The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-03-05
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

The literary output Of 1885. as footed up
In the Publishers Weekly. shows a total
Of 5.463 new books and new editions G6s
OF the latter, as against ASA in 1Sgi.
The greatest increase was in fiction f3sl),
with less gains in law. theology. educa-
ton, and nearly every category except pO-
ntical and social science. and in the case
OF these two the publications are so
worthless that want Of increase will not
be regretted
in order to attract a crowd and get
talked about Philadelphia firm has put
a lot Of rays in one of its show WIN
doWs- The Times SAYS: ION q table in
the window was placed a ROentgen photo
graphing apparatus, similar to those with
which scientists are investigating the
world over. Wires ran from battery on
the moor to Ruhmkopf coil, and Crooks
tube, from which the rays, altogether in
visible to the eye, are cast when the bat
terry is in operation. Underneath the
tube viii be placed the sensitive plates to
which the rays will pass, leaving upon
them a shadOwgraph of any object placed
between them. To-day the machine will
be IN operation, and photographs will be
taken and exhibited, so that the public
Will be able 10 witness the workings OF
the machine which has created such a
furore among scientific men in all parts"
Strong glass plates are bored through
by means of rotary tubes of the neces-
sary diameter. which are filed with water
during boring. says Architecture. To the
water is added finely-powdered emory.
trimmer glass may be perforated by holes
In an easier manner by pressing a disc
or wet clay upon the glass, aud making
a hole through the clay of the size re-
CURED, 50 that the glass is laid bare.
Molten lead is then poured into the hole,
and lead and glass drop down at once
This method is based upon the quick,
circular crack is produced. the outlines
OF which correspond to the hole made in
the clay. When molten lead is poured
upon clay so that steam is generated
from the moisture, the lead is very apt
10 fly. Putty, although of course more
expensive, is much to be preferred to clay
lor use IN connection with molten lead.
1t is delightful to note the tameness
of the birds of Egypt, says an exchange.
They enter rooms and houses through
windows or crevices left for ventilation,
and once inside, hop fearleSsly about the
moor. picking up stray crumbs. l have
seen-and the sight was a pretty one
a sparrow perched on the corner of a
taDle during the progress of crowded
motel repast and it is not uncommon TO
see them fitting across the ceilings of
drawing rooms at Luxor All birds, from
the largest to the smallest, go unmolest-
ed, unless they are definitely useful for
food. The great brown kite sits fear
lessly on the roofs of Cairo. hard by his
cousin the crow, which is not black, like
our crow, but is black and gray. and
might easily be mistaken for a pigeon
Every large garden-at any rate, in up
per Egypt-has its owl frequenting a tall
palm tree, and hooting or whistling as
nature guides it.
A German lawsuit caused a woman TO
be sworn 1900 times-a process which in
volved kissing the Bible for three whole
days. Her deceased husbands estate was
much involved. He had been a lumber
dealer and during his long business ca
reer certain cabinet-maker had kept a
running account with him. Their busi-
ness relations were so complicated at the
time OF the merchants death that there
was difference of opinion between tho
executors and the cabinet-maker as to
the amount the latter owed the estate
me matter was brought into the courts
and at the trial the reading of the de-
PENDANTS affidavit consumed twelve hours
Then the widow was cited before the
magistrates, and during her testimony, so
a foreign paper says, was obliged to make
oath POO time, once for each of the
1,20O litigious points involved in the SUI.
This took three whole sitting of the
tribunal, but she won the suit She knew
she was right and was willing to swear
to it.
The people of Neptune are often in
doubt as to whether or not the sun is
shining, says the Cincinnati Inquirer
They are so far away from the great
central orb that 1t is mere speck in
the sky which only men with good eye
sight can see Plenty of plants that are
swinging about in the heavens look big
ger than the sun to the people of Nep-
tune. Those on Uranus are little better
off. Upon Mercury, on the other hand,
the sun comes up like an immense new
moon. and it burns with an intense glare,
and is so hot that the people can cook
their breakfast by the light OF the morn
ing sun. When the sun sets on Mercury
1t is like large part of the heavens
dropping out of sight, and a cold breeze
Immediately springs up. Even on Venus
the sun looks so big as to scare an in
habitant of the earth could be trans
ported to that planet. From Mars 1t
looks a good deal smaller than it does
from the earth but a year on Mars is
equal to two years on the earth. An
other curious thing about Mars is that
it has two moons, revolving in different
directions. One of these little moons is
hardly bigger in the sky than a good-sized
cheese, but it flies through space with
the speed of a cannon ball. This little
moon goes Swimming close to the surface
of Mars. and the people there, with their
ng-distance guns, could easily shoot up
and hit it, They have to look sharp on
Mars to see this little moon, which comes
noiselesSly from one direction and dis
appears around the corner in another re-
CARELESS of the movements of the regular
moon
The Investigations of the celebrated
artist and savant, Heinrich Gotke, have
thrown an interesting light on many facts
hitherto unknown concerning the migra-
ton of birds, says the Boston Traveller. 1t
has been noticed that when the time of
departure comes the birds vanish as if bY
magic This is explained in various ways.
The migra ton fight is always at an ex-
tremely lofty altitude, and it also takes
place generally at night. The structure
of birds renders them capable of existing
at an incredible hight They can ascend
to an elevation of from 1000 to 10000 feet
and at such nights sustain muscular eff
forts for considerable lengths of time At
this altitude birds attain astounding
speed, a speed which seems to come to
them simply for the purpose of migration.
While the swallow is supposed to fly with
the speed of the fastest train, the north
ern blue-throat, a bird which under nor
NAL circumstances only hops makes the
journey from Central Africa to Heligoland
in spring night of scarcely nine hours
Its average rate is therefore 1870 geograph-
ical miles on hour. The Virginia plover,
according to Mr.. Gotke, travels at the rate
of four miles minute, that is 24O miles
an hour. This incredible speed is of course
only attained at great attitudes, where the
extreme rarity of the air causes less loss
of muscular power in overcoming friction
and there K no win 10