The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-04-17
GAS CLASS VISITS PLANTS.
FLEES FROM EDISON CO.'S 5000
VOLT SFITCHBOARD.

hOFk Ifaln-DlACONefe lihN NHo WIZ
sOlidated IL Returning 10 Coal Gas
Autos Have Sent Up Price OF Naphtha
The class in gas from Albany made a
tour yesterday OF ths plants OF the Con-
soHdated Gas and New York Edison com
panles They began at the plant OF ths
Consolidated company at the foot OF East
Fourteenth street In which only coal gas
Is manufactured. In the party were Senator
Stevens. chairman OF the investigating
committee, Senator Page, Assemblyman
Merritt. Lewis b. Cavity, Independent OF
the Consolidated Gas Company, Walter A.
Addcks, also an ohi,sr OF the lighting COM
bine who acted as schoolmaster In the alb
sence of Mr.. Hughes william II. Bradley
chief engineer Of the Consolidated and
Charles +. Mathewson counsel for the
company.
Under the guidance Of Mr.. Addioks the
marty we're led into the innermost recesses
of the Fourteenth street plant. Among the
things which the committee viewed with
awe was the machinery invented by Chief
Engineer Bradley for charging the retorts.
I'D TO a few years ago this work was done
by hand Under the new system the coke
or burned out coal is drawn out by giant
rake operated by steam and another ma
chine thrusts fresh coal into the retorts
at lightning speed.
At the Tventy-first street station the
committee saw the enormous station meters
by which the gas manufactured Is meas
ured before il is sent out for consumption
The mystery Of candle power was also e1-
planned to the as measured by the jet
and har photometers, and they got their
first look into the water gas process 10y
which at least one-half Of the entire output
of the Consolidated company Is manu-
featured They also visitei the valve
room and saw how the pressure was reg
G.ated.
From Twenty-first street tug conveyed
the rarity to Astoria, where the Consoli. ated
Company ia erecting an enormous plant
10 supply the entire territory Of the old
city Of New York. Here the Investigators
learned with some surprise that the com
pany was going back to the manufacture Of
coal ga. Mr. Addicks explained that
the increased use OF naphtha for auto
mobiles had sent the price soaring and that
It was no longer profitable TO Use 1t except
an an enricher for the regular coal gas
product: ,,-,-.
will eventually cover 500 acres. The build
ings now under construction will have
capacity of 2OOOO,OOO cubic feet of gas a
day, but eventually the works will be able
20 turn out 24OOJOOOO. One-half OF this
output will be in water gas When the
plant Is completed no gas viii be manu-
factured on Manhattan Island although
none Of the holders here will be abandoned.
So large is the territory covered that the
visitors were conveyed about the plant by
a train composed Of an engine and two fiat
cars on which temporary seats had been
erected This was dubbed the -ConsOh-
dated express The cars and engine
are used in construction work.
FROM Astoria the party sailed on the tug
10 the plant of the New York Edison Com
pany at the foot Of East Thirty-ninth street.
Here they we're met 10y Thomas +. Murray,
vice-prcsident and general manager; Henry
NJ. Edwards, the auditor, and Arthur Will
hams, the chief inspector. Under their
guidance thoy saw the largest single gen
Grating station in the world. They also
saw in operltio the steam turbine which
according = the experts present, is des-
tined TO re"olutionize the business Of gen
Grating eleC. ricity for commercial purposes.
This, said Mr.. Edwards, is a splendid
illustration Of what testified to as super
seasonal depreciation. Here is a plant
that is scarcely four years old and which
was thought to be ideal at the time Of
erection. Yet all this machinery will
eventually have TO give place to the steam
turbine
The committee took one look at the
great switchboard through which a cur
rent OF 5000 volts passes, and fed. Every
where was the sign danger Behind the
switchboard wa a passage which one of
the visitors named the death chamber
Vice-President Lieb said that this wasn't
90 much Of a joke after all So powerful
was the current he said, that the switches
he'd N he broken in oil.
From the waterside station the com
mittee was convened in automobiles 10 the
old plant Of the Equitable Gas Light Com
pany. which is now used by the New York
Edison Company as a repair station. Then
they we're whirled over TO the Twenty. sew
enth street plant where the transformation
Of the alternatin ~ current as originally gene
rated into the direct or commercial current
was explained to them. They also saw the
Immense storage batteries which take IN
a whole floor and which contain a reserve OF
current against any accident that - put
the generators out Of business for 4 short
time.
The last visit was to the supply Is~art-
ment OF the company in West Thirt , ninth
street. Here the operation of the HNpotric
meter wa explained, a. well "a the Y TEN
Of repairing arc lamps,
Charles r. Murphy, leader OF Tammany
II ~, expects 10 be put on the witness stand
before the ga inve ,tigating committed
this attemoo ,. Mr.. Murphy has been at
Atlantic City nee the middle Of last week
He has been & Id that the committee will
be ready for him to-day.
Mr. Murphy will be present at the cleo
ton Of officers Of the Tamnany Society