THE WEST SHORE
September.
12
A COTTON-PICKING MACHINE.
If tin' complex ojtcratinns needed in cotton
plokluji tro loooutifiilljr pnrfnrnnil by mechan
ism, it would seem that the inventor Deed
brink from no problem. According to LtftU
Millimj fftw$, the cotton picker bjM been patented
and the following gives an idea of the machine
and Uh task: Cotton plants vary in hight from
one foot to seven, and are planted in rows at
various diatances apart, hut averaging tOOttt
three and a half feet. The podl mature at vary
ing times, and when tliey open, the cotton grad
ually unfolds ib i-Ii and hangs down more and
more, until, if not picked, it is linally shaken
out hy the wind, and falls on the ground. Thf
picking season extends usually from the lattei
part of Angnit to the linit of I)eceml)cr. From
the knowledge of these facto Home idea tan he
formed of the difficulties' t . he overcome hefore
totton can 1 successfully picked by machinery.
We now learn that an apparatus has been
mudni'-ted and eTpenmented with wmcn
UIIHIllW to fultill the requisite conditions. It
f iL. : .1 l (i I' 0UL ..f D.I.
in uie iii'' r 1 1 1 ' 1 1 1 in .in. , iu ii , ikuiviK",
N. C and wan patented April loth, 177. It
cm iisl i "i a frame, mounted on three wlicel.i,
and Hpanning two rowtt of plants, the Mingle
front wheel running between the rows, tho rear
wheels outside. I he rear wheels are tjuitc largo,
o an to carry the framework over the higliCBt
plants; thu front wheel Ih much Hinaller, and
works under the machine on a pivot joint, u
which the liorHea are attached.
The picking in done by a series of tlexibh
rublier rods, licardcd with tine Hpinea point
ing upward, which work alternately up and
down tnroiign itic plants iu uiu mnnnntft snr
ranees. These rods are foal i to levers,
which vibrate alternately, ho that aa one rml is
moving up the next ih going down. The cotton
adheres to the spines, and in atripjHid from the
holla on the up-stroko; and on the dowu-Htroku
thu adjacent roda pick ot!' the cotton from the
Bpmcs and carry it upwaru until it ia rcuiove.i
at the top hy bruRhea, oh from the saws of the
cotton gin. Ail endleKU apron then carrier it
into a receptacle at the rear, from which it ia
iiimoved when sutlicieut ban collected.
Theae picker rods of which there are altoul
200 are juat Bullieioutly llexihle to clear them
solves from stalks or atuuipM, ami do not, it it
itated. iiiiuru the plants. Thu apiucH witl:
which they are covered will not take hold of
loavca or twigs, aa nothing hut the cotton will
adhere to them, and they pick all that iH opened,
whether on the iround or at the top of t lie plant
The machine contH :ilX, and in estimated to pick
the cotton at all ex pen mi of one dollar per hale,
a great Having over hand labor.
AlH'l.TKUATloN ok BtJoTWAX Tile recent
adulteration of yellow hecawax with renin haa
led to the invention of a new method for itade
lection. I . Schmidt i - - 1 the following
proccHH for the rapid and lOCQfftte detection of
relatively miudl quantities of pine renin, lie
lieata live grainmea ("fi graiimj of the wax to 1k
tented in a Hank with four or live timea tho
quantity of crude nitric acid, 8ccitlc gravity
1.81 to lMi until it boils; and it ia kept boiling
a minute, then an eoatl volume ot cold water ia
added, and enough ammonia (which imiHt Ite
added very cautionary) put in and shaken to
inline it to smell strongly of ammonia. The
alkaline liquid ih decanted from the preciiitated
wax Into a cylindrical vchhcI. ftheWU ih pure
the liquid Will have yellow color; if the wax
wan adulterated with renin, the liquid will have a
more or Ichh intennely reddinhhrown color from
the format ion of iiitioproiluctn. I in being tool
Orlmetrlo tent, it ia well to have some perfectly
pure wax for comparison. Tim reaction ismucli
more violent during boiling if renin in present
Ah little oh mm per cent, can lie detected in
thin way.
Lost TIME l-et any young man pann all the
evening in vacant idleness, or in reading bouiu
ndly tale, and compare the htato of hia mind,
w lieu he BON to nleep or gets up the next morn
ing, with in- ntate soine other day, when helian
Hpciit boiiic hoiira in going through the proofs,
hy facta and reasoning, 01 the gnat doctrine of
natural science, learning truths wholly new to
him, nntiafying himself, bv careful examina
tion, of the gTOUndl on which the known tYutha
neL so an to be not only acquainted with the
doctrines themselves, but be able to show why
he belle VM them and to prov e to others that they
are true; he wUl find an great a difference an
can exist i u the same being the difference lie
twceii looking liack upon tune utiprotitahlv
waalcd ami tune spent in n il itnprov eim-nt ; he
will leel hnnself, in one case, listless ami dia
natlstied, and m the other, comfortable mid
happ;iii the one case, il he did not IpJhW to
himself liuiuble, at leant w ill not haxe earned
any claim to bin oh ii rOfpeOt ; in the other 010,
he will eninv a proud consciousm-aa of havini!. bv
his ow n exertions, and therefore a more exalted
opinion, bent '-. :',.
Tiu oiiKMMt til s II Covin: kssion. In the
Siemens' ghisH works at livsdcii, there is now
manufactured a pfodttot which haa the name
properties aa a lUstie's temiiereil glass, the
ntrx-ngtli beUg commuiiicatetl by the preuurv
o( metallic ImIIs. Hates can Ih. nd.. tm tkk
ktthod. ot much larger dimensions than by t111 "
I ivasties. reel liaxe a Uautitut look, and
can bl ornamented With the Uloat complicated
deaigus, at a less cost than onlinary glass.
Piemen eiaima tlial gian-. m imilacturecl .y li
THE AVKRAtiE HIOHT OK MEN.
The Druij-juW Circular, in noticing the ques
tionable statement "that wc are Incoming a de
generate race," diHciiaaeH the tables prepared by
Itr. Ilaxter from the records of the I'rovoat Mar
ahal tieneral'a Bureau, male during the civil
war. These examinations were made during the
latter part of the war, after the finest lighting
material had been enlisted, consequently these
Htatiatica do not overestimate the average de
velopment of the American people. From the
tables of l)r. Baxter and those of Mr. Gould,
gathered by the Sanitary L'ointnisaioii, the Iu
dians are Known to lie a tall race. In the com
luriaon of States the Indiana would rank as
high ob the ninth, though it is curiouB to see
that they head the list of nationalities.
Here follow! the table showing the superiority
in stature of f0l,0ti8 men of the various nation
alities 18i,44H foreigners, three-iiftliH of whom
were from (iermany and Ireland the former
having a few thousand more than the latter :
Natws Mmm llioiiTj jjAtw Hea iiioiit
I I s , imllktia BT.tNH
I I' a., Wliitea I17.U7:
:i Nomy 8T.407
i. Sctland 7.00(i
f.. Ilritinti America. , u;.en
(1. (SueUvti W 81 Ml
7 Irduiid 00.741
H. pi'iimark 66.6481
'J HulUiiit 66.631
in. Elunifurv 66684
ll. KiikUii.1 KHTpt PortOgaJ
U Oannaaf 6 Wi
It, tJ, H , Colored W.'o.W Mean ul total 67
tiraded according to the mean stature of the
inhahitanta (American born whites), the differ
ent .Northern Mates stand as follows:!
14. Waka
15. Kusii
16. nwllmlinil
17. Wt DdMt..,
18. Franco
19. 1'oland
SO. Mexico
j21. Italy
'H. Soulh Amt-riea.
23. Kiwin
", 41-
. .m.m
..66 381
..m:m
. .m.-m
..(16.211
..66.110
..66.000
. ,66.b'J
..'.-
. .65.432
Mkan iikiiitI
1. Kentucky.
K Kuiim
:t. Mini.esota. . .
4 MIhm uri
;. Calihirnla. . .
6. Nevada
7. Indiana
& Waal Virninii
it. WaaooatB...
10. Maine UT.aHftj
11. lew 67.W
It Illinois 0T.8U
It vt .. 6T.8U1
i;- ,'..M
.1-
:t:i;
.68. so;
68 281
IN ov.ii
N.vrm
Mban iiioiit
14 Maryland 67.814
16. Ohio 67.882
m. Varmoot 67.683
17. lieUwara 67.490
lh. IVniiHj'lvania 07.470
19. Hist, of Ci)iimliia.67.3f3
'I. ROOM Island H7.2W
1, New York 67.874
2. New Jersey 67.028
tt New llmi!ni-hlre...66.92l
t. MassiiehuselU.... 66.891
m. L'onnectlfUl 66.587
Mean of total
Roonita Snuum anh Ooouxa Horsra.-
The VrtfMtial Kminv. niiblished in Shaimhai
Chine, OlTeri some suggestions, saya the Iron great. The apparatus does not interfere with
TO LOWBB THE TEMPERATUHE IN A
SICK ROOM.
Dr. Henry X. Dodge, of Morristown, givea the
following to the Scientific A merkansA the result of
his experience: A few weeks ago, while thinking
with aome anxiety of the dangers which the ap
proaching hot weather might bring to his toeth-
hild. the idea occurred to tlie writer
THE ORIGIN OF PETROLEUM.
At a recent meeting of the Chemical Society
of Si Petersberg, Professor Mendelijeff sought
to combat some of the old notiona on the origin
of petroleum, and to substitute a new theory on
the subject It has been maintained by m&ny
geologists that the decomposition of mineral
that the temperature of a heated room might be miitter in the lower strata of the earth was the
source oi petroleum.
.xienueiijeu uence uiai, me true source is to
lie found much lower down. The sandstone in
which it is found were not its original sour
as is shown from the fact that no carbonized an'
imal remains are lounn in it. i Here ought also
to be other products of animal decomposition, if
that was the starting point; we must search
lower down, even below the Silurian, as the
mineral on m wiu v.aueiiMin in louim in the
Tertiary, and in Pennsylvania in the Devonian
and Silurian. As, however, in the rocks heln
the Silurian there was verv little ureanie lifn
the formation of such a great quantity of petro-
iuuui wvum cv-j v-v-m w oui.u a liUllUxl
source. Meudeliicti therefore oroiioses n mik
stitute for the organic theory. He goes back to
the nebular nypotiiesis ol Ijiplace, and applies
inuetuiB ht i" u inigiiiui odvuub UOIlUlllon
of the material of the earth, and, taking into
consideration the density of the earth and 1 1-,
vapor density of the elements, he arrives at the
conclusion that the interior contains many met
als, and that chief amoug them is iron; bnally,
be assumes the presence of carburetic com
pounds of the metals, and comes to the follow
ing conclusions: Through some of the tissurea
in the crust of the earth, occasioned by the
upheaval and depression of the Burface, water
percolated to the carbureted metals, and acted
upon them at high temperature and elevated
pressure, thuB forming metallic oxides and sat
urated hydro-carbonB; the latter rose in ti,
form of vapor to the upper strata, where they
condensed to liquids in porous sandstones and
Dther rocks having a tendency to absorb liquids.
The internal heat of the earth occasioned thp
reduction of carbureted metals, and this gave
rise to hydro- carbons. Other chemists than
MendelijetT have shown, experimentally, that
something very like petroleum can be produced
artificially by imitating in the laboratory the
process above described.
lowered by keeping the window aw nings satu
rated with water or any voiatue uutu.
Hy this means not only would the air which
entered the windows be cooled by contact with
the cool wet surface of the canvas, but also by
evaporation of the moisture from the awnings.
Accordingly, on the following day, a brass tube
having a diameter of one-quarter of an inch w as
so placed that it would lie across the outside
surface of the awning at a distance of a few
inches from the upper edge, which is attached
by hooks and rings to the house. Tho ends of
the tube, being bent at right angles to the tube,
hang down by the sides of the awning about six
inches. All along the aide of the tnbo which
touched the awning were drilled, at intervals of
three inches, holes about the size of a pin. One end
of the brass tube was closed and over the other
end was slipped a small indiarubber tube. This
tube was carried in at the open window aud con
nected by an ordinary screw coupliug to the near
est cold water faucet The awnings of threo
w indows of the nursery havingbteu supplied with
this simple apparatus, the water was turned on,
and, after passing through the rubber tubing,
escaped through the perforations in tho metal
tubes, and, llowmg evenly over the front and
sideB of the awnings, dripped upon tho tin roof
of the porch below the windows a miniature
summer shower. In a Bhort time a refreshing
coolness and moisture of the atmosphere re
minded one of breezes blowing into the windows
from off the surface of a lake. A thermometer
hung outside of the window under the awning,
while Btill dry.Bhowcd a temperature of 974" Eah.
Upon turning the water on, the mercury sunk
in If minutes to 00 Foh,, the thermometer still
hanging below the awning, but protected from
contact with the water. A still more marked
effect might be produced by passing the rubber
tulw through a pail of broken ice. The appara
tus iH inexpensive; the amount of water used ia
small, while the comfort which it might bring
to a sick child or a feeble invalid might be very
ia. that nfatht ls of value on thin aide of the the risiiu; or lowerini; of the awnini;: ondshnuld
globe, as the U:mjcrature which calls forth the the dripping Ix; objectionable where there iB no
remarks ia not higher than that of moat Amor-! roof below to receive it, a small gutter of canvas
ieaii eitiea in midaumnier. The Cbineso prae- j or metal could be readily attached to the lower
lice of rooting their streets in hot weather with ; edge of the awning to carry off the water; or a
a temporary covering of matting is spoken of in m.,11 Mow of water may be used, enough only
termaof hiidi approval. Streets thus shaded
are Baid to furtiinh a moat agreeable arcade. It
is further Hiiggeated that t he air lieneatb the
matting might advantageoualv lie kept in mo
tion by out-door punkaliH. (minora there are
plenty of inventions for wanning houses, hut
very few for cooling them. What a delightful
convenience it would be, for instance, to he
able, by merely turning the button of a register,
to let a cool wind pour into a room at any mo
ment: Must we wait till the next generation
introduces the latest improvement before wo
can have ldb hot and cold air, aa well as hot
and cld water in our houses?
Tui Hayikn Sitrvkys, A telegram from
Washington gives the following interesting in
formation: .lames Stevenson, executive otlicer
of Prof. Haydeu'a geological survey, has just
returned from the Held of exploration. Steven-
sou nays that several divisions of the expedition
are still at work and approaching the comple
tion of their luUr for the season. Each divis
ion has ten t In. n , in. I aquare miles assigned it
for examination, and reports just received from
the seats of divinions indicate that they will
(hush their field work by the tirat of October.
I lie result ol tins year a examinations will be
ipial in importance to that of any previous
year. lhe work of aurvey in the present year
will bo in the Territories of Idaho, Wyoming,
and Montana.
Kit a v it in llurs.- We read in the bindon
FttritK r that Swedish swindlers have invented a
way of makilii! Bitciit hops better than new.
Oar prodnoen w ill be interested to hear of the
fraud : " I he transactions of the Medical Society
t 1'psaln contain an aermint of anew swindle
in the hop trade that is practiced in that city
on a connote ralilo scale, llon which have al
ready Ken used for making etracts, or for
bowing in the onlinary way, are djinpetl w ith
tincture of alwinthe, or wonnwtsnl, freed from
apirit by distillation, redried, and then placed
Upon the market an a genuine article, with or
without the addition of a little frenh bloom.
Owing to their iuereaned bittcriieHH they ofton
command a bitter price than unadulterated
hops.
Siwp) m BOAT, A manufacturer inTiliat, in
stead o adding infusorial earth or ground
iuartr. to the soap mass and thus pntducing n
sapolio, introduces a considerable quantity of
very line Bawdunt, previously ground and sifted.
The wood (iler acta mechanically aa a deter
gent, and K'aides cleaning rapidly and tbor
onbly, iHvaaioiiH a savimr of one-third in tin
consumption of aoap. The tap doea not OOtt
prttcvaa has a greater strength than teiitervd
Kin", in me ratio m live to tin
U shows a tlbroua atnuturv,
n-e. When broken
hde U Hashe s
i, tu (he rati
10 cryaUlh
ShiNAij km tu k Burnm or Auku-i i.tcmh.
tieiieral U hue, the new CommuMoiict ,.
Agriculture, baa strongly endorsed and Mill
give all HeWale aid for a "fair lest of the plan (
atonu and iU-d aignala bv means of the tele
graph and nttann, to give certain, instant and
general warning ot DOMtg toriu. mainly for
the U-ne III ot agrn ulture during ,1 ' 1
hanrat. and also of coiniiivive. and to riv
warning of sudden destructive jaOOttl on nUad
PWaWat
MontRS Turkeys don t cry "ouit aa rvadily
aa ""in, folka supisl turkeys did.
f stnla, and has 110 ill effect on
the hauda. An analysis of a apecimeii eight
laya old yielded grease, 44 ; ainla, ti ; wood,
ilyeerine, coloring matter. It! ; water, 40 .
Vhe price at the factory ia altout live cents per
Htund.
'I uevcr felt ao fniihteiutl 111 aU life," she
said to her btver; "I turned as white aa your
shirt front no" on lusjHvtion "very much
w niter.
TM waitvra at a Martha'a Vine van! hotel
t nick juat at dinner time. One half of the
gueata waited upon the other half. Come Kv k
to their old busiueaa, you know,
OoanraUDN the Urgw amount of ' itch' in
their iiauiea, the Ruaaiaiia are alow in " coining
up to the aerateb." The "offaki" coutiterltal
ancva the itch they haf for rtghtiug.
lumkH Ut love aVhort girl than never to love
UUL
to keep the canvas moist.
On FlUBt A writer for the Polytechnic. lie
eiVir notes the following points: In using a new
tile, the pressure employed at first should lie
comparatively light, until the very Bharp edges
of the teeth havo been removed; after which,
stronger pressure aud deeper cut may bo made
without injury to the teeth. Rut if the teeth
have hard usage put upon them while their
edges are keen and penotrating, they ore likely
to take hold more strongly and liecome broken
off at the root A few careless strokes may
damage a new tile so as to take away half the
"life of the first cutting. The lUni of cast
ings are not only "chilled,'' ami hence harder
than the interior, but are often glazed with a
vitreous surface, in which, also, gritty particles
are imbedded. No new file should be UBed on
such surfaces, nor on welds where borax
or vitreous tluxes have been used, nor on oxid
ized Biirfaccs; but a worn file should be used
to attack such work, which will scarcely harm
it. For iilini: steel, grades coarser than second
cut are apt to be too "hoggish;" steel cannot 1
ripped off like brass or iron, and the same cut
of tile should not be used on steel and on iron,
any more than on brass and iron, or horn and
iron. In buying files, see that V7 irrioAr is
given, esitccially where recutting is to be done.
Yv lute a lignt-weigiit lile win nardly stand one
recuttiug, one that iB full weight will liear re
cutting two or three times.
NoilltKNHKJULp's N'KXT K.XI'KIHTION. For
Professor Nordenskj old's expedition, which is
to set out from tiothenbinv, in Sweden, in June.
1S7S, u vessel bos already Itceu chartered for
l.'iO.OOO Swedish crowns (about S'-Vt.OOO.) King
Oscar has contributed .'.n.unn crowna from In
personal revenue, but the burden of thecxpeu
will lie borne by the friend mid natron of Nn
denBkjold, a merchant of tlotbenburg named
Dickson. The route of the exedition will be
from its startine; isint to the North Cam-, thence
eontwardlv through the Polar Sea to and
through llehritig'e Strait; thence along the
eastern and southern coasts of Asia, through the
Red Sea, the Suez Canal, aud the Mediterranean
ea to the Atlantic Ocean, and return home
tne auiuiun 01 ibjm, nils looks like a voyage
of general discovery, aud if the North Pole
should lie struck, all the better, He can bang the
.-wcciiHii nag upon it.
AilltllTIn KAI. Imi'i.k.mknts in lit ssia.
The United States Consul at Odessa recently
wrote mi tne rotate l K'parttneiit at v.ashingti
that "implements of airriculture Baiffht come
great iuantitiea to this country if our manufac
turers would make an effort in that direction,
and adapt their implements for the uae of the
peasantry of this country. The principal thing
to lie done ia to make them OIOQOttillglj) firm
aim hixoiik. .-mencau reapera ami mowera are
now the favorita above all others, and have a
large aaie. in other machinery the Knglwh
manufacturers have the field, and I have seen
no article of their machinery that excels the
American, unless expeiuiyeneas may he deemed
an excellence. 1 am persuaded that there ia a
hue held here for the American threshing ma
chine," CtlaJtUtfl Iron Wire.-Retz, of St. Ingltert,
haa conatructwl an apparatus for freeing iron
wire by mev-hamcal meana from forge scale.
The pnitaj consists in drawinn wir snraai ml.
lera. w huh remove the acale fmm it on each of
its aides ly mere preaaure, the last step in the
Muupai wm pi itw u inrougn a oox contain
ing s.tiui ami can
Wdtbina. The
Delicate Machinf.kv. The mechanical ma
chinery at the Bank of England, says the
lirttifih (Kit1 Journal, is marvelotiBly perfect
It may not Imj nenernlly known that the London
bankers, when the standard weight of the work
ing sovereigns in suspected, Bend these into the
hank ot iMigland, tnc suspected coihh nemg kept
separate and wei'-hed one by one, and the
light sovereigns charged to the debit uf the
banking house that delivered them. To large
concents like Olyu's, the Loudon aud West
miniBter, Barclay's, and the National Provin
cial, the debit account fur light gold foots up at
the end of tho year to a lurge amount. The
defidenoy in tho weight is caused by abrasion
u the constant wear and lingering ot the gold
OurrenOTi lhe machines which weigh the
sovereigns are numerous, about 12 or 14. Thev
are driven by ati air engine, and are fed througn
long tubes placed in an inclined position over
the tnachinca, and one by one these clever ma
chines weigh 1 In in, and, like stern sentinels pass
the honest sovereigns to the right hand, out
without ceremony, kick the luzht one, which is
found wanting, into another basket These ma-
liincs are licaittitul. llieir pertcct automatic
action excites admiration. Tho sovereigns
which pass this infallible and equally indexible
judge are put into haga and have the honor of
again asserting their holiest value in the busy
world. With regard to thoso which have been
placed in thia1eautiful balance and found want
ing, they aro cut to pieces and afterwards cast
into a burning tiery fumace at the Mint, and
there regenerated in hill weight and measure,
made bright ami heautiful, and impressed with
the image of Queen Victoria.
Women as Chemists. Tho laboratories for
at women which were established six months ago
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, ap
pear to be successful. Some of the pupils are fit
ting themselves to teach; two have maile special
study of some Bubject, for the purpose of assist
ing their husbands in business; others take the
course as a part of their education, without
definite plana for applying their knowledge, and
and others still take some subject that will en
able them to understand and to make collectioua
at home, and to give their children an intelli
gent interest in some form of science.
Watkkiiiook Leather.. Melt one liter of
boiled linseed oil, 125 grammes of suet, 4t
grammes wax. and 112 grammes resin together
over a bIow tire, and apply it to the leather with
a brush while warm. This composition keeps
the leather very soft The hnghsh tishermeD
have long been uaiug it They can remain in
the w ater for hours ere it penetratea through the
leather.
ItrsTli' " Hood-bye, Betty. We heee going
for good." Betty "Then mind thee don't miai
the way. It be the furat time thee s ever. been
011 that road, rmtbinkin."
"All, parson, 1 wish I could carry my gold
with me. ' aniil a dvintr mAii 1. , hia tiastor. "It
might melt;" was the consoling reply.
The Mayor of Boston nuta both wine and
water before his guest, and thui far in thes
son one pitcher of water hu answered.
Yor had better learn to awim hefore you get
drowned, as you will probably have no time
aftvrwarda. Yonken Gazette.
hair, whence it is wouud on
wire ia said not to suit, r ,,,, .1
Hy by the manipulation it undergoes.
The latest invention is paper trunks. And
now we suppose we may call the ruthless beg
gagenian the paer macher.
b the ends of Huaaian names were to be
chopped "off," the last syllable, in many case
would bl kiioeked "ski" high.
Heath loves a shining mark, yet we seldesn
hear of the decease of a bootblack Wmi0
Time.