The Savannah morning news., 1901-09-14

asphalt was produced, which closely re-
seinbles the natural substance. Fresh
herring and oily pine wood were dis
titled in an iron retort and the product
was condensed in a Liebig condenser.
The experiment seems to confirm, the
theory that asphalt and petroleum are
the products of a natural distillation,
by which the remains of early forms of
animal and vegetable life have been
transformed in the heated crust of the
earth.
The prayer rug was evidently in
vented for the purpose of providing
the worshipers with one absolutely
clean place on which to offer prayers,
writes Rosa Belle Holt in work on
rugs. 1t is not lawful for Moslem
to pray on any place not perfectly
clean, and unless each one has his
own special rug he is not certain that
the spot has not been polluted. 1t does
not matter to these followers of Ma
homet how unclean a rug that is on
the floor may be, because over it they
place the prayer rug when their devo-
tions begin.
"A long list could be given of explo-
sives and varieties of gunpowder that
have been made from sawdust. In
some the sawdust is used as an absor-
bent as with nitroglycerin, in others
as filler, while in still others 1t is
converted into forms of pyroxiline. By
heating sawdust with caustic alkali
and sulphur a brown dye is obtained
which is cheap and fast, resisting both
acids and alkalies, and dyeing cotton
without a mordant. BY heating saw
dust with caustic alkali, oxalic acid is
formed. A large amount of the oxalic
acid on the market is made by this
process.
Advocates of the wine drinking
habit claim that it has tendency to
reduce intemperance among the people,
but the facts prove the contrary. Sta
tistics show that in France, where wine
is freely used, the habit creates a crav
ing for stronger stimulants. 1t is off,
cially stated that of 1900 prisoners in
the Department of the Seine, more than
1000 were found to be drunkards. The
number of suicides induced by intem-
perance has more than doubled in late
years. The military authorities say
that "a per cent. of the young men
drafted for the army are rejected on
account of alcoholism, and in the cities
of Normandy, where hard cider is the
common beverage, the proportion re-
cent. in Caen, and in Havre to IS per
cent.
The Belgian Royal Meteorological
Observatory has published the esti-
mates made by various mathemati
clans and physicists regarding the
depth of the atmosphere surrounding
the earth. The calculations of the va
rious savants upon this subject are
widely divergent. Blot estimated that
the depth was only about 40 miles;
Bravais, 20 miles; Mann, 81 miles; Cal
landrau, 100 miles; Schiaparelli, 125
miles; Marie Davy, 1877; while Ritter
stated that it reached to a hight of
PIG miles. In Great Britain, during
the early part of the last century, the
depth of the atmosphere was generally
accepted as being AZ miles, but the
fact that meteors became incandescent
at a much greater altitude incontro-
vertibly proved that this calculation
was fallacious. Sir Robert Ball states
that meteors have been observed at
an altitude of more than 200 miles, and
since they only become incandescent
when they come into contact with the
air, the calculation of Ritter appears
to be the most correct.
The system employed in Grand
Rapids for the disposal of it's garbage
seems to be as far in advance of the
careless and primitive methods in
vogue in many other cities which claim
to be strictly up to date in all matters
of hygiene. The collections are made
by licensed contractor, who is not
allowed to charge more than 10 cents
a week for household service, nor more
than 81 a week for hotel service The
frequency of collections is regulated by
the Board of Health. The garbage is
COLLECTED in the cans in which it ac-
cumulates. These cans are carried
away and washed and sterilized before
they are returned. The collector starts
out with load of clean empty cans
and leaves one at each house where a
collection is made The garbage is
carted away and burned In special fur
naces. 1t was stated at the convention
that the cost of burning a ton of gar
bage is "a cents. one ton of coal being
sufficient to consume % tons of gar
bage. When consumed, 25 tons of gar
bage produce 1 ton of ash.
Maj. G. w. Ruthers, late chief COM
missary of the department of Northern
Luzon, reports that experience shows
that the American soldier serving in
the islands needs the full army ration.
including the full allowance of fresh
beer. His health cannot be maintain
ed without II. In addition, his appetite
apparently Graves sweets and acids.
In this connection Maj. Ruthers men
lions the demand for sauer- kraut
Without abundance of nutritious food.
he says, the health of Americans can
not be maintained in the Luzon eli
mate. Foreigners and rich Filipinos
are heavy eaters and drink an abund-
ance of red wine. The poorer classes
would be heavy eaters If they could
Beef stew with vegetables is the finest
component of the ration ever put into
the hands of troops, according to Mai.
Ruthers. ut will take the place of
fresh beef" he says, when the latter
cannot be supplied for some time and
with the addition of some bareback.
coffee, sugar, salt and baked beans Won
could cut an army loose from it's trans
portaton for some time. 1t Is the fin
est ration for hikes ever put into the
hands of soldiers and is highly praised
by them" Maj. Ruthers says that in
Luzon the white ant goes through to-
mato cans by first covering the tins
with an acid, corroding the contents
These same ants play havoc with gin
ger ale corks, Kidding them and thus
spelling the contents.
The following confession of a. nov
elist as to the method in which he
ne wrote one of his books is not with
out interest says the London Post. He