Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1896-06-24

In the accounts Of Capt Vaughan's
travels In Persia q description II given
Of the great salt desert IN the northern
paSf Of that country, extending StO
miles from east to west and $50 miles
from north to south. The desert IL q
vast dish-shaped depression. the CEN
tral portion lying from 1000 to 1900
feet lower than the margin. and near
its western rim is q salt-bed whose
area Is 40 square miles.
The Colors Of Childhood.
Professor James Sully In his studies
$f CHILDHOOD compares the mental proc
esses Of white children In civilized
lands With those Of full-grown saw
ages, and discovers some remarkable
resemblancea Among other things
he finds that the favorite colors Of the
savage. red and yellow. are those
which white children first take notice
Of, and Of which they remain especially
fond during the period Of childhood.
81. too, the savage adult and the white
child md common pleasure In all
bright, shining and glittering things.
The Stormy Equino1es.
The popular belief that storms are
more frequent about the time Of the
equinoxes, or when "the sun crosses
the line" IN March and September.
receives some slight degree of support
from the recent Investigations OF Pro
fessor Hellmann concerning the wealth
Ct Of Europe. In southwestern Europe
March Is the stOrmiest month, while
In the British Islands and Norway jan
uary tnkes the lead in that respect; but
considering Europe as a whole. 1t ap-
pears that storms preponderate near
the seasons of the equinoxes.
A Curious Boulder.
In the mysterious Ice Age, when
great glaciers advanced from the
north over the northern part Of the
United States, many strange rocks
were brought from the regions beyond
the ST. Lawrence and the great lakes.
and left far from their place of origin,
scattered among the hills and plains of
New England and the Ohio and Missis-
sippi valleys. One Of these rocks. re-
Gently found near Columbus. Ohio,
proves to be particalarly interesting
and curious. It is not more than foot
and half in diameter, but 1t h plainly
q relic Of glacial times, and nobody
can tell for certain whence 1t came.
There is no rock resembling It within
hundreds OF miles. The suppOsition
Is that the ice carried 1t from a point
north Of Lake Huron to the place
where 1t was found. Its composition
shows that 1t was of volcanic origin.
American Amber.
The worlds greatest source of amber
Is the shores Of the Baltic Sea. Amber
n the fossilized resin Of several spe-
cies of pine trees. In small quantities
It has been found in various parts OF
the globe, including the United States
but up to the present time no Ameri.
can deposit Of amber extensive enough
to be of commercial value has been
discovered. Quite recently, however
amber has been found at Cape Sable
on the Magothy River. in Maryland
and this arouses the hope that 1t may
yet be discovered in paying quantities
In this country. The deposit at Cape
Sable has been known since 1921, but
only lately has q careful Investigation
Of 1t been made. The fossil tree
trunks In which bits of amber are EN-
bedded are not like those of the Baltic
region. pines. but are believed by theil
discoverer. Mr.. Arthur Bibbins. to bs
specimens of the seQuoia.
A Strange People.
| DvranD tho 11Sut fyyn voaro oYnQf71
lions sent out by the Bureau Of Ameri
| can Ethnology have collected many in
| teresting facts about the Seri Indians
who live in the western part Of th'
| State Of Sonora, Mexico. along th'
shore OF the Gulf Of California, and OF
the island Of Tburon in that gulf. Th'
facts have recently been summarized
by Prof. w. J. MCGEE, Of Washington
| From time immemorial 'Seriland hal
remained practically une1plored. part
" because 1t lies behind desert bar
rier, and partly on account Of the war
| like reputation Of its fierce. and blood
thirsty Inhabitants, who profess {
passion for alien blood, always graft
fed save when they are deferred b.
fear" The Seri Indians are describe,
as Of superb physique, able to rul
down fleet game and capture half-wil,
Mexican horses without ropes or pro
jectiles; able to run across the desert
| waterless and foodless, so rapidly n
to escape pursuing horsemen; able t
abstain from food and water for days
able habitually to pass barefoo
through cactus thickets and over jas
ged rock slopes without thought of dis
comfort" They speak N distinct lar
guage, and strictly practice monoga
nous marriage. Their hatred for allie
peoples is hereditary. The remains O
ancient ruins in Serilahd indicate tina
its Inhabitants have always kept thei
country free from foreign invasion
and that for centuries their custom
and arts, which are crude and simple
have remained unchanged.
4 Phenomenon OF tho Tide Rip.
| A "tide. rip" phenomenon OF the sc
was encountered In the Indian Ocea
| recently by the ship Francis. which al
| rived at this port yesterday. The It'd
l ran in many directions. apparently a
/ most at the same time, and the Dig shi
was whirled around by It like to
| or took peculiar and erratic sheers unit
she. became uncontrollable and coul
not be kept on her course. It wa
feared at times that she would 60
pieces. for the tide seemed to increai