Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1877-04-27
Useful Information.

A few weeks ago the city authorities of
Vienna made novel application of pneu-
matte tubes to the end of maintaining unison
and regularity in widely-separated time
pieces. The inventor is the Austrian en-
gineer and electrician f. A. Mayrhofer.
who, after yainly trying to solve the problem
by means of electricity, finally hit upon the
new system. From central bureau in the
city, connected with the Imperial obserya
tory, pneumatic tubes extend in all direc-
tions. laid alongside the gas mains, and
branching off to the public clocks; and by
means OF simple apparatus in the latter
the authorities in this bureau will be able
to exhibit the true astronomical time on the
clock dials in all parts of the city-a move
ment of the hands occurring once minute.
At present only the city clocks have been
brought into connection with the new system,
but it will be extended rapidly, until it EN-
braces the timepieces in all the schools, pub
lie institutions, hotels. ETC., and in those
private residences where it may be desired.
NJ Massie, a French investigator, has dis
covered that iron is an excellent preservatiye
of barley, corn, biscuit, etc, when these
commodities are packed in boxes of a capacity
Of about forty gallons. In the course of his
experiments he filled thirteen sets of TASKS
with various food substances, there being in
each set three TASKS, one OF which was filled
with the substance without any addition,
the second with the same substance and a
bar Of iron weighing about quarter Of a
pound. and the third containing the same
substance with II grains of mercury. The
sets were allowed to stand for several months.
Tho fnods which N some pasea were already
worm-eaten, were found to be either entirely
destroyed or greatly changed in those TASKS
which had no other contents; but in those
which contained the iron and mercury the
foods were found either preserved or else ar
rested in decay. A part of the TASKS were
filled with army "hard tack" In the un-
protected receptacles it was entirely de-
stroyed by weevil; in the other cases 1t was
only partly affected, or else entirely pre-
served.
Siehr recommends very highly the use of
sawdust and water as superior even to hair
in preventing the cracking and peeling of
Of rough casting under the action of storms
and frost. His own house. exposed to pro-
longed storms on the sea coast, had patches
of mortar to be renewed each Spring, and
alter trying without effect quite number of
substances to prevent it, he found sawdust
perfect satisfactory. 1t was first thoroughly
dried and sifted through an ordinary grain
sieve to remove the larger particles. The
mortar was made by mixing one par. of ce-
ment, two of lime, two of sawdrst and five
of sharp sand the sawdust being first well
mixed, dry with the cement and sand.
1t is well known that in many places
springs of fresh water arise from the bottom
Of the sea. NJ. Toselli proposes to make use
of them by causing their water to rise
through flexible tubes held at the surface by
suitable buoys, and thus furnish ships with
supplies in mid-ocean. lie appears to have
studied the subject carefully, and has pro-
vided for the preservation Of his apparatus
in the face Of storms.
A scientific journal of Paris notes tho oc-
currencc of a peculiar phase OF insanity
among French cooks. 1t is called tohe dos
ouiSinicrs cooks insanity, and is due to
carbonic oxide given of by charcoal stoves.
The principal symptoms are hallucinations
Of sight and hearing, vertigo, oppression,
syncopc. The patient generally believes
himself to be the victim of persecution.
Tools and chisols for cutting French burr
stones may be tempered by heating to Il dark
cherry red and qucnching in the following
solution To gallons water add 3OzS. each
spirit of inter, spirit of heartshorn, while
yitriol, sal ammoniac, and alum. and ozs.
with II double handful OF hooi paringS.
The "London" cement for joing broken
glass, china, wood, etc. is made by taking
II piece Of Gloucester cheese, boiling it three
times in water leach time allowing the
water to cyaporatc). and mixing the paste
thus left with dry pucklimo.
To soften metal castings, bury them in
sawjust in an iron box. Maze it alright
with clay, and subject to u red heat for
several hours. Let the whole cool before
taking out the castings.