The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-05-07
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

Why should we waste one-half of the
light given BY an electric lamp in an en-
dcaVOr TO soften the rags2 This Is ihz
question asked by an English electrician.
VINO condemns the ordinary practice Of
using sen-OpaQue glasses over arc lamps
IN street lighting. These globes cut OFT
from 40 to % per cent. of the light pro-
ducc1, and do not in any way assist t.ae
diff lsiCn OF distribution of the light. The
idea should be not 10 waste the light. but
10 screen of the actual rays and diffuse
or reflect the light from a large white
surface. As an adjunct 20 this method
new arrangement has been devised. con-
sisting Of a ring Of polished glass of trans
parent section, partially a prism This
receives the most intense cone Of light
from The arc. and defects IL onto The
white surface OF the difruser, and a beau
tiful uniform illumination is produced
The glass ring Is best built up of four
or six segments of glass held in a light
metal frame Inc OH user IS umbrella
shaped, and may be made of white can
vass on a white frame, and painted on
the inside with white lead.
The circumstances attending the adop-
ton Of the legend e Pluribus Unum''
as the motto OF the United States have
never been fully explained by the histo-
riens, says the St. Louis Republic. 1t was
probably used on coins land some say
upon early colonial flags) long before il
was regularly recognized by the leading
officials of the new republic The Oldest
coin bearing the motto in full is q colonial
cent coined by New Jersey in the year
i III
small medal recognized among the col
lectOrs of coins as the Confederate"
MS medal was a national token, / be
lleVe, and was coined by authority of the
general government. 1t bore on one side
thirteen stars and a blazing sun, the lat
ter surrounded by the word "Confedera-
ito, which gives 10 the name by which IL
is known to the numismatists The words
are undoubtedly from Virgil s "Moretus."
a poem devoted to a description of a GER
tain salad! In the rhyming receipte he
gives instructions for mixing. the proper
herDS and pounding the same in a NOR
tar until the various colors blend as one.
Some one has very appropriately said
that the colonies were mixed in the NOR
tar Of the revolution and came out as one
homogeneous nation
A curious and amusing custom of the
House of Commons is the performance
known as Counting the House." says
chambers Journal. No business can be
transacted unless quorum Of forty mem
bers is present But. all the same, bust
ness proceeds even though only one or
two members are present. and the speaker
ance unless a member rises in his place
and says: Mr.. speaker, l beg to call
your attention to the fact that there
are not forty members present" That
being said, the speaker must proceed to
count the House. He does not, however
simply count the members who are pres
ent IN the chamber at the moment. He
sets going the electric bells which ring
In every room Of the vast building a sum
mons to members to return to the House
The members come rushing from all quar-
tiers, and, after the lapse of three min
utes, the doors are locked. Then, and
not till then, the speaker using his cock
ed hat, which, by the way, he never wears
over the huge court wig, as a pointer pro-
ceeds to count the number in the House
When he arrives at the fortieth member
he cries out Forty in a loud voice, re-
sumes his seat, and business again pro-
ceeds from the point at which it was in
terrupted. But if there were not forty
present, he would simply quit the chair
without word, and the sitting would be
over.