Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1872-06-29

CAREFUL surveys have shown that
Lake Michigan has an average depth
of $50 feet, Lake Superior 900 feet,
Lake Ontario 500, and Lake Erie of only
l20 feet, which is said to be constantly
decreasing.
THE were wolves, or man tigers and
man .hyenas of by.gone popular super,
stition, were, according to Mr.. A. R.
Wallace, probably men who had excep.
tional power OF acting upon certain sen
sitive individuals, and could max e
them, when SO acted upon, believe
they saw whatever the mesmeriser
pleased.
In the region of Marselles, France,
a beautiful white paper is made from
hop vine, and its strength. in connec
ton with its pliable texture, renders it
a favorite with those who have tested
its merits by actual use. The hop vine
is well known as a very strong, pliable
fiber, and there is no question but that
it would make an excellent paper. Its
scarcity, however, will not allow of its
extensive use for such a purpose" We
find the foregoing in an exchange, and
regard it as a suggestion of possible
value to both American hop growers
and paper makers.-Rmal Neao Yorker.
A MINIATURE dead sea has been dis
covered in Nevada. 1t lies in an oval
basin, $50 feet below the surface of the
plain, the banks shelving down with as
much symmetry as if fashioned by art.
The water of this lake is impregnated
with soluble substances, mostly borax,
soda, and salt, to a degree that renders
it almost ropy with slime, and so dense
that person can float on it without eff.
fort. This lake has no visible outlet or
inlet, but being of great depth is
thought to be fed by springs far down
in the earth.
BRAIN-woRK costs more food than
hand-work. According to careful est-
mates and analyses of the excretions,
three hours of hard study wear out the
tody more than a whole day of severe
physical labor. Another evidence of
the cost of brain work is obtained from
the fact that, though the brain is only
one. fortieth the weight of the body, it
receives about one fifth of all the blood
sent by the heart into the system.
Brain workers therefore require more
liberal supply of food, and richer food,
than manual workers.
THE st. Gothard tunnel is now the
great engineering project in Europe.
The success of the Mt. Gents tunnel has
aroused the fears of Switzerland and
Germany regarding the future of the
Asiatic trade In order, therefore, to
be on an equal footing in this respect
with France, it is proposed to pierce the
Alps near the st. Gothard Pass. The
estimated cost is $37 100000; the tun-
mel will be twice as long as the Mt.
Gents, and the rocks are much more
difficult to manage, but it is thought
that with the experience which has
been gained in other works, it can be
constructed in much shorter time
than was required for the Mt. Gents
tunnel.
The operations of the British Pales-
tine Exploration Society continue to
be prosecuted with much vigor and
with very successful results. In the
month of January, the base line having
been previously measured, the trlangu-
lation was carried over nearly one hun
dred square miles, Of which eighty
have been filled and laid down on the
large sheets. The triangulation in
cluded Jatfa. Numerous identitications
of Scripture places have been made,
some of them quite different from those
heretofore adopted. Rock -hewn tombs
were found in various places, and exca
waited cisterns, shaped like bee hives or
inverted tunnels, are very common.
Subterranean store chambers were also
met with, and are still used by the ma
tives.