The semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1882-1886, 1884-11-22
CURIOUS AND SCIENTIFIC,

PRoF. BALL, the Astronomer Royal
for Ireland. in an address ON comets,
considered that the meteoroids seen az
shooting stars in 1866 were actually the
remains of the tails of comets.
As TO overwork in schools, il has
well been remarked by . recent writer
that the difficulty we have to face is the
inevitable result of attempting to edu-
cate . multitude Of children by one
process and up to one standard.
ONE Of the most important inventions
BY woman, Mrs. Mather,, is deep-sea
telescope by which the bottom of large
vessels may be brought to view without
the expense Of raising them in dry.
dock. By its means wrecks can be in
spected. distractions to navigation re.
moved and other valuable services rem
dered.-Dr. Foote's Health Monthly.
In letter to the British Medical
Journal, Dr.. Armitage refers to the oc-
cupations of blind persons as being, in
many cases, Of an extraordinary char
acter. Among these specified are six
painters, (artists), two dentists, one pho
tographer, twenty-nine coachmen, one
hostler, one fisherman, one sculptor and
two leaders of wagons. He knows .
blind man who buys poultry on COM
mission, and knew one, now dead, who
was dealer in horses on large scale.
The dugon, species of whale taken
in large numbers at Queensland, has
probably furnished the slender basis Of
fact upon which the mermaid and
merman stories have been founded. II
is about eight to twelve feet in length,
lives upon submarine beds OF seaweed,
breathes by means of lungs, has ! hu-
man like head, with hair resembling
mans beard. The flesh Of this animal
is eaten, and is said to have the favor
of beef, veal or bacon, according to tho
part of the body from which the meat
is taken. Its oil has all tho medical
qualities of cod liver oil, without the
disagreeable taste and smell Of tho
latter. -- s.......,,., ., ,,i-..ss.,
The "oil spot IN the Gulfof Mexico
is soapy, not oily, and its properties
come from the bottom of the guilt.
Mud from this spot is used for scrub.
bing ships decks, and is very cleansing.
The "oil spot" does not show very dis
tinctly in calm weather, but during
gale it is wonderfully defined; tower
ing foam then marks its circumference.
Storm-dnven craft, cracking andstrain-
ing in every timber, on passing through
this wall Of foam, find themselves on .
smooth lake. and walled in by lsshing
waves, where the soilors can sleep, un.
harmed by the winds. The ''oil spot"
is ten miles from the shore, Is two miles
long, one mile wide. and is twelve feet
deep.-Iro7a. .,....f --..
The temples at Kroto, Japan, says
correspondent of the Philadelphia
Press, are mainly of interest on account
Of their great bell, which swings in .
or wooden belfry, halfway up
the hillside, back of the building prop
or. The bell is huge brown cup,
with perpendicular sides and fat
crown, and, like all other Japanese
bells, is sounded by means of q huge
wooden beam, kept in place by ropes,
but, when occasion requires, brought
against the rim of the bell with great
force. 1t requires twelve coolies to
this beam. Formerly !:
was only rung once q year, bu. now il
may be heard two or three times every
month. 1t is one of the greatest won
ders in japan. It is eight. on feet high,
nine and one-half inches thick, nine
feet in diameter, and weighs nearly
tons. It was cast in .
mold, il the year 1888. As the
bell was cast with the rim up, the gold
into its composition-com-
puted to be about 1850 pounds-sunk
% the crown. It has q magnificent
;one, and when struck by the open
palm the vibrations may be heard at q
distance of one hundred yards.