The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-03-29
CURRENT NOTES.


great increase of drunkenness among women in
Paris to. the war. During the siege, especially,
they contracted the habit, when there was little
to eat and they wanted to keep themselves up.
Fifteen years ago he says, habits of intoxica-
ton were rare among Parisiennes.
A striking proof of the force of the wind
storms in England in December and January
last was afforded at the annual sale of timber on
the Clumber Park and Worksop Manor estates
of the Duke of Newcastle The catalogue con
tanned no fewer than sixty seven lots, which in
cluded 2,619 trees uprooted in Clumber Park,
and 673 trees and l59 poles blown down in Work
sop Manor
The Philadelphia Academy of Sciences is
building up very fine herbarium, claiming to
possess probably onehalf the known species of
plants The growth has been very rapid for
some years. the past year showing an addition of
2, 1858 species The species are all poisoned, Ia
beled and Systematically arranged, and this great
work is being done gratuitously, by the persist
ent labors of Mr. J. H. Redfeld, assisted by
other botansts.
A marine insurance company has kept tally of
the number of steam ship shafts broken at sea
in the past three years. The tally stood at 2lO
few days ago. In some instances the mishap
resulted in the loss of the vessel, and in many
cases there was serious delay. An officer of the
company recommends that constructors, en-
gineers, captains and owners of steamships turn
their attention to devising some adequate means
OF temporarily repairing broken shafts at sea.
The cyclone pits which the Western farmers
are building are described as being in size pro-
portionate to the number of persons in the fam
lily. A pit ten feet square, and sunk to the depth
of twenty feet is the average size. About four
feet below the surface heavy timbers are placed
over the hole, earth is thrown on and made even
with the surface around, and at the southwest
corner an opening three feet square is left. In
these places of refuge the farmers expect to find
safety in any gale that doesn't blow the wells
out of the ground.
paper recently read before the French
Academy of Medicine expressed the writer's con
viction that one in every 5000 persons is buried
alive This estimate, however exaggerated, is
not calculated to alay an apprehension which is
conspicuous among the French people, and
which was lately brought to public attention by
the declaration of the President of the Chamber
of Notaries that express instructions are given
in one will out of every ten to have the testatoTs
heart pierced by qualified surgeon before the
lid of the coffin is screwed down.
At one of the Glasgow steel-works, there is in
progress an immense anvil block, which will
eventually contain about los tons of metal, and
which is intended for use with twelve-ton steam
hammers, of which there are several now at
work in Scotland This monster anvil block is
designed in two pieces the larger one being of
| about lao tons weight. 1t was cast in mould
occupying the position intended for the block
itself. The mixture employed in the production
of these huge anvil blocks was about one-fourth
No. 3 Gartsherrie and three fourths scrap iron.
The relation between death rates and sewerage
conveniences or water supplies has curious
significance The average death rate of st.
Petersburg is about thirty five per LOCO The
city has no sewerage system, properly so-called;
hence the Neva, its only source of water supply,
becomes contaminated and ill-health results.
Cairo has death rate of thirty-seven per 900;
it has no sewers, and the Nile water supply is
constantly contaminated The death rate at
Pekin is fifty per 1000; its sanitary works would
not be thought sufficient for small English
village.
DR. Savory says In the British Medical Jour
nal that among the chief causes of injury to the
health from gambling is the prolonged mental
strain which becomes necessary to the mainte-
nance of selfcOntrol during extended periods of
intense excitement. He cites the case of u lady
who had lately returned from Monte Carlo much
broken down in health, and greatly weakenedby
the severe fits of exhaustion from which she in
varably suffered after an hour or two at the
gaming table. She said that her ability to con
tinue the game.was determined by the extent of
her power to sustain an aspect of indifference in
the presence of spectators.
Beer, as an article Of ordinary diet has been
discontinued in at least twenty pauper lu-
matte asylums in England. with the result that in
! no instance has the apparently important change
led to any sort of physiological inconvenience.
Many of the superintendent in whose asylums
the modification was made, and through many
of the patients testify cordially to the benefits
derived from the change The question, says the
ism, or even primarily of financial order, but
one of pure expediency and good management.
In all probability the dsuse of beer an element
of the diet of Dauper lunatcs in English asylums
will be more extended and will be watched with
interest
The Fahrenheit thermometer scale was intro
duced in 1920 Like other thermometric scales,
it has two fixed ponts-the freezing point,
rather the melting point of ice. and the boiling
point of water The CentigPade and the Reamur
call ha int. nd
from in both directions This is very natural
arrangement Fahrenheit kept the principle
which he graduated his thermometer a secret.
and no one has ever discovered it. 1t is sup
posed, however, that he considered his zero
thirty two degrees below freezing-the point of
absolute cold, or absence of all heat, probably
because, being about the temperature Of melting
salt and snow, it was the greatest degree of cold
he could produce artifcially.
An English writer on gymnastic exercises says
that gymnastics, in any technical sense, remained
unknown i'll modern Europe until about IVA,
when, at an educational establishment founded
at Dessau physical exercises were introduced as
part of the system. Soon afterward a certain
Gasmuths. of Gotha, published work on gym
nastics. and promoted the practice of them in
many places But in Germany it was jain. of
Berlin, who first started public gymnasium. in
1911 His establishment, with several others
which had been founded in imitation of it. was
closed in 1918 by the police, on the ground that
they were used AS places of political intrigue. A
royal decree at last re established their legality
in 1912, and since that time they have fourished
more in Germany than elsewhere.
Notwithstanding the immense number of
watches made in other countries the Swiss
watches still continue to be in demand. 1t is
estimated that there about As. 900 workmen
engaged in this industry in Switzerland. In the
competition with other countries they manage
to hold their own very well being largely aided
by the belief that their watches are made by
hand. 1t is fact, however, that machinery is
employed in the making of watches in Swtzer-
land to considerable extent, although the fact
is kept in the background In some cantons the
manufacture of cheap imitation gold and silver
watches has been recently started. A compost
ton metals which is highly explosive that a
slight blow will cause defamation of an alarm
ing character. Excellent theological schools are
established throughout the country in which
boys are taught the trade of matchmaking in all