The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-09

a live wire grounding" with a gas nine.
One pipe in his possession is particularly
noteworthy from the fact that it has been
eaten through by an electric current which
had passed along streams of dripping
water. About seven inches OF the pipe had
been pitted through by the action of the
| intermittent sparkling. and the con-
| sequence was that the gas had es-
capped and ignited. Mr.. McDeavitt
| says that the ''buebear" of electric wiring
| is the pendant cord. The great danger Of
| flexible cords is through their brittleness
| and rough handling by people who do not
know how to treat portable lights. These
| should always be moved with great care
and contact of any frayed ends with the
wire that completes the circult should be-
avoided. Another risk arises in private
| houses of the wealthy class where the ten
| dency is toward metallic ornamentation
| both in Dutch metal wall papers and in
fabrics that contain metal thread Only
recently fire was caused in the Vanoer-
| bilt mansion in New York by the protrud-
| ing ends of an incandescent light wire
| coming In contact with metallic wall
covering stuff, composed principally of
| Dutch metal in the warp A brilliant
| shower of sparks fell from the point OF
contact and the fabric was in a blaze in an
| instant.
MATTRESS MAKING BY ELEcTRIcrrY.-A
| factory has been started in Ohio for stuff
| ing and finishing mattresses by electrical
| machinery. When hand labor was en-
! ployed good workman could fill only ono
mattress an hour. By the new machine
| twelve mattresses are filled in the sauna
| time. When the mattress leaves the fllinp-
machine 1t is carried automatically to a
| sewing machine, which is run by cleo
tricity, and the end is sewed up. All that
remains to be done is the ''tufting," sew
ing the mattress through in spots over the
| side, which is done by hand. The electric
mattress-hller weighs 1900 pounds, and
although 1T is an expensive piece of ma
chinery it is said to pay for itself in very
snort time IN the saving of labor, besides
doing much better work than the manual
labor method.
ELECTRIC TROLLEY FREIGHT CARS FOR
GBAIN.-A new departure is about to be
made by an influential railway company
which will be watched with the greatest
interest by every railroad corporation in
the country. The company proposes not
only to install electric passengers-cars on
many of the feeders to its trunk lines,
which at present are run by steam, but to
place in regular use service of electric
freightcars, specially built for the trans
portatlon OF grain. The cars are to be
lighter than the ordinary freIghtcars, but
much more durable. Each car will carry
set OF buckets, by which the loading and
unloading will be done electrically. 1t is
proposed by means of these cars to make
the work OF shipping and unshipping much
less tedious and expensive than it is at
present. The cars can be backed into an
elevator switch and be handled without
any trouble or delay. A well-known rail-
road magnate prophesies that within two
years nearly all the grain from the great
grain belt of the Northwest will be carried
into Minneapolis, its center, by electric
trolley.
A SPIRAL WALL-SocKET FOR ELECTRIC
FITTINGS when brackets or
electric fittings have been fixed to brick or
plaster walls it has been necessary to drill
hole in the wall with a chisel, plug this
with wood and then use the latter as the
support for the object intended to be fixed
to the wall. A ready avoidance of this
troublesome and disfiguring method is
now possible. Spirals of metal, in different
sizes. are imbedded in the wall when the
plaster is being applied. When the wall
is finished the spiral is firmly held in
position, and can easily be cleaned out.
Il then forms socket into which bracket
or fitting can be easily screwed and held
firmly. This plan saves the walls, carpets
and ceilings, and makes the adjustment OF
any kinds OF fittings simple matter.
AN ELECTRIC "PUNKAH WALLAH. The
punkah is in its placid and Oriental way to
the East Indian what fan motor is to the
American, and it is actuated to-day as it
has been for hundreds of years, by cody,
whose greatest anxiety is to discover how
soon the ''sahib'' is asleep, so that he can
drop work. In spite of the disadvantages
of the ''punkah wallah," no one at an In
dian station could well be argued out of
the belief that no mechanical contrivance
could take his place and give the lag and
rhythmic beat of the punkah. Under
these circumstances shock will doubtless
be inflicted on the conservative instincts of
a large section of the East Indian public
by recent adaptation of the electric
motor. 1t is claimed that the new electric
"punkah puller" initiates almost exactly
the quick pull and slow return of the
'punkah wallah." 1t is actuated by a
small electric motor, SO geared that lever
attached loosely to the punkah is made to
oscillate backward and forward, and gives
an almost absolutely orthodox movement.
The power needed is about equal to that in
hree 16-candle power incandescent lights.
AN ELECTRICAL WAITER-One of the
features proposed for the next years exhi-
bition at Amsterdam, Holland, is an cleo
trical restaurant. The guests are to be
we'd automatically with an elaborate
dinner of many courses on pushing but
ton. The credit for bringing this idea into
practical shape is said to belong in a great
measure to Menier, the well-known French
maker of chocolate, who has had construct
ed in his house miniature working plan
of the installation. A switchboard, fash
toned in the sembIance of menu card, is
fixed by the side of each guest, and is con-
nected to the switchboard in the kitchen.
Here the order is received. The edibles
and drinkables are all placed in little cars,
which run on a circular track on the table,
and are duly delivered at their appointed
destination.
An AIR CUSHION FOR TELEPHONE Re-
cEIvERs.-A handy attachment has been
devised for neutralizng the disagreeable
sounds produced in the telephone by in
duction and the buzzing and clucking
sounds that SO commonly interfere. with
distinctness of hearing. This device Is
made of pure soft-gum rubber fitted into
metal rim that springs or clamps over the
end of any telephone-recelnyeaE.. ST., Tbs ms
cushion regulates the distance from the
70 "a ri RIM and IS SAID TO