The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-07-06
FOREIGN SCIENTIFIC ITEMS.

About twenty Gallo Roman tombs have been dis
covered in field near Toulouse, France. Each one
contained body, which crumbled to dust on the ad
mission of the air, and monogram was found
stamped on the bricks Of which the tomb was built
The bodies were placed on bricks placed on edge.
An interesting archaeological discovery has been
made In a railway cutting at Point de Pierre, not faI
from Chalons-sur-Sa0ne. At three feet below the
surface OF the ground q group Of thirteen skeletons
was found in a narrow space and wonderfully pre-
served. They seem to be the bones OF full grown
men who had died In battle One evidently had been
decapitated The skeleton Of O woman has been dis
covered among the Others Between the jaws Of one
Of the dead found an obolus which the friend of
the defunct had doubtless slipped In to enable the
departed to pay his fare to Charon. A coin, very
mu CHI defaced, but still seen to bear the eigy OF the
Emperor Gordian, was also picked up among these
remains, which leads to the conclusion that 100
years have elapsed since they were there inferred.
The French Academy OF Sciences has received
highly interesting paper from III. Flammarion on
series OF meteorological observations made during
ten balloon excursions, some OF which lasted from
fourteen to fifteen hours. They all took place under
different atmospheric circumstances. by day as well
as by night early in the morning and late in the
evening. The author had two balloons at his dis
posal; one belonging to the Emperor and OF capa-
city OF 900 cubic feet, and the other pertaining to
NJ GODDARD and measuring 400 cubic feet The latter
gentleman was entrusted with the management OF
tanned by NJ Flammarion is most remarkable, and
may be stated thus:-"The humidity of the atmO-
sphere increases from the surface OF the soil to a
certain altitude, when IL attains Its maximum; from
this point upwards 1t decreases steadily. The zone
OF greatest moisture varies in altitude according to
the hour OF the day the time OF the year and the
state OF the weather. II is very seldom found at
short distance from the EARTH and then mainly at day
break It's lowest point was in one case observed to
be at $50 metres about 450 feet from the ground
another occasion the distance was l, 100 metres,
and these may for the present be considered the
hntxn N,tnh "a,
vary. M. Fammari0n notices another curious fact,
an extraordinary difference OF temperature between
the strata Of the atmosphere that are IN the shade
and those exposed to the solar rays. For instance,
on one OCCASION at an altitude OF 10000 feet the
thermometer, placed at the bottom OF the car and,
therefore, In the shade, marked eight degrees cent?
grade, while the reading OF that IN the sun was
twentythree degrees, difference Of fifteen between
two strata little more than five feet apart from each
other. At still greater elevation az, 45O feet a few
days later the variation between the two tempera-
lures rose to twenty degrees cengrade the feet OF
the aerOnautS being benumbed with cold at nine and
half degrees below freezing point while their faces
and shoulders were comfortably warm at ten a half
diminution OF moisture In the upper strata, whence
he concludes that the preservation OF solar heat at
the surface OF the soil Is owing TO the aqueous vapor
that envelopes 1t.
At late sitting Of the French Photographic So
cety M. Marion described certain notifications lie
had introduced into the carbon process, at the same
paper he uses for the purpose, and which he sens-
tzes by dipping 1t for two minutes into solution Of
dred grams Of water, after which it is hung up
to dry. When this paper has received an image
from two to ten minutes according to the state Of
the weather 1t is taken out Of the printing frame
and put into cold water which Ia often renewed for
the space OF hour. The gelatine swels up IN this
bath, and the image appears in relief on the black
gelatine coating after the uncombined bichromate
has been washed away so far the operation Is carried
in the dark; the rest may be done in drused day.
light. NJ Marion now takes piece Of albumenized
paper prepared without salt and floats 1t wrong side
paper to It, 30 as To bring the black gelatine into
tact with the albumen. The two pieces OF paper are
taken out simultaneously, sticking to each other,
placed between two glass plates, and thus subjected
to the pressure Of q somewhat heavy weight for
about two hours The adhering leaves then hung
up to dry and when perfectly so they are subjected
to the action OF steam in box Theoretically closed.
BY this operation the albumen Is coagulated and the
gelatine LETT In Its soluble sate and now the separa
ton OF the two leaves may be effected by putting
them into hot water. The bichromated gelatine
which Is still uncOmbined is dissolved, leaving the
image on the albumenized paper perfectly visible
and unalterably fixed; 1t may be further developed
by keeping 1t some time longer In water at temper
ature Of from forty to fifty degrees centigrade the
image being turned face downward. by this pro-
cess the print comes out reversed; to avoid this the
Transporting It upon a collodionized peicle applied
to the surface by means OF varnish and pulled OF
when dry.
NJ Chapelas-C ouvier GRAVES sent in a paper on the
falling stars OF January last. Hitherto in following up
the hypothesis OF swarm Of meeorites moving in an
elipse round the sun the only elements taken into ac-
author has endeavored to bring in daily observations
well, and from the calculations thus obtained he
folIows:-Eccentrcity 80 deg. IL min: major axis.
80 deg SO min.; cOnjugate ditto, 80 deg 80 mn in
clination =. 8. E:-A letter from M. Borel OF Mar.
seles. addressed to NJ Leverrier, announced the
discovery OF new small planet lthe 99th) on the
2sh ult. at 20 min 81 sec. past ten r. NJ he nature
Of the time not stated. The position is given
Professionally as follows:-Right ascension. Is
h. "a min. 1872 Sec; polar distance, 30 deg. s
I'm n A a m n & gac
The current number OF the proceedings OF the
Royal Artillery Institution Of London contains de-
scription OF the American tube wells, which have
done such good services In Abyssna and are likely
henceYorth TO be supplied articles Of engineering
equipment for Gil military operations. From this
and other sources II Is possible to gather pretty
good idea Of the arrangement OF the apparatus and
OF the method OF working II. The well consists OF
number OF hollow Iron tubes one and one-fourth inch
In internal and about two inches In external diam
eter. These tubes are screwed or jointed together
until sufcient length IL obtained to penetrate to
call IT, Is eleven feet In length and Is pointed at the
end which first enters the ground. Above the point,
the u.s Of two With and number half feet
holes in six parallel rows To sink a well a
vertical hole Is made in the ground with q
The tube Is driven into the ground by means OF q
monkey" which falls upon an iron clamp firmly
aSdy the ,Ss OF the ps
puleys, through each Of which rope IL rove and
attached to the monkey, which Is worked by two
and at the same angle, as not TO incline the pipe.
Sometimes the assistance OF third man Is called in
to steady the monkey" When the pipe Is driven In
so far that the clamp touches the ground the posi-
ton Of the clamp and pueys are shifted higher up
on the tube. During its descent the latter Is fire.
quently turned around to facilitate Its passage
through the soil. When the first length has
been driven so far home that 1t will no
longer carry the pulleys, piece OF tubing about
six feet long Is Jointed on to II. The connection
Is effected by means Of small piece Of pipe three
feet long and equal In external diameter TO the
internal diameter OF the pipe TO be attached into
which 1t is brazed for q length OF eighteen inches,
and from which 1t consequently projects the same
distance. The projecting pipe enters what we may
call No. tube. The pulleys are camped on TO No.
tube at a convenient height, and ''he driving is
continued until the first tube is driven nearly home
when the clamp monkey, &C., are removed and an
lar" The driving then proceeds a. before the loos
enng eject on the Joints OF the continual Jars being
remedied by frequently scIewnR them up during the
process of driving The well IL occasionally sounded
small line acerfain the depth of