The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1869-11-25
GAS.
How It's Manufacture ana Cost Ia Reg
nIAted In London.

The Imperial VINO happened 10 be In
Baltimore last week, after q prolonged
tour through the United States, and
who gave the Gd=ette Of that city the
benefit Of his extensive experiences, both
In the oihCial position named, as we'll
as In his legal capacity OF advocate,
whereby he was largely concerned In
the passage through Parliament OF most
OF the acts regulating the conduct OF
the London gas companies,
From that portion Of his c0mmuni.
cation which we quote below It Will be
seen that through active competition
the price Of gas In London has been
reduced 10 four shlllinRs, about 81 Is,
per 1000 feet for gas with an illuminate
Ing power OF sixteen candles. Here we
pay d 90 for gas with an illuminating
power Of about twelve candles As
quality makes In fact part OF price,
this would be equivalent to IS SO for
slxteenscandle gas. In other words,
we are paying today In Nashville,
where we have one company, more
than three times as much as they do In
London, where they have thirteen.
But we let Mr.. Richards speak for
himself:
There are at present thirteen COM
panles which light the city Of London
proper THAT Ia, the small area under
the Jurisdiction OF the Lord Mayor and
Aldermen), together with the Metro
polltsu D!stricts;' that is, all London
beyond tho limits OF the city, and Il Ia
under the management OF THE Metro.
polltau Board OF Works. OF these
thirteen companies, the largest ia 'The
ImhhFiRl eubinh In SBto1aH nnrk..I...
about 1900 tons (twenty hundred
weight OF one hundred and twelve
pounds to the ton per diem, and which
last'winter sent out on Its day Of larR-
est consu mptlom little short Of seven
teen million cubic feet OF gas. The
next company In point OF supply Is
The Chartered Company which sends
out annually about three.ffIhs OF the
quality supplied by The Imperial
The other companies are not on 30
large q scale as the two above mention.
ed. Up to the year 1858, these several
companies were In active competition
In various parts Of the town, and many
streets were supplied from the mains
oflwo or even three companies, This
state OF things led to incessanE omen.
Ing OF tho ground for The purpose Of
laying main and service pipes, and to
search for escapes Of gas; the responsI.
blllty and expense Of which last opera.
ton each company sought to repudlate
and cast upon his rival. The com.
plants OF the public were loud and
frequent, and, rs the existing state OF
affairs obviously tended to great waste
OF capital, the companies wore as
anxious aS the consumers 10 put an end
tot.
Accordingly. In 1858, the companies
agreed among themselves 10 abandon
competition, and 10 Conflne themselves
each TO some particular district Of Lon.
don, OF which, by this arrangement,
each company would enjoy mouopo-
~. No sooner WAS this affected than
an cutlery arose agalnst the absence OF
competition, which, It was said, left the
consumer entirely ut the mercy OF the
particular company which had selected
his district. The agitation which arose
led to long inquiry before a commits
tee OF Parliament, and eventually 10
the passing, In 1850, OF an act known as
the Metropolis Gas Act, $780, The
committee decided that It was for the
public good that the 'dIstricting sys.
tenn (such was the phrase coined for
the occasIon) should be maintained.
and competition among the gas com.
panles discountenanced; but they also
held that the companies invested with
this monopoly should be placed under
very stringent regulations. Another
act OF later date, and as yet only appli-
cable 10 some OF the companies affected
BY the act OF 1860, has been passed, and
Will endeaVor briefly to state what
the principal restrictions are under
which the companies are placed BY the
Joint operation Of these two several acts
Of Parliament; and first, any parish
can call upon the com pany within
whose district the parish lies To light
any street, etc., provided the parish un
dertRkes to erect and maintain lamps
at not more than seventy yards apart
within such street, etc.
Amy person can compel the company
TO light his promises, II not more than
fifty yards distant from any existing
main OF the company, provided he un.
dertakes to burn gas for not less than
three months.
THE illuminating power Of the gas
WAS fixed at what ia known as twelve
sperm candles,' but this has been In
creased by the later act, to which l
have alluded, 10 fourteen sperm can
dlrS. aud in Bome cases sixteen. Pub
lie officers are appointed whose duty II
IL 10 test the illuminating power and
report upon It, and heavy penalties are
inflicted on the companies for any de-
hclency In illuminating power, and
these penalties are easily enforced.
Tho meter In which the illuminating
power 10 10 be tested is accurately de-
fined, but IL OF too technical a nature
TO detail hero. The quality Of gas pre-
scrIbed by the act may be appreciated
when state that the gas In New York
appears 10 me TO be about eleven and
one-hali or twelve candle gas, and the
gas In this city trifle better.
The purity OF the gas Is q matter
strictly regulated by Parliament, and
chemical officers ure appointed 10 teal
the gas three times day and report
upon 1t.
The presence Of sulphur eted hydro.
gen Is absolutely forbidden, and not
more than twenty grains OF sulphur
are permitted In one hundred cubic
feet OF gas. Ammonia Is allowed In
very minute quantities. These are
matters to be appreciated only by your
chemical readers, but nevertheless OF
great Importance 10 all consumers OF
gas.
AS regards the price OF gas, In con.
verting English into American money
have treated one dollar, currency, ma
exactly equal TO three ahillinps, Eng.
lish. This Is accurate enough for ali
practical purposes. The present price
tGas In London ia four shllllnps Tor
one dollar and thlrty.three cents) Der
one thousand cubic feet Of fourteen
candle gas; but on the first Of January
next the quality must be raised by
some companies (IncIudlng the Char.
tered) to sixteen candles, and the price
reduced by all the companies 10 three
shi!linGs and nine pence lone dollar
and twenty five cents) per the thousand
cubic feet. Whether this improvement
In quality and reduction in price can
be maintained without great diatress 10
the companies, yet remains to be seen.
The highest rate OF dividend they are
permitted by law to pay per auuum 10
ton per cent on their Sl bsGrIbed capital.
Several OF them (probably most OF them)
have done this for the last few years.
But the Chartered has not been able
TO do 80 for some time past, and fully
expect will be guile unable to do so
when they declare thelr next dIvIdend