The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-02-11
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

it is reported that branch schools of the
same kind are shortly to be established
in all the capitals of Europe.
Great claims are being made through
the newspapers for a new brake for rail-
road trains. which. it is stated, will stop
a train running at a speed of fifty miles
an hour within Il distance of 20 yards,
says the Railway and Engineering Re-
view. This wonderful apparatus is the
invention of a French mechanical engin-
eer. If he should be successful in having
it introduced upon the French railways
we would recommend our friends to avoid
that method of conveyance when they go
to France Railroad trains running at so
miles an hour stopped within distance
of 20 yards would present practically all
the conditions of a head-on collision. The
passengers and every other movable
thing would be piled Unfortunately in
the front end of each car. Some things
are better off without the doing of them,
and the stopping of a railroad train under
the conditions mentioned is one or them.
1t is necessary for steam railway man
ayers to begin training electrical engin-
GERS in order that when the time comes
for the traction equipment of their lines
to go on, they will have staffs of men
involved and with the practical conduct
of railways, says the Electrical Review.
Among the important uses to which cleo
| tricity is applied on railways of the most
modern type may be mentioned signaling,
the movement of switches, the lighting
of signals and switches, telegraphing, and
the electric lighting of trains With most
of the aforementioned uses the progress
of development has reached a point of
s1o,~. III, lferIN
ing of trains there seems to have been, in
this country at least, some conservative
prejudice that has made the equipment of
passenger cars with electric lights rather
more slow than the perfection of the art
of train lighting would warrant.
A short time ago the Bureau of Animal
Industry tested a herd of 102 cows be-
longing to a government institution in the
District of Columbia. says the Sanitarian.
Seventy-nine of these animals reacted,
and as more than fifty of them were in
good condition, without physical signs of
tuberculosis in the udder or elsewhere,
it was considered favorable opportunity
to test the righteousness of the milk. The
test to which reference will now be made
was conducted by feeding the milk to
guinea pigs. The final results have not
yet been reached. but large proportion
of these cows-over % per cent.-gave milk
which killed guinea pigs with tubercu-
losis in a very few weeks. DR.. Ravenel
has been associated with similar expert
mentation in Pennsylvania with an even
larger number of cows, IA per cent. of
which gave infectious milk. Considering
the number of cows experimental with and
the large percentage which produced in
fectious milk the results cannot be passed
by as exceptional, and. consequently, we
can no longer accept the statement that
there must be plain disease of the udder
or evident emaciation before the milk
becomes infectious.
The twentieth century began on Tues
day. Jan. l. 1901, in the Pacific ocean
just east of the Friendly Islands, says
the Ladies' Home Journal The theoreti-
cal line marking 1870 degrees east and
west of Greenwich has two irregularities
in it, put there by the agency of man in
the arrangement of business affairs. The
Russians brought eastward the day of
st. Petersburg and established it in
Alaska, but when the United States came
into possession of that country the au-
thorities deemed it wise to have one day
Throughout the United States, and so the
date line was set 10 degrees to the west
of the actual meridian, so as to include
in the day of this country it's outermost
possession. For this reason the Island of
Attu in the Alaskan archipelago, in 10
degrees east longitude. is the latest place
on the earth to retain any certain day
In the same manner certain groups of
islands in the Southern Pacific have been
included in the day of Australia and New
Zealand, with which they have business
relations although some of them lie east
of the one hundred and eightieth me-
ridian.
Investigations made by the Connecti-
cut authorities, says the Fruit Trade Jour-
nal, show that out of 5000 or more varie-
ties of food which the pure food depart
ment had examined 67S were found adul-
terated, while 173 contained antiseptic or
preserVative substances. Flour is often
adulterated with meal and sometimes with
minerals. The principal aduterants of
meats are preserVatiVes. Dairy products
are largely adulterated. Cotton seed oil is
used extensively for this purpose Maple
sugar is adulterated with cane sugar.
Jellies, etc, are treated with coloring
matter fiavoring and preserving agencies
Many times the basis of these iellies is
starch paste or animal geiatine Spices
are freely adulterated. Not only are al
coholic drinks largely treated by adulter-
ants as fusel oil. but soft drinks are also
even more lavishly adulterated than the
former. For example, glass of soda wa
ter often contains enough aniline to dye
brilliantly six square inches of wooden
cloth There are many harmless adul-
terants, as cereals in coffee, spices, etc
Dut antiseptic agencies are vicious. The
remedy Is to compel every manufacturer
to label correctly his manufactured goods.
A new French Illuminating shell
bursts in the air and emits a fiery body of
globular shape. which wildly lights up
a large area for a considerable time 1t
is the latest Improvement i'm a branch
OF military pyrotechnics which has re-
Gently been receiving much attention
nom war experts. The idea of the ilIum-
mating bomb is to expose at night the
position of an enemy, or to reveal the
character of his defenses when an attack
Is contemplated. In the "melinite" shell
the French have originated a type of pro-
Jectie not only extremely destructive
when it explodes, but which also achieves
an effect similar to that of the ancient
"stink-pot," invented by the Saracens in
the Middle Ages. This stifed the enemy
with poisonous gases. In the warfare of
the future, If the hope of humanitarians
IS not misplaced, projectiles may be
loaded with harmless drugs, which on
bursting will spread a sleep-Droducinr
Vapor. Thus whole regiment. or per-
haps a brigade, of soldiers may be plung-
ed INTO involuntary sumber by a single
well-aimed shell-to be subsequently
awakened by their captors and gently es-
corted to place of kindly captivity