122 



THE HOUSE AND ITS EQUIPMENT. 



147. FIRST FLOOR PLAN&quot;. 



employed in this 

 country. It is 

 usual to pass the 

 gas through a 

 purifier before 

 letting it into the 

 supply main, in 

 order to abstract 

 any foreign gases 

 which it may con 

 tain, due to im 

 purities in the 

 carbide. Tin- 

 resulting acetylene 

 gives a pure white 

 light without any 

 noxious fumes, 

 and the abstrac 

 tion of oxygen 

 from the air i s. 

 light for light, far 



less than with ordinary coal gas. A theoretical saving in the quantity of gas used may be made by adopting 

 the incandescent mantle ; but the great point of acetylene lighting to the householder who is so 

 fortunate as to possess a really old-fashioned country house, and wishes to have a style of lighting 

 in keeping with an antique decorative scheme, is that it can be used in candle and lantern fittings 

 with an open and suitably-shaped llame, giving a perfect illusive effect and at the same 

 time a brilliant light. There is no way of attaining this very desirable end if the incandescent mantle 

 is used. It sounds a modern note which, however well disguised, is bound to jar in such a decorative 

 scheme as we have in mind. The accompanying illustrations of two charming fittings done in armour 

 bright steel, to the designs of Sir Robert Lonmer, arc a good example of what can be done in this respect. 

 Though made for electric light instead of gas, they can be readily adapted for the latter, and a tube run 

 through the chain of the pendant. When all these points are given tine weight, and maintenance of mantles 

 taken into consideration, and also the fact that any form of gas used in a mantle cannot be turned clown, 

 it will be seen that the economy of the mantle disappears in practice. The turning down of acetylene 

 when not required has been solved by at least one large firm of acetylene plant manufacturers, who have 

 devised a bye-pass arrangement that can be fitted near the door. This controls all the lights in the room, 

 so that they cna be turned down when not wanted and turned on immediately they are required. A 



new type of burner , designed not to carbonise when turned 

 clown, has been on the market for some time. A further 

 source of economy, due to the absence of mantles, can be 

 made use of in the ease with which it is possible to fix a 

 burner to give exactly the amount of light required in any 

 given situation. The lighting of small lavatories, landings, 

 etc., can often be quite efficiently done with five candle- 

 power, whereas the smallest mantle generally used gives 

 twenty-five candle-power, and uses a corresponding 

 amount of gas. The simplicity of the apparatus used 

 for generating acetylene is such that it can be worked 

 with safety by the most unskilled of attendants. This 

 is, of course, a great advantage in the smaller country 

 house where one or two servants only are kept, and 

 where it is impossible, therefore, that any great amount 

 of time can be spent in attending to the lighting plant 

 Half-an-hour is ample to allow for recharging a generator 

 of modern design, and it should be clearly understood 

 that this is not a matter of daily occurrence. One 

 charge a week will often be found sufficient during the 

 summer months, if a generator of ample capacity has 

 been chosen. The plans illustrated are those already 

 used as exemplars in the previous chapters on electric and 

 air-gas lighting. The following is an estimate of what it 



148. A CHANDELIER IN STEEL. 



