Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-11-02
CURIOUS CONVERSATIONS.

In the reign of Queen victoria, England
| has had Is wars.
Porter got its name from the fact that
portsrs in London drank the LIQUID about
1870.
"A vegetable cartridge she'll, which Is
| entirely consumed in firing, is now coming
| into general use in the French army.
AN electric drill in an Idaho mine re-.
Gently performed the feat of boring afnch
| hole through 20 feet OF solid granite in four
| hours
The only purely platinum mine in ex-
istence has been discovered in Oregon. This
mineral usually occurs in conjunction with
other minerals.
"A mountain of mica is reported to have
been discovered on the Canoe river, about
900 miles north of the British Columbia
boundary line.
-Texarkana, Ark, has q woman whose
height is 8 feet III inches. She has two
cousins travelling with circuses who are
taller than she.
"A farmer living near Eugene, Ore, has
raised the largest potatoe on record. It
Burbank Seeding and weighs ~ pounds; 10
l5 inches long and l3 inches around.
The electric light which Sir E. watkin
intends to have fixed on tie summit Of
snowden is to be 50 powerful rs to light up
ain, even in misty weather.
For cents Belgian or q Hollander
can get cigar fit for King. The ordinary
well-to-do Hollander smokes cigars worth
half cent, but the nobility prefer the finer
kind, costing twice that sum.
I'm some of the old countries men who
toll have almost lost their names, and have
become only number. Every workman in
Japan wears on his cap and on his back an
inscription giving his business and his EN-
ployer's name.
Montana and Idaho are new countries
for the oldest Of circus performers, and they
have had some rough experiences there this
body to wear goggles to protect the eyes,
and 1t was almost impossible to keep the
costumes clean.
Some years ago American cotton seed
was planted in Turkestan, and the develop
ment has been something phenomenal. In
1884 about 100000 pounds of cotton were ex-
ported, while the product for this year is
expected eocp @ to reach 3,5o0.ooo pools, or abous
H6,Coo, COO pounds.
-Berylium, for instance, is worth about
ten times its weight in pure gold, and vena-
dunn is five times as costly as the precious
metal. Iridium, also Is more than twice as
costly as gold The text books used to saw
that platinum was the only metal more
valuable than gold, but it now costs about
the same.
"A curious fact, revealed BY the figures
OF the recent census, is that, while there are
in the United States three cities of over
1,O00. 600 inhabitants each, one of between
100000 and 300 900. three Of between 400 900
and 800 0O0 each, and nine of between 100000
and 3OO,O0O each. there is not a single one
having between 10000 and 100000 in
hubitants.
"A prospector in Montana has found
strange mineral that takes fire and consumes
itself when exposed to the air. When taken
from the ground 1t has much the appearance
of iron ore and is quite as heavy. The first
that was taken out was piled up near the
shaft one evening and the next morning
was found to be smoking. 1t continued to
grow hotter until it arrived at almost a
white heat remaining in that condition sew
eral days, after which it gradually cooled
OF. 1t was then found to be but half its
first weight, and resembled much the frag-
ments OF meteors that are found on the sur
face.
There is probably not civilized roof in
South Africa which covers people OF only
one nationality; as a rule, they are OF three
or four. We take typical Cape household
before US at the moment: the father ia
English, the mother half Dutch and half
French Huguenot, with a French name, and
governess is Scotch woman, the cook a
Zulu, the housemaid half Hottentot and half
Dutch, the kitchen girl half Dutch and half
Slav, the stable boy a Kaffir, and the little
girl who waits at table Basuto. This house
hold Is type of thousands of others to be
found everywhere throughout Africa.
A French journal describes the case of
q woman 81 years of age but whose physiog-
nomy is that of a woman fully 20 years old
The appearance OF the young woman Is so
deceiving that her father. who Is only 50
years old, has frequently been asked if she
were not his mother. The surface of the
skin is the only part affected. The doctors
describe it as decrepitude of the cutaneous
system. Beyond this the young lady has
nothing old-appearing about her. Her hair
is blond and OF ordinary length, and her
Judgment, and intelligence very
good. Drs. Charcot and Souques, under
whose observation the case was studied,
state that the wrinkling of the girls skin
began when she was about IL years old.
AT Ledro, s. D., there is a specimen
Of the man-fsh, was found in the wind
caves of the Bad Lands in the State OF South
Dakota. The animal is petrified and is in
perfect state of preservation. The head OF
The creature Is exactly of the same shape as
that of the human Uranium, only it is much
smaller. The eyes, nose, ears and forehead,
in fact, every portion of the head, resembles
that Of mans. The neck is slender and the
uniform, and the entire anatomy
appears the same as that of the human body.
The arms are perfect, as are also the hands
with the exception of the nails, which have
ore the appearance OF . canine's nail.
Then the ribs and spinal column are per-
'ectly formed, making the upper portion OF
The body as nearly alike the form of a mans
IS is possible. Below the ribs the body re-
,embles that of q fish.