Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1886-07-17
STUDY AND WORKSHOP.

The latest thing in Berlin is musi.
cal sewing machine, which plays sue
Cession of lively tunes while in action.
Another mechanical novelty interesting
to ladies is the application of electric
light to pianofortes. The material and
mechanism are concealed inside the
case, so that the light is provided for
the performer without any apparent
disturbance of the ordinary arrange
ments.
COTTON is not fiber, but plant
hair. 1t holds to be spun into thread
because of peculiar twists in each hair.
shown under the microscope, especially
in polarized light. Linen thread may
be spun because the flax fibers have
certain roughness on their surfaces,
which enable them to cling together
Hence it is impossible to make as fine
linen as cotton cloth, but it is much
stronger.
TRAINS on the Brighton (England)
Railway line during the last two years
have been fitted with a system of light
ing by electricity; but few Of those who
read their newspapers with comfort
when returning home after their bust
ness day in town are aware that the
light in question is to some extent pro-
duced by the momentum of the train
itself. together with controlling ar
rangements. 1t has now been decided
to extend the system generally.
AFRICA promises to furnish q new
source of gutta-percha in the juice of
the karite tree, the bassia parkii, one
of the numerous genera of the order to
which tie true gutta-percha tree be-
longs. Karite juice is said to afford a
gutta in nowise inferior to the best
quality OF commercial gutta- percha,
and, nee the tree is very abundant
throughout the entire basin of the
Nile, apprehension of II scarcity of this
valuable article through failure of the
supply from India is allaysd by this
discovery.
| THERE is no line of economy in rail-
way management, says the Scientific
| american, that promises results equal
to that of stopping the rushing leaks
resulting from senseless waste of fuel
in locomotive firing. But every
use" 4 steam power has cores
pouulng interest in stopping the same
"senseless waste" in his own fur
naces. Skillful firing would reduce the
smoke nuisance to minimum, besides
efiecting saving in Iuel which en-
ployers could well afford 10 encourage
by paying premium for results OBJ
tanned as measured by the size of tho
coal bills.
RooFiNG-TILEs are being manufac-
tured of wood-pulp, and by the use Of
different colored sands variety of
tints are impaired to tho tiles, render
ing them capable of producing pleas
ing effects IN ornamentation. ID is
claimed that their lightncss obyiates
the necessity of heavy framing 10 sup
port the roof, while their toughness
protects them against blows, footsteps
or the action of frost. Pulp tiles are
more elastic than wood, and therefore
lie closer together, and nails penetrate
them more easily and bind them more
closely to their beds than is the case
with shingles.
! ANY ordinary paper NAV be made
temp orarily translucent by simply
dampening it with sponge moistened
with benzine. In this condition 1t is
sufficiently tral Iparent to permit of tho
lines of drawing being seen through
it, and of ink or water colors being
used on its surface without running.
AS the benzine evaporates the paper
loses its translucency and assumes its
ordinary Opaque appearance. If this
occurs too quickly, the part can be
dampencd again with the benzine. The
faint smell of the oil will disappear in
| u day or two If the paper is left exDosel
to the air.