The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1878-07-11

$500 - ~ ~ = 81
dies within porcelain globes. Attn,
oranserle. facing the Place de Ia Con-
corde. nearly fifty electric lanterns
shine among the trees and light up
the concert hail and stand
Ing III the place the lamps shine Ike
great moors round and clear whit.
The concert garden ,I1u l. vlSibl. pre-
cIsely a. bv daylight. and all the tres
stand out clear and green against the
darkness. The tree, - the left ts-
yond the gate. make simply black
masses. and the ga- lamps among them
look Ike small yellow stars. Within
the garden the effect j most sIuEuIar
tn, trees and flowers are plainly Yi>i-
bic IN evcry det4Il 81 leaf petal. AMI
twlg. The very tones 1T the gravel
walk, the uIo>se~ ON the walls. every
stain and mark on the statues. are xIs-
IDLE a. by day. Within tie concert
hall the effect i quIe peculiar. The
room i about lo1bN 5u.au,l quit. lolfN.
and Vet -four camille placed ou Is-t>
about ten feet high are eutl,I.utta
make the room lighter than lti VIZ I4N
iav. That i. there 4, morv llght than
comes III b. til. windows N the dlt-
time. SIX lights are used. tNV0 ezra
being placed in the orchestra bat in
the al Looming bal. a r,om of the sam,
size, four are sufficient for all practical
The orchestra fills the STAG.
and a large audience occupies tn. floor
People are reating the finely printed
programmes with ease. even at a dis
lance OF fifty feet from a lamp. and
the band read their music with 4e,u-
rity. The wide doors are open. and
more electric candles under the trees.
where a large portion of the audience
is seated at the little coffee tables.
make it almost equally light there
Here again. the aCtlnIc effect Of the
light Il remarkable. The dresses ot
the ladies appear III their real ~colors,
the blues and greens holding their true
shades as BY dav There are no Gas
lamps, and the only light is from the
white globes that SHINE 50 silently. IL
is not at all unpleasant to watch the
lights, for, though bright, they are not
painfully intense. They burn with re-
markable steadiness. the only changes
being an occasional lessing of the bril-
llancy and 4 strange alteration in the
color. the globes sometimes assuming
pale shades of blue and red. This
may be IN part ar optical illusion. re
sulting from fatigue in the eve. but il
is certain that unless the lamp Is
steadily watched. there seems to be
absolutely no change in the quantity
or color of the light III the room.
Once, while looking at the lights. four
of them went out, leaving only two IN
the room. This was still sufficient 10
enable any one to cad IN any part of
the hall, but a workman at once came
in. and, opening a wooden box at the
base of each lamp post. corrected the
a "a -, DIV onI tla lrIt, ,,,, -,
again III mysterious silence.
On following the wires. hung from
lamp to lamp among the trees in the
garden, we can trace the light to its
source-three steam engines behind
the building. These are small portable
engines, each turning one or more
electrical machines by means of belts
The machines are turning silently and
swiftly. but there is neither light non
heat. The light only appears ut the
breaks IN the circuits where the can
dies are placed. This is the sum of the
matter steam power turned into cleo
tricIty, or. III other words, drawing
electricity from the exhaustless sup
plies stored in the planet itself. This
is the light of the future, the solution
of the great question of lighting cities.
the Transformation of power into light
Go out into the Place de la Concorde
and look up the grand avenue to the
Arc de Triomphe. The great arch is
as plainly visible as by day. Tie gas
lamps shine like stars along the way.
but the electric lamps before the arch
outshine them all and make it plainly
visible. though it is more than a mile
away.
To enumerate all the places where
the electric light is regularly used
would be tiresome. More than forty
shops, warehouses. yards. and railway
stations are now lighted by the electric
candles. and within a few months it is
intended to light all the main boule-
wards and streets in the same name
In the streets already lighted it is not
the custom TO give up the gas entirely
The electric lamps are lighted at lark
and extinguished at midnight, the ga
being then lighted to take their place
The traffic is over, and the gas is suf
ficient for the watchulen and late rev
elers.
Regarding the cost Of electric light
ing. the various makers here seem to
differ greatly, but 1t may be safely
stated at abOut O~ne-Seventh of the cost
of gas per candle power per hour
This much is certain it IS being rap
idly introduced into the streets OF
Paris, and for a part Of the night at
least it will replace gas.
In regard to the use of electric light
in dwellings and small halls this much
may be said The electric candle. a
now made. is too powerful except for
grand halls. railway stations. and wide
streets. That it will be modified. or
that "a low-power lamp will be invented
is reasonably certain. for the best ii
ventOrs of two continents are at work
on the problem.
a Citv in two States