The Lewiston teller. (Lewiston, Idaho) 1900-1905, 1901-09-05
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At Kfmmswick. No.. an extraordi-
nary deposit Of the bones and tusks OF
mastodons has been discovered. Al
though but small portion Of the de-
posit has been worked by the paleOn-
tologists who discovered 1t, the remains
already unearthed represent between
200 and 800 individuals. MastodOns
Of all ages and sizes are included In
the collection.
Prof. s. H. Vines. president Of the
Section Of Botany In the British Asso-
citation, referred In a recent address to
the force by which water 10 raised
from the roots to the topnnost leaf OF
lofty tree. and remarked that 1t
must be regretfully confessed that one
more century has closed without bring
ing solution Of the old problem OF
the ascent Of the sap. One Of the sug-
gested explanations requires that in y
tree 40 feet tall the Transportation
force must equal a pressure OF 800
pounds to the square inch. But Prof.
Vines says there II no evidence that
Q tension Of anything like such an
amount exists in a transpiring tree.
Now that special efforts are being
made to exterminate mosquitoes, ow-
Ing to the belief that certain species
Of those insects are responsible for the
spread Of malaria, the fact that small
fish are great destroyers Of mosquito
larvae assumes increased interest. This
fact is vouched for by DIR. L. O. How
ard Of the Department Of Agriculture.
He tells of two small lakes formed
nearly side by side in Connecticut by
an invasion Of the sea. one OF which
contained half a dozen small fish,,
while the other was fishless. Subse-
quent examination revealed tens Of
thousands Of mosquito larvae in the
6shless lake, but the other contained
not one.
All snakes lay eggs. Some snakes
hatch out their eggs before depositing
them. Thus there il distinction. The
egg layers are said to be oviparous. the
others viviparous. Viper. indeed. 10
derived from that reptiles supposed
habit of producing its young alive. but
no matter what the species, every
snake egg, as soon az formed, begins
to hatch. Thus It matters little as to
when or how they are extruded. Bar
ring accidents. there is very sure to be
= dne brood Of young snakes at
very early date. While the young
snakes are very small the mother rep
tile guards them vigilantly. Upon the
Of imminent danger she opens
her mouth and let's her young run down
her throat.
Monsieur Delaney Of the French
Academy Of Sciences has lust an
nounced the result OF curious inves-
tigation concerning the preferred
numbers" Of the Inhabitants Of differ
ent countries. The basis Of the inves-
tfgation Is study Of the various de-
nominations Of money. postage stamps
and other measures. 1t appears that
nearly all races show a marked prefer
ence for the numbers ''two." 'three"
and "flve." and their multiples. But
the MOhammedans avoid the number
"three." "Neither in Turkey nor in
Persia" says Monsieur Delaney,
docs one find trace Of this number.
and 1t is scarcely found In Egypt"
Among the French and other Latin
peoples two" and 1--we" are more
popular than three" while the Eng.
lish prefer two" and ''three" and the
Germans ''three" and ''nve." The Chi.
nese resemble the Latin race in their
choice. while the people Of India have
. strong liking for two" The mum.
Der seven" ID most used in Russia and
other Slavic countries. The higher
numbers are not much used except IL
Spanish countries. a. al" in Saliva
dor. ut" in Mexico. "10'' in Spain and
''S1" in the Philippines The people of
Hawaii are said to be quite fond OF