Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1909-08-03
Odd Items Of Interest

Asbestos of reported good quality ex-
lists in large quantity in Rajputana and
in Afghanistan, and a native company
has been formed to work the deposits
and manufacture the product.
About six hundred patents are granted
each year to british women upon inven-
tons, ranging from articles distinctively
feminine in nature to motors. railroad
cars, flying machines and wireless tele-
graphy.
Brazil is offering an alluring field to the
American makers of patent medicines, as
against the standard proprietary medi-
cines there exists no prejudice on the
part of Brazilian doctors or their pa
tents.
The population of the state of Vera
Cruz may be approximately put down at
100000. Every settlement, village, town
| and city is provided with private and
public educational institutions for the
elementary education of the people.
The proportion of felonies relating to
property to the population in the police
area of London has risen steadily of re-
cent years. In 1907 it was 1859 to each
thousand of the population, a higher fig
ure than in any year since 1895.
Professor Benjamin. Rinaldi publishes
| in the Corriere dele Maestro of Milan an
an interesting statistical study of elemen-
tary education in Italy. School teachers
are the worst paid public servants in
Italy. Their pay averages from 81 to 46
cents a day.
An experiment from which much may
/ he learned ic hnino tr;o IN,
| 1t is embodied ir the new land bill
| which is now coming into operation.
The proposal is to break up $4,000 acres
| into settlements which settlements will
be subdivided into plots of seven acres
each. But the interesting point is that
in the center of each group of small
holdings there will be a larger holding
Of not more than 6e6 acres, which will
be in the hands of a capable and exper-
fenced farmer, who will set an example
for the others to follow.
Only once did the stork stop and how
er over the Woman's Club, of Omaha,
during the last club year. The Omaha
Woman'S Club is the largest and most
popular club in the city, composed en-
tirely of women. The membership is a
little n<excess of four hundred. About
| half the members are wives. The mem
bers deal with domestic science and all
topics that are of interest to women
| They are educated. intelligent and UP
to date when it comes to handling mat
| tiers of public interest.
Holes for tree planting, according tc
the Engineering Record, have been ex.
cavated by the Long Island railway by
| blasting with dynamite. A hole about
| two feet deep was first dug with a post
| hole anger at an angle of about thirty
| five degrees with the surface, and load
| ed with half stick of 40 per cent. dyn-
| a mite. This shot makes a hole about
| two feet deep and three feet in diane
ter. leaving the earth in the bottom
pulverized suitably for planting. 1t is
| stated that two men can thus excavate
$50 holes ten-hour day at cost OF
about ~ cents hole.
The great steel bridge across the st.
Lawrence river a few miles above Que
bee, which fell while being constructed in
August. 1907, killing seventy-eight men,
will be recommended in the next few
| months. The plans are now practically
completed, but several years will be re-
quired for its construction. The bridge
was to have been in the first place Isl
feet above high water mark. but owing
to the fact that it is feared that ships O.
the future will not be able to pass 1t ir
running up the river to Montreal, the new
lengineers are considering the advisabilit!
of providing for at least 10 feet more head
room. The original 1.S00-foot channe
The custom of the wedding of thu
Adriatic Sea to the Doge of Venice
was instituted by Pope Alexander III
who i'm liza, drew a gold ring from hi.
finger and gave it to the Doge of Ven
ice in token of the victory of tile Vene
tan fleet at Istria over Frederick Bar
barossa. The Doge was requested t.
drop a similar ring into the Adriati,
on Ascension day of each year in hon
or of the event. This, accordingly be
came the annual custom at Venice
and, in consequence. consecratet
ring was each year thrown into thu
sea by the Doge, in the presence of tn
mobiles, with the declaration: I'VE wei
thee. 0 sea, in sign of true and per
petual dominion" The bucentaur, o
state galley, was not used on thes
occasions until some centuries later.
| Naturalization of the italian rail
ways has had curious result. TIL
employees are now under the ban Of tn
criminal law, and the strikers of las
year by the railway, workers have re
suited in the prosecution of 1852 rail
way men at Turin for participation Il
the big general strike of last veal
They are being tried in patches of thir
ty each in the Turin law courts, an
: five days in each legal week are as
signed for the trials until all Of tn
cases are disposed of. 1t is reporte
that similar trials on a smaller seal
arc taking place at Rome. Milan. Bol
ogna and other centers involved in tn
general strike. The lowest penalty We
inflicted has been fine of Is Ira ($S.O4
and fifty days suspension of civ
rights. The law under which the me
are tried is the provision agains
strikes in the public service;