June, 1880.
THE WEST SHORE.
183
FACTS USEFUL AND CURIOUS.
The greyhound rung by eyesight only, and
this we observe as a fact. The carrier pigeon
llios his 250 miles homeward by eyesight
namely, from point to point of objeota which he
has marked; but this is only our conjecture.
The fierce dragon-ny, with 1,UUU lenses in lus
eye, darts from angle to angle with the rapidity
of a flashing sword, and as rapidly darts back,
not taming in the air, but with a clash revers
ing the action of his four wings, and instanta
neously calculating the distance of the objeots,
or he wonld dash himself to pieces. But in
what conformation of the eye does this consist?
No one can answer.
A oloud of 10,000 gnats dance up and down in
the sun, the minutest interval between them, yet
no one knockB another headlong upon the grass,
or breaks a leg or wing, long and delicate as
these are. Suddenly, amidst your admiration
of this matchless dance, a peculiarly high shoul
dered, vicious anat. with long, pcndaut nose,
darts out of the rising and falling cloud, and,
nnttlinff on vour cheek, inserts a poisonous
sting. What possessed the little wretch to do
this? Via he amen your uioou u me m.y
dance? No one knows.
A carriage pomes suddenly upon a Hook of
geese, on a narrow road, and drives straight
through the middle of them. A goose was
never yet fairly run over, nor a duck. They
are under the very wheel and hoofs, and yet
somehow they contrive to llap ahd waddle
safely off. Habitually stupid, heavy and indo
lent, they are nevertheless equal to any emer-
WW WW
Why does the lonely woodpecker, when he
deaoendB his tree and goos to drink, stop sev
eral times on his way, listen and look round,
Worn h takes his drauizht? No one knows.
How is it that the species ot ant, wnicn is
in battle by other ants to bo made Blaves, I
NEW INVENTIONS.
We publish descriptions of the following new
inventions, obtained through Howoy ft Co.,
Mining and Scitntiie Prm Patent Agency, San
Francisco:
Houi HrroRnra Dirtoi. Rmbta Batdait,
737 Howard St., S. F. This invention relates
to an improved devico for securing horses at
points where it is necessary to loavo thorn; and
it consists in the employment of a rod, one end
of which may he dropped upon the ground nt
will. The other end is hinged to a slido which
moves in a hollow barrel or guide, said guide
being Bcourod beneath the vehicle in a horizontal
position. A rod is secured to the slide and ex
tends toward the front, having a loon or riug to
which a line may he attached and led to the
horBe's hit When a stop is made the hinged
rod may he let down so that its cud rests upon
the ground, anil any forward movement of the
horse will draw the sliding roil hack into the
tube or guide, thus pulling upon the rein or
line, and the horse'B mouth. A miring in the
roar of the tube forces the rod forward when
the horse hacks or the strain is relieved. This
device has heeu applied to a immtior of vehicles,
and the inventor informs us that the results are
very satisfactory.
Railroad Bail Joint.- siias Harris, 7 Ul
orty St., S. F. The ordinary form of rail joint
is made hv moans of liah-platea on each side of
the rail, crossing the joint, slots being formed
through the fish-plates anil rail, so that holts
may pass through them, these holts Ixung M
cured in placo by nuts. The ditlieully witl
this connection is that the nuts aro continually
boing shaken loose until the holts (all mil am
tho plates dnm off, leaving the meeting ends o
Mill U I Ml I 111 I IIUH'I mill nil,, an.-
NATl'UAI. LUfl
Among tho recent discoveries is "natural
lime," which occurs iu Kansas. It is found in
largo beds; is of a tine, white color and very
line in texture. It is also soft, smooth and
readily converted into a plastic condition by the
nidation ol saint anil water. Ihu uioilar thus
made has apparently the same qualities as the
liest made from superior "hif d limn" from
the kilns. It sots and hardens quickly and
turns wry white.
This discovery brought out tho query as to
helher such a strange product as this occurs III
auy other section of our continent. 1st answer
the .Vcirniic ifMrriftin gives a loner irom m.
M. 1'ierson, of Fort Itayard, N. M , In winch
that gentleman says: "I answer, yes. From
1871) to 1N74, I was U. M. tonsiil M I aso nei
Norte. Mex.. ami, while prospecting for silver
ore, I discovered a large deposit, in what miners
term pmikot formation, ol natural lime, located
11 blue limestone, in Hie ioniums, one ami oue-
If iniloa west from tho city of I'aso del INnrle,
Mex. 1 gave it various trials, and found it to
poises all the good qualities 01 inm m"
lime, nml for whitewashing far superior to the
manufactured article.
should be the black, or nearo ant? No one
knows;
The power of judging of actual danger, and
the free and eaay boldness which results from
it, are by no means uncommon. Many birds
seem to have a most correot notion of a gun s
range, and while scrupulously oareful to keep
beyond it, confine their care to this caution,
though tho most obvious resource would bo to
fly right away out of sight aud hoanng, which
they do not ohooso to do. And they sometimes
appear to make even an ostentatious use ot
their power, fairly putting their wit aud olevcr
neas in antagonism to that of man, for the bene
at. -1 iu.:. t. ii,... o W i,.!v mad an account,
Ul Ul bHOlI If ''--J
by a naturalist in Brazil, of an expedition he
made to one of the islands of the Amazon to
shoot spoon-bills, ibises and other of the msg
mticent grallatorial birds, which were most
abundant there. His design was completely
baffled, however, by a wretched little sandpiper
that preoeded him, continually UttWU
tale ory, whioh at once aroused al the MKU
within hearing. Throughout the day did this
individual Bird continue his self-imposed duty
of sentinel to others, effectually prevent. -
approach of the fowler to the game, and yet
managing to keep out of the range of his gun.
Tim Burr VHICL.-An anecdote is told of
a physician who was called to a foreign family
to prescribe for a case of incipient oonsumptm
He gave them a prescription for pills, and wroto
th.direU.on: " 6n. pill to be U "
a day in any convenient vehicle." The fan y
Uid in the dictionary to get at hem.. ng
got 10 P"!3J2L-, After
culty is obviated by discarding the screw holts
j , l.ij hsnlua
entirely, aim using "iu .............
by an eccentric, wnicn, won. n h
when desired, wdl not jsr loose by the passage,,!
tnins This device consists in binding the lis"
i,la 0 against the sides of tho rail by mm
i 1 11 Ixilt or fsstrning
till uijuimn j
..wfcai. with said Ash-plate through x,otiliar y
formed bolts Of plates. The eccentric joins
the parts together immovably, aud dispenses
with all nuts or screw-inn
Pmiiv.iishk FahI'F.n Kit. Jacob 1. I'atery
n.mnican. Yolo Co., Cal. Patented May
iouii V '227 OBI. Tho mold-board and lam1
,idc are fastened to the share by levers provided
with cms or catches. The mold-lxiard is sa
cred to the curved la,.,., and the and side hv
mean- of braces, the lower edge of said mohl
the land-side. On the end of the brace is a
ulcru . .compound lever, the smaller arm
- . . . r : l-.i .., arm.
..(.. , invnr trnam dstvssh - --
iMi'Hiivan Mktiiiiho MAHt'ratrroiUllO Ni-
raooLYouum,- ioarriaon aoaaimy ai ,-muo.
have awarded a pri.o ol Vtlnt to iioutiiug ,x
lonelier for an improved ami less dangerous
method of iminufiiolurihg nitroglycerine. I his
method has been for some time ill actual use at
Vouges, France, without meeting with any ao
cideiit. The process is described as follows:
I a, 1 1.., ,,1,1 ,,,, ili,,,l in which fin x nitric acid
or a mixture of it and nitric acid is made to act
,11 ulvcorino, aud the mass Is suddenly Human
. . Li. 1 1, I,. .1
sed I.) water, in,' reaoinin ,', -
silllicielit to dei .pose a purl ol the nitrogly
cerine, occasioning violent c plosions in spite
of the refrigerating prixxiiscs adopted. I lie
principle of ll.o new process consists in obvia
ting the greater part of the beat by llrsl oiig.g-
nig the glycerine in eomoinmion w,m mm
told, forming si.lplioglyce.io acl. ami then
destroying slowly, by means of nitric aoul, lb.
sulphoglyeeric oumH,und, Two liquors sr pre
pared m advanced a sulphoglyce.i, and a su
pbouilric, the latter with equal weights of sul
phuric and uitno acids. As the) he.l consider
ably they are allowed In tool, and aro theu
combined in such proportions that the reaction
tikes ulacn slowly. In the oi l Hi'dhod the
nitroglycerine is separated almost instanta
neously, and rises l parts to the surface, roil
deriug washing dllli. ult. In the new method
enng
it forms
1
found a hook
waaon, csmam, mji : UalM
grave consideration they came 10 in.
that the doctor meant the rttot
out, and while in the vehicle
Urn fn.lnWMi the ftOVIUO W ,
J l at... 11 - T .111(1 it
On ttieem. " . ... .... .. ( the
which arasps a stun on inn - -
.bare A it i. fotae! i mi th. DMM
Ind another in th. end of the ..d;..de, Into
.Kich litthc stud, found on the ahM. thus
steadying the share.
ir 1 ll'.I.L.r II r.
Aii4l. 1 RAr. "
Patontoil May W, 1HW),
tended for the
lords, etc.. and It consists
pill.
luo w " -
r and exeroise secured
in a lew woeas me iron , hlT
th. lvtntaun which otherwise might not have
San Benito Co., Cal
So 227.9.Vt. This trsp is
' - - nt mil, lists
inth..,np.oy,nto.rorn,;r:
.bvpen bv wllluh th.
,o 11 1 . - m , ..,,. ,1,.
I forward when reins-,., -j
'Ibis trigxer is .
ided with
needle is forcm
LVth. attompt ol th. animal to VV"
'1 1 1 Li end is concea ol by a stalk, wswi,
,d, and tins .nd 1 1 u ,, wilh
1 Myd.Dv,ri gd or proUctor is uph.y
about.
in alemt '.'0 hours, and with a regu-
rity which provenU danger. It also goes to
the iHitLun, and , an Of wanr,i rapiniy.
Pal'KH 1 1' , r.t raoM Pi i r A laU, invention
makes paper leans dirnolly ir.un paH,r puip.
Itoatoll Ukes the Inad III tin, MWMSI1 "i
these boxns, which aro aeamiraa, win own
made to any size or shs. Tim process, as da
scribed, 11, that after l,ing dried, the Ixiina are
ruu th.ougl. a second maeiiin. ai SSH raw .
nty twr minuU. receiving, uminr a ii,"
of lour thousand pounds, suoli emiesising as
nay lw neoosMry. From the time III. paper
abx k la taken Iron, iim nam. ,,:
Ikix is turned from th" inaolmi", manual labor
ii entirely avoldssl. By th. usa of on. set of
ma, tones, It la said, I0.0M Innes can ls nr
,, r day, at leas than one third of the
lowest market prtc. ol hand lusna g.eeia, ami
doing ths work ol two hundred hands, as th.
orocow is ordinarily oon.iuuwi. i no awajns
has come into us. for an InllniU varl.ty ol
purMHMM, and this succoas la an importaiil oon
tnbutlou 10 Inv.iitlou.
A uxutlirriva working by means of euro
pressed air has Imwii d-signl by l 'oi.,.1.1 IUau-
l, so F.nglish .nalir, who elalma tlial
such an .ngin. would ha aid. to aee.nnlah a
ouro.y ol 10 mil' without renewing the charge
ol air, and drawing two loaded , irriag...