DECORATIVE GARDEN LANTERNS 



claims this same enthusiast. A piece of calcium car- 

 bide, a product of the electric furnace, is dropped 

 into water where it almost immediately decomposes 

 and unites with its oxygen, the carbon and hydrogen 

 forming a union by which acetylene is generated. 



Another enthusiast, from whom I secured very 

 practical information and statement of tested facts 

 in my search for "light" on the subject of country 

 home illumination, says: "It is easy to get calcium 

 carbide at the present time, as there are several 

 companies now making it, and it costs three dollars 

 and seventy-five cents a hundred pounds when bought 

 in less than ton lots, and seventy dollars a ton when 

 bought in lots of one ton, or larger. One hundred 

 pounds of calcium carbide will generate about four 

 hundred and fifty feet of gas, which makes it look at 

 first sight as if it was an expensive form of illuminat- 

 ing, but when you take into consideration that it 

 requires only one-tenth in volume of acetylene to 

 produce the same amount of light as ordinary city 

 gas, it is easy to see that it is not expensive at all. ' ' 

 An acetylene plant that may be used to light the 

 home, the grounds and various farm buildings 

 may be economically established at a cost of 

 about two hundred dollars, not including fixtures; 

 and after the installation of the generator the 

 entire future cost of making the gas will average 



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