The Toledo chronicle. [volume] (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1873-1924, 1876-11-09
INDUSTRIAL, STATISTICAL
AND TECHNICAL.

THE Hon. John w. Foster reports
to the Department of Agriculture that
-" in Mexico there exists the agricul-
tural capacity to produce all the coffee
that can be consumed in the United
States, and of a quality equal to the
best grown in any country"
IT is said that, at Ardbracean Pail
ace, in Meath County, Ireland, there
stands a horse. chestnut which covers
nearly a quarter of an acre. 1t ex-
tends over the ground in the same
way as the banyan tree. Its branches
falling and taking root in the soil.
AN agent representing several COM
panies of English capitalists, has writ
ten to the Tennessee Bureau of Agri-
culture, Statistics and Mines, ask
ing whether or not there are 100000
acres of coal lands in the State for
sale, and If so, to inform him at once,
that his principals may purchase.
To SETTLE a disputed question as to
the predominance of blue eyes and
hair in Germany, the Prussian Gov
eminent lately took census of the
schools. Over four millions of chill
dren were examined, and it was found
that 1921 per cent. had blue, and
24.31 per cent. brown eyes; ~ per
cent. had blonde hair, 26 per cent.
brown, and 1.21 per cent. black.
The high price of provisions in
England brings into the markets vast
quantities of food unfit for use. The
inspectors of the Fishmongers' Com
pany, of London, seize upon an aver
age every month about fifty tons of
fish unfit for human food; and at re-
cent meeting OF the London Commits
sioners of Sewers it was stated that so
prodigious is the mass of Australian
meat constantly being condemned, at
Deptford, that the Commissioners
powers are taxed to the utmost to dis
pose of the horrible stuff.
CONSIDERABLE interest has been ex-
cited among scissors manufacturers by
the recent discovery, by Sheffield
artisan, of a means of entirely dis
pensing with skilled labor in the pro-
duction of scissors blades. AT present,
as is well known, the process of forg-
ing IS one requiring considerable skill
and time. But in this case, the in
yentor, by an adaptation of existing
machinery, completes the operation Of
making scissors blades from the sheet
of steel, by the aid of boy or girl
The blank is "filed," the bow cut,
and the blade shaped, without the in
PREVENTION of a skilled hand. at twenty
times the speed at which they are at
present produced by hand forging. 1t
is stated that in point of quality these
machine-made blades have been pro,
nounced by manufacturers to be in
every respect admirable.
A MOST interesting example of the
effect of the demand of mechanical
product in securing a supply is cited
by the Scientific american recent
inventors experience in his endeavors
to procure steel springs of great size
and power. 1t appears that an En-.
glish inventor had been actively en-
gagged for some time in the construc
ton of tramway car, to be run by
the motive power exerted by stee
springs; the reports now stating that
since his earlier experiments, Mr. LIE
veaux had, by interchangeable persever
ance, induced the spring makers really
to astOnish themselves by their pro
auctions. Thus, band of steel has
been rolled which, when tempered into
a spring, will give draft of 5000
pounds; another single band of stee
has been rolled having width of foul
inches and a length of 1874 feet. In the
application of this spring power, the
services of stationary engines will bt
needed to wind them up, and there
must needs be decided loss by fric
ton; and the problem is simply
whether the gain by the use of this 81
lent power will offset the loss above
indicated.
LOVERS of half-raw beafsteak All
perhaps aware that they have exec
lent chances of swallowing the tpni,
tnernis in their favorite food, the
tpnia being parasite of the OK, WI icl
knows how to make itself perfectly al
home in the human stomach. Nor
in spite of its distinguishing epithet
is it by any means a pleasant guest
But DR.. Normand, of the Frencl
naval medical service, has made the
discovery, as he thinks, of a still more
insidious enemy of man, to which he
has given the pleasant name of an
guilluld stercoralis. 1t is about {
quarter of milimetre in length, anG
but for its extreme leanness would be
visible to the naked eye. 1t is alb
sorbed into the system, either in ami
NAL or vegetable food, and is believed
to be the cause of the terrible disease
known as the Cochin China diarrhpa,
which has committed fearful ravages
among the French troops stationed in
the east, for so long as the worm re-
mains in the body the malady con-
tinues, and frequently ends in death.
The best remedy hitherto discovered
is milk, but it is far from being SO
et1icacious as could be desired. Pail
Mall Gazette.