Grant County Herald

Electric Light Talk.

Boscobel is seized with a desire for electric lights. A special city election will be held on Dec. 29th to vote on the question of bonding the city in the sum of nine thousand dollars for the construction of a plant. If it must have electric lights the city is wise in owning its own plant. In saying this we do not wish to reflect discredit upon the individual owner of the Lancaster electric light plant; but there are few as honorable men in the electric light business as our own Mr. Harshberger; and, too, in this instance we have in mind the Boscobel toll bridge and its splendid revenue to the city each year which could be turned toward paying for the lights. In the bridge matter the city doubtless recognizes the wisdom of owning everything of a public nature. If the proposition is voted for, there are further lessons to be learned by the inexperienced that are peculiar to electric lighting.

The Lancaster plant originally cost twelve or thirteen thousand dollars. Mr. Harshberger started out with an eighty-horse power engine, which has fully proven to be insufficient to its task; so that it comes about that workmen are today putting in another eighty-horse-power engine at the Lancaster plant, and we very much doubt that these two engines will furnish power enough when the city business houses and residences are as generally supplied with electric lights as they ought to be and no doubt will be.

An electric light is a good light. The trouble is, people expect too much of it. It possesses qualities of excellence over all others. You do not have to clean it or light it or put it out—in that it resembles the sun. You get light directly beneath it where the oil reservoir of a kerosene lamp throws its shadow. No good to court by—you can't turn it down.

Supt. A. A. Schlew, of the Lancaster electric light plant, was called before the Boscobel city council and his plan of estimates for that city—to cost $9,000—was fully endorsed by the council. The proposed plant is as follows: An 100 horsepower engine; 1,000-light alternating machine, 16-candle-power; 20 arc light machine, 1,200 candle-power; a one-story building to cost $800. Mr. Schlew knows what he is talking about when on the subject of electric lights; and he is certainly the right man to seek information from. We notice in the Boscobel Enterprise a report of the proceedings of the city council which contains discussion and a resolution on this question. From it we take the following:

He (Mr. Schlew) suggested that a plant of this size, providing from 500 to 600 private incandescent lights be put in, would pay for itself, and street lights would cost the city nothing and that the sum now annually expended for street lighting would be sufficient to pay the principal and interest of the bonds.

We do not think Mr. Schlew made that statement. At least not in the way stated in the newspaper. It costs Lancaster $1500 a year to pay for the street arc lamps we now have and need more.