The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1880-05-21

IT pleasure every 6trAJu" VI - :
m asthead. Had been in possession OF the
means to institute such Investigation
the yeua's winter quarters 1t would DOUBT
,ass have sbown that the relative moisture
If the air. at an elevation OF only q Re"
foe, above the surface OF the earth, in the
main, was extremely small.
FROZEN MERCURY.
wbsn the temperature Of the air fell To-
va,d. 400 IL was read both from the ordi-
nary mercurjal and from the spirit 1oef-
monster: below 400 always from the iat-
tar. Tn regard to this it Is to be noted THAT
mercury, when it freezes, contracts AZ su'n
a rate that the column suddenly SINKS down
in the bulb. That reading OF the scale
down To goo, which was made once 10 tne
north of Sweden, before the freezing and
contraction of mercury was known' anu
wb;cb Mt that time gave occasion to muon
discussion, il matter which any ono m"'
vsrifv II the mercury is allowed to cool De-
low its own freezing point in thermome-
tar scaled down to 800. Mercury congeals
from beneath upwards, while the congeaieo
nata, an the heaviest sinks down In Tue
still fluid part. When the halt Oh inc
column is thus frozen, the huid Id sepafa-
| ted from the CONCEALED into group Oh
| cbrvstals composed of needles attached In
the form OF minute octahedra and grouped
toe ether along the edges Of the tube. Our
quicksilver Thermometers have sanereo Nv
injury through freezing or thawing; the
quicksilver always sank down In the ouio
aven when 400 was at q considerable dis
tance M the tube. From this II seems
probable that mercury, like water, requires
a greater degree Of cold to CONCEAL wnen IL
ia iuclossd in a capillary tube, than other-
wise.
aIrIvrRoUs PROPERTY OF IcE-RAssoh.
It has long been known that salt water
-ha, q, freezes forms ice free of salt. When
during yoya res it is propo,ed to procure
fresh water for drinking and cooking pur-
poses by melting recently frozen sea ioe' IL
will soon be found that the case Is not eA-
r actly as coniectured. Indeed,such ICE con-
tains a sufficient quantity OF salt TO 90 III
;urious both for drinking and for COOKING
The question has no mean practical s'gn'n-
n cation for tho Arctic voyager, and mas OIL
teL been the subject Of discussion IN Arc.'o
, literature. It has been fond that WINE
recent sea ice is saline, some portion Vi
h block ice is almost free Of salt Qesh). Inc
r. latter is certainly Of glacial origin; Out
IN proof has been adduced to show that occa-
sionally real salt water ice Is met VIII
:. which melted forms water almost fresh.
E DR.. Almquist and myself, in order to e'u J.
" cidate the subject, determined BY ''htropy
it tdisiysls, probability the quantity OF salt
"a contained In a number Of samples, and WI
II, have found: .. ... .mN
"a /. That recent ice Is more or less 3D.
a line. because its pores, filed with salt wa
If ter. remain in the body OF the ice atte'
be capitalization. ..
Q. That such ice, which for some Length
~ of time has remained on the surface OF Tn
IL water. loses by degrees it salt. The ouo
nd bles which are filed with saturated solu
at ton (which freezes only at temperatnr
"a. of -l7o) Of salt, plainly moves graduaii
he from the interior of the ice toward the sur
nd face. In this way this way the ice become
rly little by little almost entirely free iron
IN salt. The change takes place even at io'
he tenn peratures; and 1t appears to me y
,he markable demonstration Of the process
tn through which the metamorphosis OF
he number OF minerals is effected.
8. That tide water which, In severe col
| a.:a .tot, ne, tho eurface
ga the ice. contains considerably more ga
than the sea water (beneath). and
To 4. That the saline crystalzations whi'
NJ .r-~S---s-~-~ss~sss
10. {. rassol." ID not pure culinary salt, but
di- double salt composed If chloride Of magn
, of stun and chloride of sodium. In seve
md cold this double salt forms beautiful efil
rescences on recent ice; 1t melts in its wat
,er. of capitalization at about 80. Sampl
arr were collected in order that they might
70 subjected to thorough analysis.
red The results We have attained, and whi'
a we shall submit more in detail, agree
main with the experiments Of DR.. Rae q
j with the valuable Investigations Of I
,ere Walker during tho voyage Of McClinto
hat with Fox in 1879; however, DR.. Wall
,ns. has not observed the wide dissimilar
ov. there exists in the composition of the eff
lere rescences OF tno marine saits, anu ne
vim thereby, according to my opinion, failed
eby comprehend the process by which the
fall. line ice becomes fresh. He thinks the
,ose line components Of the ice are forced o
! In wards by contraction In severe cold. FIR
lind this would follow that the separation VOL
nos take place most rapidly In severe cold, .
al = that further changes In the saline prop
few ties of the Ice would cease after 1t had Of
was been exposed to the maximum Of fro
road We believe, on the contrary, the Ice 10 m
,uld rapidly purified at temperature Of 0 IL
NOT o., while the bubbles containing salt !
suf- ter under this temperature most read
ome force (cuD thiei way out; or that the
ces- crease of salt In the Ice proceeds uninl
,eble ruptedly as long Is any Ice remains.
this RENDISa AsuNDER OF ICE.
ches During the summer, unfer the infuel
the OF the suns heat, the old ice uudergoe
nrse. process OF melting (thawing), not supe
last cially alone, but also in the interior, WI
,tion In this way becomes filed with number
a. minute cavities holding water. As vi
and In Of less volume than Ice these cavities
ling generally not completely filled, and In 8
case, when the water again becomes froi
m NJ there Ia sufficient allowance for expans
.w,f, but sometimes the cavities become full
rac,s the contrsotions of its walls, or they are
ths plcnished from adjacent cavities, and
n the either case. in the following winter. v
ann. ice again becomes frozen, 1t is rent .,
MONT der. Ali ancient (peresniaD ground
4. ~ shows such strong disposition TO frac
.lsn that tho process pointed out no doubt Q
cises great influence on the relation
rrrs. the ice In the Polar regions.
,ined During our sojourn We observed the
!. l. mense ics blocks surrounding the
!. - | split one after the other and assures I