Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1883-01-31

graphite; they let the heat pass much
better, do not oXldise, and 90 not soil the
lnclOsing vessel.
PERSISTENT HBRBAJISTS.
The evening primrose and the mistle-
toe share alike with horsemint and bears
foot the honor of having been recently
transferred to the dispensatory as cures
for something or adjuvants for some
thing. Even iron wood has not been able
to withstand the knife of the herbalist,
while the wild bergamOt, sundew, and
helianthela have bowed TO the fate
which places them among the appalling
list OF new remedies.
ELECTRIFYING A RATTLKsNAKE.
The southern rattlesnake, as well as
his northern relatives, is capable of
sending thrill through the nervous sys-
tenn OF man by the mere sound OF his
rattles. He is himself of a very low
nervous organization. The writer once
submitted a moccasin to the influence of
electricity, and though the entire charge
of battery, of fifteen "Leyden jars"
was passed through him, no other effect
was produced than to make him raise his
head, and hiss, and yet this charge
would have killed man or a horse in
stantly.
a VALUABLE INVENTION.
A Swiss engineer named FOdor. at
present employed on u railway in Flu
land, has lately perfected discovery
which, If all that is said Of il be true,
Will prove an immense boon to railway
companies. The invention ccusists of
an Indicator, OF easy application TO all
existing wagons and locomotives, where
by their speed, the number OF stoppages
they make, the duration of tie stop
pages, land the time at which made, ex-
actly and automatically registered. The
apparatus has been tried ard its eff
cheney proved on railroad IN Finland
and on part of the line between Mos
COW and st. Petersburg.
THINKING ANIMALS.
Some of the lower animals are not
only gifted with memory, but with think
ing and reasoning powers. For in
stance, If an ant encounters fly, it will
return for assistance to take the fy to
It's home. That Is reason. The ant
concludes that it is beyond its indi-
vidual powers. Dogs talk to us better
than we talk to them; and there is
nothing in the animal creation that sur
passes the affection of a dog or horse
for its master. Their affection amounts
almost to reason. Where is the line be-
tween reason and instinct? Mar is OF q
dual character-physical and mental;
the mental is developed in mankind in
the highest degree; and it lives after the
physical body is dead After the body
was created God breathed into man the
breath of life, and he became a living
soul. Is the soul the mind -GeorQe
Houston.
DEATH BY FALLS.
1t has been popularity believed that a
person becomes unconscious when fall
ing from a great height; but an English
man who has been making some expert
ments IN falling-Whether with himself
! or other people is not stated-has come
to the conclusion that unless one dies
from fear or the nervous shock, he
reaches the ground alive, and is not
killed by passage through the air. This,
however, would depend upon the height
from which he falls. The greatest dis
tance one is liable to fall, even from the
highest buildings, is not much more than
100 feet. He will be less than three sec
onds reaching the ground, and during
the last second will be falling say at the
rate Of say sixty feet in a second, which
is equivalent to velocity of say forty
miles an hour. AS people are riding at
this rate every day in the year, it is clear
that fail from that height will not make
them unconscious. The next second
they would fall at the rate of eighty
miles an hour, the next at 100, the next
at 800, and the next at $40. Such a
velocity as that undoubtedly would af-
feet the physical condition; but in order
to attain such velocity person would
have to fall distance of 1000 feet.
THE BLOOD sTANCHINa WOOD.
During the French expedition to Mex
leo, Gen. Martroy was informed by a
native that plant grew in his district
which was largely used In the domestic
surgery OF the Mexicans, and he advised
the general to lay III stock of it for use
IL the French camp. It goes by the
name of "the blood stanching weed"
the exact native word has not been
placed on record. This plant has the
property, when applied after being
chewed or crushed, Of almost instantly
arrest1ng the How OF blood from a wound,
Gen. Martroy brought home some spec
linens Of this plant to France, and cul-
tlVated 1t IN his garden at Versailles,
where it has thriven excellentIy ever
since, blossoms every year and produces
a sort OF fruit. Meanwhile it's trans
plantation to European soil has not
robbed it OF the quality for which it was
originally recommended to it's introducer.
It's recognized botanical name is Ira
deSc07atsa e1'ect0. Although it is quite
the reverse of an ornamental plant, and
is not distinguished by any beauty of
shape or color in its flowers, it fully de-
serves, If we may trust our informant,
to be widely cultivated on account of it's
rare medical value. The practicability
of It's acclimatization is now placed be-
yond ali doubt. It's effect in stanching
bleeding is said to surpass all means
hitherto applied to this purpose, and it
is in any case to be procured cheapIy and