Evening star., 1914-07-26

ncie IuucH more elaDOfate. IWenty-
fve thousand flies were captured. They
were fed on brown sugar for twenty
TOUR hours because it was found that
such food was best to develo~ their full
powers OF flight. The flies were divided
into armies of 5000 each. and each lot
was busted with a coIored powdered
chalk. In one case fly Travelled LOO
yards within forty-eight hours of the
the British. constitutes the longest
flight that has yet been recorded
While the American scientists are
willing to yield the fly marathon
sist that the United States is the great
est winner. for the most desirable thing
to learn about germ-carrying house
fly is his inability to cover very much
ground. England wins, yet she loses.
Experts Of the United States bureau of
mines are very much Interested in private
tests which will be
1Ytilizinp made in Salt Lake City
OF new method of ex-
WdSte Codl. tracing from waste
coal various by-products. such as crude
petroleum, paraff1n wax and ammonia
This method of utilizing large part Of
the coal which is now wasted was thought
out by John D. Scott of Detroit. and
private interests have undertaken to dem
onstrate its worth in series OF investi-
cations.
DR.. Joseph A. Holmes. director of the
federal bureau of mines, and his as
sociates have for years called attention
to the great loss of natural resources In
the wastage of coal slack and coal dust,
and If the method of utilizing this mine
refuse is discovered. they say. it will re-
suit in benefits both to the coal operators
and to the general public.
Coal slack and coal dust now cost the
owners Of mines about 20 cents a ton
to remove. The new method of extract
ing by-products from this material which
has been called to the attention of the
governments mining engineers Will
make this refuse worth from $40 to 81
a ton By-products of this value will be
produced in the form Of crude petroleum.
paraff1n wax and ammonia. Taken into
consideration that approximately ~ per
cent of the coal taken from the ground
Is now wasted in the form of slack and
dust 1t can be readily seen that, the new
method. II thoroughly efficient. will re-
suit In great saving The new system
is said to be simple and the principal
feature is to place the coal under heat
of 6OO to 700 degrees. Fahrenheit. and to
reduce the gases which are collected.
The Detroit mans method OF producing
coal bv-products may be used IN the
manufacture of coke from good coal. as
we'll as in the manufacture of paraffin
wax, petroleum and ammonia. in the
utilization Of the coal refuse. The ad-
vantages of the new system over the Old
method of coke manufacture according
to the Information received by the gov
ernment experts. Is that 1t saves MANY
Of the gases which are now wasted and
turns them into valuable by-products.
K
Heads OF a number Of bureaus in sew
eral of the government departments are
worried over the opera
Expenses of tion of a section OF the
District of Columbia ap-
LECTURERS. preparation bill passed in
July. 1912, but which has just become
operative. This paragraph prohibits the
expenditure of public money by employees
of the United States government or the
District of Columbia, in attendance at
any meeting or convention of any So
ciety or association, unless such expenses
are authorized by specific acts Of Con-
gress.
At the time the provision was incor-
porated in the District of Columbia bill
and the prohibition was made to apply to
any officer or employe of the United
States or Of the District of Columbia.
great stir was created In the bureaus
whose experts are frequently called out
to deliver lectures or addresses before
scientific societies and convention meet
ings The objections to the provision
were very strong in all departments. par
ticularly In the Department of Agricul-
ture. whose friends managed to have in
corporated In the agricultural act the
same year a provision that nothing shall
be construed to prohibit the payment
for appropriations for the Department
of Agriculture for expenses Incidental to
the delivery of lectures. giving of instruc-
ton or the requirement of information at
meetings by its employees"
This exemption from the operation of
the law related solely to the Department
Of Agriculture. In the following years
appropriation bill for legislative. exec
utive and judicial expenses of the govern
ment the bureau of standards Of the
United States Department Of Commerce
also obtained an exemption in having
incorporated in its appropriation for con-
tingencies of all kinds a clause for trav-
cling expenses, Including expenses of at
tendance at meetings of professional and
technical societies connected with the Of
fetal work Of the bureau
Although the original prohibition for
the attendance Of lectures was passed in
July, 1912. in the District Of Columbia ap-
preparation act for the fiscal year 1913
the section did not become operative until
the present month. because of a clause in
the sundry civil bill. passed in June
1913. which declared that the prohibition
against lecture expenses would not be
operative until the beginning of the fiscal
year 1914, which was July l. Many of
the chiefs of bureaus outside of the De-
partment of Agriculture and bureau of
standards, which are already exempted
and are free to incur lecture expenses,
had hoped that all departments would be
exempted in this years appropriation
bills, but such is not the case. and the
law is now operating. 1t is said the
prohibition will work a hardship on a
number Of bureaus which depend to a
large degree upon lectures in informing
the public about the governments work.
The bureau which will suffer most be-
cause Of the prohibition against travelling
expenses to deliver lectures and ad-
dresses will be several branches of the
United States Department of the Inte-
rior. including the geological survey the
bureau Of mines, the bureau of educa-
ton and the reclamation service, the
United States children's bureau Of the
Department of Labor and the United
States public health service Of the Treas
ury Department. All Of these bureaus
have experts who are called upon fire.
quent!y by associations of all kinds to de-
liver lectures. In the future the services
OF these men cannot be obtained unless
the lectures are delivered outside of the
office hours and all expenses are paid
from private sources.
RAYMOND w. PULLMAN.
TRIAL IN PARIS.