The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1893-07-26
Electric Energy In Bulk.

Harmless electricity, put up in
packages to suit the wants of the con-
sumner, can now be deposited at the
doorsteps with as little trouble as it
takes the milkman, on his daily
rounds, to fill the empty pail. 1t will
be transported in an air tight box of
from four to ten or more cells, accord
ing to the amount required. Of the
storage battery, which is also called
secondary battery and accumulator,
much has been written and millions
upon millions of dollars have been ex-
pended by inventors and their enthu-
siastic hackers in the past twenty
years to obtain a perfect one. Elec-
tricity is difficult Of subjugation, and
not so long in the past it was an un-
solved problem as to the manner to be
adopted to confne it in a box so that
it could be made to do the bidding Of
man. For long time it would not be
confined; and, lastly, when it had be-
come docile-so to speak-it would,
nevertheless, display a temper when
forced to obey the command Of its
master, and would destroy it's prison
and vanish in way that was aston
ishing as wells as inexplicable.
Thousands upon thousands of in
ventors delved deeply into the mys-
teries of chemistry to find an accepta-
bic habitation for the subtle fluid.
The lead of commerce, as substance,
and dilute sulphuric acid to immerse
the lead, with coating of oxide Of
lead pasted on the lead plates was
found to be suitable combination Of
elements to store electricity. Even
with this discovery the desired end
was not obtained. The bonds Of Ju-
piter' bolts were not Of q permanent
character. Although harnessed, the
work performed was not satisfactory.
Through cramped quarters or for
other reasons then not known, the
current, when once housed, became an
unruly tenant, and literally made
things "hot" in the box which in
times gone by was huge square glass
jar. The lead would warp, the pasted
white lead on those plates would drop
off, the liquid would heat and white
| crystals would crawl over the sides of
the jar. In the general turmoil that
] ensued the, prisoner would escape,
leaving only worthless mixture with
distorted lead plates as the result OF
| it's former presence. Nothing daunt-
ed, the experimenters would start
anew, trying to steer clear Of Chuck
ling" "sulphating" and heating
terms which they gave to the proper
ties produced when the battery was in
the act of being discharged. Within
the past two years the battery has be-
come commercial success in Europe,
not for the reason that perfect one
has been invented, but from the fact
that they have been put to what may
be called their legitimate use, namely,
the simple storing of electricity.
The aim the American inventor has
been to put a portable battery on the
market to run street cars or a pocket
lamp. In Europe the inventor was
satisfied with the battery if it could
be made to store electricity at the
electric light station to furnish the
illumination in the day time, when the
demand on the station for the current
was at it's minimum. By charging the
battery during the night by taking the
excess current generated, the engines
could remain idle twelve hours out OF
the twenty-four, which would curtail
running expenses to an amazing de,
gree. The batteries alone could attend
TO the eight load," as it is called.
There are hundreds of stations thus
equipped in Europe, with the number
rapidly increasing, while in the United
States there are but two or three; yet
in this country more experiments have
been made, more money expended and
more patents obtained on batteries
than in all the other countries put to-
gether. The bent of the inventor in this
country was on make or break article.
His whole aim was to construct g bat
terry for traction purposes, his whole
ambition was to produce battery that
could run street cars so that the rail-
road companies could abandon the un-
slightly trolley, with its many attend.
ant annoyances. The prize was worth
all the expense and labor of the ex,
perimenter. Why Europeans only
worked out battery for lighting
purposef, while the American inventor
worked on a battery for traction pur-
poses mainly, can be accounted for on
the score that electric street cars are
all the go in this country and entirely
neglected across the water. One OF
the greatest difficulties encountered in
the construction of secondary bat
terry is to obtain paste that would not
fall off from the immersed grid OF
plate. The trouble was greatly in,
creased by handling and the jolting Of
the car. Yankee ingenuity is proven,
bial, and has never failed in the long
run, which proved equally true in this
case. There are now several inventors
who have reached the desired goal
Their claims have been fully substan
tiated by actual tests. All the diff
culties have been overcome. A point
has been reached in the storage bat
terry where the life of the battery car
be made to last for years.
From this it will be seen that the
opening sentence of this article means
exactly what it says. Electricity car
be sent by express to any part OF the
country, and there made to run youl
sewing machines, carriages, wagons o.
street cars. In Villages where there
is no electric light plant the use o.
electricity, to those who desire it, vii
not be denied. In larger cities th'
storage battery will become strong
competitor to the central station, or
account of it's ahleapness. The voltage
of the battery is very low, which
makes it harmless. Some carriage
manufacturers are already introducing
electric carriages, so that the time is
not far distant when the horse will bt
relieved of carriage and wagon work.
A storage battery is misnamed, fol
electricity is not stored in the cells