47 
in 1883 for a new safety-lamp had to examine 108 lamps. Of these, four were electric 
lamps,, and 104 oil lamps, of which a few were designed to burn mineral oils. The 
conditions of the prize were:—The lamp to he a perfectly self-contained electric lamp, 
or other lamp, which the working miners can conveniently carry from place to place 
in the mine, which will continue to give a useful amount of light for not less than 
twelve hours, and which will not cause an explosion of gas under any circumstances 
at all likely to represent conditions which may occur in actual practice. The prize not 
to he awarded to any lamp in use. The last condition was:—“ If a lamp meeting the 
requirements herein stated has not been invented, the £500 to revert hack to Mr. Ellis 
Lever.” Of the above 108 lamps, no one lamp fulfilled the whole of the conditions, 
consequently the adjudicators were unable to make the award, to any one of the lamps 
submitted. Among the best there were two which the adjudicators regarded as 
deserving of special mention—the Marsaut lamp, with three gauzes, which most nearly 
fulfilled the conditions, and a lamp by Mr. William Morgan, South Wales, which 
presented several good features of marked originality.” 
At a recent meeting of the North Staffordshire Mining Institute (a report of 
which appears in Iron), Mr. A. 11. Sawyer, Assistant Government Inspector of Mines, 
read a paper on the Marsaut safety-lamp. The lecturer stated that he had made a 
number oi expei fluents with it and the Mueseler lamp, and he found that gas was more 
readily detected in the latter than in the former. On several occasions gas burnt 
within the inner gauze of the Marsaut for several seconds after the lamp "flame had 
gone out. He gave particulars of the danger of the Davy and other lamps which were 
not self-extinguishing, and said that two of the eleven fatal explosions which had 
occurred in the district within the last five years were caused by ignition of ‘uis at a 
Davy lamp. 6 
“ At tlie meeting of the Manchester Geological Society, held on February 5th 
1883 ” (reports Iron), “ Dr. C. Le Neve Foster, F.G.S., read a paper on a safety-lamp 
invented by Herr Pieler, a German mining engineer, specially constructed for indicating 
fire-damp when it existed in quantities so small that it would be impossible to detect 
its presence with an ordinary lamp. The construction of this lamp was described as 
followsIt was a suitably altered Davy lamp to burn spirit in the place of oil, and in 
order to produce a clean and regular flame it was necessary to prevent any vapour of 
the spirit from acting upon it. The wick was, therefore, carried closely in a long neck, 
and all the joints were made to fit tightly. I he flame was regulated by means of a 
screw which passed through a simple stuffing-box at the bottom of the “spirit-holder. 
It was advisable to make the latter rather larger than the oil lamp, so as to be able to 
carry a sufficient amount of spirit for a journey through the workings. The wire 
gauze must he made somewhat higher than usual, in order to admit of the full 
development of the cap. A small converging chimney was fixed above the burner, 
and hid the flame for a height of 11- inch, and furnished a fixed starting point for 
estimating the height of the cap. The best spirit to use was alcohol. The method of 
testing with the lamp w r as practically the same as with the ordinary Davy, and except 
in degree it produced similar results. Tests which had been made with the Pieler 
lamp showed that it would indicate the presence of fire-damp when it existed in as 
small a quantity as £ per cent.” 
“ A safety-lamp, with an improved attachment or extinguisher, lately patented by 
Mr. J. L. Williams, at Shenandoah, is now being made by Messrs. James W. Queen 
and Co., of Philadelphia. The improvement consists of a tube or sleeve sliding upon 
the w ick tube, and attached to a wire wdiicli passes through the body of the lump to the 
bottom, where a recess is formed for the admission of the finger or thumb. A single 
movement of the finger presses the wire upwards, carrying the sleeve over the wick, 
and instantly extinguishing the light. If it is desired to reduce the flame for the 
purpose of testing for gas, the extinguisher may lie partly raised, and the flame reduced 
to any requited extent, thus obviating the necessity of the tedious and dangerous 
operation of pulling dowm the wfick by means of a picker. The advantages of this 
device, in enabling the most inexperienced or excited person, in danger from a rush of 
gas, to instantly extinguish the flame of his lamp, is obvious, as few in these circum¬ 
stances are likely to have the calmness to stop and pull down the wick by means of 
a picker. The new safety-lamp is said to have been tested by some of the most 
experienced and practical men of the Pennsylvania coal-fields, who all agree that it is 
the best improvement on the Davy lamp ever offered.”— {Iron.) 
