Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-09-28
THE ELECTRICAL WORLD.
Applications OF the Mysterious Current In
All Fields of Life.
WRITTEN FOR THE DIsPATcH.l

rwRITTEN FOR THE DIsPATcH.l
LIEUTENANT BRADLEY A. FrsKE shows in
recent lecture on Electricity in Warfare"
that the modern warship is the most intricate,
tremendous and powerful machine existing,
and this is owing mainly to the marvellous
adaptation she has been able to make of the
powers of electricity. As the fate of nation
may, at crisis, depend upon a single shot, not
thing can be neglected which will contribute
to the speed. endurance and effectiveness of
the ship. She must be under instantaneous
and absolute control at all times She must
respond at once to the will of her
captain. and her whole strength and
power must be his, as though it were
part of him. Ensconced in his coming tower.
ne must De the brain of the gigantic BODY
Electric wires must, like nerves, convey instant
udlngs to him from her innermost recesses. aud
electric wires flash back from him the iney-
liable command. The enemy being in sight,
the captain must, at each instant, know her
exact distance and direction SO that he can
give the necessary orders to the gunnery off,
Ger, who has the guns under his personal di-
rect1on, and who keeps them always bearing
on the enemy and always correctly elevated for
tne distance. SO that they will be ready TO fire
as soon as loaded.
A NEW process of bleaching by electricity
has been devised for the textile trades. By its
use the need of bleaching powder is done away
with. The current is taken direct from the
dynamo to electrodes placed in a wooden tank
containing solution consisting of calcined
magnesfa, hydro-cnloric acid, and water I'm
to this time the solution has no bleaching prop
critics; IN other words. no chlorine is present
After however, passing a current Of a specific
voltage and amperage through the solution for
100 hours, it exhibits rs of per cent of fixed
chlorine, which bleaches yarn and tow in as
many hours as it has hitherto taken days. with
out impairing the strength Of the material.
WHILE electric motors are RAPIDLY coming
into general use for many purposes one of their
latest applications is to excavating machinery.
Electricity is easily transmitted to a distance,
and its use is therefore found economical for
excavating and dredging in many places where
the great cost of fuel or water would otherwise
be bar to sucn operations. The electric
motor excavator Is now in active work. 1t is
found that its power is sufficient to dig
cemented gravel, and it possesses such elasticity
as to materially relieve the shocks which are
the chief cause Of breskages in excavating
it automatically adjusts itself to
work, pulling hard at a slow speed while the
dipper is loading itself ON the bank working
quickly and easily while swinging and returning
10 the dipper; and ii. moreover does away with
= fireman and all the annoyances inseparabIe
from the use of steam
CONSIDERABLE attention has been paid of
ate to the subject of subterranean mines, and
they seem likely to play an important part in
The military operations of the future. They
can be adyantageously sown in places over
which the enemy is expected to pass, especially
in the approaches to fort or other intrenched
position. The mines may be fitted either with
percussion fuses or electrical connections, so
that they can be exploded by an operator with
IN the intrenchments at any required moment.
The result of the explosion of a series of these
mines In the midst of an advancing regiment
'an be easily imagined.
# milk during thunderstorm, and some In |
eresting experiments on the relation Of cleo |
ricity to this phenomenon have been under |
AIKEN in Italy. 1t was found that the passage
f an electric current directly through the
milk, not only did not hasten, but actually de- |
ayed acidulation, milk so treated not becom-
ng sour until from the sixth to the ninth day.
whereas milk not SO electrified became mark
dly acid on the third day. When, however,
he surface of quantity of milk was brought |
nder the balls of Holtz machine the milk |
DON became sour from the ozone generated.
"a
THE latest arrival among small engines for
ousehold and other uses is the electric motor
nd its special fitness for wide range of appu
alton is being daily more and more recognized
n capacity the electric motor is now made to
arge from small fractions of horsepower nm
o relatively large sizes, so as to meet the re-
uirements of the constantly increasing mum.
igned especially for such light work as run
ing sewing machines, jewelers. and dentists
atbes and drills, ETC., have been arranged to
Iork with battery currents. and the outfits
rould seem to offer every possible convenience
or the accomplishment of satisfactory work.
-.
IT seems likely that before long steps will be
aken to remove what has always been a source
{ dissatisfaction, the anomaly of a nominal
andle-power for electric lights differing widely
rom the actual illuminating power which ex-
It's in the supply of current from electric light
lg stations. Dr. Louis Bell. in discussing this
uestion recently at Cape May, says: I'VE
now only too well that the caDdle-powers of
&c lamps are quite different from the real.
he whole subject is in a tangle, which at first
GEMS almost hopeless. It has not been spe- |
ALLY important in the early stages of electric
ghting, because people did not look SO closely
lie light they purchased should be given; Dur /.
the electric lighting business comes more
nd more down to close competition and hard
,mmercial lines, it becomes more and more
to look after these things, and to de- |
ne just what we mean by the lights which we
,ntract to furnish. and to arrange some way
which there shall be general consent as to |
le m Gaming of the terms which we use."
xss
A PROJECT of considerable magnitude for
,wer distribution is now under consideration |
Saxony Germany. 1t is proposed to establish
,ar the city Of Dresden an immense electric
yht station to furnish high tension current for
mt and power to 168 small towns and villages
the territory ci-cumscribed by the towns
eissen, Frelberg, Pirna, Schandau, Sebnitz
I'd Radeberg.
A SINGULAR phenomenon OF the lightning
Ish is that its chief effects are observable
ly at the points of its entrance and exit.
nus flash which entered schoolroom in
red only the first and last child on the form,
ose between escaping unhurt The most 1
Pective treatment of lameness and other all
ents due to lightning is the application alrer-
tely to the head, trunk and limbs, OF q large
rseshoe magnet. In case OF quito recent
roke, the clothing should be untastened. the .
tient laid with the head high, and quietness
ID fresh air should be secured. II conscious
50 does not return, the head should be ex- 4
sed to a stream of cold water. r
-. !
At the recent convention OF the British As
citation one of the speakers said he was
. position to bear witness to the
lue of the range-fnder. Some years ago a
lend of his had occasion to make a survey of
me land, but had been threatened with vio-
nee by those opposed to his operations. For 9
is reason he had been unable to measure the '
ound in the usual way with the chain, but he /
d arrived at a sufficiently close approxima-
N by using his theodolite and adopting prin-
,les almosr identical with those carried out
designing the range-fnder. The powers OF
Q range-hnder have been Infinitely increased
this country by the application to 1t OF cleo
city. The electrical range-hnder is en- q
Dyed not only by all the modern war vessels,
Z also by an Increasing number OK American