, 1874-05-09
SPARKS OF SCIENCE.


| CASTOR OIL.
Although, with tho invention and dlsooyey,
Of mo1icinos answering tlle sarno purpose, bui
laas disagrocnblo 10 swallow, caslor-oIl has boon
almost baniHllod from tho matora-n,odIca. in.
stances atill occur whore 1t Ia still prescribed
For tho benefit OF the victims Of the nxcentt onn]
casos, II III stated that II tho oil bo n,ixoi viii
gifcorlno, and a fow tirona OF oil Of cinnamon be
milton. So
FUNGI IN oEY1oH.
According to tue journal Of tho L1npnan 3d.
otety, ,1o0 species Of fungi are found in tho
Island Of Coylon, and littlo diroronco IL uotod
In their habit OF growth from tho Boa-loycl TO
hoight Of 5000 feot. Above this pont tlhov
| gradually Lesson In abundance; aud, boyond an
elevation Of 900 feat. specimens rarely occur,
" " tho whole nnmo9r s2o arr peculiar to Ceylon
| Woat Indies or Southern United states; and TIC
remainder ARC widely dispersed.
4 p1a ROCK.
| hugo monolith Of conglomorate, 1,100 foot
high aud or mflos in circumference At tts
| baso, has been discovered by Mr.. Gasse and hiu
party Of explorers Ia WeBtern Australia, An in
teresting. featnro Of tho discovery is running
stsoam Of Hasor which tRhos its riHe In spring
situated In tho contro OF tho rock.
MAHT1N1ouAv sNAKE,
The Island OF Martinique does not present m
a1luring prospect to tho gardener, or to those
fond Of walks and retreats In cool, shady places.
There is npecios Of venomous snake abounling
tLlore, callcd the Ion-Lanoe, which Inns pom
chant for pro-ompting Ill inviting nooks and
resting spots under tho treoa and in tho grass,
and which rosonts, With tho incialon Of ita fanHn
any Intrusion upon it's solitude. Aa an Average,
about 300 poraons aro bitten by this tcsty littlo
reptile annually. or these, sixty or seventy
caaes provo fatal. and marty others result In
nervous diseases wl,c1, ono would scarcely choose
in preference to death.
EMERY.
rloh deposit OF Emery is reported to have
boon discovered In the northorn portion of
pettis County, Mo. Emery Is known to mechan-
les, who uso 1t iupolshing metals, grinding
glass, and other such purposes and to tho
ladies', for whom It is put up In littlo baga Of
various shape and eloganco, through which they
thrust their noodles to koop them sharp,-as
fine. hard. dark.colored sand. But 1t is not thus
found in it's natiyo a,ato It ocours originally as
= IMMORAL, and generally In masaos scattered
through aqueous rocka. 1t is variety Of Corun-
DUN, and ia inferior in hardness only to tho
diamond. It is found in several partH Of Europe,
In Asia Minor. In Greenland, oto. The Emery
OF commerce Is chiefly obtained from tho leland
Of Naxos. in the Egtnnn Sen. It Is prepared for
use By hrst breaking into lumps about tho s!zo
stampcrH The powder iB atterHard Biftcd to
various degrees Of fiunnoss.
WASP VS.. BrlpEn.
III last months Science Gossip an interesting
story Ia told OF fatal combat between waep
and spider. Tho writer Bays: "That snidora
are most afraid Of wasps infer from olrcum-
stance Witnessed many years ago. A wasp be-
carne cntangled in the wob Of apides, located
in tho uppor corner OF window, when tho spf-
der rushed out to securo his prey. anu battle
ct some minutes duration occurred. onding in a
ucAr-boNght victory for tho spidoy. tho wasp
falling dead OF, the floor. and tho spider dying 3
few minutes afterwards"
dLAss.oLoTH.
Rooont improvements In glass .spinniuK, In
Germany, havc resulted In the production Of
threads az fine AZ the fibre Of COCOON and AZ
soft aud e1aHtio as silk. On account Of tho OK
osoding skill required In manufacturing such
gossamor.l!ke fllameuts, and Tho strain which
tho work imposes upon tho oyos, tho articles
manufactured from this delicate material arc 40
yet classod us curiobftics. On being foltod,
this now glass fabric forma oxcollent material
for chemical fltern. It Ia also adaptod TO fig
nrcs for brocades, etc., to furniture-covors cur
tains, carpets, and laccH, and can DO used In
knitting md embroidery. Although soft as silk,
tho fabric has the feol OF woolon, but is much
warmer, and. Wlthal, e1tromely light.
bEUHHE6s
Vioe-Consul pilllotti, in his commercial report
on Rhodes, has giyou some interesting informa-
ton respecting tho spopgo-0shory, which is tha
principal industry Of tho Islands OF Sporodes.
The yoarly average crop is estimated at :s12o 600,
of which G50.000 is sont to England. France
used to tako . large portion Of the product; but,
unce tho Last war, Austria, Germany. Italy, and
especially Grent D1itain. lave beon the principal
Ia
Of spongea, owing to the large stock now on
gathering the crop since the introduce
tion OF tho diving apparatus. These causes.
together with additional taxes imposed on the
fisheries, will gradually restrict the industry,
and compel the divers to seek some moro re-
now sent to England contain about or 10
pounds of sand to pound OF sponge. Expo
rionco has shown that il is more profitable to
purchase tho spongcs inst Us thoy are hshed;
md in order to inA,;re this agents arc sent to
them from tho divers. snonges thus bought at
t'rst baud can bo relied upon as not being
Weighted With sand.
FORMIDABLE 1aszors
Among tho Diptera, Or two-winged dleu, thore
is genus named Esirus, which comp1iscBthoBo
formidable insects, tho Cad. Bot-Fly, OF Breeze,
tllat are the terror Of the horse, the sheep, and
tho OK, and also aovoraa species inhabting trop-
icnl countries, which arc equally cruel In their
attacks upon the human being. It ii not their
bite that makcs these insects the dreaded foe Of
man and boast. It is their parasitoal habit, that
leada them to deposit their eggs on the hair or
wool Of tho boast and on the flesh Of man. un-
dor conditions which insure tho 1ar7m, after they
are hatchcd, support at tho expense Of the vic
tim on which tloy have fastened themselves.
Tho Gad-Fly (Eatrua EquD is tho particular
anomy Of tho horse, tormouting the animal
during the months OF July and Auguat. When
ready to deposit It's eggs, tho fly poisea itself for
a few seconds above It's victim, Bwoops down
upon the shoulders or knees,- choosing with
wonderful inatinct just those parts Of the body
which can DO easiest touched with the tongno, =
and ailixee Its eggs, sometimes to the numbor Of
400 or 500, BY glutinous substance, to the
haira. In about twenty days after tho eggs arc
deponttod, the young larvp nre Matched. It is
in this state that, when licng itself, the inacots
arc carried into tho mouth Of tho horse, and az
tarYArta aMallQWeil With ita food and con zoraa !