Edison Electric Light Criticisms
- In the late 19th century, there were several criticisms of Edison's electric light system.
- Some critics pointed out that the heat energy produced by the lamps was nearly equal to a horsepower, limiting the number of lights that could be generated per horsepower.
- Others argued that the electric light system required more machinery, skilled management, and lacked the storage capacity of gas, making it less efficient and convenient.
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I shall here give a few other criticism of the many that appeared at that time. In the Electrician of April 3,1880,is found the following: 'Edison Electric Light.- Discussion on this subject still goes on in America and the Franklin Institute has taken the matter up.''He gets eight lights perhorsepowser,but Professor Elihu Thomson pointed out that he couldn't get more,because the heat energy at the present given out by these eight lamps nearly equals a horsepower. He estimated the light of each at best as only ten candles,that is,eightly candles per horsepower;but with the arc method it is easy to produse 800 candles,or ten times as much light per horsepower.' The power made on the tests of Edison's carbon filament lamps by Professor Henry Morton and Alfred M.Mayer,Ph.D.,B.F.,in April,1880,after giving facts concerning the relative production of gas and electric light,concludes as follows: 'If each apparatus and system could be worked with equal facility and economy,this would of course show something in favor of the electric light;but when in fact everything in this regard is against the electric light,which demands vastly more machinery,and that of a more delicate kind,requires more skillful management,shows more liability to disarrangement and waste,and presents an utter lack of the storage capacity which secures such vast efficiency,convenience,and economy in gas,then we see that this relatively trifling economy disappears or ceases to have any controlling importance in the practical relations of the subject.'
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ここで当時現れた多くのもののうち、いくつか他の批判も紹介しよう。 1880年4月3日の「ジ・エレクトリシャン」で、次のようなものを見つけた。「エジソンの電灯ーアメリカでこのテーマに関する議論はいまだ続いており、フランクリン財団がこの問題を取り上げた。」 彼は馬力ごとに8つのライトを得ているが、エリフ・トムソン（※1）教授は、これら8つのライトが発する今の熱エネルギーがほぼ、1馬力に相当するのでそれ以上は得られないと指摘した。彼は馬力あたりがキャンドル18本パワーであり、それぞれのライトがせいぜいキャンドル10本程度だと見積もったが、アーク灯の方式ならば、800キャンドルパワーか、馬力あたり10倍もの明かりを作り出すのは簡単なことだ。 1880年4月、ガスと電気の相対的生産についての事実を伝えたうえで、ヘンリー・モートン教授とアルフレッド・マーシャル・マイヤー、B.F博士（※2）により行ったエジソンの炭素フィラメントランプのテストで得られたパワーについて次のように結論付ける。 「もしそれぞれの装置とシステムが同一の使いやすさと節約性で機能するならば、これは勿論電灯の利益となるなにかを示すであろう。が、実際この観点におけるすべてが、非常に多くの機材と、より精巧な種類のそれと、より熟練した管理を必要とする電灯と反対のものならば、混乱と無駄遣いに対する更なる責任を示すものであり、巨大な効率性、利便性、経済性を保証するガスの貯蔵容量のかけらもないことを提示している。その結果、我々はこの取るに足らない節約が消え去るか、議題の実用的関係において調節する重要性をもちえなくなることがわかる。」 ※1：Elihu Thomson アメリカの電気工学者 ※2：B.F 固有名詞の略だと思いますが、特定の個人が不明ですので、このままにしました。
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A certain distinguished electrical engineer from Cleveland,Ohio,who came to Menlo Park was taken in charge by Edison himself,who explained everything to him;the whole visit seemed one of collegiate accord.They parted like the best of friends after complimenting each other on their work.Imagine the surprise when the New York Times a few days later printed this gentleman's contrary opinion on Edison's light and system.I give a few extracts from that article as it appeared later in an English elecrical journal. On February 28,1880,the Electrician reprinted a long article from the pen of a well-known electrician from Clevenland,Ohio,which appeared in the New York Times.The electrician visited Edison's laboratory at Menlo Park,where he was accorded the attention of an honored visitor.These he rapaid by indulging in some severe criticism of the inventor and his work.'He asserts that Edison has simply resurrected a lot of scientific lumber with the design of dazzling the public.He attacks the carbon horseshoe lamp and disparages its importance.''In this one point of durability which has wrecked all previous experiments during the last thirty-four years,he appears to have made no advance whatever.It has been assumed by Edison that if this lamp could be made a success by way of durability,the problem of economical electric lighting by the incandescent plan would be solved.This is far from being the case.Success would be as hopelessly far off as ever.It is doubtful if he (Edison) can get more than two,or possibly three,of these small lights per horsepower under the best management.The absurdity of the claims for the so-called Edison generator reveals the fact that it is rather a poor form of the well-known Siemens machine.''
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The operative then sums up by saying that Edison seemed dissatisfied and looked as if he had been sick.He thought Edison was all right but was a tool for his bankers,who wanted to make money out of the company. That there was great excitement and speculation in the district about Wall Street at the time,the following clipping(one out of many)proves:THE EDISON BOOM.HOW LONG,HOWLONG!!(under the above heading,The New York World in one of its early issues of January,1880,runs the following comment): Kirkland&Milliken,of 47 Williams Street,reported yesterday that speculators are anxious to trade in Edison Electric Light Company stock,and that investors are picking up five and ten share lots.Mr.Laportas,of the firm,said to a World reporter that two shares were sold vesterdav at $3,500 each,but that lots of ten shares, which are more desirable,are in strong demand and are worth $5,000to $5,000 a share.Our of the largest shareholders,who was offered $700,000 last week for 200 shares,was bid $800,000 cash last night,and says that he won't sell under $1,000,000.
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I have given all these details in order to show what privileges and protection an inventor enjoys when,like Edison,he conducts organized research for a strong company.He has everything at his disposal and can devote himself,without worry, his work.If he is successful,he gets his liberal share and has no expence.Edison had stuck to the stocks received from the Edison companies for his work he would, no doubt,have been the largest sharer in electric lighting interests in the country. But Edison wasn't after money solely.No! He considered it a means of exchange and in that spirit turned it into new activities,new endeavors and new lines of experiment.It was important that he should do so:otherwise history might have had a different course.He didn't wait in leisurely luxury until his electric light shares should grow fat with returns,but from the start took all the money he could raise to his place his great achievements upon a solid commercial foundation under his personal supervision.That was necessary considering the epoch.With him it was push,push,and push again,and with the help of loyal servants the gigantic results of his Menlo Park labors were soon safely set on a manufacturing foundation;in a few years they were fortitled to an impregnable strength.Then the time arrived for others to carry his work of expansion further-this,however,only after a decennium,In 1892 the General Electric Company took up his program of expansion and has been developing it ever since.
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Again we are in October.Suddenly our kaleidoscape seems to have failed because of the bright light that dazzles our vision:the twenty-first of October brings a new lamp.Thus Edison has accomplished all that he promised to accomplish a year earlier;and the labors of his predecessors are laid on shelves of historical memories. As I have already written,the thread filament lamp was followed immediately by one whose light-giving element consisted of a piese of paper,known in history as the 'carbonized paper horseshoe lamp.' With those paper lamps Edison gave his first demonstration-it was the first in the history of electricity.It embraced all the fundamentals of distribution as practiced today.I have already told you how long these first paper lamps lasted and may add that when we began to make them in quantities,their average normal life reached three hundred hours;indeed some reached a thousand and more.Edison was actually at that time December,1879-a manufacturer of incandescent lamps,the only one,and you can imagine how much excitement he created.
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You have already heard how from time to time he himself stupid each operation in the making of his lamp,and how thoroughly he worked out the process of carbonization.First he formed his filament from the raw material and then he carbonized them.Those that worked on the problem before Edison,took carbon already made from which to shape their light-giving elements.Some had their carbons made by Carre of Paris,an electric arc light carbon manufacturer;and these were in the shape of rods. Thus we see distinctive methods of operation,with Edison following a different course from all the others in procuring and making his carbon filament. When at last he had concluded his investigations into carbon-making and began to make lamps in quantities,he assigned Lawson,Van Cleve and others to the job, instructing them in all the details.From that time forth it was more of a routine process than an experimental one.Likewise the newcomers whom the new-found light and dynamo lured to Menlo Park,Clarke,Howell,Hammer,Acheson,Holzer and others,were assigned places in this new activity.And each of the so-colled 'departments'was given its own routine.
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'Then he showed me the lamps burning in the shop.He said they were obliged to keep them burning eight months before they could do anything. 'We then went into the glss-blowing department,a separate building,out back. Two men were at work there.Edison had enlarged the bulb of his lamp about 33 per cent and they were at work blowing them,and parts of these vacuum pumps. Edison is working a vacumm pump of glass entirely .They were putting some of the carbon horseshoe into the lamps.There was only one man at work putting the carbon in(Batchelor). 'From there I went into a photo-lithographic concern that Edison has just got up,and they were at work pictures.There was one picture of Edison surrounded bu about thirty-five of his workmen taken by this process;and they had a man at work with chemicals,etc.Every now and then my conductor would point out a lamp with remark,''How nice that is burning!''ect.Then he would turn a little screw to turn the light off or on.He couldn't regurate it intermediately.It was eighter all off or all on.I asked him if they could regurate to any intermediate point and he said they couldn't.''These horseshoe burn very well,''he said. '''Some of them burn on an average about 800 hours continuously.''My conductor then took me where the dynamo machines were working and showed me the engine which he said was 80HP-150,I should think,judging from the size of it.He said they had a hundred lamps burning,but I am positive there weren't over 50,even if as many as that,everywhere,in the shop and out of it;and to run them he had 3 dynamo machines worked by this engine,those big upright machines of Edison's,that my conductor said had a capacity of 50 lightseach
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Maxim,having thus studied Edison's ideas,announced in the Scientific American of October 23,1880,his new lamp,which in reality was but a bad imitation of the Edison paper lamp Instead of making a carbon in the shape of a horseshoe,Maxim made his at first in the form of a Maltese cross and later in the form of an M. His company,the United States Electric Light Company,made several installations during its struggling existence,and then passed away, as did also Maxim the electrician-through Maxim the gun maker survived in England where he found it more congenial to live than in America.The trouble with most of the early imitators of Edison's ideas was that they had no system,while Edison had worked out a fundamental one which embraced all the necessary accessories and of which the lamp was but one of principal parts. In those days spies were plentiful;it appeared that there existed a regular inaugurated system of espionage for years.Later we obtained conclusive evidence of the existence of printed confidential reports from private operators-of which I hope soon to tell you more.
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Maxim,having thus studied Edison's ideas,announced in the Scientific American of October 23,1880,his new lamp,which in reality was but a bad imitation of the Edison paper lamp Instead of making a carbon in the shape of a horseshoe,Maxim made his at first in the form of a Maltese cross and later in the form of an M. His company,the United States Electric Light Company,made several installations during its struggling existence,and then passed away, as did also Maxim the electrician-through Maxim the gun maker survived in England where he found it more congenial to live than in America.The trouble with most of the early imitators of Edison's ideas was that they had no system,while Edison had worked out a fundamental one which embraced all the necessary accessories and of which the lamp was but one of principal parts. In those days spies were plentiful;it appeared that there existed a regular inaugurated system of espionage for years.Later we obtained conclusive evidence of the existence of printed confidential reports from private operators-of which I hope soon to tell you more.
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Enhancement technologies give those who can use them an edge and have often been criticised for the injustice that this supposedly creates. But we have always enhanced ourselves and our environment in ways that are not immediately available to all: education and medicine are obvious examples, but synthetic sunshine is perhaps closest to synthetic biology. Before fires, candles, lamps and other forms of man-made light, most people went to sleep when it got dark. Candles enabled social life and work to continue into and through the night and conferred all sorts of advantages on those who couldn't or didn't. Contemporary and future biological enhancements may create problems of injustice both in that they provide a means for some to gain an advantage (those who read by candlelight gain a way that others do not), and because they may create unfair pressures as a result of the capabilities conferred by enhancement (like the pressure to stay up late and read or work because one can). The solution is establishing “fair” working hours and provision, at public expence if necessary, of sources of light-not banning candles. The solution is a combination of regulation and distributive justice, not a Luddite rejection of technology. よろしくお願いします。
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Then the celebrated elections attacks Edison's modified Sprengel air pump and belittles it.Then he goes on to explain the "necessity for some automatic means of regulating the current when sudden and great changes come up,and that at present Edison has a young man stationed in the vicinity of the apparantus with his eye on the Thomson galvanometer who regulates the changes by throwing in and out resistance".The young man that the celebrated election mentions happened to be my humble self. When Edison had finished reading the matter he said,'What do you think of that,Batch,I explained everything to him in pretended to approve of what I did. Let me tell you this,my light and system will survive long after his is forgotten.' Only a strong, indomitable and iron-clad character like Edison's could withstand such treatment , which today only enhances the glory of his memory. Amid these seeming oddities in the human nature of others, he kept calmly on developing the filament and the process of manufacture. The hunt for the best material continued.
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