The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-05-22
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

1t is calculated that on a bright sum-
mer day there are raised into the air by
evaporation from the surface of the Med
iterranean $3.50, 100000 tons of water.
Ellis Edmondson, young man Of
Washington Court House, Va, made quite
valuable discovery of prehistoric relic
at Summit Hill, Ross county, recently.
The wind had blown an old tree down, and
copper kettle was left exposed to view
at the roots of the tree. Mr. Edmondson
discovered the kettle. 1t is covered with
strange lettering, which no one has yet
been able to translate. 1t is supposed that
this lettering is the work of a prehistoric
race. The lettering is cut with a chisel
and is very plain. The kettle is of the very
best quality of copper, and holds more
than two gallons of water.
No invention ever introduced has been
given as many names as that which re-
produces motion pictorially, says the St.
Louis Globe-Democrat. The original
name of the apparatus, before photogra-
ply was applied to it, was the zoetrope
In the improved form it has been exhibit
ed during the last two years as the kline
toscope, cinematograph, kaleidoscope, pro-
JectoScope, graphOscope, motograph kline
matograph animatascope. vitascope, Gin
ematascope Veriscope, Microscope, bio
graph, rayoscope, magniscope and at
least dozen others. In Photographic cir
cles all are classed as projecting anna
ratus.
Inc frequency with which the railways
are used in the various countries of Eli
rope has been tabulated with somewhat
interesting results, according to an item
IN the Engineering Magazine. England
with it's 3S,0O0,000 inhabitants, leads. with
S64oO0OOO trave4ers on its RAILWAYS every
tro ra1a
belglum comes next with 86,500,OO0 travel
ers Tor 6'OOOOO people, or IA to l. Germany
holds the third place, having 4S3, 900, 900
travellers to 100000 people-a ratio of 10
10 l. After which come in the order nam
ed Holland, with to 1; France. s to 1;
Austria, to 1; Hungary, to 1 and Italy
with only two travellers to each inhabitant
The smallest travel in proportion to the
population is found on the Russian rail-
ways where there are three inhabitants for
every traveller each year.
Paris is not altogether satisfied with
her fine wood pavements, realizing that
though superior for driving or walking
they are Objectionable on hygienic
grounds, says the Record. Asphalt has
been tried instead, and it is objected to
on the ground of extreme slipperiness.
NOW, new combination called granite
asphalt is proposed. This is simply A
concrete composed of crushed granite and
melted asphalt laid over a foundation of
oeton or coarse concrete. The first layer
upon the beton is a thin coating of asphalt
alone, followed by a thicker layer of crush
ed granite followed by grouting of liquid
asphalt mingled with finer crushed gran
lite, rolled as usual. Such a pavement has
been used in the cavalry barracks of Ger
many for some time past and the tests
made upon 1t by the department of Points
4 in Do, ~.
satisfactory results.
The Roentgen rays have been employed
with success in Germany to prove the au
thenticity of a painting attributed to Al
brecht Duerer, says the philadelphia Rec
ord. 1t was a head of Christ, painted on
wood and supposed to have been executed
In 1871; very dingy with age and probably
restored more or less After several
EFFORTS photograph was successfully
taken by means of the Roentgen rays
which revealed the features of the thorn
crowned Jesus and the drapery about the
shoulders and the hands which grasped
the latter more distinctly than in the
painting. There also came to light
Latin inscription in quaint Gothic charac-
tiers, the monogram of some grand duke
tor whom, perhaps, the picture was
painteD, the artists initials, and the date
'1524' which date was accepted as the
correct one. The photograph reveals the
grain of the wood and the fibre of a silk
handkerchief stretched upon it.
Since the days of Aristotle the mode
of development of the common eel has. been
a mystery, says the Boston Transcript In
many parts of the country it is still be-
lieved that when a horsehair is left in a
stream or lake for little while it assumes
life, and finally becomes an eel This. of
iC 70
other theories propounded to explain the
cells origin. Only within the last two or
three years has accurate information been
obtained upon the subject. 1t has long
been known that large cells pass from riv-
ers into the sea at certain seasons, and
that diminutive young cells, called in Eng
land elvers, ascend the rivers in enormous
numbers. But until Prof. Grassi of Rome
investigated the matter no one in any
country had been able to discover how
the elvers were produced. Grassi has
proved that the cells which annually de-
scend the rivers travel very long distances.
until they reach deep parts of the ocean.
The eggs are deposited in depths of about
$50 fathoms (no depth so great as this is
found nearer than the Bay of Biscay) and
they develop into strange, colorless, trans
parent embodied creatures, which were
thought to be a special family of fishes
but which are now known to be really the
larvae VI SelS. AFTER ATTAINING a certain
size the larva ceases to feed, its body
shrinks, and it assumes the very different
form of the elver, which ascends our riv
ers. A more wonderful series of changes
than that thus revealed would be difficult
to find. Prof. Grassi's patient and long
continued labors were recognized at the
last anniversary meeting of the Royal So
ciety by the award of a medal.
In Philadelphia. probably more extern
sively than In any other city underground
tubes are used for the conveyance of let
tiers, kilograms and small parcels. saws
the Chicago Inter-Ocean. A few days ago
one of the Cylindrical rubber carries en-
ployed in this service stopped somewhere
along the route. Air pressure and sue
ton in turn failed to drive or recall IL. II
was found necessary to dig down and
open the pipe and remove the box. But
the problem was to determine whether the
box was ten feet or 1900 from the start
ing point. 1t was not con-
sidered desirable to dig IN a
half mile Of pipe to remove this
obstruction. Other means of locating II
having failed, the following plan was
adopted: A pistol was fired near the end