Southwest Oregon recorder., June 02, 1885, Image 5

POPULAR SCIENCE.
There has recently been discovered in
the Yellowstone park the mineral known
as ' 'cryolite, " which is of great value in
the potash manufacture. It had previ
ously been found in Greenland.
Peculiar tests have been made on the
limits of hearing. Recent results were
arrived at by using a powerful metal
item, actuated by steam. The vibrations
reached 72,000 per minute, which proved
to be the highest or rather faintest
sound that could be heard.
Mr. R. A. Proctor says that electricity
might be obtained by utilizing the heat
of water applisd to the junction of two
metals, but the current produced by a
temperature of 160 degrees at one junc
tion, and say sixty degrees at the other,
would be too small to be commercially
successful.
In the opinion of Sir John Lawes, a
greater profit may be returned from
sewage ii cast into the sea than if ap
plied to the laud, for the reason that
sewage will supply the enormous quan
tities of phosphate of lime, potash and
nitrogen which fishes require, but' which
exist in the sea only in small quantities.
As much, at least, of these substances
should be returned to the sea as our fish
cries take from it.
- Rats can be compelled to vacate prem
ises bv usinsr a mixture of chloride of
lime and water at the places frequented
uy mese annnais. duuic ui iuc muimc
oucrht to be poured into the holes. Rats
have a great aversion to the odor of
chloride of lime, and betake themselves
at once as far as possible from it. Un
like most other mixtures for abating rat
inroads this mixture of chloride of lime
and water is a safe one to employ, and
as it docs not kill the rats there are no
dead bodies of victims undergoing de
composition in inaccessible places and
polluting the atmospnere alter me na
dance has been effected.
A variety of prehistoric objects in
horn such as amulets, cups, Knives,
daggers, rings, buttons, bracelets, etc.
have been found in a stratum existing at
a depth of about five feet in the mud of
Lake Neuenburg, in Switzerland. The
finder. Herr O. Kaiser, believes them to
be older than the stone and bronze im
plements of the same locality, and he
DroDOses to call the period to which they
belong "the age of horn." It may well
be doubted, however, whether the an
cient lake people ever experienced an
epoch for which auch a name would-be
aa it ii a tri rl a n f that Bfmft lTTl-
juauusu, m ' -' --
plement probably of stone or bronze
must have been usoa in cuiung iue uom.
A Nation of E?g Eaters.
"There are at least 50,000,000 eggs
consumed daily in the United States,"
Raid a. wholesale dealer near Washington
market, New York, to a reporter for the
Mail and Express. "That's over m 4,000,
nnn Amen and at an average price will
amount to at least $80,000. Think of
the outlay and business activity required
to handle this enormous quantity. The
American people are egg eaters. As a
general thing the supply is equal to the
emand, but about three years ago late
after January, wo ran ashore on domes
tic eggs. What was the result! Europe
began to ship us pickled eggs by the
millions. Shiploads came over. Prices
went down, and the European pickled
eggs at fourteen cents a dozen became
immensely popular. This almost ruined
our home egg market. During the
months of April and May the eggs are
pickled by means of a solution of lime
water. They are kept until November
and December and then come in to
lower the market. Fresh eggs, though,
are worth thirty cents a dozen."
"Where do the eggs in the United
States principally come from?"
"From Jersey, Delaware, Virginia,
North and South Carolina and Maryland.
The Western States of course furnish
large quantities, but not so much as the
States mentioned. Nineteen million
two hundred thousand eggs were ship
ped from Europ6 to this country since
the first of April to September. They
came from Belgium, Copenhagen, Ham
burg and the greatest egg mart in the
world, Antwerp. But all these Lu
ropean eggs are pickled, and although
not half so good as the fresh, jet they
have the effect of lowering the prices.
All of the peasantry in Germany, Bel
eium and Holland raise largo quantitiei
6f fowl. But in the United States a
few farmers only pay attention to the in
dustry." .
Ireland is to have another electric rail
way extending from Bessbrook to Newry.
EXPLOSIONS IN POWDER HILLS.
Some Narrow Escape Whf One nan
Left the BiuincM.
A writer in the
who began life as
New York Tribune,
an employe in a pow-
dermill, says:
One who has never looked upon the
scene after a heavy mill has exploded
cannot imagine the destruction involved
in the immense force exerted by a ton or
two of first-class powder. The first ex
plosion after jny connection with the
works occurred in the packing house
where the powder was being put in kegs
for delivery to the government. It took
Elace about 7 o'clock on a short Decem
er morning, just as I was eating my
breakfast. A pane of glass from the
window six feet away suddenly slapped
the side of my head, and at the same
time I heard and felt a tremendous re
port and heavy jar which made me think
the world was coming to an end. Run
ning out of doors I saw a heavy column
of smoke shooting up in the air; all the
tree tops in the vicinity of the building
were full of burning powder bags which
gave the scene a strangely wierd look in
the twilight of a dismal winter's morn
ing. The only occupant of the mill
was blown into a thousand pieces, the
largest bit found being his left
arm
These relics of poor humanity
scattered around in the woods for
were
fully half a mile from the mill. At night
when the coroner arrived to hold an in
quest he asked for the corpse. Some one
silentlv pointed to a peach basket placed
on the stone wall; it was full of sm-U
pieces of flesh and bones, all that was left
OI & BL&iw&rb wail, luu t 11,11m o
and daughter were in the house he had
occupied not over 200 feet from the mill;
the house was racked to pieces, but
neither received a scratch, and the horse
in the stable beside the house was found
roaming around the yard unharmed.
The next explosion that I witnessed
took place at noon of a July day. The
hay in the yard about the mills had been
cut and eight or ten men had been work
ing around the corning mill all the fore
noon drawing the hay away to the barn.
At noon they went to dinner, and while
they were eating the mill exploded,
killing only its regular attendent. If it
had occurred either an hour earlier or
later eight or ten lives would have been
lost. The mill stood on the bank of a
pond about two acres in extent.
explosion forced the water completely
out of the pond and over the dam, leav
ing nothing but the creek running
through the center. Where the building
had stood a pit was dug large enough to
hold a two-story house.
At one time a man was discharged
from the works for neglect of duty. A
fortnight after he met one of the em
ployees in the village near and ques
tioned him as to whether the men who
worked at night were changed at the
same hours as formerly. He was an
swered in the affirmative. That night
about 11 o'clock I was awakened by a
violent noundiner on the door and a
voice proclaiming that "the office was
on fire." This building stood on a
rather steep hill near. It was a com
bination of office and carpenter shop, and
was used on occasion as a storage house
for powder when other places were full.
On hearing the cry of fire I pulled on my
clothes in my excitement getting inside
of two vests and started out of the
house, picking up a pail of water on my
way. At the gate I met the foreman, a
tall lank Yankee. "That's right," said
he, "hurry up and follow mel" He
threw himself against the door and burst
it open. jThere was the fire flaming in
one corner of the carpenter shop. A
large pile of shavings had been raked up
and set on fire apparently with a slow
match. As we entered the flames began
to gather headway and burned up bright
ly. At that moment I happened to
think that there were about two hundred
kegs of powder stored in the room di
rectlv over the carpenter shop and that
the floor between consisted only of loose
boards laid down on the beams I My
courage came near leaving me and I
shouted to the foreman, who was before
me: "For God's sake, come back!
There's, powder overhead!" "I know
that," said he coolly, " but we must put
out the fire." Taking off his coat, he
threw It over the shavings and
then threw himself full length
on top of it. At the same time
he called out tome: "Now throw on the
water 1" and I did it, thoroughly drench
ing him and checking the flames mate
rially. By the time the other workmen
came running up the fire was out. Turn
ing and grasping me by the hand the
brave Yankee exclaimed: "I would not
have entered this building in the face of
such danger as threatened us for all the
company is worth if I hadn't thought it
was my duty." Examination showed
that the office had been robbed of several
costly rifles and other things, and then
the fire was started to hide the crime.
Several days after the employe who bad
met the discharged workman on the day
of the fire happened to remember about
his interview with him and reported it.
Two or three other suspicious circum
stances were recalled, he was arrested,
and all the stolen goods found in his
room. He had robbed the office and set
fire to the building in revenge for his
dismissal, little thinking and perhaps
little caring how many lives might have
been lost in consequence. If the fire had
not been discovered at its start and had
communicated with the powder, the result
would have been terrible to the whole
settlement. The criminal was sent to
State prison for seven years.
The last - explosion I witnessed, and
the one which finally led me to leave the
hills, has a little ghost story connected
with it which make the incredulous
lau h, but which nevertheless occurred
just as I tell it. One evening in Juie I
started for home about 10 o'clock. It
was a bright moonlight night and a
warm one, and my road lay along a nar
row causeway and over a bridgebetween
two large ponds. The water looking in
viting, I concluded to take a swim all
by myself; so I undressed and plunged
in. I had finished my bath and was
dressing to go home when I happened to
glance in the direction of one of the
mills, only a part of the roof of which
was visible from where 1 stood. As l
looked at the mill I saw resting on
the peak of the roof and facing directly
toward me something that looked exactly
like a human skull that had been coated
with phosphoruf and was all aflame.
The empty eye sockets and the grinning
.nr. nana H a A kri A TT 4Vl Q 1 lra. 1 a? n
appearance, and I felt my heart going
down toward my shoes in an exceedingly
lively manner. I stood and looked at it
for fully ten minutes, not knowing
whether to run or to stand my ground;
I dared not go into the yard if I had felt
inclined, as it was against the rules for
those jiot on duty to enter. I finally went
home'leaving the hideous object still glar
ing at me in the bright moonlight, and
needless to say in a very unsettled state
of mind. The next morning just as I
sat down to breakfast there came a
fearful explosion which shook the plas
ter all off the walls of the room and
jammed one of the window sashes be
hind me over my head, breaking the
glass all out of the sash and nearly stun
ning me. I jumped to my feet and
started toward the door when there came
another shock from another mill which
had caught fire from the first. The mill
where I had seen my "ghost" and to
which I was going as soon as I had
finished my meal had exploded and ig
nited the second mill. The occupant
of the first mill was torn limb from
limb. I had been working with him
the day before in another part of the
yard and had said to him: " I wouldn't
work in your mill ior ail tne company
is worth." " Oh, pshaw I" he answered,
" I would rather work there than any
where else." That was the last I saw
of him until I found his disfigured re
mains the next morning. As for my
"ghost," I have no explanation to offer.
I nave never seen one since. Although
a firm disbeliever in supernatural appa
ritions in general I have always looked
upon it as a warning of impending dan
ger on that occasion.
A Great Talker.
Mme. de Stael, by the unanimous con
sent of all who knew her was the most
extraordinary converser that was known
in her time, and it was a time full of emi
nent men and women ; she knew all dis
tinguished persons in letters or society,
in England, Germany and Italy as well
as in France, though she said, with char
acteristic nationality : 'Conversations,
like talent, exists only in France." Mme.
de Stael valued nothing but conversation.
When they showed her the beautiful
Lake Leman, she exclaimed: "Oh, for
the gutter of the Rue de Bad" the
street in Paris in which her house stood.
And she said one day seriously to M.
Mole: "If it were not for respect to hu
man opinions I would not open my win
dow to see the Bay of Naples for the first
time, while I would go 500 leagues to
talk with a man of genius whom I had
not seen."
There are over fifty penitentiaries and
2,400 jails in the United States. They
contain 50,000 criminals, and their esti
mated cost is $500,000,000.
FACTS FOR THE CURIOUS.
Parisians ate 13.000 donkeys, mules
and horses last year.
Til iifA nf a lnrnmotire is reckoned at
twenty-five years, and to keep up the
supply 1,160 should De consiructeu an
nually. One nf the "oldest inhabitants" says it
has never rained on inauguration day ex
cept in the case of Polk, of Tennessee,
when it poured.
A writer from Fiji asserts that when
flnplra fif trn And other sea fowl rest
upon the sea the water becomes smooth,
an effect which he ascribes to oil
emitted by the birds.
There are said to be no hod-carriers in
Germany, the bricks being passed from
hand to hand, and tne nigner up uw
bricklayers are the more men are re
quired to toss the bricks.
The juice of the curious ink-plant of
New Granada requires no preparation
before being used for writing. The
color is reddish when first applied to
paper, but soon becomes a deep black
which is very durable.
One of America's ehowmen, who is a
believer in the practicability of pepetual
motion, says the clock of the future will
run perpetually, being so constructed
that the change of temperature between
night and day will wind it up.
One of the first appeals of one nation
to another, as if they formed one com
monwealth, wa3 in the twelfth century;
and in the thirteenth century we find the
good king, St. Louis, oi a ranee, cnosen
arbitrator between Henry III., of Eng
land, and his barons.
Tn the island of Ivica the popular em
blem of love is gunpowder, and the most
brilliant accomplishment a young dam
sel can display is to stand without flinch
ing while her lover hres at ner legs, anu
which often assume after . a lengthy
courtship the appearance of a Christmas
plum-pudding.
There was lately described to the
French Academy of Science a species of
ant observed in the island of St.Thomas.
A large fire having been kindled at a
certain distance from the ant hill, the
ants were seen to precipitate themselves
into it by thousands until it was com
pletely extinguished.
A Coal Queen. j
Maude St. Pierre, of Tennessee, has
come to be called "The Coal Queen."
She bought a lot of land from a
Southerner who was obliged to sell the
same because he was in great need of
funds, and it has been found to be full
of coal and other mineral treasures.
Asked by a reporter if she fancied the
sort of life she was leading, away from
civilization, she replied that she did,
and continued: "Here are mountains,
natural and commercial grandeur, pure
air and the most absolute independence.
Here (and the lady drew a rough chart)
is the spot where I am building my cabin.
You see it is right on a mountain spur,
equi distant from the two roads leading
to the mines. The view is superb, and
it will not be your typical cabin when I
get it finished. The interior will be
tapestried in Queen Anne style, and
with my books and horses, why can't I
be happy on that mountain peak among
the clouds? Men are the most peculiar
individuals. They seem to think all
valuable rights of property and senti
ment are reserved for their special
amusement. Now, I have a coal blacK
mare, a cousin of Maud S., fleet as a whirl
wind, and more intelligent than most
persons I meet. In the early blush of the
morning I leap on Mollie's back, gallop
up to the mines, inspect the works, and
when I start out for a long brush over
the hills do you suppose that because I
happen to have long hair and wear skirts,
I can't feel a glow of satisfaction in trav
eling a whole day over my own pos
sessions? "Business is not an intricate thing by
any means. The principles are simple
enough. I hate a lie and love fair deal
ing. When I first began operations at
the mine the wiseacres down there were
full of advice. It had been customary to
pay day laborers at the rate of twenty
five cents, and the pay came in the shape
of bacon at twenty-five cents a pound.
Tbis was all nonsense. I gave my men a
dollar a day. This was supposed to be
fatal, and I was sagely informed that it
would lead to demoralization and that 1
wouldn't have a single hand left in
week. In order to offset powubiiitier
established the rule of cold watc'
drink, and from that day to this I
not lost one hand and I sf x wo'
ilxtv." WbmanU Worts, y',- .