The New York herald., 1871-11-17
"LBr YHERE BE LIGHT"
The Gas Companies Abandon
ing the City to Darkness.
TIE EVIL AND THE REMEDY.
Why ''the Lamp Holds Out to
Eura" and Doesn't.

contemplate VINO pay tne gas conpShies 80 u lamp
per year ic make ones way clear through the
streets The TACT Is THAT the gas furnished OF late
TO private consumers as well a. to make the public
lamps dscernnbe IN the darkness or the night, has
been OF q very doubtful character-ln fact 30 doubt
iul that many houses IN the lar uptown districts OF
The city and in the lower districts have been COM
PEELED TO make
FREE USE OF CANDLE LIGBT
IN order to supply the deficiency OF the more FASH
iOnab.e arucle Indeed Il II cxaggerati0n to say
that portions Of the city, especially during the
past four or i've nights have been In as complete
cloud as thongh gas lamps had never been dis
covered, and in those sections where wsyiarer by
night mas been at any time fortunate enough to dis
cover lighted lamp the light has Decn OF the
spluttering Kind that only served to make sur.
Roundup, shadows deeper AMI the night
more full OF terrOrs to the tmid pedestrian.
Why The gas companies should every year. Just as
regularly as the days begin 70 grow short, manage
TO get on 80 much inierir gas At the pupIic's ex-
pcnse, Is one OF those mysteries which tho common
folks VINO have right to benefit by what they pay
exorbitanuy for. and VINO do moi care snap about
THE WINTER D0p6Rs
OF the companies TO make theil profit anl loss
counts tea, no losing tale for themselves would Ike
to understand. 1here Is no doubt about II thar the
companies are 70 blame for the poor gas that has
been furnished OF late; for IL singular fact that
the CONF laiut about the poor quality OF the gss
general ali over the city, though each company
pretcnds TO be the only company which IL fur.
nishiug pure gas that must burn despite all oppo-
stion Of rain wind. The idea put forth by one or
TWO OF them, that the men VINO have charge Of the
lamps, or rather the officials who should keep them
in good repair, are 10 blame Iol the late and stN
prevailing,
! EciirsE or THE GAS JErs,
may he to q certain extent founded TACT; but how
ehAvo fnr Inn 1,aa
splutterlng and struggling for existence at the top
OF almost every gas Jet in private houses up ana
down town during the past week. surely the
Department. 0i Public Works has Doihng
10 do with thcm .'Bnt my dear slr."
said the Vice President o. the Manhattan
Gas Company TO q HERALD reporter yesterday, who
wanted to ina out why il was NIL the gas lamps
were not on duty ike faithful public officers every
night W hen they should ne, 'rhe companies always
GET blamed whenever abylnmg seems TO 60 wrong
with the gas the lamps, and without good reason.
You see we can't possibly
SUPPLY aoOp Gas
10 one consumer and tad gas 10 another. All get
served out 81 the same reservoir. 1t often happens
that the gas here and there does not look as good
as somewhere else about town. Wen, in nine cases
out Of ten the fault ties with the service pipe or
knuses II people allow the burners TO get ruined
or tIt service pipes tO get clogged they Cant
sonaS 1e o as cor mo or e ooa
gas III certain portions Of the city OF late % asked
the reporter.
Ny opinion is that or two OF the other compa-
nics, use The same kind Of small pipes they used
, means numerous as they now are.n
ter2n
| 'Oh, no. IT, for instance, we nsd small pipe on
Eighth avenue to supply 800 consumers and the de-
we would take up the small pipe and put down
lsrgV eps ss,tea 70 SIMPLY % ,ne e, increase for It
Increased demand upon would lessen the force Of
Company onical the reporter remarkel;5 -
,onr NJ say s @sys ss eEs spss n
the gas,ght is mere thread Of sickly blue Gamel"
'.Oh, that can't be,u was the reply. eve supply
e fss f n oa a s o Sf
was feel certain caused by the burners being out
ifow happens it then tina, the burners get out OF
order nearly ali over The city about the same tmen
a don't think there Is cause FOR genera! com;
plant on account Of the gas not bcng supplied n
good quantities III the street lamps or private
hOsgSss s1 - ..v .,s, s7ea, ma nv neoo,e inc,
now are so bin, that they cannot see the gas as II
ought 70 be seen ~
II mean to say that the gas companies are being
blamed Tor no good cause. However, speak for
our district alone"
'.C,n you account for the fact OF the gas that is
sappiiei Just now being 80 dark and smooky-look-
III hayn't noticed awning OF the kind. The gas
beng supplied IL go0d.n
.'Oi course persons IN The employ oi eas com.
pany are 80 used to gasgbt OF al kinds tnat they
can't always tell when gas ls ciea' or not-is tnat
"isy no means. SIR. That is an lns,nuatou---"
., 'Ss sfsSS cSS1 ansson s aad fsS" snDS rs
mgrked-
at does seem strange thar so many people com
cy c "a some places IN Your district as We'll as Il, IN me
others. ana that me gas companies can't find out
that there Is any diiefence ID the gas furnished now
ancess'
only reply that the ofic.al deigned TO MAKE TO this
"Wnal Kind OF coal DO the companies now useo'
"Wen, Newcastle for the most part We used to use
camel, but wnen we did 1t was purchasaDie at IS
to $40 ton; now IL rs $40 10 sis; and we cannot
! touch 1t. The great difnculty is to get
/ COAJ. WITHOUT MUCR SULPHUR
! iu it. We nave methods OF purhcatIon IN our man.
n;aetor,es 'nat render the gas as fine as 1t can be
| This ended the conversation with tns Official.
IL should he here remarked that the Manhattan
Company supply with gas al that par! OF the city
river to river: the New York Company eli ihat por
iion below Grand to the Battery; the Metro
icmr.n stree. 90 sevensynin,h street and Tie
Harem ali thai portion above Seventy-nln street
plants about the poor quantity and poor quality OF
gas furnished Of late come from the New York
Companys and The Harlem Company's districts.
however, The other districts also very much ut
fanlt and any one who has eyes to see must have
noticed the miserable light gwen by the public
lamps in All the districts during the past week.
THE PUBLIC DEMAND
good gas lair and moderate price, and must
have IT, Still the companies are .t present masters
0l ali they survey. rhe men wno examine The
meters seldom if ever correct III their reckon
inss, and the consequence is that bouschoiders are
1eeccd IN the most shameful manner. 1T is OF no
use Whatever 10 snow nght,' say tnelr victims, M
we do we II be ieii III the dark" And this Is fact
that more tnan one householder eau test tiiy 10 TO
MS loss: n the demanSs OF the companies not
IN
who make bold To uphold their rights amt shut on
the supply or the GROWERS at once.
Yet " is said that the average prOnt OF the com
panes is 80 per cent Taking a. a basis The stand
ing OF the one hundred and i0rty companies In the
state i've years ago, when the Legislature made
such hub-Dub about them, the TACT is shown That
the vested capital was $4,000 900. and the profits IN