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LIGHTHOUSE AND BUOY ILLUMINUTION. (CONTINUED FROM PAGE THREE.) lights. Some years must have elapsed before we shall witness the comp’ete consummation of this much-to-be- desired attainment. The United States Government has expended over $100,000,000 on its lighthouse and buoy system since its establishment, and each year witnesses an increase of appropriations for the exten- sion and improvement of the system. The earliest Ay.Car, 265.curt....WT.5020..85, Ag» J76....5-...- « -6980. effort made in the United States to employ gas as an illuminant in our light-houses was the attempt to use it in the Christiana light-station near Wilmington, Del., in 1844, when rosin gas was used; but after abouta year’s trial this attempt was abandoned as unpractical. Later another unsuccessful attempt was made to light -with gas a station at Reedy Island, at the mouth of the - Delaware River. In view of the successes more recently made in the use of gas as an illuminant for lighthouse purposes, it _ seems safe to assert that those in charge of the above- mentioned operations were not familiar with the proper method for the application of gas to the service. At one time the lighthouse on Lake Erie at Cleveland used gas; but now coal oil supplies the illumination thereat. The lighthouses at Newburyport (Mass.) outer harbor, inner beacon, and Jones Point (Alexan- dria, Va.) still use illuminating gas. At Currituck Sound (N. C.) compressed gas is used as an illuminant for ten lights at the northern entrance to that Sound. This gas is made at Long Point, immediately adjacent to the lighthouse, in gas works owned by the govern- ment. The gas is carried to each of the beacons in tanks built into a scow, which is towed by asteam launch manned by the keepers of these ten lights, who reside on board. The gas in each will burn for ten days and nights if need be. ; For various reasons gas has not thus far made mu h progress against oil for lighthouse illumination, due largely no doubt to the difficulties attending the procur- ing of adequate supplies of gas; but before long it seems to us that compressed gas must find its way into this service, when a decided revolution in existing modes of lighthouse illumination must follow. The beacon on Romer Shoal in New York harbor is lighted by the compressed gas apparatus of the Pintsch system. This structure isan iron: pier 30 feet in diam- eter and 16 feet high, surrounded by a skeleton iron tower 25 feet high, from which is shown a fixed white fifth-order light, the focal plane of which is 41 feet above low water, and which should be visible about 11 miles. It was first lighted on the 15th of July, 1886. It lighted with compressed gas from a tank which holds THE MARINE RECORD. about 90 days’ supply. The cost of maintenance has been very slight, no keeper being necessary, and the most favorable reports have been made as to its effi- ciency. ‘The accompanying letter, which relates to the light on the Scotland Lightship, amply attests the valne of gas-lit buoys: TREASURY DEPARTMENT, OFFICE OF THE LIGHTHOUSE BOARD, WASHINGTON, January 31, 1882. Sir: The Lighthouse Board has the honor to acknow- ledge the receipt of department letter of January 9, transmitting for reply a resolution of the Senate of the United States, of January 6, requesting any information in the possession of the Board regarding the Pintsch- lighted buoy, which has been in operation at the en- trance of the harbor of New York during the past sum- mer, and any recommendation which the Board may desire to make in regard thereto. : In reply I beg to state that the buoy referred to was placed on position near the wreck of the Scotland Lightship on the 28th of July last, and was taken up about the 21st of November, during which time the light was not extinguished from’any cause. Several gales were experienced during this period, and the sea has been known to wash completely over the buoy and lantern without extinguishing the flame; and from the observation made the conclusion has been reached that the light cannot be extinguished by the sea breaking over it, or from the force of the wind, and that it will show a good light so long as there is any gas in the reservoir. Very respectfully, (Signed) ; Commander U. S. N., Naval Secretary. To the Hon. Secretary of the Treasury. pag bs : In 1885 the British government created a commission to inquire into and report upon the relative merits of electricity, gas and mineral oil as lighthouse illumin- GHORGE DEWEY, + By.Can, 353 curt... Wr.N660..196 By... 265.-....-..--.9460.05 ope ee ere ett S| i176 curt 6860 LBs. F.G. 2. ants. It was composed of eminent scientific experts. Every conceivable condition was experimented with and the conclusion reached was, that under the most ad- verse of conditions—dense fog—all lights are useless to navigators, and that the most powerful illuminant— electricity—was reduced toa nominal and unsatisfac- tory element equally with the gas and oil illuminants. For some years past the Lighthouse Board has been trying to obtain from Congress appropriations for elec- tric light buoys. The only buoys of this kind now owned by the governinent are those, nine in number, which mark the channel from Sandy Hook to the en- trance to New York Bay. Electric buoys were estab- lished temporarily along the lake front of Chicago dur- ing the World’s Fair. Electric lights for lighthouses and buoys have not proved wholly successful, interrup- tion of current at the central stations being one of the almost insurmountable barriers to its adoption. The tallest skeleton iron tower ever put up by the govern- ment was at Hell Gate, New York. It was 255 feet wide and cost about $11,000, It showed nine electric lights, each of 6,000 candle-power, and was designed to illumin- ate the narrow, tortuous and dangerous channel as by artificial daylight. At night the effect was superb. The tower itself could not be seen and the light prevented them from seeing the objects beyond the circle illuminated. ‘The shadows thrown were so heavy that they had the appearance of obstacles. So the light established in 1884 was discontinued in 1886 at the in stance of those who had obtained its establishment. — The tower was sold as it stood for old iron, bit it was so- strongly built that dynamite had to be used to accom plish its overthrow. The success attending the use of gas-illuminate buoys and stationary beacons has been very great. Pintsch gas buoys were first installed in various har- bors along the British coast. At the present time, we find on investigation, the following countries have Pintsch buoys tothe total number of 434, divided among the respective nations thus: United States, 43; England, 117; Germany, 53; Holland and Belgium, 30; France, 117; Portugal, 5; Denmark, 15; Russia, 13; Tunis, 11; Sweden, 2; Austr.a, 1; Italy, 13; and Spain, 14. . ; A brief description and sectional view of the Pintsch buoy may prove of interest to those desiring to pursue the subject further. The body of this buoy forms the receiver for compressed gas, and is of sufficient size to give proper buoyancy for floatation, and of sufficient strength to hold a pressure of 150 to 180 pounds per square inch. On top of the body is a wrought-iron tower about six feet high, surmounting which is a lan tern. Surrounding the lantern is acage for protecting it, and the platform on which to stand to light or adjust the flames. The buoy is held upright by a counter- weight at its bottom. The gas is supplied to the lantern through the Pintsch regulator, which has earned for itself, in its use in lighting railway cars, an unassailable © record. ‘The buoys are of twoclasses: First, the A class, illustrated by Fig. 1, especially adapted for deep waters; second, the B class, illustrated by ‘Fig. 2, especially adapted for shallow waters. Each style is made in three capacities, and when fixed to 12 atmospheres, will give a light visible for six to eight miles for the same number of days of 24 hours as its capacity in cubic feet. The illustrations give the dimensions of the smallest of each size. Figure 3 shows in section the construction of the lan- tern and .the pressure regulator. The currents of gas FIG, 3. and air for combustion through the lantern are indi- cated by arrows. ‘The light is given bya cluster of four jets, three flat flames surrounding a round central one. A platinum wire is fastened just above the flames, which is heated to whiteness by them, and in case of sudden shock extinguishing the light, relights the flame immediately. Surrounding the flames is a Fresnel lens, . securing to this lantern its property of projecting a