CHEAP LIGHTING.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 783, 5 April 1910, Page 7

CHEAP LIGHTING.

FOR SMALLER HOUSES,

SCHEME OF DR. NEWMAN,

Ail interesting statemoni was recently made by the Mayor (Dr.. Newman) and published in The Dominion, to tho effect that, by means of flexible wiring, the cost .of. installing electric lighting in smaller houses of the city could ba re. ducod by at least one half. The Mayor was.asked yesterday by.a DoiiuaoN 'representative if any stops were being taken by the City 'Council to make use of this advantage for.the benefit of the ratepayers. He replied. that on April 20 a New Zealand fire insurance conference will be held in Wellington, and mem bore of the electric lighting department of tho council, will wait upon the conference in tho matter. Pressed for details, the Mayor stated that there are three kinds of .so-called flexible wiring.' In .the old system of wiring the wires had to be encased, and a great deal of expense iuourred. Under the new "system the wire was taken to a house, and 'the wires were run loese about' tho walls, supported on tiny porcelain or metallic brackets. Un? der this sj-stem a man could wire ■an eighf-roomed house in a day. The pre. sent/rules of the underwriters forbade this, and the City Council was, therefore, unable to introduce the new ' system,, w.hich would be of enormous value to the citizens of Wellington.

,A Widely-Approved System. ; .The system was largely in use in'En»i laud, m.Giermany, and in Melbourne. It had lieen approved by the Board of ira.clo in London, aad the rules of soreral of the largest English fire insurance coiupamei approved explicitly of this method. It was, however, absolutely forbidden by the rules, of the New' Zealand companiss. The Mayor is confident that, if the fire insurance authorities will allow"this plan to be adopted very large nuihbei-s of tha people p£ Wellington who d«sira electric lighting, and ate npw debarred from having it in. their houses because''of 'the great,, cost of" installation, will at once ■have; tho■ lighting installed. The City Coungil possKiCEs a very, fine plamt, capable/of turning out a lnrge amount of ■current at a very low rate, but in this city there are only 5000 houses lighted by electricity," as against, 75(K) wh.iqfi are not- so ..lighted. If the insurance rules are- arnended -in April, the result will doubtless be that a. large number of those (500 houses -will .adopt electric lighting under the # now system of : iaistalfation. AU. classes.' of the- ratepayers voted for niunipipal electric lighting, and it is only these rules which prevent a great, luaof the'citizens from using that illuminant,' The Maypr. pointed; put that .anybody, .who .builds, a house can also jamps orcaiidlos, and any quantity of matches and the insurance' rules dp not interfere with him. On the other hand, when; Uie Qity Council seeks ,to introduce; an illuminant which, in regard' to risks frwir iiro, is by far the'safest in the market, it is prevented from doini' so' to , the. proper eitent, because of these rules. ■ ;■ ' ■ !,: '. ■ . ■

: Repairing a Loss. '•'-."■■■ ■)The, lightin," department of the cquncil, ow.ing. to the introduotio-iofOsram lamps, is showing a 1 falling-off in - nu.e ; from, lighting, because these lampe consumed so much less current. Dr Wewmau holds, however, that this is no disadvantage to the city, because the money is left'.in. the ratepayers' pockets. •l-his ] shoi-tage in revenue for the. electnc lighting department would bo easily made up. if tho' insurance 'rules are amended, and. this new, cheaper method of wrai« were adopted, because fhp fajl-mg-off in revenue from. SOOO consumers, who now use ■0-sram lamps, would soon be made up if 3000 or 4000 new consumers wero added to the department. great boon would follow, Dr. Newman points out, if this system is ■adopted, and that is that electric lighting would be: iiitroduoed to a class of houses with small rooms and low- ceilings. In these unquestionably the introduction, of elect™' lifhting would 'piean that the health of tho inhabitants would be greatly improved. In England and other, places many. cottages are' lighted with . electricity, which have only ois lamps, or. even fewer. Several of the importers of. electric lighting'maberialm Wellington are prepared to begin this ne.w system.'of installation immediately, if only the rules are amended at the conference at the end , of this month. ■' As the price of'Osram lamps has been brought, down, from'6s. 6d.. to 3s: 6d. by : the council's action, ■ and' as the Osrnm lamps :oonsume' about half the current of the old hydrocarbon filaments, this ■means that bills for electric, current are brought/down to one..half.-If ,the ,insuTance rules are ameiid'ed the cost of installation .will also be'reduced by halfi and the j ratepayers will get what they voted for when the council purchased the electrio lighting plant—cheap electric light. :V .'".■• - ,-. ■•.- :..-'.