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79
the 5th May. Your Sub-Committee, after having made their
inspection of the various installations in London, came to the
conclusion that the proper height of the lamps proposed to be
erected for centre lighting would be about 21 or 22ft., giving a
column of 18ft. Before, however, finally deciding upon this
height, it was resolved to put up three lamps in Regent Street on
18ft. columns one to take the place of the temporary lamp by
Vigo Street. This was accordingly done, the two lamps by the
New Gallery and Heddon Street being fixed on the 28th May.
The four lamps now run two in series. They are the CromptonPochin
double carbon arc lamps, to run 32 hours without recarboning,
the candle power of each lamp being 2,000, or about
750 actual. The height of the arc from the refuge by Swallow
Street is 24ft. 6in., and that of the other three lamps 21ft. 2in.
Opaline globes are fixed on the lamps by Swallow Street, New
Gallery and Heddon Street. The lamp by Vigo Street was first
fitted with a Holophane globe, but this was afterwards changed
for the Muranese globe now fixed. An are lamp was also
erected on the refuge in front of the Vestry Hall for the purpose
of testing the advantages of different kinds of glass for the proposed
lamps. Being in a position to judge of the merits of the
various methods of arc lighting from the inspections and
enquiries made by them, your Sub-Committee came to the conclusion
that the columns proposed to be erected in the main
thoroughfares should be 18ft. high, and that the lamps to be used
should be the Crompton-Pochin Double Carbon Lamp to burn
4 in series, with a current of 10 amperes and for 32 hours without
re-carboning, complete with internal automatic cut-out, &c., &c.
They accordingly gave instructions to Messrs. Freeman & Co.,
the Vestry's Engineers, to submit designs to them for an
ornamental column suitable for a parish like St. James's, and
submit herewith the design (as revised by Mr. J. T. Wimperis, a
member of your Sub-Committee), which has been accepted and
approved as a most suitable one for such streets as Regent
Street, Piccadilly, &c. It will be noticed that it is proposed to
have a canopy at the top of the lamp, thereby considerably
increasing its effective appearance. This is somewhat similar to
the canopy in use at Brighton, which so greatly adds to the
ornamental and artistic character of the design.