Lewiston teller. [volume] (Lewiston, North Idaho) 1878-1900, 1882-08-31
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.

live properly of hydrocyanic, acid
with the result of finding the bodies Of
animals poisoned with it to successful
u resist decay for year, although at
times exposed to the heat Of one hun
dred degrees Fahrenheit
Observations by Herr Pernter show
that the sun shown at Vienna last
year 1868 hours out of possible
4472 hours, or only thirty -seven per
cent. During the winter the greatest
duration Of sunshine was at mid day,
but in the summer it was in the fore
noon in the winter there was more
sunshine in the afternoon than in the
forenoon. The clearest month was
July. and the cloudiest was October.
The observations were made by means
Of the Campbell Stokes sunshine re
corder.
Measurements by Harren Hammer
and Holland of the movement Of a
large glacier in North Greenland show
IL progress at the middle to be about
fifty feet in twenty-four hours, the
rate being apparently about the same
Ia winter as in summer.
The abundance of remains of the
mammoth in Siberia is remarkable.
From the fact that at least hundred
pair Of tusks are annually put upon
To market. Nordsnskiold infers that
ddfing the time that has elapsed since
tho conquest Of Siberia useful tusks
from more than 10000 Of these ami
mails have been collected.
Recent finds are thought to throw a
nsw light on the history of the Swiss
lake dweilers. Among the objects
found are wheel with an iron ri d,
iron swords, aud many human bones.
The inventor Of the Fishing disc"
Mr.. Jacob Reese, is credited with hav-
ING expressed the belief that if it we're
poesible to produce the fan,eless com
bastion the intensity and quantity of
hest obtained from a given amount
d fuel would be very greatly increased
thereby. Mr. Thomas Fletcher of
Washington, England, has succeeded
In producing combustion without
hams, and lately gave at Owens Col
ledge striking practical illustration Of
tho now theory. He directed the
Aame Of : simple gas blow pipe upon
! three inch ball Of iron wirs for few
seconds and then blew out the flame.
The hest melted and ran into drops.
He even succeeded in fusing refractory
fre-clay, the intensity Of heat being
greater than ever before obtained With
the fuel used Even in the dark
the burning Of the gas was shown
70 b entirely invisible. 1t appears
Aame really indicates an imperfect
combustion.
Three kind Of lights are produced
during thunder storms, and known as
fofksd lightning, sheet lightning, and
ball lightning. Mr.. B. G. jenkins,
+. n A. g., contends that only the
Arst Of these are true electricity-thun
der storms, according to his view, be-
ing manifestations Of chemical rather
than electrical energy. He believes
that hydrogen exists in the ear,h's up
pr atmosperc aud under certain con.
1itious Is drawn into the mixture Of
nitrogen oxygen about US, the chemi-
al union Of the hydrogen and oxygen
sansing the second form of lightning,
which appears 70 10 almost wholly
dams among the clouds, and is the
form most frequently seen. The thun.
der i not so much the noise of cleo
taic di4charge as the report Of gas ex.
plosions. Ball lightning is probably
not electricity, but gas in intense igni.
ton. The harmlessness Of tue last
Two seems to indicate their non electric
character.
"Oxygenized water," or hydrogen di
1xide il attracting attention 10 various
wAya = cheap process for mauufactur-
ing It having been announced. This
substance is an oily liquid, having a
bitter taste, aud differing from the wa
Esr in composition only in containing
vice IS much oxygen. 1t is power
Eul oxidizing agent, and is the only
bleaching substance known which docs
not injure textile fabrics. Attempts