Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-03-18

what the cost Is to II. 1t has to bay taxes
| 1t has to make it's annual betterments. I
has to keep itself abreast Of the improve
| ments- It Is perfectly right that this com
pany should be expssted to- keep itself. /,
| touch with the very hest that our profes
sion affords; that lisa. works should b
abreast with what is known today as thu
| best practice. Congress has the right t,
insist that they shall. do that But it i,
right also that Congress should treat tti,
| company in a liberal manner, permitting i
| to have the means with which to do thes,
He Studied, she Pla.t.
II have studied this plant of the Wash
ington Gas Light Company for number o,
| years. 1 have seenfit grow from very
small proportions Know that 1t has al
ways been the ambition Of the manage
ment of this company to be in the fore.
| front. not only as regards the character O,
| its apparatus but also as regards the char.
| acter Of light furnished, and the treatment
of the general public
This company can make, and does make
as fine gas as any company in the world
The fact that there is a trifling difference
between the illuminating power of the gas
In New York city and the gas In Washing
ton is so trif1ing that it is simply not worth
talking about. In other words, If YOU fix
the Illuminating power at "a. as suggested
by Prof. Love, this company would be
~ -
safety.
Consumption In Summer.
This gas made by the Washington Cas-
light Company has to be burned in a south
ern city, where, during large part of the
year. the windows and doors are open, and
the flame is subject to draughts If you
force this company to make a high candle
power gas-that is, for instance, if you make
it twenty-six candles-it would be impos-
sible for the gas to be burned in this city.
Every ceiling and every fresco in the town
would be smoked up inside of thirty days
if such a gas were burned here. That is
one of the things which you have to take
into consideration on this question, which
Is an absolutely local one Every one of
these questions must be treated from its
own local standpoint You can simply use
what is being done elsewhere as a precedent
and guide; but you must always come back
to what is fair and reasonable right here in
Washington.
Il do not know that can say anything
more upon the subject. because 1t has been
gone over SO thoroughly. 1t has been
discussed in all it's various phases and it
whether the price of one dollar will enable
this company to go on and do it's business
in the broad and liberal manner which q
company of its magnitude should do.
or course they can sell gas at dollar if
this Congress says they must; but it means
the immediate cutting down Of the wages
of employees, the cutting out of every man
they can possibly do without; it means hard
ship all along the line. The wages of the
clerks must be reduced. They must buy
materials of lower grade. When extern
sions are made they will be made in a more
penurious way.
Gripping Enterprise.
ut means the absolute Gripping Of this
enterprise all along the line. Therefore l,
as man skilled in this work, both in con-
struction and in the operation of gas works,
having been closely associated with their
management all my life, feel that here in
Washington the Washington Gaslight Com
pany cannot afford to sell gas at a dollar
and maintain high standard Of everything
in connection with it's business, although
believe In dollar gas and in high Illuminating
power.
Change In Burners.
Senator McMillan-Is there anything else
in section in which you would suggest a
change?
Mr.. White-I would suggest a change in
the character of your fest as to the burners
l would suggest that instead Of using the
so-caled English parliamentary standard
Argand burner. having fifteen holes in
sevea-inch chimney. that you should pro-
vide for the use of the Bray tiat-tiame burn
er, consuming five feet, of gas per hour
There are other provisions in this bill which
are very rigid, but they are perfectly proper
With reference to the provision about sui
phuretted hydrogen, you say that there shall
be absolutely none, 1t, is very difficult
where gas works are being carried on of the
magnitude OF these here. to prevent the
presence Of sulphureued hydrogen. A little
leak around valve in a. gas plant will let
enough sulphuretted' hydrogen into your
gas to make all of the gas IN town snow a
slight trace OF it =-'E
Senator Gailinger-Woulu not the proviso
take care of that? .,
Mr.. White-1 see that by the bill you do
leave that to the inspector; and if he is a
man of the high standard of your present
gas inspector, he would understand that this
was an unavoidable accident and not make
trouble about it
Senator Faulkner-You would necessarily
have some provision about it?
Mr. Witches, sir.
Senator Faulkner-You cannot suggest any
other. can you?
Mr. White-No, l do not know that
could. This is an exceedingly rigid re-
uuirement; but i have not read further
down in the bill, through the provision,
and that would cover my objection to it.
l have had an experience in this matter
within two months. by being called in as
an expert gas engineer by a company
which had been afflicted all during the
winter with the presence Of sulphGretted
hydrogen. They had searched all over their
works and made every effort to find it, but
had been unable to do so. We found it
after a very careful search. There was
what We call a bypass valve that had been
discarded, and that had been lying idle in
the works for some time. 1t was a line
of pipe that was still connected, but 1t
was not used: and that valve had been
leaking. In order to satisfy myself as to
what quantity of gas passing out
through that, I put a test meter on, and
l found that there was passing out not to
exceed fifty feet of gas in day; and yet
it had SO distinctly marked the gas of that
town that it was everywhere prominent,
and you could find it.
Senator McMillan--Is it not true that the
gas companies have so much interest in
this matter that il new process is dis
covered which is good and cheapens the
cost of the manufacture of gas, or gives a
better quality, they will he the first ones to
buy 1t; Is not that natural?
Mr.. White-Certainly. l was just about
to refer to that. The fact is simply this.
The process mentioned by our friends here
has been before gas engineers for some
seven or eight years DR.. Love. who has
just spoken to you. made an analysis of
this gas in the early '9Os or in 1891. I went
to various places to examine it in it's en-
bryonic state; and 1 will frankly say here
that If these gentlemen had anything which
the gas engineers Of this country believed
was worth a moments consideration they
would not be here before you asking to get
into the city of Washington. They would
be so busy at their main office selling their
rights to us gas men that they would have
time or