The Washington bee., 1902-03-08
4 GREAT INVENTION.
:, Scientists Speak of the Hewitt
Electric Lamp
.,.n Young New Yorker Has OutdOne
hs Enorts Of Edison and Tesla
Light That Is as Cheap
as Kerosene.

0nce in awhile it is given to the
ems If the rich to ride out of the
-.nks and to distinguish themselves
= the field Of might. Quite recently
a. was Young Vanderbilt inventing a
locomotive. Just now it is Cooper
Hewitt. of New York, giving the
World q new light. His case is even
more spectacular than that of Van
dsrbHt for the effects of his inven-
zion will be more far-reaching.
u is now more than four years
since Peter Hewitt Cooper began his
svperimeuts in Madison Square gar
den. He opened his laboratory in the
tower Of the garden, just one floor
under the gilded statue of Diana.
The very prominence of the situa-
tfon lent il a certain obscurity. He
wished not to be disturbed and no
one would think of looking for the
workshop Of a scientist in the same
huHdiDg that harbOred horse shows,
cyc.r meets and spectacle plays. He
labored with that chimera which
sooner OF later claims the attention
Of an scientific men-the production
If light without heat. He studied
the work of Tesla, of Edison, of
Crookrs. He followed their lead and
having tested their experiments he
soon made up his mind that they had
not reached the uttermost limits of
this department of electrical re-
search Tie was young and time was
uo object. He had abundant means,
So money did not count. Occasional
lv the societies heard of him when
he told of certain progress he had
made To his friends he was a prom
Using young scientist, who might do
something some day.
The some day" came with the new
year. On the evening of Friday, the
3d Of January, passersby in front of
the meeting hall of the New York
Society of Mechanical Engineers saw
what appeared to be a column of
ngnt extending up and own the house
front, The light came from a glass
tube and it made the street nearly
as light as day for hundred feet in
every direction. 1t was the invention
dmlng Peter Cooper Hewitt. The
Meeting hall of the building was
lighted by four other tubes similar
70 the one in front and the inventor
Was even then within explaining to
The society members the nature of
his discovery. The four tubes which
hung in the hall Illuminated it with
d ou.liancy equal to 500 candle pow
er and photographs of the assembled
members were taken with the new
light.
The Hewitt lamp, however, is so
thoroughly adapted to present day
conditions that no special wiring is
required, mo- special dynamo is neces-
SaIt to operate it. 1t may be at
laehed to any incandescent light cir
cunt now in use and it will glow as
readily as an Edison lamp, only with
many times the brilliancy. And yet
lAe perfected lamp is such a simple
a-a-f that one wonders some of the
lIanE men of the scientific world
nave not hit upon the idea long ago.
II N actually a fact that many of
-rm not only experimental with
,Ais style of lamp. but even tried
ramps of the very size, shape and
''1.ratN of those used by Mr. Hewitt
a-" failing a. produce the desired
effect, discarded the idea as impos-
>..r. The lamps used by Mr.. Hewitt
a'r DO the shape of glass tubes, from
,"r l' ten feet long and from one to
l'.F nrhrs thick There is a small
amount of mercury in each tube and
'"e current acting on the mercury
t'"rfates IA gas which yields an in
'''>e white light. 1t is only neces-
sa'' To attach a tube to an ordinary
,,.'CaAaescent ~. lamp circuit and it will
usAl up Mr. Hewitt encountered
"r same difficulties as the other sci
eatists.
Inc tubes would not light up at
-'S' but he thought there must be
,, .sDS underlying principle which,
,.--l he but discover it. would solve
-s ''illculty. He finally put it to the
's' OF mathematics and worked it
~ a'gehraically, just as Prof. Pupin
=, ,'Aeu out the principle of ocean
,.spnony, 1t took him four years,
=. 49, me result was triumph, for the
'-Ds Aghted up in the end.