Heppner gazette. [volume] (Heppner, Morrow County, Or.) 1892-1912, 1906-05-10
AAo~~A~

The banana and potato are almost
Identical In chemical composition.
There are no undertakers in Japan.
When a person dies his nearest rela-
tives put him into coffin and bury
him. The mourning does not begin un-
til after burial.
India rubber trees which are tapped
every other day continue to yield sap
for more than twenty years; and 1t Is
a curious fact that the Oldest and most
frequently tapped trees produce the
richest sap.
The most costly leather In the world
is known 10 the trade rs the plano
leather. The secret Of preparing this Is
only known 10 one family Of tanners
in Germany, though the skins from
which 1t b tanned come almost entirely
from America.
Poisoning from 0as inhalation y now
added 10 the recognized dangers Of bal
looming. The hydrosen-itsef non
polsOnOus-k often contaminated with
arsenic, seIenium, and antimony, and
fourteen cases Of I'll effects have been
reported to the French Academy OF
Medicine. In one Of the two forms Of
poisoning death results In two or three
days.
New wonders may be expected In a
little known field Of exploration since
hn inv Of naval QnDi-
neer by the name Of De Plury, Of a
kind Of metal armor with a special
chemical combination for providing res
piration automatically. By means Of
this dress he has succeeded in sinking
1856 feet, much greater depth than
has ever before been reached by any
diver.
To tell the points Of the compass by
watch, point the hour hand at the
sun; then south is halfway between the
hour hand and the figure II Of the dial.
To measure an angle by a watch lay
two straight-edged pieces Of paper on
the angle, crossing at the apex. Hold
ing them where they overlap, lay them
on the face of the watch, with the apex
at the center. Read the angle by the
Of the dial, each minute being
9 degrees Of arc. 1t is easy to meas
ure within or degrees in this way.
An indication Of the rapidly growing
interest In underground water supplies.
even in States where the rainfall Is
abundant and the soil naturally fer
tile is given by the program just pre-
pared for the work Of the coming sea-
son by the Geological Survey Of ILL |
nois. A special department Of the
work will be devoted to the study of |
the underground water Of that State. |
In order to determine the limits Of
what are called the -Artesian basins"
and the various depths to which 1t may |
be necessary to penetrate In different |
localities to obtain good water for mu
nicipal and agricultural purposes. All |
the waters will be carefully analyzed |
and subjected to laboratory tests, and |
thus it Is hoped that the work of de-
veloping new water supplies will be
put upon a thoroughly scientific foot
Ing
recent English traveller In China
describes some remarkable examples Of
sounding stones. or 'stone gongs,"
which he saw at Chufu. the birthplace
and burial place of Confucius. One of
the stones. which are composed Of a
yrayish oolitic limestone. has been
shaped into a cover for an incense dish
placed in front OF the tomb Of the
grandson Of Confucius. When struck
with a stick. or with the knuckles. II
rings like bronze. and the sound is so
distinct that 1t is difficult TO believe,
without inspection. that the object Is
lot really composed Of metal Sound
ng stones are known in other countries.
4 correspondent Of Nature describes a
bridge at Corick. in County Mayo. Ire
and. which is locally known as the
musical bridge" because the stones
'orming the coping give out a musical
note when struck.