The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-02-24
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.

The Lowest Dry Land Skin Eruption
From Eys-strain- FluoFine Not a
Glass-Eate1- Britain's New Gold
1tine-Earthquake Sounds = Self
stopped Trains--A New Propeller
Blads-The New System In Ty-
phoid-oloth ventilatins Pipes.
one Of the most remarkable holluws
in the earth is the Lukchun depression,
discovered a considerable time ago in
Central Asia. Results Of meteorological
observations In the place for two years
have Just been made known in Russia
by General Tlllo, and from his baro-
metric comparisons It appears that the
lowest spot in the region must be about
400 feet below Sea-level The meteor
ologlcal conditions are Of unusual in-
terest. The barometer has q greater
yearly range than in any other spot
known, the monthly averages for Janu-
airy being 1.2 inches greater than those
for July, and the highest July temper
ature Gus degrees Fahrenhelt) Is one of
the highest observed In Asia. The dry
ness Of the air equals that Of the sa-
hara.
A curious case OF nettle-rash, due to
eye-straln, has been recorded by DR.. c.
A. oliver. Pennsylvania physician.
The patient was an active, healthy wo-
man Of forty-seven. who, up to her
forty-frst year, had suffered from an
unaccountable eruption. which disap-
peared when she was htted with a pair
Of lenses for constant use, to correct
defects Of her vision. -Four years Ia
ter a return Of the eye trouble, with
the eruption, led her to seek new glasses,
This time there was an elaborate corr
rection OF eye defects, and the skin dis
turbnce vanished. Further experiments
proved a true relationship between the
general vasomotor disturbance and the
retroactive and muscular anomalies.
The well known powerful action OF
fiuorlne upon glass is shown by NJ.
Moissnn TO depend upon the presence
of hydroRuoric acid and moisture as
impurities. Perfectly clean, dry glass
is unattached after weeks Of contact
with pure tluorine, but the merest trace
OF organic matter on the glass leads to
the formation OF hydroAuoric acid and
corrosIon.
The eucomia ulmoides, in which Prof.
Dybowsky has found twenty per cent OF
S1Itta percha, isabundant in some OF the
British colonies, but has been hitherto
regarded as q worthless plant.
The sounds Of earthquakes have re-
ceIved little attention. From late
paper by DR., c. Dawson, 1t appears that
they approach the lower limit Of audi
blllty, and they arc frequently distinct
to some observers, while others equally
alert hear nothing, In earthquakes
among Engiishmen sound IS usually
perceived before and after the shock.
In japan even violent earthquakes are
frequently unnotlccd by the ear, while
Eound Is seldom heard after the shock
the conclusion being that the Japanese
have inferior perception for deep
sounds. The character and duration
Of the sounds vary to different auditors.
A deep rumblInR like that Of heavy
wagon passing, Is generally heard, but
at the eplcenter OF the earthquake loud
crashes may be distinguished, which
further AWAY become roughar and more
grinding. and ut a great distance may
be subdund into a low end monotonons
roll. like distant thunder, Earth sounds
(, without shocks. appearing to be earth
uualSes TOO weak to be felt, are some
times heard. Earthquakes are sup
posed by Dr. DAWSON to be caused by
the slipping Of rocks along faults. and
the sound vibrations are traced chiefly
to the margins Of the slides.
In the Laftas system CT automatically
stopping railway trains to prnvent ac-
cIdents, n block In the middle Of the
--.----lasss--ss.sae