January, 1912 
x 
A well-lighted @olonial nee The cut-glass disk over the table 
sends down a mild illumination that can be supplemented by the extra 
size (16-candle-power) lamps around it 
surfaces are those of the lights themselves and their shades. 
A room looks high only in proportion as luminous surfaces 
meet the eye. And what the eye says about the brightness of 
a room is the only real measure of illumination that we have. 
In other words, the room that looks dark is dark, and no 
photometer test counts in rebuttal. 
Also, the most useful light for general illumination of a 
residence is that which is reflected back and forth between 
the heights of three and seven feet. It is in this space that 
are located the persons and objects and surfaces whose 
visability give character and individuality, even existence, 
to a room. The floor of a room need not—indeed, should 
not—be brilliantly lighted. So that the custom of covering 
all or part with rugs whose pile devours the light is an ex- 
cellent one from the point of illumination. Whether the 
ceiling shall be brightly lighted depends upon the height of 
the room as compared with its lateral dimensions. 
the ceiling brilliantly increases its apparent height, 
while throwing it in shadow brings it down. So 
that keeping the light away from the ceiling of 
small bathrooms and narrow halls and concentrat- 
ing it on side walls tends to make the proportions 
of these rooms more agreeable. Fixtures with 
lights at about the height of six feet six, and point- 
ing down, with lights and shades adjusted to give 
the desired distribution, will accomplish this. 
The lighting of large square halls presents the 
same problems as the other master rooms. If the 
ceiling is of average height and light in color, we 
can utilize ceiling reflections from fixtures and 
brackets with lights up. But if the walls and ceil- 
ing are dark and nonreflective, we must have 
many outlets with both fixtures and brackets so 
placed as to give the maximum distribution later- 
ally. This means that a dark, nonreflecting room 
twelve feet square must have at least four wall 
brackets in order to look illuminated, and in larger | 
rooms there must also be one or more fixtures to 
light the middle of the room. The shades on the 
lights should be large in order to present a large | 
area of bright surfaces. 
The old-fashioned way of lighting such a room 
was from fixtures only, with transparent glass 
bulbs pointing down. The fixtures were usually 
combination gas and electricity, and the location an inherit- 
ance from the gas-only period. This style of installation is 
not only wasteful but dangerous. The glowing electric 
filaments burn the eyes terribly by contrast with the pre- 
vailing dark surfaces, and have ruined the vision of thou- 
AMERICAN HOMES AND 
Lighting 
A lantern in old ham. 
mered brass. 
panels on the under side 
are a good feature, pre- 
venting shadows below 
GARDENS 27 
The square ones commonly used would over-emphasize the squareness 
characteristic of the Mission style 
sands. In this respect the old-fashioned open-flame gas- 
burner was far better. It does flicker, and it does vitiate 
and heat the air, but the broad, yellowish flame is almost as 
agreeable to the eye as that of the kerosene lamp. 
Frosted bulbs are one of the most blessed inventions of 
the age. They absorb ten or fifteen per cent of the light, but 
increase the amount of effective illumination. With eighty- 
five per cent of the light, the eye can see better than it could 
with one hundred per cent. For the burning of the eye by 
the filament closes the pupil and makes it inefficient. Frost- 
ing also tones the light slightly towards cream. Frosted 
bulbs, especially round ones, large for their power, are 
ca among the most efficient distributors of agreeable 
illumination. By them the quality of tungstens 
and tantalums is much improved and the ultra- 
whiteness softened. Many architects now recom- 
mend brackets only for the main living-rooms and 
chambers. Some of them seem to be inspired by 
animosity toward the word “chandelier,” while 
others object to any kind of ceiling light except 
cove lighting or other forms of the so-called in- 
direct lighting, which are wasteful as well as ‘“‘bad”’ 
art. Light is the most beautiful thing in the world. 
It is not only beautiful in itself, but upon it de- 
pends the beauty of all beautiful objects. With- 
out light, they might as well be nonexistent. Care- 
fully to conceal light sources is deliberately to 
abandon the greatest decorative possibilities. The 
work of the illuminating artist is to place and so 
shade the lights correctly that they glow with 
gentle, grateful radiance. A room 20x22 and 
9 feet 6 inches high can be lighted perfectly well 
with brackets only (one two-light and four one- 
light ones), provided the color scheme of the 
room is light and surfaces and textures plain and 
simple. But if there are rich and heavy upholsteries 
and draperies, and dark woodwork and furniture, 
and brocade-paneled walls with compartment ceil- 
ing, the number of bracket lights should be doubled, 
and four or five lights at the ceiling will also be advisable. 
Reverting to the matter of underwiring, there recently 
came to the writer’s notice an instance wherein a lighting- 
fixtures salesman, in default of blue-prints or wiring plans, 
had distributed brackets and fixtures and lights among the 
The glass 
