The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1902-06-27

To dlsproyc the old tradition that
Che moss Is always on the north side
ol the tree. Henry Kraemer has col.
lccted the following statistics or
the trees he examined. 10 percent OF
the moss was on the west side. 10 per.
cent on the northwest 10 percent ln
the north, 20 percent on the northeast.
85 percent on the east. and 8 percent
ON the southeast The remaining 10
percent Is not accounted for
A military photo-electric school has
Teen opened az lie Hayre for inform
Ing the officials charged with using
apparatus on the geashore for scanning
the horizon. Two hundred pupils from
the Artillery corps are to be received
and, as soon as they are sufficiently
instructed In their duties. stations OF
observation, provided with the most
improved instruments. are TO be in.
stalled along the whole French littoral
Travellers In the celebrated Death
Valley Of California have described
the wonderful contoruous Of the sand
pillars that small whlrlwinds some.
times send spinning across the hot
rlain. Even more remarkable are the
dust devils seen by II. F. WitAerby.
the English explorer in the valley of
the White Nile. Sometimes two of
these whirling columns, gyrating in
opposite directions, meet. "and If they
be we'll matched the collision stops
them and a struggle ensues as to
which way they shall twist Gradual
ly one gains the mastery, and the
two combined begin to gygrate alike
and then rush on together" Some OF
these whirls will strip the clothes
from an Arabs back, or twist a goat
round and round like a top.
AT a recent sitting of the Paris
Academic des Sciences some Of the
new inventions of NJ. Francois Dus
saud, the young scientist whose bene.
ficent labors in alleviating the condi
tion of the blind have been recognized
10y the French government. we're pre-
sented to the members by NJ Carnot.
The new devices include, says the
London Mails Paris correspondent, an
| apparatus which enables blind children
to reckon up columns of figures by
means Of a set Of blocks and a metal
network; a specially constructed cine
/ matograph, consisting of metal cy-
Under, with raised figures on each
/ side, which when set In motion by a
Iedal action, gives to those who can
not see the illusion of a horse gallOp-
ing on race course, and by the aid
Of another remarkable invention blind
rupils are taught drawing.
A self-dumping scow, built on novel
principles, has been put in service at
Havana, Cuba. The scow is built with
a flush deck and a central Longitude
hal bulkhead, dividing the hull into
two water-tight compartments. Wnen
the scow, with it's deck loaded, is
! tOwed out to sea. a valve is opened
/ which allows water to run into one
side Of the boat, being retained there
by the water-tight bulkhead. AS the
large fills on one side with water it
gets greater and greater list, until
finally it has position of about As
degrees by which time the load all
slides off into the sea- On opening
second valve, communicating with
the other bulkhead, the sea valve be
ing first closed the water flows into
the second compartment and the
barge rights itself, when it is towed
back to port and pumped out prepare
tory to another load and sea trip
A most important document on the
subject of acetylene generators mas
just been made public in the report
of the parliamentary commission of ex-
perts who have been examining the
merits of the acetylene gas machines
offered commercially in Great Britain.
Forty-six machines of different make,
were examined and the report states
they all were found to be safe under
the conditions of the test. The yield
c gas in the different machines ranged
from over 90 percent of the gas-pro-
ducing capacity of the carbide used
down to G5 percent. The commission
does not favor automatic machines, as
under the varied conditions of use to
which the generators are exposed to
under every day conditions, especially