The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-06-28


various companies which manufacture
electrical apparatus for purposes out
side of electric light, the trolley cars.
the telegraph and the telephone make
and sell $20,000,0 900 worth of goods every
year in this country alone. Electricity
is so readily put to service whenever 1t
is available that IL is becoming a SER
want in the affairs of daily life in
many different ways, and so invidious-
ly that people scarcely notice its ap-
proaches. It's rivals in the field of dis
tributing power are steam, water un-
der pressure compressed air, gas and
belts and shafting. Belts and shafting
and water under pressure can do but
one kind of work. and neither can sup
ply light or heat. Steam may be used
for heating purposes. but 1t cannot be
turned into light, and even its heating
qualities not much above the boiling
point of water. Compressed air will
do refrigerating, but not heating or
lighting, and gas, which gives both
light and heat. cannot be used for the
production of power except by combus-
tion. Incidentally, 1t may be mention
ed that It has bcen demonstrated re-
Gently that for Illuminating purposes
gas can be used more economically by
employing it 10 drive a gas engine
coupled to a dynamo and getting the
light from incandescent electric lamps
than by burning the gas directly for
lighting purposes.
Even If steam, air. water, and gas
each combined the qualities of produce
ing at will light, heat, and power,
electricity would still have vast advan-
tages over them ALL because the trans
formations can be made in its current
more readily and it's conveyance is ac-
complished by simpler means. A fam
iliar exemplar of this is the electrical
door bell. You can buy a complete bell
outfit for SO cents and set it up your
self. Think of trying to utilize gas or
water or steam to drive the cooling
fan in a lady's boudoir or her husband s
office. No doubt it could have beer
done, but the noise and oil and smell
would soon have doomed any attempt
to utilize one of these forces. Now II
requires but a flexible wire cord for
connections: the fan can be changed
from room to room by merely un.
screwing a lamp and slipping in its
place the end of the cord, and tbs
noiseless motor goes or stops in an
swer to the turn of a button.
Does a woman wish TO curl her hair
There are curling-iron heaters made
which are as easy to connect anC
manage as the electric fan, and fa'
handler and neater than one on a ga'
| jet. She sits at ease in front of heI
| dressing class and the heater stands
| on her dressing case wherever 1t is bes
| at hand. There is no flame. The wire
| run to a convenient electric lamp soc
| ket and the current comes dow
| through them and turns to a red hea
a coil of German silver wire concealed
| within the heaters case. The lad!
| slips her curling iron within this col
and heats it quickly and evenly ant
without a possibility of smoking it.
The electrician has more clever de
| vices for a woman's use. Does sh
| want a cup of tea? For three or fou
dollars she can buy en- electric stov
| which she can use as handily as sh
did the curling-iron heater. taking tn
current for it from a lamp socket. !
| will be about six inches across an
| capable Of boiling the tea kettle o
coffee pot, making a stew, q fry, or
| Welsh rabbit, or in fact performin
any work that might be done over tn
flame Of a chatting dish. In the SEWN
| room she can have the sewing machin
run by an electric motor and an cleo
| trically heated sadiron to smooth ou
seams, flatten bindings ana do tn
many like services required in dress
making, and she may sit with her fee
on an electric foot warmer or eve
take it to bed with her For the sic
room she can buy an electric heatin
pad to he used as a substitute for
hot water bag or bottle, and ever S
much better. These are very cleverl
made of asbestos or other suitable ms
terial, and they take their current frol
the ever ready electric light socket. L
means of a switch the nurse can Fl
the temperature of the pad at any or
Of three points, and so long as the cul
rent remains on, the pad will never q
either hotter or colder For the kitche
entire electric cooking outfits may
had but the day for these has not a
rived yet, although ii is claimed tha
considering the great economy wit
which heat is utilized in them, all sor
of cooking, except boiling, can be dor
with them at as low cost as with CO
or gas.
While a woman is thus served
electricity at home, her husband
benefiting by it elsewhere. The G.
that takes him to his office is driven
it, and he lights his cigar at an ele
,, trio torch before he goes to his des
.. Push buttons about his desk call
clerks and messengers, the telephol
stands ready at hand for him to tran
act business with people afar off, al
. electric fans keep him cool. The
are big ceiling fans at the restaura
, where he lunches, which not only &C