Try alcohol to remove the words !! Those little alcohol prep pads that a nurse uses to clean your arm before giving a shot work great !! They are stronger than alcohol you buy at the store !!
Do you know the pattern name for these ?? They didn`t make all items in every pattern so without the name we may just have to guess at it !! It looks like the base for a dinner light which they made in a few patterns !! Like a hurricane lamp it had a globe like a kerosene lamp does !! That's what I would use it for if they were mine !! Drop one of those little 3" candles and pick up globes at Wal-Mart or garage sales !!