Morris tribune., 1880-06-03
SCIENTIFIC.

Own of the recent German inventions CON- |
sists Of new kind Of cloth, which IL COM
posed principally or entirely of sponge.
In its manufacture, the sponges are first
thoroughly beaten with heavy hammer, in
order to crush all the mineral and vegetable
impurities, so that they can be easily washed
out; they are then dried and pared with
sharp knife, the parings being sewed to-
gether. The fabric which Ia thus obtained
Is described as being free from all the dan
ger which sometimes arises from the absorp-
ton of poisonous dyes into the system; il
absorbs without checking the perspiration,
90 as to diminish the danger of taking cold
It is q bad conductor, and therefore helps to
maintain uniform surface temperature;
it can be more readily cleansed than the Or
binary woollen garments; its Aexibility de-
creases the liability of chatting; and the
ease with which it can be employed in shoes
stockings, drawers, undershirts and other
articles of clothing, viii, it is thought, rem
der the new material especially useful as q
protection against rheumatic and pulmonary
attacks
LARGE quantities of pottery are manufac-
tured in Brazil from the hard, silicious bark
of thescaraipe tree. In the process, the
ashes of the bark are powdered and mixed
with the purest clay that can be obtained
from the beds of the riyers-this kind being
preferred, as it takes up larger quantity Of
the ash, and thus produces stronger kind
OF ware. Though the proportions of ash
and clay are varied at the will Of the maker,
and according to the quality Of the bark, a
superior kind Of pottery is produced by q
mixture Of equal parts Of fine clay andashes.
All sorts Of vessels, of small or large size,
for household or other purposes, are made
Of this kind of ware, as are also vases or or
namental articles, many of which are painted
and glazed. These articles are all very du-
rable, and are able to stand almost any
amount of heat. One secret of the strength
of the material is that the cells of the sepa-
rate layers are silicated to greater or less
degree, the slick forming in the cells when
the bark is young or immature.
IT is now found practicable to relieve zinc
plates or sheets of their rigidity, and thus
facilitate the working of the same into the
various forms desired. In the treatment OF
sheet zinc, with this in view, bath of lin
seed Oil is prepared, and into this the plates
are plunged, these being subjected to the
action of oil while in state of ebultition fol
some thirty minutes, more or less, accord.
ing to the thickness of the metal the plates
are then removed from the bath, and after
the oil is thoroughly drained from their sur.
faces they are well cleaned, and are ther
ready for the market. Plates which have
passed through this process are represented
to possess great ductility, and to be capable
of receiving and retaining high polish; or
this account, they may be advantageously
employed as q substitute for lead or pewter,
at great reduction of cost in a variety Of
cases-among these, for example, being thu
Innings of sinks and cisterns and the cover
ing of counter and other surfaces requiring
metallic protection.
A PANS novelty just now is the "mata
fuegos," or fire extinguisher. 1t is flle'
with water, to which is added charge o
bicarbonate of soda and some other ingre
dents; and small cylinder, inside tn
large, is filed with solution of tartari
: acid, &c. When it is required to bring tn
appliance into action, communication
! made between the acid and alkaline min
lures by opening valve by means of q han
die and screw, when carbonic acid gas
| evolved, which, by pressing ON the surfac
) Of the water, caused it to issue in jet Q
fifty feet, the extinguishing action of tn
water being of course aided by the carboni
. acid. The tartaric acid does not corrode th
I metal as sulphuric acid does, nor does it il
t jure woodwork, &c. A pile of logs impree
mated with tar and petroleum, and anothe
of tar barrels, were set well on fire, whe
one ordinary No. 8 of these appliances OK
d tinguished both in one and one-quarter mir
Q utes.
n IT Is stated that France now calls into o.
Q ton the enormous amount of LOO, OC
Q horse power, representing the effort of n
y Jess than IA, OOO, 900 men-that is, in fact,
r population actually greater than that of Il
a workmen Of the whole country. Thus, II
o work accomplished by machinery gives maj
Q other things being equal, the means Of d
q voting to intellectual and social improvement
q much time which would otherwise be occ1
: pied in exacting manual labor. 1t is calc7
70 lated, too, that the machine or motive for
!, employed in -four mills is equal to that
u so, coo slaves attached" to the millsto1
u in ancient Italy. The transport Of forc
i in modern times, to distance from Il
II place Of its production, is the chief artiH'
Ii which has made it possible to substitute m
chinery for men. Since the transmissiC
n shaft was invented, great progress has bes