The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-12-26
ITEMS OF INTEREST.

ITEMS OF INTEREST
Lake Erie is the most dangerous
Of all the lakes, both for vessel prop
erty and human life. One hundred and
nineteen disasters were charged to
that lake in the past year, or nearly
one-fourth of the entire list Lake
Michigan came next, with ninety-three
disasters.
The Senate of the free city of Ham
burg has asked the Burgerschaft
(house of burgesses) to approve an ap-
preparation of s,S01,50 marks ($l,975,-
75O, recommended for making certain
improvements upon the river and har-
Dor. 1t is expected that the house will
vote that this amount be expended.
The railroad department of the
Young Mems Christian Association
has issued a pamphlet, Progress, !"
telling of it's growth. The railroad
branch had 5000 member in 1901 and
has now 62,S4S. 1t had two years ago
ninety buildings, valued at 81, 300, 600,
and has now $1,S21.0oe invested in
buildings.
The imports of fertilizers into ia
pan are largely increasing; they have
risen from 100000 a few years ago to
almost $5,000,000 last year. In former
years the Japanese farmers used chief
ly behring's and other small fish, prin-
cipally sardines, as fertilizer. Large
quantities of fish, used for the same
purpose, are also being imported from
Siberia, China and Corea.
st. Martin. when he divided his
cape with a beggar at the gate of
Anliens, gave also two words to the
English language. The oratory in
which this torn cape was preserved as
sacred banner acquired the name Of
''chappelle"-from the French "chape"
the custodian being termed chap
lain;" and thus the English words
chapel" and chaplain" are derived.
French exhibits at the Worlds
Fair next year will number 5000, as
against 1900 at the Chicago Fair, and
will excel in general interest and COM
pleteneSs any previous French display.
They will include an elaborate exhibit
of the governments furniture, Gobe-
lin and Beauvaise tapestries, Sevres
pottery, laces, silks. educational
methods, farming, mining and indus
trial exhibits.
The officers of Berlin railway
company, who are besieged constant
ly for increased accommodations to
the suburbs of the city, make the in
variable reply that the request will be
granted If the residents along the pro-
posed route will agree to guarantee
the cost of the running of the cars.
This Is said to average 1871 cents per
mile where there is any considerable
movement, and more where the cars are
run at long intervals.
The librarian of Congress reports
of the last fiscal year to have been as
follows Printed books and pamphlets,
main collection, 1,10S, 1884; law library,
1860; manuscripts, 10S,115; maps and
charts, 69,814; music 366,616: prints,
142,337 The net accessions during the
year were: Printed books and PAM
phlets, including law library, SS,S vol
umes; manuscripts, 1858 pieces; maps
and charts, 5,161; music, 21,105 pieces
prints, 1885; miscellaneous, 1856.
Some public-spirited citizens Of
Cleveland are urging that something
be done to preserve the monument
which stands IN that city to the men,
DRY of Commodore Perry. 1t is of Car
rara marble, which does not agree
with the climate of Northern Ohio,
and unless steps shall be taken for it's
speedy reproduction in bronze VOL
colts creation may be lost forever. An
architect examined the statue closely
not long ago and found that from top
to bottom it was in bad condition.
According to Maj. P. G. Craigie of
the Royal Statistical Society, the an
nual food imports of Great Britain
during the years 1SS9-91 amounted to
1920 per head of population. Nearly
half of Sir Robert Griffin's estimate of
III per head as the average outlay for
all forms of food and drink of the
Briton is spent on imported foods. The
use of meat had greatly increased. In
the 1S57-59 period sea-borne meat
amounted to but five pounds per head;
now it is over fifty-three pounds. He
suggested that possibly this large in
crease in the use Of meat had not been
wholly beneficial in it's effects on the
health and prosperity of the nation.
Noticing that the gray winter uni
forms of German troops and the blue
clothing of Chinese spectators could
not be distinguished from each other
at long distances, a German officer in
China experimental on the visibility of
uniforms. column was divided into
hVe sections, each with it's special cloth
ing, ana was placed in close formation
behind bushes without foliage. At
about 1,4O0 yards the section in gray
and that in overcoats appeared like
uniform dark posts, while the section
in khaki and that in canvas were hard
ly visible. At 500 yards the gray began
to look lighter than the dark blue. The
gray oVercoats, like long dark stripes.
made very good marks, but both khaki
and canvas were difficult marks at all
distances.
-Apropos of the recent trip Of Le-
baudy's airship from Moissan to Paris.
during which speed of Twenty-Five
miles an hour was attained. M. de Ia
Vaulx's balloon expedition from Paris
70 Hull, England, is worth recalling.
This was made with an ordinary bal
loon, having no engine or propellers.
and the 3O0-odd miles were covered al
the rate of twenty-five miles an hour.
The added seven miles an hour at
tanned by the Lebaudy machine NAV
have been due to it's engines. or
higher wind, but in either case does nor
indicate any great advance in aerial
navigation. In recent address before
the Aeronautical Society Of Great Bxt
ain, Maj. Baden-Powell discussed the
future of aerial navigation. After
pointing out several rather obvious an
pl1cat1ons of practical air navigation-
in warfare, meteorological study. geo.
graphical exploration, and general
travel-he said that what was most