St. Landry democrat., 1883-03-03
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.

A French physician, M. Laveran, be-
sieyes he has discovered the cause OF
diseases in a very minute Or
ganism. These microbes resemble
necklaces of black beads in appearance,
and are located in the red blood-cor-
puscles of malarial patients.
In paper before the American AS
sociation for the Advancement OF
Science, DR.. Haughton. of Dublin, dis
agreed with those geologists who be-
lieve the earth and moon have been
gradually cooled from an intensely
heated liquid mass to their present
state. According to his views, the
moon formed part Of the earth alta re-
mote period-as calculated by Mr.. Geo.
H. Darwin-but the earth itself was
originally formed by the aggregation
of separated masses of meteoric matter
cast off by the sun and cooled to about
the temperature of interstella, space
probably four hundred and sixty de-
grees below the freezing point OF
water.
Microscopic vision has separated
ruled lines as fine as 115,600 to the inch,
but, according to Prof. Rogers, the evil
dence that finer lines than that have
been resolved under the microscope is
not conclusive.
Herr Fuchs is inclined to divide the
animals of the sea into fauna of light
and fauna Of darkness, the former be-
ing found little below depth Of thirty
fathoms, and the first specimens OF the.
latter type appearing at about nifty
fathoms below the surface. He is led
j to make this distinction from the fact
that in some places where the light lin
it is higher the deep sea fauna rises
I higher, and in fresh water lakes where
the light penetrates to greater depths
the shore fauna extends further
down.
4 Prof. German See has called the at
tention Of the Paris Academy Of Medi-
cine to new medicinal alkaloid said to
resemble digitalis in its action, but hav-
inc none of the Objectionable proper
ties Of that drug. The new substance
lis called convallarine, and is obtained
from the lily Of the valley. It acts
powerfully on the heart, and lowers the
pulse very decidedly. The plant itself
is said to have beeneleng employed by
Russian peasants for dropsical affec-
tions. Il
The flesh Of different animals has
been anylyzed by Prof. G. Virchow to
determine the amounts of water and
extract contained therein, as it was
thought that the relative value OF
meats might thus be shown. The diff
ferences, however, are found to be toe
slight to be of any Importance. Yea
contains more water than beef, lear
beef less than well-fed beef, and un:
healthy meat greater quantity thar
sound meat.
BY thrusting the ends Of green scrut
wood -ssmallec scrub in the fire ant
catching in bark trough the sap driv
en- out at the other end, an Australian
supplied himself with water and savet
his life while crossing a waterless re
giOn.
M. Regnard has been utilizing drie,
blood from slaughter-houses for tn
rearing of lambs deserted by ewes
Three were fed with the usual diet Q
lbeet-root, hay, ETC., and to three tn
dried and powdered blood was givel
with the other food. The first steadil.
lost flesh, while the other lot rapidly in
creased to three times the origina
weight, and were considered phenomi
nally fine lambs. A similar diet is +
be tried upon calves.
According to Prof. G.. f. Yeo, Q
Kings College, London, a resort t
transfusion Of blood has saved life i
more than half of the recorded cases i
which this treatment has been tried.
Prof. Proctor says tI do not insis
on the SUMS being inhabited when COG
enough. Without a special warmer an
aight-giver he might not be very com
Portable world. Perhaps there Nigh
be inherent warmth enough for a
practical purposes, and a proper amoun
of light might shine from his interio
through suitable apertures, on larg
masses of floating cloud. "
Prof. Colladon, of Geneva, hs
n