The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1896-10-21
HOW TO KEEP COOL.
SOME OF THE METHODS EMPLOYED
eY NATIVES OF THE TROPICS.

BY NATIVES OF THE TROPICS
Artificial s,-amps of New Guines-Indi.'s
-FIo-tiag -subterranesn DWELL
inrs Of the syrians-The King of Slams
Glass House
If people will only profit by example
thav can keep cool. Just see how the
other fellow. who lives where it Is al
Syavs hot, manages to be comfortable,
ard then yea will have struck the key
note.
For centuries the inhabitants Of the
,ropics have been devising ways 10
keep cool Not only have the natural
resources Of their own countries been
converted into methods of cooling
schemes. but the mechanical skill OF
modern science has also been introduced
nv the fabulously wealthy rulers OF these
semibarbarous lands
The natives of New Guinea, who are
compeIled. owing to the intense heat,
TO &c almost naked during most OF the
wear. have hit upon scheme that Is
claimed 10 make life not only bearable,
but highly enjoyable during the long.
hot davs when the broiling sun is send
ing down seeming rays of fire.
While their plan does not tax the
brains Of modern science, II IS, never
tbeless. UNIQUE and involves the labor
of an enormous army Of workers. Their
method is to take broad stretch OF
land adjoining their large villages ana
convert it into a swamp. This is done
nv clearing the land thoroughly of all
xegetatioa and underbrush, only the
trees being left standing. By months OF
uatieut labor. in which all inhabitants
of the village, both men and women,
ioin. they dig o canal from the nearest
lake and drain it into their artificial
marsh. The depth of water IN these
marshes varies from 10 TO 20 or 30 feet,
according to the excavation done before
hand.
Trees are then cut and carefully strip
ned Of both Ea.k and branches and
driven in groups in numerous parts CT
the marsh, leaving about 10 or ID feet
above the water. On the tops OF these
and so overhang the marsh
In some parts Of India floating VII
lages" have been constructed with great
success The inventors Of this mode OF
keeping cool came from inland tribes OF
natives. where the heat killed of hun
treds every wear. These men Journeyed
70 the river shores and there built their
houses on large fiat RATS. Some of these
villages have now grown TO large pro-
portions, ard one near MacCluer' inlet,
or gulf Of Ouin, as 1t Is now called,
numbers over 500 houses. They are all
connected by ropes, with some 20 feet
Of water between, and move with the
current. This huge excursion feet, as 1t
appears. lazily floats from one shore 10
the other and up and down the stream,
catching all the air that comes from the
neighboring forests. The difference IL
temperature between the land ard the
RATS averages 20 degrees.
In Syria the latest and most efectuai
scheme Of escaping the sitting heat has
been fou..s. II the subterranean passages,
of which the country has many. Large
forces Of Syrians have made mammoth
excavations in the passages, and here,
deep down in the bowels Of the earth,
built abodes. 1t is very cool down there,
the rocks oftentimes being actually cold
This is largely accounted for by their
contact with the numerous subterraDean
WATERWAYS, which flow along under
mountains and rents in the rocks caused
bv internal volcanic eruptions.
Down there, hundreds of feet beneath
she earth's surface and in. as it were,
a gigantic tomb. the Syrians pass the
heated portion of the day in quiet Sc
clusion and peaceful rest.
The Chinese, although a backward
and unprogressive race, have nevertEe-
less tried many experiments for keeping
cool, and think they have solved the
question by their tree dwellings. At
least it Is the most satisfactory method
that has ever been put in operation IN
she Flowery Kingdom
Taking advantage OF the tremendous
growth of trees in some parts of the yell
low empire, the natives have built their
houses, like nests. in them. This they
do by splitting the large and topmost
branches and fitting the foundation G.
these houses securely in these splits
Perched mp there, hundred feet in
the air and in the direct sweep Of the
wind when there is any, tie Celestials
dream away the tedious summer day.
The type of architecture is more preten-
tious than that displayed in the simple
log cabin. The walls are decorated
with curioas designs. and the inter
woven latticework Of palm and bamboo
which form the houses give them de-
5ightfuliy cool and any appearance 1t
is an ideal nest, and one in which the
Celestial never tires of lingering.
The king Of Siam has a scheme on
which thai swarthy ruler labored for
many years. and which. besides being
wholly original. represents an expendi-
rurc of money that would make a dozen
men wealthy for life. In substance, it is
a mammoth glass room. measuring
some 90 feet square hy 10 feet high,
constructed On the surface Of a lake,
into which 1t is submerged on hot days
With the exception Of the floor, it is
entirely of heavy plate glass closely fit
ted into steel frames. 1t took over five
years Of steady labor to make this re-
markable room, and so jealous Of the
secret was its imperial inventor that
each particle of the room w2s manufac-
tured il different place and by work
men entirely unfamiliar with the other
parts of the structure. York Jou--
nal
--;alss Danish ss>.zes.
Water tncccasire we formerly M