The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-02-01
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

brilliant as a genuine stone. A sim
Die test is to immerse in water the
stone to be examined. An imitation
will be practically extinguished' whlle
a genuine diamond sparkles even IN
water and is distinctly visible.
The latest in Zurich, Switzerland,
is a proposition to tax~every inhabitant
over Is years old so cents a year, the
state to add 20 cents. This would yleid
about S11S.000, which would be USED
to pay forty physicians to take care
of the whole population of the CITY,
Government experiments in Russia
have demonstrated that the best time
to cut trees is near the end OF June.
Box elder, cut in June, when peeled,
dried and set as posts for fences or
sheds lasted sixteen years, but cut
in winter and set green, rotted in four
years.
The government coined during the
last fiscal year 1851, lab pennies and
26,4SO213 nickel five-cent pieces. OF
the pennies Pennsylvania got 100000;
New York, 10000, 900; Illinois, 100000
and Massachusetts, 5000, 0OO. So many
pennies are lost that it is necessary to
make from 60,O00,000 to 90,000,OOO of
them every year.
The Buffalo Commercial claims that
money has more synonyms than any
word in the English language if slang
phrases be included. 1t presents par
tial list: Coin, plunks, plasters. soap,
rocks, dust, dough, ducats, dingbats,
pewter, needful, stuff, collat, rags,
shekels, wad, roll tin, long green,
grease, bones, balsam, chicken feed,
rhino, brass, gold, lucre and simoleons.
1t is 1886 years since potatoes were
introduced into Ireland in the reign of
Elizabeth. John Hawkins brought them
from Santa Fe, in Spanish America.
They were first planted by Sir Walter
Raleigh, who took a small green apple
that appeared on the stems for the
fruit and was Disguised. He discov-
cred his mistake when the ground was
plowed up some time later.
Two hard CLAIMS caught a rat
apiece in the feed room of the New
York aquarium recently. A barrel of
CLANS is kept there constantly. The
keepers and attendants in the building
heard tremendous racket composed
of squeals and scamperings. On OPEN
ing the door two rats were discovered,
OAAC AlCih lAiOllOillCSS Wlln d Hlnu IOOI
between the shells of a clam and an
other dashing about with a second BIZ
valve tenaciously embracing it's tail.
Diamonds, especially rose dia-
monds," are likely to explode if sub
jected to moderate heat 1t is believed
that the explosions are the result of
the rapid expansion of certain volatile
liquids inclosed in cavities near the
center. A great many diamonds, al
though apparently perfect, are stfll I'M
finished. The liquid drop from which
the stone is being formed has not de-
posted all of its carbon crystals. A
strong microscope viii detect the bub-
BILE.
The lecturers in ethnology and ge-
ology of Cambridge University, Eng
land, have just announced a series of
lectures and practical exercises to
serve as training for persons wishing
to undertake exploration or DESTROYS
of contributing to our knowledge OF
foreign countries. The series will in
clude the history of geogra phical dis
covery, principles of physical geogra-
ply, map making and map reading,
geography of Europe, anthropo-geogra-
ply, practical ethnology, geo-morphol-
ogy, geology, plane-table Photographic
and geodetic surveying, etc.
The word "terne" as applied to
tin plate signifies sheet of iron and
steel covered with an alloy two-thirds
lead and one-third tin. 1t is this I'M
ion of the three metals-iron, lead and
tin-that gave rise to the word terne
plate, terne being an equivalent to
the English terne, meaning three
fold" The origin of the erroneous
definition Of this term was the fact
that because of the large percentage
of lead used in coating terne plate,
the latter is duller in hue than the or
binary tin plate. frequently desig-
mated bright plate" in contradistinc-
ton.
Secretary Wilson of the Agricul-
tural Department says that he expects
to live to see homemade beet sugar
selling in the village stores at 2 cents
a pound, with a reasonable profit to
the farmer who grows the beets, the
men who run the factories and the
merchants who supply the markets.
In 1890 there were four sugar beet fac
tories in this country, which produced
5000 tons; in 1901 there were forty-
five factories, producing 1S4,606 tons
and 1T is estimated that the product
for 1902 will be 100000 tons. 1t is now
being handled in the factories.
The wild hogs of Southern Colora-
do share with the peccaries of Central
and South America the reputation of
being the fiercest, most vindictive and
toughest animals of the Western Hem
isphere. They will follow tenaciously,
three and starVe out an enemy. Their
skins are tough, their vitality is re-
markable and their teeth sharp as
razors. They travel in small droves
and are ready to attack anything, be
it man or beast, that arouses their
ire. Hunters in Southern Colorado al
ways observe the precaution of sta
tioning themselves within reach of a
tree when in the neighborhood of a
drove.
"A snake story of ample proportions
comes from Harrodsburg, Ind, where
quarry workmen discovered a bundle
of snakes as large as a barrel. The
reptiles had twined themselves into a
compact mass, which included several
varieties of snakes and a few ground
hogs. According to the Indianapolis
News, a fire was kindled about the
mass, and as the snakes came to life
and started to crawl away the work
men killed them with clubs. There
were nearly 300 snakes in all Black
snakes eight feet long, vipers three feet
in length, and coperheads, house
snakes and rattlers were in the colIec-
ton.
"A lively discussion of the ques-
ton of repeating the skunk law in
Chautauqua county, New York. is ex-
pected to take place. at Albany in q