The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1894-04-27
IN THE ELECTRICAL WORLD.


There are now, it is said, 55 towns
and cities in England which destroy
their garbage and solid refuse by burn.
ing, and $40 furnaces are employed for
this purpose. The latest utilization of
this combination is for the lighting #
towns by electricity. and from the
success of the tests which have already
been made in this direction many cities
are contemplating the reduction of
municipal expenses in this way. I'M
proved systems of burning refuse are
being proposed, and the latest of these,
the Livet method, has been satifacto-
rily tested in England. The refuse of
the city of London is estimated to pro-
duce by this process over S7,S1S horse
power, at a total cost of S5O7, 495,
whereas the cost with the best Lam
Grating 10 pounds of water per pound
of coal, would be IS, 995,715
The state railroad commissioners
Office at Albany, n. Y, was flooded, it
is said, with applications from motor
inventors, asking for an opportunity TO
have their appliances tested in case a
certain measure should meet with the
approval of the Legislature. This is an
application from the Metropolitan
Traction Co.. of New York, to have the
board of railroad commissioners act as
judge to name the most practical cleo
trio or other motive power for street
railroads. The company offered prize
of $50, 00U for the railroad commission
to award. As soon as the communica-
ton was received by the railroad COM
missioners asking them to act as
Judge it was submitted to the legiSla-
ture, and was considered by the re-
spective railroad committees of both
houses
Prof. III. NJ. Wards researches on
the influences of light on bacteria have
brought out some remarka BILE facts
Prof. Ward demonstrates conclusively
that the naked arc light may be used
in hospitals or railway cars most eff
fectively as disinfectant, by reason of
the effect of its rays upon bacteria.
He has allowed the various rays of the
spectrum to fall on films of gelatine or
sugar containing spores of bacteria,
and finds that, whether the spectrum
is got from sun light or electric light,
there is no Derceptible action on the
spores of bacteria by the infra-red red,
orange or yellow rays. while all the
spores are injured by the rays of the
blue and violet region. Broadly speak
ing, the injurious action begins at the
blue end of the green. attains maxi
IL -
ward the ultra violet With the cleo
trio light, quartz lenses and prisms had
to be used in forming the spectrum,
as the results with glass were fee bic.
This injurious influence of the blue
rays extended far into the ultra violet.
The Intervention of a thin piece of
glass resulted in cutting off large
proportion of effective rays
An unprecedented number of warn
ing devices for railways has been pat
ented within the past few months, with
the prime object of preventing railway
collisions. One of these, which is
specially worthy of attention, has been
successfully tested on some of the
military lines in Germany. The system
is automatic, and is actuated by cleo
tricity. The circuits are so contrived
that two trains travelling on the same
rails, whether in the same or opposite
directions, are warned of each others
position by the ringing of bell on
each locomotive, while. at the same
time. the two engineers are brought
into telephone communication. The
same thing occurs if one of the trains
be stationary, so that if there is any
break down on the line in front the en-
gineer receives notice. The breaking
away of a car or cars from the rear of |
a train is 40 notified both to the en-
gineer and to the station which the |
train has last passed by; and the dis
tances at which all these warnings arc |
given and received can be varied in |
such . manner as to provide either long |
or short blocks" according to the re-
quirements of the traffic. In fact, the |
system seems to have provided effec-
lively against all ordinary contingent
cies, and it's employment should great
ly reduce the risks of railway travel