The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-11-30
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

Mr.. Godin, French minister of public
works, in circular addressed to railway
boards, urges the construction of a larger
number of corridor carriages, especially
third-class, so that by 1900 all fast trains
going long distances may be exclusively
composed of such carriages.
The city of Rio de Janeiro. Brazil, has
an inventor, Senior Bonteau, whose newly
devised method by which Photographs may
be taken under water has attracted no
little attention. The light for this purpose
is furnished by an incandescent lamp
placed in a steel case in the divers head
piece.
Among the cities in the United States,
San Francisco has the least and Phhadel-
phia has the greatest debt. The debt of
San Francisco is $l33, S17 o. and of Phil
adeiphia S56,S72, 795 %. In the bonded debt
per capita Boston is the highest with 1888,
while San Francisco is the lowest, being
SO cents.
In some of the less accessible parts
of Norway visited by tourists there are no
inns in the villages. The government has
now decided TO grant in such cases
certain annual sum to the power of
spacious house in such village, pledglng
him i'll return to take in four or more
guests, if called upon.
M. Henry Moissan, the French chemist
whose Investigations with the electric fur
race are so well known to the scientific
world has recently announced the discoV>
cry OF a new body, uitride of calcium,
which possesses the remarkable property
| of setting up a reaction on combination
! with water resulting in the production OF
| ammonia. The new product Is formed by
| gently heating calcium in an atmosphere
| of nitrogen, causing a combination OF the
| two elements. At a red heat there is
violent reaction which raises the entire
| mass to incandescence. The chemical
| composition of nitride of calcium is given
as NJ Cas-, and it's specific gravity at 81
! degrees +. is 2.63. 1t melts at about $500
| degrees F. The production of ammonia
in. combination with water is analogous
| to the generation of acetylene gas, when
calcium carbide comes in contact with
water, and NJ Mossan believes that his
| discovery may prove of considerable in
dustrial Importance if only metallic cal
cium can be cheaply prepared by means
of the electric furnace.
A novel application of electricity is its
use in the tanning of leather, and a pro-
cess has been devised in which the cleo
trio current is used not only to hasten the
ing of the animal skins and the extrac-
ton of the tanning elements For I'M
hairing, the hides are placed in the ordin-
airy solution of lime and arsenic, through
which a current is maintained for fifteen
or twenty minutes The current is then
shut off and the skins remain for an hour
or more additional, at the end of which
time they are ready for the mechanical
process of removal the hair being suffi-
GENTLY loosened. In the next operation,
the hides are placed in a vat containing
a tanning solution and remain, receiving
the current for about fifteen minutes. The
effect seems to be to open the pores of
the leather and give the tanning agents
freer access to the interior, with the re-
suit of greatly decreasing the time of du-
ration OF the process. In extracting from
the bark and other materials the sub
stances used in the tanning solution, a
current of sufficient intensity is sent
through the tank to cause the solution to
boil. This process requires about thirty
minutes time, where the ordinary way
consumes about three weeks; while the
effect of using electric methods and APP
planes throughout the works is to great
ly diminish the time of all the different
operations.
One of the measures to come before the
approaching session of Congress in which
all the leading scientific and technical men
of the United States are deeply interested
is the Hurley Dill, which was pending at
the last session. This bill provides for the
adoption of the metric system of weights
and measures, and the compulsory use OF
the system after July 1, 1900, in all gov
eminent transactions except the compile
!, dion of the survey of public lands, and
recognizes the metric units as the legal
standard of weights and measures in the
| tbaF iii
, was introduced in the Fifty-fourth Con-
gress and failed of passage by only three
= votes, so that a very good chance of it,
passage at the coming session is antici-
, pated. a new importance is now added to
the measure by the recent development OF
the foreign trade in this country, and the
prospect of having distant colonies which
not only will use American products bu,
will act as distributing points for exports
30 other countries. The metric system
being now adopted by nearly all the civil
lied nations of the world except Grea,
Britain and America, the necessities OF
foreign trade call for it's use by these two
countries, and should one adopt the sys-
tenn the other would be compelled to fol
low its example. Not only in trade, buj
also in all mechanical work does the me.
trio system facilitate operations, and ever
in the event of the loss of the intena.
tional standards we have sufficient data
to contract new standards that would be
perfect reproductions of the originals
The young Queen of Holland, who re.
Gently displayed her strong will by re.
calling a whole issue of postage stamp.
because her portrait on them made hel
look too girlish, is again showing hel
spirit in the question of her betrothal tC
Prince William of Wiede, an officer in the
German army, which has been practically
settled upon. The official announcement
of the betrothal has been kept back OF
account of certain difficulties in the pro
tocol, the question being whether The
Prince should be invested with the right.
and prerogatives of Prince ConsorG or re
tain his present rank. Unless the former
plan is adopted, neither the laws of Hol
land nor the foreign courts will recognize
him as a member of the Dutch royal fam
III