The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1880-08-28
Compiled for the CARBON ADVOCATE.
POPULAR SCIENCE NOTES

A public laboratory for the analysis of
chemicals and patent medicines has been es-
Lablished in Japan, and patent medicine or
mixture cannot be sold in that country un-
til after it has been thoroughly tested and
pronounced of merit at such laboratory.
Should such an institution be established
and a similar law enacted in this country,
no doubt but a very large portion of the
worthless aud injurious so-called remedies
and mixtures, which flood the United States
at the present time would justly be buried
so deep that they would never again rise TO
the surface. 1t is to be hoped that Congress
may at an early day, take action in this
matter, and have excluded from our land
the thousands of worthless and dangerous
articles that are imposed upon our people.
The Manufacturer and Builder" a most
excellent scientific journal, published in
New York, is authority for the statement
that printing was first introduced in Ameri
ca by the Spanish Viceroy Mendoza, at the
city of Mexico, IN the year 1886 and that
the first book published is believed to have
had the title "Escala espiritual de San Juan
Climaco." No copies of it are known to
exist at present, and the name of the printer
is a matter of doubt. In what is now the
United States, Cambridge, Mass, has the
honor of having first introduced the print
ing press. This was about the year 1885,
Stephen Daye was the first American print
er, and his book was the "Bay Psalm Book"
issued in lG4O. The first newspaper was
issued at Boston, by John Campbell, on
Monday, April "a lTO4. 1t was called the
"Boston News Letter." and was regularly
published for about p years.
The severest hail storm witnessed in the
United States,if not in the world, took place
July l, in Warren county, Missouri. The
stones were Of various sizes ranging from
the size of walnuts up to blocks of ice lO1
inches long, inches wide and inch thick,
and fell to depth of SIX inches on level,
over forty square miles of territory. The
damage was necessarily great, the crops be-
ing totally destroyed and many fowls, sheep
and hogs were killed outright. The ice
smashed not only windows, but sashes and
blinds, and so injured most of the roofs oI
houses in the path Of the storm, that new
ones had to be put on.
On the subject of "Infanticde among An.
cient and Modern Nations DR.. Carl Ho-
berland, an eminent scientist, who has Civ.
en- much attention to the matter, traces the
origin of this custom to the difficulty of sub
sistencej the sacrifice being in the outse
urged by She male parent and opposed o.
reluctantly submitted to by the mother
Among the. lower animal parallel cases are
of frequent occurrence, where the younl
are often destroyed by the father and ar,
defended against him and concealed by thu
mother.
Some Of the most learned scientists in th'
land, are Of the opinion that the Polar re
gions, at one time possessed a tropical tenn
perature and were the original home o
man, and combat the ordinary theory tina
the Aryan race Of mankind originated il
Pamir highlands of Central Asia, spreading
thence into Europe and India.
A steam digging machine has been inven
ted and successfully used in England, il
breaking ground for grain. The machiE
= digs up the earth at the rate of ten acres pc
day, leaving the soil in better condition
p than when stirred by plow.
= In order to enable NJ. Pasteur 10 carr
! out his researches on the contagious diseass
Of animals, the French government has a.
lotted him the sum of 900 francs. A sim
/. liar undertaking in this country woul
Z doubtless prove of value generally, and th
subject is deserving, at least, of being agts
70 ted.
r As an article Of human food and diet, th
c Chinese consider the use Of cows milk III
natural and immoral, and prohibit its Vi
= in that country.
l. ]. Reset finds in 100, 900 parts Of atmo
pheric air 1918 parts by volume, of carboI
y ic acid, the greatest differences observed ol
l. ly reaching hundred thousandths. The a
&c in the night contains more carbonic ac
n than in the day. The maxima observe
+ correspond to foggy weather He has N
detected any decrease in the proportion
7 carbonic acid as weather indication hoy
A ever.