The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-04-29
CURIOUS CONVERSATIONS.

Natural gas has been used in China
for many centuries. 1t issues from fis-
sures in the earth near coal mines, and
is led through bamboo tubes to the
point where it is consumed
The Illuminating power of the gas
largely depends on the shape of the
burner employed. The smaller and
thinner the flame the more rapid the
consumption and the less the light.
The Baltimore & Ohio belt line tun-
I mel, at Baltimore, which is six miles
( long, cost the railroad company $1,000
900. Electric motors will be used in
stead of locomotives after April l.
Often when engaged in the most
charming invitation of some song bird
the mocl1ing bird will suddenly stop
and break out with the quacking of a
duck or some other ludicrous sound.
At an elevation of 1855 feet above
the sea level on the Peruvian Central
railroad it was discerned that 100 men
were required to do the same amount
of work that 50 would do on a sea
level.
The bustard has pouch under his
chin so capacious as to contain six or
seven quarts of water. When cor
nered by an enemy he turns violent
stream of water on him from this res
ervoir.
The method of locomotion of the con-
dor in the air is a mystery. This bird
has been seen to circle to and fro in
the sky for many hours at time, as
cending and descending, without once
Topping its wings.
The rock is the only bird that repairs
his nest in the fall. The same birds
use the same nests year after year.
and just before migrating they touch
up their nests and put them in order
for the winter.
Hawks have been seen to follow in
the wake of a moving railroad train
to swoop down on small birds that were
suddenly disturbed and frightened by
the noise, and therefore for the mo-
ment were off their guard.
Gas lamps were introduced in the
Paris streets in 1919. Their employment
caused no little remark among the
country people, who got an idea that
there was some magic about the mat
ter.
While wild geese are on. the wing
they are talkative and noisy, but When
thew alight TO feed, as they do gener-
one NAV pass within a few yards of 100
of them and never notice their pres
ence.
There is a girl named Marguerite
Rouyenvai at Thenelees, in the north
of France, near Saint Quentin, who is
reported to have been asleep for the
mast IL years Occasionally she has
had hysterical cries, but did not awake
after them.
Many birds vary the composition of
the outer layer of the nest, according
to circumstances. If the nest Is 10
Gated among growing leaves the outer
layer will be of green moss; II on
dark branch, of natural colored lit
chens.
The construction of an object glass
of extraordinary size is to be under
taken at the Jena factory for teles-
scope for the Berlin exhibition of 1895
II is to be 30 centimeters about A
inches) in diameter. This will be the
largest object glass in the world, being
many inches larger than the great Lick
instrument.
Dean Vahrs statistics of foreign
missionaries for 1892 has been Issued
The income of all Christian missionary
societies was f2, 695, 1SS. of which f1,4ll,-
24O was contributed in this country
The number of male foreign mission
aries was 5,502, and the unmarried te-
male missionaries 2,771- With the
wives of married missionaries there
NAV be about 1000 from Europe and
America in the field.