Omaha daily bee., 1902-02-23

IOf HOPKINS graduates as pTOleSSOIS III
the colleges and universities of the land"
We found the geological laboratory
mixed up oonfusingly with the weather
bureau and the Maryland geological sur
vey. That is because DR.. Clark, director
of the laboratory, is also clerk Of the
weather and chief of the survey. Advan-
tage in plenty accrues both to university
and state from this partnership. The stu
dents get between three and four months
of actual field work every year and earn a
little money. The state, on its side, gets the
unpaid labor all winter of a body of thirty
or forty trained men. The university val
ues the relation, too, for the Use touch
it gives with the people. Geological hunt
ing parties scrape acquaintance with the
farm folk, and the departments function
as identiher of specimens brings them
into relation to all sorts and conditions OF
men.
Wonder tales came true inside the physi-
cal laboratory. We saw a solitary worker
spinning crystal thread finer than the most
attenuated cobweb. Fusing two bits OF
quartz in a Bunsen flame, he suddenly drew
them apart. Holding the delicate thread,
spun between the crystals, in the flame,
he blew 1t across the room. The lament,
scarcely visible, was not fine enough to suit
the student, SO ne ldSleHeu OhS Gnu VI ~
to a little arrow, fitted it to a bow and shot
it at a target. Capturing the delicate thing
SO fine that it now foated in air, he made
it fast to a glass frame and scrutinized
it critically against the light. Behold, there
we're flaws in the hlament and he began all
over again. He wanted 1t to suspend q
delicate weight in a very particular piece
of apparatus. 1t must be fine enough, long
enough, strong enough and totally without
INEQUALITIES. We left him still juggling.
Down stairs they took us into the dark
room where DR.. Rowland, who has recently
died, made his marvellous Photographic map
of the spectrum. A whole year he spent
in testing preparations Of Photographic
plates, before ever the work of making
negatives was begun; three years 1t took
him to complete the series Of maps, the
most exact in existence. Thomasina was
beginning to look distinctly bored, when
the professor put into her hand a little
three-inch box, telling her to open it. She
did. and almost dropped 1t in her surprise
The little box contained a sublimated rain
bow, as pure and as melting as the veri'
table "bow in the sky and ~infnitel.
brighter. 1t was one Of DR.. Rowlandi
famous attractions gratings-shame to cal
so beautiful a thing by so unbeautiful
ndmGa NONutI6 save az JOAuo IAOPhlh
: are these perfect g~ratings made; for no
, where else in the world are there instru
=, ments exact enough to make them. A graf
/, ing is a polished concave square of tin an
) lead alloy, scored with absolutely parable
1 scratches, absolutely the same distanc
5 apart, and 20, 700 OF them to the inch.
slip OF one-millionth of an inch, and ther
= are ghosts" in the spectrum-the gratin
d is worthless.
: Thomasina, holding the blaze of color !
y her hand, said she thought she would tax
S one. Certainly" said the professo
= gravely. have you a 500 about you? Tn
II university sells them at cost price"
e We gasped, and the professor hastene
3 to explain that while Prof. Rowland SUI
i ceeded in making a perfect screw for Il
: ruling engine. 1t is still difficult to get dii
Is mond points the right shape to do Il
Ig scratching. So there are still many spoil'
J. g~ratings, and good ones come high. v
" wanted to see the wonderful machine
ir work. The professor hesitated. It seer
In the thing is so delicate that II is kept
a vault at constant temperature. The a
he mission of our little vital furnaces mig
e. raise the thermometer and spoil a gratiI
MS However. just for a second. he let us
DIS There was the machine, working und