The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1895-05-24
Prsrars. weekly. f2r ,he Citizen


81 were recovered. These showed the
chief currents to be: eastward along
the south side Of Lake Superior, west
ward along the north side; south along
the wes- side OF Michigan aud Huron,
north along the east side; generally
eastward in Erie and Ontario. Local
and Transient currents during gales are
sometimes strong enough to drag yes
sels from their moorings. a phenone-
non which may De called seiche-a
single wave which Is seen by naviga-
tors Is 8 white wall approaching and
pa>sing-is an occasional occurrence.
Records for the northeast of Scotland,
from 1913 TO 1884. show that in the 122
years the average number OF auroras
seen has been : per annum, varying
from - in 1870 10 none at AL in 10
years OF the time. At maximum sun
spot periods the aurOras have been fire.
queut and brilliant, while with the alb
sence OF sun-sp0ts there have been few
or none. In no year has an aurora
been observed between May . and
July 23-that Is. near the summer soils
tlce: and the rest Of the year shows
the maxlma, a primary in October and
a secondary in February.
As simple method Of showing the
presence Of argon in atmospheric nitro
gen, Vi. Guntz proposes absorbing
the nitrogen by lithium. with which it
readily combines below the tempera-
ture OF dark rednesS. After sufficient
volume Of atmospheric nitrogen has
been PASSED the apparatus remains fill
ed with argon. while if nitrogen from
chemical decom position is introduced
nothing is unabsorbed.
A determination by Prof. Barnard
with the Lick telescope places the di-
ameter.ofnNeptune at 1880 miles
from.2, 0o0,tI4,0o miles less than is
stated in most textbooks.
Dwarf- n Africa were mentioned by
Homer. referred to as an historical fact
By Herodotus, and described rs Aris-
to.e Piiay, later writer, speaks OF the
pygmie. a. living IN different c0un-
tries. Iaese references were substauti-
ally al. that was known &c the African
lygui-- until fem re8r, ago. when
atcgu"-> II them were first given to
travellers. hy neig bb1riug tribes. then
they Were --eu by SchWeiuturth. and
specimens were figa'lv brought T. Eu.
rope n. y lie ca tr-ta.--. tie emf
ueut anraEapol gi-t ti.l- That the an
clients Lad III rma,i mnre 81 less
r-ttL c1a--rtiug i've p9.Bl 4iioas II
small stature. lT9 were located Ii.
Africa. y mira Il tle south. toward
the sources Of the Ni,-: fourth to the
east uQJ Tar from these: aud the fifth
III Africa, Il tne southwest. Two Of
these groups, IA .re or less modified by
crossing, are located in Asia. The AZ
rican groups ale farther away than the
traditions represent, but ia nearly the
same direction. All of them are frag-
ments of the Two Races of blacks-those
OF Asia, Maylay-ia and Melanesia to
be distinguished rs NegTitos. aud those
of Africe, a Negrilios-both including
tribes, distinct peoples aud sub-races.
The Negritos, contrary TO common
oeilei, are not an approach to the
missing link" but are people of some
developemeut
An Investigation By Miguel tends l.
disproye the idea that wood pavement
Is favorable breeding place for germs,
and that il may have led to the Paris
: epidemic OF grippe in lSS9-ls90.
Sawdust from different depths was
sown on nutritive gelatine, the colonies
being counted at the end of 50 DAYS.
New pavement of pine block yielded
go bacteria per gramme at a depth OF
an eighth of an inch; pavement OF
Landes pine laid in lSS7 gave !. 400, 900
bacteria per gramme at the surface,
and only l,400 at a depth of fifth OF
I an inch; and pitch-pine pavement laid
/ in 1883 produced l,00i, 900 bacteria pei
I gramme at the surface, and only 500 at
a depth al twelfth of an inch. In ali
cases the germs were confined to the
/ superficial layers of the wood. Paris
mud, dried and pulverized. yielded
/ from 10000, 600 to $4,000, 900 bacteria
7 per gramme.
The dangers of watching solar phe.
nomena, even with the partial protec.
ton of colored glasses, have been
pointed out by DR.. George Mackay, OF
Edinburgh. Calico lost bis vision in
I this manner. Sir Isaac Newton's ret.
ina was permanently injured, and DR..
Mackay has himself met with not less
than l cases of impaired sight as re.
suit of viewing with the unprotected
eye the eclipses of 1890 and 1891.
Carnivorous plants.are usually small
but European journals have been Civ.
ing accounts of one of gigantic size and
great power which has been discovered
by Dunstan on the shores of Lake Me.
aragua. As this naturalist was walk.
ing with his dog, he was attracted BY
cries of pain from the latter, and, hast,
eniDg TO the rescue, he found the ami.
NAL held by three black, sticky bands
which had chafed the skin to bleeding
these bands were branches of a new
carnivorous plant, which Dunstau
calls the ''landoctopusn The branches
are flexible, polished, black. without
leaves, secreting viscous fluid and
furnished with great number of suck
ers by which they attach themselves
TO their victims. 1t might almost be
believed to be an octapus transformed
into plant, from which the dog wa.
released with great difficulty and Sc.
we're injury to the hands. Among the
few facts learned was that the fetid
odor of the sticky liquid serves TO at.
I tract nrpv and IL ,,.as 81. -.