Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1881-02-23
CURIOUS, USEFUL AND SCIENTIFIC.
CASTING STEEL.

CASTING STEEL
About the end of last month the larg-
est crucible steel casting hitherto made
was effected In the works of a firm in
Sheffield, England. 1t was spur rim
2Sfeet In diameter and cast whole. To
cast it 270 pots, each holding 80 pounds
OF molten steel, were used. Steel wheels
are likely to supersede the cast-iron
wheels now III general use III the Lam
cashire mills.
HONOR TO WHOM, ETC.
John Orion, the very capable master
mechanic of the Canada Southern, was
formerly employed in Robert Stephen
sons locomotive works in England Mr..
Orion says the link motion, "the most
felicitous piece of mechanism ever APP
piled to the locomotive, was the inven-
ton of Mr.. Williams, fellow workman
in that shop, although one Howe, pat
tern-maker, claimed the idea and took
Stephenson's twenty guineas for it.
FROST AND PLANT LIFE.
Some observations made at Giessen
last winter by Herr Hoffman, throw
light on the way in which plants are in
jured in time of hard frost. The great
advantage of a billy position was then
apparent; the plants so situated took
little or no harm, while in the valley
there was extensive injury. The injury,
too, decreased III proportion to elevation
above the valley. Still more instructive
was the fact that one and the same bush
was killed In its foliage on the south side,
while on the north side itremained green.
The author infers that it is not partic-
ular degree of cold that kills plant, but
the amount of quick thawing.
A NOVELTY IN FIsH-HATCHING.
Mr.. Z. I. Sachs writes to Nature from
Batavia: within the past month Ihave
been so lucky as to make what hope is
a very interesting if not remarkable dis
covery. On the island of Billion, 200
miles from here, I found fresh-water
fish which produces its young living from
Its mouth. [ am quite prepared for the
cry of incredulity that will be raised,
but [ conducted my observations with
living fish and closed doors, and what [
assert is undeniable: the eggs are Matched
IN the lower portion of the head of the
fish, and are projected out of the mouth
and from nowhere else. have secured
several specimens.
MILK LABORATORY.
\ dlary1ng company of London has
lately established a laboratory at which
samples OF milk received from farmers
are subjected to chemical analysis.
Prizes have been offered by the COM
pany, which are to be given to those
farmers whose milk supply stands high
est IN quality during dated period of
time. The samples of milk are careful
Iy examined by the company analyst.
whose analysis and reports Will decide
the competiti on for the prizes. It is
expected that much valuable information
respecting methods for producing the
richest possible milk will be secured IN
this way.
rOUGHENING GLASS.
A Leipsic journal, which makes a
speciality of matters relating to glass,
gives method which it asserts will pre-
vent lamp chimneys from cracking.
The treatment will not only render lamp
chimneys, tumblers, and like articles
more durable, but may be applied with
advantage to crockery, stoneware, porce-
lain, &c. The chimneys, tumblers, &C.,
are put into 2 pot filed with cold water,
to which some common table salt has
been added. The water is well boiled
over fire, and then allowed to cool
slowly When the articles are taken
out and washed they will be found to
resist afterward any sudden changes of
temperature. The process is simply one
of annealing, and the slower the cooling
part of it is conducted the more effective
will be the work.
PERFoRATTNG GLASS.
An ingenious method of perforating
glass with the electric spark is described
by III. FACES. The apparatus in this
case consists Of rectangular plate Of
ebonite, it's size, for coil giving II ctm.
sparks, about Is ctm. by II; also, a
brass wire passing under the plate, and
having its pointed end bent up and pen
etrating through the plate, not further
this wire being connected with one of
the poles of the coil A few drops Of
olive oil are placed ON the ebonite plate
about the point and the piece of glass to
be superposed, care being taken that no
bubble of air be imprisoned. The olive
oil perfectly accomplishes the object of
insulating the wire, and it is then only
necessary to bring down wire from the
outer pole of the coil, upon the piece of
glass, above the point of the lower wire.
and pass the spark; by displacing the
glass iaterally, for successive sparks, it
is easy to make cross series OF holes in
few seconds.
THE ODOR OF HUMAN HAIR.
In lie Pr0Qres Medic0Je, NJ Galip-
pc calls attention to the medico-legal
value of the odor of human hair. He
asserts that from the simple smell of a
lock of hair he can tell whether the lock
has been cut from the living subject, OF
whether it has been composed of hair