The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1906-05-12
Correspondence Baltimore County Onion.
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.

Correspondence Baltimore county Union.
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.
Speaking by Maidstone from Sawdust-
New Roots vs.. Transplanted-The Horse
OF the Kongo-Atmospheric Electric
Power-Imported Insanity-A Cause OF
Brittle Steel-Color Photography-Bit-
ter Salt.
The new speaking cards that are being intro
duced in Paris are postal cards coated on one
side with wax-like material called ''sonorine.''
When card is placed in the phonopostal, which
is simple little photograph. spoken message
or a song delivered before the diaphragm is
recorded by a sapphire pointed stylus in the
sonorine in a diminishing spiral forminga circle
about as large as a small coin. The records are
deeply impressed and not easily injured. About
Is or 80 words may be sent, and these cards offer
such advantages as conveying actual sounds of
the voice. being easily used at any stopping
place. and ensuring comparative secrecy. as the
message can only be read when placed in the
reproducing apparatus.
~
An interesting new material using up sawdust
is wood-stone It is a mixture of sawdust and
calcined magnesia reduced to powder, the moist
ened ingredients being thoroughly mingled,
pounded, ground. and submitted to moderate
pressure for a number Of hours. The finished
products are further compressed in hydraulic
press The material is incombustible, imper-
meable to water, and takes high polish. being
adapted for payements, Innings, and ornamental
purposes.
A report Of ten years. work at the Woburn
Experimental Fruit Farm in England gives
the curious result that carelessly planted apple
trees, though weak at first, ultimately made
more growth than the carefully planted. The
reason found at last is that the roots of the
former are too much injured to grow, and the
new roots caused to grow from dormant buds
higher up the stem in time surpass in size the
roots that have been carefully transplanted,
and thus set back without being destroyed.
-
A new agent in the civilization of Africa is
now being brought into use. Zebras are num-
erous in certain parts of the country, and Major
Gambler has reported herds sometimes number
ing 80 to 100 animals along the east shore Of
Tanganyika, while in Katanga DIR. Reichard has
met in a single day about ten herds of 20 to 30
zebras each. In isolated cases these animals
have been tanned and trained to harness. An
attempt at wholesale domestication was begun
by Lieut.. Nys, of the Belgian army, on July 30th,
1904, when so zebras were captured at Sampive,
in Katanga, and were placed in large enclosure.
For two hours the captives galloped madly
about their prison. while in the first few days
many refused food and drink. Some starved to
death, others died from overeating after long
fast, and on being placed in stalls at the end of
fifteen days few were killed by throwing them
selves against the walls. This reduced the herd
to 60 members. These were in good health, had
become quite doce, and could be approached
without kicking or biting. Success in training
is confidently expected, with great results for
the Kongo country.
late attempt to get electric power from the
atmosphere is credited to M. Michkin, a Russian
kite was sent up from mountain near Novo-
Alexandria and when it had risen little above
100 feet sparks began to appear in the collecting
apparatus at the rate of every three to five
seconds soon changing to a continuous stream.
A motor was then driven by pressure of 1000
volts for an hour, stopping for an interval when
the wind fell. The motor reached speed of
470O revolutions per minute, and it was con-
cluded that higher flying with a motor designed
for higher pressure, could supply considerable
work.
The insane in the asylums of Canada number
1862, an increase of % per cent. since 1891 One
authority attributes the increase to immigration
and lax medical inspection at ports, 5000 of the
0995OO immigrants of the last ten years having
been at least partially insane.
~.
In experiments during the last five years, DIR.
Hjalmar Braune has proven that the brittleness
met with in steel is often due to the presence of
nitrogen, which forms a nitride of iron, dissolv
ing the remainder of the metal and altering the
appearance of sections under the microscope
and the properties. In steel containing 0060
per cent. of carbon, as little as 007 to 0.08 per
cent. of nitrogen caused marked change. The
nitrogen was added by fusing the steel in an
atmosphere of ammonia and the metal was then
annealed. Under the microscope the cells
usually seen on an etched surface are greatly
reduced in size, disappearing entirely with O.2OO
per cent of nitrogen. With hard steels even
less nitrogen has decided effect, and steel con-
tanning LIS per cent. of carbon was made quite
brittle by 0.03 to 0.04 per cent. of nitrogen the
elongation on fracture being reduced to a tenth
of the original.
Photography in natural colors is slowly ad
vancing toward success. Lippmann backs
sensitive film during exposure by mirror of
"
appear by reflection. When film of celluloid
prepared with bichromate of potassium is used,
the colors show when the plate is wet, disappear
ing on drying. For plain water baths the ex-
perimenter has substituted weak solution of
iodide of potassium, followed, after drying: by
a 20 per cent. solution of nitrate of silver. The
colors are made permanent. As the bichromate
is neither very sensitive nor isochrOmat1c, the
same effect is being sought on geiatine bromide
films, and would make it practicable to multiply
copies by the ordinary method.
The slightly bitter taste of some butter has
been traced by Henzold, of the Municipal Labor
atory at Dusseldorf. to oxide of iron in the salt,
and he urges that preserving salt should be made
chemically pure.
PropertyTransfersi In Baltimore County.
Deeds, etc.. received for record in the office of
the Clerk of the Circuit Court for Baltimore
county;
Daniel Dreher and wife to Harry o. Stebbins.
Katherine Zorn ct al. to Adolph DrOll.
Charles p. Muth and wife to Jerome j. Ellinger.
Harry G. McAbee to Henry Diver.
Henry Diver to Mollie McAfee.
Alfred ]. Kohly to Charles X. Coylea and wife.
Denmore Land Co. to Jacob g. Oehri and wife.
Robt. c. Fishpaw and wife to jerome w. Turner.
Henry NJ. Henrik to Susan E: Smith.
Carrie NJ. FINLEY and husband to Geo. W. Cham
Chas. F. Stein and wife to Marion v. Lowrey.
John 7. Donohue to Gustav G.. Siegel and wife.
Denmore Land Co. of BALTIC. CO. to G. r. Coleman.
The McHenry Estate Co. of BALTIC. city to Sophia
H. Marshall.
Roland Park Co of BALTIC. city to ]. E. Symington.
Chas. F. Stein ct al. to J. Freeman Mckinney
Jas. Moore and wife to Conrad Meier and wife.
Ellen G. Paupsen and husband to j. H. Matheisz.
w. NJ. Ferguson and wife to Helen V. Ferguson
Helen v. Ferguson to W. M. Ferguson and wife.
Barreda Turner to Chas. R. Leland.
w. E. Jackson and wife to VIM. E. Hammond
and wife.
Clinton Miller and wife to Peter L. List.
J. 0. Cundiff and wife to Il. Wilkerson and wife.
s. B. Fauth and wife to Jno. Anthony and wife.
William Gottschalk to Charles j. Hull
H. A. Matthews and wife to g B. Chilcoat and VT.
Roland Park Co. to e. e. Gibbons and wife.
Same to Carl A. Luederitz.
Elias A. A. Blackstone and wife to Louis Aubel.
Canton Company to Caroline w. Gegner.
j. A. Bates ct al. to s. b. Doyle and wife.
G. w. Dorsey ct al, trustees, ct al. to Thos. M.
Dolan and wife.
Margaret j. Sullivan to ]. P. Brady and wife.
Eugene R. Stagner to Annie G. Meushaw.
Jerome j. Ellinger to Charles p Muth.
f. Biltzburger and wife to M. Biltzburger and
wife.
Chas. M. Gent and others to Joseph A. Myers.
H. d. Roschen and wife to ]. A. Bales and wife.
Florence A. Marshall and husband to James l..
Constantine.
Jas. L. Constantine to Florence A. Marshall.
N. \ sfo% <,CI