The herald., 1897-10-17

one Of the most successful business men
of Great Britain. He had amassed wealth
in the paper-making industry, was
knighted by Queen Victoria. and devot-
ing his attention to geology, antiquities
and old coins, earned considerable dis
tinction by his researches. Sir John
Lubbock, the eminent financier, and
Sir William Crookes are also distin-
guished as scientific workers. 1t is diff
ferert with Americans, who are usually
in business to make money, while
American newspapers do not devote as
much space to scientific subjects the
English journals Commenting there
on the Western Electrician says: with
such men devoted to science, is it to be
wondered that scientific study in Eng
land is popular with all classes? Then,
too, the honors that are bestowed on
those who are successful in scientific
work are great induce ments to a title
loving race"
An instance Of blindness resulting
from crowding of the teeth is reported
in the Dental Record. A boy of II years
awoke one morning to find that he was
blind. The pupils were dilated, fixed
and not influenced by light. He could
not distinguish light from darkness. Ex-
animation Of his mouth disclosed crowd
ed and wedged teeth. Four molar teeth
were extracted. "The same night" says
the Record, "he could distinguish light
from dark; next day could make out
objects, and in few days sight was
restored He had no other treat
ment."
An entirely new substance Is iron
felt, the invention of which Is credited
to Germany. ut is made" says the In
dustrial World, "of the very best woolen
materials, impregnated with the invent
ors patented preparation, which gives
1920 pounds power of resistance to every
square centimeter (0.3937 inch)." Placed
between rails and sleepers it deadens
sounds. The first experiments were
made by the Berlin city street railway.
They were eminently successful. Not
only was the noise brought down to
minimum, but the wear and. tear was
materially diminished. This invention
commeLds itself to the Los Angeles
street railway companies.
+ + =
Pen and ink writer's are warned by
the London Lancet against the serious
results that may follow trifling scratch
or puncture made with the pen. The
chemical constituents Of the ink contain
pathogenic bacteria This has been es-
tablished by microscopic examination
made by DIR. Marpmann of sixty-seven
samples of ink used in the schools of
Leipsic. The practice of moistening the
pen with the tongue is likewise to be
avoided.
The National Association Of Manu-
facturers of America has issued a. cir
cular advising certain proposed reforms
in our patent laws. One Of these has
reference to the cost of procuring a
patent in the United States, which is $35,
as against 5000 to $500, which is required
to obtain and maintain patent in some
foreign countries. The proposition is
that a foreigner applying for patent
in the United States shall be required to
pay initial fees and subsequent annui-
ties of the same amounts that he would
have to pay in his own country. Com
menting on this the Scientific Ameri-
can October 2d) says: "To this alb
surd proposal we feel it our duty to
give our unqualified dissent" adding
that it is wrong in principle and carries
the appearance of an act Of retaliation
against the foreign countries affected
thereby.
A kite from Blue hill observatory
(September 20th) reached the height Of
10,016 feet, the highest ecprded altitude
ever attained by kite. An instrument
for recording temperature and humidity
was attached. AT the highest point the
temperature was 3S degrees, while at the
ground it was SO degrees. At 1000 feet
the humidity rose rapidly, and was,
says the Scientific American, at 1000 feet
almost at the point of saturation. AT
5000 feet it began to fall, and at the high
est point was Xtremely low. The kite
and instruments were more than a mile
above the hills for five hours.
+ =
A German writer says that the an
Client Greek water supply system showed
every modern Improvement, such as we
have acquired only within the last dec
ade. Verify there is nothing new under
the sun.