The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1876-12-01
ScIENrIFTC NoTES

TuR largest telescope ever attempted
IS now in cour.e of construction in Dub
liz. 1t is intended for the new oh-erva-
tory of Vienna The object-gla-s will
have an aperture of over twenty-siN
inches. and the focal length Is to he about
thiuv-two feet.
DcNG the present year the United
states fish commission have placed in the
Hudson river 100000 pounds shad
The commissioners observe a steady in
crease in The supply of this fish. They
ask. however. for legislation compelling
q cessation Of fishing on sunday.
European paper-makcr- are importing
the inner bark Of the great haobab tree,
in order ID manufacture paper from its
fiber. ior which purpo-a it proves to be
wcu adapted. 1t is stated that the bark
may be removed from a tree once every
eight wears. "a, the baohab. unlike other
trees. appears To sustain no injury in
consequence Of the loss Of its bark.
Az investigation relating TO the size
of the brain Of the dog has been carried
70 some interesting results by Mr. r..
Garner q British Psychologist. The
brain in dog= appear rot to CORES pond
very closely with the size Of the animal.
So No dog has SO large a brain as the wolf
nor one SO small rs the iackal. The
brain Of "a Newfoundland dog is very
little larger than that of terrier
1T seems probable that the elephant
viii soon become extinct According to
statement made at q recent meeting of
Paris geographical society, England inn
ports annually twelve hundred thousand
pounds Of ivory, to obtain which it is
necessary to Kill thirty thousand ele-
plants a year The total annual de-
struction of thee animals Is estimated
at one hundred thousand.
SLK-won,iz, Matched by electricity,
are now being reared in Italy The SUI
perintendeut OF the Experimental silk
worm farm 1T Padua has found that the
Matching OF silk-worms may Ice aceeler-
ated ten or twelve days, and Il yield OF
forty per cent. OF cateIpillers secured, by
exposing the eggs to a current Of mega
tive electricity from Holtz machine for
eight or ten minutes. 1t is suggested to
apply the same method to hens eggs,
and to Matching the termination Of seeds.
HAVE BEES a SENSE OF HEARING =
Though the best observers deny to bee.
the possession of sense OF hearing. q
writer in Newman Entomologist relates
an instance in which hive of bees APP
pear t. have heard the summons Of their
queen. \ swarm Of bees had been gath
cred into a hive which WAS allowed to
resi- temporarily upon a table On lift
inc the hive, in order to set it upon the
hive board, the portion Of the table on
which the hive had stood was found TO
be covered with bees, which soon began
to run about from their having been sud
denly disturbed The hive was now
placed on the hiye-board, with the en-
trance towards the bees For little
while they continued to run about. as If
bewildered, but then was heard a pecu-
liar vibrating and buzzing sound pro-
ceeding from the hive In an instant all
the bees faced about, with their heads
toward the hive. and all marched into il
III regular procession.
The formation of nickel-ore near Ian
caster Pennsylvania, is pronounced by
the American Manufacturer to be the
heaviest 50 far discovered in any part OF
the globe. The ore Is exceedingly rich.
of grayish tint, very heavy, and % hard
and closely united to the surrounding
substances that it has TO be got out by
blasting. As soon as the ore is mined,
it is crushed into small pieces, and then
transferred to kilns Of = capacity Of from
eighty to ninety tons each. II i then
subjected to hest obtained at frst By
burning wood, and which is continued
by the conversion of the evaporating