....::::...: Of
!, tits obvious that we might improve the con.
dition Of our gas, supply, and reduce. the very
heavy bills our large cities. pay for it, without
deyising any new gas to burn; any means
whatever can be employed, to, light US at,haIf1
the rates we now pay for this indispensable mes
cheap. - '5':i5' 80
Ma. CnoArR's private library is soon. to be
sold at auction. The catalogue contains the
names of 1879 different works, embracing about
5000 volumes. Thereare 10 works under the
head Of Thucydides, l6tunder Herodotus, 90
under Homer, 9under Demosthenes, under
Euripides II under Tacitus, % under Cicero. s
under Livy, l4under Aristotle, 6 under Aristo.
PLANES, IL under Virgil, 10; under Horace5
There are d editions az ShAksnearn