Orangeburg times. [volume] (Orangeburg, S.C.) 1872-1875, 1874-07-16
CURIOUS AND so1fENT1rio.

CURlOUS AND SUlENTlEIO.
C1RoUIAR SAws.-The smallest DIR, \
cular saws i'll use are those employed
in the manufacture of gold. "opens, and
are o half-inch in diameter.s lt eis Baids
that some &C the sarcophagi of ancient
Egypt bear the marks of having been
followed out with tools of the crown or
cylinder saw order.
SQUIRRELS IN "A Ho1now TREE.-A
correspondent of Hardwick's Science
Gossip states that O hollow tree was cut,
down i'll Kent, last February, when out
tumbled upwards Of thirty squirrels,
most Of which were dormant or in a
state of semi-sleep. On being reused,
they dispersed to various parts of the
oopse. They had stored D large stock
of nuts in the hollow. It is common to
find squirrels thus slowed away for the
winter, but not often in such, numbers.
together. ." "Hi' r2,H 4 FRs sSiJtSR3t
ALLOY RESEMBLING SrEEL.-An al
10y with the properties of steel may be
formed, according to a French patent,
by fusing together iron, tungsten and
nickel, in a cruoible, by the aid of q ,fux
prepared by melting together 36 parts
of boraoio acid, 80 of oalcined, quartz
and 80 of carbonate of lime. For the
first quality of alloy 50 per cent, of
iron, u of tungsten and Of nickel are
employed; for the second quality, 95
per cent. of soft iron, Al Of tungsten
and half of nickel; for the third
quality, 81 per cent. of soft iron, 81 of
tungsten and of nickel.
TURpENTINE.-Veni turpentine is
obtained from the larch, and is said to
be obtained in peculiar sacs in the up
per part of the stem, and to be obtained
by puncturing them. 1t lis a ropy Ii
quid, colorless, or brownish green, hav-
ing somewhat unpleasant odor and
bitter taste. Oil Of turpentine is the
most plentiful and useful of oils. It is
obtained in this country from, species,
OF pine very plentiful in the Carolinae,
known as the long leaved pine (ps,,,ls
A,tstralis), and is found only where the
original forest has not been removed.
METHYh VIOLET ON WooI.-For 10
pounds of wool boil ounce of methyls
violet in soap bath prepared by boil
ing pound of washing soap, and dye
the articles at 1853 degrees. 10 produce
bluer shade, frat dye in bath Of
methyl violet alone, at 14O deg to 15S
deg, and then boil fora hour in soap
bath of pound of soap. The wool,
however, in this case must be dyed
few shades darker, since the soap bath.
renders the color lighter. e THE color;
obtained in this way is .tolerably pure,
and very lively. A desired shade may
be produced by boiling the wool for Z
hour in o bath Of 8 pounds of Glauber's
salt, pound OF sulphuric acid and 1
ounce OF methyl:yioles. }. HI T,fg
PRESERVATION OF PHoroanApHs.-
simple invention for the preservation Of
cards, photographs, etc., from injury by
tion of gutta-percha in solution. The
liquid is thrown, inSa very fine spray,
over the article by All 4atomizer. when
the liquid has in part evaporated, which
it soon does, it leaves the object coated
over with q thin, translnsceilts film, i'm
pervious to wuter. The gutta-percha
should first be- purified, and it then is
soluble in ohloroform or ether. The
process OF. dissolving the gum is in it
self purifying A drawing or photo
graph protected by this film can be
washed with safety. The preparation
softens: at a Temperature of 150' degrees
Fahr.a,Ss but to this only rare accident
would subject it. a.
TRAVELLING ON THE sFARM.-Did any
of your readers ever think of the amount
of travel it takes to raise crop of corn?
1 never saw anillustration in print, and
l thought would give you one. have
a twenty-acre field, forty by eighty rods
10 break this up would take one hun
dred and sixty-six miles; narrowing it,
about forty miles i; furrowing out, nine
ty-miles planting, forty-fve miles, if
with planter, and if dropped and then
covered, ninety miles s and for each
plowing Of two burrows in row, ninety.
miles, or five plowings, four hundred
and fifty miles. Thus you will see it
takes about eight or nine hundred miles
of travel to raise twenty acres of corn,
not counting going to and returning.
from the field. Besides, there is re-
planting, thinning, rolling, etc.-lndi-
ana Farmer. ll~ l4
THE FISHING FRoG.-Writers on na.
tural history describe hideous reptile,
known as the fishing frog, which angles
for it's game as expertly and with las
great success as the most adroiE fyE
fisher. He is n clumsy, awkward swim
mer, butt nature las compensated him
for his unwieldiness by furnishing him
with an equivalent for rod and line,
with bait always ready for use. Two
selongated d,tentaclesspring from his nose,
which taper away like actual fishing-F
rods. To the end Of them ;isiattecheds
by aslender tilament, which serves the
>f -.