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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (July 1, 1878)
SUPPLEMENT TO THE WEST SHOKE. AMERICAN AKCILEOLOGY. For more than a quarter of a century, the Smithsonian Institution has been engaged in researches concerning the antiquities of America. As the result of its efforts many important memoirs have been prepared, and published in its Annual Reports and in the Contributions to Knowledge; and the National Museum, in charge of the Institution, has become the de nositorv of the largest and most valuable col lection of American aboriginal relics in the world. In continuation of previous effort in the same direction, the Institution contemplates the puo lication of an exhaustive work on American arclneoloi'v. with numerous illustrations. This will be accompanied by a series of mupH, exhib iting bv aimroiiriate siimi and colors the local ities and distinctive characteristics of ancient mounds and earthworks, shell -heaps, cave and cliff-dwellings, masonry, sculptured slabs or carved lunges, inscriptions ami rock painting, L'raves and cemeteries, aboriginal iiitarriM and salt works, caches or deposits of objects in large quantities, workshops or piacf"! or annem nwr iginal industry, ancient roads or trails, and reservoirs and aqueducts. To this cud the In stitution desires to collect from every available source, whatever is now known, or can lie ascer tained by special investigation, of tint antiquities of North America; and it invites the co-operation of all. Prw, Henry, the secretary, has issue I a circular in pamphlet torm, which He Hcrihcs the qImIM 01 facts which aro desired, and all who desire to aid in this interesting work would da well to apply for this circular to ffOl, Joseph Henry, WMDlDgtOO, IK U. OSK il' TUB Hiailtfn MoUHTAINR, Accord ing ti recent geographical surveys, the Scien tific Anurhan says it seems the Aconcagua peak is the loftiest of the Andes range, and the highest in America. It is KM) mile east of Valparaiso, and nearly in latitude 82 1 80 smith. Its actual night ii hot accurately known, hut the measurements nia'lo by M. nssis, ami oilier noted scientists make it reasonaldy certain that the elevation is between 23,400 and 28,000 feet above the waters of tho sea. The French ex plorer made it 82,422, or four miles and 1,802 feet over, which would be 098 feet higher than tho snowy summit of Ohimborazo, as Hum boldt measured the latter, when in IN02 the great lierimin made his famous ascent of that mountain with lloupland to a bight of 19,288 feet. Aconcagua, seen from the IhUean sea port of 'alparaiso, i shown only U a peak, towering above the other bights of the Andes at a distance of 100 miles or more inland, to ward the sunrise. Aconcagua has been called an extinct volcano, but the best examinations yet made of its summit do not appear to bear out the idea. The recent observations make tho bight of the Chilean mountain 23200 feel, mid "probably" over that liguro. The eleva tion of Maxloo'l highest mountain - Popocate petl, or "Smoking mountain"- -ll nearly 8,000 faet less than that of the Chilean peak, and Mount Shasta and Mount Hood fall short to about the same figure. Pike's peak is about 0,000 feet lower than Aconcagua. Tim BlD-Bvaft is Swallows' Nk.sts. Du ring a Into trip to the western Territories, I'rof. Leiuy, while watching soiuu cliff swallows Kiss ing In and out of their mud built nests, was told that thee neata swarmed with bed-bugs, and that people wouhl not usually allow the birds to build io such places, because tlicy in troduced bcd-bngi into the houses. He col lected a number ol the tragi from the swallows' nests, as well as from the houses. The latter were found to be the true tied bug; the former the t'inur hh umt'oii. The bugs infesting the bat and pigeon have likewise been recognized as a peculiar j les. with the name of y, ..;'- tnili andCi colwnbarius. The habit off. hirun dtnk was found to lie similar to thatof (', UttM' hriitM, the bed'bttg, In the fact that the bugs during llie day-time would secrete themselves in the crevices of tho boards, away from the firsts. After sunset ho had observed the bugs leaVf their hiding places and make their way to the nests, From these observations it would appear M if the bugl pOttttlbUT to these animals Iswnlhtw s and men I did not reciprocally infest tin n hosts. Tmk Rlkotrio Limit i Bbrmk. Thefint experiment with the electric light In Berlin wan made receutlv in the new synagogue in Oranieii bnrg street, before a large crowd of people. In tho courtyard of the building, says the Inn Agt, a stationary apparatus furnished the light, which was conducted over the roof into two of the live roam) windows, whence tho light streamed down on tho synagogue below. Tho elfoct win astonishing. Tho light was so bril liant that it illuminated the gallery and the remotest corner of tho edifice. The splendor of tho light was vivid, but not offensive to tho sight. In comparison with gas, tho result is as follows : Qoj per hour, 9l."i . the electric light, $1 for tho MM lime. The apparatus costs sev eral thousand marks. The symigoguo was also lit up outside bv tho electric light, bringing it out as bright as day, and producing a most mag ical effect. Cut burned alongside of tho elec tric light looked I'dr, and was, as it wore, thrown into the slia.lo. POU RAIUKUIlt The loggers in the Wis. cmsin pineries this winter have been driven by tlio absence of snow to find something Iwsides sleds to haul their logs. One device is a pole railroad, which is thus dajnrlbtjl la the Ui Crosse ffgiettfoManat ttiiim "Flat cars are tado of eaAoteat sti paste, to hold a numlor of logs, and aro provided with wheels. The rails that these cars run on are common Hdes, bolted together at the ends ami aro kept in ( sition by the giMovod w heels. Tho tudos are laid on the bare ground, no other ties Wing neecs sary, and all that u necessary is in some in stances to level the ground, 'it costs but lit tle to lay tho track, which can easily 1 moved, and is not apt to get out of repair. The cars aw drawn by horses and are reported to move easily with hvavy loads, while the device .-u the whole is said to b giving the greatest satisfac turn both in its working and in the coat of oper ation. " INDIAN IltRIGATION WORKS. In Ijord Salisbury's despatch to the Governor General of India there ia the following para graph : Very much stress haa been laid from time to time upon the financial and other advantages to be derived from expenditure on these works, and during the past autuma the construction of them in the Madras Presidency upon a vast Bcale has been strenuously urged. The fact that demands of this kind have re cently been made by persons of authority-would of itself Btithce to make a searching investiga tion of the question highly exjedient. If there is room by such undertakings materially to re lieve the Madras people from bo much suffering, and the Indian treasury from an intolerable burden, the const ruction of the works ought to be commenced with the least possible delay. If, on the other band, this resource is not to any great extent available, ami any such un dertaking, on the contemplated scale, wouhl only impose fresh burdens on the taxpayers, without effecting any notable diminution of the evil, it i "f blffi importance that the evidence of that fact should set forth Willi sufficient ful ness ami cogency to dissipate all illusion upon the subject. In the reports vjiieh your Kxcel lency has forwarded ino from time to time, 1 find much to lead me to believe that tho very cause which produced the famine in many case has made irrigation works wholly or partially Ineffective, The same want of rain which parched the fields, emptied Lhu tanks, and les soned the volume of the rivers. The absence of glaciers in the bills of Southern India would naturally render the irrigation canals far more liable to be affected by want of rain than bim- Uar works in tho valleys of the Ganges and In- due. Replying to a letter from Mr. K. Jenkins. M. r.,Mr. Barke, Secretary of the Indian Irrigation Society, wrote as follows: "Most of our commit ter are of opinion that a judicious extension of ir rigation canals is one of the urgent wants of India, ami as regards Sir Arthur Cotton, tdthnugh all tbu other members of our committee do not necessarily go as far as he does, lie can scarcely be called a mere 'theorist' even by those who do not egrH w ith him, inasmuch as ho himself constructed tho two most practically successful irrigations works in India the Godavvry and the Tanjore canals which me paying, accord ing to the government return, no less than sts and 21 per annum respectively on the original outlay." FniKit num. llor Plant. Propoeali have frequently been made, Bays (lie London FttfUUf to utilize the stems and other parts of hop plants for the manufacture of paper and various textile fabrics, but hitherto they appear to have been turned to little practical account. It is true the stems have often been employed on a imap scale in making fOpM and similar rough articles, and even carpets have been produced frcm the bleached libre, but anything like a general utilization of the nw material has not, as yet, been attained. Wo learn from a Wur teuiburg agricultural . fed that a process has now been patented by M. Xordlingcr, of Stutt gart, by which the liber out be rendered sulti oiootly tractable to enable it to compete with llav on almost equal terns. The stems, etc., are boiled in w ater, to Vhloh soap or soda has been added, for three-quarters of an hour, thoroughly washed, nut then again boiled in very dilute acetic acid. The tihers are now washed free, and dried, and when properly OOmbed can bo worked like other textile ma terials. They are said to resemble lax libers very closely, and to be superior to all others in elasticity, softness and durability. It is much to be hoped that this process of employing the stems may prove a (radical success, for at proa ant, if the hop itself fail, the crop so tenderly nurtured it little less than a dead loss to the unfortunate grower. RorniNii Am. In a lecture by PiO. Leeds at the Stevens Institute of Technology UpOU "Ozone and tho Atmosphere," tho lecturer an nounced the results ot a series of analysis of the atmosphere, ami compared them with those executed by Regnault, Bunnell and other Hiiro jvoan chemists upon tbu composition of tho air in other parts of the world. The samples of air had been collected oti various occasions upon the grounds at the Centennial Exhibition at I'hilsdclpbia, and in the dilTcrciit Centennial buildings. During the name summer samples were collected in New York, Brooklyn, Hobo ken, ami upon many of the Adirondack moun tains. 1 ten ides those samples, beginning with one taken on the 4th of duly, 187b", others were Itcing collected ami carefully preserved, with the design of transmitting them to some chem ist of the future who, by analyzing them with Improved methods at tho lapse of a century, might bo better able to decide what is still a matter of assumption, that there are no causes in ocratioti to produce a slow secular change in tho constitution of tho earth's atmosphere. EEiarni Bcxumra ICaxnuu, me recent investigations concerning tho coefficient of con duction for heat of Tarious building materials excluding the influence of radiation, and making measurements by moans of the thermo-electric multiplier show that stones are much letter conductors of heat when wet than when dry, and that various classes of thorn, such as marble, sanditoiie, irranite, etc.. have aiioroviniatelv the same coefficients of conduction, while bricks of all kinds aro much worse conductors than the natural stones. Those facts huve an imiortaut bearing, certainly, not only upon the construc tion of buildings, but upon tho methods of management in case of lire. To Hkmovr Fkietkmcs. Grate horsenjisli in a cup of cold sour milk ; let it stand t'lve hours ; strain and apply two or three tirfes a day. Or mix lemon juice, one ounce; pilver . d borax, oue-quarter drachm ; sugar, one half drachm . keep a few days in a glass pottle, then apply occasionally. Cuuxiso TiswAKK. The best thing for cleaning tinware is common soda. Dampen a cloth and dip in soda, rub the ware 'briskly, after which wipe dry. Any blackene1 or dirty JAPANESE PORCELAIN. By Q W. G CM BEL in Dingier1 fulytethnif Journal. ' Traiwlated for the Misiso asd ScntSTinc Prkss.J Japan is well known for its richness in fine clay. Tho raw material even is bo pure that it can be used to produce the justly admired porcelain ware of that country. The center of this porcelain manufacture is the city of Arita, in the province Hizen. In a very small circle about this city are found all the necessary ma terials of such purity that they can be simply ground and elutriated without further mixture, and made into tho finest "egg-shell porcelain." Besides this material is found in the middle parts of Nippon, where granite predominates, in the provinces of Oivari, Yanialnro and on the island Awnjishima opposite Hiago, where the beds are very similar to those of Bohemia. For tho preparation of porcelain this Bubstance is mixed with siliceous and felspathic earth from other adjacent regions. These materials have but just now been prospected petrograplib cally, and have scarcely yet been chemically examined. I seize this opportunity to add a few contri butions upon some material from the neighbor hood of Arita, which I received through the kindness of the Japanese Exhibition Commis sioner, Prof. Dr. Wagner, of Vienna, This substance is peculiar in possessing throughout a stony rattier than un earthy appearance, ana six specimens of it resemble a white or pale yellow clay stone f Frliilitjl'J, possess a tolerable hardness, about that of brick, is compact, not porous and apparently quite homogeneous with out noticeable admixture of mineral, and only one specimen is friable, soft, and like our (the German) porcelain earth. This atono-Iiko ma terial we will for short call porMiin utoue in contradistinction to porcelain earth. It con sists when examined under the microscope in thin sections of a tolerably water-clear matrix which is more or ten mixed with the linest dust Ukfl particles, the minutest graiu. bubbles, lit tlo needles and irregular fragment!. They have no definite recognizable crystalline form, but show under polarized light the woll-known play of colors, which belongs to crystalline rocks. Amorphous admixture was not observed in any noticable quantity. On the other baud there swim in this matrix, in one sort commonly, in the rest less often, little heaps, or grain-like aggregations. These prove tote balled together of little round grnins, irregularly, now long, now zigzag tlocculent clouds which nre opaque. Near them appear irregularly shaped particles of the matrix more uniform in composition of a yellowish hue. With the exception of the smallest water-clear, short iplintcrs perhaps of qnattl, feldspar or mica tbro were no mineral teparationa. There were quy found in most of tlio specimen! little crystiils of pyrites, which were sometimes united in little heaps, or when decomposed form yellow spots or streaks. In single specimens one notices curved cracks, and parallel stripes which tails tho variolithie structure. The whole resemble in the most striking manner a fcldspoiliie or traohytio clay rock, such as is found in Hungary in the traohytio districts. This hard porcelain stone appear! to be pecu liar to the Japan OH as veil as the Chinese por celain manufacture. 'Hie porcelain earth-like, soft earthy substances an servo only as admix tures to the other fina-r varieties. This earthy mass consists of similar crystalline water-clear, and opaque partldesae well as the stone-like, only these loose fragiicnt are not bound firmly together by a inatni. A chief constituent of this mixture eeemsja.be silica or a silicate of alumina. For accosting it was impossible to remove but ft minbnm of the silica by boiling potaaht This woidl all dissolve were it in the amorphous coiiditsn. This being accepted, a clay-Iiko nature lecins ft show itself iu my analyses, The clunictcrist.ic of this substance seems its richiiosain silica and its small amount of water. So far as 1 know there is but one other chemical analysis ot a Japanese clay which has been pnblialed, viz: that of Mahiguti of Sevres. 1 his ajpeara iu column A II III VI mm cuii ;.7i4JL'i 14 27 II M 1100 I! t . 3 s'.i 311 It 70 U.M 067 1 14 trace lu trace tme 015 u em ail U Ull D Oil VH 1.7s iiu a. io ui -;ei 0 33 i". 0.&7 0.27 0.39 ManssutMt) Oildu Llnir, I , ft, SfMsJa, ,B0 HL ! 110 I. Itanium, mili-lir. etc, In UinVrfci sjassrslk f WsUr, 10000 10031 100 13 100 60 KM 5 US 20 08.71 I. Qood Japanese white porcelain. II. I'ormlain stouo witji distinct particles of pyrites. III. Sightly yellowish porcelain atone. IV. Pauling white jKircelain atone. V. rorrelain stone containing pyrites. VI. lhzxling white, soft, fragile porcelain earth vwy similar to the Kuroiean, but con tains considerable leas water. In gsieral tho composition is tolerably vary ing, be not more than is usual. If we com pare Uc analysis of the raw materials with that Of the manufaeturored burned pmtJfin (I ), it will It clear at tho tirst glance that this latter can h- TnA.it- only through an admixture of the clay nade by pounding and elutriating the pof celaii stone with tho natural soft porcelain eartn(VI). They must mix about two parts of the first kind with one jtsrt of the latter. M in order to produce such a high jwrcentage of alkalies there muat probably have lieen ailed feldspar poerdoi in addition, or as in Qaiaa, add ana, This latter ia there burnt ith the stems of ferns, probably to le able to tilize the alkali of the ash of the latter. The molded and dried porcelaiD ia then dried in small furnaces. In fracture, the Chi nese pon'elaiu is a little reddish and glistening, while the .I .u.J... ... is uf a daulimr white entor and has a beantiful white glaie, this ia still con siderably highteced bv the naiuted eolnrs which are added. Hut this paintiug ia moitly thin. 1eeli oft. and IS COnseouentlv not vkfv HOW TO BUILD WOODEN KAIU STEAM ROADS. As wo have lately described, there teetai quite a disposition now to builjl wooden rajj ways for steam locomotives in regions w here wood is plenty, and tn expense of iroD caj)not be borne. This has been, so far reduced topra tice that Eastern locomotive builders are m nouncing styles of locomotives which are wpj ally adapted to use ou wooden rails. 0w 0 these firms have prepared an interesting iUt ment of the best timber to use in these rosdl and how to lay them. The kind of timber to uBe is of course a local question to he decided according to available Bupj lies. It is said that the best wood is maple, laid with tho heart nu hard pine is used iu tho South. The simplest form of wooden rail is a Stringer cut in l to 20 feet lengths, and of such cross Motion aa the kind of wood or weight of engine ranttffl Six iuchcB square stringer is the size we would generally advise, although five inches face by seven inches depth is as good. Four iBetS face by bix inches depth, or live inches simare will answer for our smallest engines, if ths wood is good still smaller sizes may housed by placing the cross-tieB close together, say two feet or two and a half feet between centers ; for large stringers, four feet between centers will answer. When worn out on the top the btrinwr may be reversed, nnd when Again worn may be used for ties, The ties are easiest fitted and laid if made uniform, nnd of about the same size lumber sj the rails ; six inches square il heavy enough. Any cheap lumber nut specially liable to decay will do. Ordinary hewn tics may be used but not being uniform are less convenient for cutting out recesses for rails. They should be at least three feet longer than the width of the track between rails. Tho ties must be cut out accurately and nni. formly to receive the mils. The recesses slioukl bo about three inches deep, "and be at the top face of the tie an inch, and at tho bottom of tho recess one and one-half inch wider than the rail. The inner faces of the recesses are perpendicular, and the distance between them is tho gauge of tho track. The bottom of the recess should be level, and ties laid welltoaffonl pruiwr bearing for the stringer. Wedges made of any cheap wood, or better, of ends of atulF loft from rails, are driven on the outsides of the rails. They are made of right shape to lit the space left ; the reason for making this space wider at the bottom than at the top is to keep tho wedges from working np, bo that tho rail may be held securely in place. The stringers must bo arranged to break joints on the ties. Doth stringers should not break joint on the same tie ; llie Btrinjenj are Bometimcs sawed oft" diagonally iiiBtcad of per pendicularly, so as to lie lapped and spiked to gether, The lumber for a hard pine wooden road costs about t-IoU per mile. With another style of wooden road the stringer is made of hemlock or any cheap lura bar, and a maple strip four to five Inches wide and two and one-half to three inches thick ia spiked On to tho stringer. By this plan, such a part of the rail as is worn out may lie removed without taking up tho strincar. Tins nwatS strip may bo replaced by a T rati rail eousider bly lighter than would bo reqofared if laid di rectly on cross-ties. We would strongly advise this instead of strap iron. A wooden rail is very slippery w hen wet, and hard to keep clear of snow ami loo in frciuiig weather. On very liad curves and iteep radee a wooden rail is impracticable, uud iron mutt he used. A locomotive has but one-half or two -tliinls the pOWOt ou wood that it hits on iron ths friction useful for traction is lets, and the itasge friction is greater. Locomotive! hr woojfij raits require to be very strongly built and to be evenly balanced ; the Weight slioilld be Itiianii the drivers largt r than for the same size cylin ders on iron rail. Generally speaking we would dissuade any one from laying a wooden rail. In caica where lumber is oheap, and iron very dear, it may bo advisable to operate a Wooden road, as for in stance w here a cheap improvement on an ordin ary country wagon road is needed. To do any considerable business on the very best wooden road that can lie built, will in the words of one of our customers who has tried the experi ment, "require a very rich concern." Parties using animal power for hauling on a wtoden rail, if content not to greatly increase the load, may effect a very considerable saving by using a locomotive ; but for UllllplVUtlW uiHin n scale of any macnitude, wooden roada are very unsatisfactory and almost 'iinpractica- Dae, Thk DaaTBDCnoil Off HlCE The Prague au thorities invite earnest attention to the terf eeriooe proportions the plague of mice throogh out Bohemia has assumed, and recommend the adoption of a number of measures Ahcrebv they hope to stay its progress. Among theac are the protection of animals destructive totiuee, such as titeliots, owls, hawks, jackdaws, aid crows; Butlocatioii by tho introduction of sftmke, or aulphur fumes, or water in the holes; deep plowing in autumn; the distribution M piua oi iron tilings and yeast made up with fat. or of wheat, barley, or other cram that hi been soaked for '24 hours in a solution of oak ashes, or of little balls of meal and t.ow uer glass, or, lastly, of small bits of sponge baCMi in bacon-fat. Thev further gave warning tli all this formidable arsenal will be ef little series nulcss it be brought to !ear before the ntf bavs gained any considerable ascendency, far their natural fecundity issounoomforUblygreat that under favorable circumstances, a rfaaa ir may reckon on some &V,0ttO direct lineal descend ants the course of a twelve moot I.. "Oil Smei.lf.sh. They ha- "oil ncllera in the oil reghins who profess tt he able to de tect the exiaUncsof petndeem I,(Worl..Val feet below the surface, by snipandjtig an her meticallv scaled bottle from a "ring close to the ground. One wealthy sftrater. referred to by the Titutville UtraU, was hsantl 1 vmi- be tkii iwim nf hau I" ii. to the ex w are can tie matte to look as well as durable. tent of f I , joo worth of dry Iul- f