The Mineral argus. [volume] (Maiden, Mont.) 1883-1886, 1885-04-23
INDUSTRIAL BREvITIES.

n1cal papers explains how cold air Is
the cause Of smoke. and how care can
reduce it. He wo I'D draw the exist
ing fire to the front of CRATE and
place the Goals behind; thus the fire in
the front would burn more rapidly,
warm the air above, and so prepare
the rising gases for combustion. The
smoke is diminished. as the gases from
the Goals at the back rise much moro
slowly than when placed upon the fire
and the air partly warmed. For stoves
and boilers. warm air may be pro-
duced for the entire combustion of all
the gases, a result that is beneficial in
many ways.
In order to give some idea of tho
progress of agriculture in New South
Wales The Engineer gives the quantity
of land under cultivation at the close
Of 1883 as follows: Wheat, 2s9,757
ncres; maize, 12S,634 acres; barley,
POSI- acres; oats, 1880 ceres rye,
14O acres; potatoes, IA, 953 acres; to-
baccO, 1,7S5 acres; sugar cane, IA, 953
pcres; grapevines, 4,37S acres; or.
anges, 7,26S acres; sOwn grasses.
wheat. barley and oats, for hay, 1884,
sos acres; same, for cattle. 107. S93
acres. Gardens and orchards absorb
17,455 acres, the whole quantity ol
land under cultivation exceeding ESQ.,.
900 acres.
According to the annual report of the
department of agriculture, now in
press, the total yield of wheat in this
country in 1884 was 5l3.OOO.OOO bush.
els, Of corn 1895, OOO, 900 bushels, and
Of oats SIS, ZOO, 900 bushels. These are
the largest aggregates ever recorded,
the nearest approach ON wheat being
made in 1882, when the yield was 5O4,-
OOO, 900 bushels. and on corn in 1880,
when l, 7j4, 100000 bushels were rails
ed. The average yield per acre in
1884 is given ut Is bushels for wheat,
2S.5 bushels for corn, and ga bushels
for oats.
"Idunium" is the name proposed by
Prof. Wcbsky for the metal Just dis
covered by him as one of the cOmpO.
nents Of native MANDATE of lead. The
mineral Is rather scarce one, of .
yellow color, and contains several 9TH
or metals. Of which zinc, iron, and
arsenic are among the most prominent.
Idunium resembles vanadium in sew.
eral respects, both physically and
chemically, while the only oxide hith.
ertO examined forms stable salts with
alkaline bases. and thus would appear
to possess distinctly acid properties.
Mr.. E. II. johnson, president of the
Edison Electric Lighting company, has
his private residence lighted with
incandescent lamps. The dynamo 10
in the cellar. and 1t Is said to make 20
little noise that it can not be heard ON
the floor above. A small engine sup
plies the dynamo, and the exhaust
steam is used in heating the house.
Mr. JOhnsOn's experiments have prov.
ed satisfactory, and he promises to
make connection with one or two Of
his neighbours houses for the purpose
Of furnishing them with light.
There are no hod-carriers in Ger
many. Bricks are passed from hand
TO hand. The higher up the bricklay.
crs are the more men are required to
toss the bricks. Two men to q story
is about the average, with enough
more to lead from the front of the
building to the place where the bricks
are needed. One may sometimes sec
three men on the ground. eight on the
front of the building, and five on the
top, making sixteen men through whose
hands each brick passed before it
reached its place Of destination.
The total area under cultivation of
rice in Burmah is reported as $780,
900 acres. An average crop all over
the province ought to yield an ex-
portable surplus Of 9SS,0OO tons of
cargo rice. Although many Of tho
district officers anticipate crop con-
siderably above the average, it APP
pears better not to estimate tor an cx-
portable surplus of more than 97j.-
900 tons, or l0i 200 tons below the
actual exports Of 1882.
Cracks in floors around the mold
board or other parts of II room may
be neatly and permanently filled by
thoroughly soaking newspapers in
paste made OF one pound of Hour, three
quarts of water, and IA tablespoonful Of
alum. thoroughly boiled and mixed.
The mixture vii! be about rs thick as
putty, and may be forced into the
cracks with knife. 1t will harden
like papier-inachc.
A nurservman asserts that apple
trees which have straight and upright
tops have roots of a similar character,
and that those which have low and
spreading tops have bushy roots.
Even the color and peculiar markings
of the bark of some varieties extend
to the roots. The nursery man is there
fore able to distinguish several varie-
ties by their roots alone.
Prof. Austin states that many clay
and iron sewer pipes and house lead
ers are peryious to sewer gases. In
one instance in Jersey City the leader
was so porous that the parlor was rem
dcred almost uninhabitable. lie rec