Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-09-05

ludl lHty VIII ne very SOOu- nc ioh3 III y
season has prepared conditions which are
favorable. and now all that can be done Is
to wait for them to spring up. They come
In very rapidly. and pastures which have
no sign of them the day before are filed
the next morning. There is no general
rule about mushrooms. except that 1t is
not safe to eat any of them that are at all
pCwdery about their gills. There are in this
section of the country about twenty dis
tinct classes of mushrooms. though pract-
caHy nearly all that are offered for sale
in our markets are of one class
Mushrooms should never be eaten unless
they are fresh, for they will not keep AS
sCcn as they show any signs of decay,
which is markell by the darkening OF the
should be rejected. They should be eaten
the day they are picked. In all my ex-
perierce L have never known any OF the
poisonous varieties to be offered for sale In
the markets Those who get poisoned by
them. make the mistake of picking them
IN woods i'll shady and damp places. Those
who furnish the markets. know the good
from The bad. and never offer toadstools
or any of the non-edible for sale"
x
People who buy bicycles" observed a
dealer, should not ride them over a week
without having them adjusted. Once prop
erly adjusted. they are all right until they
wear out hunters of good bicycles are
worn out in a few weeks, when, If they
were properly adjusted. they would last a
very long time. The factories which turn
the n out put them together rapidly. and
especially the machines sold at auction
They also get out of adjustment in ship
PIG them. and wear lop-5ided unless look
ed after Any experienced repairer can
adjust wheel. and 1t is great saving in
the long run to have it done.
"Of course. the wheels which have agents
here are attended to. for all of them are
careful to tell purchasers to bring them
back after weeks run for permanent ad-
1ustfneat. The purchasers of outside wheels
nave no such advice. and 1t is for them that
speak Another thing is in oiling them
The factories where they turn them out
I'LL all the bearings and working jt.ints
with vaseline. This excludes the oil that
inexperienced riders put into them. and the
result Is that they wear out rapidly, be-
cause they are not oiled"
X u
The malarial season is just opening"
observed a physician. "anI lots of people
are complaining of malarial troubles, and
putting the blame on the climate Of Wash
ington. when the fact is they have no ma
laria at ALL The malaria of which they
complain gives more trouble the highest
mountains and most sall5rious climates
tEsll even here on tide water. The cause of
1t Is not decaying vegetation. most per
ern branch or the flats, but because OF the
warm days and cool nights.
1t IS too warm during the day for per-
sons who are actively employed to wear
heavy clothing. and 1t is too cool these
evenings for them to wear the clothes that
are sufficient during the day. The cool
evenings conSeSt the system ard bring on
bilious troubles. and In ignorance of their
real trouble the sufferer attribute their
trouble to malaria, and bring the climate
into discredit. Small doses of calomal or
podaphylin if homeopaths should be taken
followed up by regular but light Coses Of
quiAine II allopaths. or china II of the other
school OF medicine"
Many of the stories that frequently ap-
pear IN newspapers about the vitality of
seeds are without foundation in fact" *
planned one of the seed experts of the AgrI-
cultural Department. and l have serious
doubts that any seed ever grew after it
was twenty years old. Time and time
again the statement has been made, and
appeared in print, about seed growing that
had been exhumed with mummies. All Of
these are erroneous. Some writers have
claimed that the seed of heliotrope found in
an ancient tomb produced flowers. but
there is no standard writer of thu present
day who will make such a claim. and but
few would believe it II 1t was made"
Scientists have calculated and even
demonstrated that they know the weight
of the earth. as we'll as the size Of it, re-
marked a scientific man who Is an author
ity on such matters. 1T was ascertained
that each cubic foot of earth weighs 5.67
times as much a cubic foot of water.
the weight of tho latter being about sixty
two pounds. A cubic foot of earth. there
fore weighs about 354 pounds. Taking the
dimensions of the earth, as determined by
The beSr eynerfmentS there ra mil
lions of cubic miles In the earth A simple
multiplication shows. therefore. that the
weight OF the whole earth is 6.oi9. 1896 bill
lion OF tons. The density of the earth is
as stated. over five and a half times the
density Of water. If you have any doubts
In regard to the calculation you can weigh
the earth yourself and see II the grand
total 1 have given is not correct"
II had a strange experience few nights
since" said resident Of Mcpherson
6 l5are. land for time I was very much
alarmed. 1t was couple of hours after
midnight. and heard a noise in the alley
In the rear OF my bed room. 1t sounded
as il a person had fallen out Of window
and struck the concrete paved alley with
great force. After awhile 1 heard a
crawling about. as II the injured person
was regainng consciousness. Thinking
that I might be able to lend a hand IN
some way l called out, Who Is there?'
The answer came with a Hibernic accent,
Keep still. everything Is all right: I am
Q policeman. and he a policeman.
too. 1t appears that a push cart man
packs his cart in the alley. and the police
man took a quiet nap in 1t. and as he
was dreaming of riches he reached out
his hands to grasp the wealth in sight,
whom the push cart dumped and dropped
the guardian of the night into the alley"
r y
'T saw a very pretty souvenir recently"
said lady, who Is somewhat prominent
In art circles. ut was intended to be
sent to friend who Is in Europe The
prints of the public buildings in Washing
ton were torn out from one of the less ex-
pensive guide books. Around the edges
of each picture was pressed some of the
flowers which grew about the buildings
The White House had a circle of leaves
of the flowers that grow in the plants in
front and the rear of it. The Treasury
Department and pension office were sim
Harry decorated, as was also the Capitol
and other public buildings. The leaves
are pressed on to the edges of the prints
and to be sure that they will stick drop
OF mucilage Is applied After the deco
ration of the print was finished 1t was
placed IN a copy press for a day or so.
The lady who had made the collection in
tel. ded 1t for a Christmas present"
\
There Is very little danger of .he Nc