, 1877-06-09
AN ELECTRIC CANDLE.
A Great Light Perfected-A system that
Must Prove of Great Benefit.

I
hitherto prevented the practical attainment
of this 1bjec, is the dlfti.,ulty in subdividing
al electric current and producing number
of lights frotn one main source This sub
division of the current as it aJws from Ihe
generator has several iipes bern attempted.
and iu some cases, experimentally Mt least. It
has been attended with success. The fine
carbon points were, however, quickly con
sumed wh ben burnt In contact with oxygen,
and thin PLATINUM wires melted Is sOUn as
they begau to give a perfect light, aud 80 far
as We are aware, no system OF SUBDIVISION u
electricity has come iuto practical operation
About the frst who attempted TO sUive the
problem was NJ. LOdyg bin uf ST. Petersburg,
who, sume tew Years since, used vacuum,
burning the carbon ont of contact With the
oxygen of the atmosphere. The details of
this apparatus. however. were imperfectiy
worked out, and failure resulted.
Ii has remained tor another Hussian man
of science-M. Paul Jablochk0tf, who Was
formerly III the Russian military serviee-to
demonstrate In practice the feasibility of sub
dividing The electric current. He has worked
out his resuiis III the form uf al electric can
die, hlch governs the production OF the cleo
tric light and supersrdes the ordinary clock
work arrangement. By il nc has, moreover,
demonstrated the possibility OF obtaining
several lights from n SINGLE source OF elec-
| tricity. The first practical trial Of tbs sys
lem was made fortnight ago at the Maga-
sins du Louvre, and the experiments were
attended with perfect SUCCESS. The Marengu
Hall Was the apartment lighted, uud six
II very bright light, which was suftened by
beIng transmitted through opal Slass globes
SOino Idea OF the comparative value of gas
aud the electric light under note may be
, iormed when We state that the Marengo Hall
is ordinarily illuminated by meaus of one
hundred argand gas bprnsts Of The largest
-ize. The cause ot the wide difference be-
wuen this and oiher lights lies i'll the fact
'h-it electricity plays, so 10 speak, only sec-
! ondary part 10 producing The light. Ihe
| night IL principally the result ot the combus-
lion OF ,he reiractIng material, hich oceu-
| pies III the electric candle the same position
as does wax or taIlow Ill ordinary candies.
The electric candle. as originally Designed
| by Ii. JabiOchkDtf, consisted OF ahat may be
| termed u dOublu-wIrk aud surrounding Z
|
bUn pUIuts, about tour inches long, lmbedded
parallel Iu each other IN au Insulating sub
ance, by which also they we,e separated
from each o her. Tins material, hich Was
cousuued as well as the Gpublo wick, was
composed of several ingredients forming d
uomGinarion known only To The inventor
| EiUh Ut The carton points termlDated at The
bottom III II sma.l metal tube into which The
Conducting wires were led. WI b these can
| dies u scIIes uf experiments Was some time
-.hce carried out 10y d Office committee
ot roy-l engineers at Chatham. IL war
'hen demons rated as one result that the sys-
lem gave fifty per cent grea'eE pager ot light
,huu IA al rgrr before been Oh aimed from any
electric light. The next Development OF the
rlecIiIc candle by NJ. JAblochkuf Was 10 dc
nude II OF lis OuItr Casing. leaving merely
the double wick with r p Uf The IusnlatIn =
compound be,w.en The carbon polaIs, WhIch
! Terminated at the bottom III nie'sillc 'ute-
as before. 1t was with the electric candle III
| rhls form that the hall At the Mannsus dU
Louvre WAS illuminated, as previously stated
| Ia either case UiI.y one electrIe4l machiLt
| Is needed 10 produce n nuntrr ct lights. [h'
! pusIiive and negative wires aEe led from the
| machiue, and branch wires are simply con
duc,e1 from them at the necessary poin's rC
the candles. In this way u. J4bochkuf sue
ceeded in getting many as light candles Il
burn al the same time III the eifcul: OF L SIN
gle machine of the ordinary kIud. with alter
u4tIug currehts.
Arrangements are being made in England
% light up one OF the Z ist and West India
/ n L. A 4 III
| I4alochkotf : SYSTEM, that the loading and
unloading OF ships may be carried Oh by
night as well as by day when desirable. Tx
p-rimenrs were 10 have been primarily made
| III orrer 10 test the system, but, since the e<
| hibiiiun of the electric candle at the Louvre,
| NJ. Jablochkotf has still further improved hl
system, 20 ihat the experiments have beei
postponed for the complexion of the details u
the improvement. Ia the new form Of candle
he inventor dispenses With the carbon poini'
| which constituted the wick, and uses only
| the oure- surrounding material answering Il
the tallow of an ordinary candle. We hsv,
already seen that this cGmpOand-to which
| II. JabIOchkotf has given the name ot " h4o
lin" which substance enters largely inrO III
mpositiOn-consumcs at the same rate d.
NJ. Jabiocbkoff now produces results superior
in many respects TO those which be previous
| iy obtained. Oae point of superiority con-
siss in the fact that he Is now enabled tC
producs as many as fifty constant and uni
| furrn lights from a single machine of ia,
ordinary kind, as was recently stated In 4
paper brought before The Academy Of Science:
in Paris by II. Dumas
In short. II. Jablochkof appears to have
satisfactorily solved the question OF dividing
up the electric light by a method capable oi
practical application, OF iDsnriPg perfect
sre,diuess in the light so divided, aud Of dis
tributing throughout building lights oi
varying degrers Uf Intensity These results
point TO very wide application Of the sys'
tenn, which appears to haze special advan'
tsgrs for the Lighting mp of heaters and
other large buildings The application OF
the invention Is being brought Out in Paris
| by a company Of which u. Donnyrouze Is the
manager, the agent in England for the IL
veu;,ou being Mr.. E Appiegraih. of No.
! Southampton street, S;raud--LOsaGoH IL0a<s
!
| CONVERSATION AT HOME No man should
allow the cares Of life TO rob him of mir 3
aud elscrici'y. business life should be like
an ELASTIC sponge, 10 receive all experiAnces oi
daily lifa-Ihe little stories OF the s,.eet, the
uudyrs Of fun that YOU poke into p-oples'