New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1877-03-17

in q, Ious The worm is made OF indd-rubbcr and il
al 80 be good iu alton. 1t has the great advantage
over the ordinary cart-worm OF not beng 'akc Oh me
hook by nihh,s. How this invention w0ud nave ue-
lghted the poet CJwptr!
The practical science of the weather Is WIN
ming popular favor Tie British commission 'l"t was
amounted 10 consider tins subject has recommended that
the Parliamentary grant for the weather service he IN
creased by about one-half. making the totil h''y
$4,000 per year II ~ ih'uGh' p,st M tIO,ir,lto
III lIay tle o.E"1 t,dd A. present il embraces 100
stations and furnishes daily report ana lledic'oil
NJ. Borrclly's new comet has proved sad
dsappointmcnt to the people who predicted That II
would make a brilliant display Fresh obsef'auonS
showed that its nearest approach to earh was haue
on the 18th ult TEc clements OF its orbit 40 not GER
tauy Indicate that it has ever been observed before
though hearing similarity to the comet nI i2Jv' WIZ
which Tycho Brahe's name IL c9nn'c,a XXI, me M
inst only sixth of its frsohScryed brightnes5 ire @
is IN seen with telescope OF moderate power ID ie
Conference.-The constellation in which Cougars comet
made it, appearance.
Great interest is still taken i'll the analysis
OF the light Of the star which famed ont IN the swan
and has now faded 10 the eighth magnitude The direct
occasion of ills interest the unavoidable suggestion
that if similar should take place III the sun
this world would at become unnhabitable rs the
sudden increase of heat would melt the continents ana
turn the Sc as INTO VapOr. Several OF the spectrum lines
Of the star-in fact most Of the prominent oneiare
those Of such three OF tue hydrogen INC,
The sodium line d. or The chromosphorc line that ad lIns
il. the magIfc SUM line D. ana inc c"fohai c 40,
Gln,i TIE g' H. 9afid ar Lord Iindsiy's Or
scrvatory in England confirm the previous belief hat
hydrogen OF the most prominent 81 th "lrnois OF
this star. IL now OF red color win decided lse
OF purple
There is a popular belief that a fully equipped
observatory stationed one Of the lofty peaks OF
the Rocky Mountains could do far better work than any
of our oseryatorcs are now This view doubtless
gained its wide acceptance because OF the success or
Prot. Young few years ago in observations on the
chronosphcre made station Of considerable a!ttudc
in the Rocky Mountain region. IL WAS TINS nope 'ha'
caused late MIR. Lick of California to select an tlt
waited position for his projected observatory. Hilbert"
all the evidence las been side OF this theory Ia
a recent communication TO Nature Dr. Henry Draper
sdvocotc nm cIitiiev opposc opinion He FOUND IN Il
series OF attempts observing the noOn and saS from
elevated points in the Rocky Mountains, tat tnc aths-
phcIic disturbance there was quite a, ri the
sralrye Prominent stars twiukicl pcTIcyng way.
There IDuch wind The amount OF hoisiur" ~ thc
air since the settlement of Utah and the cultivation OF
the soil is believed TO have increased. II Is CERTAIN Dr
Draper says, That dung al least haii the e!i an obSei
va.Gry there could do good work. tie thinks mat
nothing would De gained by setting up large telescope
il the mountains.
A few of the English writers on scientific
topics have from time to time flung rdicre upon those
who accept the theory that there connection between
the activity of the suns surface, shown II suspOtS
and the weather of this earth. The theory appears.
however, to be gaining converts. Dr. W. W. Hunter
Genora Statistics in India has recently con
tIibutcd arguments for its support. HIS researches
embrace the records Of 6i years at Madras The Cycle
of increase decrease Of sunspos is kcu at IL yeats
Within each of these elcyenyear periods tue minimum
of rainfall 40 inches, occurs i'll The last fs ana s'ccn
years; the maximum, 81 inches, ia the fifth and sixth
years. Within Tire whole period the years OF mini
mum sunspots have had an average OF only 81 HchSs
T. l,4gs LA IL IA hes
locality six tdmes have taken pIdc during the
Ga years. caused hy the drouhs Of me mlnmnm years
aud directly following them; the six GroUtas each 0c
curing duIuhe last first ol second year OF an eleven
zinc .iNcr tbrv viii enable tie recurrence OF East
Indian famines TO be foreseen and provided Ior
Those of our readers who take pans to make
collections of rare insects may find the following sug
gcstous Of value they are condensed from recent
article on the subject in Forest and Stream To capture
nelt-moths a mixture is 20 he made Of equal parts %
strong beer and mOasses and tuDlbcrfuu OF ruh Il
added to gallon Of the mixture Tile rum is essential To
success This stuff is TO be daubcd on recs, fence rails
or outbudiugs especaly on wcatLcI-beatcD surfaces;
and also upon rags that can be hung bushes or trees
II proves very attractive to numerous varieties Of moths
aud even such changes in the mixture the substitution
Of cough srup for mORsses seem to make little diiier
cuce. stoppcTed, wido-nCuhcd bottle Is then to De
provided. Pieces of potassc cyanide are dropped INTO
the bottle, and wet plasteEot Paris Is poured IN 80 a. 10
cover the cyanide aud hold It dom Ait.r t' las,er
through the pOreo OF the iIstcF ana ne Val1i %li III
the bOtc The mOti-cOlccur takes Lis bo;e and IAN
at night TO the places where the no!asscs mixture
has been spread and usually finds plenty of moths
feeding. The process OF catching Simply to take the
stopper and apply tile bottle 80 that rs riin sur
rounds the mo.h. Tie insect instantly drops, supccd
into the bottle ana he kept III the cyanide fumes
though Il brpt longer the wings become rigid. Or
careful collector will shake his bottle o moths
much in carrying IL home.
There is a notable accession to knowledge
concerning pesteDtiai diseases and the transfer Of
living germs The bacteria which have been the Occa-
son Of many conflicts between Dr. Bastian and the
opponents OF the spontaneous generation theory, have
suddenly sprung into new Importance. the labors OF
Prof Coln and Dr. Koch, which carefully reviewed
by Prot f. Jeffrey Bell of oxford, appear 10 substan-
tate the following facts about certain bacteria: The
persistent whose spores only killed By very
high Temperatures in the experiments OF Basian Pas
leur Tynda Roberts, and Others, distinguished by
peculiar microscopic characters from other bacteria, and
are designated baceli. Their spores and the stalks
into which they develop have been drawn and figured
There are different species of bacel but as yet the
description OF OF them viii answer tor any Of the
rest though the bacillus developed i'll nay and cheese
iniusons has not yet ntn mad; to propagate disease.
Another bacillus has this bad quality II injected INTO
thp blood of mice the bdceiii grow aud multiply with
great rapidly According as the number OF spores III
tOduccd Is small OF large the mouse 'cs III from - 10
SO hours The disease produced Is spehic fever once
started their travels the bacillus spores may do I'M
limited damage. Such ANIMALS as rodents can cat food
containing the Daeelil without harm, but IL - Dy no
mcaHs certain tlt ruihinlhl anlhas can; INC sp"Lcs
retain their vitality even If kept perfectly dry for years
HouLd, however sight II Touched ny any 'hng Go t
tanning these spores iuay al once Introduce mem mo
the circulation. One small district III Prussia lost
Of Noygoroi Russia. tie disease caused the death OF
$4,000 horses and cattle and OPS human bciugs There
il similarity between sloic fever, cholera aud typhus,
Which leads to the nope that the eht shed one OF
these diseases may be extended to lhe others.
Great confusion exists in the popular notions
e.. ,t.1It,