Arizona republican., 1899-01-02
ELECTRIC LIGHT AND POWER
Millions Invested in an industry of
 Remarkable Development.

Electric light and power companies
 are destined in the future to play a
 most influential part in the cities of the
 whole world. In New York city there i IS enc company at the present time
 with a capital of $S,00O000 and bond
 issues of $6500, 900, making an invest
 ment of 14,5O0, ,0OO. This concern has witnessed great prosperity, and in some
 of the late years has earned per cent over the 6 per cent on the investment.
 Edison's great discovery was not only been to the human race, but it opened up an industry which has developed into one of the most fa5ereaching and important in the United States. There is hardly a city or town of any size in the Union but that has an electric lighting plant. The first Edison "Jum- bos" will net soon be forgotten, and the Pearl street station, which was opened in September, 1882, was the beginning 9 Of a new epoch in the history of mod ern electricity. This station began with six steam dynamoS, each of 125 horse power. In the fist month eighty-five houses were Illuminated, having been furnished with wires for more than 5000 lamps. Dr. Norvin Green was the first president Of the first Illuminating company, and it was said of the old Pearl street station that it was a uni vers1ty f-om which went forth into all lands the graduated disciples of the new science. The first system employed was the ''tWo-Wire," and 1t covered miles of mains. The territory which it served extended from Wall to Spruce and Ferry streets and from Nassau street to the East river. It took a pe- riod of about five years to demonstrate that the plant was commercially a sue cess, and then J. Pierpont Morgan be- came interested in the company. The plants at Twenty-sixth and Thirty ninth streets were built, and an under ground system was undertaken. Six stations now supply the current. the main station being at Duane street. The company has a record of not hay ing the current turned off since it was first turned on, with the exception of three hours during the disastrous fire at the Pearl street station, which made necessary the reconstruction of the Building. Currents are fed by the com pany into more than 200 miles cf sub way tubing, requiring in the operation about $50 miles Of conductors for feed CTS and mains. The Edison company absorbed three other companies which had altogether 27,800 incan5esc5nt lights and 2O,060 arc lights. These DEluS lnS STduu ILILl lar dDONo all equivalent Of 55o,O00 16-candle -rower lamps, and their earnings yring the aggregate inccme to approximately $20OO,OOO gross.
 It has taken seventeen years to de- valop the system for lighting New York by electricity from the Battery far above One Hundred and Tw-nty-f1fth street
 While originally the servica aimed only at furnishing incandescent light ing, mctor supply was begun in 1884 and arc lighting in 1889. The great central station frcm which New York receives its electric illumin atiCn has a total engine capacity Of 26,S90 horse power. New York was the picnaer in the introduction Of vertical engines O. the marine type fer driving cIectricI generators, and the first eng'ne Of this kind of the present sizes ever built in the United States was iconstruct ed hsTe The central stat:cn is supplied with large multipolar g9rerat-.s directly coupled to the vertical compound en- ginss. New York city was tte first ely in the United States to adcp. this type of machine.
 The underground system in USE in New York fer the accommodates cfl electric ccndUctc.rs ws5 well Gev sed. Mains were laid in front of the houses on each block, joined at the street cor ners into a crib or network while th2 current was supplied by feeders run