The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1885-05-30
Correspondence baltimore County Union.
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.
ANIMAL EXTINCTION.

ANIMAL EXTINCTION.
The disappearance of forms of animal life from
earth must always be regarded with interest and
concern. Apprehension is now beginning to be
felt that we are now looking upon the final strug-
gle for existence of all the larger mammalia--the
elephant, the giraffe the bison, the whale the real
and many others-which mustsoon be extirpated
unless protected from being hunted to death. An
interesting case of animal extinction is found in
"Steller's sea-cow" (Rhytiaa Steiieri) lately re-
ferred to by Mr.. Henry Woodward before the
London Geological Society. This great animal,
which has been variously classed with the whales,
with walruses and seals, and with elephants
a toothless vegetable-feeder, living along the
shore in shallow water, and often weighing three
or four tons. 1t was seen alive and described in
1741, but in 1850 it appeared to have become en-
tirely extinct. This creature belonged to the or
der Sirenia, and Mr.. Woodward looks upon it as
a last surviving species of the great group of
Sirenians which lived in the tertiary age of ge-
ology.
LIVELY APPETITE.
reputable scientific authority quotes the state
ment that, by careful estimate spider ate four
times its weight for breakfast, carly nine times
its weight for dinner thirteen times its weight for
supper finishing up and ounce, and at p. m,
when he was released, ran off in search of food.
At this rate, man of 10 pounds would require
the whole of fat steer for breakfast another with
half dozen good sheep for dinner, and two bull
locks, eight sheep and four hogs for supper, with
about four barrels of fresh fish as lunch before
going to his club banquet.
SEASONS PREDETERMINED.
Some time ago the discovery was made by Mons.
Oh. Montigny, by means of beautiful instru-
ment called the scintillometer, that blue largely
predominates in the twinkling of the stars when
there is much water in the atmosphere, and that
the preponderance of green or of violet in indca-
tive of great dryness. A late series of tables by
this Brussels savant indicates that he has hit up
on q law by which wet or dry season may be
predicted with great certainty. Perhaps the best
test of the soundness of his views is found in the
fact that his scintllometric forecasts of the in
creasing drought in Belgium of the years 1888
and 1884 were fulfilled to the letter.
THERE'S NOTHING NEW.
The dental processes familiar to us are not SO
new as may be supposed. In the museum of
Corneto, on the coast of Italy, are two curious
specimens of artificial teeth found in Etruscan
tombs probably dating 400 or 500 years before
our era. The teeth we're evidently taken from
the mouth of some animal, and had been care
fully cut and fastened to neighboring natural
teeth of two young girls by means of small gold
rings. The dentists art was also applied to treat
ing natural teeth in various ways, but the fact
has hitherto escaped notice account OF the rari
ty of Etruscan skeletons.
FIND AT PoMPEH.
One house recently uncovered at Pompeii APP
peared to have been undergoing repair at the time
it was overtaken by the terrible volcano storm of
Nov. %, A. D. 10. Painters pots and brushes,
and workmen's TOOLS were scattered about, and
spots of whitewash starred wall and floor. Pots
and kettles had been bundled up in a corner by
themselves, but dinner had not been forgotten. A
solitary pot stood on the stove. The oven was
filed with loaves of bread and sucking pig was
awaiting on brown dish its turn to be baked
But the pig never entered the oven, and the bread
remained in it more than eighteen centuries
Mons. Florelli's museum at Pampeii contains the
loaves-twenty-one in number-rather hard and
black, but perfectly preserved.
MISCELLANEOUS. .t..-.se
In the last volume issued by the Geological
Survey of India is an account of fiery eruption
from one of the mud volcanoes on Cheduba Island.
A body of fame 600 feet in circumference is said
to have at one time reached an elevation of g. 400
feet, petroleum being the cause.
Experiments reported to the Paris Academy of
Science prove that the pressure necessary to
the rupture of blood is very much greater
than that to which they are normally subjected.
The carotid artery of dog required from thirty
five times the normal pressure of the blood, and
the jugular vein from thirty-two to thirty-five
times the usual force.
Acting on scientific suggestion that neutral
tlnLS are DeneHcldl 70 Tue eyeslSuV, an enIeTpTls
ing German publisher has just issued book
printed in dark blue ink on pale green paper.
DR.. ]. Miner Fothergill predicts great future
for malt as food. Among other things, he COM
mends lemonade made with malt instead of cane
sugar.
DIR. Phipson advocates, in German scientific
journal, the general use of sugar a regular
ticle of diet. For forty years he has eaten at
least quarter of pound daily, not counting
sugar-forming substances taken at the same time,
and has found it very healthful. Mems condi-
ton would be greatly improved the use of sugar
should substitute that of alcohol. i
The forecasts of the weather bureau of France
verified last year in ninety eases cut of every
hundred, the percentage having steadily risen
from eighty-one in 1881 to eighty-three in 1882
ard to eighty-seyen in 1888. Out of 1S9 alarm
signals sent to the ports, 12S were fully verified,
twenty four were fairly correct, thirty-seven
incorrect, and only two gales were not foreseen.
In Paris remarkable success has attended ex-
peritnents in photographing the country from
captive balloon. The operators remain upon the
ground, and open the valve of panoramic object
glass by means of an electric current.
A gigantic crystal of spodumene found in
Dakota measures, according to Prof Blake, thirty
six feet in length and from one to three feet in
thickness.