The star of Pascagoula. [volume] (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1873-1878, 1877-07-20
NUGGETS OF KNOWLEDGE.
A BOUQUET BAROMETER.

flowers so colored forms a tolerably SER
viceable barometer.
PHOTOGRAPHS AT NIGHT.
The business of taking Photographs at
night is said to be gaining popularity in
London. The No ufacturer and Builder
states that the new process is patronized
by people on their way home from dinner
or the opera. A son Of the editor of that
paper is practically engaged in the bust
ness, which is scarcely likely to find
much favor except in a toggy climate.
The method might be useful, however,
| even here, when photographs for cngrav-
ings have TO be made in haste on cloudy
days.
OLD WINE.
The oldest wine in the world was re-
Gently discovered by M. Berthelot, in
the Borelly museum, at Marseilles.
Among the antiquities there he found a
glass vessel which had been taken from
an ancient Roman cemetery at Aries.
The vessel had been closed by melting
the upper portion. 1t contained a
colored liquid which analysis showed to
be wine, with a fair percentage of alcohol
and the other usual constituents of fer
mented grape juice. 1t is supposed to
have been an offering to the dead.
EGYPTIAN PETROLEUM.
1t appears from the experiments of DIR.
Well that Egyptian petroleum has a
specific gravity of 0.953. The Pennsyl-
vanian and Canadian oils have a specific
gravity ranging from O,790 to 0,83O. The
Egyyptian variety gives a very fine lu-
bricating Oil, free of all tarry matter;
but as an Illuminating oil it is inferior to
American oils. 1t is better adapted,
however, to serve as a fuel for steam
generators, as it does not take fire until
it attains a temperature of 1856.
ARTIFICIAL BUTTER.
O~leamargarine, when sold as butter or
employed to adulterate it, can easily be
detected by the following simple methods
suggested by Prof. G. Lechartter Ex-
anime the butter under the microscope,
and if it appears to be composed of ovOid
granules without any crystals it is both
fresh and genuine. and it has never been
melted to be mixed with grease. Melt
the butter, and if it turns at once to a
clear oil, it squire, but Oleamargarine, or
butter containing 1t, Will melt slowly at
the same temperature n hrst form a
whltlsh sort OF sauce.
LoCUsTs AND DEAD FISHES.
This is q great wear for the studv of
natural history The latest Interesting
problem is whether there is any connec-
ton between the appearance of the
among the fish in the Delaware river.
In 1860, it is stated, the fish in that river
and the ponds throughout the Delaware
valley died in large numbers, and this
year, with the return of the locust, the
piscatcry mortality is renewed. There
is a theory that the fish die frsm eating
lOcusts which drop into the river, but a
large number of dead fish having been
examined, in only one of them was a
locust found so that it would appear
that the recurrence of the tish-all is only
a coincidence.
FERN LORE.
"The Fern World" is the title of a
new book by Mr.. Heath, author of The
fern faraulSe; II Volume' "hlch Is
oIosS; 4 oaPt io%'' U d;strihrtion "' n Ts1'0 and
g I'll Ionnn 'of forns Eoro o,It"ro uforn
bnntino otc II viii incInJe Jescr;n'
tions ~ rambIes hrongb the comics and
clans Of nortb Deyen
ssnono wiIl ho Ja,otod 70 tbo Jasor;n+ion
dfiStribrtion and ]o~Itrro at Pri+isb forns
and tbo +ovt miIl Lo iiinstrotod tbroUab'
ont bv coIored~ ttboaranbS of form rron1o
nr;ntad from nature etc
DlNlSlblLllf of GOLD
The divisibility Of gold almost sur
passes belief. Mr.. A. f.. Outerbridge, Jr,
Of the Philadelphia assay office, recently
exhibited before the Franklin institute
some thin films of gold obtained by cleo
trio deposition upon copper and after
ward detached. These pieces OF gold
leaf were transparent, and gave a green
color 10 transmitted lghG. MT: O9Ger-
bridge mas mus prouGceu INNS OF goa SC
min IhaC one gram Vi the nleVai wouiu
cover nearly lour SQUARE leeV' Inls Is
Ten thousand Ililes tnlnneI Chah ordinary
writing paper, ana :, '9o,oVo Oh sucH lllnhs
togeIhef "oulu only hlaAe ohe inch'
A PENNSYLVANIA INSECT.
There is a general notion that only
t~ropical countries are infested with ants
that are capable of doing serious damage.
This, it appears, is a mistake. There is
a black carpenter ant" whose name,
Formica Pennsylyaniia, indicates its resi-
dence, that is capable of effecting much
destruction in woodwork, The Rev. DR..
McCook has seen a rafter which these
ants had penetrated to an extent of five
or six feet of its length, completely
honey.combing it. The rafter was in
the roof of a porch. The attention of
the Philadelphia academy of sciences
was called to the matter, as it is evident
hat such penetration of wooden struc-