Signal-Copiahan. (Hazlehurst, Copiah County, Miss.) 1885-1888, 1886-12-09
A HUGE BAROMETER.
A New York Mans Experiment with y
Thres-story Tube Of Glycerlne.

A New York Mans Experiment with y
Thres-story Tube OF Giycerine.
An ordinary mercurial barometer Is
something less than three feet long.
and in finely.adjus,ed instrument the
scale by which its changes are read IL
divided into thousandths Of an inch. sc
that to take an exact reading some.
times magnifying glass is used. In
the hall Of the Royal Society. Somerset
House, Eng, lisa water barometer forty
feet long.
Mr. Zophar Mills. Jr., has recently
found pleasure and profit in expert
men,ing with glycerine cistcrn ba.
rometer So far as Mr.. Mills knows,
his is one of three glyccrirc barometers
in the world. There is ono in London
and one in Scotland. Mr.. Mills has
had glass tube drawn thirty-one feet
long and with an outside diameter OF
one and onc-fourth inches. The inside
measurement or boro is just an inch.
Seven of these tubes were drawn ai
Greenpoint before one sufficiently per
feet for practical purposes was oh.
tanned. Then il was hoistcd to the
roof OF the Front street building and n
hole large enough to admit the tube
was bored through the roof and down
through the several floors TO the cellar.
The tube was carefully lowered through
this hole and suspended by a brass
collar against the wall in Mr. Mills
office. which is on the second floor
The lower end Of ttc tube hangs in q
,istcrn filled with glycerinc in the
door Of the cellar.
Having thus suspended his man.
moth glass tube, after breaking one
tube in the first attempt, Mr.. Mills set
abou, filling 1t. To get vacuum in
an ordinary mercurial barometer the
open tube is filled with mercury. one
end being closed, and then, with the
open end stopped, the tube is simply
reversed and the stopped end is im-
mcrscd in the cistern Of mercury and
unstopped there. AS the fluid falls by
its own weight in the tube until the al
pressure outside holds 1t in balance a
vacuum is produced in the upper end
Of the tube. Mr. Mills couldn't very
well turn his thirty-onc-foo, tube up
side down in order to get vacuum.
and so. closing the lower end Of the
tube. he filled il with glyccrinc from
the TOP. Then he stopped the upper
end with n rubber cork, and poured u
little glycernc above that TO keep on,
tho air. This being done, he opened
The lower end OF the tube under the
surface Of the glycerinc in the copper
cis,crn in the cellar. and the column OF
lluid sank until it just balanced the
pressure OF the atmosphere.
All this was done some months ago,
and now Mr.. Mills is experimenting
with the scale by which the changes IN
the height ot the column Of glyccrine
are to be noted at their true baromctri'
cal value. The glyccrine rises 10 Il
height of from twenty-five TO twenty.
seven feet in the tube, where in mcr.
curial barometer the fluid would rise
about as many inches. A temporary
paper scale is now affixed to the wall
beside that part of the tall tube through
which the top Of this column OF glyccr-
inc rises and falls with the changes Of
the atmosphere, and on this scale. in u
space os about two feet. are marked
the divisions answering to about two
inches OH the scale Of an ordinary mer-
curial barometer. On this exaggerated
scale Of about foot to an inch
change Of five one-thousandths Of an
inch can be read with the naked eye.
The advantages Of Mr.. Mills big
barometer are these: II is SO biz that
slight variations can be read nj sight
and seen from distance ut aglancc;
the variation in movement is not only
great, but IL is quick. and Mr. Mills
thinks his big barometer will give
hint at coming storms two or three
hours before q mcrcurial barometer
will show depression.
Mr.. Mills is watching the weather
aud the weather glass closely. and is
comparing the records of his barometer
with tue daily readings OF the standard
barometer at the signal Office in the
Equitable building, and the glass in the
Maritime Exchange. In few months
or year Mr.. Mills expects to have an
accurate scale by which he can take
practically correct barometrical read.
ings.
Otto Guerickc. Of Madgcburg, In
about 1860 constructed n water baron.
eter which had glass tube about the
size of this one of Mr.. Mills. He set il
up in his house with the end out above
the roof. A manikin noated on the
top Of the column OF water, and whep
the barometer fe!l the little man dis.
below the roof, and folks
knew that he had gone in to be out Of
the rain.-M y. Sun.
Did you ever see a man who played
billiards who would not coniidentially
tell you. as you watched his play, that
he used to play good game' "Ycs.
SIR" he will say, 1.-TWO or three years
ago. when / was in practice. l could
doable discount this game I'm playing
now" Whoever heard an honest bill
lard player say. ~ don't play much OF
an ,..r,o ,l,,t', (. faof. hut ik's as vpa1I