Providence Morning Star

An important discovery has been made recently for producing light cheaper than gas light, oil light or any other artificial light, by a Russian savant, and if the invention proves successful it will form a valuable acquisition to scientific achievements. The manner in which the light is obtained and the materials used in its production, are somewhat simple, but nevertheless the inventor claims that it is capable of lighting the whole city of St. Petersburg, including other places. The invention consists of a small glass tube, about six inches long, which is filled with a pencil of charcoal. After the air is rarified and the hermetic seal placed upon the tube, an electro-magnetic machine of ordinary size sends a current of electricity through the charcoal, causing it to ignite and producing a brilliant light. The charcoal is not consumed immediately as may be supposed but will last for an indefinite time. The current of electricity required is slight, and, it is stated that two hundred lights located at considerable distances apart can be supplied by one machine. The entire city can be lighted simultaneously, and the lamps require no attention as they would all be extinguished at the same moment, the cost being only that expended in maintaining the machine. The invention has been thoroughly tested, approved by many of the leading scientists and is about to be adopted in the capital of Russia.