Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1905-05-25
CURIOUS EXPEDIENTS
MAkeSHIFTS THAT SERVED USEFUL
PURPOSES.

Guns have other uses than that
killing. We all know that hundred
OF clocks are set from the 1 o'clock gu
fired by electricity from Greenwic
observatory, but not everybody
aware that rifles have supplied mois
ture IN desert countries to traveller
dying Of thirst and thus saved thei
lives.
In the great Sahara some time asC
says pearsons Weekly, a globe trotte1
who wanted water badly found it pos
sible to collect drink out of the mer
damprass Of the sand He sunk tn,
barrel Of his gun into the ground an(
1t collected enough moisture in th,
bore t. stay his thirst. A timely sucl
at glll muzzle has saved many lives
in the sun scorched deserts Of the
tropics
Water ran short on a merchant yes
sci in Inid-Atlantic not long ago, and
the ci'2r did not know what to do tC
obtain drink. The captain, however
hit upon a brilliant idea.
lie had number of sporting guns
in his cabin, and, taking them on deck,
he plugged up the breech ends, filed
the bOres with sea water and set them
them end up among the Goals of the
galley fire.
AS the steam gathered he ran it
through other gun barrels until it cool
ed. The steam collected in the shape
of excellent fresh water. ana in this
way the crew were supplied with suf-
ticient moisture until the vessel touch
ed port.
If you were to drop into the houses
Of the French peasants you would be
struck with the fact that practically
every man and woman poked his or her
fire with a bayOnet.
Some 100000 ayonets-condemned
stores Of the French army and used in
the FrancO-PruSsian war-have found
their way into the homes of poor peas
ants, who use them as fire irons.
The bark Ruth, bound from Demera-
ra to Oban with sugar, neglected to
procure chart Of the Scottish coast
when setting SAIL The captain had
never been to Oban before, and, not
wishing to return to Demerara to get a
chart. he looked about the vessel for a
substitute.
He discovered Caledonian railway
time table, with the railway map at
tached. This helped him out Of his diff
ficulty, for it acted splenddly as sea
guide. The Ruth cut across the Allan
tic and after sailing up the west coast
of Scotland dropped her anchor safely
in Oban bay.
Without this railway map the cap
tain would never have got his vessel
safely through the intricate channels.
Good steel wasn't obtainable when
the Germans wished to manufacture
some new rifles for their army. so they
purchased tons Of horseshoe nails
which had been kicked about the roads
of the world by horses innumerable.
The gunmakers found them a perfect
substance for the manufacture Of rifle
barrels, for the nails, made originally
of the best metal obtainable, had re
ceived from the constant pounding Of
the horses feet on hard roads a pecul-
lar annealing and tOughening
1T is quite possible that you are wear
ing on your hands today drawn up
awyers' briefs or ancient title deeds.
When kid leather was at premium
he French glovemakers hunted high I
md low for substitute. One firm, l
more ingenious than the rest. bought
lp old parchmentS Of all descriptions. s
they carefully removed the ink marks 7
md eventually turned the cleaned y
'archment into gloves.
Ever since that particular firm has
upplied Britain with finest French
I'D gloves made Of parchment The
ellum clippings left over when the
loves are made are boiled down and
urned into letter cases and purses.
The British forces were about to =
ross the Glands river during the late
'Oer war when 1t was discovered that
was impossible to construct a trestle III
ridge across 1t, for the bed of the
yer was nothing but quicksand. Piles q
ad to be driven, but no pile driver OF
as handy. ot
The officers Of the engineers, how
7er, overcame the difficulty in a way m
lat startled the general in command &C
the troops. The sappers waded into CO
e water, set up the piles and laid iron
ates on each one On these small o,
arges of dynamite were placed and 90
ed. -.
After the explosion the piles were as "1
IN as If they had been driven I'm by a ~
cam hammer. Dynamite explodes
with terrific force, and
ything below 1t is pounded deeply
TO the earth
Mr.. Fosdyke, engineer in charge Of In
2 Asaka dam on the Nile, scuttled so
In fo save hia cherished on fhrorbo |