The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-05-08
SCIENTIFIC ITEMS.


wonderful plant, or rather flower, IS tound only
on the northern boundaries OF SIBERIA, where
the snow is eternal 1t was dlscoVered IN 1868
by Count Swluoskof, the eminent Rnsslan
botanist who was ennobed by the Car for his
discovery. Bursting rom thS lroEen snow on
the first day of the year, 1t grows to the height
OF three eet ara nO"fgs or ON oMr nH tnrG h dSy
then dIssoives itself into its original element
stem leaves, and flowers beng of the finest
snow The stalk is about one inch in damet r;
the leaves, three in number, in the broadest
part are an inch and a nalf In width. and are
covered with indnitesimal cones OF sno y; they
grow OILY on one side of the stalk, to the north,
curving gracefully in the same direction The
flower when fully expanded is in shape perfect
star; the petals are three inches in length, half
an inch wide in the broadest parts, and tapering
sharply to point. These are also interlaCed
one with another, in beautiful manner, form
ing the most delicate basket of frost.wOrk that
the eye ever beheld; for truly this is trost.work
the most wonderful. The anthers are i've in
mber, and on the third day after the birth OF
the Flower OF SLOW" are to be seen on the eX-
tremities thereof trembling and glItterlng like
diamonds, the seeds Of this wonderful flower,
about as large as a pins head The old bOtanIst
says, when first he beheld this flower 81 was
dumb W th as OhishnIent; filled with wonder
ment, which gave way to Joy the most ecstatic
on behOltng this wonderful work OF nature,
this remarkable phenomenon OF snow. To see
this flower sprtnglng from the snowy desert
born of Its own composite atoms. | touched the
stem OF one lightly, Dat II tell at my touch, and
mOTSPl OF snow only renamed III my na0u.'
Gathering some of the flowers in snow, in order
to preserve the tile diamond ike seeds, he hled
to st. Petersburg WITH TO him, the greatest prize
OF his lifetime. All through the year they were
kept in snow, and on the first day of the year
following the Court of st. Petersburg were de-
lighted with the bursting forth OF the wonderful
'lrCst hOwer!' Our friends in Boston succeeded
in obtaining several of the seeds, and all through
the summer and autumn they have been imbed.
ded in snow brought ut great expense from the
White Mountains and the coast OF Labrador; and
they now have the most unbounded satisfaction
and pleasure in announcing that all signs are
favorable to the realization OF their londest
hopes, the production OF the "ho yer OF snow."
The snow and ice are In large glass reIrigera-
tor, with the thermometer forty-tive degrees
below zero, and the sOld bed OF snow has
already begun to show little assures and a slight
bulging in the centre-unmistakabl evidences
OF the forthcoming of the phenomenon.
MORTALITY OF CHILDREN IN EUROPE.
A paper was read at the last meeting of the
Statistical Society OF London, by DIR. W. Farr,
f. r. S., on the 'Mortality OF Children in the
Principal Cities of Europe.n The proportion of
Eneli-h chiliren, he said, who die in the first
five years of age is very large; and one of the
causes OF this great loss OF lie, among the
poorer classes, especially, Is want of care and
attention, by reason OF the absence of the
mother at work in the field or in the factory,
often at the precise period when the child most
needs constant looking alter. lllegltimate
children are, tor obvious reasons, almost eXClu-
slVely the victims OF ntanicide; out the num-
Der of deaths from that crime, he alleges, is in
considerable in comparison with the number of
untimely deaths from other causes. None of
the States OF Europe, outside OF England, pub
lish an account OF the causes of death of The en-
tire population so comparison can be made
in that respect; but data have been obtained
from official sources from which an accurate
view OF the loss OF young lives in Europe, from
all causes, can be given. The facts 10 not at all
refer to the same PERIOD but range variousy
from 1851 to 1868, in the different countries.
Thn rth to oil and Cia 10 no
OF the whole population; Spain and Austria, 81;
England, the Netherlands, Denmark, and
Sweden, 34 Norway, 49,, Belgium, 80;
and Spain, 26 The annual rate of NOR.
tality Of children under five years of
age, per 1000 of the population of the same age,
is in Norway Al; Sweden, 81; Denmark, 53
England, 68; Belgium, 70; France %; Prussia,
III; and Italy, ia. In England the mortality
of children under five years of age is lOl in
thirty large town. districts, while in the sixty
three healthy districts OF England 1t is only
forty. Of 1000 children born alive in Norway,
S33 attain five years of age; in Denmark and
Sweden, 797; in England, 1856; in Belgium, 733;
France, I'll; Prussia, 6S3; the Netherlands, 673;
Austria and Spain, 637 Italy, 600; Russia, COS;
in the sixty three healthy districts of England,
1913; and in thirty large town districts OF Eng
land, 645. Consequently the proportion of
deaths out of 1000 children born alive is in Nor.
way l67; Denmark and Sweden, 203 England,
264; Belgium, 267; France 2SJ; Prussia, 3l7:
the Netherlands, 327; Austria and Spain, 1863;
Italy, 0J4j RUSSIA 0JI; Sl&ty-Cnree nealtny dlS-
trlcts OF England, III; and in thirty large town
districts OF England, 355. The records OF the
peerage of England show that of 100 children
born alive in peers families 80 survive, ten only
dying IN the first Gve years of age; and the
deaths among the children of the English clergy
are nearly IN the same proportion. But in the
founding hospitals these proportions have been
rTeversed for ninety out OF 100 born alive have
been cut off in them during the first i've years
OF lie. BY the English Lie Table, OF 100 chill
dren born alive fifteen die in the first year five
in the second, three in the third, two in the
fourth, and one in the ttth-maklng tWeutV-siX
IN the hrst live years. or the fifteen who die III
the first year five die in the nrst month of life
Two IN the second, and one in the thlrd month";
The French returns show the deaths in the first
week OF age and the annual rate OF mortality in
that first week Is l54 per cent, which may be
tIus lllustrateG:-lf 100 children Just born were
placed in house, and their numbers maintained
Dy the addition OF newborn cnlld to supply
tne place OF every death, 50 that there should
always be an average OF 100 children maintained
Wlthn the walls, l54 deaths WOulC Iake place
lnere IN Twelve months on the hypothesis that
the mortality rate be that Of the first week OF
life.
INHABITANTS OF THE HUMAN BODY
What think you, reader, of your body being a
planet inhabited by living races as we inhabt
the earth! Whatever may be your thoughts on
the subject, the feet is even so. Your BODY is
but home tor parasites that crawl over ITS sur
face, burrOW beneath its skin, nestle IN lis en-
trials, and riot and propagate their kind IN
every corner OF its frame. The sensation in re-
gard to tr!ch1nG IN swine flesh has set the scien-
tlhc TO knocking their heads togethern
and the result is the following tacts:-
PdTdSa'eS not only inhabt the bodies of all AMI
mas used oy us as food, but they are also
iound IN abundance in our organization. The
species Ttci9na sPlratis, OF which so much is