Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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THE EXPERT'S REPORT. The Condition of the Sumter Electric Light Plant as Disclosed by the Examination of Pro. Riggs, of Clemson College. following is the full text of the report on the condition of the Sum gjlier Electric Light plant and on the quality of'the service rendered, made by Prof. Riggs, of Clemson College, at the request of the city council: Clemson College, S. C. Nov. 13, 1905. Mr. W. G. Stubbs, Committeeman, Sumter City Council, Sumter, S. C. My Dear Sir: As per your instructions, I have made examination into the arc light? ing service furnished the city of Sum? ter by the Sumter Electric Light and Ice Compar?t, under contract dated February 3, 1899. This examination consisted of a day l&'light inspection of the poles and lines of the local company during the af? ternoon of November 4th, and in the company of yourself and Mr. Hayns? worth, a complete tour of the town he tween the hours of 1 -and 3 a. m. ,- on the morning of November 5th. I also made an inspection of the plant at about 3 a. m., and took certain Spreadings of instruments in the station, Bf?and made certain tests between 3:30 and 4 a. m based upon these invest? igations, I beg to make the following report: Observations. (L) The poles and lines of the company are generally in good c?ndi? lo'tion, In a few places the insulation has been removed or has rotted away ? irom the line wires, but in my judg ? ment this in no way impairs the ef? ficiency of the service. At several points the foliage of trees through which the line wires pass needs trim? ming away to avoid possibility of grounding the circuit. Taking it all in all the transmission is above the average for a line that lias been in use tor ? number of years, and it is, I think, thoroughly service? able, and in no way reasponsible for any unsatisfactory service charged ?y against the local company. (2.) The lamps (Westinghouse Flat Carbon Type) belong to an antedelu "vian period of electric arc lighting. They are, so far as I am aware, no longer manufactured. The mechan? ism of these lamps, (judged from samples shown me at the station) is < of the clock work type, and is compli? cated and imperfect. I seriously doubt that if lamps thus equipped j could, even with the best of care, be ' - made to feed" uniformly and give satisfactory service. However, hav? ing- had no expedience with this par? ticular style of lamp, this, my opim* ^ ion, should be regarded as conjecture, to be proved or disproved by the ob? servation of your citizens. (3.) . Of the 47 lamps installed, five were not burning at the time of our visit to them. These were located as .follow?: ' Corner Washington and calhoun ! streets. Corner Washington and Hampton j streets. *~~ Corner Bartlett and Council streets. Corner Oakland avenue and Main street. On Railroad avenue, at Manning street. This fatality amounting to over 10 \ per cent, is an indication of faulty or worn out lamp mechanism. The lights that were burning gave ! a fairly good light, although it was my | impression that they were not up to their "nominal" rating of 2000 C. P. (4). The system has no means of automatic regulation-the arc circuit being supplied direct from a constant potential, Westinghouse, single phase generator. Hand manipulation of a rheostat is depended upon to maintain j a constant current in the lighting i circuit. The current at time of obser- ! vation-read on the company's switch I "board ammeter-was S.5 amperes. (5.) A test made on a lamp in the station showed at 8.5 amperes, very approximately 40 volts at the arc. This value fluctuated between 37 and 42. The voltage at lamp terminals was about 46 volts. Deductions: <1). . A "nominal 2000 C. P. lamp" is defined as an open arc consuming not less than 450 watts, and taking from 9.6 to 10 amperes depending up? on the adjustment of the lamp. On t^je night of my visit, the lights in your streets were served with but 8.5 amperes, or ll per cent, below the minimum current required for a nom? inal 2000 C. P. lamp. I believe that a careful test of the entire circuit would have shown tiaat the average warr consumption ^by eacn arc was ress than 350 watts, or over 22 per cent, below that required by the contract. (2J The number of lights out of commission, over 10 per cent, is al? together excessive as judged by the standards of good street lighting. (3.) The method of keeping con? stant current in the arc circuit by hand manipulation, depending entire >y upon the watchfulness of the a tendant, cannot be regarded as sati: factory. Upon my visit to the statin 1 found the negro attendant asleep. Every "system" of arc lighting th; I know anything about is automatic i the maintenance of a constant curre? in the arc circuit. Conclusions : It is my opinion that with the pre. ent apparatus, and under preser conditions of operation, it will be in? possible for the local company to gi\ to the town of Sumter a satisfactor arc light service-one at all compara tive with the service rendered by mod ern systems using either open or ?r closed lamps. It is also my belief that the com pany has not been complying with it contract as to the amount of energ it should furnish to each arc; certain ly it was not on the night of my visi and the negro attendant stated tha the circuit was operating under usus conditions. He naively remarked i reply to my question as to why th current was not run up to the prope valve, 9.6 amperes, that the "carbon would not last through a night." If it is desired to test whether th conditions prevailing on the night o my visit are typical or not, repeate visits might be made at unexpecte times and the reading of the swito board ammeter noted. (As to the ac curacy of this instrument, I canno vouch, as I could make no test of ii however, it is my opinion, judgin from voltage reading that I took o station lamp with standard volmetei land from the general construction o the ammeter, that it is substantial! correct. v Recommendations: (1.) I would i recommend that th' local company be required to replac* the present lamps by 7.5 ampere General Electric, Form 6, Enclose( Arc Lamps, and to install a 50 light 7.5 ampere, General Electric Constan Current Transformer,- which will au tomatically maintain a constant cur rent in the lighting circuit. The pres ent generator could still be used ir connection' with this transformer t< furnish power for the system. Such a transformer, oiiN cooled 1 would cost f. o. b. factory $550 or ail cooled $450, and the enclosed arc lamps would cost each $17 f. o. b. fac? tory. A switch board for handling the output of the transformer, complete with recording watt meter would cost $160 f. o. b. factory. The watt meter should be required in order that thc cito" may be in future assured that its lights are being supplied with th: ; requisite energy required by the con? tract. j : This apparatus, would give your city a lighting system as good as could be i obtained, and the saving to the local j company in carbons and in the labor j of trimming (for enclosed arcs would Shave to be trimmed but once a week at most) would go far towards com ; pensating them for the outlay of cap? ital. The power required for these new lamps would be no more than you have a right to demand under t terms of your contract. If the city expects shortly to install more lights, a 75 light transformer should be required. Such a size, oil cooled, would cost $750, or air cooled $675 f. o. b. factory. There is no material difference so far as the city is concerned between the air cooled and oil cooled trans? former. The oil cooled is likely to be more durable in ?ts insulation, and less liable to damage from lightning discharges. These considerations, however, primarily concern the local company. , (2.) If the local company is obdu? rate in the matter, then the town should consider the possibility of proving that the company has not during the oiieration of its contract furnished the city arcs with the re? quired energy, and if this is admitttd by the company, or can be proven, then the city can require a considera? ble rebate for over charges during the past six years. The possibility of such a contingency might make the local company more amendable to your just demands. (3.^ If, however, nothing can be done along thjs line, and it would be difficult, if not impossible, to provo that the conditions existing on the night of my visit had existed since the beginning of the contract, al? though likely this is the case, and if the company has sufficient grounds upon which to break the contract with the local company, and install at the water works an arc lighting plain of their own. Such a plant could be installe 1 ly ndd"ng 10 feet to the right hand ?-nd of thc pump house, and adding on?> mort- 60 horse power engine. 0 K. W. generator, 75 light transformer, and 75 hun].s would cost probably not more than $5.000, and the are transmission circuit of the local company could probably be bought at a reasobly low tigure, since it would be useless to them. The city needs fully 75 lights to properly illuminate and advertise it, an,d while I do not think the service would be any cheaper if only the present number of lamps were oper? ated, yet if 75 were operated the cost would no doubt be considerably less. It is only just to say that in this in? vestigation the local company had no representation, although I do not see in what respect the facts here pre? sented could have been altered, or my presentation of. them changed, by any statements that such a represen? tative might have made. Respectful? ly submitted, W. M. Riggs, Consulting Engineer. . THE USE OF ALCOHOL. There is Less Drinking in This Coun? try-Industrial Plants Particular About Habits of Employes. Advance sheets from the annual re? port of the United States bureau of education contain an interesting state? ment on alcohol and alcohol drinkers in the United States at the present time. A commission of fifty distinguished persons was some time ago appointed to look into the moral condition of the American people, and this commission began with a study of alcoholism, un? der the direction of Carroll D. Wright, Charles W. Elliot, Seth Low, James C. ; Carter and others, who investigated the matter from all of its standpoints. The United States is a country fa? vorable to alcoholism. The climate with its extremes of temperature, in- , vites the use of stimulants and tonics. On account of the large number of emigrants who are yearly flocking io this country the annua^ consumption of alcohol and its compounds has increased to a marked degree with the Irish and Scandanavians, but not so much with the Jews., Italians and ? other nationalities. These patronize in large numbers the American "free lunch dinner,"v which is now so com? mon in all cities of medium size. Five cents, the price of a drink, means to j many the getting of a dinner, and the ! temptation is said to be too strong to withstand, especially with the class of men mentioned. Many industrial establishments in the United States will not now employ men who at any time indulge in the drinking*.habit, as is indicated by the inquiries sent to 7,000 concerns recently asking their view on this , matter. These 7,000 establishments ' employ 1,700,00 persons. Of this number of establishments 5,303 re ? piied that they never employed any ; I >ne without first being satisfied as to ? his sobriety, not so much from a mor- ! al standpoint as from one entirely of j business, 1.794 replied that they ab? solutely prohibited the use of intoxi? cants on any kind by their workmen. The monopoly of the sale of liquors with an alcoholic base by the State or county is a system which is appar? ently growing popular at the present time in the United States. The limit? ed area, however, over which it ex? tends, has not been of sufficient growth to tell whether or not the en? tire country, as it is in the -few sec? tions where it is now being tried. Rural commumnities have, as a rule, adopted absolute prohibition of the traffic, while the urban centres j have rallied around the system of regf j ulation and high license as being ! more adapted to their necessities. ' Raising the license has resulted very generally in reducing the number of | saloons. Where the police authori ! ties of different localities have failed j in their duty, societies of citizens have I been generally organized for the pur? pose of taking the law into their own hands. Figures of the internal revenue bu? reau show that since the year 1S40 the per capita of alcohol consumed by people in this country ha;- steadily declined and that beer and hygienic drinks have, to a large extent, been substituted. At this time there is consumed on average of only 1.33 per cent of alcohol in this country, while beer drinking has gone to 16.20 per cent, from figures last obtainable. ?Mothers every where praise One Minute Cough Cure for the sufferings it has relieved and the lives of their little ones it has saved. A certain cure for coughs, croup and whooping cough. Makes breathing easy, cuts out phlegm and draws out the inflam? mation. Sold by all druggists. An advertisement in The Daily Item s a good investment. Try it. . A Disastrous Calamity. ?It is a disastrous calamity when you lose your health, because indiges? tion and constipation have sapped It away. Prompt relief can be had in Dr. King's Xew Life Pills. They build up your digestive organs, and cure headache, dizziness, colic, constipa? tion, etc. Guaranteed at all druggists; 25c. ? There is the Possibility of a Revolu? tion in Turkey. j Constantinople. November j The Porte has received advices to the ! effect that if the .Sultan accepts tho I plans of the European powers for in I ternational control of the finances of "Macedonia he will surely weaken j the loyalty of the Turks in Maeedo I nia. This news, in connection with the renewed activity on the part of the young Turkish party since tho Russian revolution has been in prog? ress is causing the greatest uneasiness to the advisers of the Sultan. The Sultanfs counsellors fear the possibil? ity of a revolution in Turkey in the near future and are greatly worried hoover the prospect. An important ministerial council was held this week in the Yildiz Kiosk. It is understood that the possibility of the Sultan be? ing obliged to grant a constitution to Turkey was discussed. It is not known what decision was reached. ABDUL HAMID STANDS PAT. He Buys War Material and Deliber? ately Defies the Powers. Paris November 23.-Disquieting news c?mes from Constantinople as to Macedonian affairs. One report is to the effect that the Sultan of Turkey has ordered muni? tions of war in Germany to the value j of 22,500,000 Turkish pounds. This is ! said to be the consideration which led j Germany to abstain from taking any i part in the proposed demonstrations j against Turkey. j Another dispatch says that the Sul? tan has notified the foreign ambassa : dors in Constantinople that he will ' not be responsible for any acts of vio lenee due to Mohammedan fanaticism I which may result from the demon strtion. This is considered in diplo? matic circles to be an open provoca? tion on the part of the Sultan. *A reliable mericine and one that should always be kept in the h.>me for immediate use is Chamberlain's Cough Remedy. It will prevent the attack if given as soon as the child becomes hoarse, or even after the croupy cough appears. For sale by all druggist. The new Egyptian laces, worked In shiny fibre silk upon heavy net and in some lights giving the effect of silver iace. are upon some of the suc? cessful imported coats, and dull gold and silver laces are also employed by the French makers. Man's Unreasonableness * Is often as g.eat% as woman's. But ! Thomas S. Austin, manager of the Re? publican, of Leavenworth, Ind., was not unreasonable when he refused to I allow the doctor to operate on his wife for female trouble. "Instead," he says, "we concluded to try Elec? tric Bitters. My wife was then so sick she could hardly leave her bed. and five physicians had failed to re? lieve her. After taking Electric Bit :ers she was perfectly cured, and can now perform all her household du? ties." Guaranteed by all druggists, price 50c* . Mrs. James I. Adams, of Columbia, was the victim of an unsuccessful at? tempt at a holdup while driving out on the asylum road. -t Son Lost Mother. * "Consumption runs in our family, and through it I lost my mother," writes E. B. Reid, of Harmony, Me. "For the past five years, however, ?n the slightest sign of cough or cold, I have taken Dr. King's New Discov? ery for consumption, which has saved me from serious lung trouble." His mother's death was a sad loss for Mr Reid, but he learnedd that lung trou? ble must not be neglected, and how to cure it. Quickest relief and cure for coughs and colds. Price 50c. and $1. Guaranteed at all druggists. Trial bottle free. The State has received a letter from Arkansas that a fortune of $1,000,000 is waiting there for Mrs. Mamie Bal entine by an old lady. Sells More of Chamberlain's Cough Remedy than of All Others Put Together. ?Mr. Thos. George, a merchant at Mt. Elgin, Ontario, says: "I have had he local agency for Chamberlain's boughs Remedy ever since it was in? troduced into Canada, and I sell as much of it as I do of all other lines I ave on my shelves put together. Of he many dozens sold under guaran? tee. I have not had-one bottle return? ed. I can personally recommend this medicine as T have used it myself an" given it to my children and always witli the bestresults." For sale by all Druggists. ! On Saturday we bought the On Thursday we bought the urns Stock Aggregating $15,000, consisting of all kinds of dry goods, hosiery, notions, blankets, and silks, braids, collars and cuffs, shoes for men and la? dies, from the lowest to the highest value. We will sell this stock at the Gregory stand, corner Main street and Hampton avenue. This stock will be sold at a uniform discount of 50 cents on the dollar. It is all fresh, new goods, and the prices are less than cost of raw mate? rial. Don't miss seeing our goods. Edens & Company SJ iiMI ', -ri.,^^5#;V WE GUARD OUR PATRONS' INTERESTS The Fanners' Bank and Trust CB. Capital Stock $60.000. -: Undivided Profits $4.000, C. G. Rowland. Prst. R. F. Haynsworth. V. Prst.. R. L. Edmunds, Cashier. Deposits i^ept. 30, end of 2d quarter after organization, ?170, 436.45. Liability of stockholders, in addition to capital stock, $60,000 A general banking busir?ess. Solicits your patronage and Guarantees every courtesy con? sistent r?tn good business meth? ods. "ALL OVER." That's what the turkey says. When he views the beautiful crowns, such as fit on teeth, he knows it's "all up" with him. Thanksgiving day will be his end. Prompt Attention : Good Ser? vice. G. R. Barringer, DENTIST. ?% 6?k f% %Sp rsi t\- -- '=?LB>' 1 wlilli II fIf? ?y s'vjiez O? kt v^ Ste* Ey Duymg one oi o Beautiful Heaters. They are great fuel savers. Come and see our large stock of Cook Stoves and'Ranges. We have the right prices.; PARKER, ] 1SMITH, ! LEFEVER, [ FOX, J And a large assortment of other makes of Guns that should please the most fastidious hunts? man. x iT?E"^ls^C Use our celebrated Paint : De felp ? fgji voe, New Era and Hammer, and V wear a continual smile of satis ll'WC^ faction. See our Mammoth line of Stoves and Ranges. High quality and right prices. P. S.-All parties holding keys to mofaey box come in and try them. v _? - - TO THE MERCHANT : If you haven't Red Meat Tobacco in stock, write the factory-we will supply you direct, ??-os???-^T??-?.-^^.?^., - Iarness f?3&&5?. G?****. gm ?8? JsS^S^k i?*?*?TO THE CONSUMER:??. .r. jgjjlBm^ <d?S^L - & /iffiS?k I Wl| #^ V|?R^ jj| fj^ Wc give yru our absolute r .ursr.-.M thaf ,,ch iOc plug cf { #'tl^ cf^^ ||^ - , ?^ /?/ \J .4^ %| B^P g |j| pl^f^ ff|J| ,?fJ^?, || \ ^oV'soii?^juicy chc-ving ^'?y teen any other 10c j |? ?-? '/V'^t^ / ^ L ^ ? |-| ?Tn ANY CHEWER or tobacco who will cutout and mail us this advertiscmrr:t,\vc will mail hin-., a card which wii! e ntitl .? him to one 5c cut cf Bea ??eat ? ob. ecol I E :y ste rc h ; n ?ling this brand. W??iin - ._ Manufactured Only by Liipfert-gsfJcs Lo Wfraton-Sateffi. U. C.