The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1881-12-24
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.

4Hc huSStdu government mas maze q
grant of IA 900 roubles for locating two
Polar observing station next year-one
at the mouth of the Lena and the other
on one of the island of New Siberia.
Herr Hansen has found that the blue
color in milk is due to the presence of
peculiar microscopical rganism-known
as bacteria.-which multiply very rapidly
and in so doing produce a bluo matter
resembling aniline. These organisms
render the milk unfit for food, especially
for persons of weak digestive power.
Mr.. H. F. Blanford reports that he has
observed white ants in the act of emit
ting rythmical sound. Another observer,
Mr.. f. p. Pascoe, has heard peculiar
sound, in fields Of Southern Europe,
which was found to be the song OF a
small lizard. 1t is generally believed
that these creatures have no power of
producing vocal sounds.
Prof Meehan has advanced the theory
that the absence of trees upon the
American prairies is due to annual fires,
it being known that such fires were
caused by the Indians during q long
period. HerbacDus plants and ANIMALS
may increase their area yearly while trees
were never able to get beyond the line
to which the annual fires extended.
In France alone the money value of
tho animals which have died from
splenic fever has been S4,0O0,O00 year.
Prof. Pasteur's system of vaccination has
been proven perfect safeguard against
loss from this disease. OF this great dis
covcry Prof. Huxley says: "It fully
balances the rarso.n of $l,0O0,OOO, 900
paid by France to Germany after the
war of 1901"
Experiments on the influence Of u
current of electricity upon the growth Of
the grape vine have been made by NJ
Macagno. An electric circuit was formed
by attaching one pole of a battery to the
lower and the other to the upper ex-
tremity of a fruit-bearing branch. More
wood was formed III the branch, which
contained less potash than the other
parts, and the grapes ripened moro
readily, containing an excess Of sugar.
Prof. Samokvasof recently gave an
account of the excavation, near Pyati-
gorst, of about two hundred graves
belonging to tue stone, bronze and iron
ages. In the larger graves bronze i'm
plements were found with the
stone ones. They also contained, besides
the bones of sheep, several split human
bones not belonging to skeletons: from
which it is inferred that the people in
that part of the Caucasus were man
eaters during the bronze period.
The materials used by the ancents for
producing artificial light were wax and
tallow, oil of various kinds being also
used at a later day. Their candles and
lamps were exceedingly rough aud un-
couth, and the light yielded was of the
feeblest description, and gave out the
most disgusting odors. Even up to the
commencement of the present century
little or no progress had been made, gas
being unknown, and the perfect burning
oil lamps with which we are SO familiar
having no existence until many years
later. Gas was first introduced in 1902,
but as late as 1872 the Haymarket Thea
tire, in London, continued to be lighted
by candles. Mark the contrast. Less
than forty years ago London witnessed
the drama by the dim, Pickering lgiht Of
foul-slnelling candles, while within the
past few days Paris has had the privilege
of listening to the opera beneath the
brilliant, noon-day glare of the electric
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