THE cost of maintaining Malvern's gas lamps was raised in the Gazette a couple of weeks ago, so it's interesting to see in the paper 100 years ago this week, the town's surveyor and engineer, Mr W Osborne Thorpe, giving out a few facts on the lamps to a conference of municipal engineers.

He told his colleagues that the streets in Malvern were lit solely by gas, with 1,120 lamps, all fitted with incandescent burners.

"Various forms of automatic lighting and extinguishing appliances have been tried during the last two or three years, but owing to the exceptionally hilly nature of Malvern, the pressure type was abandoned, and the clock type is now used and is giving every satisfaction.

"All the lamps are numbered, and each lamplighter's district is distinguished by a letter, a small stencil plate being hung in each lamp about 4 inches long by 1½ inches wide. This proves an immense benefit in the returns for mantle consumptiom, cleaning etc.

"The mantle consumption works out at about six and a half mantles per lamp per annum. The cost of public lighting, including gas, repairs, lighting, extinguishing, etc, is under £2 per lamp per annum."

On a different note, columnist Ariel was thinking about drinking.

"With the approach of summer comes the annual quandary of the abstainer, who must find something to quench his thirst yet whose scruples forbid him alcoholic refreshmeent.

"One of these gentlemen appeared before a bench of magistrates on Tuesday and protested that he had been deceived by three glasses of strawberry wine - that is to say, sipped the wine in the belief that it was a temperance beverage - and came to grief and a police cell in consequence.

"The poor man is not alone in his disastrous experience of msiplaced confidence. Most of the English wines - gooseberry, ginger, rhubarb, and dandelion - are highly intoxicating, and even 'herb beer' is by no means so innocuous as people believe."