The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1889-08-03
Correspondence Baltimore County Union
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.
puospsoREscENr MIXTURES.


From some interesting observations on phos-
phorescent powders by f. Becquerel, these re-
suits are summarized: /. Sulphur ana pure
carbonate of calcium give very shgnt phos-
phosescence 2. Sulphur and pure carbonate
of calcium plus o. to 10 per cent Oh soua Slve
brilliant green phosphorescence. ). sulphur
and pure carbonate of calcium plus traces OF
manganese or bismuth give little or no phOs-
nhorescence. 4. Mixture as No. 8, but with
per cent. of soda. gives strong yellow or blue
phosphorescence. 8. Mixture as No. L, plus
traces of lithia, gives intense green phosphorus
eence. 6. Sulphur and oyster shells, etc., give
red phosphorescence. Z. Mixture as No. l,
plus traces of rubidium, gives red phosphores-
cence. s. Sulphur and pure carbonate OF
strontium give very faint blush green phos-
phorescence g. Sulphur and pure carbonate
of strontium plus soda give bright green phos-
phorescence.
PREVENTIVE INCUBATION.
French farmers, at least, have appreciated
the importance of Pasteur's discoveries that
the virus in many infectious diseases is Que 10
microbes, and that the microbes]especiaily III
fowl cholera spienic fever in cattle and sheep,
and red fever in swine-may be SO weakened
nv artificial culture that incubation with them
gives only mild disorders while securing I'M
munitv from fatal forms of the diseases; M.
Roux of the Pasteur Laboratory IN farls,
states that the agricultural societies OF France,
italy and Austria have adopted the lnoculatlon
treatment and the various insurance COM
NAMES require it. The sheep treated annually
in France number 5000 or more. lnocula-
tions in man, for hydrophobia, have been mace
after the disease-germs had already entered the
system from the bites of mad-dogs, yet 1t is
claimed that the mortality is now only one per
cent. among persons treated and 10 per cent.
among those not Treated.
HARDNESS OF WOODS.
A writer on the comparative hardness OF
woods places hickory at 100, getting Tor plgnut
hickory So white oak 81, white ash a., apple
tree 7l red oak 60. white beech 65, black wal
nut S. black birch 81, yellow ana placK OAK,
60, hard maple Sc, white elm 66, red cedar 56,
cherry So, yellow pine "a, chestn9I 81 yeno low
white pine So. Another writer lnfers that
woods having degree of hardness less than
about 40 per cent. of that of hickory should
not be classed with the hard woods, most lnm-
herman looking upon everything except white
pine as hard. In reality, there are several
American woods of less Importance that are
about as soft as white pine, or even softer.
CONSCIOUSNESS OF CANCER.
In a French village of about 400 inhabitants,
IL of the "a deaths in eight years were from
cancer. DIR. Arnaudet finds that OF the cases
of cancer were in a single nelghborh0od,
among persons who used as beverage cider
diluted with dark-colored water from the
swampv ground, and that in of the victims
the disease attacked the stomach. The facts
are given in support OF the view that cancer Is
SNSAAAAAASo
served as carrier of the contagion.
MISCELLANEOUS.
The Geological Society of France has noticed
with alarm that the swallows returning from
Africa have this year avoided their accustomed
landing-places, and have flown to other parts
of Europe, east or west, evidently to avoid the
MANY traps set for them on the low-Iylng
French coast The slaughter of the birds for
Partisan milliners has been enormous for sew
eral years.
DR. John Gibson has made the important dis
covery that two chemically distinct kinds OF
sea water are present in the North Sea. One is
rich in chlorine, and comes from the Atlantic
to the south the other has less chlorine, and
flows from the Arctic Ocean.
prize of 81, 500 is to be awarded in 1892 by
the Guy Hospital, London, for paper on
1.-THE Influence of Heterogeneous upon In
fammatiOn."
A mixture of finely powdered mica and
crude petroleum is said to be giving remark
able results as a lubricant.
NJ Boule has shown the French Academy
that animals having affinities with the dogs
existed in France in the Miocene epoch, and
that the Quaternary epoch had species identical
with those of to-day. This makes it difficult
to admit, as has often been done, that our
races of domestic dogs are all notifications of
their congeners, the wolves and jackals.
The highest pressure used to drive water
wheel is claimed by valley near Grenoble,
France, where turbine ten feet in diameter
has been operated since 1875 with head of
1888 feet 4 flow of about rs gallons of water
per second gives force of 1,5OO horsepower.
An Austrian botanist, Prof. Peyritsch, has
discovered that double flowers may be artifi-
cialy produced by mites, and believes that
each flower has its peculiar mite-parasite which
gives rise to the doubling.
The annual production of chemicals in
France is said to have reached the great value
of $500, 100000.
In German experiments during the last two
seasons copperas increased the yield of vines
and protected the vineyards against parasites,
increased the yield of clover and lucerne from
25 to 80 per cent. increased the yield ofpOtatoes
and tended to suppress potato-disease when
applied to the young plants, and gave good re-
suits with grain.
From $4,000 analyses in German labora-
tory, it appears that fluctuations in the solids
of milk depend almost entirely on variations
of the fat. The evening milk is richer than
that of the morning, and the November and
December milk than that of other months
Electric radiations have been concentrated
by lenses in the important researches of Prof.
O. J. Lodge and Mr.. ]. Howard.