Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1882-05-11
Electric LAMPS.

lamps in the streets, I'VE shall ma IL
consists of two rods, one pointing uI-
ward from the bottom of the lamp, the
other hanging downward. The rods
seem to touch, and the brilliant fame is
exactly where they seem to meet. Once
a day man comes around with bag
of the rods. He takes out the old rods
that were burned the night before, and
places new set in each lamp. After he
has gone about, as if he were putting
new wicks into the lamps, and each is
ready for its nights work, all the lamps
are lighted in broad day, to see that ev-
cry one is in proper trim. They are al
lowed to burn until the men have walk
ed about in the streets and looked at
each lamp. If all are burning well, they
are put out until it begins to grow dark.
If one fails to burn properly, man
goes to that lamp to see what is the mat
ter. The rods are made of a curious
black substance, like charcoal, that is
called carbon. When the lamp is out,
the two rods touch each other. In order
to light the lamp, they are pulled apart;
and if you look at the lamp through a
smoked glass, you will see that the rods
do not quite touch. There is a small
space between their points, ,and this space
is filled with fire. Look at the other
parts of the rods, or the copper wires
that extend along the streets. They
have no light, 20 heat, no sound. The
wires are cold, dark, and silent. If we
were to push the two rods in the lamp
close together, the light and heat would
disappear, and the curious kissing sound
would stop. Why is this? Let us go to
the woods near some brook, and it may
be that we can understand this matter.
Here is the brook, flowing quietly
along, smooth, deep, and without rip
pie. We walk beside the stream, and
come to a place where there are high
rocks. and steep, stony banks. Here the
channel is very narrow, and the water
is no longer smooth and silent. 1t boils |
and feams between the rocks. There |
are eddies and Whirlpools, and at last we |
come to the narrowest part of all. Here, |
the once dOrk and silent water roars and |
foams in white stormy rapids. There
are sounds and furious leaping and
rushing water and clouds of spray, |
What is the matterP Why is the smooth |
dark water so white with rage, so i'm
petuous. so full of sounds and turmoil? i? |
The rocks are the cause. The way is
narrow and steep. The waters are hem
med in, and there is grand display of |
flashing white foam and roaring water
falls, as the waters struggle together to |
get past the narrow place..
s It is the same with the electricity |
flowing through the large copper wires.
1t passes down one wire into the other,
the lamp, in silence and dark
ness, so long as the rods touch and the !
path is clear. When the rods in the lamp
are pulled apart, there is a space to be
got over, an obstruction, like rocks in
the bed of the brook. The electricity,
like the water, struggles to get over the
hindrance in its path, and it grows
white-hot with anger, and flames and
ulSScS dS AZ lCdpo dClOoo Gll0 udIIOM space
between the rods.
There is another kind of electric lamp
used in houses; it has a smaller and
softer light, steady, white, and very
beautiful.
In these lamps, also. we have some
thing like the narrow place in the brook.
They are made with slender loops of
carbon, inclosed in glass globes. The
electricity, flowing silently through a
dark wire, enters the lamp, and finds
only a narrow thread en- which it can
travel to reach the home-going wire, and
in its struggle to get past, it heats the
tiny thread of carbon to whiteness. Like
4 live coal, this slender thread gives us
4 mild, soft light, as long as the current
lows. 1t seems calm and still, but it is ,
the same fury of the electricity
hat is shown in the larger lamps.
This is the main idea on which these
amps are made: A stream of electricity
s set flowing from dynamo electric
machine through wire until it meets a t
narrow place or a break in the wire. G
Then it seeks to get past the obstruction
md there is gradd putting forth of en- /
,rgy, and in this way the electric force, T
itself invisible, is made known
o our eyes by beautiful light.-TChas.
Barnard, in st. Nicholas for May.
Hurrv cud cnnninU ara tho fwo nm