Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1883-04-18
CURIOUS, USEFUL AND SCIENTIFIC
METAL STRINGS.

METAL STRINGS.
Recent experiments with stringed in
struments have shown that much more
sonorous tone can be obtained with metal
strings than those now in use; although
the labor of playing upon them is cor
respondmgly increased. Steel wires
plated with silver or copper gave the
best results.
THE DROP OF A RIFLE BULLET
The drop of bullet at 100 yards will
be nearly ten inches, basing the opinion
Oh the Bashfurth experiments, and an
assumed velocity of 1900 feet per Sec
ond, which is about as much velocity as
can be gotten out of a thirty-inch, forty.
caliber barrel. with as light ball 600
grains); the powder believed to be not
exceeding ninety grains) occupying flor
an average four fingers No. s hand) two
and three-quarters inches of the bore,
and not being fully consumed. With
an assumed velocity of 2, 100 feet per
second, the drop will be at least eight
inches IN that distance. -Anerican
Field
MARKING TOOLS.
Steel tools may be marked as follows:
On the place on which you wish to make
the inscrip ton put melted wax or par
ATTN, and when cold cut with an instru-
ment the letters or designs IN the wax,
cutting it through so as to reach the met
al. The neater you do this the neater
the inscription will be, as every part of
the metal exposed will become marked.
Then make little wax border around
the name SO as to prevent the LIQUID
poured on from running off. This liquid
may be nitric acid or aqua regia, which
IS a mixture of one part nitric acid and
two of hydro chloric acid. After a few
minutes pour off the liquid and wash with
water, then warm the tool TO melt off the
wax or paraffin.
BEANS AND ACORNS.
At the present low price of coffee it
would hardly seem the best time to bring
out new substitute, but VI. SOrnani,
of Pavia, announces that he has dis
covered quite new and serious adulter-
alton Of coffee, which is being practiced
BY the manufacture of artificial berries.
These berries are composed Of the meal
of beans and acOrns, with chickory, and
some quartz-powder to bring the mixture
to the requisite specific gravity. a dough
is made of these ingredients, which is
cut by q special machine into the shape
Of coffee berries, and after drying has
exactly their color Sornani says he has
found as much as 80 per cent. of these
artificial berries mixed up with the gen
uine. On roasting they take just the
same color as the genuine, but they are
discovered by soaking IN water, when
the false berries soon fall to pieces.
NO WATER ON VENUS
4 remarkable proof has lately been
given by M. Jansen of the great purity
and dryness of the atmosphere on the
high ert-plateaus Of Algeria. At
Mecheira, military station there, at
which he spent mouth, devoting his
attention specially TO the atmosphere of
Venus, he was able TO see the satellites
Of Jupiter with the naked eye; and to
apply an eight-inch telescope. magnify
ing 150 times, to the study Of the lunar
the moon being four days old. Thus
fayorably placed, and using highly dis
persive and perfect spectroscopic appa-
ratus, he is obliged to confess that, rely
ing on spectrum analysis alone, there
must be more reserve than mas been
shown about affirming the presence of
1IQCOAAS BOA Al eIbLAAOSEJACA VI Q
nus. Any optical evidence of it in the
spectrum is very slight.
CANOES.
4 raised cutting on any stone is called
a cameo; when the device is sunk it is
called an intaglio. The onyx Is pre-
ferred for canoes above all stones, be-
cause it comes IN layers of two colors.
The combinations are black and white,
black and cream, red and white, and dark
brown, called the sardonyx. One advan-
tage of a cameo portrait is that it will
last forever. The stone is so hard that
it can be cut only with diamond dust.
The utmost patience, and caution, and
delicate manipulation are required to
grind off the upper layer Of stone. A
mistake Is fatal to the work. No steel
can be made hard enough to drill the
ONYX. Even chrome steel viii not do it,
and that is so hard that drill made from
it will cut through an ordinary file. No
acid will affect the onyx, and it will
stand the greatest heat Of the furnace if
the heat is applied gradually, so as to
prevent cracking. Some cuttings went
through the great Bond Street fire and
were found In the ruins unframed.
CELLULoID TO BE SUPERSEDED.
According to statement IN a scientific
exchange, a new substance has been pre-
pared for the purpose of supersedlng
eoIlUlQId Tho may material T1OGGaSTQG