American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1875-07-17
INDUSTRIAL.

A BORDEAUX chemist has found that by
treating timber with carbureted steam-tha
is, with steam having mixed with it small
proportion of hydrocarbon vapor-the re
| suit is an evolution of acctic acid and thu
formation between the fibers of the Woo
of a peculiar gummy substance, which
hardens by time and which appears t.
materially increase the resisting powers o.
the material. When first treated in thi:
way the timber is so softened that it cal
be rolled to give it an even surface, or it:
| form can be altered to a considerable eX
| tent by pressure, thus rendering it capable
| of being nodded to many shapes which
are at present only produciblc by thu
action of cutting tOOls-the forms thu.
given to the timber in soft state being re
tanned permanently.
THE Journal Of Chemistry points out a
grave error in measuring the feet of women
for boots. 1t says: "Kid gloves, though
worn continually, never cause bunions
since the kid stretches to the hands; but
in the manufacture of boots, especially
ladies' boots, unyiclding canvas is used to
line them, SO that the leather is prevented
from stretching and showing the true shape
and size of the foot The foot enlarges
when bearing the weight of the body, and
also toward evening; hence a boot thus
made from a measure taken when the foot
ing, is too small for the foot in the even
ing. Women's feet are generally meas
ured in the air, but mems when they are
standing on them The high heels in
ladies' boots, too, cause them to be always
walking down hill, however level the path
may be, thus driving the foot more and
more to the 'front.'
QUITE an industry is carried on in En-
gland in the manufacture of candles from
Bornean vegetable tallow-a vegetable
material imported from BorneO, and re-
sembling tallow. In practice, this tallow
is placed in copper vessel, or a wooden
vessel lined with sheet lead, and gradual
ly heated up to $50 degrees Fahr.; after
this concentrated sulphuric acid is added
in the proportion of 100 pounds to every
six tons, and at the end of about three
hours the tallow is pumped into vessel
containing calculated water, and agitated
by free steam passing through it for
about two hours, when it is allowed to re-
pose. The substance is then distilled in
a still from which the atmosphere is cx-
cludcd, highly heated steam being used
for this purpose, introduced in numerous
jets or streams below the fatty material in
the still. The distilled products are re-
ccivcd in condenser, and, when con-
denscd, are used alone or mixed with
other candle materials for making candles
or night lights of the better class Can
dies of an inferior description are made
of this substance by dispensing altogether
with the process of distillation.
A MARVELLOUS piece of mechanism, in
the way of clocks, is described in the
French journals. 1t is an eight-day in
strumcnt, with dead beat escapement main
tanning power. 1t chimes the quarters,
plays sixteen tunes, plays three tunes every
twelve hours, or will play at any time re-
quircd. The hands go round as follows:
one once al minute; one, once an hour;
one, once Il week; one, once month; one,
once year. 1t shows the moons age; the
rising and setting of the sun the time of
high and low water, half cbb, and half
flood, and, by beautiful continuance,
there is a part which represents the water,
which rises and falls, lifting some ships at
tide as if they were in motion,
and as it recedes, leaves these little autom-
atom ships dry on the sands. The clock
shows the hour of the day, day of the week,
day of the month, month of the year. and
in the day of the month there is provision
made for the long and short months. 1t
shows the signs of the zodiac; it strikes or
not, chimes or not, as may be desired and |
it has the equation table, showing the |
difference of clock and sun every day in |
The year.