The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1882-08-18
Science and Cigarettes.
The Great Edison Lighter in Theory and in Prao-
tice-A Disastrous Bet.

The Great Edison Lighter in Theory and in Prao-
tioe-A Disastrous Bet,
1t has been known for years to the
average schoolboy that the alkali metals,
cesium, rubidium, potassium, sodium,
and lithium, have so powerful an affin-
ity for oxygen that they will decompose
water on contact-combining with the
oxygen and liberating the hydrogen.
In the case of all but the last metal
named the reaction is so violent that
heat enough is evolved to fire the hydro
gen, which burns with a flame colored
by volatilized portions of the metal, as
follows: Cesium, sky-blue; rubidium,
ruby; potassium, violet; and sodium,
yellow. Lithium will infame only on
contact with strong nitric acid, when it
gives off an intensely white light. A
Broadway fakir has turned this curious
fact to advantage, and has abandoned
the cheap, soft gum-drop, the marvellous
tooth-paste, the lightning strop, and the
dozen-for-a-penny tin collar-buttons to
introduce small strips of sodium to the
public under the name of "Edison's
Miraculous Helectro-Dynamic Pipehand
Cigar-Lighter. Ere, gentlemen! fl
'undered lights fer fiji cents!' Hav-
ing drawn crowd, he illustrates
"Just clip hort ha bit the size hof ha
pins 'ead, put hit hin the tobacker-
this way, gentlemen-then spit hon it,
son ere yer see hit BUSTS hinto ha
flame, N yer as yer light, rainer shine
This delightful chemical surprise. of
course, succeeds in obstructing the
street near Trinity Church almost as
well as does the United States Steam
Heating Company. The curious specta-
tors gaze and then pass in their nickels
and receive small bottles covered with
paper, in each of which are three frag-
ments of sodium the size of pin
worth, at wholesale rates, about one
tenth of mill. AS sodium oxidizes
very rapidly when exposed to the air,
and is preserved only by being sub
merged in naptha, the purchasers soon
find their Edison lighters worthless, for
the fakir only puts u drop of naptha in
each bottle. Yesterday q smart man
with a waxed moustache and brown
mats under his ears thought it would be
very funny to buy one of the Edison
lighters, shove it into cigarette, and
then win $40 from q friend by betting
him he could light the thing by dipping
it into water. The preliminaries were
skilfully and easily made, and the load
ed cigarette was carefully marked and
deposited in the case with others. The
man who was to lose $40 was found
picking his teeth in front of belmont
co.'s, having just had free lunch in
Nassau street.
"How do, Jim?" said the smart man,
sauntering up. "Haver cigaretteP"-
careless like.
Don't caref do" observed the man
who was to lose. "Gotter light?"
''No, butter guess there's water in
side," insinuated the man who was to
win.
"Water! Wha' forP" asked the man
who was to lose, astonished.
''To light cigarette, of course" re-
sponded the man who was to win, art
fully.
A few questions and answers then
flashed back and forth, until the man
who was to win said:
''Betcher 80"
"Done," said the man who was to
lose. The money was produced, pass
ing mutual friend was hailed and APP
pointed stakeholder, and the three en-
tered q neighboring saloon to get the
water with which to light or not to
light--the man who was to win calm
and smiling, the man who was to lose
calmer and staggering, and the stake
holder lobster-eyed, thinking he had
fallen in with pair of lunatics.
The water was produced, crowd
gathered, the cigarette was dipped. 1t
did not light. The crowd smiled. The
man who was to lose laughed. The
stakeholder started to pass over the
money. The man who was to win
checked him, said it was all right, stuck
the cigarette in his mouth, and gave it
a vigorous draw.
The crowd never knew what made
him throw back somerset, claw at the
air, choke, gag, whistle, cough, spit,
and swear like South Sea Islander,
who had inadvertently taken drink of
lava or Hoboken whisky. The barkeep-
or was so surprised that he set 'em up
for the crowd. The stakeholder passed
over the money and said he hadn't wit
messed such gymnastics since the last
time he attended service in Brooklyn.
The man who was to lose but didn't was
divided between anxietyto make anoth-
er bet and fear that his friends reason
was permanently gone. Nobody knew
the secret of the mystery but the Times
man, and the man who was TO win but
didn't. They knew that the wrong end
ofthe prepared cigarette had gone into
the water.
And didn't light.
The right end had gone into the
mouth. ~
And did No,o Eorh Times