The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1884-02-16
Scientific Miscellany.

The kola nut, the stimulant so high
ly priced among African tribes that in
times of scarcity slave has been given
for single kernel, is the product of a
tree OF the family stercuiacea Four
or five of the seed, or nuts, grow to-
gether in rough brown pod. Each
seed has red or white color, or both,
and contains kernel somewhat like
that of a peanut and about two inches
long The taste of the nut is sweet,
astringent and bitter in succession.
The kola crop is gathered twice year.
When fresh the nut is chewed as if it
were tobacco; when dtY it is powder
ed and eaten. It's Ell ct is remarkable,
rs ii sustains the system for a long time
under the greatest fatigues, even with
out food, while II is considered GER
tain preventive of dysenteries, and is
said to make foul water drinkable and
harmless. With the African tribes the
kola nut is in order on all occasions,
and is almost Indispensable in impor-
tant business transactions, in treaties,
in declarations of war, as a present at
weddings, in religious observances and
in judicial proceedings.
In the last ten years relics of the in
dustry of the early inhabitants of Swift
zeriand known as the lake-dwellers
have been accumulated in great quanti-
ties. DR.. Victor Gross states in Il re-
cent work that the articles of bronze
alone which have been found in the
lakes of Bienue and Neufchate number
10. 600, of which more than 5000 are in
his own collection. Many articles of
stone, pottery and iron have been
brought to light in addition. In these
archaeology discoveries DR.. Gross
finds evidence that the period in which
the prehistoric Swiss inhabited the
dwellings built on the lakes was one of
long duration. covering the successive
stages of civilization from the primitive
age in which metals were unknown and
man implements were ruicly formed
in coarse pottery and rough stones,
through the age of finely worked stones,
followed by the age in which stones
were still used and metals were intro
duccd, then by the age of fine bronze
and highly-developed state of the arts,
to the age in which iron appeared.
A single plant of new species of
pOtato-whch has received the botani-
cal name Of Solanum Ohroudi-was
some time ago discovered on II small
uninhabited island at the mouth of the
River Platte in South America. The
mbers, about the size of hens eggs.
were carried to France and planted.
| The taste OF the tubers was bitter, with
| l,,, Ia, Il
the quality is reported to be improving
! The yield is abundant, and rs little la
Dor is required to raise the crop it is
thought That the new potato may fur
nish a desirable food for cattle even if
it does not become sufficiently improv-
ed for table use.
The International Bureau of Weights
and Measures, at Paris, whose object
is to verify the metric standards of the
world according to one universal stan
lard, is abe to perform work OF really
wonderful accuracy in its comparing
rooms. With the means there provided,
ii is possible, according to Mr.. ii. j.
Cnaney, to ascertain difference be-
tween two kilogram weights not great
er than a three-hundred-millionth part
of one of the weights; and in the
comparison OF two meters difference
50 small as MISREPRESENTATION of
an inch Cor one ten-thousandth of a
millimeter) can be determined.
For several years record has been
KEEP, Of the heallh of six hundred and
sCvcntv-tWo persons employed in the
nuilinc e. dor WOrNS at HOchst-On-t he
Main, in order 10 asCCr, ain the extent
TO which aniline colors are liable 10 in
jure people handling them. The re-
suit has Shown tuut the more poison
Gus compounds have caused Il few mild
cases OF aiment, but Doctor Grand
homme finds that the average mortali-
ty of the Work-people has been low.
1t happen, therefore that users OF coal
tar co.orS have little to foar from pois-
Onnm.