The daily gazette., 1878-11-25

CoVEBfEs IN ELECTRIC LIGHTs-AyAI
uABLE SUGGESTION TO GAS PANIEs
"A REVOLUTION IN HOUSEHOLD MAT
TIERS PROMISED.
WAsHINGToN Nov. % 1873.
AS complete success IN Illuminating by
the electric light is day by day approach
ing nearer, and as everything ofirterest
on TINS all absorbing topic is looked fol
WIN the greatest anxiety by the public, /
TOOK advantage OF recent opportunity
10 speak with Mr.. j. b. Fuller, the elec
trician, OF the probable effect of recent
discoveries upon vested interests and the
rally.
EFFECT ON THE GAS COMPANIES.
With regard to the effect of genera
Illumination upon gas companies Mr.
nller differs materially from the express
ed opinion of many other electrician.
with whom l have conversed.
"Iney VIII, of course, receive a severe
check, said he, (which, probably, they
justly deserve, and which may, and viii
for a time at least greatly reduce the
value of their stock; but in the end, and
that at not very remote period, there
Is nc good and valid reason WHY they
nav not fully recover their Temporary
loss, and, instead Of decreasing, increase
their business to an enormous extent
anu there are now inventors in Washing
ton turning their attention to this subje Ct
with "A view of carrying out the follow.
ing suggestions:
"Ihere Is nothing more inevitable than
that gas, for Illuminating purposes, will
very soon be reduced to less than one.
eighth of the present production, and
nlanfTin n all
and hea!thfunrss, will be substituted fol
u. Now, let the gas companies of the
United States agree at once to offer re.
wards, say, of $4,000, $50 900 and So.
600 for the first, second and third best in.
ventlons In gas stoves in which all the
products of combustion are carried of
by the chimney, and the best adapted TO
all the uses of the modern house, from
the parlor to the kitchen. Then let the
builders offer similar rewards or pri Zes
for the best models OF houses adapted to
the economical use of gas fuel, and the
thousands and thousands of American
inventors, with their heads brlmming
full Of brain, only waiting for proper In
ducements, will soou furnish all that is
required in this direction. Then we shall
see new era In domestic industry.
BAD FOR ANTHRACITE COMBINATIONS.
"The almost boundess fields of btu
minous coal, which for countless ages
have lain unuisturbed, will then open and
pour forth their contents to all the large
cities of the Union. The gas that can be
produced from this coal, while unfit for
illumination, has tremendous heating
qualities, as has been frequently proven,
and is much less costly than our gas as at
present generated This, / remark Incl
dentally, Will, of course, put quletus
upon the coal monopolies of Pennsyl-
vania.
"There will be then no more setting
up and taking down of stoves, and the
Inevitable and consequent family jars
there will be no more necessity tor lug
ging up coal in coal hods, no emptying
ash barrels. No industry would suffer,
but perhaps Dixon's stove polish, and
even that would be wanted IN Dlaking
electric carbons. When the electric light
supersedes gas then the manufacture of
copper would be greatly increased for
the construction of machines and con-
ductors, and the value of copper would
undoubtedly go up. Each house may al
so have a small electric motor for run
ming sewing machines and machines for
other light work, there being a large
number already patented, but useless
when run by expensive battery currents.
Those who expect to work heavy ma
chinery at a distance from the generator
will certainly be disappointed. The
same may be said in regard to heating
buildings by electricity. To carry out
these views no material alterations would
be required in the gas plant, such as
pipes, sc. ; the manufacture would be
inasmuch as some Of the COM
ponent parts of coal gas, which produce
the most heat, cannot be burned openly
in a room ON account of their unhealthi-
ness, but in such stove as suggested
above would be much safer 10 burn than
coal in our ordinary stoves.
OLD INVENTIONS MADE VALUABLE.
"There is very curious fact in rela-
ton to the invention OF electric lights,
and ono which very few people would
ever think of unless their atten ion was
called to it specifically. | allude to the
fact that the introduction of magnetic
electric machines has rendered very val
uable many old Inventions. which, with
batteries, were useless, but now, with
slight notifications, they are well adapt
ed to the best modern el. ctrlc machines.
The attention of inventors has been re-
Gently occupied, in devislng means for
subdiyiding the current of powerful ma
chimes, so thar {, large number of lights,
each of the power of single gas burner,
may be groduced in a single circuit, each
independent of the other and conven-
lent and easy to govern like gas, requir-
ing no very extraordinary intelligence to
manage, aud also in producing a meter
by which the time of burning and guam
tity burned may be registered. Several
inventors claim to have accomplished all
these objects, notably Mr.. Edison, as l