Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1882-08-11
The Electric Light in England.
The Speculative Craze.
From the London Truth.


About two years ago the application of
electricity to lighting purposes was laid hold
of by the company mongers as grand field
for their operations. Every man who could
register patent confederated with others
to bring it out as company, and to divide
with his confederates the enormous sums OF
money paid by the company for the pa
tents" A tabular statement published by
Mr.. Mathieson shows that the sum of 914,-
go, 900 has been subscribed to the capital of
these companies. and that of this amount
81, 729, 800 has gone into the pockets of the
promoters and patentees Almost all of
these patents are comparatively worthless,
for two reasons Cd that similar results can
be produced without them; (2) that electric
lighting has not yet been proved that 1t can
compete in price with gas. The most noto'
rious of these electric lighting companies is
called the Brush company. Mr.. Brush
seems to have patented dynamo machine
and lamp, neither of which is better or
worse than many others. AS far as can
make it out he received e5 900 for these in
ventions." But in December, 1850, COM
panycalled the Anglo American Brush Elec-
trio company Incorporated. This com
pany paid certain persons ElOO, 900 in cash
and GlOO, 900 in shares for the Brush "pa-
fonts" There is no evidence that the com
pany has over made one farthinR by light
ing contract. Most of the lighting contracts
which it has entered into seem to have been
for purposes of advertisement, and to have
been productive of loss. 1t has made dyna-
mo machines at a cost of under 4loo, and 1t
has sold come, before there were Competitors
in the trade, and prices we're brought down
to their normal level, for three times that
amount. It's gains, however have mainly
consisted in selling the right to use the pa
tents in various districts, for large sums of
money, while, as very climax of absurdlty,
in these sales have been included provision
that the sub-companies should buy all their
Il mo- of ia ma
an obligation which, of course, will prevent
these companies from buying dynamo ma
chimes except at such an eXorbitant prlce as
utterly to ruin them by making it Impossible
for them to compete on equal terms Win
competitor who are not weighted with such
contract, take advantage of further I'M
provements in the production OF electric
lights
That electric lighting companies have been
made means of plunderinR the public there
can be no question. Their shares became
| the gambling counters of the hour. The
promoters of these companies invented the
counters (and this, in truth, has been their
| principal invention) and the directors aided
and abetted in giving them supposed value
| AS | have pointed out, "a, 729, 500 has been
| paid for patents, " in almost every case alb
| solutely worthless. The market price of the
| Brush shares, on which 81 has been paid,
Was on Tuesday e2o, and that of the fully
paid shares &42. The paid up capital of the
| company is 1921 ,6O4. At the market price
| of the shares their value is, therefore, above
four times this. What is the precise amount
of cash that the Bush company has This
is precisely the value of the entire assets OF
the company. The shares of the sub com
| panies that it owns are not worth the paper
on which they are written, The bubble has
burst, and, consequently, no new sub com
pany is likely to float nor is it probable
that FEATHER" Brush will sell many of his
dynamo machines at profit of above 500
per cent, now that there are many competl
tors in the business who will be satisfied with
fair trade profit
One of these days-and 1 sincerely hop
| that it may be soon-electric lighting will as
sumo a commercial form, by the perfection
, and smplification of the means of producing
: it. When this happens it will replace gas
and some one writing book upon its phase
of progression will indict chapter headed
The Patent Swindle." in which he Will ex
plain how couple of reckless adventurer
managed tovobtain from the public nearl.
So, 900, 900 for patents" the very names o
which are forgotten Probably, however
as the crop of fools never entirely disappears
at the very moment whe the author Of thi
| future book is moralizing upon past folly
the public will be filling the pockets of som
new gang of adventurers. who are engages
in pillaging them, and at the same time in
9 sisting that they enjoy monopoly of ever.
| wiz