The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1891-11-18
POPULAR SCIENCE.


The great Lick telescope, OF California,
reveals about 100, 000, 900 of stars.
The greatest ocean depth ever found
by measurement was In, the Atlantic near
Puerto Rico, 1851 fathons.
Aluminium bronze is rapidly super
seding manganese bronze for screw pro-
pellers in high-speed vessels.
By 8 new device pieces of metal msy
be shaped with rapidityb by being forced
under dies while rendered soft or plastic
by an electric current.
It is stated that uncleaned tin plates
will give an electric current in common
water when one is exposed to the light
and the other screened.
A new roofing paper is made by apply.
ing to the paper a composition Of boiled
linseed oil and pulYerized charcoal. The
paper so prepared is said to be perfectly
air and water proof under all circurn-
stances. T..
The residuum of Observation-Disclosures,
which at one time was q ~by-product Of
little value, has now, owing to the in-
creased demands for l~ubrlcating oils and
wax, become more valuable than the first
product.
It is proposed doing away with the old
system of lightning rod protection and
replacing the rods with narrow ribbons
of copper, which will use up the energy
of the lightning and save the building
from destruction. /
An English engineer has designed and
Is now manufacturing, a portable cross
cut saw; that is, a large two-man saw
that can be folded up into small COM,
pass. It is really a flexible chain ofsaw-
teeth riveted together.
The ratio to the circumference to the
diameter of the circle was computed by
Archimedes as 22.7, and P. Metius
made it 355.113. After a tedious cal
culation Shanks has nov fixed It as far
as $50. decimals, and Rutherford has
verified the result up to the 440th deci-
NAL.
According to the latest observations
which DR.. Finsterwalder has published,
as stated in the Scottish Geographical Na2a-
zine, the region occupied by advancing
glaciers is extending from west to east,
and has lately crossed the limits Of the
eastern Alps. The glaciers in this region
have been recediug during the last thirty.
years, but now there is undeniable proof
that those of the ortler group, at any
rate, are in a state of progression.
A physician has hit upon a excellent
way of utilizing rubber in the treatment
of wounds. He places N end of the
strip of rubber upon one lip of the wound
and then stretches the rubbertto fasten
the other end to the opposite lip. In this
way he draws the several parts closely
together, and the elastic rubber continue
ously holds them there. The efficiency
of the sheet rubber used was increased by
painting it over with a thin gutta -percha
cement.
Professor Reyes notes q remarkable
effect of gravitation in the form of some
shells belonging to the genus Capulus.
When the creature: existed in situations
to cause an attachment beneath, so as to
be inverted, as it were, the shells would
assume an elongated form. The same
species when found where they had to be
ssright side up" or on the top of q fat
surface, had VIDE, depressed Shells.
Some would consider these forms as re-
curing new specific names, Professor
Reyes contends that a true description OF
the species should be so drawn as 70
allow for such variations.