Steam, Steel and Electricity

by James W. Steele

The magnitudes of measurements of electricity are expressed in the following convenient electrical units:

The VOLT (named from Volta) equals a unit of pressure that is equal to one cell of a gravity battery.

The OHM, as a unit of measurement, equals a unit of resistance that is equivalent to the resistance of a hundred feet of copper wire the size of a pin.

The AMPÈRE (named from Ampère, 1775-1836, author of a "Collection of Observations on Electro-Dynamics" and other works, and a profound practical investigator) equals a unit of current equivalent to the current which one Volt of pressure will produce through one Ohm of wire (or resistance).

The Coulomb (1736--inventor of the means of measuring electricity called the "Torsion balance," and general early investigator) equals a unit of quantity of one Ampere flowing for one second.

The Farad (from Faraday, the discoverer of the laws of Induction, see ante), equals that unit of capacity which is the capacity for holding one Coulomb. Death current.--What is now spoken of as the "Death Current" is one that will instantly overcome the "resistance" of the human, or animal, body. It is a current of from one to two thousand Volts--about the same as that used in maintaining the large arc lights. This question of the killing capacity of the current became officially prominent some years ago, upon the passage by the legislature of the State of New York of a statute requiring the death penalty to be inflicted by means of electricity. The object was to deter evildoers by surrounding the penalty with scientific horror, [[37]] and the idea had its origin in the accidents which formerly occurred much more frequently than now. The "death current" is now almost everywhere, though the care of the men who continually work about "live" wires has grown to be much like that of men who continually handle firearms or explosives, and accidents seldom happen. At first it was apparently difficult for the general public to appreciate the fact that the silent and harmless-looking wires must be avoided. There was suddenly a new and terrific power in common use, and it was as slender, silent and unobtrusive as it was fatal.

[37.] Hence also the new lingual atrocity, the word "electrocute," derived from "execute" by decapitation and the addition of "electro"

Insulation of the hands by the use of rubber gloves, and extreme care, are the means by which those who are called "linemen"--a new industry--protect themselves in their occupation. But there is a new commandment added to the list of those to be memorized by the body-politic. "Do not tread upon, drive over, or touch any wire." It may be, and probably is, harmless. But you cannot positively know. [[38]]

[38.] It is a common trait of general human nature to refuse to learn save by the hardest of experiences, and so far as the crediting of statements is concerned, to at first believe everything that is not true, and reject most that is. The supernatural, the phenomena of alleged witchcraft and diabolism, and of "luck," "hoodoo," "fate," etc., find ready disciples among those who reject disdainfully the results of the working of natural law. When the railroads were first built across the plains the Indians repeatedly attempted to stop moving trains by holding the ends of a rope stretched across the track in front of the engine, and with results which greatly surprised them When the lines were first constructed in northern Mexico the Mexican peasant could not be induced to refrain from trying personal experiments with the new power, and scores of him were killed before he learned that standing on the track was dangerous. In the United States the era of accidents through indifference to common-looking wires has almost passed, but for some years the fatality was large because people are always governed by appearances connected with previous notions, until new experiences teach them better.

INSTRUMENTS OF MEASUREMENT.--Some of the most costly and beautiful of modern scientific instruments are those used in the measurements and determinations of electrical science. There are many forms and varieties for every specific purpose. Electrical measurement has become a department of physical science by itself, and a technical, extensive and varied one. Already the electrical specialist, no more an original experimenter or investigator than the average physician is, has become professional. He makes plans, submits facts, estimates cost, and states results with almost certainty.