Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1871-08-30
Curious and Scientific.

tend tocollect materials for an autobiog-
raphy. His is hero worship, and he
could not consistently waste time on so
commonplace person as himself
THE great spot on the sun was OBJ
served again last week. It forms, with
the large group very near it, striking
object through telescope. The UNI
bra is pear-shaped, and its length was
estimated at 40, 900 miles, or five times
the diameter of the earth This spot
can be seen without telescope, through
dark colored glass when the sun is near
ly obscured.
To Color KID GLOVES. hand
full of logwood into bowl, color with
alcohol, and let it soak until it looks
strong-one day, perhaps Put one
glove on the hand, dip q small woolen
cloth or sponge into the LIQUID, wet the
glove all over, rub it dry and hard un-
til it shines, and it will be q nice pur-
pie. Repeat the process and it will be
black
The smallest steam engine In the
world is now in possession of John
Penn, of Greenwich, England, the en-
inent maker of great engines It will
stand on three-penny piece it really
covers less space, for it's base plate
measures only three -eights of an inch
by about three-tenths From the ex-
treme smallness of this model a few
mlnutle-such, for instance, as the
air-pumps-have necessarily been omit
ted. Still, so small are some of the
parts that they require powerful
magnify1ng glass to see their form.
The screws are only one-eighth of an
inch In diameter, and these are all duly
furnished with hexagonial nuts, which
can be loosened and tightened by a
Liluputian spanner The whole weight
of the model is less than three-penny
piece. It works admirably, and when
working it's crank-shaft performs from
twenty to thirty thousand revolutions
in a minute. s...
ExCENTRIcITIEs OF NYTRo GIYoERINE.
Nitro glycerine does not seem to be-
come any more civilized as it mixes in
in scientific society. We read in a Ger
man publication an extraordinary ac-
count of the explosion of only 10 drops
OF this substance which pupil in a
laboratory had put into a small iron
saucepan and heated with a Bunsen
gas flame. The effect of the explosion
was that the 46 panes of glass of the
windows of the laborary were smashed
to atoms, the saucepan was hurled
through brick wall, the stout iron
stand on which the vessel had been
placed was partly split, partly spirally
twisted, and the tube of the Bunsen
burner was split and fattened outwards.
Fortunately none of the three persons
in the laboratory at that time were
hurt. When nitro glycerine is caused
to fall drop by drop upon thoroughly
red hot iron plate it burns off as gun
powder would under the same condi-
tions but if the iron be not red hot,
but yet hot enough to cause the nitro
glycerine to boil suddenly an explosion
takes place.
CHEMICAL SUBSTITUTE FOR HUMAN
M1LK-Professo Liebig's chemical
substitute for mothers milk, which has
acquireq such AN extensive reputation
in Germany, is manufactured by the
following process; A half an ounce of
wheat -four is boiled with five ounces
of skinned milk until the mixture is
transformed into homogeneous mass;
1t is then taken from the fire, and to
it is Immediately added half an ounce
of cross-spired barley, which must have
been first ground in coffee mill, and
mixed with an ounce of cold water and
a drachm of solution OF bi-carbonate
of potash, the latter in turn made
eleven parts of water to two of potash.
After having added the barley, the yes
sci is placed in warm water, or warm
place, until the mixture has lost its
nd has become liquid like
cream. It is allowed to repose for ff-
teen or twenty minutes, and is then
placed on the fire and mace to boil for
a few seconds, when it is removed and
poured through a strainer Of hair or
thread, so as to eliminate the fibrous
parts of the barley. The artificial milk
thus prepared contains, according to
Prof. Liebig, the plastic and respirato
ry elements essential to respiration and
nutrition of the body, in about the pro-
portion of from ten to thirty eight on
the hundred-the same, according to
Prof Liebig, as human milk.
Instead of the process formerly en-
ployed, weldless steel tires are now
manufactured in England by rolling.
The mill which is used for this purpose
consists of two sets of rolls supported
by the same framework, but each set
working independently of the other.
Hydralic power is employed to press
the rolls together. The first set of rolls
consists of a single pair. The opera
ton of making the tire consists in
placing a hammered ring containing
enough metal to form the tire between
the first pair of rolls in such a way that
the ring encircles one of the rolls. 1t
is then enlarged by rolling, and It's sec
tion formed In the same manner as 8
straight bar would be drawn and shap-
ed in ordinary rolling mills. The sec
ond set of rolls is similar to the first,
with the addition of two side rolls
mounted upon a pair of jaws which
can be opened and closed by toothed
segments operated by worm having
right and left hand thread. These rolls
finish the tire. Seventy to eighty
horse power is required to drive this
mill, and the entire operation in its va
rious stages is completed at a single
heat. 1
THERE is an establishment in England
where the manufacture of artificial
granite is extensively carried on. The
constituents of this material are disin-
tegrated natural granite mixed with
clay, together with pounded glass, lava
and iron slags. The disintegrated
granite is obtained by submitting frag-
ments of natural granite to strong
heat, about seven or eight hundred de-
grees, in an oven, by which, after
sufficient time, it becomes dissolved
in to granite sand, the component
parts of which, quartz or feidsPar,
passess great powers of adhesion. one one
part of this granite sand is then mixed
With an equal quantity of pounded
glass-or the constituents of glass, lava
Or iron slag-to which is added from
tN twenty 9rfV fbo to thirty parts of refractory
CLAW or from thirty to fifty parts Of or
dins dnary 1t oiay afv This mixture is thorough
" kneaded together with sufficient