St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1881-03-12
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY

VI 'l'ls group which had been dis
covered up to July, 1879, sixty-three
"o.e discovered in the United States,
s.Asy 10 France, twenty eight in Ger
many seventeen in Austria, fifteen in
great Britain, eleven in Italy, five in
ASIA and one in Denmark. Prof. Pc
ters' OF the Clinton Observatory, has
discovered more (thirty-six) than any
o'her single observer. The orbits of
one hundred and seventeen were calcu-
."'eo IN Germany, those of forty eight
In the United States, and those of the
others In Austria, France, England,
huss'a and Sweden. No satisfactory
theory has yet been advanced to ac-
count for the existene of these remark
able little worlds.
Meteorologists have found that Uni
ted States Storms usually advance from
the upper Mississippi Valley toward
New York aud New England, less fire.
quently toward Virginia, and seldom
toward the Carolinas. American storm
centres most frequently pass off the
coast between forty-tive and fifty de-
grees North latitude. The great waves
OF high barometer, with fierce north
west winds in their front, usually ad-
vance from the Rocky Mountains to-
ward Virginia and the Carolinas, but
less frequently toward New England.
A naturalist has found that spiders
are completely deceived by tho sound
OF tuning fork, mistaking it for the
buzz of a fly.
During the past year two French ex-
perimenters have kept nine pigs in a
state Of habitual intoxication, in order
to test the effects of various alcoho lic
stimulants. The digestive apparatus
of the pig quite closely resembles that
of man, and for this reason these ami
mails were chosen for the experiments.
The savants have found that the pig
taking absynthe is at first gay, then excl
table, irritable, combative and finally
drowsy; the pig under the influence of
brandy is cheerful until he falls asleep /:
the pig treated to rum becomes directly
sad and somnolent; while the gin TAX
ing pig assumes most eccentric line of
Notwithstanding, squealing, fitting
his head against the sty door, rising on
his hind legs, and otherwise behaving
very unlike ordinary sober pigs. The
animals subjected to these experiments
are said to be none the worse for their
years drunk.
Signor G. Bignami Sormani, of Milan,
has found that the density of snow at
time of falling varies remarkably. Du-
ring his observations he has found
snow so dense that it weighed over
thirty pounds to the cubic foot, being
nearly half as heavy as water; while
the lightest snow weighed by hin
showed but a trife more than two and
a half pounds per cubic foot. 1t is as
sumed that the density of new-faller
snow is ordinarily about one eighth tina
of water, or, in round numbers, eigh
| pounds each cubic foot.
A new method Of reproducing photo
graphs in colOls on china will, it is pre-
dicted completely revolutionize tina
art. By the new process a dinner plat
can be converted into a veritable werl
Of art at a slight expense-not one-twen
tieth of the cost by the plan of hant
painting.
An invention which must prove o
much Importance in architecture ant
sculpture has recently been made b.
DR.. Gehring, of Landshut, Bavaria. B.
means of an enameling liquid, he claim
to be able to render any kind of ston
or cement harder than granite, ant
gives it the appearance of any othe
mineral desired. The enamel may ais
be applied to metal, and is said to effec
tually preserve it from rust.
A London journal reports that ne1
and somewhat remarkable invention
has appeared at Turin. 1t consists il
the application of light-giving materi
ais to printing ink, by which print be
comes luminous in the dark, SO that i
future it will be possible to read at nigh
in bed or during journey, without th
assistance of candle or lamp. 1t is sal
that a new daily paper is about to b
printed in Turin with this luminou
ink.
M. Blerzy describes an interestin
experiment in physics which is readil
performed by any person. Place an iro
Dot full of water on the fire. When th
water is boiling vigorously, remove th
pot; then, if the hand be brought int
contact with it, only a moderate heat
felt. But Immediately the water cease
to boil, the sensation of burning Is Fe
ceived. The only risk attending th
experiment, states M. Blerzy; is that {
blackening ones hand.
NJ. Poirot recently stated to th
French Academy that wormwood prove
, remarkably effective as an insectifug'
driving away every kind of insect, a
well as rattlesnakes and other serpent
small Farms.
RI [Marksville Review,
The French people have more read
cash in individual possession than an
other nation in the world. tits not th
| ..aI4f, &c - ,,,<;or, 4fo< -, o3,n. 4l,o y,nr