CHAPTER XIII.

LAMPS AND LAMP BRACKETS.

“Mehr Licht,” Goethe’s last words, seem to express the unfilled want of the touring wheelmen at night, but this want bids fair to be fulfilled at last. Some differences of opinion have existed as to the advisability of the wheelman carrying a light at night, and the necessity for local ordinances in regard thereto, but undoubtedly it is well that such a noiseless vehicle as the bicycle should carry a light, not only so that it can be seen, but that the bicyclist can see what he is approaching. The time, we hope, is soon coming when the cry of “universal lights” will come into favor and all classes of vehicles will be compelled to carry a light from sunset to sunrise, when in use.

EVOLUTION OF THE LAMP.

The old-time lamp was usually a hub lamp, carried on the front axle; head lamps were made, but had the drawback of being too high above the ground, and were also disagreeably odorous, the rider being seated so nearly over the steering. The hub lamp was large and cumbrous, sometimes having at the top a clip which opened to go over the axle, but more commonly being made to open in halves; the largest lamps—which were of the Lucas “King of the Road” pattern—were necessarily so made, in order to reduce their thickness so as to get them into the wheel. Even then it was sometimes a trick to get them in, requiring that a spoke or two be sprung to one side. To keep them steady and prevent their being struck by the spokes guides had to be run out against the sides of the great “G. M.” or steel hub. Sometimes there would be a catching, and the lamp would turn over instead of hanging. The wheel always cast its shadow, and with every jolt the lamp converted itself into a pendulum for the nonce and took on a trick of swinging, to the impairment of such illumination as it was ever capable of affording. Sperm or lard oil had to be used, kerosene being quite unmanageable.

English lamps held the market here for some years after the rear-driver came in, the patterns offered by American makers under other names being either made to order in England or copied from English models. The market is not yet bare of imported lamps, offered at low prices to clear them, and the persistence of burning oils as an article in the list of sundries is due to the declining existence of “Comets,” “Meteors,” “Cyclones” and others of English origin and fit only for heavy oils. The genuine American lamp, of course, burns kerosene, and is nickel-plated. The best-known patterns are the Searchlight, “M. & W.,” Tallyho, Neverout, Bragger, Banner, Aladdin and Twentieth Century.

Electricity and acetylene gas have recently come into use quite prominently for use in bicycle lamps, but of these mention will be made further on.

THE SEARCHLIGHT.

The 1898 Searchlight is certainly one of the handsomest lamps on the market, both as regards its design and ornamentation, while its weight is as light as possible consistent with thorough construction. Its makers make the bold statement that “it cannot blow out nor jar out.” The Searchlight was the first brass nickeled bicycle lantern to introduce the now almost universal custom of burning kerosene oil, which as an illuminant for this particular purpose is unexcelled, not only on account of its safety and brilliancy, but also for the ease with which it can be procured anywhere and at any time. The Searchlight reflectors are covered with close fitting crystals which protect them from oil, smoke or dust. These crystals can be rubbed off without touching the reflectors, which can be removed and replaced if necessary. The Searchlight also has a reflector lens cone and a powerful magnifying lens to concentrate and intensify the light. The wick is set at an angle in such a manner that a wide flame is produced, and the adjustment is an exceedingly simple one. The oil receptacle is self-locking, and the lamp can be fitted to either the right or left hand side of the bicycle and yet bring the wick lift on the outside where it can be readily reached. It carries oil enough to last for twelve hours. The side lights are jewelled and will not rattle or work loose. The bracket is a rigid one and can be attached to the head or either side of the forks. All the parts of the lamp are interchangeable, and can be readily procured from the makers.

THE TWENTIETH CENTURY.

The 1898 model of the Twentieth Century lamp has a number of changes in construction in the line of simplicity and efficiency. The reflector is increased in size somewhat between the Standard and the Tandem sizes of their 1897 models; the glass in the front has been improved in quality and is now hinged, and the aluminum parabola reflector is removable; an outside filler has been added so that it is rarely necessary to remove the oil font from the lamp, and the method of attaching the oil font if needed to justify has been altered by the addition of a new sliding lock. One of the best of the changes consists in using a rigid lamp bracket which is adjustable at any angle on the head or handlebar post, not even interfering in this position with the brake, and it can also be attached to either fork side. The lamp can also be used for driving purposes, being readily attachable to any style of carriage dash board, thus making it a complete driving lamp. The lamp retains, however, the folding bail handle which makes it available as a house lamp also.

VARIOUS OTHER OIL LAMPS.

The Neverout, another popular lamp, has an insulated kerosene reservoir. It also has a reversible rigid bracket. The lamp is fitted with a rear danger signal, which decreases the liability of rear collisions, as the rider can be seen from behind. A wick lock is fitted for 1898 which renders the wick jar-proof. The reflector is all German silver.

The “M. & W.” Lamp is made by the Matthews & Willard Manufacturing Company, and has been considerably improved for 1898. It is a medium-sized lamp of light weight. The oil font, which has a large capacity, is locked to the lamp by a very ingenious device, so that it can be instantly detached. The wick lock is a simple push button, which is self-acting, and it is released by simply pushing the button, and is instantly relocked when the pressure is removed. The oil font can be reversed so that the wick can be adjusted from either side of the bicycle. Like the other lamps previously mentioned, they also use the rigid bracket, which is readily adjusted to any height or angle desired, and can be also attached to the forks or steering head. The reflector can be removed complete for cleaning or polishing through the lens opening. It has a double convex lens, which is large and powerful. The whole lamp can be readily taken apart, cleaned and reassembled.

Ham’s Diamond Tubular Bicycle Lamp has a double ratchet burner so that the wick can be regulated from either side of the lamp, and it also has an outside filler. The lens is a double convex. The top and bottom of the lamp and the silver-plated reflector are removable. A peculiarity of its construction consists in its having four nickel-plated tubes on the outside of the lamp through which the air is taken through the burner. An extra head holder is furnished with each lamp without extra charge. The makers claim that the best results are obtained when the lamp is used with this holder.

The Bragger Cycle Lamp is made by the Hitchcock Lamp Company, and the makers say that “the Bragger is warranted not to smoke, chew, or go out nights,” all of which, excepting the chewing part thereof, are very desirable features in any lamp. The lamp is made of rolled sheet brass throughout and finished in nickel, gold or bronze. It has a round body, red and green side lights for lighting, a powerful lens, and is fitted with a perfect reflector. The reflector is so made that it cannot be put in a wrong position. The oil feeder is on the outside of the font; the top of the lamp is held in place by a bayonet lock. The oil-font is screwed to the bottom of the lamp by a front and back catch, and is reversible. The lens is held in place by a knurled threaded ring which screws into the hood and against the lens. The wick-raising device is so constructed that all parts of the wick may be evenly turned up, and the wick cannot move up or jar down. They have followed the popular idea of fitting the lamp so that it can be used either on head, fork or handlebar in any desired position. An attachment also allows its use on the side or top of a dashboard, or the side of a buggy top without an extra bracket.

Another popular lamp is the Aladdin. It is somewhat smaller than some other lamps that are well known, and is made of drawn brass nickel plated. The oil font is now hinged, as is also the door, and the devices for these purposes are such that it is impossible for them to jolt loose. It differs, however, from some other lamps on the market in that it has a double spring back clamp.

A new lamp is the Dietz Bicycle, which is made by the makers of the well known Dietz Lanterns. They claim that it represents the wisdom gained in fifty years of lamp making. It is made of brass nickel plated, and weighs about twelve ounces. No solder is used in its construction except on the bottom of the oil font. The reflector is parabolic, thus throwing the rays of light straight ahead. The lamp can be readily taken apart for cleaning purposes, and they do not provide a sliding door on the side to light the lamp because they claim that every time a lamp is so lighted the reflector becomes more or less tarnished by the match. The glass front is hinged so that the lamp can be conveniently lighted from the front.

The “X-Rays” is an Aluminum Bicycle Lamp, and weighs, including the bracket, about sixteen ounces. The peculiarity of its construction consist in its having a metal chimney, which the makers say gives an increased draught, improves combustion and insures a bright, smokeless flame, the theory being that the metal chimney heats the air as it comes in contact with its surface, and that warm air gives better combustion and a brighter light and that the metal chimney protects the flame from sudden gusts of wind, prevents flickering and smoking. It is to be noted, however, that the chimney has four large, round openings on its sides near the bottom. They use a lens of strong magnifying power, and this lens, front reflector, side lens and reflector are removable. The lamp has a double burner ratchet for raising or lowering the wick from either side of the lamp, and a lock for locking the wick in position either side of the lamp. The oil font, like all other kerosene lamps now in use, is packed with an absorbent material to prevent swashing of the oil when riding over rough roads.

The Columbia Cycle Lamp Manufacturing Company show two new models for 1898. They use a pneumatic-action spring on the bracket. They also make an adjustable and detachable bracket, of malleable iron, nickel plated. This bracket can be used not only on their own lamps, but on any other make of lamp, and it is undoubtedly one of the best things of the kind on the market. The lamp of their make, “Illuminant” is made of aluminum and weighs seven ounces. It is claimed to be the lightest practical bicycle lamp made. It has a powerful lens, 2½ inches in diameter. It has ruby and emerald cut glass side lights, so that it may be lighted from either side. The burners are provided with a wick lock.

The Kitsee lamp is a novelty inasmuch as it is a lamp of twenty-candle power, and yet not a gas lamp. It has no wick and the light is produced by an oil called “safol.” It makes a rather brilliant, display through the side perforations, and also has a clever attachment for holding matches, and being used without a wick, its makers claim it is therefore free from smoke, soot and disagreeable odor, and that the lens cannot be smoked up as in the usual construction.

The Manhattan Brass Company of New York, who have been making kerosene lamps and burners for thirty-three years, are making a specialty of bicycle lamps, and the good points which have distinguished their former models and which have been preserved and are presented in their 1898 product, called the Frontlight. Powerful ground glass lens, automatic wick lock, and other improvements for ’98 consist of a new thumb-screw bracket fitted with double springs, an improved method of fastening the front and a wide tube burner, which takes a ¾ inch wick and gives a broad, strong light. They also make a lamp called the Leader, which, while not quite so expensive in construction as the Frontlight, is, however, one of the most satisfactory lamps on the market. They make a lamp also called the Dazzler, which they call the “King of low priced lamps.” It has a polished convex lens and reflector, automatic wick lock, and is small in size, substantial in construction and well finished. One of their novelties is a lamp called the Queen. The body is spherical in form, divided diagonally and so hinged as to open like a watch case, thus making it possible to clean lens, burner, reflector, etc., and trim the wick in less time than it usually takes to take apart an ordinary lamp. Ruby and green jewels are placed at such an angle as to be visible from the rear as well as from the sides.

One English lamp has survived the conditions of the trade, but even that is made in this country by the New Departure Bell Company. We refer to the Lucas pattern of lamp, known as the “Silver King of the Road.” This lamp is so well known, however, that a general description of it is not necessary. Like all the American lamps previously mentioned it is nickel plated, but differs from them in the fact that while it is detachable, all the parts are hinged together, and that it is arranged to burn either the heavy oils or kerosene, as desired. The reflector is covered and protected by a double convex lens, which improves the light and keeps the reflector clean, so that in order to keep the reflector bright it is only necessary to wipe off the glass lens. The lamp is very compact in size, and in finish and material it certainly cannot be excelled. It is retailed at a very much lower price than formerly.

The 1898 “Tally-Ho” lamp, manufactured by the Bridgeport Gun Implement Company of this city is similar in general design to the 1897 model, having the same lens, reflector, wicklock and oil-feed. It is fitted this year with a rigid bracket, which can be attached to head or forks of the bicycle, and a desirable feature is that the lamp can be readily detached from the bracket and the latter left on the wheel. The clamping bolt of the bracket is in two pieces, one telescoped into the other, so that the lamp can be attached to either a large head or small fork without leaving a long end of the bolt protruding. This necessarily dispenses with a nut. The manufacturers of this lamp did not intend to market a lamp this year, on account of the demand made upon their facilities in other lines, but because of the inquiries received from their patrons they have decided to make a limited quantity.

LAMP LIGHTERS.

There are two lamp lighters on the market that are extremely useful. One is called the Cyclists’ Match Gun. It is made of brass, nickel plated, and resembles the end of a tool bag pump. The match is placed in the end of the tool and the gun is inserted in the lamp. The match is then forced out by pressing on the plunger and ignites at the same time inside the lamp, thus protecting it from the wind. The other lighter is called the R. & K. Lighter, and can be attached to any bicycle lamp in a few moments. The lighter consists of a pair of corrugated jaws to screw to the lamp; the match is then quickly pushed between the jaws of the lighter, which ignites the match from friction, and the burnt match is then withdrawn sideways in an opposite direction to remove it.

LAMP BRACKETS.

There are very few things that are new in lamp brackets, all the old types being still largely used but improved somewhat in detail. The only novelty is the United States Detachable Lamp Bracket. It is made reversible to fit either the right or left hand side of the axle, and is so constructed that the bracket is readily removed, leaving only a small clip attached under the axle nut. The bracket is held in place by a strong spring catch, which can be bent and thus made as firm as desired. The bracket has corrugations to prevent the lamp from being jolted off, and will fit any bicycle lamp In the market.

ELECTRIC LAMPS.

Electricity is, of course, a very enticing method of light supply for cycles, and many attempts have been made to produce a practical lamp, no cycle show during the last three or four years having failed to exhibit at least one pattern, which was positively proclaimed as the effectual solution of the problem. The difficulties are cumbrousness, cost and the lack of sufficient current under tolerable conditions. A storage battery is quite impracticable. We recall at least one attempt which worked on the plan of recharging from stationary battery cells, but the usual plan counts upon carrying dry cells attached to the lamp. Here the only difficulty is the old one of getting sufficient current without lugging around an excessive load of dry cells, which are rather heavy in proportion to the work performed. A much heralded lamp of the past had a case made of hard rubber, and the lamp was charged with what was called electric sand, being in reality nothing but a mixture of bichromate of potash and sulphuric acid, combined with a soluble base, and water, and placed in the lamps in connection, of course, with the usual carbon and zinc plugs. It was found in use that this lamp lost its power rapidly, and that even when the plugs were withdrawn, as is usual with wet solutions, the solution lost its life and became valueless upon a second attempt to use it, necessitating charging every night before using.

A practical electric bicycle lamp of the dry cell variety is now made by the Ohio Electric Works. They are made in three sizes, having three and four cells. The battery is 6×2 inches, and weighs eleven ounces, and will maintain a potential of not less than 5.25 volts for more than three hours on each charge, costing 2 cents. The lamp is of double the efficiency of ordinary incandescent lamps, taking only one and a half watts to the candle power, and is backed by a powerful reflector. By riders who have used it, this lamp is looked upon as one of the most satisfactory among electric lamps; they regard its efficiency as all that is claimed for it.

One of the most popular lamps on the market today is the Acme, made by the Acme Electric Lamp Company of this city. It is composed of two parts, the metal case which contains the battery and the reflector in which is inserted the incandescent bulb. The metal case is 14½ inches in length by 1½ inches in diameter, and is covered with seal leather, having three strips to hold it in a rigid position on the wheel frame. The reflector is connected to the battery case by flexible silk cords, and is 2½ inches in diameter, and weights but 3½ ounces. It can be carried either on the fork or head of the wheel. The battery is composed of four cells, each with a strength of one and one-half volts, making six volts in all. When the lamp is lighted all the cells are in operation; but by the adjustment of a resistance wire under the cover of the case and four contact points on the outside the switch which controls the battery permits only a sufficient amount of current to be used to give a brilliant light without exhausting the battery too rapidly or burning out the incandescent bulb; and, unlike any other lamp on the market, the last hour of light is as brilliant as the first, and with ordinary use will give a satisfactory light for twelve hours. The batteries are guaranteed to give as good service sixty days from the date of their manufacture as when first made. It is not a storage battery and cannot be recharged. All storage batteries are of a liquid form and must in time cause, from the strong elements they contain, a leakage which will destroy anything with which it comes in contact. The battery is renewed by the purchase of a new one, the exhausted battery being thrown away, the same as a cartridge shell after firing of the gun. The cost of the light is little more than that of oil. The incandescent bulb has a capacity of carrying four volts, and when the switch is on the first contact point the voltage of the battery is reduced by the resistance coil to a point of safety, at the same time giving a brilliant light. There is no heat, odor or liquid annoyances. Jar or concussion will not extinguish it, and judging from the success it has had at this early period of the season it will no doubt be a popular lamp for ’98.

THE KLONDIKE ELECTRIC

Combines batteries and lamp in one case, which is neither cumbrous nor very heavy, and resembles nothing so much as the small carriage clock. The lamp is, of course, a small incandescent bulb; the battery is the long cylindrical cell cut up into three short ones and carried in the lamp case, as shown. Turning down the handle on top closes the circuit and starts the lamp; lifting the handle cuts the lamp out. The cells are furnished with wire connections on, and the rider does not have to make a single attachment, nor need he have the slightest knowledge of electricity or any conjecture how the lamp operates. He has only to slip his fresh cells (which are joined as one piece) into the case, observing that he puts them right side up. They make their own connections by being pushed into place, and the lamp “does the rest.” One charging runs eight hours. In favor of this lamp is its freedom from odor and trouble of filling and care, absence of smoke to dull the reflector and its independence of jars and wind, for nothing can extinguish it so long as the current remains and is turned on.

ACETYLENE GAS LAMPS.

Although nearly two years have elapsed since the introduction of acetylene for purposes of general illumination, yet the present season is the first one in which this new illuminant has been used in bicycle lamps, and it seems eminently fit and proper that this gas should be appropriated to the uses of wheelmen, because it was in 1888, at Spray, N. C., that Mr. Thomas L. Willson, a member of the Kings County Wheelmen of Brooklyn, N. Y., who was famous in his day as a hardy road rider of the old “ordinary” and presented to his club the trophy that bears his name, while experimenting on the reduction of refractory metallic oxides of carbon in an electric furnace came upon the happy but unexpected outcome of producing by a cheap and simple method calcium carbide, so that the use of acetylene became at once a commercial possibility. He was trying to obtain the metal calcium by reducing lime with pulverized charcoal, but the temperature of the arc fused the mass, and it solidified into an extremely hard, gray crystalline rock. As this was not the substance that Willson sought to produce, it was thrown into a stream near by, and there was an instant evolution of gas in large quantities which, when lighted, burned with a smoky, luminous flare. Chemical analysis showed the rock to be carbide of calcium (Ca C) containing 60 parts by weight of calcium and 40 parts of carbon, and its gaseous offspring to be acetylene. This generation of acetylene by means of the immersion of carbide of calcium in water is the result of two exceedingly simple chemical reactions. The carbon in the carbide unites with the hydrogen in the water to form acetylene, and the calcium in the carbide takes up the oxygen of the water to form slaked lime, the only by-product of the double reaction.

Acetylene is a gaseous compound of 24 parts by weight of carbon and two of hydrogen. Although it was first discovered and isolated by Davy in 1836, it was twenty-three years later before the scientific world obtained a clear conception of its interesting character and properties through the investigations of M. Berthelot. Since that time, and up to the discovery as before stated by Mr. Willson, it had been produced only in small quantities as a laboratory product by tedious and costly processes.

Acetylene, when burning, gives a flame of intense brilliancy, and owing to its richness it can only be consumed in small burners. It possesses not only great luminosity, but great diffusive qualities. The light produced by acetylene is of a pure white color, soft and agreeable in tone. It resembles sunlight more closely than any other known luminant. Pure acetylene is not explosive. Mixed with air in certain proportions it can be detonated, and the same can be said of every known gas; but in a bicycle lamp, containing an ounce and a half, or two ounces at the utmost, of the calcium carbide, there cannot be produced enough gas to cause an explosion.

Calcium carbide is a hard, porous, grayish-black or bluish-gray incombustible material somewhat crystalline in form, odorless and unchangeable in a dry atmosphere, but when subjected to moisture gives off more or less acetylene gas. Carbide cannot be ignited and when well packed to prevent its coming in contact with water it is safe as regards all the conditions of transit and storage. When a piece of carbide is exposed to the moisture of the air a slight decomposition on the surface of the lump causes the formation of a thin layer of lime dust, which retards further deterioration.

Its combustion is perfect. There are no noxious products, no odor, and no smoke. The vitiation of the air in a room compared with the ordinary gas is as 1 to 8. It produces a distinctively cool flame. The same amount of light has only one-sixth the heat of city gas. Its cost is far less than that of any known illuminant. It is made of cheap and almost universal materials, coal and lime, fused by electric heat. It will be in this respect the light of the masses. It will not freeze, being unaffected by heat or cold. It can be cooled to 100 degrees below zero, or heated to 600 above, without impairing its illuminating power.

If through ignorance or accident an acetylene gas jet should be blown out or the burner left open, the gas, being rather irritating, can be easily detected, even in the smallest quantities, on account of its penetrating odor, which resembles that of garlic. So pungent is this odor that it would be practically impossible to go into a room which contained any quantity of acetylene gas.

The carbide group is by no means unfamiliar to the average man; cast iron and steel are iron carbides of a peculiar form, and not a few others are daily used, for instance, Harveyized armor plates. They are all characterized by an almost adamantine hardness, and at the same time a certain instability. This instability reaches its maximum in the group of substances which are capable of making what chemists call hydroxides. They are all unions of a base with carbon, made in the electric furnace, and all give off gases when brought in contact with water. When broken into pieces suitable for shipment the carbide is packed in cans, the space between filled with sawdust, or some such substance to prevent waste by the rubbing of piece against piece, and the can sealed airtight to protect its contents from the moisture of the atmosphere. This is the shape in which it comes to the consumer. On opening the can one often finds most beautiful crystalline structures on the fractured surfaces, but they are instantly attacked by the dampness of the air, and one sees the beauty give way to a dirty gray powder with a feeling of disappointment which is very real.

Very little has been written about acetylene gas, and very few wheelmen have had any experience with acetylene gas lamps on their bicycles. The writers, however, have thoroughly investigated the subject of producing the carbide and the gas, and have for some time past had in daily use two of the lamps mentioned in this article, namely the “Electro” and the “Calcium King.” They have been used, of course, with the usual care that it is necessary to use with any bicycle lamp, whether it uses oil, electricity or gas, and the results have been satisfactory in every way, and the lamps have done all that the makers claim for them. This mention has been made to show that what has been written here concerning acetylene gas and portable bicycle lamps is founded upon scientific data, and it is, therefore, not wholly an empirical result.

CARBIDE LAMPS IN MARKET.

As none of the makers of kerosene lamps seems to have ventured into producing an acetylene lamp, the making of acetylene lamps for bicycle use may therefore be classed as being a distinctive one and the trade of this city are showing the following makes: The Electro, the Solar, the Helios and the Calcium King. The Electro lamp is made by the Electro Lamp Company, and while it is retailed at a lower price than any of the others, as shown by the illustration it is of very neat construction as regards weight and size. Its reflector is parabolic in shape, and the light is not focused. It is charged by inserting a metal case, containing carbide, into the chamber of the lamp, and when this carbide is exhausted, after burning four hours, the case may be removed and thrown away and a fresh one inserted. This takes but a moment’s time. The gas is generated within the lamp by the slow dropping of water on the carbide, and the water is so controlled that the gas is produced only as fast as it is consumed, and when the water valve is closed generation of gas ceases at once. By a slight turning of the valve screw at the top of the lamp the water in the upper chamber is made to drop on the carbide and the lamp is ready to light, and by turning in the opposite direction the water is shut off and the light goes out as soon as the water remaining in the chamber of the lamp is consumed. The carbide charges used in this lamp are made only by the Electro Lamp Company, and are packed in cartons of six charges each. Six of these cartons are packed in a box, making three dozen charges per box, each charge at a cost of about 3 cents, giving a service of from three and a half to four hours’ duration. This method of handling the carbide in cartridge form avoids the necessity of washing out the gas chamber to remove the residum, and it is to be commended on the score of cleanliness in handling. The lamp bracket is a rigid one, and is adjustable to various positions either on the forks or the head of a bicycle.

By contract with the Electro Gas Company, the parent company for the manufacture of carbides in this country, and which, it is stated, largely controls the home output, the Electro Lamp Company has the sole right of sale of carbide for use in bicycle and other portable lamps in the United States. This lamp company stated early in the season that it had then sold 30,000 lamps for the season of ’98, and that this number would doubtless be largely increased. Estimating that 25,000 of these lamps will be used at night, the consumption of carbide by the users of this lamp alone would exceed 10½ tons per week.

“The brightest light that ever came over the pike” is the phrase that the Badger Brass Manufacturing Company of Kenosha, Wis. (Hermann Boker & Co., New York, agents), has decided upon as best in describing their Solar acetylene gas lamp for ’98. As will be seen from the illustration the Solar is symmetrical in its lines, combining strength in construction and simplicity in operation. The lamp is made entirely brass, handsomely nickel plated, and is 7½ inches high. It is fitted with an extra fine specially ground double convex lens, 2½ inches in diameter, with a 5½ inch focus, which is removable by means of a spring. The reflector is made of aluminum and removable for cleaning, as is also the head, which is fastened with a bayonet joint. The jewel sidelights are especially large, being 1½ inches in diameter. Each lamp is fitted with a universal adjustable bracket, which fits the head, handlebar, or either fork of a bicycle, and is so constructed that the lamp can be removed with removing the bracket. The tip is what is known as a quarter foot, removable and easily cleaned. It produces a fish-tail flame, which throws a penetrating light of about one hundred candle power fully 150 feet ahead. As will be seen from the cross-section cut and the following explanation, the lamp is very simple in operation. The water tank “J” being filled and the valve “L” being open, the water passes into the tube “F,” which is filled with the fibre “G,” through which it percolates, vaporizing from the end into the screen tube “B,” saturating the fibre in contact with the carbide in the tank “A,” forming instantly gas, which passes out of the tip “L.” The amount of gas generated is due to the amount of water supplied. Suppose, for example, the lamp be so severely jarred an excess of water be forced in the wick tube, thus generating an excess of gas for the moment (by excess is meant more pressure than the quarter foot tip “L” can consume), the result is that the gas having but one other outlet, that is, through the water tube, stopping any further supply of water until the pressure ceases, when it is again required. The gas and water pressure being always in balance, there is an automatic water pressure feed generator, which with the outlet at the top of the tank makes it absolutely inexplosive. One of the special features of this lamp is that it burns any form of carbide from dust to lump, and requires no specially packaged or prepared carbide, which is a very great convenience to the rider. The makers claim for the lamp that it is the only automatic gas lamp made, as it has no valves requiring constant adjustment; they also claim that it is absolutely inexplosive. The price, $4, including the adjustable bracket and one can of carbide, is exceedingly low. Extra carbide in two-pound cans, 25 cents per can, making the cost of operating about one-third of a cent an hour.

The Helios lamp differs from some of the others in construction because the water reservoir is away from the heat and cannot even get warm. No steam being generated the water must therefore be consumed by the actual demand made by the light. The gas cock is independent of the water cock, thus enabling the user to turn the water cock off and burn the gas already generated until it is all consumed, the advantage of this feature being that the gas already generated can be stored, and the lamp is therefore ready to light at any moment. The water feed to the carbide is controlled by a check valve. The small pipe shown in cut of lamp leading over the top of water reservoir and to check valve is a pressure pipe, which regulates the check valve. When the gas in the reservoir of the lamp has attained a pressure equal to or greater than the water in the reservoir, the pressure through this small pipe acts vertically on the check valve, shutting off the water supply; when the gas is below this pressure the water, then being of greater weight, causes the check valve to rise, allowing the water to feed to the carbide and generation to again commence. This check valve may be regarded as an important feature of this lamp, because in a lamp without a check valve the odor of the gas is emitted after the gas is extinguished, as the gas must have an outlet or escape, which cannot be controlled without a check valve. There is also an additional water cock attached to the water pipe which regulates the supply of water, so that the quantity of gas used is only that which is consumed and required. The burner is of the bulb pattern, giving a square light, perfectly white, and the carbide is used in lump form, and it is claimed that when the carbide is used in this form there is no danger whatever attached to its use. The makers of this lamp claim that it has a lighting power equal to 86 candle power, and if carefully used the cost of maintaining will not exceed five or six cents per week at a riding average of three hours per night. Any carriage lamp using either candles or oil can be altered at a nominal cost to employ this method of lighting.

The Calcium King lamp, made by the George H. Clowes Manufacturing Company, of Waterbury, Conn., is made entirely of brass, nickel plated, and the carbide is in the form of cakes, which they call “carbophene,” which costs five cents each, and afford an intense light for an evening’s ride. “Carbophene” is placed on the bottom of the reservoir, and the gas cannot form in this reservoir faster than it is needed hence there can be no over-accumulation. The water valve of this lamp answers two purposes, as it controls the generation of the gas and the flame itself, there being no other gas cocks or valves to close and create pressure. When the valve shuts off the water supply the flame, after consuming the balance of the gas in the reservoir, must of necessity go out. This lamp, like all others described, has a rigid adjustable bracket, which can be attached to any part of the bicycle.

To sum up the advantages of acetylene lamps briefly, it may be stated that they do not possess the tendency to blow out or jar out, and that they give an intense white light, and that vibration and jar of the lamp increases the light instead of extinguishing it, as with any form of lamp that uses a wick. There will be undoubtedly other forms of acetylene lamps made, and it is not claimed that the lamps made at present upon the market are absolutely perfect, but that they are as nearly perfect as present conditions and knowledge of the wants of wheelmen will warrant, and we may therefore reasonably expect that if the acetylene lamp fulfils all that is claimed for it that this season will show whether it is the coming light or not. Considerable space has been devoted to describing bicycle lamps for ’98, because we believe that until we have perpetual day the best substitute for the sun’s rays will be a theme of interest to mankind in general and bicyclists in particular.