The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1895-10-10
SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY.


--Sound-producing ants are referred
to by S. E. Peal, in Nature. One kind
OF Indian ant gives a series of triple
sounds, another kind a set of five or
six, gradually decreasing. The sounds
were made by rasping the horny tip Of
the last abdominal segment on any
resonant material, such as thin dry
bark, dry leaves, etc. He also refers
to the tolerably loud persuasive "tok-
tok" of Barbes macroceps.
Fishes absorb nourishment as we'll
as plants, but in different way. The
plant drinks in its food through it's
roots from the soil and through its
leaves from the air. The fish takes its
food into its stomach, where it is di-
gested and then distributed by won
derful circulatory process to every part
of the body. The plant lives on gases
and moisture, the fish on solid food
The fish is a cannibal and swallows his
Victims alive.
Hamburg sent out 9,l7j vessels,
with an aggregate of 6.24S,975 tons,
during 1874, while 7,471 loaded vessels,
with 5,S12,2i2 tons of cargo, entered the
port, besides 1904 vessels in ballast: :
per cent. of the vessels entering and
clearing were steamers. OF the arri-
walls 2,Sl1 vessels (529,274 tons) were
from Germany, 4, 071 vessels $3.50, 500
tons from the rest of Europe, and 1888
vessels (2,27S,74 tons from countries
outside of Europe.
Equal parts of aluminium and cop
per were fused recently by Nj Chata-
!ler, and the ingot placed for twenty
four hours in solution of common
salt and lead chloride to dissolve the
uncom bined aluminium. No apparent
change could be observed in the ingot,
SO it was taken ont, washed and dried.
At the end OF twelve hours the whole
mass was found reduced to powder
from the spontaneous oxidation of the
alloy. similar ingot that had been
immersed was found unchanged at the
end of a month.
-ltaly's harvest this year is satisfac-
tory. The yield of silk cocoCns is only
an average one, but as the quality is
excellent the value is 81, 200, 900 more
than in 1894. Wheat, corn, oats and
barley are all good in quality with ID
yield above the average. The rice fields
are promising, as the disease called
'risone has been stamped out; SO are
olives and hemp. The vineyards were
attacked by perenospora, but the dry
July killed the pest, and while the
vintage wilt be below the average the
quality of the wine will be good.
-EXperime nts in welding metallic
bodies by simple pressure at heats be-
low their fusing points, made by the
Royal society of Belgium, show that
the most perfect joints are obtained
with gold lead, and tin, and the worst
with bismuth and anthony. Cylinders
of extremely pure metal with smooth
surfaces were brought together by a
hand screw and kept at constant tenn
perature between POO and 400 degrees
for from three to twelve hours. When
separated the break did not coincide
with the joined surfaces. Platinum
was softened and welded at tempera-
ture 1,6O0 degrees below its point of
fusion.
"A case of hypnotism in Syrian
lizard is reported in Nature by w. T.
Van Dyck. When one is caught after
trying to escape if held firmly it falls
into limp, motionless state, appear
ing as if dead; but it is simply in
trance-lille state, which may last sever
al minutes. The readiest way of in
ducing the trance is to take the lizards
head between ones thumb and finger.
making gentle pressure upon the an
giles of the jaw and upon the ear.
though similar pressure on the sides of
the trunk, just behind the forelegs,
is just about as effective. These facts,
with other details given by the author,
lend, he thinks, no support whatever
to the hypothesis that the animal is
simply feigning death.