davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

dreds OF thousands Of plants at time,
frequently retaining only one, sowing
its seed and repeating the process
until had produced plant which un-
fallingly transmitted its newly ac-
qulred traits to it's progeny. With
some plants this process of fxation
is comparatively easy Other plants,
like certain species of palms, are so
absolutely, SO stubbornly fixed in their
hereditary characteristics that no
human expedient has been able to
produce an alteration so far.
eve can't select the best individual
human beings, keep them for breed
ing purposes, and kill off all the rest.
Nor is this necessary. Man has in
him the power of conscious self-im-
provement, and the exercise Of this
power makes every succeeding step
easier for the individual."
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11
Figures ON
Fitness

THE reports Of the madical exam
l. iners to the army recruiting
boards show deplorable state of
British natnonal health, according
to the medical correspondent of
"The London Times" who says:
SO far as information is at present
available the situation Is deplorable,
nothing like half of the men examined
having proved healthy in a military
sense.
Hero. for example are few figures
which, II unofficial, are yet sufficiently
accurate for practical purposes:
Out Of every nine men examined
Three were fit for service and were
good lives.
Two were more or less unfit, but able
to do something.
Four represented wreckage Of one
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

kind or another, some Of 1t hopeless,
most Of it preventable.
The picture for the whole Of the
country will, we believe, be found to
average out something after this fash
ion:
Fit men, SO per cent.
Fairly good men, % per cent
Unsound men, 81 per cent.
Totally incapacitated, 10 per cent.
This, it will be seen, is very gloomy
estimate. We must, however, realize
that many q man unfit for military SER
vice is yet fit enough to earn his liv-
ing. That being allowed for, it has
further to be borne in mind that the
examining boards were anxious to pass
as many recruits as possible. Indeed,
during the critical days of last year
every man who could reasonably be ex-
pected to help was urgently required at
the front. There can be no doubt that
had the boards been working on a civil
rather than on a military basis the
picture would have been different; in
some instances better, in others worse.
Roughly speaking, however, the
physically fit men in this country
amount to about So per cent of the
population at conservative estimate,
the unfit to 81 per cent. In other
words, there are very nearly twice as
many unfit as fit men.
1t will, we think, come as rather a
surprise to Londoners to find that their
city does not compare favorably with
other parts of the country in this re-
spect. The following percentage table
may be taken as an anticipation of
what the figures will reveal. 1t is, of
course, entirely unofficial:
Average for Lon Scot
country. don. land. Wales
Fit .....-... 36 % a. as
1t will be seen that Wales Is esti-
mated as likely to be much better than
the rest of the country, with a high av-
erage of acceptances and low average
Of total reflections. Scotland comes
next. London is in both cases worse
than the average for the whole coun-
try.
These figures, Of course, are very IN
complete, and may even, as we have
explained, be misleading unless the
special circumstances are borne in
mind. But they do serve one purpose.
They emphasize the burden which tho
fit men are called upon to bear, and
they strengthen tho demand of the fit
for measures to relieve them.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11
A MarshaI's Baton

"T am convinced that every normal
individual has, as Napoleon said, a
marshals baton in the knapsack with
which he starts OUT Mr.. Burbank said.
But if he thinks that the baton is a
magician's wand he will win no vic
tories with it. Like the plough handle,
the potential marshal's baton must be
worn smooth by the determined grip of
the owners hand.'"
Fifty years ago Mr.. Burbank was
delicate New England boy, and in
1875 he went to California for his
health, locating near Santa Rosa.
His novitiate there was spent in
abject poverty, sales from his
nursery the first year bringing him
S37. But later opportunity knocked
at his door, as the writer indicates:
His real chance did not come until
the third year, and even then it was
chance to do what every one said
could not be done. An impatient fruit
grower was making the rounds of the
California nurseries looking for 10000
young prune trees to be delivered
ready for planting within ten months.
Not nursery would undertake it.
Such a thing was considered impos-
sible. But when the struggling nur-
sery owner Of Santa Rosa heard of the
order ne went after the contract for
the 10000 trees, and Immediately
started to produce them.
Because no other seeds would
sprout so late in the season he planted
almonds in beds Of moist sand, cover.
ing them with cloth to maintain the
proper moisture and temperature. AS
the almonds sprouted they were re-
moved one by one to the nursery rows
Then he secured the surrounding
orchards for prune buds, and as soon
as the young almond trees were far
enough advanced the prune buds were
oudded into them and the tops of the
young trees were broken off, thus
forcing them to make a new growth.
Within little more than six months
young Burbank had delivered 19,025
prune trees ready for planting. He
had done the impossible"
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11
Rubber

..THE lack of suitable harbors in
Sumatra and other Far Eastern
countries, where a large part OF the
crude rubber used in this country is
produced, works a great inconvenience
In the transportation of this raw ma
terlal overseas" notes writer in "The
Argonaut." And he goes on to say:
"At present plantation owners are
compelled to load their crude rubber
on lighters, which transport it out to
the ocean liners that, on account Of the
lack Of docking facilities, must anchor
off ehore. This necessitates an extra
handling of the shipment. Realizing
the great Importance Of deep harbor
on the east coast of tho island to
accommodate tho ocean steamers that
must transport the rapidly increasing
production Of crude rubber across the
Pacific, tho government Of the Neither
lands East Indies la about to construct
a 100000 harbor at Belnwan, tho sea-
port for Medan, which is fifteen miles
inland, in the centre OF large rubber
producing region. 1t is planned to
dredge harbor deep enough to afford
docking facilities for tho largest yes
sells. About three years will be ro-
quired to complete the gigantic prof.
cct."
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11
The Shasta Daisy

An indefatigable laborer, no little
OF Mr.. Burbank's success has re-
suited from his keen perception, an
example of which the writer points
out:
While Mr.. Burbank was developing
the Shasta daisy he produced millions
OF plants and blossoms, destroyed
hincty-nine out Of every hundred, ard
continued with the seed Of the sur
Viyors. He succeeded in producing
daisy with large, snowy blossom.
with the hardness and the other quail
sies ne wanted: but all tho millions of
wn'te flowers that passed in review
before his eyes had a faint grcenish
shade At last, among several thou
sand blossoms, he found one of purest
white.
Take the seed Of the whitest one
and destroy all the others he told the
foreman.
The foreman looked the flowers
over long and carefully. BY and by
hs came back, puzzled frown on his
face.
II can't hnd any whitest one,' he
sad. They're all white
Nor could the numerous visltors
detect the siightest difference in the
eSiorsng of the daisies. until one day
~ srtist confirmed the plant breeders
Judgment Of color values. Through
conscious and deliberate training Mr.
saroank's eyes have become able to
nss<et tho minutest detail with start
ing c1earnass. He can see al q plancc
Wnssner building IL even n quarter
81 an inch out 81 true, or whether
vaii deyjates an inch per 100 feet
rom straight line"
n addition 10 his experimental
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11
Cle111enceau X-Rayed

follows it almost to the bottom Of the
thorax.
Each Of these organs has !ts fixed
place. The thorax is divided into two
parts-the circumference, which lodges
the lungs, and the centre, where are
located the heart, the aorta. the
branches Of the aorta, the veins, the
esophagus, etc. This central part is
called mediastine
Situated between the two lungs, be-
tween the vertebral column and the
breastbone, the mediastine extends
from the upper to the lower part Of
the thorax. Below. it is almost filed
by the heart; this is the inferior
mediastine. Above, it lodges the aorta,
the superior hollow vein, the windpipe;
this is the superior mediastine.
sThanks to the facility with which
wounded person can be examined
from different angles. the localization
Of projectile in the thorax is one Of
the easiest of all anatomical localizs-
tions."
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

"For example, three lots of sugarE
cane we're planted, the first being COW
cred with colored glass to exclude so
Fer cent of the suns ultra violet rays,
sunlight and the third to the COM
bined action of sunlight and of the
ultraviolet rays from a mercury vapor
lamp. Beyond this distinction other
things were equal, as, for example,
supplying the plant with the same
kind and amount of fertilizer. After
several months the second lot was
found to contain as much as 80 per
cent more sugar than the first, and the
third lot contained 8 per cent moro
sugar than the second.
at is suggested that, according to
this experiment, the time taken nor
mally for the development Of the cane
to maturity, which Is as rule
twenty months. would be very con-
siderably reduced If only an economic
and practical source Of ultraviolet
rays COulu po 1OuuO. L Ho use Ol HcT-
curry lamps on any scale Is, Of course,
impracticable, but there Is possibility
Of producing the rays perhaps by less
expensive means. Pineapples submit
ted to the rays for forty minutes each
morning developed fruit ripper, juicier
and larger than that exposed to sun
light only.
1T was further noticed that banana
leaves and stalks which had been cut
and placed in water kept their original
freshness even after two weeks when
they had been exposed to ultraviolet
rays, whereas the same materials un-
treated faded completely after six or
aoven days. This treatment when
carefully carried out, therefore, delays
tho deterioration Of tho fruit, and so
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

1-Xroy photograph of the torun (tuu toce) Right lung
Cleft lang. S-Heurt 4-Aorta- 5-Vcrtebral column
6-CoIurbone 7-Liver. 8-StomGch
@Xyay photograph of the orur (profle): Lungs 2-Cleav
representing the back of the nedastine
4Aorta. 5VcrtebraE coumn. 6Fore acau of thorax
7-Liper.
Bullet struck in the fore Of the nedastnc from the
'front.' 1T IS projected the right border of the
the sid lies behind tho is in the back
and iouer part Of the medastine 'front.' against
the silhouette OF the heart from the sd IL be noticed
it IS IN reality behind the heart Ballet the fore pay Of
the 7nediastsne Ike Bullet B. appears front of heart
bu the profile photo locates beyond question behind that
Bullet d, both from front and the side floats
,cihin the silhouette Of the heart; it has an intra
position Ballet is not IN the rer against silhouette
st s seen the profile pcmre shoes that
Of the lung, tho back &
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

and valuable oil" is now
being made from the despised
cookie burr, which heretofore has
been chiefly associated with stick
ing to the clothes of the passersby.
Details have been explained by
L. B. Rhodes, oil chemist of the
North Carolina Department of
Agriculture, in an address delivered
at Raleigh, N. c., before the North
Carolina section of the American
Chemical Society The A. c. S.
bulletin quotes Mr.. Rhodes as
follows:
"The cookie burr is coarse plant
with rough leaves ana prickly head.
1t is widely distributed through the
United States so that it is more or
less a nuisance in most localities, and
is very abundant throughout the South.
If the burrs could be obtained sys-
tematically in sufficiently large guam
titles, they could be easily milled.
"Those which / have gathered were
either dry or in half dry condition
They were first cut In half by . trim
ming board and the kernels mashed.
They were then placed in a box and
vigorously shaken. The hulls were
taken out, leaving the kernels at the
bottom. These kernels were then
nnnnNn6 r,,b IN
the black shucks were removed after
which the husks were forced out by
blowing. The ground kernels were
then wrapped in cheesecloth and pressed
between cold stea plates.
"The oil thus obtained was allowed
to settle for three or four days and
then filtered. 1t is of light yellow
shade; has clear sparkling appear
ance and pleasant odor and an agree
able nutty taste. 1t keeps we'll without
becoming rancid. On account of this
quality it should eventually be used
as substitute in the dietary for other
vegetable oils.
THE press cake left after expressing
the oil should be of value as food
for cattle and certainly it can be read
lily used as a fertilizer"
Mr.. Rhodes said that he had no
doubt that before long the cookie
burr oil would have place in COM
merce, because of the richness of
the kernel and ease with which the
oil can be extracted. The yield
from the kernel is about 80 per
cent, and the kernels constitute
about the same proportion of the
bulk of the crude burrs. The press
cake contains 40.34 per cent of
protein.
With such things in their favor
the familiar roadside pests may
prove of real service to both man
and beast.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

he accompllshes In his daily routine.
1t is only question Of arousing this
capacity and establishing tho habit Of
putting 1t to It's best uses constantly.
Sporadic excellence and Improve
ment will not get n man very far. Like
the plant breeder, he must learn how
to fix tho new traits and character
istlcs he develops so that the improve
ment VIII he lasting one that can be
transmitted TO future generations.
"In my experiments have often
grown, examined and destroyed hum
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

'AThe type Is found In California
fields, but is new in Texas. 1t con-
sists of circular basin foored with
three inches of wire-strengthened con-
crete and covered with concrete roof
supported on timber posts and girders
"The bowl was provided by making a
fve-foot excavation in q limestone
stratum and throwing up an earthen
embankment seventeen feet in height.
BY tying together the wiring in the
roof and slope slabs and connecting
the pipe lines likewise with the roof
reinforcing, precaution has been taken
against fire being caused by lightning"
A concrete cap is said to lengthen
the life Of chimney:
"The life of many chimney would
be greatly heightened If concrete cap
was made for it when built. The cap
holds the chimney in alignment, pre-
vents the top bricks from becoming
loose, acts as q watershed, and the
chimney looks much neater than if no
cap is used.
"Such cap will add years to the life
of an old chimney, but any loose bricks
at the top of the chimney must be
carefully cleaned and set in fresh m mor-
tar before the concrete is put no.
"The concrete cap should project one
inch beyond the brick on all sides of
the chimney. On the top it slants,
with fall of one inch to the foot, the
concrete being four inches thick at the
thinner edge. The cap should be made
by tamping rather dry mixture-one
part cement and four parts sand-into
a form made the proper size for the
chimney"
Concrete telegraph poles are now
manufactured in Connecticut:
vertical moulds are used at plant
in West Haven, Conn, for casting con-
crete telegraph poles. Four of the
moulds are supported by towerlke
frame of timber. Chains, hung from
the top of the tower, are used for rein
forcing the upper half of the poles, the
tower half being strengthened by a
hollow steel core held upright in the
centre of the mould. The mixture is
hoisted to the top Of the tower and
poured into the moulds, which are re-
moved early enough to dress the poles
to smooth surface before they set"
Concrete anchors have been found
to be practical:
Concrete anchors are the logical
successors to the concrete chip, and
seem to be equally practical. Made of
reinforced concrete, they are claimed
to possess several advantages over the
traditional type. Initial cost is very
low, making loss of an anchor in a
storm less serious matter than be-
fore, and upkeep is practically nothing
since they will not rust nor corrode
and hence never need chipping OF
painting.
"There are two kinds now being man.
: ufactured-a slab type, for barges, anc
) a fuke type, used for floating fish
traps. Neither looks very acceptable
to a sailor, but the latter most nearly
resembles the familiar steel anchor
having regulation steel-capped fukes
with edges bevelled and surfaces
smoothed. These anchors are now
being produced in large quantities, in
sizes ranging from 500 to 5000 pounds. "
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11
Is Your Garden Backward? ?
Try the Ultra Violet Ray

ONE remarkable experiments recently have been
regard influence of ultraviolet rays
~ velopment sugar cane pineapple banana,
according writer in "The London Lancet" These
seem that if that the atmosphere largely
absorbed rays sunlight the worlds production
vegetable would be very materially increased
The writer continues:
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

would help its export to remote des-
tination in sound condition.
"The ultraviolet rays, of course, are
we'll known for their germicidal prop
critics and have been used as a means
of sterilizing drinking water even on
a large scale, as in several towns in
France. 1t would be interesting if
some relationship were proved to exist
between this sterilizing action of the
rays and their stimulating effect on
plant development"
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

crete slab, eight feet wide, with wood
cushions for the rails, is the salient
feature of the arrangement. The thick
ness varies, for experimental reasons,
from 1875 inches to "a inches Also as
an experiment, both continuous timber
bearings and short wood blocks were
used under the rails on different sec
tions.
"The concrete was moulded in bot
tomless forms on the we'll tamped road
bed, at a point where it runs through
a gravel cut, and no ballast was used.
The wood cushions for the rails are
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

work, Mr.. Burbank is a good deal
of a, philosopher and pounds home
some Of his ideas as follows:
81 have little sympathy for trers,
slackers and winners. I prefer the
doers. Providence and nature intended
every normal human being to render
the service for which he is fitted 1t
has been proved time and again that
the normal man has in him the latent
capacity for far greater things than
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11
pT%WO X-ray photographs taken
b of Premier Clemenceau i'm.
u mediately after the attempt

b of Premier Clemenceau i'm.
IL. mediately after the attempt
on his life by the anarchist
Coffin were included among the ex-
hibits at the would-be assassin s
trial. The Paris weekly "L'Illustra-
ton" has secured permission to re-
produce these interesting photo
graphs, or, rather, their skeletonized
diagrams. They are accompanied by
an anatomical explanation by DR..
Maingot, well known French scien-
tist, who says:
ain the thorax are domiciled the
principal organs Of life-the heart and
the lungs. Near these number of big
arteries and veins pass through the
thorax, among them the aorta, with
its ramifcations; also the esophagus,
which connects the pharynx with the
stomach, the two forming part of the
alimentary canal. The esophagus is
leaning on the vertebral column and
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11
4 THOROUGH and authentic
"a review of concrete ships
which the Uulted States

|
which the Uuited States
Geological Survey has Just
published, according to an editorial
in Concrete Craft" emphasizes
some of the reasons for extensive
concrete craft construction. The
writer, Mr.. Robert W. Wesley,
points out:
"(1) Materials easily obtained and
the steel readily available; (2) labor
required is less skilled and can he re-
cruited from different classes than or
dnary shipyard labor; (3) cost of con-
crete craft is equal or less than steel
vessels--and no upkeep required; (4)
the time of construction is shorter"
In another place he refers to the
cost estimates by the Shipping
Board as putting concrete ship dead
weight cost between $100 and $125,
as compared with wood ships $165
and steel ships 1922. Irrespective
of war conditions and changes it is
reasonable to suppose that this ratio
will maintain. But what can be
expected when large experience in
concrete craft begins to save costs
throughout? It will be like any
other new industry and the margin
of saving compared with any other
floating equipment will be one of
the wonders of the engineering age.
That concrete as a factor in the
industrial world has an illimitable
future might be predicted from the
manifold methods Of application
that are revealing themselves.
"At the present moment" writer
in "The Scientific American" as
serts, "the concrete freight car is
one of the latest demonstrations of
the utility of concrete. AS far back
as 1909 practical plans were already
formulated for the manufacture of
reinforced concrete freight cars, but
the construction of trial car was
delayed by the war. Only recently
the first car of the gondola make
was completed by a Chicago COM
pany and tested under service condi-
tions.
"The basic feature Of the design"
says the writer, ais steel skeleton
body forming the outer boundary of
the car. and mounted upon a steel un-
derframe. The concrete walls and floor
are contained within this frame, and,
together with the frame and floor rein
forcement, are connected to and inter-
locked with the underframe. The steel
frame forms the finishing and protect
i've edges, thus entirely shielding the
concrete and also serving as complete
system of bearing members.
"In the construction of the test car
the cement gun was used. The forms
were placed on the outside of the car
and the cement was shot against them
from within. The outside of the car
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

screwed to wood sills, imbedded in the
concrete. Although the concrete base
is continuous with the track, 9-16-inch
expansion joints, cushioned with as
phalt, are provided by moulding the
slabs in length 16 feet 51s inches.
'The ends Of the slabs are mortised
to guard against side shifting. It is
agreed that the concreted track rides
more easily than adjacent tracks of
usual construction, and maintenance is
low"
How concrete is used for ship re-
pairing is further explained:
What may prove to be new era in
ship repairing has been inaugurated by
New-York tribune., 1919-05-11

a Buenos Ayres firm. A wooden vessel
of some 200 tons displacement, with
ribs quite rotted away at the bottom,
was reinforced by new concrete ribs
being cast between the existing wooden
ribs. These were secured to the skin
of the vessel by means of screws
being driven into the latter aud the
concrete set around them. The con-
crete also serves as ballast, hence
nothing is added to the weight of the
vessel. The repair was quite success
full"
Concrete rowing machines are
used by the United States navy:
"Those who have handled only the
light oars Of pleasure boats on gentle
sea may not fully realize the difficulties
of managing the multiple cared aux
iliary craft used by the navy. For
the purpose of training sailors in this
tion at Cape May, N. j., has built a
concrete rowing machine, consisting Of
dummy boat of huge size with row
Of oarlocks the full length of each side.
The machine was built on dry land, but
now occupies the centre of concrete
tank, or pond. A bridge at each end
establishes permanent shore connec-
tions."
A shortage of steel in Texas led
to the use of concrete in oil reser-
voirs:
Shortage of steel has caused rein
forced concrete to be used in the con-
struction of $50, O,OOO-barrel oil reser-
voir near Gainesville, Tex.