83,923,273 tons of coal. The greatly increasing consumption of coal
has originated fears as to the possibility of the exhaustion of our
mineral fuel. It appears that, while in 1820, only 15,000,000 tons
were raised, in 1840, the amount had reached 30,000,000, and in 1860,
it was nearly 84,000,000. At the same rate of increase the known coal,
within a workable distance from the surface, would last at least
100 years. But the consumption, during the last twenty years of the
century, would at the present increasing ratio amount to 1464 million
tons a year, a quantity vastly greater than can be used. We need not,
therefore, now begin to fear lest our coal-fields should be speedily
used up."--_Chambers's Encyclopedia_.]
"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and
wise," was a motto adopted by our forefathers when the inducements to
promenade London streets by night were not so inviting as now.
"Ranelagh and Vauxhall were places of frivolous amusement resorted
to even by the higher classes. From those and other haunts of folly,
lumbering coaches or sedan chairs conveyed home the ladies through the
dimly lighted or pitch dark streets, and the gentlemen picked their
way over the ruggedly-paved thoroughfares, glad of the proffered aid
of the link boys who crowded round the gates of such places of public
entertainment or resort as were open at night, and who, arrived at
the door to which they had escorted some fashionable foot-passenger,
quenched the blazing torch in the trumpet-looking ornament which one
now and then still sees lingering over the entrance to some house in
an antiquated square or court, a characteristic relic of London in the
olden time."
Street lighting was not known to the Greeks and Romans, it was
therefore necessary for them whenever they went abroad after dark
to carry flambeaux. Street lighting was first introduced at Paris
about the beginning of the 16th century. An Edict was issued ordering
the inhabitants to keep lights burning in their windows after nine
at night. In 1558, lamps were exchanged for lanterns, and in 1671
these lanterns were ordered to be lighted from the 20th of October
to the beginning of April. This however did not prove a satisfactory
arrangement. At length a premium was offered by the Government for a
dissertation on the best mode of lighting the streets. The successful
competitors were a journeyman glazier, M. M. Bailly, Le Roy and
Bourgeois Le Cheteaublanc. To the glazier was awarded a prize of 200
livres, and to the other three jointly 2,000 livres. The result of
their suggestions was a general lighting of the streets by oil lamps
set upon posts.
In London, lanterns were first used in 1688, and those inhabitants
whose houses fronted the streets were ordered to hang out their
lanterns and keep them burning from 6 to 11 o'clock at night; the
number of lanterns thus used within the boundaries of the City of
London was 5,000. Without the City, inclusive of the suburbs, the
probability is that the number was 15,000.
In 1874, another act was passed for regulating the lighting of the City
still further. Since the lighting of the streets, alleys, courts, etc.,
of our Metropolis with gas have come many other sanitary and social
improvements, and it is not unlikely that under a wise Providence we
owe to this invention as much security from the nightly depredations of
burglars as much so as from the vigilance of the police.
The existence and inflammability of coal-gas has been known in
England for two centuries. In the year 1659, Thomas Shirley correctly
attributed the exhalations from the "burning well" at Wigan, in
Lancashire, to the coal-beds which lie under that part of the country;
and soon after, Dr. Clayton, influenced by Shirley, actually made
coal-gas, and detailed the results of his labours in a letter to
the Hon. Robert Boyle, who died in 1691. About a century later,
1753, Sir James Lowther communicated to the Royal Society a notice
of a spontaneous evolution of gas at a colliery belonging to him at
Whitehaven. Bishop Watson made many experiments on coal-gas, which he
details in his Chemical Essays. Mr. R. Taylor, on the Coal-fields of
China, says, "The Chinese artificially produce illuminating gas from
bitumen coal we are certain. But it is a fact that spontaneous jets of
gas derived from boring into coal-beds have for centuries been burning,
and turned to that and other economical purposes. If the Chinese
are not gas manufacturers, they are nevertheless gas consumers and
employers on a large scale, and have evidently been so ages before the
knowledge of its application was acquired by Europeans." In 1792, Mr.
Murdoch, an engineer at Redruth in Cornwall, erected a little gasometer
with apparatus which produced gas sufficient to supply his own house
and offices, and in 1797, he erected a similar apparatus in Ayrshire.
In the following year, he was engaged to put up a gas works at the
Manufactory of Bolton and Watts, at Soho, Birmingham,--this was the
first application of gas in a large way. Except among a few scientific
men, the manufacture of gas excited but little curiosity until the year
1802, when the front of the great Soho Manufactory was brilliantly
illuminated with gas on the occasion of the public rejoicings at the
Peace. In 1801, M. Le Bon, at Paris, succeeded in lighting up his
own house and gardens with gas from wood and coal, and had it in
contemplation to light up the City of Paris.
Only within the present century has gas superseded in London the dim
oil lamps. About forty years ago, oil lamps and lighted candles were
used in our churches and chapels; in some places of worship evening
services were dispensed with altogether. A humorous anecdote is related
of Dr. Johnson: it is said, one evening, from the window of his house
in Bolt Court, he observed the parish lamplighter ascend a ladder to
light one of the small oil lamps. He had scarcely descended the ladder
half-way when the flame expired. Quickly returning he lifted the cover
of the lamp partially and thrusting the end of his torch beneath it,
the flame instantly communicated to the wick by the thick vapour which
issued from it. "Ah!" exclaimed the Doctor, "one of these days the
streets of London will be lighted by smoke."--_Notes and Queries_, No.
127. Certain scientific men were incredulous as to the practicability
of lighting up the whole of London with gas, and Sir Humphrey Davey
asked if it were intended to take the dome of St. Paul's for a
gasometer! In 1820 gas meters were patented by John Malan, in 1830 by
Samuel Clegg, in 1838 by Nathan Defries and others. Mr. Daniel Pollock,
father of the late Chief Baron, was governor of the first "chartered"
gas company in 1812. In 1822 St. James' Park was first lighted with
gas. In 1825, its safety had not then been established on the part
of the Government, a committee of the most eminent scientific men
immediately inspected the Gas Works, and reported that the occasional
superintendence of all the Works was necessary. However, since then
so rapidly has the invention of gas-lighting progressed, that now in
the present year of grace, there is neither City nor town in Great
Britain of any note but what is illuminated with gas and has works for
its manufacture in close proximity to the houses of its inhabitants.
Gas supply of London, receipts for the year 1872, £2,133,600, for
1873, £2,544,000. What is coke? Coke is the residual carbon of pit
coal after the volatile matters have been expelled by heat, it has a
porous texture and a lustre sometimes approaching the metallic. It
is a valuable fuel, producing an intense and steady heat and leaving
but little residue after combustion. The residual coke in retorts
has a quantity of ash, which, besides its earthy base of silicate,
usually contains sulphur and other deleterious matter. The breeze can
be used in furnaces and in burning bricks. There is a considerable
quantity of pure hydrogen produced by the decomposition of water in
cooling coke. Attempts have been made to manufacture gas from other
substances besides coal--oil, resin, peat, and even water having in
their turn commanded capital for a fair trial of their merits of all
these; however, coal has alone stood the test of commercial success,
those companies formed for other schemes having either been dissolved
or become converts to its superior advantages. No doubt it will be
considered Utopian--Mr. Robinson thinks that the electric light might
be so modified as to be used in public dwellings! There are exhaustless
stores of latent electricity, but the difficulty is to know how to
develop and utilise it.
Street gas lit by electricity, by Mr. St. George Lane, Fox's method:
trial partially successful, Pall Mall, etc., 13th April, 1878. British
Museum Reading Room illuminated by electric light, October, 1879.
Common bituminous coal obtained from the mines of Northumberland,
Durham, York, South Wales, and a few other coal districts is the kind
from which most of the gas of this country is manufactured. The Cannel
or Scotch Parrot coals produce a gas of a much richer quality, which,
though expensive, has the advantage of superior illuminating power.
Gas companies use to a very great extent coals from the following
mines:--Pelaw, Leverson's Wallsend, Pelton, New Pelton, Dean's
Primrose, Garesfield, South Peareth, (The London Gas-Light Company use
principally Peareth) Urpeth, Washington, Yorkshire, Silkstone, Haswell,
West Wear, Wearmouth, Brancepeth, South Brancepeth, and Ravenshaw
Pelaw. The resulting products of carbonization of these coals when an
exhauster is employed will be found to give about the following average
per ton:--
Gas, 9,500 cubic feet; Coke, 13 cwt., or one chaldron; Tar, 10 gallons;
Ammoniacal Liquor, 13 gallons. Ammonia, a compound of Nitrogen and
Hydrogen, is converted into Sulphate of Ammonia, Sal Ammonia, Carbonate
of Ammonia, etc., etc. Tar, which is a Hydro-carbon, after producing
Naptha and light oils, becomes useful as Asphalt, or for exterior paint
work. Benzole, the base of our newly-discovered dyes, is extracted
from the Naptha; which, besides, is either used as a solvent for
india-rubber and guttapercha, or yields a brilliant light when burned
in a common lamp. Gas, as it issues from the retorts, is chiefly
composed of light carburetted and bicarburetted hydrogen or olefiant
gas, accompanied by condensable vapours and other gaseous impurities.
The condensable vapours are principally hydro-carbon compounds
which become deposited in the form of oil, and amongst a variety of
deleterious substances may be mentioned as the chief: ammonia, carbonic
acid, carbonic oxide, and sulphuretted hydrogen, but the value of
coal-gas principally depends on the presence of bicarburetted hydrogen,
and the greater proportion of this the higher will be its light-giving
properties.
The connection of the London Gas-Light Company's Works with Vauxhall
takes us out of the parish of Battersea for a moment into the parish
of Lambeth. Vauxhall, the early Spring Garden, was named from its site
in the Manor of La Sale Fawkes, Fawkeshall, from its possessor, an
obscure Norman adventurer, in the reign of King John.[1] The estate
was laid out as a garden about 1661, in squares enclosed with hedges
of gooseberries, within which were roses, beans and asparagus. Sir
Samuel Morland took a lease of the place in 1665, and added fountains
and a sumptuously furnished room for the reception of Charles II.
and his court, and a plan dated 1681, shows the gardens planted with
trees and laid out in walks and a circle of trees or shrubs. They were
frequented by Evelyn and Pepys; and Addison in the _Spectator_, 1712,
takes Sir Roger de Coverley there. In 1728, the gardens were leased to
Jonathan Tyers, who converted the house into a tavern. The beauty of
its rural scenery rendered it so much frequented that the proprietor
in the year 1730, introduced vocal music, the price of admission at
that time was 1s., but from the competition of others who opened public
places of amusement in the neighbourhood, the proprietor introduced a
great variety of amusements and raised the price of admission to 2s.
During the season of 1807, the price was constantly 2s., the gardens
being open only three nights in the week, and each of these nights was
what was termed a gala night. Vauxhall Gardens were extensive, they
contained a variety of walks illuminated with beautiful transparent
paintings. Opposite the west door was a magnificent Gothic orchestra,
illuminated with a profusion of lamps of various colours; and on the
left was an elegant rotunda, in which the band performed in the cold
or rainy weather. At ten o'clock a bell announced the opening of a
cascade, with the representation of a water-mill, a mail coach, etc.
Fireworks of the most brilliant description were also introduced among
the attractions of the place. In numerous recesses, or pavilions,
parties were accommodated with suppers and other refreshments and were
charged according to a bill of fare. The ham sandwiches were of such
an excellent quality and so thinly sliced that they became proverbial.
The respective boxes and apartments were adorned with a vast number
of paintings, many of which were executed in the best style of their
respective theatres. The labours of Hogarth and Hayman were the most
conspicuous. On a pedestal, under the arch of a grand portico of the
Doric order, was a fine marble statue of Handel, in the character of
Orpheus playing on his lyre, done by the celebrated M. Roubiliac. The
number of persons who were employed in the gardens during the season is
said to have amounted to 400, 96 of whom were musicians and singers,
the rest were waiters and servants of various kinds. The celebrated
Lowe and Beard were amongst the first singers who were engaged at
Vauxhall. Upwards of 15,000 lamps were said to illuminate the gardens
at one time,--the effect of the illumination was peculiarly beautiful
in a moonlight night. The band of the Duke of York's regiment of Guards
dressed in full uniform added to the attractions of these enchanting
gardens; by military harmony, as a place of public entertainment, it
became the most famous in Europe. The greatest season was in 1823, when
133,279 persons visited the gardens and the receipts were £29,590. The
greatest number of persons in one night was on the 2nd of August, 1833,
when 20,137 paid for admission. The carriages outside the gardens were
so numerous that they extended in lines as far as Westminster Bridge in
one direction and to Kennington Common in an opposite direction. The
greatest number on the then supposed last night, 5th September, 1839,
was 1089 persons. So fascinating did this place of amusement become
that it acquired the name of the "fairy land of fancy," answering in
conception to those enchanted palaces and gardens described in the
"Arabian Nights Entertainment."[2] It was in these gardens gas was
manufactured by the London Gas-light Company prior to gas being made at
the Company's Works in the neighbourhood of Vauxhall Row.
[Footnote 1: The true derivation is supposed to be from Falk or Faulk
de Brent, a famous Norman soldier of fortune to whom King John gave
in marriage Margaret de Ripariis or Redvers. To the lady belonged
that Manor of Lambeth to which the Mansion called Faulks Hall was
annexed.--_London_, by Charles Knight, Vol. I., p. 403.]
[Footnote 2: Vauxhall Gardens were open from 1732 to 1840, they were
re-opened in 1841 and finally closed in 1859, when the theatre,
orchestra, firework gallery, fountains, statues, etc., were sold,
with a few mechanical models, such as Sir Samuel Morland, Master
of Mechanics to Charles II. had set up here nearly two centuries
previously. The site was then cleared and a church, (St. Peter's)
vaulted throughout, was built upon a portion of the grounds, besides a
school of arts, etc.--_John Timbs_.]
The London Gas-light Company was Incorporated in the year 1833.[1]
The Works at Vauxhall were constructed from designs furnished by Mr.
Hutchison, the Engineer. The first bed of retorts set on the Company's
premises was heated by a man of the name of William Batt, June,
1834. The old man is still living, he is seventy-five years of age,
and has been in the London Gas-light Company's service forty-three
years. At that time the Company used a small gasometer erected in
Vauxhall Gardens. It was with gas from this vessel that Mr. Green,
the celebrated æronaut used to fill or inflate his great balloon. The
first place lighted up with the Company's gas was Old Lambeth Market,
the site now occupied by the Lambeth Baths. In December, 1858, the
London Gas-light Company manufactured gas at their New Works, Nine
Elms. The following month, January, 1859, an Act of Parliament came
into operation to prevent gas companies from erecting other works for
the manufacture of gas within ten miles of London; however, it was
not until the year 1863 that the London Gas-light Company permanently
removed from Vauxhall to Nine Elms.
[Footnote 1: The London Gas-light Company Established, (Incorporated)
1833; first Works built in High Street, Vauxhall, the lease of which
expired in 1865.
December 2, 1872, there was a great strike of the London Gas Stokers,
2,400 out. The inconvenience was met by great exertion, 2-6 Dec.
Several were tried and imprisoned.]
The London Gas Works are environed with a brick wall, varying in height
from ten to twenty feet, bounded on the North by Nine Elms Lane; on
the South by the South-Western Railway; on the East by Everett Street;
and on the West by Moat Street and Haine Street. The works within this
enclosure cover an area of seventeen acres, and at the field Prince of
Wales Road, about three acres more. There are five gates to the Works,
but the principal entrance is in Haward Street, by the porter's lodge.
At the right-hand-corner is a spacious building, on the basement is
the Engineer's office, the Light office, and Messenger's lobby, which
has in it a small telegraphic apparatus for communicating intelligence
between this and the Chief office. The Grand Entrance is from Nine Elms
Lane, opened by two pairs of massive folding doors leading into the
hall, facing which is a flight of stone steps with ornamental cast-iron
balusters mounted by rails on either side of polished mahogany,
communicating with a similar staircase right and left which conducts to
the Board room and Draughtsmen's offices. The Board room is a beautiful
and commodious apartment, 33 feet by 19. It has never yet been
occupied by the Board of Directors, the Board preferring to transact
their business at their Chief Office, 26, Southampton Street, Strand,
W.C. Secretary, A. J. Dove, Esq.; Engineer, Robert Morton, Esq.;
Manager, John Methven, Esq.; Outdoor Superintendent, T. D. Tully, Esq.;
Cashier, W. G. Head, Esq., with a staff of Inspectors, Collectors,
Clerks, &c.
On the 31st of October, 1865,[1] a terrible gas explosion took place,
when ten men were killed and many others injured. At that time the
houses in Haward Street being contiguous to the works, had the window
frames shattered, and similar calamities occurred elsewhere. These
houses were occupied by some of the Company's employés. Lately, partly
on account of the recent tidal inundations, sixteen houses belonging to
the Company have been pulled down and a wall built so as to keep out
the flood, in the event of extraordinary high tides. The open space
between the inner and outer gates is used, as well as other open spaces
about the works, for heaping up the coke mountains high, which certain
youngsters in the neighbourhood would only be too delighted to have the
privilege of scrambling and of bearing some of the precious fuel home
to their fireless grates. Alas! much of the distress prevalent in the
district is caused through the drunkenness and improvident habits of
parents.
[Footnote 1: On October 31, 1865, at the London Gas-light Company's
Works, at Nine Elms, Battersea Park Road, a gas-holder exploded killing
ten persons and injuring twenty-two. This was then one of the largest
holders in London, its capacity being 1,039,000 cubic feet. It was 150
feet diameter, 60 feet high, with a tank depth of 30 feet, and at the
instant of the explosion was nearly full, being about 50 feet to 55
feet high. The meter-house was blown to atoms, and the force of the
explosion struck the side of the gas-holder, bulging it in, and at the
same time driving out a portion of the top. Mr. Timbs, who records this
disaster, (which happened when the late Mr. Watson was engineer) says,
"As the side plates were eight to twelve gauge, the force must have
been very great. With the bursting of the top there was an immediate
rush of gas, which instantly caught fire, and shot up in a vast column
of flame, discernible at a great distance. The concussion ripped open
another gas-holder, the escaping gas caught fire, and meeting the
flames from the first gas-holder, rolled away in one vast expanse of
flame: an awful crash followed, and many of the neighbouring houses
were shattered to pieces."--_History of Wonderful Inventions_, by John
Timbs, p. 179.]
Passing through the inner gate, over which is mounted the factory bell
of 2 cwt.,--its size and tone would not disgrace the belfry of many a
church steeple,--on the right is situated the timekeeper's office, the
carbonizing foreman's lobby, the meter stores, and the stores. On the
left-hand-side of the gate is the coke clerk's office, counting house,
and a range of workshops, sheds, etc. for smiths, painters, fitters,
and carpenters. Adjoining the coke office is the shop where all the
Company's meters are tested before being sent out to the consumers.
In different parts of the yard lines of iron rails are laid down,
with turning tables to allow for shunting, communicating with the
South-Western Railway, so as to admit trucks, which, when loaded with
coke from the factory, are then conveyed to their destination. The
retort houses are oblong buildings with gable wrought-iron roofs, are
strongly built of brick, the walls being of immense thickness; this is
necessary, not only on account of the great heat within, but on account
of the large quantity of coals stowed away in the coal stores, the
stock on hand being 15,000 tons.