The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1904-01-09


Eggs That Hatch.
The eucalyptus, claimed to be the world = most
useful tree and the source of our future timber
and fuel,embraces about $50 species. These are
adapted to q great variety Of soils and climates,
: some species thriving In swamps while others
grow in arid deserts, and some reach a great
size at six times the rate Of growth of the oak,
yielding abundant fuel in six or eight years.
In Australia, where the trees have been most
cultivated, the hardwood timber Is not only
used for many purposes but is exported to many
distant countries. DR.. A. J. McClatchie, who is
encouraging the planting of these trees in the
United States finds that they exert beneficial
influence upon the atmosphere by absorbing the
water from stagnant pools, changing oxygen to
ozone by their exhalations, and destroying
germs by the leaves scattered upon marshy
ground.
Human life is possible under varied conditions,
and, If a recent report is correct British New
Guinea has tribe whose environment has made
them incapable of walking. These people live
in a swampy region. and, as walking and canoe
ing are alike impracticable, they remain con-
stantly in their dwellings, which are built in
the trees just above the marshes. Disuse has
caused their limbs to shrink, while their trunks
have become bloated, giving them an ape-like
appearance and gait.
Anaemic persons and convalescents seeking
strength find great benefit in the grape-cure,
which is an autumn attraction at Wiesbaden.
The effects are explained by the sugar, which
forms Is to so per cent. Of the grapes.
81
In the electric furnace of II. Goldschmidt, a
ton of steel is made from the ore by 1000 horse
power hours of energy, and from scrap iron by
1900 horsepower hours.
80
The thoughts of all scientific men continue to
turn to the marvel of radium, which, as Prof.
G. v. Boys declares, is not a mere mystery but a
miracle. Radio-activity. first observed in ura-
mum, is the extraordinary characteristic of ra-
dunn. and it seems to be quite independent of
chemical combination or chemical change. The
activity is even increased by the intense cold of
hydrogen in liquid form. Particles of incon-
ceivable minuteness and highly electrified, are
projected with tremendous velocity, and in the
spinthariscope of Crookes the bombardment of
tiuorescent screen by microscopic speck of
radium gives flashes producing the effect of
moonlight on ripping water. The emanations
prove to be of three kinds, all of which affect
Photographic plates and render air conductive
of electricity. The first kind. apparently COM
prising particles of a size comparable with n.y.
drogen atoms, is readily absorbed or stopped by
obstacles the second,a thousand times smaller,
penetrates such objects as foot of aluminium
or wood or f1ve-eighths of an inch of lead; and
the third greatly resembles x-rays. 1t is esti-
mated that the total exhaustion of gramme OF
radium would yield from 10000 to 100000 times
the energy Of hydrogen and oxygen when COM
bining to form water. Some internal energy of
the atoms must be called out, and the atomic
disintegration seems to yield helium.
In the vast space between Mars and Jupiter a
little planet was discovered on the first day OF
the nineteenth century, and since then the for
mer gap in the plan of the solar system has
been filed by the finding of ring of nearly 500
tiny worlds. 1t is calculated that these aster-
ODDS together would form a globe 500 miles in
diameter, or a little more than thousandth Of
the size of the earth. Vesta. the largest of the
group, is 5lS miles in diameter, and Eros, with a
diameter of scarcely 20 miles, has been watched
of late with exceptional interest because at
times it approaches the earth closer than any
other heavenly body except the moon.
-
The Oldest wood carving known is a sycamore
statuette, representing an overseer of pyramid
builders, which dates from 5000 B. c., and is in
Cairo museum.
The idea that rheumatism is contagious is
gaining ground in Germany, and at Leipsic pa
tients are actually isolated to prevent the
spread Of the disease The evidence in support
of this view is claimed to be accommodating.
Children become sufferers from articular rheu-
matism a few days after their parents are at
tackled, and M. TaIamon has recorded the case
of a child who had articular rheumatism for
eight days. and whose younger sister, sleeping
in the same room, was attacked few days later
with a rheumatic affection that proved fatal.
rheumatism often seems to pass from one to
the other of two married people, many cases of
this kind-as when perfectly healthy man is
taken few days after one of his wife's rheu-
matte attacks-strengthenin the theory of con-
tagion.
Remarkable results in star photography with
comparatively inexpensive apparatus have been
reported by Prof. Schaeberle. His telescope
was a parabolic reflector of short focus, the
mirror being 10 inches in diameter with fucus
of 20 inches, and exposures of five minutes
gave star images that were beyond the reach Of
the 36-inch Lick telescope and that required ex-
posures of two hours with the 36-inch Grossly
reflector. Stars fainter than the seventeenth
magnitude were included.
"a
Traction tests with electric automobiles in
London have shown surprising increase of the
starting pull on oiled pavements. A pull of SO
pounds per ton was needed to start on dry as
phalte, 49K pounds on wood pavement, and lO4
pounds on dry macadam. On greasy asphalte q
pull Of nearly 70 pounds per ton was necessary.
The hot springs that contain living bacteria
are much below boiling-point in temperature,
but Mr.. J. Adams, of Dublin, reports having OBJ
served eggs of a certain mite (Tyroglyphus his
tiostoma) that survived boiling for five minutes.