The tube system of gasoline gas lighting is similar in appearance, but the tubes are larger and look more like regular gas pipes. In the tube system the gas is generated and mixed with air before it gets into the distribution tube, so that lamps do not require separate generators.
In the separate lamp system each lamp is separate and independent. Each lamp has a small supply of gasoline in the base of the lamp and has a gas generator attached to the burner, which converts the gasoline into gas, mixes it with the proper amount of air and feeds it into the burner as required. Farm lanterns are manufactured that work on this principle. They produce a brilliant light.
By investigating the different systems of gasoline gas lighting in use in village stores and country homes any farmer can select the system that fits into his home conditions to the best advantage. In one farmhouse the owner wanted gasoline gas street lamps on top of his big concrete gateposts, and this was one reason why he decided to adopt gasoline gas lighting and to use the separate lamp system.
ACETYLENE GAS
Acetylene lighting plants are intended for country use beyond the reach of city gas mains or electric cables. Carbide comes in lump form in steel drums. It is converted into gas by a generator that is fitted with clock work to drop one or more lumps into water as gas is needed to keep up the pressure. Acetylene gas is said to be the purest of all illuminating gases. Experiments in growing delicate plants in greenhouses lighted with acetylene seem to prove this claim to be correct.
The light also is bright, clear and powerful. The gas is explosive when mixed with air and confined, so that precautions are necessary in regard to using lanterns or matches near the generators. The expense of installing an acetylene plant in a farm home has prevented its general use.
WOOD-SAW FRAMES
There are a number of makes of saw frames for use on farms, some of which are very simple, while others are quite elaborate. Provision usually is made for dropping the end of the stick as it is cut. Sometimes carriers are provided to elevate the blocks onto a pile. Extension frames to hold both ends of the stick give more or less trouble, because when the stick to be sawed is crooked, it is almost impossible to prevent binding. If a saw binds in the kerf, very often the uniform set is pinched out of alignment, and there is some danger of buckling the saw, so that for ordinary wood sawing it is better to have the end of the stick project beyond the jig. If the saw is sharp and has the right set and the right motion, it will cut the stick off quickly and run free while the end is dropping to the ground.
The quickest saw frames oscillate, being supported on legs that are hinged to the bottom of the frame. Oscillating frames work easier than sliding frames. Sliding frames are sometimes provided with rollers, but roller frames are not steady enough. For cross sawing lumber V-shaped grooves are best. No matter what the feeding device is, it should always be protected by a hood over the saw. The frame should fall back of its own weight, bringing the hood with it, so that the saw is always covered except when actually engaged with the stick. Saw-mandrels vary in diameter and length, but in construction they are much alike. For wood sawing the shaft should be 13⁄8″ or 11⁄2″ in diameter. The shaft runs in two babbitted boxes firmly bolted to the saw frame. The frame itself should be well made and well braced.