Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1886-10-25
-------------
A TIMELY WARMING,

That there is great and imminent dan
ger to life and property in the electric
light wires, has been proved several times
OF late, notably in st. Louis year ago,
when the central telephone Office in that
city was gutted by fire, caught from a
crossing electric light wire, and day or
two since, when in Cleveland, Ohio, an
electric light current was caught by the
iron front of large building in that city,
and charged heavily enough to cause
instant death to any person who might
happen to place both hands on the build
ing at the same time OF course the
electric light companies claim that insu-
lation OF their wires is perfect, and in
truth so it is, when they are first put up
but time and the elements corrode
the covering, and the crossing OF tele-
graph and telephone wires cuts through
it, exposing any object in reach OF it,
that is a conductor, to its full power.
Certain death turks in all such broken
places for any person touching them,
and the wonder is that the record is not
larger The writer was on p. NJ. S. S.
Company's steamer that was fitted with
these lights, and the wires led through
the coal bunkers, under the deck. A
coal-heaver was missed by the watch in
the fire-room, and was found dead where
he fell, having cut through the hidden
Nuira with h;S cboyal ,rb;la Gl1;n,, % ,ool
bucket. In Charleston, South Carolina,
two years ago, the city was fitted with
these lights for street illumination One
large lamp hung pendant in the middle
OF the street at each intersection OF cross
ing streets. The lamp hung low, and
swung about very much in the wind
The people nearby took a piece OF tele-
graph wire and threw it over the wire
holding the lamp, to steady it. -Four men
had hold OF the wire. One was killed
and three crippled for life. OF the dan
ger to those using the telephone, the
Cleveland Plain Dealer speaks as fol-
lows:
The manner in which the wires are now
strung is constant source of ANNOYANCE
and Il menace of danger to users of tele-
phones. The proximity of an electric light
wire in use to a telephone wire, even where
they do not actually touch, seriously impairs
the working of the telephone wire by the
loud whirring sound it produces in the tele-
phone and practically renders it useless If
the two come in contact--which has not
infrequently been the oase-the annoyance
is converted into positive danger as the
saving of the wires on each other soon cuts
through the insulation and sends the de-
struotive current of the electric light
over the telephone wire into the houses and
offices.
The peril is increased by the fact that
many miles of the dead wires are strung
on the poles and from house to house.
These were mostly strung by the opposition
telephone companies and remain unused and
uncared for. They sag or break and in this
way come into contact with other wires,
stealing off the electric light or power cur
rent and sending it over active telephone
wires or bringing It within dangerous prox-
unity to unsuspecting persons,
The number of electric light wires in the
city is rapidly multiplying and the danger
from them is increasing in direct ratio. II
is matter in which the city authorities
have full power to interfere for the protec-
tion of life and property. The exercise of
that power is now demanded.