The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-02-20

in a solution of water glass. Those coated
with vaseline and those kept IN IimeWater
were also good Dua tn1se v, tIa eal 'lap naeed
in BRAN coated with varnisn or paIamne,
buried in wood ashes, etc. were III conslo-
cradle part spoiled
valuable waterproof and transparent
cement for glass has been found by a Ger
man chemist Prof Fl. H. Schwartz, in
mixture Of five parts of moderately thick
gelatine solution with one part of potassium
chromate. The fracture is mended with THIS
mixture, which becomes hard AMI lnsoiuDie
on exposure 10 light Not even hot water
viii affect the hardened cement. Fabrics
in which some stiffness is not objectionable
can be water-proofed by painting with the
hot. chrome gelatiD4 and afterward expos
ing to light.
An artificial serum Of common salt and
cooking soda tsodlum chloride and sodium
carbonate) is used by an Italian specialist,
Dir. Tomasoli. for the treatment of extern
sive burns. Injections of this serum daily
Tor three weeks brought recovery to a
young man who had been burned over the
entire right side of his chest and back and
the right arm and shoulder, and successful
experiments have been made. on animals
injections OF serum from a scalded dog were
round to kill a we'll one, while the artificial
serum prevented this fatal result.
Republican civilization is tending to de-
stroy ITSELF in the view of M. Arsene Du-
mont, clever French writer, by exalting
the individual at the expense of the race.
1t leads to greater and greater personal de-
vel0pment, and the numerical increase of
the race IS IN inverse ratio to such develop
ment. This explains the steadily decreas-
ing birth rate of Massachusetts and other
Ihe Americans, as foreseen by this author,
depends upon the high intelligence that will
govern itself by scientific teachings.
Some psychologists suppose that electric
shocks produce death by asplfyxia. others
that the heart is suddenly pafaIyzed The
subject has been experimentally investi-
gated by Prof T. Oliver and DR.. r. A. Bo-
lam who, using an alternating current,
nave found that the heart appears to be af-
Iected before the respiratory center. Only
with currents of much higher voltage than
was necessary to kill did both heart and
respiration fail at the same moment. Stop
page of the heart being undoubtedly the
usual primary effect resuscitation in APP
parent death from electric shock must be
much more difficult than in that from
drowning, which affects first the respiration.
The bacteria known now number $50 spe-
cies, according to London institution lee
ture by Prof. w. b. Bottomley. and prac-
tIcally our entire knowledge of these has
been worked out since 1880 through the in
huence of Pasteur. OF the harmful species
there are only about forty Bacteria are
round everywhere in the air and in our
homes. They are so minute that $500 600
CouId De accommodated on q penny postage
stamp, ana they multiply with incredible
rdplulty 1t is estimated that human be-
ing takes in by respiration 80 900 germs each
day. or 100000 600 year. Not only are most
of them harmless hut thev Give tiavor ~
butter, cheese, game, etc, and they are
the scavengers of nature. They are abso-
Iutely necessary for the round of life"
Spiral growth is one of the mysteries vet
TO be worked out by naturalists. In describ-
ing some of the puzzling things about it to
an English medical society, Mr. George
Wherry mentioned the shells of the wheIk,
which, in the fossil FORM are usually left
handed, but in the present generation are
always right-handed. Plant spirals offer like
take the form of a left-handed
screw while the majority of twin
ing vines follow the course of right
handed screw. Some spirals, however. are
less nlySt1fylng The left horn of the koOdoo,
FOR example, is q right-handed spiral and
the right horn a left-handed spiral, and it is
easy to see that these twists give the horns
a wedge-iike action in forcing back the
bushes through which the animal runs.
Civilization is Transforming nature in sur
prising ways The dehorning of cattle is an
example, as this practice is gaining favor
SO rapidly that hornless cattle may be ex-
pected soon to become the rule rather than
the exception. The first objections were that
it is cruel and unnatural. The early method
of dehorning with a saw was undoubtedly
slow and painful, but specially constructed
clippers are now used that often remove Il
horn in a single second and with SO little
that feeding is continued as usual
and the operation IS really humane, the FREE |
quent injuries in herds from goring being
prevented. The horns have become utterly
useless, being no longer needed as protec-
ton against natural enemies. In calves less
than three weeks old the embryo horns can
be removed with one stroke of a sharp
knife. or they can be treated with caustic
sufficiently powerful to destroy them. For
three years the Maine experiment station
has dehorned calves by rubbing the horns
four or five times with caustic potash. In
every case but one the operation has been
successful, the calf in the exception having
reached the age of thirty-five days before |
treatment with the result that dwarfed |
horns an inch or an inch and half long |
were subsequently developed