New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1878-01-12
SCIENCE FOR THE PEOPLE.
PENNSYLVANIA ToRxApo.-A pamphlet

A PENNSYLVANIA TORNADO.-A pamphict
ba. been publi,beG BY Richard Darlington jr, giving
precise and careful description OF very destructive 'or
nao that passed the western hah OF chester co'h
y Pcnnsylyia. Juy J. Two Illustrations serve l" sho"
heoutwsrd shape u the tornado aud the character Oh
the damage 1t inflicted. The weather before the advent
OF the tornado was Close the thermometer
stood at 92 the barometer POO. The direction OF mo
ton fOr the most part nearly east; tho TRACK WAS
from 100 TO 900 yards wide and twenty-five miles long
The tornado moved along the track from h'e
TO fifteen miles per hour, averaging about twelve
II formed a cone, OF which the upper portion
kept q very direct course, while the lower sweFTed
,rreQ,layIy Little rain or hail accompanied IL,
and IN parts OF the track the sun was shbihg.
roaring sound accompanied 1t. The trees whlch IL
prosraed thrown with their tops 10 the horth so
that they lay right angles To the route, the whrhs
motion being right to left The greatest destructive
power was constantly exhibited the right side OF the
revolving axis Trees twisted before being of"Ken
If or nprooed When It had gathered sufficient mate
rial from the ground its appearance Ike the eonven
tona pictures of waterspOus; small at the base ana
widening toward the sky The interior OF this
storm-cloud seemed TO be full OF. flying Missiles
and these were also discharged outward In every drec
ton When il passed over stream of vatef the whoie
of the water went up tornado and the Ded OF tDc
stream left dry. The destruction oi proper'. OF
was carried by the tornado about 200 yards, and
dropped in an unconscious sfa- with DIS shoaiuTr
animals were also much injured. Mr.. Darling
toms compilation OF the dat. u e.'ic 80 ~
causes such ornadoes, and the only nope OF iuy IN
derstandng them is In obtaining more precise KNOW
GENERAL subject, NJ. Faye, OF Paris, distinguished a
hority meteoroogy has proponnded opinions eon
corning ornaducs and waerspOus thar are widely ~
variance with the views heretofore generally nccspteu
and his has consequently evoked 4 HVey diseus
sion IN scientific circle-
Beavers IN SCoTLASD-Near Rothesay, the
Marquis Of Butte has ortably established colons OF
beavers. They have pine wood and portion OF q
mountain stream TO themselves, and are 40 walled ID
that they cannot escape from that domsn. Already
they have built three DAMS and have cut down many OF
the trees in their park Willow boughs given them
Tor food adj liiiOn 10 what they can Themselves secure
They have bred in their new home and seem 10 be hour
ishing
OXYGEN LIoyEFIED.-M. RaOul Pictet suc-
ceeded last month, nj Geneva, in accomplishing the
hitherto mpraetcabIs task Of reducing oxygen To
ond The experiment performed at the laboratory
Of the Society for the of Physical APPar
atus. The process may be briefly described Liquid car
bouc anhydrlde obtained In this form 10y the Use OF
suphurous acid, and at pressure Of four 10 six simo
pheres Is introduced into long tube, and has temper
AZURE So below Airpunps are then apPlrd 10
the tube aud the carbOnic ami freezes solid IN the
vacuum thus attained within this tube there j. another
Of smaller diameter through which oxygen Is passed
The oxygen issues from generator where Is produced
from posssic corate The generator lie OF the shape OF
a large bowitZcr-she capable OF resisting explosion
The pressure in this apparatus may be carried to 500
atmOspheres but only 800 required In the expert
men As the oxygen under this pressure Of 800 stnos
pheres after passing through the refrgcraiing tube
issued into Of ordinary pressure portion Of the gas
took the liquid form and remained lgnld NJ the
extremity OF tho tube The fact was considered OF such
Importance that It was elegrnped by Profs 1ynds
to The London Times Very recently " Calrtte has sue
cseded in Hquefying nitric oxide meihyl hydrdc and
nitric oxide recurring or liD
sphefes Only gasee resist the chtmisrs
sk N the EFFORT 10 reduce them 10 The liquid form
nitrogen and hydrogen. with the Improvement Of
apparatus, perhaps they also VIII Yield.
science FOR CnLDRES.-Professor Tyndall
has be.un series Of the young. The first Of
the coirse WAS on Heat. Visible aud Invisible" and
was very simple and lucid in ts explanations Methods
of ORIGINATING heat and fire by friction displayed
Probably tine snowy Of the experiments with which
the Professor delighted the produced by
lnrnng charcoal made from wood bark. in stream 81
oxygen. This kind Of charcoal give. out numerous
sparks with small suffering explosions: the sparks
forced n upon them aud The efiect Was Very branG
SEA LIoSs ACCrsED.-ln 4 recent meeting,
az san Francisco ~ the scnatc Committee on Fsherrs
the state Fish Comm'-ioners and committee rcprc
scntn the fisherman Of the coast The question to the
destructive performances Of the Hons m The harbor
wa. actively discussed One u the fishsrmcns repre
,eutavcs said that IL was estimated that there
5000 lions within radius OF few miles, cOnsum
Ing from ten 20 forty pounds Of - per day the
sea Hons were protected while the fishermen were hlr
assed by the game laws AnOtherwitness declared that
salmon captured the Sacramento River often bore the
marks Of injury from lions. having barly escaped
with lie; but supposed that the salmon less FIRE
quently fell victims TO the amphibans than did other
fishes that cannot swim fast. The testimony about
Chinese fishermen very conflicting. On the side
II said that they stripped the waters OF young fish
by ung nets with small mesLes. on the other It
DECLARED that the crf business Of the Chinese hsen,n
near Francisco to catch shrimp 81 which they
obtained 100000 worth In season they also caught
about barrels Of per Month The Chinese
leave small FISH O. The shore: they too
frugal Tor such waste me heaps were len by Italians II
class also NUM- rOus about san ftanciscO
REcoyERiYG LOST QCIcKsILvER.-Thc beds
~ rivers gold mining districts. where the ANAL
gam process hn, been long employed charged with
ouicksilvor Some Germans have devised method for
recovering portion Of the lost metal and according
The THginia Guy EHterprise. fair days labor Ia quite
remuneratcd by the atnalgam mercury obtained. A
tool OF iron used about ten feet long, with a copper
head shaped like solderngron. On the sides OF this
tool there pockets The head II thrust down into the
riycr bed and churncd mp ana down After a while
Lalgam IL found IN the pockets OF the tool adhenng
to It's surface. and 10 scrapcd of by the workmen.
PHOTOGRAPHY BIZ ARTIFICIAL LIGuT-7he
Lodon Times spcaks In terms OF praise Of the OF
Mr. Van der Weyde In producing photographs by means
OF the electric light concentrated by Fre.ne placed
at the opening OF the reflector Tue light Is said TO lie
soft and pleasant It be thrown upon sitter In any
position the picture is taken eight ten seconds
While experimenting, before he attained his present
success, Mr. Van der Weyde used at time a globe
Of water The light; this apparatus gave
way under the weight OF water. and injured the in
ventor by plners Of falling glass that he disabled
for two months. Nj. Van der Weyde American the
sou Of the editor OF me Manufacturer and BUILDER OF
this city lie has distinction abroad an artist
the paintings having been placed the line the eXh
btiOn Of the Royal AGA cny. In patent taken out for
his Of his hdiuncts to photography, SIR. Van der
Wcydc has LEFT OPEN 10 all tie world the employ ncnt of
invention for medical and surgical purposes such a.