Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-07-16
POPULAR SCIENCE.
PHENOMENA OF a GENERAL.
RAIN OVER TEXAS.
Why Texas Rivers are Smau-Advauts-
geous Arrangement of Texas Waters.
Must Our Ice Factories Coz

1 Z
Robert T. Hill says, in substance, page 2I7,
| if it were possible to view the mountains.
| staked plains Glano Estacadol, red beds,
| chalks and sands of Texas while rain WIS
| falling uniformly over the whole region TIE
| following diverse phenomena would be
| seen: First, torrents would come pouring
down the impervious mountain sides on TO
| the staked plains, and there disappearing
beneath the level surface; second, the Level
| surface of the plains would be void Of
streams or surface drainage, but most Of
| the water would be imbibed almost immed.-
| ately, or temporarily formed on the
surface in ponds or lakes, like liquids in lie
| chemists filter until it can pass downward;
third, the red bed country would be Gov
| cred with rills, rivulets and torrents ,ade.
| with sediment, which would soon empty
into the arterial drainage off TO the Red,
Brazos or Colorado rivers fourth. the rain
| fall upon the challzy regions and the ooli:es
as about Fort Worth, would be imbibed win
| great rapidity save in the clay areas. The
| flush streams flowing from the red beds u.
| coal measures would rapidly diminish il
| volume as they rolled on, and finally aimos,
| wholly disappear as swollen streams, tbs
extra amount of water given them havins
! been imbibed by the lands over which then
course was laid. -
| This clearly explains why our Texas riv
ers are comparatively small. If the gre4'
| amount of waters rushing down from tie
mountains along our northwestern borders
struck an impervious formation instead OF
| the porous staked plains, and the lands eX-
| tending thence to the gulf Of Mexico were
| similarly impervious, we would have rivers
sweepingacross the country in volume IS
large as that of the, Ohio, the Tennessee or
| the Alabama. -
But these absorbed waters are got lost
4 great wisdom is displayed in this ar
| raugement for absorbing them, 50 fax -
| relates tn the good OF man. At depiL
easily within the reach of human ingenuity
! lie beds of impervious rocks to check the
| downward course of the waters, and hold
| them subject TO order, rs it were, spread
ing them out beneath vast areas. Artesian
wells readily bring them to the
surface where needed. Then this
underfow entirely beyond atmospheric ef
| fects cuts off all chances of loss by evaI
| Grafton. Nearly all the waters that fa4
| upon Texas territory are laid away in safe
| keeping for the use of man when he applies
| for them. Our great artesian areas, which
| we could not have with an impervious sur
| face, are worth far more to the state than
| =,
| rivers flowing far apart on the surface.
| A great river cannot water any very
| broad extent of country, but the same
| waters distributed through wide water
| carrying strata can. In times past rivers
| were of vast Importance as arteries of com
merce, but railroads have vastly cut down
| that Importance in modern times. 4 river IS
now most valued for the water it contains,
| as rule We have the water where il can
! be of most value to US, under these cirum-
stances, and hence the waters of Texas
are worth far more to her than ara their
waters to those regions through which
great rivers flow over impervious forma-
| tons.
|
much to say about the new chemical dis
covery known as frigerine. They claim
that it will eventually do away with put
| ting up ice for the winter, and will cause
| all the ice factories to go. There is nothing
| very unreasonable in the claim, provided
frigerine is as represented. They say the
person desiring to keep cool will buy
| little urn-shaped vessel holding about one
| quart, and made of silver or some other
material not liable to corrode. Into this he
will place two small cakes Of the material
| qualified to produce frigerine-one Of .
| kind-there being two kinds employed. He
! will then fill the little vessel with water,
which will dissolve the cakes and set
\ the chemicals to acting upon each
| other. This action will promptly form
| frigerine and carry the temperature Of the
vessel far below the freezing point AL
| necessary, then, will be to cork or close the
vessel tightly and set it in your water
bucket or cooler-ice-cold water will be the
result for at least twenty-four hours. The
frigerine will be much less expensive than
| ice is now, they say.
! ~
Bone grating appears to be the latest
! rapidly developing new interest in surgery.
| A prominent Cincinnati surgeon is at the
head of it for this country. He has made
several very successful tests, and says there
| is now no need that limb should be lost
| on account of shattered bone. L
| the bone is so badly crushed that
the pieces cannot be correctly put together
| the crushed section may be removed and
| the bone of "a lower animal grated into
| its place He finds it necessary to graft
| the bone of carnivorous or partially cal
nivorous animal upon the bone OF an ANNA
| of like character in this respect. In his Of
| fee is an evidence Of the correctness
| of his claim, in the bone Of an ami
NAL firmly and nicely united to the
bone of another animal of different species.
| The operation was performed by himself
and the animal afterwards killed TO get the
| specimen. The remarkable feat Of restoring
one-third Of the radius, Zone of the main
bones in the ARM, has already been success
| fully performed, it having been replaced
with bone from lower animal. The doctor
claims that the old practice of setting bones
| blindly was wrong-an opening should BE-
made to the fracture, unless extremely sim
| pie, where the damage can be seen, felt and