726 GEOLOGY OF OHIO. 
in Cincinnati, in the year 1842; the town being first lighted January 
14, 1843; the second at Cleveland during the year 1849, and the third 
at Zanesville, same year. There are seventy-five gas-works now in 
operation in the State. Ten- years ago, prices for gas ranged from $2.50 
to $5.00 per thousand feet. Prices now range from $1.25 to $3.00. With 
the rapid growth of towns and cities and consequent increased demand 
for gas, the companies have been enabled to correspondingly reduce the 
price. While the growth of the business has been rapid, we are led to 
believe that the business will make much more rapid strides during the 
next than during the last decade; and this notwithstanding the intro- 
duction of lighting by electricity. In fact, so far the new light has rather 
helped than hurt the gas interest. It has apparently spurred the com- 
panies to seek new fields, to introduce improved apparatus, to lower the 
price of gas and thereby stimulated its use for motive power and for 
cooking and heating stoves, and in many ways the business has been 
increased to a degree that far more than compensates for the loss of the 
few consumers that have substituted the electric light for coal gas. 
One of the best authorities of the State gives it as his opinion that 
a capital of $8.00 per one thousand feet, or a capital equal to $8.00 for 
every one thousand feet of annual production, is about what is required 
in this country to construct and successfully operate a plant for the 
manufacture and distribution of gas. ‘This is too large for large cities 
and too low for small towns, but the average is not far from right, and, 
figuring upon this basis, the capital employed in this State should be 
about what is given on a previous page, viz., fifteen million dollars. 
In reply to inquiries made of all the gas-works in the State, only 
about 18,000 tons of Ohio coal is reported as being used in the gas-works 
of the State during the year 1882. 
While many works failed to respond to the inquiries, it is believed 
about all did so that are using native coal. It would be quite within 
bounds to say that not to exceed 25,000 tons per annum of Ohio coals 
are used in the great industry of making illuminating gas. This is less 
than 10 per cent. of the total quantity used. 
This may be accounted for—first, from the fact that the Ohio coals 
are generally dryer burning, and containing less bitumen, making a 
lighter and more pulverulent coke, and containing less volatile combus- 
tible matter; second, from the fact that Cincinnati, a city making about 
one-third of all the illuminating gas that is consumed in the State, can 
