section, the like powers may be exercised and by the like authority as are exerciseable under section 162 of the Bankruptcy Act, 1883, for the purpose of ascertaining and getting in the sums, funds, and dividends referred to in that section.

Any person claiming to be entitled to any money paid into the Bank of England in pursuance of this section may apply to the Board of Trade for payment of the same, and the Board of Trade may, on a certificate by the liquidator that the person claiming is entitled, make an order for the payment to that person of the sum due. Any person dissatisfied with the decision of the Board of Trade in respect of any claim thus made in pursuance of this section may appeal to the High Court.

A special search room has been provided at Somerset House, and a fee of half-a-crown is charged for the inspection of any such statement, but any person who, for the purpose of inspecting, shall untruthfully state himself to be a creditor or contributory, will be considered guilty of a contempt of court, and will be punishable accordingly, on the application of the liquidator or of the official receiver. It would be to the public advantage if the authorities would themselves take steps for the enforcement of the penalty for the noncompliance with the provisions of the new Act, instead of leaving the initiative to any member of the public. Many of the companies registered seem quite to ignore the fact that an annual return is required to be filed, and it is only occasionally that proceedings are taken; a private individual naturally objecting to pose as a common informer, and as a consequence, such companies continue in default until after existing for a lengthened period they are struck off the register.

THE FRENCH ELMORE COMPANY.

THE statutory meeting of the French Elmore Company was held on Friday last. We publish a report of the proceedings in another column. The shareholders might have reasonably expected that some definite information of the progress of the process would have been furnished, but they had to be content with the vaguest generalities. Incidentally we find confirmation of our views that other company issues were contemplated. The French Company retains the wire business in its own hands "instead of disposing of the same to a sub-company as was intended" The rest of the proceedings was largely composed of exchanges of compliments between the directors and Monsieur Sécretan. The

directors congratulate the shareholders on their good fortune in having secured his very valuable services, and M. Secretan is glad to have the opportunity of expressing publicly the honour the directors have conferred upon him. The directors have certainly "put their money on M. Secretan. They had arranged for works in the south with water power, but M. Secretan prefers the north with steam power. The directors contemplated working on a small scale, but nobody will be surprised to learn that M. Secretan prefers a grand scale, and the directors double the working capital accordingly. If the company succeeds, the directors will be entitled to the credit, because they had the good judgment to select M. Secretan as general manager; if by any mis-chance it should fall short of the expectations

[JANUARY 16, 1891.

raised, it will be all the fault of that M. Secretan, and the directors will simply be responsible for a slight error of judgment an error which will be quite excusable when the recommendations they received are taken into account. One of the shareholders, who had the temerity to make remarks throwing some doubt on M. Sécretan was effectually silenced by Mr. F. L. Rawson, expressing the high opinion his firm-Woodhouse and Rawson-had of M. Sécretan's capacity. When Mr. F. L. Rawson heard there was a chance of M. Sécretan coming as manager, he exclaimed, "The future of the company is assured," so that there was apparently some doubt about the success of Elmore by itself, but Elmore-cum-Sécretan is irresistible. Proofs of M. Sécretan's

The Gutta-percha

Famine.

THE

paper read by M. Grawinkle before the Electro-technical Society of Berlin, and to which we referred in a previous issue, contained a not unimportant corroboration of the statements made by M. Sérullas, in the series of articles published in La Lumiere Electrique, as to the deterioration in the quality of gutta-percha now imported. M. Grawinkle ascribes the inferior insulation now obtained in gntta-percha covered wires as compared with that observed in the manufactures of a few years ago, to the indifferent quality of the gums now made use of. We presume that M. Grawinkle speaks with some authority, as he bases his remarks on an elaborate series of tests, conducted over a long period, on the German underground systems. It has been stated that two manufacturing companies were compelled to abstain from competing for certain work owing to the high price and difficulty of obtaining good gutta-percha, and we are given to understand that an Italian firm has been obliged to pay, in the London market, considerably more than five shillings per pound for gutta-percha of a satisfactory quality, and even at this price only comparatively small quantities could be obtained. From the India-Rubber and Gutta-Percha Journal we gather that the imports of gutta-percha in 1889 into the United Kingdom, from the British East Indies (we suppose that Assam, Ceylon and Burmah are here included) and British Guiana, have largely increased, while there appears to be a considerable diminution in the supply from the Straits Settlements. This, if we correctly interpret our contemporary's statistics, would indicate a still descending scale in the quality of the material introduced to this country. The period seems to be rapidly approaching when the only practical solution of the difficulty will be found in the employment of India-rubber for underground and submarine cables.

Telephone Cable.

THE Bulletin de la Société Internationale

The Anglo-French des Electriciens publishes, in its issue for December, 1890, some particulars as to the telephone cable about to be laid between Sandgate and Cape Gris-Nez. The cable contains four separate cores. Each conductor consists of seven copper wires stranded, and weighs 160 lbs. per knot. The dielectric of each core is composed of three layers of gutta-percha alternating with layers of Chatterton compound, and weighs 300 lbs. per knot. Our contemporary has been led into a curious error with regard to the temperature at which the core should be tested. It is stated that the conductor should have a resistance of

JANUARY 16, 1891.]

less than 7.632 ohms, and more than 7-478 ohms per knot, at a temperature of 45° Fhr., and that the insulation resistance must not be less than 500 megohms per knot at a temperature of 45° Fhr. In a footnote the author of the paragraph mentions that in a communication to the British Association the temperature is given as 75° Fhr., which, it is remarked, must be a mistake. We cordially agree with him that there must be a mistake somewhere. The equivalent of 45° Fhr. is given as 25° centigrade; as a matter of fact, it is 7.2° centigrade, while that of 75° Fhr. is 23.8° centigrade; this might also be reckoned as another mistake. We do not wish to appear captious, but the idea of testing core after immersion for 24 hours in water at a temperature of 45° Fhr. is too good a joke to let pass.

The Anglo-French Telephone Line.

THE Times in its issue for January 12th, contains a long article under the above heading, and the occasion is taken advantage of to reproduce the history, in a somewhat condensed form, of submarine telegraphy. To non-professional readers the article will prove of interest, but we take exception to the implication that Morse, in 1842, when he insulated a wire with India-rubber and tarred hemp, and submerged it in New York harbour, succeeding in telegraphing through it, was the first to suggest the transmission of current through an insulated wire, under water. In 1812 Baron Schilling insulated a wire with India-rubber and laying it across the Neva, succeeded in firing mines with the agency of a voltaic pile. He repeated these experiments in Germany, and afterwards in France. With regard to telephony, some space is given to a description of the effects of induction, and the means taken to neutralise this impediment are dealt with. The symbols "K.R." are explained (the mistake being made, however, of asserting that the K.R. of a looped line. is double that of a single wire), and some account is given as to the construction of telephone lines and cables. Taking it as a whole, the article possesses merit. We would wish, however, to point out that with reference to the first Atlantic cable, due justice is seldom done to those Liverpool merchants, and shareholders of the Magnetic Company, who among them subscribed a far larger amount of capital than was obtained in America; without their co-operation Cyrus Field, energetic and persevering though he was, would have scarcely seen his scheme realised so soon. How is it, we would ask, that Sir Samuel Canning's name has been omitted from the list of those who were chiefly instrumental in making Transatlantic telegraphy a possibility and a success? We read of Sir James (then Captain) Anderson among the illustrious names connected with the early history of submarine telegraphy: it would seem that it is not generally known how much was due to Captain Moriarty, R.N.

The Largest Arc Lighting Station.

THE New York Electrical World considers the most important points in the station which is described on p. 70 of our present issue to be the following:-The feature of the St. Louis plant is the shafting room; the very large Corliss engines which are used are belted on the main line shafts, which occupy a long hall by themselves, and from which the belts rise through the ceiling to operate the dynamos. In some respects this arangement is not without its faults, but where the cost of land is high, placing practically the whole plant on a single floor is too expensive, and recourse has to be taken to methods like the one we are considering. An interesting minor point in the operation of the system is the use of oil for fuel on a large scale. This has increased the capacity of the boilers and lessened the amount of care required, so that the oil fuel is a rather successful competitor of coal, even at the low price at which the latter can be furnished. The principal point to criticise in the plan is the

69

use of simple engines instead of compound or triple expansion machines. There are 10 great Corliss engines capable of handling an aggregate load of 8,400 arc lamps. For a plant of this magnitude it almost goes without saying at the present time that compound condensing engines are a very considerable advantage, and the more recent stations are generally being equipped with them. Much of the success of this St. Louis plant is due to the great skill with which the details have been worked out, and with which all the minor operations are conducted. A complete system of checks, testing every portion of the apparatus, and watching its performance are in regular use, and have added much to the freedom from minor difficulties which has been secured. Outside of the station the same watchfulness is exercised, and by thoroughly systematic administration of the work it has been possible to conduct it with a degree of economy that was scarcely to be anticipated, and it must be said that the colossal station is in every way a first-class working success. We cannot do better than commend our readers to the careful study of our very elaborate description of this immense lighting station.

Substance or Shadow?

AT the meeting of the shareholders of Woodhouse & Rawson United, Limited, resolutions were passed increasing the capital and authorising the directors to arrange the repayment to the predecessor company's liquidators of the amount deposited by them as a dividend guarantee fund. The terms of the deposit were that the money should be retained until July 1st, 1892, but the directors are anxious to repay it at once on terms which will be decidedly advantageous to Woodhouse and Rawson United. This statement puts the matter beyond criticism. Otherwise we should have thought the arrangement was somewhat analagous to that in which the substance is exchanged for the shadow. We are glad to find that the supply department shows large increase of orders and the manufacturing profits are expected to be larger this

We do not doubt that the supply and manufacturing departments might be considerably extended. It is the promotion department which needs narrowing and the others would correspondingly expand. The chairman's speech does not give much promise of this, unfortunately.

A Gassy Dispute.

A LIVELY state of affairs prevails at Laeken, a small town in Belgium. Thirty years ago the municipality entered into a contract with the local gas company for the public lighting of the town. It was agreed that the price should be fixed at £1,600 per annum, the contract, to exist for 55 years. Thus the agreement remains good for another 25 years, but the municipality contend that the price which was considered just when the contract was made, should now be reduced, as it is excessive when compared with other towns where only £200 per annum is paid for the same amount of light, As the gas company refuses to reduce its price, complaints regarding defective lighting, which had previously been permitted to pass unnoticed, are now numerous. In order to bring the gas company to reason, the municipality is adopting a drastic policy. For every gas jet below the contract candle-power, a fine of 2 francs is imposed; for each square of glass not properly cleaned, a fine of 5d.; a broken glass, 5d.; and for a lamp extinguished, a caution first and a fine afterwards. All these defects were formerly passed over, but now the police and the inhabitants take delight in discovering any irregularity in the lighting. If this state of affairs continues, it is expected that the town will not only get its lighting done gratuitously, but also make a profit. After this disclosure regarding gas lighting, electric light companies need not be grumbled at.

7970

THE LARGEST ARC LIGHTING STATION IN THE WORLD.

THE report of the general manager of the Municipal Electric Lighting and Power Company of St. Louis for the month of September shows an income from the city lighting of some $10,000 and an allowance or rebate for imperfect lighting of about $80, a deduction of less than one per cent.; and this, too, in the face of a system of checks and counter-checks that appears to render it impossible for a lamp to blink twice in succession without having a report entered against it. Furthermore, the plant has not yet been in operation seven months, though during that period not a moment's time has been lost, except on one occasion, when the carelessness of an employé caused the shutting down of two engines for something less than 30 minutes.

Brought into existence under adverse circumstances, and with new conditions to be met on every side, planned and completed in the face of difficulties that appeared almost insurmountable, and within a period of time almost too short for belief, the central station plant of the Municipal Electric Lighting and Power Company, of St. Louis, stands to-day a splendid monument to the ability, foresight and indomitable will of the man whose keen, practical judgment and guidance has placed in successful operation the largest arc lighting station in the word, Mr. James I Ayer.

The operation and maintenance of this plant is so simple and economical that many of the features introduced are worthy of careful consideration by all central station men, while every reader can find much of interest in the businesslike methods pursued in the management of this great enterprise that includes, in addition to the substantial station, a pole line circuit nearly 900 miles in length, supported on some 10,000 poles.

When the City Assembly, on December 29th, 1888, gave ten days' notice to the St. Louis Board of Improvements in which to advertise for 30 days in newspapers of St. Louis, New York, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh for proposals to light the city streets and public buildings with electricity, and to prepare all necessary plans and specifications for the work, it was considered simply a political move in the results of which the people had so little faith that on the day the contracts were awarded, March 9th, 1889, a wager of $1,000 was offered that they would never be closed.

Mr. Chas. Sutter received the contracts for the out-door lighting of both Northern and Southern districts of the city by the are system, Washington Avenue being the dividing line between the districts. His bid for the Southern district was $84,780.50, and for the Northern district $81,659 per year.

One incandescent lighting contract for illuminating public buildings and alleys in the Southern district, went to the Missouri Electric Light and Power Company, at $50,525 per year; and the other incandescent lighting contract for the Northern district, went to Charles E. Brown, of the Western Electric Company of Chicago, at $33,327.80. The latter assigned his contract, almost immediately, to the Laclede Gas Company, which is carrying it out.

The original specifications called for the following lights; For lighting the streets of the Southern district, comprising the territory between Keokuk Street and Washington Avenue, 1,100 arc lamps of 2,000 C.P.; 20 arc lamps of 2,000 C.P. for the parks; 30 are lamps of the same power for public buildings; for parks in addition, 200 incandescent lamps of 30 C.P.; for public buildings, 2,200 incandescent lamps of 16 C.P. For the Northern district, 1,000 arc lamps of 2,000 C.P. each for street lighting; 10 arc lamps of 2,000 C.P. each for the parks; 50 arc lamps of the same power for public buildings; 100 incandescent lamps of 30 ̊C.P. for the parks, and 890 incandescent lamps of 16 C.P. for public buildings. The magnitude of the arc light contract and of the whole undertaking can be more easily appreciated when it is further stated that not one stroke of work had been done toward carrying the contract to completion when it was awarded, though but nine months remained in which to complete the work.

Mr. Sutter's first move was to secure the services of a competent superintendent, and iu appointing Mr. James I Ayer to that position, on June 21st, the successful termination his important plans was practically assured. Mr. Ayer at • Electrical World, New York.

[JANUARY 16, 1891.

once notified the various supply houses of his requirements, and the visits of wire, pole, engine, belting and general supply men to the Southern Hotel in May, 1889, will long be remembered by the representatives present. Meanwhile, a piece of ground had been secured extending west along the railway tracks between Eighteenth and Twenty-first streets and the Missouri Pacific tracks. It was an admirable location, but of less size than desired, though all that could be obtained in that vicinity, and was what remained of an old stone quarry, having a high bank at one end that had to be blasted down, and a deep excavation at the other end that required filling, all of whieh consumed valuable time. Then the necessary foundation over the filled ground portion was secured by driving 800 piles in regular rows through 20 feet of the made ground to the solid rock, placing on top a cap of 12 x 12 timbers, and filling the space between with a layer of macadam concrete, and covering all to a depth of six inches above the capping. On this concrete the brickwork was laid in cement, 1,200,000 bricks being used for the foundations of the engines alone. All this work was necessary as more desirable ground could not be secured for a reasonable investment, and on this site the buildings stand completed to-day, and consist of the station proper, the annex and the boiler house; all substantial, fireproof structures of pressed brick, stone and iron.

The boiler house, having a frontage of 110 feet, a depth of 60 feet, and an interior height of 48 feet, stands 50 feet distant from, but connected to the station house by a viaduct supported on steel I girders, with concrete arches covered with granitoid cement, the top or surface of this viaduct forming the end of Nineteenth Street. The available floor space within the boiler room being but 54 x 104 feet, and as no additional ground adjoining could be secured for any price within reason, the prominent boiler makers of the country were called in to estimate on the greatest amount of boiler capacity that could be placed therein. Finally the management gave the contract to the firm of Rohan Bros., of St. Louis, stipulating for the installation of 19 of the Phil. Rohan special type of upright boilers, with a total mimimum indicated horse-power capacity of 6,500, and these boilers, or so many as are now requisite, are in daily operation. The coal used costs $1.50 per ton, delivered on the track close to the boiler house, and is shovelled into small hand cars that are then pushed along a tramway till the coal is dumped into a runway that leads directly in front of the furnace door, thus necessitating the handling of the fuel but once before being placed in the furnace. Six of the boilers have been equipped with the Standard Oil Company's fuel oil device, and the necessary oil is delivered in tanks at a cost of less than two cents. per gallon. The use of fuel oil has increased the rated capacity of the boilers about 20 per cent., and it is considered a most desirable fuel in every way, provided the price was made sufficiently low to compete with the low price at which coal can be purchased.

Rohan's special exhaust steam heaters and purifiers, and Hall's duplex pumps are in use; these with the oil pumps and filters and the steam supply and exhaust pipes are on the lower floor of the annex connecting the boiler house to the station and commonly referred to as the viaduct, the upper floor of the annex, which is about four feet above the level of the railway tracks, being used for the receiving and storing of coal, freight, &c.

The smoke stack is of quarter-inch boiler iron, double riveted, 226 feet in height, and 13 feet in diameter, the base, 32 feet in diameter, resting on a solid foundation of seven feet of concrete placed on solid rock 27 feet below the level of the railway tracks. This iron stack is said to be one of the largest in the country, and the coronet of are lights sus, ended from the gallery near the top is the admiration of every lover of the beautiful, and can be distinguished for many miles when burning at night.

All steam pipes, valves, fittings, &c., leading from boilers to engines are in duplicate throughout. There are no overhead steam pipes within the station house, the pipes passing beneath the flooring. There are three main steam pipes of wrought iron, hot rivetted, with expansion joints, that are carried in hangers supported on the I girders of the engine room floor. The largest is 24 inches in diameter, the second 18 inches and the third 10 inches; the first two being 170 feet in length. The third, or smaller pipe, is an auxiliary feeder for daylight service, and is inde

pendently connected to three engines, thus enabling the company to operate up to 1,000 arc lights without putting a pound of steam in the main pipes. The exhaust main is 36 inches in diameter and suspended under the feed pipes. All the steam pipes are properly covered with Flegle's patent air space covering, consisting of a metallic wrapper having flanged contact edges holding the insides of the wrapper distant inch from the pipes and forming an air space of 28 inches in length; each end being sealed with asbestos fireproof cement. The covering inclosing the metal forming the air space is of sheet asbestos and paper placed in layers to the depth of half an inch, the outer coating being finished in canvas and painted white, rendering it waterproof as well as a perfect insulator. The boilers and larger surfaces are surrounded with Flegle's metallic air space covering, over which is placed a 1 inch layer of asbestos cement, rendering it fireproof in every respect. As the atmosphere of the pipe tunnel is always from 30° to 60° Fahrenheit above that of the engine room, excessive condensation is well guarded against. The object attained in carrying the pipes beneath the flooring is that all overhead hangers and scaffolding is done away with; the vibration to the pipes is lessened as the ends of the I girders are embedded in the engine foundations; all dirt and drippings from leaks that prove so annoying in an engine room are avoided; all possible damage to belting from the escaping of steam is obviated, a matter of much importance when so large a number of cemented belts are in use; the convenience in making repairs is increased and the general appearance of the engine room enhanced by the absence of overhead piping. All condensation of steam in the pipes is trapped back to a hot well from which it is pumped to a tank on the roof and from there returned to the boilers, effecting a saving of about 50 per cent. in water consumption.

The station house proper is a handsome four-story, fireproof, pressed brick and stone building, with a depth of 100 feet, a height of 65 feet and a total frontage of 110 feet. The stone base is well carved and seven pilasters enrich the appearance of the front, while the windows and doors are arched. The walls range from 26 to 18 inches in thickness, the floor beams are of rolled steel, the stairways entirely of iron, while the total cost of station, annex and boiler house aggregates $200,000.

The lower or ground floor contains the engines, the second floor the line shafting and friction clutch pulleys, the third floor the dynamos and switchboard, and the fourth or top floor the store room, testing department, general repair shop, bath rooms, closets, reading rooms, library, &c., while the wire or line circuit house is on the roof. These floors are supported by round cast iron columns placed in rows about 18 feet apart, those on the main floor being 12 inches in diameter, diminishing to eight inches on the top floor.

The engine room is on the ground floor, a step above the level of the railway tracks, and is 105 feet long by 95 feet deep by 20 feet in height, with a granitoid flooring. This room is arranged to contain ten engines of the HamiltonCorliss type, each of 600 H.P., six being now in position, and the remaining four will be added as fast as required. To each engine is assigned a load of 840 arc lights divided into a dynamo capacity of 14 60-light dynamos, or the equivalent of this duty in power or incandescent work. Thus the total capacity of the station will be 8,400 arc lights, or, allowing a reserve force of one-sixth, a standard working capacity of 7,000 are lights, a greater working capacity than any plant now in existence.

Underneath the engine room is a large oil cellar in which the oils used are filtered upwards through water, sand and charcoal. Galvanised iron lined oil cabinets stand on every floor and contain the oiling cans and the wiping towels, no "waste" being allowed about the place. Cleanliness is preserved in the highest degree.

The second floor is equipped with 400 feet of 6-inch hammered iron shafting, ground and polished, divided into eight sections of 50 feet each and set up in four parallel lines on floor stands which are bolted to double 1-inch beams below. The bearings of the shafting are self-aligning and adjusting, and vary in length from 18 to 32 inches. Each shaft is driven by a 48-inch double leather belt running over a steel rimmed pulley 56 inches in diameter, 52-inch face. On each shaft is placed seven doubled crown friction clutch , pulleys 52 inches in diameter, with 22-inch face, from which

lead fourteen 10-inch belts to the floor above to drive the dynamos. Both the 112 small belts and the large 48-inch belts were furnished by the Charles Munson Belting Company, of Chicago; Charles A. Schieren & Co., of New York, and the Shultz Belting Company, of St. Louis. The clutch mechanism is operated from the dynamo floor by a simple lever device which lies in a cavity in the floor made to receive it when not in use. Each engine belt has a patented steel rim tightener pulley, 36 inches in diameter, with a 52-inch face, which is operated from the shafting floor to tighten or loosen the belt. All the castings are exceptionally smooth and well made, all collars and couplings being well turned and polished, giving the whole a finished appearance. The boxes are lined with babbitt metal, reamed and bored, with deep oil grooves running backward and forward that insure perfect lubrication. The necessary oil is fed to each bearing by a system of pipes and carried thence by drain pipes to the oil filter in the basement, from which it is pumped to the fourth story to be used again. All the transmitting machinery on this floor was made and set up in place in a most thorough and workmanlike manner by the Falls Rivet and Machine Company, of Cuyahoga Falls, O., and the best evidence of its satisfactory character is that, while only one man is required to care for all of it during operating hours, not one minute's time has been lost from any mechanical defect or cause since the plant was started.

The dynamo room is on the third floor, and extends the full length and width of the building. Fifty-three 60-light improved Wood dynamos, manufactured by the Fort Wayne Electric Company, occupy a little less than half of the available space for dynamos. The conductors from the dynamos are carried through the floor in glass tubes to a series of racks suspended underneath the floor of the dynamo room and above the transmitting machinery, wherein they are supported on glass tubes till passed upward through the floor in a casing of glass and terminate in a table immediately in front of the switchboard, where they are connected to duplex sockets. The switchboard is a model of its kind, designed from plans made by Mr. McGrath, of the Fort Wayne Electric Company, and modified or added to, to render it more complete. The switchboard proper is furnished with duplex terminals to all circuits in each of seven different sections, and is so arranged that within a space of about seven feet square, which constitutes a section, connections can be made with any other circuit. The top of the switchboard is surmounted with a cornice which contains 70 current indicators made by the Lockwood Instrument Company of Detroit, and so arranged as to indicate when the current is flowing through a circuit and in what direction. In one section, at one end of the switchboard, ammeter sockets are being placed in a position that will enable the dynamo tender to rapidly plug an ammeter in any circuit.

Owing to the systematic methods employed, the entire lighting of the city is started practically on the instant, it requiring never more than 120 seconds to have every lamp burning. This rapidity of lighting is greatly facilitated by the perfect working of Mr. Wood's automatic regulator. Steam is turned on about 15 minutes earlier, and thus an important saving is effected for the burning of 3,000 or more lamps for half an hour too long or not long enough means an output of fuel the value of which in the agregate amounts to a large sum, or to a heavy rebate.

Since the machinery was placed in operation, Mr. Ayer has been regularly operating 62 lights over a circuit of 19 miles, and the brilliancy of the lights and the normal ampére current maintained. This speaks well for the line insulation and connections as well as for the dynamos.

On the dynamo floor is located the fire alarm gong, directly connected to the headquarters of the City Fire Alarm Department, and a private telephone connected with the Police and Fire Department. Thus every alarm is repeated in the dynamo room, and on a second alarm being turned, in an inspector hurries to the relief of the firemen. On this floor, where all the trimmers and linemen have easy access, is placed an immense map of the city, all lamps being indicated by tacks, and the various circuits by different coloured threads. By this means any circuit can be readily traced, and every lamp located. Station managers who have been compelled to keep unsatisfactory employés simply because they were acquainted with the circuits and the location of the

lamps will appreciate the value of such a map. There is a small office on this floor, and a public telephone, also a private telephone connected to the down town offices.

.....

On the fourth or top floor, where the wires come in from the wire house on the roof and pass to a rack holding the Thomson-Houston lightning arrestors in parallel rows, is placed a testing board arranged for connections with Wheatstone bridge, ammeters, and voltmeters to all circuits. The station is supplied with Weston's direct reading voltmeters, reading from one-tenth of a volt to 150 volts, with multipliers for same, giving a reading to 4,500 volts; Weston's and Wood's ammeter's and Greeley's high grade galvanometer's are also at hand. All circuits are tested at regular intervals four times each day, and the voltage is daily measured across the terminals of each circuit, a record of each test being entered on the proper blank, headed, "Record of circuit tests for the 24 hours ending ........," which blank also shows the length of each circuit, and the number of lamps in that circuit. Thus the highest efficiency is obtained, as any increase in the normal resistance is at once indicated; the leakage to ground being also measured while the circuits are in operation and the location of the leak detected. Each and every circuit is connected with the ammeters several times during the night, so that any change in the quantity of current is detected and remedied at once. The Repair Department is also on this floor and contains lathes and other machinery, the necessary tools, and competent workmen. Thus, if a lamp needs overhauling it is brought in and a card bearing the following heading is attached, and there remains until the lamp is again placed in service: "Record of lamp repairs-Lamp No.

1890, by

Material used......

.........

$.

from

... returned trouble.........

Hours labour................ Total $......... Lamp ; volts......:

1890; volts ....

......

.; lamp run hours..... 1890; volts.....

; ready for service

1890.

volts volts ; volts Entered L. R. by Entered daily R. by When all mechanical repairs have been made on a lamp it is given a twelve hour run on the test rack, and the length of the arc determined by the use of the voltmeter only, two standard Weston ammeters being used constantly to insure a normal ampére current at all times during the test.

In caring for the lamps 40 trimmers are employed, each being furnished with a two wheeled cart and the necessary harness; but each trimmer furnishes, feeds, and shoes his own horse. A blacksmith shop is maintained by the company, and there the trimmer can have his horse shod at an expense of $1, if he so desires, the usual rate being $1.50. The 28 trimmers employed on the city circuits are under the direction of the chief inspector, as are also the five deputy inspectors and the two lamp changers. Each of the city trimmers are now daily cleaning 63 lamps on a 15-mile circuit and a 20-mile drive, and are gradually working up to an average of 70 lamps. Before starting on his round each trimmer is supplied with the required number of carbons, with one globe and the necessary clean towels, and on completion of his day's work he fills in a blank form reading as follows: "Trimmer's daily report". - Trimmer... District No........... .1890. Number of lamps...., S... S.......... D......... total.. total......... Number of carbons received, 12 inch........ 7 inch........ .; number of carbons used,

; number of carbons in Globes replaced: Clear one-half ground... opal......... Lamp towels received........., returned........., in box........ (State condition of lines, lamps, poles, &c., in your district, and changes or repairs made by you this day.)

It is not only necessary for the trimmer to make out this daily report, but he must return a carbon point for every new carbon issued, and return a soiled towel before a clean one is given, all shortages being charged to the trimmer and deducted from his pay. Towels free from lint are used on all the globes, and "waste" is not tolerated about the building. (In this connection it is worthy of note that the ends of all plain carbons are returned to the factory, where they are ground up and made over again; and all carbon boxes are sold to local wholesale hardware dealers at 10 cents each.) That the above method is satisfactory to

mers as well as to the company is clearly shown by trious manner in which they perform their duties,

[JANUARY 16, 1891.

the excellent class of men secured and the large number of applicants for these positions. Then to encourage the men to improve on their work as shown in their daily record, and in that of the inspector, a comparative monthly record is kept that shows at a glance whether the man's service is improving or not, and on the fifth of each month a letter is sent to each trimmer commending him for noted improvement or mildly checking for apparent neglect. That these letters prove beneficial may be easily seen from the records which show that during the first month 185 globes were reported broken out of a total of 1,650 lamps; the number of lamps have been steadily increasing while the total number of globes reported broken each month has decreased respectively 185, 104, 57, 45 and so on down till the breakage to-day is less than 2 per cent., an excellent condition that has been brought about entirely by careful systematic checking. The advantages secured in using the cart in place of putting the man on horseback are manifold and obvious. A long rubber coat covering the trimmer from head to heels is furnished by the company and carried in a special compartment of the cart. Covered with this coat in rainy weather the trimmer drives along, standing on the foot-board of his cart protected from moisture in every way; the carbons are kept dry and there is always an abundance of dry towels with which to clean globes. Quite naturally the man feels that he is being well taken care of, and puts forth his best efforts in the interest of the company.

One of the general accounts is headed, "Lamps and Trimmers," and is made up from details entered on the lamp maintenance monthly sheet, which bears the following headings for entries opposite each day of the month: Date; number of men; cost of labour; single lamps; lamps repaired; number; cost; one-half carbons; seven-sixteenths carbons; total carbons; clear globes; one-half ground globes; cost of globes; opal globes; cost; cost of towels; stable expense: total cost of lamp maintenance. That sheet is prepared from the "Daily Report of Trimmers " (form 23), which reads: Trimmer (Nos. 1 to 60) total number of lamps; lamps trimmed; single; double; number of carbons used; one-half inch; seven-sixteenths inch; number of globes replaced; clear: one-half ground; opal; towels; labour time; cost; remarks.

The chief inspector has charge of the day inspector, the four night inspectors, the two lamp changers and the twentyeight trimmers, employed on the city circuits. Special twowheeled carts are furnished to each, the inspectors having strongly built but light carts made especially for rapid travelling and having a compartment under the seat sufficiently large to contain 150 feet of line wire, a cut-out or two, insulators, brackets, pliers, and whatever is necessary to rapidly construct a loop line. Each inspector furnishes an excellent horse that can be depended on, and when a telephone message comes in that a heavy wind has blown a tree across the lines, or a second alarm is received from the fire department, the inspector drives with the utmost haste to the point of trouble, and takes such action as may appear necessary to keep as many as possible of the lights burning or to repair the line. During a recent fire prompt action on the part of an inspector prevented a loss of $145 in rebates that would have been deducted had not his work kept every lamp in circuit. This method of looking after troubles at night is so systematised that only in two instances has a circuit remained open for over thirty minutes, a rare and remarkable record. The "Inspectors' Daily report reads: From 1890. Description of trouble...... ;_ma$...... Reported troubles by telephone P.M., A.M. Total hours locating trouble

While form 6 reads: This certifies that my lights were inspected at ... P.M., also at ...... A.M., and the service has been satisfactory since last report, except as noted below... These reports and that of the chief inspector are incorporated into a "Daily Report of Inspectors" (form 39), reading as follows: Number, on duty, from ......... to....... number hours......; hours' patrol hours on trouble number troubles ; found by him ported to him ......; total ...; total removed