The Louisiana cotton-boll. [volume] (Vermilionville [i.e. Lafayette], Attakapas, La.) 1872-1883, 1875-08-18
NUGGETS OF KNOWLEDGE. J
4 Fej5 BuycnGons and Discorcrics-MaH Ncu
\ and Useful

h GLYakRINE AS AN ILLUMINATING OIL.
gIs 1t hag been lately discovered that
Agiycerfne of low specific gravity will
fbhrn nth a steady blue, and non-lu-
n1fnous flame when heated to $50 deg.
G. This will permit it to be burned by
means of a lamp-wick.
Fl ~"YEnnow SPOT" OF HI EYE.
From the examination of several per
fectly fresh eyes, DR.. Schmidt, of Mar
burg, Germany, has come to the conclU-
sion that the "yelIOW spot" in the hui
man retina is not yellow, bat dark
brownish red. Its yellow tint is due to
a post. mOrtem change.
H TEMPERATURE OF AUSTRALIA.
Australia is one of those countries
which has an apparently very comfol Ia
bis mean temperature, SO to so deg. f.,
Observation-Disclosures uncomfortable ex.
tremes. In June, July, and August the
thermometer sinks to 1922 deg, and in
January it rises to III deg, and in some
places to 1875 deg. The rainfall is Is. &c
inches a year. 81 "
a PROMOTING TERMINATION OF SEEDS.
Some interesting and significant ex-
periments on the influence of certain
compounds. on the termination of seeds
have recently been made by Hackel,
the results of which appear to confirm
views advanced by observers years ago..
Certain seeds which, when exposed to
the action Of pure water alone, began
to germinate after eight days, when kept
moist with iodine water, terminated in
five days. With bromide water the same
bresult followed after three days, and
when, chlorine water was used the inter.
val @as decreased to two days. These
experiments belong to the order which
anybody can try"
ALCOHOL AS AN ANEsTHETIC.
The aDpsthetic effects of alcohol are
sometimes manifested in a surprising
manner. An old case is that of q drunken
man who lay down near a top of q
lime kiln, with T foot resting on a
lump of limestone. The fire crept
through the furnace until his foot be-
tcame u blackened cinder, but his sleep
was not interrupted, and the first init
NATION he received was when he was
aroused at daylight and attempted to
stand. Lately q similar circumstance
has been reported from England. A
drunken man lay down before a fire and
remained there until the front part of
his body was literally roasted. He died
in a few hours after being found.
FACTS ABOUT THE EsQUIMAUx,
Although the E~squimaux are placed,
as g race, low down upon the scale of
humanity, they are said to have consid-
cradle inventive and constructive skill.
Their boats are i~ngeniously made, and
their ice huts are arched on correct
mathematical principles. A recent
writer describes, too, q cruel but really
novel method in use among them for
killing bears, They sharpen the endsefl
Q PieCeTof whalebone q foot or more
long, then bend It double. and wrap 1T
closely IN fat meat, which is exposed
to the air till it freezes. These treach-
erous pellets are thrown to the bear,
which bolts them whole. They thaw in
his stomach ; the bent whalebone
straightens, and the sharp points pierce
his vitals whenever he attempts to
move.
INCREASED SPEED AND SAFETY OF YES
Sell AT SEA-.
A Mr.. A Pierra writes to the Phlia-
deIphla Press that, after long study, he
has made two inventions to Increase the
speed and safety of passenger vessels
at sea. One he describes as a contri-
yane3 that cm be applied with little
difficulty to any ordinary steam vessel,
and the other as a peculiar construction
OF the hull. He says "Myo object in
publishing this communication is two
fold to place, without disclosing the
result of my labors, my discoveries on
public rec,rd, and to call the attention
inventive minds in a direction in
WHICH they may work out the problem {
OF obtaining a high rate of speed for !
steam vessels. L believe in my schemes, ,
but l am not blind to the fact that {
every inventor has faith in his own de- r
vices, and that the most plausible :
in theory may prove utter fail.
ares when submitted to practical tests.
EFFECTS OF COLD ON THE CONFORMATION
OF THE EARTH,
Slr Charles Lyell would have been ,
1eIlghted 10 chronicle the results of the I
ate severe winter weather upon the F
2ontlguratlon Of the earth's surface. 8
several instances of unusually marked y
meets have taken place. Large land P
slides, attributed to the frost, have oc- n
2qrred on the chalky Danish island Of d
Moen. In n spot several million cubic q
Yards slid down. Similar occurrences g.
ave been frequent on the Seine in "
france. The cliffs at Sainte Adresse p
lear Havre are suffering steady degra- n
iatlon by the action of the waves and q
Veathering. The city of Caub in Mas. 81
'au, near Bacharach, will before long II
20 crushed by the fall of rocks not less n
800 feet in height. The catastro- II
'he is reported to be so certain and an CT
al emily so impending that two rows of il
louses have been deserted, "
H GAS U FOR FOG SIGNALS u
a very ingenious application has been ID
q OF the explosive nature of a mix &c
lre OF ordinary gas in air. There is III
stabllshed, at any point on the coast tn
here q fog signal is desired, q ga gun. u
ls simply a tube of iron, connected tr
nth the gas-holder by the proper pipe: re
latter OF course, may be at any OF
.onYenlent distance. The gas-holder il w
lied with a mixture of one fourth air. Et
nd the remainder coal-gas and oxygen, te
ad this mixture is allo we'd to flow into 10
gas gun, wen it may be fred off Je
touching a match to the proper orr. ca
&c, taking care, of course, to close all da
'mmunication with the b, lder. By as
sing an electric spark, instead of the ne
the service of the gun may be WI
ade still easier. The flash from this an
IN is said to illuminate the fog much ia
than that from the discharge OF I'll
In powder.
THE PHYSIOLOGICAL ACTION OF LIGHT. sh
In q memoir on the physiological &C. to
On of light by Prof. Dewar ana Me. To-
endriek, these authors have especially IS
rected their attention to the effect pro- LEI
iced on the retina and optic nerve, gl'
inquiry divided itself into two co
Irts, first to ascertain the eleetromotive fol
rec Of the retina and the nerve; and, I'M
oond, to observe whether this was al. Lea
in amount by the action of light. sla
ley conclude that the action of light vi
such as to alter the amount of the sPl
sesromotive force to the extent of from WI
rec to seven per cent. of the total Nc