The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-07-13
ITEMS OF INTEREST.


% per cent. since 1892, as against per
cent. increase in Massachusetts.
When a substance combines with oxy-
gen heat Is evolved, and II the union Is
well. The burning OF a candle seems 10
be a very different thing from the rusting
of a nail; but, in truth, the latter pro-
cess is simply a mild and dilatory species
Of combustion. 1t is really a little con-
hagration, though It does not afford sut-
ncient heat to SINCE the wings OF a moth
or sufficient illumination TO enable US 10
read line.
One of the vegetable marvels of July.
says the New York Sun, is the fraxinell1
or dittany, an old-fashiOned Towering
plant native in Southern Eu-
tivated in the gardens Of our
grandmothers. The plant has snowy flow
ers, white, red and rosy, and an door
that belongs to the leaves as well as to
the blossoms. The plant, If visited at
night with a lighted match, Is suddenly
enveloped with blue flames.
Seven Pinch steel tube army rifles
have recently been completed at the Wa
tervliet arsenal, with a variation in weight
between the lightest and the heaviest OF
only nve pounds, says the Sc1entihc
American The guns are forty feet long
and weigh approximately ll5,0OO pounds
piece. Each has an inner tube, over
which series of hoops are shrunk for
nearly the entire length: Over. these Is
a single jacket two-thirds the length Of
the gun, and over this again are shrunk
more hoops. Aside from this large num-
Der Of parts, the guns are turned on enor-
nous lathes during certain stages of their
manufacture, and the close agreement OF
the entire lot is considered a remarkable
feat of accurate workmanship.
Tho national capital has some peculiar
customs, says the Washington correspon-
dent of the Chicago Times Herald. One
of these is the tying of strings or rib
bons across streets and avenues in order
| to shut wheel traffic out from blocks
wherein nRTEnnG living
done very frequently, Notwithstanding the
fact that all the streets are paved with
| by passing vehicles inconsiderable. The
practice has been carried on to such a
ridiculous extreme that public sentiment
Is rising against the inconvenience caus-
ed thereby. 4 physician writes to local
paper that for several days he was unable
70 drive his carriage to his door because
| a neighbor had stomach ache the result
| OF an oVerdulgence in Christmas turkey
and plum pudding. The great question of
| ribbons or no ribbons will probably be re-
! ferred to the Washington common coun-
| ell, the national Senate and House of Rep
resentatives, next winter.
One of the most peculiar vegetable pro-
| ducts of Brazil is the Mouiela utilis, or
| pottery tree, says the Scottish American.
| This tree attains a height of 100 feet and
| has a very slender trunk, which seldom
| much exceeds a foot in diameter at the
| base. The wood is exceedingly hard and
contains a very large amount of silica, but
i
! largely employed as a source of silica for
| the manufacture of pottery. In prepar-
/ ing the bark for the potter's use IL is first
| burned and the residue is then pulverized
| and mixed with clay in the proper proper
| ton. With an equal quantity of the two
| ingredients superior quality of earth
! enware is produced. This is very durable
| and is capable of withstanding any amount
! OF neat. The natives employ IL for all
| kinds OF culinary purposes. When fresh
| the bark cuts like soft sandstone and the
| presence of the slick may be readily ascer-
| tanned by grinding a piece of the bark be-
! tween the teeth. When dry ii is generally
| brittle, though sometimes difficult TO
! break. After being Burned it cannot if Of
/ good quality, be broken up between the
! fingers. mortar and pestle being required
! to crush 1t.
The humble gourd is fashionable; in
| stead Of scrambling over the fields, il
| presides over afternoon teas, says the
| PHILADELPHIA Press II was England that
discovered the bold, decorative qualities
| its pendent fruit, and hung it high on
| arbors by lakesides and on its velvet
! lawns. There are few vines so varied.
! graceful and effective. 1t has tropical
| Insurance of growth and a barbarlc
| aspect of color and form that in a colder
| climate has the attractive fascination OF
| an exotic. The newest gourd is the Chi
| nese loofa, or dishrag gourd as it is more
| familiarly called The name is pertinent.
When stripped of seeds and shell It's
| shape and texture adapt il for a bath
| glove, and as such it is used. In the queer
| little stores that get the flotsam ami Jet
| sam OF sailor life the Chinese loofa is sold
| for this purpose. For decorative pur-
| poses, however. the form is less desirable
| than some other varieties. One of these
! is the Hercules club which is somewhat
| formidable In the size OF its fruit but
| fine in shape. another is the serpent gourd
! with It's slender, undulating body and its
! tint of carmine. But neither of these has
The charm OF the snowy nest-egg gourd,
! when our grandmothers used to dam
| stockings on, nor of the dippcr gourd b.
loved by children. which hangs by the old
| oaken bucket behind the cabin door
| Nothing is more striking than an arbor
! hung with all these varieties, when, with
| all their curious forms and colors, they
are left to ,ripen and hang as they will
do for months. Nor is it too late with our
| bel9ted summer to SOW the seeds that
| will make autumn glorious.
Capt. Casson of the British bark Cup
| lea, while at Astoria, on his way out to
| sea from Portland, gave a reporter some
| interesting facts in regard to the gagus
| plant and the terrible effect it has on the
natives of the Gauptil Island, where it
| grows, says the San Francisco Chroni-
| Gle. Capt. Casson is an authority on mat
| tiers pertaining to the South Sea Islands.
In speaking Of the gagus plant Capt.
| Casson said: 1T is a species of cactus
and, as 1 said. grows only, to my knowI-
| edge, on the Gauptil Island. The island is
small one, but is well populated by ma
| tlVes OF the Malay race. In the inferior
| the plant grows wild, fiourishing espec-
| tally in the red, rocky soil. 1t looks beau
! tiful when growing, as you may Judge by
the bright hues with which it is spotted
Opium is a potent drug. but l am certain
| that the extract from the gagus plant is
calculated to do more damage to the hu-
man system. The natives cut the plant
in the early spring. After they have
| gathered a sufficient quantity they put it
| in large bowls and crush 1t with huge
| stones. A grayish sap runs out freely.
and this they collect and drink, after let
| ting it ferment, which it does easily.
Within half an hour after imbibing 1t
the drinker becomes perfectly stupid and
lies around like a log. The spell lasts a
day or more during which time the
| natives say they live in paradise. l have
| known sailors to try it, but never twice.
| Three years ago 1 had a man in my crew
who was driven crazy by one drink. The
first effect of the liquor is to soften the
bones and gradually eat them away.
| There are natives there, the victims of
| gagus, who are, indeed, homeless, and un-
| able to walk or use their limbs Then
| they begin to wither away until they die
in misery and commissions. Usually two
( years will finish the hardest man. The