The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-11-03
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

A WRITER in Science says that there is no ell.
ement Of speech so variously pronounced in dia-
lect and by individuals as the letter r. All
varieties, he explains, are derived from a frac-
tional emission OF breath or of voice between
Two surfaces in the breath channel. 1t NAV be
made in the throat, in the cultural passage be-
tween the back Of the tongue and the soft pal
ate, between the arched top of the tongue and
the roof OF the mouth-common in the United
states, the normal r, produced between the
point OF the tongue and the upper gum, and by
transferring the sound from the tongue to the
lips so that the has the sound OF W. Another
series results from rafting organic vibration
instead Of a mere friction of the breath or
voice.
THERE is no such thing rs a free press in
Russia, says f. G. Carpenter in a syndicate
letter The papers receive instructions from
government as 70 just what they shall publish
Ii they do not follow out these instructions they
receive first warning. If they offend again
this warning is repeated. and at the third offense
the paper is suspended. Three such warnings
always result in the abolition of the newspaper
The warnings may be years apart and they may
be caused by the mistakes of chief reporters or
careless proof readers, but the paper loses its
standing, and the result Ia that there is no such
thing as free thought in Russia The most
ridiculous things are prohibited from publica-
tlon, and nothing concerning the car Is ever
published, Nothing on the Jewish question is
ever published, and the list prohibits the saying
or anything about the church schools. The
censor is a bigger man than the editor. With
such restrictions it is impossible to make good
newspapers, and none OF the newspapers
make very much money. There are in the
whole empire less than five daily journals.
A BOISE idaho dispatch to the San Francisco
Chronicle says: F. B. Schemerhorn, geologist.
who recently discovered the great glaciers in
Idaho county, has found fossil forest In the
center OF Custer county. In the same locality
he has discovered the petrifed bones of a now
extinct race of men and animals. which will be
n On
-FOUR square miles, and the condition of the
ground shows that at one time an enormous
now OF clay which worked In from the north
west buried the tree trunks to a great depth
This clay has turned to stone. aud no one can
ascertain its true depth without going to a great
expense. All the trees in this forest have their
tops broken off and stshd from ten TO forty
feet above the ground, averaging about twenty
eight to the acre. Scnemer Gorn took the exact
measurement OF some of the trees and found
them to average twelve feet in diameter on top
and sixteen feet In diameter at the surface of
the ground How far the trunk reached through
the clay stone to the soil he had no means of
ascertaninR. A branch which had become de-
tached from a tree and was lying about sixteen
feet from it was three feet In diameter From
the size of the trees aud their branches Mr.
bohemerhorn thinks they are a species of red
wood, such as is found in California and at
tributes their foSsilzatlon to the clay, which,
bearing large part OF mineral and presumably
coming from some volcano soon turned the
living trees into monuments of stone.
THE natives OF the Sandwich Islands con-
sidered thunder as being Mauna Loa's echo
from the clouds. This curious notion has
crystallized a weather proverb which Is now
current among many of the " hite residents of
the Islands, viz, 1T will rsin to day; Mauna
Loa shakes the clouds" In this connection it
may be remarked that the early Scandinavian
settlers of Iceland believed that there was some
mysterious and supernatural connections be-
tween the roaring OF Hecla and the angry
mutterings of Jove." In England many OF the
Peasantry still plant the house leek. "Jupiters
Beard" on their house roofs as a pre-
ventive against thunder, lightning and evil
spirits, custom which reminds one
or Charlemagnes edict: "Et habeat quisoue
supra domum sum Jovia barbam." Another
widespread superstition, and one that has been
noted among the tribes and nat ons from China
70 England, and from Cape Hatteras to the
Golden Gate, tells us that if the ''caps" or re-
ports OF thunder come in even numbers the
storm will DO of short duration and very mild
But, on the other hand, if they come in uneven
numbers, especially il the reports be a series of
five niue or thirteen distinct claps much loss
OF life and property will result. For hundreds
or year thunder accompanied by hail, or rhun-
der in the north or west, was thought to Dor
tend evil to all British subjects. During the
time when this superstition was rife the great
bell at Malmesbury Abbey. England the one
known as st. Adelm's Bell, was always rung for
the purpose of driving away the thunder and
lightning.
The scientific journals Of recent date, espec.
ialiy InosS Wnlcn aHOt departments to the dis
cussion of the glassworkers' art, have been
filed with marvellous accounts Of a wonderful
glass composition lately invented in Vienna.
This new art makes the spinning of glass wool"
possible and many fine webs Of crucial cloth"
have already left the looms. The frizzled glass
threads from which the cloth is woven are said
TO surpass in f1neness not only the finest cotton
but even the threads of the silkworm's cocoon
their softness and elasticity being even greater
than taat of manufactured silk lint" Sur
geons have already begun TO use this wool"
In place of cotton, common wool and silk
lint, and the chemists and apothecaries
say thar finely-woven web of this cloth makes
the most perfect filter that one could imagine
The finest and smoothest OF these glass threads
are being woven into textile fabrics which in
turn are made into cushions. table cloths, neck
ties, shaws, cuffs, collars and variety of other
patterns. In softness to the touch this glass
yarn almost approaches silk films, being much
like tt at of finest wool or cotton. 1t possesses
remarkable strength, and not only remains I'M
changed in weight and warmth, but is not
altered from contact with any known acid
Being non-intiammable and incombustible as
well as having great brliancy and beauty OF
colors. it is espec ally suitable for dress goods,
such fabrics being much warmer than those
made from cotton or sleeps wool. II these
things are all tru1, says the st. Louis Republic.
the glass and paper age will Jointly oecuDv tha