The Savannah morning news., 1902-12-02
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

ported at cost lower than that for
which IL can be mined in this country.
There was an Increase last year in the
production of plate mica in North Car
olina. The use of mica in sheets for
stoves, chimneys, ETC., has increased
greatly, but still more the use of small
circular disks and rectangular pieces
of mica for insulation purposes and for
electrical apparatus. Ground scrap
mica is used in the manufacture of wall
papers, lubricants. etc. Scrap mica,
also, arranged on a wire net coil and
then pressed into proper shape is used
very satisfactorily as a boiler tube
covering, mica being a non-conductor
of heat.
There has just been laid before the
French Academy of Medicine the re-
suit of an analysis made by DR.. Barille
of a new pepper of African origin, re-
Gently imported from Kissi, on the Lii
berian frontier of Guinea. This prod
uct, which has already been given the
name of Kissine pepper, grows abund-
antly in this region in a wild state. 1t
is not akin to any known species, and,
being very rich in piperine and vola-
tile oil. can be used both as a spice
and as a condiment. Its grains, gen.
orally very small, are characterized by
pedicule at their base. They give a
reddish-brown powder, highly perfumed
and of a peculiar aromatic SAVIOR.
French journals speak of this article
as another interesting and valuable ad-
dition to the already long list of
French colonial products.
in Paris the art of blaekmail has
been carried to a high stage of refine
ment by the use of the carrier pigeon.
The inventor of the system thus ex-
plains how ii works: at is very sim
pie; when you have got. hold of some
one by the threat of sensational reve-
lations, of awkward documents, or,
more simply. when you have stolen
some deeds which you are ready to re-
store for a fair consideration, you are
always pretty sure to get caught in
going to the postoffice to get the reply
with the cash. With my plan there
are simply no risks. You send the
bird in a basket to your client with
little note to this effect: If within
twenty-four hours you do not set the
pigeon at liberty after having fastened
under its wing ten 1,000-franc notes
you will catch it," This is pleasant
ly called lie vol au vol robbery on the
wing.
1t was thought for years that the
greatest degree of perfection and the
limit Of cutting power had been reach
ed in the best self-hardening steels,
but within the last three years new
products, similar in character and an
alysis, have been perfected, with ca
liabilities of high speed work which far
surpass the old. Many of the latter
steels owe their high speed qualities to
special heat treatments given the tool
| after forging, while some of the newer
| products are of such combinations
| chemically that no treatment, or only
| a simple one, is necessary. These high
| speed steels have worked a complete
revolution in modern engineering, nee
essitating the building of new and
more powerful machine tools, and
nearly doubling the output of shops
where they have been adopted. All the
best makes of high-speed steels show
ability to Withstand the heat engen-
| dered In heavy lathe work.
Prof. c. F. Holder writes: Several
years ago 1 witnessed a sudden run of
dogfish-a small shark-on the New
England coast. In the morning the
men were codfishing on the banks,
but suddenly the dogfish set in They
| came in countless thousands, DESTROY
ing the fishing; a ravepous horde fair
ly filling the water and eating even
| JCiiJ u Satisfy LnelT munger NO
| sooner did a bait strike the water than
several rushed at it and the boat near
me had the sail, which was dragging
| overheard, torn in pieces by them, The
| fishermen Immediately changed their
| tackle and began fishing for dogfish
for the livers, which were valued at a
cent apiece, soon filling their boats. AS
the fish were hauled in they uttered
loud croaks sounding like 'r-o-i-k,
I IL -.
scores of swapping mouths in concert
1t seemed to require no little effort to
produce a sound and it may have been,
in all probability was, the accompani-
ment of conclusive gasping for
| BREATH
Some time ago Prof. Darwin of
Cambridge pointed out that if star
revolved on it's axis with a certain We
locity the star would tend to divide into
two and the form it would take before
complete separation would be that of
a dumb-bell, or rather two pears join
ed top to top. This deduction was
purely theoretical. During the past two
years an examination of the light
changes of some recently discovered
variable stars reveals this very condi-
ton of things. For example, one star
in the southern sky goes through a
| certain regular series of light changes
In seven hours, indicating that the star
Is twin system, the two bodies COM
! posing 1t being in contact. This dumb
| bell system revolves around the COM
mon center in seven hours. Then
there is another variable star In the
southern sky the light changes OF
which show that the two stars COM
posing the system are no longer in
contact. Separation has just taken
place, the MENUS between them is
broken and two worlds, full born, have
started on that outward spiral which
in the course of ages will carry them
far from one another.
-Gold-beating is an ancient art. SAYS
the Boston Globe. 1t is referred to by
Homer and Pliny. Pliny says that one
ounce of gold was beaten into 75C
leaves, each being three times the
thickness of the ordinary gold leaf OF
the present time. Leaf gliding has
been met with on the collins of the
Theban mummies, where the gold is
in so thin state that It resembles
modern gliding. Before the 18th cen.
fury London was the only place in
England where gold-beating was car
ried on. During that time it was in
troduced into Scotland and the United
states. Gold is melted in a crucible
then cast into an ingot, and is fatten-
ed by rolling between a pair of steel
rollers, into a ribbon of about IL
inches wide and 10 feet in length ia
the ounce. After being fiatteued it is
| N r1fa Tt. 80