The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1878-03-21

from Abydos to Sestos to meet Hero
q feat which Byron repeated in 1910
, Further on in Lamsaks on the Asiatit
shore, and at the entrance of the Ses
of Marmora is Gallipoli, whose mill
tary importance has been long recog.
nized.
THE sIGNIFIGAMNcE EiaN OF Bill
1t is no easy matter to bring under
the cognization of the human eye q
billion objects of any kind. Let rs try
in Imagination to arrange this number
for inspection, and for this. purpose I
would select sovereign as familiar
object. Let us put one on the ground
and pile upon it as many as will reach
twenty feet in height; then let US
place numbers of similar columns in
close contact, forming 3 straight line,
and making sort of wall twenty feet
high, showing only the thin edge of the
coin. Imagine two such walls running
parallel to each other, and forming, as
it were, long street. We must then
keep on extending these walls for
miles--nay, hundreds of miles-and
still we shall be far short of the re-
quired number. And it is not until
we have extended our imaginary street
to . distance of 2,3S61k miles that we
shall have presented for inspection
our one billion of coins.
Or in lieu of this arrangement we
may place them flat upon the ground.
forming one continuous line like q
golden chain, with every link in close
contact. But to do this we must pass
oyer land and sea, mountain and val
ley, desert and plain, crossing the
Equator, and returning around the
Southern Hemisphere, through the
trackless ocean, ,retrace our way across
the Equator, then still on and on until
we again arrive at our starting point;
and when we have thus passed gold
en- chain around the huge bulk of the
earth, we shall be but at the beginning
of our task. We must drag this inn
aginary chain no less than 763 times
around the globe. IF we can further
imagine all these rows of links laid
closely side by side, and every one in
contact with its neighbor we shall
have formed golden band around
the globe just fifty.two feet six inches
wide and this will represent our one
billion of coins. Such chain if laid
in a straight line would reach frac-
ton, oyer Is $685. AS miles, in the
weight of which. it estimated at one
quarter ounce each sovereign, would
be G, 6,975, AL tons, and would require for
their transport no less than 1928 shipe,
each with q full cargo of 5000 TONS
Even then there would be q residue
of 447 tons, representing 64,0Sl ,92O
sovcreigns.
For. measure of height let US take
q smaller unit as our measuring rod.
The thin sheets of paper on which
these lines are printed, ii laid out fat
and firmly pressed together as in q
well-bound book, would represent
about 1-333d of an inch in thickness.
Let us see how high dense pile form
ed by q billion of these thin paper
would reach. We must in imagine
ton pile them vertically upwards by
degrees reaching to the height of our
tallest spires; and, passing these, the
pile must still grow higher, topping
the Alps and the Andes and the high.
est peaks of the Himalayas, and shoot
ing up from thence through the fleecy
clouds, pass, beyond the confines of
our attenuated atmosphere, and leap
up into the blue ether with which the
universe is filled, standing proudly up
far beyond the reach of Terrestrial
things; still pile on your Thousands
and millions of thin leaves, for we are
only beginning to rear the mighty
mass. Add millions on millions of
sheets, and thousands of miles on
these, and still the number will lack
It's due amount. Let US pause to look
at the neat plow edges of the book be-
fore US. See how closely lie those
thin flakes of paper, how many there
are in the mere width of 3 span, and
then turn our eyes in imagination up
ward to our mighty column of accu.
mulated sheets. 1t now contains its
appointed number, and our one billion
sheets of the Times superimposed up
on each other, and pressed into COM
pact mass, has reached an altitude of
Al, ,347 miles.-[ Henry Bessemer in the
London Times.