The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-02-27
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

The CHINESE have long been aware that the
impression Of no two thumbs. even of the
same individual are alike; and impressions of
every criminals Thumb are taken by the police
and numbered for reference. He may disguise
himself as he will. make up as he can but a
comparison of the impression of his thumbs
with that In the police archives settles the iden-
tity of an old offender beyond doubt.
HERoDorUs mentions that the Egyptians al
lowed their boards to grow when they were in
mourning. So particular were they as to shaw
ing at all other times that TO have neglected it
was TO make ones self the butt of coarse and
ridiculous jokes. Even in this day and age
when the Egyptian wants to convey the idea of
man OF low condition and slovenly habits
they always picture to you man with full
beard.
MOST people, on a clear day, can, without a
watch or other timepiece. form a closely ap
proximate idea of the time of day by the posi-
ton OF the sun; but few perhaps, have guessed
at any similar method of computing the time
during the night without any other means than
the starry SKIES" Notwithstanding, a fairly
reliable time indicator can be found In the
northern skies on every cloudless night. AS is
generally known, the group Of fixed stars called
the upper" make an apparent revolution
toward the north star in every twenty four
hours, with the two stars forming the outer
elevation of the bowl Of the dipper pointing
nearly directly to the Polar star CON
tlnuously. If the position of the "pointers'' il
evening in winter time and as soon as It is dark
IN the summer, the hour can hereafter be pretty
accurately measured by the eye during the
night Frequent observations of positions will
nave to be made at the given hour, as owing TO
the constant changing Of the earth's position in
space, the position of the pointers in relation
TO our point Of observation and the star also
change. Observations taken during year and
impressed IN the mind will make very good
time indicator Of that part of celestial space
WILD VARIETIES of banana have been found
in Ceylon, Cochin China and the Philippines,
says the Youths Companion. These, of course,
have seeds, but they are inferior to the long
cultivated varieties. The banana is cultivated
is perpetuated indefinitely. The banana belongs
to the lily family, and it is developed tropical
MY, from which, by ages of cultivation, the
seeds have been eliminated, while the fruit for
which it has been cultivated, has greatly ex-
panded, In relation to the bearing qualities of
this fruit humboldt, who early saw the wonders
of the plant, said that the ground that would
grow 80 pounds of potatoes would grow 80
pounds of wheat, but that the same ground
would grow 1000 pounds of bananas. The
banana possesses all the essentials to the sus-
tenance of life. OF Whist alone, or potatoes
alone this cannot be sad. When taken as
steady diet the banana is cooked-baked dry in
the green state, pulped and boiled in water as
SOUP or cut in slices and fried, The leaves of
the banana, often feet long and feet wide
are tender, and the strong winds of the tropics
soon tear them in strips, thereby adding to
their grace and beauty. The banana is a fruit
that beast and bird, as well as man. are fond of ,
and the owner, when he lives in a sparsely
settled country, must protect his plantation by
fence of some thorny plant
SOME YEARS SINCE Lieut.. Peary, who is now
somewhere in the frozen north in search of that
unattainable, and it would seem to the UNI
scientific that equally undesirable object, the
North Pole, had charge of certain government
works at Key Wes1 While the work was in
progress he noticed on the bottom of the har-
Dor, near where q breakwater was being built
something which shone through the water. He
inquired what it was, but he was able to get no
response more satisfactory than the assurance
that 1t had always been there. The boatmen of
the neighborhood had seen it shining
there in their. childhood and had in
turn been assured by their fathers that
1t had been there all their time. Although
the Inhabitants of that sub-tropical cline
might be content to live and die with an un-
solved mystery at their very DOORS it will easily
be understood that the temper of Lieut. Peary
was different. He sent divers down to Investi-
gate. and after much difficulty succeeded in
bringing to light small copper cannon of the
fifteenth century. He was able TO satisfy all the
government to the piece for the price of old
copper and the interesting rel C became his own.
1t was at that time his intention to build sum-
mer residence at Herpswell, on a small island
which he purchased there and he intended the
cannon as an ornament for the lawn. Whether
this plan ever was or ever will be carried out is
not stated.
THAT the luscious peach has been derived
from the hard shelled almond can no longer
be denied. 1t is said that the peach in its oriei-
nal soil was a vrulent poison, and that tha
Persian warriors brought to Persia some of the
seeds and planted them for the purpose of
poisoning the points of their arrows SO as TO
render wounds caused by them to be fatal, but
change of climate and soil produced fruit
which is not only luscious, but is esteemed ex-
ceedingly healthful. The small black sloe has
been transformed into the juicy and golden
yellow gage plum, and the most delicious pin
pins owe their origin to the diminutive, acrid
crab apple The Savory cantaleup, in
a wild state in India, varies from the size of a
plum to that of lemon, ands in most
cases is either lnsipid or bitter. In Sicily there
is wild grass which, when ripe at the end of
the summer, is gathered by the peasantry. tied
in bundles and set on fire, not however to be
consumed, but for mere scOrching. The flame
flies rapidly through the light husks and beard
of the plant and leaves the seeds slightly roast
ed, in which state they are eaten with consider
able relish by numbers of the rural population.
The botanical name Of this Scilian grass is
eegilops, or goats eye, the Greeks having be.
lieved it to be remedy for a disease that APP
pears in one corner of the eye. The most
remarkable fact concerning this plant the
goats eye, is that it has been proved
by experiment to be the parent of cultivated
wheat. This fact was accidentally discovered
by a French agriculturst He wished TO
determine what effect cultivation would have
upon the goats eye, and planted, remote from
any field of grass that might mingle with It, a
few OF the seed. The first crop showed much
difference from the original, being two or three
times taller and more grains to the stalk at
the end of seven years experimenting the yield
was over 30 grains for each one planted, and
the transformation was completes; every plant
was true representative of cultivated wheat.
Later he sowed them in open fields, and in no
instance have they returned to the form OF the
original goats eye grass. The same expert
ments have since been tried by the English Agri-
cultural Society with the same results The
neatest form of true wheat now found wild is
the creeping couch grass, a perennial closely
agreeing in ali essential particulars of structure
with our cultivated annual wheat