Illus. 321.—Betty Lamps,
Seventeenth Century.
The earliest form of lamp in use in the colonies was what is known as a “betty lamp,” and it must have been a most untidy little utensil, giving but a meagre light. Illustration [321] shows several betty lamps owned by the writer. The smallest is of iron, two and a half inches in diameter, with a nose projecting one inch and a quarter beyond the receptacle for grease or fat.
A chain and hook are attached to the handle, by which the lamp was hung upon a chair-back or a nail. The wick, made of a twisted cotton rag, was placed with its end protruding from the nose of the lamp, and provided a dull, poor flame. Another lamp has the chain and the receptacle for grease made of brass, while the handle, the hook by which it was to hang, and the pin for cleaning the lamp, attached to the chain, are of steel. The bottom of the brass receptacle is of copper. There is a cover to the front part of this lamp, so that the interior can be cleaned, and the piece of steel forming the handle runs through the interior of the lamp, the end providing a nose for the wick just inside of the brass one, thus allowing the drippings from the wick to drain back into the receptacle.
Illus. 322.—Candle-stands, first half of Eighteenth Century.
The lamp with a standard has an iron rod, upon which the lamp can slide up and down, with a ring at the top of the rod to lift it by. The fourth betty lamp is hung upon an old wooden ratchet intended for that purpose. The ratchet is made of two strips of wood, one cut with saw-teeth edge, which can be raised and lowered to place the lamp at the desired height. Betty lamps were in use during the seventeenth century, and much later than that in the South.
As early as 1696, inventories mention a “Candle-stand for two brass candlesticks.” Illustration [322] shows two of these candle-stands in the collection of the late Major Ben Perley Poore at Indian Hill. The larger stand is made of iron, and was fashioned by the local blacksmith, near Indian Hill. It was taken by the grandfather of Major Poore to Harvard University when he went there a student in 1776. The tongs hanging upon this stand are a smoker’s tongs, for lifting a coal from the fire to light the pipe, the curved end on one side of the handle being used to press the tobacco into the pipe, or to clean it out. The three feet of the other stand are of iron, and the pole, candlesticks, and two pairs of snuffers are of brass. These stands probably were made during the first half of the eighteenth century. The room, a corner of which shows in the illustration is fitted with panels from the “Province House,” the home at one time of Agnes Surriage. The pillars showing behind the candle-stands were taken from the old Brattle Street Church in Boston when it was pulled down. One end of a Sheraton sofa may be seen in the picture, and several of the illustrations for this book were taken in this fine room.