The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-12-27
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

The Alaskan Commercial Company OF
San Francisco has presented to the Uni
versity of California its fine collection Of
| mounted fossils and chronological speci-
mems
A curious state of things was observed
in investigating the electrolysis of water
pipes in Dayton, o., in which it was
found that stones and pebbles near the
pipes in some cases seem to have been
electroplated with the metal of the pipes,
which one of the experts believes has
never been observed before.
1t is expected that the present season
| will be one of the best the lumbermen
of Maine have experienced in several
years The cut upon the waters Of the
Keunebec win probably exceed that of 1897
/ by at least 24,OOO0O0 feet, and the total
cut of the, region, it is estimated, will be
fully 125, 100000 feet of lumber.
"A curious instance of dwarflsm in pines
is recorded by Mr.. c. E. Bessey of the
University of Nebraska. On Green noun
| tain, near Boulder, Col, he found in
crevice of the rock at the summit a pine
tree Pinus albicaulis Enge.m) only 10
centimeters (under three inches) high and
3 milimeters (one-fffth inch) in diameter.
1t had no branches and bore a single tuft
of needles at the top. Nevertheless, it
| showed twenty-five distinct annual rings,
and was therefore twenty-five years of
age.
When the sixth international geo
graphical congress was held in London,
in 1895, invitations were received both from
Germany and from America for the next
meeting. The offer of Germany was ac-
made to hold the seventh congress IN
Berlin in 1899. The invitations, which have
already been issued to individuals the So
cieties likely to take an interest in the
proceedings, state that the dates of the
meetings will be Sept. rs to Oct 4, inclu-
sive.
According to Simon Henry Sage, the
frog does not hibernate in leaves or the
trunk of trees, but in a dry hole in the
ground not likely to freeze. He scratches
the hole with his hind feet, and enters
backward. Once inside, there is apparently
no trace of the fact outside Frogs found
under frozen leaves are still able to move
about. Mr.. Sage has found alternating
frogs with their extremities and skin
frozen, but their vital organs were stil in
tact, and they recovered their activity on
being liberated.
"A bridge of 9OO-foot span at Budapest is
being erected entirely by means of eIectri
cal machinery. The iron Orders used as
pliers to keep the water back from the ex-
cavatOns for the shore pillars were driV-
en- in by an electric ram. The ram was a
hammer rising thirty-four feet, with a
velocity of twelve feet per second. The
soil out of the holes was raised by an cleo
trio windlass. The water was removed by
seven centrifugal pumps working day and
night. The fve-inch diameter pumps
were driven by ten-horse powder motors,
the eight-inch by a sixteen-horse power,
and one nine-inch by a twenty-horse pow
er motor.
"A French agricultural Journal gives the
method by which a vine grower of Tou-
sine is said to produce magnificent grapes.
He dissolves two kilograms of sulphate of
iron in 100 liters OF water and sprinkles it
on the leaves and punches of the vines
The first application is made when the
grapes are about one-third their full size
the second about a month later, and the
third about twenty days before they
are cut. 1t is asserted that correspond
ing results are obtained with pears, ap-
pies and cherries. The method is mex
pensive, and the journal quoted recon-
tee the success of the treatment in all
cases.
One by one the so-called waste prod
ucts" of manufacture are being turned TO
a profitable use. A new industry has
sprung up lately in the Northwest in the
utilization of the elevator "offaP'-screen-
ings, shrunken kernels, broken grains and
weed seed that come from wheat, when
01n 70
worth practically nothing Now 1t brings
~ a ton, and many thousands of tons Of
the refuse are being shipped this fall to
Minneapolis, where it is converted into
feed for sheep and cattle. 1t is Gained
that the sale of this waste material is
netting tine elevator companies at Duluth
and Superior enough to pay the running
expenses of all their shipping and clean
ing warehouses
Great beds of white sand said to have
all the qualities requisite for the mann
facture of glass, have been found about
fifty miles east of Saginaw, Mich. and
specimens are now being submitted to
chemical analysis. Believing the denosi+
to be valuable, the Flint and Pere Mar-
quette Railroad Company has bought tba
beds and is now conducting experimepts
An office has been opened by the rail
iO"N III lltSpuIS, ana John f, Lent Tr
Tor many years with the Pennsv,vanis
company, has been placed in charge
Speaking of the new sand, Mr.. Lent who
mas recently returned from Michigan. said:
/ am not an expert on sand h1t ev
perts have been placed at work ON the
SAND found in Michigan. They will NOT
compete the analysis for some time
nave talked with those who say that the
sand IS of the best for glass making mr.
poses poses II So much of it will be brought 10
Pitsburg" ~ u
quite an interesting story might be
written some day about the attemnts
which have been made to accIimatize
strange plants and animals, and then to
eradicate them. There is the famous mon
goose episode of Jamaica. The monpoosa
was introduced to kill the rats which
ate the cane plantations. Having done
tills ana multiplied very rapidly, it pro-
ceeded to kill all the snakes and lizards
as we'll 1t next attacked the birds Qearn-
ing 70 climb trees in the process). untiI tbo