The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1900-06-13
POPULAR SCIENCE.

POPULAR SCIENCE.
The bubonic plague Is primarily
due to specific organism or microbe
OF iufnitesimal size-so small that
probably $50, 900. 900 OF them wonid
be required TO cover q square inch Of
surface.
A brood OF Eve wrestling sparrow
hawks has furnished DIR. X. w. Shu-
feldt some curious results. The birds
were 80 graduated in size that II APP
peared that the female must have laid
the eggs at regular intervals, proba-
bly, three or four days apart, and that
incubation commenced Immediately
after the first egg was deposited.
Still more remarkable was the fact
that the sexes alternated, the Oldest
bird being male, the next o female,
and SO on.
A German physician has devised nm
ingenious method. Of massaging the
smaller joints. He takes the patients
hand and puts II in a deep glass two
thirds full Of quicksilver. The mer-
curry exerts an equal pressure on
every portion of the fingers, and the
pressure increases rapidly as the
fingers sink farther into It, The hand
is alternately plunged and raised
about twenty or thirty times at each
treatment, and after q second treat
ment there is noticed marked dimipu-
tion of the swelling of the joints.
The "Jigger Flea" is a South Afri-
can pest whose recent spread from the
vicinity OF Delagoa Bay to points
further south has been brought to
Government notice. It differs great-
ly from the ordinary flea, lacks the
latter's agility and attacks only the
soles of the feet, into which il bores
holes and lays eggs therein. The re-
suits are liable TO be very painful.
Sanitary precautions have been rec
commended, and medical men at the
various points OF the Cape have been,
requested to give the little in vader
their attention.
Everybody who loves to watch the
heavenly bodies has frequently noticed,
when the crescent Of the new moon
appears in the west, the phenomenon
called "the old moon in the young
ones arms" Partly embraced by
the horns Of the crescent is seen the
whole round orb OF the moon, glim-
mering with pale, ashy light. The
cause OF the appearance is that the
earth light upon that part OF the
moon not reached by the sunshine is
sufficiently brilliant to render it
family visible to our eyes. Lately
successful attempts have been made,
particularly in France, to photo
graph this phenomenon, and the
pictures thus. produced are very in
teresting.
Young long-leaf pines, according to
Mr.. Pnchot, of the Department Of
Agriculture, protect themselves against
forest fires in most interesting and
remarkable manner. For four or five
years the stems OF the infant trees at
tain height OF only as many inches
above the soil. During this time
their bark is extraordinarily thick, and
that alone gives some protection. But
in addition, the long needles spring
up above the stem, and then bend
over on all sides Gin a green cascade
which falls to the ground in a circle
about the Seeding" This green bar
rier can with difficulty be made to
burn, while the shade that it casts
prevents inhammable grass from
growing near the protected stem.
Mr.. Pinchot thinks that it IS owing to
this peculiar system Of self protection
which the pine seedlings have devel-
oped that the growth of evergreen
oaks in Florida has been restricted in
regions where fires have ragged while
pure pine forests have taken their
place.