The Plymouth Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1869-1941, 1870-05-19
THE Uses of Electricity.

| IT is only few years since electricity
was Gabriel-an archangel of light and
a mysterious servant Of God, that coult
not, with impunity, be approached or
questioned. When, in 1852, Benjamin
Franklin, without harm to himself, took
bottle of Pennsylvania mot Jersey light
ming, and thereby proved that it was iden
tical with electricity, he WAS denounced
as an infidel for tampering with the heav-
enly messenger. "'Spose It's electricity"
said an alarmed deacon, to the blasphe
nous kite flyer, "whai's it good for ~
"Well," answered the philosopher, al
don't know; what is a new baby good for ?
In fact, when you come to thar, what is
anything good for?"
We, in this fearless age, have learned
that electricity is good FOR " a great many
things, and some recent developments are
of sufficient importance to challenge pub
lie attention. The invention and practi-
Cal usefulness of the marvellous telegraph
turned the thought Of ecientific expert
menters towards the possibility Of by
and by hitching this subtle power to the
wheels of traffic and of labor. Il is now
a score of years since Professor BOynton
exhibited his working model OF a locomo
tive propelled by galvanic electricity. lie
showed that it would work, and that 1t
was very manageable; but it proved more
| expensive than steam.
M. Emile Provost Frerch scientist,
has overcome Boynton's diff aulty by an
invention which enables him to develop
the power at very slight expense. The
invention consists in the peculiar manner
of tempering and adjusting the magnet.
| He has recently exhibited three batteries
- in hn.
power, another one horse power, and the
other one-man power (one-fiith of a horse
| power). The batteries will run a sew ing
machine or Hoe printing press, and he
claims that the cost of each is only ten
cents a day! 1t seems quite impossible
that the promise of NJ. Provost can De real
lied, for it would create a total revolution
in the propulsion Of all machinery. Such
prophecy would have alarmed old
Thales, the discoverer of electricity 60
years before Christ, and have puzzled even
| the Industrious German who constructed
the Leyden jar, hundred years ago.
The application of electricity to the
alarm telegraph in cities and to lighting
the gas and ringing the bells in hotels,
halls and factories, is becoming more and
more general every month.
Electricity is rapidly coming into use
as an Illuminating agent. The New York
Ecening Post says on this point:
"There are many electric lights in use !;
in lighthouses on the coast they are found
not onay more brilliant than any others,
but far more serviceable; being inGepend-
ent of the weather, and less easily thrown
out of order. In cities they are little
known; but chiefly, it seems, for want of
enterprise; since no reinforcement OF the
,1, Nf oft no of
| cheap and so efficient as a sufficient sup
ply of these lights, which recent improve
ments have made self-regulating, steady
ana sure. Ali the machinery for very
large automatic electric lamp, sufficient to
| light up great factory or long street,
is now sold in London for eight guineas !;
and the advertisements would seem to in
dicate an active trade"
Electricity also consents to act aS the
tool of gamblers. An electric faro box
has been SO constructed as to permit cards
to be secretly drawn, at the will OF the
dealer, without the possibility of the cheat
being detected. If the exposure of the
fraud should have tendency to intiml-
date greenhorns asd render the tiger !"
unpopular. the alliance of the celestial
visitant with sharpefs may be pardoned.
| Not always is it unholy to cast out devils
by Beelzebub
-, But the quaintest electrical suggestion
is of course reserved for France. The
Frenchman who constructed the first
guillotine was moved to the CHASTITY work
by motives of humanity; so now has a
savant OF the Academy inaugurated the
system OF killing by electricity. Culprlts
sentenced for capital Offenses are hereafter
to be touched with streak of artificial
lightning. Instead of being compelled to
face horrible chopping block, or to
wrlthe for a quarter of an hour at rope 8
end, in a vain effort to get out of the af-
flicted body, instantaneous deliverance
will come on the wings Of the tricksy
Ariel. Instead of all the clumsy and
barbarOus machinery wherewith the
dangerous offender of to-day is strangled
to death like noosed partridge, or bled
to death like chicken, we shall have a
better way. The law of the higher
civilization will declare that no man shall
be slain by society, if he can he saved
alive without importing society, and, if
the worst comes, and he scales peniten-
iiary walls and detes jsils, the court Will
give secret sentence and the gentlemanly
sheriff will slyly take the pole OF "a battery
from his pocket and touch the wretch
with it in the nape of the neck. and the
slsughed off flesh VIII drop upon the
ground and the eman cipated spirit will
go to its own place. No longer will there
be an endless anticipation of pain, nor the
torture of prayers by the Reverend Mr..
Chadband.
But this is not all. Our inventor is to
have electricity take the place of the axe
and knife in the butchers hand. n more
oxen with severe headache moaning on
the ground because they cannot die; no
more hogs squealing and trying to shuttle
off their mortal coil no more ours strug-
Cling tearfully with dog BUTTON and
gazing reproachfuly upon Chicago
policeman no more sick omnibus horses
tormented with hatchets by philanthro-
pists who fsin would hasten their en-
trance to the blissful realm of horse.
heaven. A little trap in cigar box, and
an attenuated streak OF lishtniDg there
from will do it all! Then we can Kill
whales with magnetized harpeon at tbt
end of galvanized rope; then We car
shoot birds with surcharged shot then VIZ
can fly an Omnipotent kite against Sebas
topol, Gibraltar, Moro Castle-the ramt
horn against Jericho would be nothing tt
it. AMI then we can calmly take oul
stand in the observatory of the Chicago
University, and bring down tribe o
Piegans at long range. Oh, happy day
make haste l-ChicGgo Post.
NilliOnajreS.