Omaha daily bee., 1899-05-05

have proved great attractions in parks and
public resorts in many parts OF the country
and u is made In a size and manner that
make II as portable as a potted plant In
fact round about the central portion, where
the fountain plays are places for plants to
decorate and inclose the waters.
The waters are made to rise in the form OF
thin cylinder by being forced upward be-
tween the edges Of a globe OF glass in the
center and a perforated glass plate outside
this Underneath is another plate OF glass
which is divided into sections OF different
| colore, and this is kept revolving under
the fountain by means of a water wheel
fed by the falling waters. Under the COL
ored disk is an ordinary incandescent az
candle-power electric lamp, which lights the
dancing spray with the colors OF the revolv-
ing disk. Some Of these fountains are sup
piled with an electric pump which enables
them to operate without an outside supply
OF water. Such a fountain can be made to
operate with power from few cells Of bat
terry, and thus can be used where there is
no dynamic current at hand
1t Is for such places that the new fan outfit
has been made. Three cells operate It. and
1t is said that 1t will work for $50 hours at
speed OF 900 revolutions a minute without
change Of cells.
Electrical Lighters.
The new electric lighter is made to be
operated either in connection with an cleo
trio lighting circuit or independently by bat
terry power, and either way it takes so little
current that the electrical cost of opera
tion is most trining. II consists of an orna-
mental body Of chinaware into which ex-
tends the neck of metal torch, the body
of which holds a supply OF gasoline held in
cotton The mouth of the torch has a pack
ing of asbestos The metal part of the
| torch neck is made bell shape and this works
the lighting device. When this is put down
into place it merely spreads apart the arms
of two bell cranks which extend into the
opening in the china base, but when the
| torch Is drawn up these arms are raised
with 1t and spread apart at the same time
until just as the torch leaves them they
! make contacts with two binding posts within
the lighter and an electric spark flies across
the end of the torch, igniting the gasoline.
Any number of the lighters can be put in
| a single electrical circuit and worked with
| the same battery or other power. When
| the lighters are attached to an electric
| light circuit they have most Of the current
| cut off by choke coil concealed within
| them, but in battery connection this is
not needed. In the latter case two ordinary
dry batteries supply power enough and this
| is made to give the spark by the interposi-
| tion in the circuit of a spark coil.
Although there are a number of portable
| electric lights in the market it Is a remark
| able fact that in none OF the electrical pa
| pers Is there a single advertisement of cleo
| trio lighting apparatus for houses to be fed
| by batteries. OF course 1t Is well under
stood that the expense would prohibit regu-
| lar house lighting by battery power, but
| there are many uses which could be made
| Of such outfits in the household where the
cost would be trifling. They would be CT
use in odd spots where a lamp would be
either source of danger or inconvenience,
| such as in closets or cellars or to flash in
| front of clock face to reveal the time
at night, and very pretty use for them
would be in place of candles for the tea table
where little incandescent lamps. which
would require only small currents, would
| give al the light needed
| Prophetic Forecast.
| Attention is called to passage of The
| Spectator (No. 241 of the year ND which
| is interesting in connection with wireless
telegraphy and telegraphy in general. The
| passage reads thus: Strada, in one of his
|
correspondence between two friends by the
help of a certain loadstone, which had such
virtue in 1t that, if it touched two several
needles, when one of the needles SO touched
| began to move, the other, though at never
| so great a distance, moved at the same
! time and in the same manner. He tells us
| that the two friends, being each OF them
| possessed of one OF these needles, made a
| kind of dial plate, inscrbing 1t with
| twenty four letters in the same manner as
| the hours of the day are marked upon the
| ordinary dial plate. They then liked one
| of the needles on each of these plates In
| such manner that 1t could move round
| without impediment so as to touch any
| of the twenty-four letters. Upon their
| separating from one another into distant
| countries they agreed to withdraw them
| selves punctually into their closets at Gre
| tain hour of the day and to converse win
| one another by means of this, their lnVen-
| ton. Accordingly, when they were some
| hundred miles asunder, each Of them shut
| himself up in his closet at the time ap-
pointed. and Immediately cast his eye upon
| his dial-plate. If he had mind to write
anything to his friend, he directed his
needle to every letter that formed the
| words which he had occasion for, making IA
little pause at the end Of every word OF
sentence to avoid confusion. The friend, in
the meanwhile, saw his own sympathetic
| needle moving of itself to every letter which
| that of his correspondent pointed at BY
this means they talked together across
whole continent and conveyed theiI
thoughts to one another in an instant over
cities or mountains, seas or deserts.
Electric Fish of the Nile.
| An interesting fish that inhabits the waters
of the Nile is the malapterurus electrcus,
which is considered about the best species
of electrical fish, for, unlike the gymnotus
and torpedo its electric organs do not affect
its motion In paper recently presented to
the Royal Institution at London the theory
is advanced by Prof. Gotch that the seat of