The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-12-31
ITEMS OF INTER ES {.


used on the stage; the only decorations were
tapestries and curtains. In those days the actors
and actresses had to do more than merely re-
peat their lines; they had to supply the scenic
effect--what little there wes-as well as the
action OF the performance. They had no races
with real horses and moving panorama, nor
any saw-mlll. with real buzz saw and real
logs. to fall back upon.
The report that Prof. Hermann had succeeded
in photographing the sound of novels has been
confirmed. The vowels were first spoken into
an Edison monograph. and atterward repro
duced very slowly. the vibrations being re-
corded by microphone. The microphone was
furnished with a mirror which reelected the
light OF an electric lamp upon a registering
cylinder. This cylinder was covered with SEN
with o small opening which admitted the rays
of light from the reflector. Very distinct pho.
Geographic tracinRs we're thus obtained, and the
results secured were remarkable for their uni
formity.
TIE size Of Mr.. Goulds fortune has been
pictured in all sorts of ways but perhaps the
most graphic description OF all is that Of a
London clergyman, who told his congregation
that If the late millionaires money were in G5
notes they would stretch from London to
Moscow. Or il Ii were in soveregns they would
make a column seventy-three miles high. The
queerest calculation of all changed the fortune
into shillings, aud the clergyman showed that
It would take nearly 240 years, working night
anu ud1s 70 ElNe away TO eaCn person,
at the rate OF ten persons each minute. Con
sidering the provisions of Mr. Gould's will this
last calculation must have been intended for
delicate sarcasm.
Ar a recent street railway convention some
instructive figures were given In paper on the
relative cost and results OF cable and electric
roads Comparison was made of an average
cable road with an average electric road, both
or the same magnitude, both spending the same
for fuel and labor, and neither using trail cars
Each road was regarded as typical of its class.
The comparison resulted in showing that the
cable road had SS-.00ths per cent greater fixed
charges per mile than the electric. The gross
| receipts of the cable road were cent per car
mile larger than in the electric road; but re.
sorting to the comparison by figure of merit"
the ratio was nearly as three to four in favor of
the electric road. Total investment in the case
OF the cable road wss 2lS times the total invest
ment Of the electric road 1t 10 believed that
cable road practice has reached the stage where
| but little room is left for Improvement and, on
the other hand. the possibilities III the develop
ment of electrical systems OF traction are in
| finite. II is euthcrtativeiY stated that SO per
cent. of the electric roads IN the nited States
| report dividends of from to II per cent.
AT THE dead letter office at Washington the
| waits and strays OF Christmas presents. cards
| and other tokens of various sorts Of this season
compose the majority Of the articles received
and which are sold at periodical auction There
was a sale Of unclaimed and missent articles at
the Office last week, at which more than half Of
the articles sold were originally Christmas pres
ents. In the enormous increase in volume of
percentage Of holiday gift bundles go astray be-
cause Of being misdirected, or, quite often. not
directed at all. great many packages in
tended for foreign countries are insuf1ciently
prepaid. The Office in this case communicates
with the addressee or sender, and usually the
article eventually gets TO its destination. Very
few Of the unclaimed articles disposed of by
sale have great value. but mostly trifing re-.
membranes, bits of needlework, painting. and
the like. For two or three weeks past the dead
letter Office has been receiving missives ad-
dressed TO Santa Claus. at the rate of seventy
| five day. 1t may srieve some trustful young
sters to know that all these are burned up as
fast as they arrive.
The latest method of starting street cars in
Denver 10 said TO result in saving of at least
80 per cent over the cost OF the ordinary sys-
TEN. The difficulty of maintaining schedule
time with a large number of cars is we'll
recognized, and on many lines IL the car be de-
IeYed by an accident for quarter of an hour
or twenty minutes the whole line will be SO
demoralized that schedule time will not be
overteken during the whole day. In the city
of Denver there are "a miles of electrical and IL
miles cable tracks, requiring l03 trains iu daily
operation. To obviate the inconvenience which
a breakdown of any kind inevitably causes a
system of telephone circuits has been arranged
with the head Office. Every conductor on ar
irving at the terminus Of the route Immediately
reports the number of his car to headquarters
and any instructions that may be necessary
The dispatch clerk is in this way advised Of tie
whereabouts of each car, and is very often en-
abled to fill up aspace of from thirty to sixty
minutes caused by a parade. The saving OF
starters at the various termn Is taken as a set
of against the expense Of the telephones.
TIE first use of q steam whistle for locomo.
tives has recently been the subject Of consider
able discussion in technical circles and it is now
stated to have been in 1888, when the Samson"
an engine belonging to the Leicester and Swan
nington Railway Company. ran into horse
md cart loaded with butter and eggs, says the
St Louis Globe Democrat. The engineer had
: q mouth horn and could not attract the attep-
ton Of the driver in time TO avoid an accident.
| The manager of the line, Ashlen BaRster, re-
! ported the circun stance to George Stephenson
| and suggested that a steam whistle would be
| good means of giving warning at grade cross.
| ings Such an appliance was at once made by
| a local musical instrument manufacturer and
| tried with such success that all the engines
| were soon fitted with them. drawing OF this
| whistle signed by H. Cabry the company's en-
| zine SUPERINTENDENT. and dated May. 1888
| SHOWS it to have resembled in outward appear
| ance a f1renan's trumpet. Steam was admitted
| through a cock turned by handle like that on
| an ordinary water faucet, and as the shaft OF
| this handle Is short the whistle was evidently
| placed on q dome over the rear of the boiler
| near the platform on which the engineer stood