Sacramento daily record-union., 1881-11-05
OUR LETTER-BoX
Answers to Correspondents Curious ouss.
tions-Replies

| a4oWC w 0Ot4 orOh0S1eo- GASS
tions-Replies
LEGAL TENDER please state through
your paper the amount for which standard
silver dollars are now by law legal ten
der. x.
The standard dollar is legal tender for
any amount, unless otherwise stipulated
by contract.
HARRY MEIGGs s-Will you please an
swer subscriber if Harry Meiggs, Of Peru
| fame, has been in San Francisco during the
| last five years.
1t has been stated that Meiggs did re-
| turn to San Francisco, but it is generally
conceded now that he did not. Certainly
he never came there openly, and quite as
certainly not at all.
AsPARAGUs.-Ca you give me any in
formation as to what has been demon
| strated to be the best manure for asparagus
outside Of stable manure? l am aware
that experiments have been made in this
line, but have not heard of the results.
GROWER.
The only experiment of which we have
knowledge was made recently in France.
There silicate of potash was tried, and it
was found to greatly increase the size of
the shoots. lis not stated how it affected
the quality of the plant.
PROPERTY RIeHTs.-" Widow" asks if
man dies possessed of 81, COO and wills his
widow $500, can she not claim one-third Of
the property by the laws of this State !?
If the 81, 600 was community property she
is entitled to oDe-half, and as much more
as he gives her. II it was his separate es-
tate she can take only what the will gives
| Ii there is no will the distribution depends
upon the number and relationship of the
heirs. "Widow" does not state her prop
osition clearly.
ELECTORAL VoTEs.-H. B. asks &: "If
not too much trouble, will you kindly say
in your next weekly issue how the electoral
vote of State for President is counted /;
that is ~ whether all the votes to which
the State is entitled must be given for the
candidate favored by the majority of the
| Presidential Electors of the State or ~
whether, according to individual prefer
ences, the votes to which the State is en-
titled may be divided among different can
dldates At the last Presidential election
the Board of Presidential Electors of Cali
fornia consisted of five Democrats and one
Republican. (3). Was Mr.. Edgerton's vote
/ COuuISu lOl IL SlOSO CDA-
test, would the Democratic majority have
| been entitled to cast the six votes of Cali
fornia in favor of Hancock ?" These
questions have over and over again been
answered but just once more reply is
made l, no; 2, yes 3, yes; 4, no.
WEIGHT OF CoINs-PURITY We, the
employees in the Southern Pacific depot at
Wilcox, a. T., are having an argument in
reference to the worth OF the pure gold in
a twenty y-dollar piece. We cannot agree,
so we have agreed to leave the matter to
your decision. l contend there is $40
worth of gold they say SIS. Which are
right G.
Gold and silver in United States coinage,
when pure, are 600 line or, by the old
method, "a carats fine. Except for jew
elry, the old carat system is generally
abandoned. The standard fneness of
United States coin is 900 or, by the old
system. ZIG carats gold for coinage is re-
fined from 900 to 997a fine, the inferior
metal it then holds being pure silver, left
for alloy. When alloyed with copper. the
| proportion of gold is in accordance with its
iineness, or it must be geo fine, or 9 10
pure gold. Thus suppose refined gold to
be $50 fine, l0l1 parts gold $50 fine
equals $40 parts 1000 fine. With the
silver and copper alloy, gold being 900 fine,
the proportions for coin 900 fine would be
9 10 pure gold, add lilo pure silver, add
LII pure copper, equals standard coin or
10 II gold $50 fine, add Ill copper, equals
standard coin. The mint value of one
grain of gold 1000 fine is .0430663. Now
the double eagle 1920 is 900 fine, its total
weight in grains being SIG. OF this weight,
SIG grains, or LILO, is alloy, and 464 is
pure metal. There is thus In $50 piece
SIS of pure gold.
TEST FOR WATER-A. 3. L. writes to
know if there is any simple test for ascer-
tanning organic pollution in water A SIM
! pie test is to cork up small bottle nearly
full OF it, in which piece of lump-sugar
has been put. If by thus excluding the
air, and letting it stand in the light for two
or three days, there is not a milky cloud
seen, but the water remains clear, il may
be considered free from the phosphates
with which sewage-water is impIegnated.
To ascertain If water contains iron, take a
glass of water and add to it few drops of
the infusion CT nutgalls, or suspend nut.
gall in it by means of thread for twenty.
four hours. Ii iron be present, the water
will become of dark brown or black
color. Prussiate of potash is a still more
delicate test for detecting iron.. If crys-
tai, or drop of it, when dissolved. be
added to glass of water containing iron,
it will Immediately become of blue color.
To ascertain if water contains magnesia,
take quantity Of the water and boil down
to twentietieth part of its bulk, then
drop few grains of carbonate of ammonia
! into small glass of water. No magnesia
will yet be precipitated but on adding a
small quantity of phosphate of soda, if
any magnesia be present it will then
make its appearance and fall to the bottom
of the glass. In this experiment it is
necessary that the carbonate of ammonia
be in neutral state.