Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1894-07-14
SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY.

Work has begun under the new
hrman permitting the Palestine ex
ploration fund to dig for two years al
Jerusalem. Mr.. Bliss starts on Zion,
and will proceed toward Ophel, explor
ing the tract lying between the south
wall of the city and the valleys of Hin
nom and Jehosaphat.
Tobacco culture is increasing rapid
ly in Queensland, Australia. The crop
has been found to be the most profita.
bic one raised in the colony, the local
demand from the tobacco factories sus-
tanning good prices for the leaf. Coffee
is also receiving increased attention in
the colony, and many trees have beer
planted in the northern districts.
According to the Glasgow Evening
News it appears that the latest statis-
tics issued by the German imperial
health department give to Berlin the
honor of being the healthiest city in
the world. The death rate is given as
only 1853 per 1000. The unhealthiest
city is Alexandria, which, despite its
unvarying fine weather, it's three hun
dred fountains and it's soft sea breezes,
has death rate of no less than ST. per
1000.
The talk about the danger of catch
ing disease from the wine vessels used
in the Protestant communion service
has led a microscopist to institute an
inquiry whether there is not a like
danger from the use of common drink
ing glasses and mugs in the liquor
shops. 1t is not at all probable that
L. l. I'd HI h. &c
looking for, as the barkeepers wash
every glass or mug after it has been
used.
Miss Mary Westfall, of California,
during the past eight years has been
gathering, classifying, and exhibiting
Pacific sea mosses and alga. Here is
| probably the best and most beautiful
collection in the world. She has made
special study of marine botany, an6
has arranged with exquisite skill heI
superb collection of more than three
Thousand specimens. Scientists who
saw portion of Miss Westfall's collec
tion in the Woman's building at Chi
! cago were enthusiastic in their praise
of her work.
-Peanuts-or as they are called
| there, ground nuts-are largely culti
waited in India, the area devoted to the
crop in the presidency of Madras alone
ranging from 100000 to 100000 acres
The methods of cultivation are very
rude and primitive. When the crop il
ready for harvest from forty to eighty
women are employed per acre for gath
ering the nuts, which they do by grub
bing them out of the soil. The average
crop on unirrigated land is fifty bushels
per acre, on irrigated land about twice
that.
One of the latest uses of electricit,
is in pulling teeth. To the battery ar,
attached three wires. Two of then
have handles at the end, while
third is attached to the forceps. Th
patient grasps the handles, the curren
is turned on suddenly, and the dentis
instantaneously applies the forceps t.
the tooth. The instant the tooth
touched, it, as well as the surroundin.
parts, becomes insensible to pain. !
quick jerk and the patient is relieve,
of his tooth without pain.
The bumblebees which were intro
duced into New Zealand few year
|
spreading into neighboring colonies
They are almost the only insects tina
are capable of fertilizing the scarle
clover which, being of annual duration
must be fertilized every year, or els
the fields must be resown with i'm
ported seed. This beautiful and valua
BILE variety of clover gives grea
quantity of nutritious fodder, and fo
this reason great efforts have bee
made to introduce the bumblebee, S
that the fields may be naturally resow
from plants grown upon the field.
In his recent work, THE Great Bal
rier Reef of Australia" w. S. Ken
states that the average annual value {
the pearl-mussel fishery in that regio
is S296,OOO. The profits of the fisher
are made out of the pearl shell onl,
for the pearls, and often very valuabl
ones, too, are frequent; they are appr'
priated by the natives. NJ. Kent di
tinguishes two pieces of pearl shell
the large white shell, Meleagrina ma
garitifera, and smaller black-edge
form which he names M. nigro-ma
ginata. Mr.. Kent has proved that it
possible to transplant living pea
shells. Under favorable conditions til
shell is supposed to attain in thre
years the marketable size of eight {
nine inches in diameter, and that
five years pair of shells may weig
five or six pounds.