The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1882-02-23
88isesIlaneons. g
FoR THE HERALD.
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.

The rainfall Of Cherrapunji, q
small Indian station in south
western Assam, is believed to ex.
ceed in quantity that of any other
known place. Cherrapunji occu-
pies the summit Of one of the
Khasia Hills, at an elevation of
400 feet. These hills rise ab-
ruptly from low plains, and lie
directly in the coarse Of the south.
west monsoon from the Bengal
coast. Surcharged with moisture,
the air current sweep across the
lowlands and are DETECTED up:
ward by the mills, the expansion
of the currents on rising causing
fall of..temperature and condensa-
ton of the moisture. The effect
is surprising, for, while the low
plains have an average yearly
fall of only about 100 inches of,
rain, the annual rainfall of Cher
rapunji is 493 inches, or more than
Il feet. As a comparison, it may
be stated that the annual rainfall
Of the United States is from IL to
so inches, being greatest near the
sea-board.
In late paper, DR.. James
Geikie shows the great size Of the
Gulf Stream and its vast influence
upon northern climates, and con-
cludes that The opening of the
proposed canal across the lsthmus
Of Panama will have as much effect
upon the Gulf Stream and the
climate of Northwestern Europe
as the emptying of teapotful Of
boiling water into the Arctic
Ocean would have in raising the
anuual temperature in Green
land.
4 French manufacturer claims
the discovery Of making use Of
leaves of the eucalyptus tree as a
substitute for tobacco leaves in
cigars: The eucalyptus leaves
emit delicious odor in burning.
A European observer, N. de
Merejowsky. has lately studied
certain of the lower crustaceans
with view Of deciding whether
or not those creatures are able to
distinguish colors. As a result of
his experiments, he has con-
cluded that, while the crustaceans
are fully alive to the difference
between light and darkness, it is
solely the quantity Of the light
nd not the quality which affects
them for they cluster in nearly
equal numbers around two rays
Of equal intensity, whatever may
be the colors. There appears to
be, then, o wide difference be.
tween the lower crustaceans and
man in the perception Of light.
While we see different colors and
their different intensiLies, the
crustaceans see only one color
with variations of intensity. We
perceive colors as colors they on,
ly distinguish them as light.
According to the recent calcula.
tions of Mr.. G. n. irwin, ,theearth
and the moon must have formed
only one body some ffty-four mil
lion years or more ago, and at a
time when this body was rotating
at the rate of about one revolution
in FIVE hours the mass now form
ing the moon became separated
from it. Thus was the moon
born, and Prof. Ball, in his expo
sition of Darwin's views, con-
cludes that in time the wound on
the earth became entirely healed,
leaving no scar to testify to the
mighty catastrophe. To this final
conclusion Mr.. O.. Fisher now
offers an amendment. He be
Iieves that the scars yet exist
and that those scars are the ocean
basins, When the moons mass
was thrown from the earth, the
LIQUID interior must have risen tt
fill the hole, and portions of ths
: granite crust must have beer
J borne toward the cavity. Tht
hole only partially filled up, ane
the crust became broken into th'
fragments which now form th'
! oonfinonts