The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1881-09-15
:, Scientific Miscellany.

! The largest library Of the world, at Pari.
contains many curious and interesting work
| Among them may be found Chinese chart O
the heavens made about 900 years B. G. L
| this 1850 stars are correctly inserted, as COZ
roborated by the observations of modern as
| tromOmers.
Among the petroleum springs of Baku, OF
| the western shore of the Caspian, is one com
municating with the sea, which produces a
times very striking phenomenon, The float
ing oil that covers the surface of the sea il
frequently ignited by accident, turning the
smooth water into veritable lake of fire. The
most famous of these confagrations-to which
the superstition of the native the name O.
"Shaitaun Noon" or Devil's Light-occurrei
in 1879. 1t broke out in the middle of the
night, and was declared by Russian naval
officer, who witnessed it from the deck of q
gunboat, to be the most remarkable spectacle
he had ever seen, The sheet of flame waived
to and fro in the wind Ikea flag, lighting up
sea and shore for miles, and throwing deep
crimson glow into the sky which was visible
TO the inhabitants OF several inland districts
far out of sight of the sea ITSELF ~
1t has been found by several microscopists
that the cause OF whooplng cough is a pecu-
liar fungoid growth, which first terminates
under the tongue and then pervades the air
passages. Quinine is found to be valuable
antidote by virtue of its well established
power to destroy miscriscopic vegetable or
ganisms.
Concerning the duration and character of the
Arctic winter, Lieut.. Schwatka, the Arctic
explorer, makes these comments 1.-THE gen
orally received opinion that the Arctic winter.
especially In the higher ATTITUDES, is long,
dreary one of perfect opaque darkness, is not
strictly correct. In latitude % degrees 30 min
utes ~, the highest point ever reached by
man, there are hours and AZ minutes of twi-
light on December god, the shortest day in the
year in the Northern Hemisphere In latitude
81 degrees 81 minutes N, the highest point
where white men have wintered, there are six
hours and two minutes in the shortest day,
and 1913 geographical miles from that point
must yet be attained before the true platonic
zone, or that one in which there is no twi-
light whatever, even upon the shortest day of
the year, can be said to have been entered by
man. The North Pole itselfis only shrouded ia
perfect backness from Nov. 18th to Janu-
airy goth, period of n days. Surprising the
sun has set (supposing also circumpolar sea
or body Of water unlimited to vision) or Sep
TENDER gath, not to rise until March 18th for
that particular point, giving period of about
80 days OF uniformity varying twilight, the
Pole has about 1888 days of continuous day
light, 100 days of varying twilight and II of
perfect inky darkness (save when the moon
has northern declination) in the period of
typical year. During the period of little
over days the sun shines continuously on
both the North and South poles at the same
time, owing to refraction, parallax, semi-diam-
eter and dip of the horizon"
Near Herculaneum the ruins of once mag
nificent bathing establishment have lately been
discovered by Prof Giuseppe Novi. The re-