The San Francisco call., 1904-03-27
Science ard InveHtion.

without drinking. Sheep in the south
western deserts go for forty to sixty
DAYS In winter without drink, grazing
on the green, succulent vegetation OF
= that season. Peccaries in the desert of
sonora i've in little dry hills, where
tbene IS DO natural water for long
y periods. They cannot possibly ind
.swarer. 81 fact, for months at time
The only moisture they can obtain
comes from roots and the fruits OF
cach-
But the most extraordinary case Is
sshat OF tie pocket mouse, one or the
common rodents OF the desert This
Iit4le creature. by the way, has a gen
uine fur-lined pocket on the outside
OF its cheek. When Il IS hungry it
takes food from this pocket with its
paw. just as a man would pull ham
sandwich from his pocket.
one OF these mice has been kept for
tfuee years with no other food than the
mixed. birdseed Of commerce. During
this period It had not q taste Of either
water or green food. Other expert
laenters have found, in fact. that these
mice in captivity refuse such treats,
. not seeming 10 know that water is
good 10 drink The birdseed put before
this mouse contained not more than 10
per cent Of moisture. which is less than
IS necessary for digestion. Stuff so dry
r ss this cannot even be swallowed until
81 IS. moistened by saliva. Yet this re-
maFlzable mouse gave nothing but his
time to the interests Of science. He
suffered nothing in health or spirits
during his captivity. The absolutely
.sbstemious ass" Of which Edward Lear
wrote is. completely outclassed.
The question is seriously raised
whether this mouse is provided with
a condensing apparatus by which it
is able 10 absorb moisture from the at
mosphere. At night and IN the burrows
the humidity IS much higher than in the
daytime above ground, but it never
peaches the dew point.-New York
Evening Post.
n z. Weinlsnd has been making a
series Of researches 10 show why the
digestive secretOns do not attack the
body Of different living organisms.
The organs which carry on digestion
are charged with ferments which are
powerful IN attacking and dissolving
The ailments which are introduced, but
nevertheless they have no action upon
the surface Of these organs or upon the
parasites which often lodge there. The
reason for this has not been clear. In
1891, !. Frenzel gave the opinion that
the parasites were protected by an anti
ferment which they secreted, and this
could account for the fact that tape
worms. for instance. could take up their
lodging in such organs. NJ. Weinland
made some experiments which are Of
interest in this line Of ideas. He took
a certain quantity Of fbrin and placed
Il In a pepsin solution in order TO dis
solve IL, at the same time adding q
small quantity Of liquid obtained from
the tape-wOrm (taenia). He found that
IN this case no digestion OF the fibrin
occurred, even though it was left in
contact for an indefinite period, but
otherwise It would be dissolved in a
few hours. He thus considers that IT is
not the living tissues themselves which
=
but the secretions with which they are
impregnated. The anti-ferment which
he succeeds in extracting is very power
ful in its action, and it keeps its prop
critics for many months; ii loses them
by boiling, however. A temperature of
60 deg. c. for 10 minutes has but little
effect, but at so deg. the activity is
1essened. The active principle can be
precipitated from the juice Of the taenia
by alcohol. Although it opposes the
action OF pepsin, a ferment and anti
ferment can be put in presence without
destroying each other. The latter
seems to exert only an opposing and
not a destructive action on the fer
ments, and when removed the ferments
commence TO act as misunderstanding
' American.
A well-znown oculist, who has an
Office on West Seventh street, while
discussing some of the various defects
OF the human eye which are not notice
able 10 the ordinary observer, has this
10 say about color-blind people:
"The world must be curious place bc
color blind people, Of whom there are
1000 persons. Some are blue-yellow
blind, and everything seems either red
green or gray to them; others are red
green blind, and all things appear tc
them to be yellow, blue or gray OF
various shades, and others again per
ceive no distinction OF color at all, bat
The whole world wears an unchangine
aspect of duh gray.
ITO these last a visit to picture gal.
lery would reveal merely a collection O.
engravings or photographs. But the
two former have the compensation OF
seeing their own two. colors much more
brightly than ordinary people.
The color blind do extraordinary
things at times. An officer of the navy
went one day to buy material for z
coat, vest and trousers. He bought Z
blue coat and red trousers. believing
them Of the same color A British ad-
miral painted a landscape and. was very
proud Of his performance, but he made
the tree red, thinking it was the same
cnlor as green. When he purchased z