The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, August 1, 1897, Page 19

THE SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, AUGUST. 1, 1897. A. E. Bailey of this City, who has passed some years 1n Australia, has {aken pains to make sketches from photographs ef the remarkably small sailboats, such as are to be seen in Sydmey harbor annually on “Anniversary day,” on the occasion of the great regatta. In a true sportsmanlike spirit he has secured measurements. The sketches convey the exact impression of the open boais as they appear when un- der their clouds of racing canvas. They look to the average observer to be as plentifully endowed with sails as the storied ship of Vanderdecken, the Flying Dutchman, which carried every kite in the hardest gales. I have ascertained from the best pos- sible authority,” said Mr. Bailey yester- day, “that a 16-footer, under racing can- vas, has shown a sail area of 480 square feet. The 16-100ters carry a 22-foot boom, a 14-foot paff, the hoist being 15 feet and the after leach 24 feet. On some of the open craft the bowsprit is nearly the length of the boat. Every season develops new improvements and faster boats are launched. Changes are made in both hulls and sails. “The builders are allowed the widest lat- itude to display their ability, all being ambitious to produce a champion ir some class. Boats are even brought to Sydney from Meibourne and Brisbane, a distance of 600 miles, that they may compete for the championship in their respective classes. The finest races are often won by only a length. “Sydney has many sailing-boat clubs, each with a large membership, and the clubs are all in good financial condition. Nearly every Saturday afternoon there are races for prizes, and these frequent con- tests naturally stimulate the interestin boat sailing. The boats carry only live ballast, that is their crews, no fixed ballast. “Formerly fixed ballast was used, but there were some fatal accidents, the RECENT DISCOVERIES ON Much has been told of the results of the labors of archaologists and bibliophiles, in the way of resurrecting the history of Jerusalem in ancient days. Most of what we hear is in its nature second hand, therefore, when an opportunity comes to learn | straight trom the brain of a master in bi lore, the facts his own observations have collected for him are well worth considering. | Prolessor Henry A. Harper, a man of mark among litterateurs, whose mind has | for years been bent upon the revealing of the past through exploration in the vicinity of Jerusal-m, presents herewith a story that teems with interesting facts which he has learned ana for the first time made public, and tels to the layman the tale of the revealing of wonders that were supposed to have disappeared forever from human sight. Thisis the stalement specinlly prepared by Professor Harper, who vouches for the authenticity of all the discoveries and explorations to which he refers: “All exisiing maps as to the extent of Old Jerusalem on its southern side are wrong. What was the position until thelast ‘inds’? Taking the southeast anele of the Haram wall; we knew from Sir Charles Warren thata wall or portion was un- | derneath the debris on ‘Ophel,’ but now we find that the city will extend more than | 700 yards beyond that southeast angle. “A Jewish wall sixteen fest thick (inone portion nineteen feet) extends beyond the pool of Siloam. The dimensions of the true pool have been traced. Also itis proved that the wall included both the pools of Siloam. The ‘pool’ spoken of in the | sacred text has undoubtedly been found. It is hoped the site may be cleared out. ‘‘Here again the spade shows how faulty all the ‘guesses’ of authorities were, for these savants agreed to leava the pools outside the walis, and yet there was that clear statement in the Old Testament that the rulers and the people of Jerusalem clearly understood and valued the water supply, for does not the passage run: by should | the Kings of Assyria coms here and find water? We read of the steps taken to pre- | serve that particular water supply. - Was it reasonable, then, to think that on this side of the city two important pools would be left undefended and'open toan invader? ‘*Then, again, a flight of broad steps has been fourd, apparently leading down tothe pools. Thirty-two of these steps, or ‘stairs,” have been uncovered. The ex- plorers will follow tliem up and see where they lead to. Those who found the stairs’ consider them to be Jewish ; those who have not seen them sav they consider them ‘clearly ofthe Byzantine ‘age.’ The interest aboutthem is that Nehemiah (iiiz15) | makes mention of certain stairs ‘which go down from the city ot David’; also in chapter xii:37 of the thanksgiving procession that ‘went up by the stairs of the city o: David.”. ‘From the position of these stairs and the pool of Siloam, now uncovered, iv. would app:ar reasoniible to conclude that down these ‘stairs’ our Lord must him- seif have gone when he visited ‘the ‘pool.” Probably the true meaning of these *stairs’ will be found this yaar, as the discoverers have instructions to push on. “For. those whose 1nierest in Jerusalem excavations is confined mainly to early Clristian churches there has been a great ‘find,” for the church of Eudoxia has been uncovered—all its ‘plan laid bare. It was built across the ‘stairs’ I have spoken of and ciose to the pool of Siloam. The old wall found is in general eight feet thick. Read :any -of the Old Teiament statements as to the walls of Jerusalem, their | strength, etc, and say if a wall of the thickness now found does not bear out the statements. ‘Anotler matter, but this it may be said is conjecture. It is distinctly asserted in the Bible (I Chron. ix:31) that David and Solomon were buried ‘in the city of | they were assured the tunnsl would be far helow any grave. THE SITE OF JERUSALEM. Dayid’; so also Hezekiah (I1 Chron. xxxi1:33): ‘They buried him in the chiefest (or highest) of the sepulchres of the sons of David.’ From oth-r passages, both in the Bible and in Josephus, we gather that the royal tombs were close to this great flight of stairs; and it is the confident hope of all those who bave studied the question that ere long we shall have the sensational story of the discovery both of David’s tomb and also of Solomon’s. *To some this may seem an idle dream; I do not think so. The Jewisn historian tells that these tombs were carefully hidden, but if the whole of the ground is exam- ined with the care and skill already shown by Dr. Bliss I do not see anything to pre- vent him from finding these tombs. FEusebius and Jerome place the tomb of Davia at Bethlehem; the Roman Lady Paula expected to find the mausoleum of David at Bethlehem; so we cannot expect any help from the early Christian faihers. “Then again there is a passage in Isaiah xxii, the 9t to the 11th verse: ‘Ye rathered together the waters of the lower pool. * ** The houses have ye broken down to fortify the wall. * Ye made also a ditch between the two walls for the water of the old pool” The Revised Version says 'a reservoir’ between the two walls, What looks like a ‘ditch’ between the two walls is now found. Nehemian speaks (ii:13) ‘of the gate of the valley.’ - When Jerusalem was besic ed by the Babylonians we read (Kings xxv, 4): ‘And the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is by tue king’sgarden. * * * And the king went the way toward the plain.’ “This is now made quite clear, quite real by the discovery of thoss great walls, past the Siloam pools, which are of course by the 'king’s garden.’ The ‘way of tue gate’ was probably the one Nehemiah speaks of as the ‘gate of the valley’ (which I bave alreaay noted has been found). This ‘gate between the walls,’ this ‘gate of the valley,’ does indeed lead to the ‘way toward the plain,” which of course is the plain o! Jericho, where we are told the ‘Chaldees’ overtook the flying King, ' 8v, bit by bit, the Bible statement is being vroved by excavations, -I believe that gateway has been found. Nehemiah speaks of the city as being so ‘large’; the increased size we now see these walls inclosed fully justifies the term ‘large.” “How much farther the city extended south and east I will not venture to hazard an opinion; we must wait. Shafts without end, varying from 'the depths of tive or six feet to fifty and sixty feet were opencd in every direction. Rarely isa shaft sunk that there is not found some fragment of the old city—a mosaic pavement, a bath- room, at one blace” a paved ‘street or road. Then from these shafts galleries were driven along walis or streets, everywhere finding some relic of the past. “More than a mile of galleries were open when ‘I wasthere. Now, alas! all packed up and shafts closed; for bear in mind the difficulty of all Jerusalem excava- tions is this—that the city is densely pooulated. You cannot explore there, and out- side every inch of ground is of great and increasing value. Every surface crop has tobe bought from the Feliahin. It would surprise even a market-gardener in Covent | Garden to hear of the value the Fellahin puts upon every cabbage or caunlifiower when they find Dr. Bliss wishes to excavate. “There wasian old Arab woman from Siloam village who asserted that the whole ground belonged to her. Every pay day she acted a scene at the mouth of every shaft, threatening to throw herself down, and always appeased by a small dole of silver. Then the Jews refused permission to tunnel under their graveyards, thongh sailors getting entangled in the gear and being taken down by the sinking boat. That led to the doing away with anything except live ballast.”” These Sydney boats have often been mentioned by tourists who have visited the Aniipodes, but no one has furnished the same amount of detail as Mr. Bailey. Some of Mr. Bailey’s pictures are pub- lishea with this article. Seeing is be:iev- ing, as the old saying runs, and the illus- trations will be accepted as satisfactory by those of the readers of THE CALL who are interested in one of the most interesting forms of aquatic sport. The art and practice of racing small boats under heavy sail has been studied with much success in this locality, and the local yacut clubs contain as expert sailers of the lilliputs as can be found anywhere on earth, and demonstration has been amply furnished. But even with all local experience in view the clouds of sail which the Australian boats are shown to be carrying must thrill with admiration e T e our devotees of a wet shest and a flowing sea. ““To the nautical eye,” says Mr. Bailey, “the Australian boats present the acme of perfection, They have fine models, are spick and span as paint can make them, and the unusual spread of white canvas | that they carry almost surpasses belief. When running they are almost sub- merged, and :the man at the tiller must keep his weather-eye open and not get rattled. The slightest misjudgment will fill the craft and give the crew a wetting. “The eicht-footers are the spunkiest little craft that sit on the water. They are called the babies of the mosquito fleet, being the smallest sailing-boat recognized by the regatta committee. They are lim- ited to two hands, and are mostly sailed | by youn - lads, who show marked ability in handling theselittle boats. *The 16-footers are more in vogue and the pet class. They are made of cedar, carvel built, are copper fastened and var- nished outside. They carry five hands, including & boy as bailer. = The boy hasa wet job of it. There Isno let up when under racing canvas, and all his attention is needed to keep afloat. “None of these boats are expensive. They are all very fast and afford much svort. The extra outlay required to build a large boat would debar suany ambitions youth from owning their own racing craft. Ownership is the secret of success with young skippers in the Antipodes. *‘Open boat racing is carried to perfec- tion in Sydney harbor and has the en- couraging support of young lovers of this nealth-giving sport. The Austratian boat- sailers are artists at the tiller, plucky and iull of ginger. The boatmen are fine, jolly fellows, excellent swimmers, who revel in a brisk breeze when closely pressed in a race, and are ready to put up more kites and make a game fight to the finish under mainsail, jib, topsail, squaresail, ringtail and watersail. and will take the chances of turning turtie and treating the boys to a bath.”” William Crookes, the famous European savant. announces it as a fact that within five years it will be possible to make dia- monds to order, just as it is to make a suit of clothes. All that we lack, he savs, is development of the proce:s, the intrinsic points of which we know full well. There are no mysteries to solve or hidden prin- ciples to ferret out. Professor Crookes is the inventor of the famous Crookes tube, without which the X ray would never have been discovered. It is evident to any one that a person who ' ad brains sufficient to make this contribution to science is at least worthy of respectful at- tention. Protessor Crookes says that now, thanks to Professor Moissan, diamonds can be manufactured in the laboratory. Such gems are minutely microscopic. it is true, but, with crystalline form and appear- ance, color, hardness and action on light, are the seme as the natural gem. first necessity is to select pure iron and to pack it in a carbon crucible with pure charcoal from sugar. Half a pound of this iron is put into the body of” an elec- tric furnace, and a powerful are, absorb- Diamonds Can Be Made, Says P The | ing about a hundred horsepower, is formed close above it between carbon poles. The iron rapidly melts and satu- rates itself with carbon. | After a few minutes’ heating to a high temperature the current is stopped and the dazzling, fiery crucible is plunged into | cold water until it cools below a red heat. Iron increases in volume from the mo- ment of passing from the liquid to the solid state. The expansion of the inner liquid on solidifying produces an enor- mous pressure, under stress of which the dissolved carbon separates out in a trans- parent, dense, crystalline form. This is the diamond. To obtain the diamond from the metallic ingot, or mass of metal, r-quires a long and tedious process, and the specimens thus obtained are, as Professor Crookes | says, only microscopic. The largest arti- ficial diamond yet obtained is less than one milliliter across. Many circumstances | point to the conclusion that the diamond of the chemist and the diamond of the mines are strangely akin in origin. It is | clearly apparent, Professor Crookss says, | that the diamond genesis, or origin, must have taken place at great depths and under bigh pressure. Therefore, thoun- rofessor Crookes. sands of feet down in the earth there from time to time takes place on a gigantic scale the same process described as occur- ring in the laboratory of the chemist. In the latter the resuits are minute. I[n the former they are greater, in proportion to the size of the experiment “It is clearly apparent,” says Professor Crookes, “that we have really discovered one of the processes of nature, of which the world has heretofore been in ignor- ance. Our manufaciured diamonds are minute, but they are genuine. In the diamond fields the diamonds are often found in the mud, round about ereat holes thatlead into the earth unkanown distances. These holes, says the York Herald, are called diamond for out of them, scientists have declared, and with very good evidence in support of their assertions, the diamonds have come some time, Itis believed that after these openings were made in the earth they were filled from below, and the diamonds, formed at some ecpoch tou remote to imagine, were thrown out with the mud in a volcanic eruption, together with all kinds of debris, crushed from the sides of adjacent rocks. HENRY V. HARPER.” IME&QXE:MENT IN want to go—which is to Klondyke. Luck- again,” observed a seafaring individual | ily fer a ot of em they can’t go on the as be glanced in at the door of the Alaska | cars, 80 they boards the ships; and then they putsona long face about the ‘danger’ of the ocean .and the disadvantage of £0ing on the water instead of on the land. Commercial Company’s office and saw the numerous applicants for berths on the next northbound stezmer. “But they have to be driven toit.” “What do you mean?”’ was asked. The seafaring individual turned and spat with great deliberation and accuracy at a cigar-stub in the gutter. “‘Bimply that people are taking to the water as a means of getting where they Y .. //'Jfi. Z~2 Humph! Thart talk makes me weary, As though the water wasn’t the safest. Any- DEVICES body that knows anything about it knows itis.” “Well, I.don’t,"” declared the other, du- biously. “I'm a good deal Jike the darky we read about. His immortal remark was more than the usual number and variety | call ‘dangers.’ ” | The civilian seemed to admit the truth of this,whereat his yoluble informant pro- ceeded to launch forth on a new tack. Deserting the Arctic regions he drifted into generalities in reference to the safety of ocean travel, taking for his theme the apropos circumstance that a new device had just been contrived for the still fur- ther protection of those who go down to the sea in ships. “It's not exactly a new thing,” he ex- plained; “*but it's an improvement over an old"thing that has been tried numerous times-and failed. Right lately the Society for the Benefit of the Shipwrecked at Boulogne has been carrying on some ver!r sucoessful experiments with the throwling, finding it possible now ‘to reach a person in the water at considerable distance by means of an arrow shot from a cannon and carrying a line with it. “Experience has shown that the cannon used by life-savers on the French coast de not render the best service possible, fo. “he " reason that - the projectiles launcled from them have to encounter not only the resistance of the cora, but also that of the wind. Asa general rule when a ship is wrecked the wind is blow- ing most violently on to the coast, and the to the effect that ‘When you is in an ac- cident on dry land, dar you.is, but when you gets in a wreck at sea and goes down, whar isyou? I myself prefer to take my wrecks on dry land.” I prefer to have no wrecks at all, my- self,” retorted the seafaring individual, with a half-contemptuous curl of the lip. “*And qu the sea we don’t have any—that is, comparatively speaking. The propor- ‘tion of smashups on the rail to accidents.| of hardships and what you landiubbers | ', rid of this difficulty is to launch the projectile, not against the wind, but, so to speak, in the wind. In other words, it should be launched not from the land, but from a ship on the water. In such a case the greater the tempes: the more force the projectile will have, As for danger to the life-saving crew, there is no reason why their vessel cannot be kept clear of the rocks and other perils.. “As there are serviceable tugs at most ports of any size, exveriments of this nature can be made even.in very bad weather, All that is necessary is to see that the apparatus for launching the pro- jectile is properly fix-d on the bridge, for it can be readily seen any inattention' to details would surely result in failare. An ingenious apparatus has been invented by M. Pignet, the object being to render this work easy.and to insure its success. - The apparatus is contained in a box in which the various lines are placed, and from which they can be readily unwound when needed. It consists of a drum-like cylin- der, with a firm lid; containing <ufficient cord to reach the vessel or shore, accord- ing to'the conditions existing. -[n it the line is placed in successive layers or beds, each bed providing room for several meters of cord. Furthermore, each lina is sepa- rated from-its successor by a disk of lixht paper, which-is so arranged as to prevent the line on one bed from interfering with the line on another bed, ‘this -precaution on the water is in the neighborhood of 75 per cent, or even greater. Those people going to the goldfields will have a safe trip as long as they're on a vessel, even in ‘that parl of the world, which possesses more violently it blows the more it re- duces the force of-the projectile, the re- sult being that the usefulness of the latter is much diminished. “It sclaimed that the only way to get being necessary since the line is pressed down by a spring, which is fastened to the cover of the box. “The box is of modérate size, is by no vse. Therecent experiments show that it can be made of great service. The Louis Fontaine lifeboat carefully tested it in the open sea and found it worked ad- mirably, and it's only a question of time Wwhen.we'll have the system in operation in this country, and right on this coast.” The seafaring - individual eut a fresh supply :of tobacco from a well-chipped plug and adjusted itat the proper - angle between his loquacious jaws. *When that time comes,” concluded he, shutting up his jackkiife, ‘‘ocean ‘ travel will be resorted to as'a positive protection- to life and a promoter of longevity.' He Was Acquitted. On one occasion John McSweeny, a | famous ‘lawyer, was engaged as. counse! for the defense in a provincial muraer case. -The case looked hopeless. - Mr. Mc- Sweeny submitted no evidence for the de- fense. Believing that the trial was won, the State’s Attorney made only a few per- functory remarks in'conclusion. Then the great ‘leader bezan in quite a conver- sationai tone. No reference was made to the murder, but Mr., McSweeny drew a vivid picture of a pretty country cottage, a loving wife preparing supper, three ruddy-faced youngsters looking up the road to.see “pap: coming home to sup- per. Suddenly the speaker stopped. Drawing himself up to his full height he sreat advantage of being always ready for ! FOR SAVING SHIPWRECKED SAILORS “Gentloemen, you must send him home to them!” A roar of applanse followsd, and one grizzled old juror blurted out: *We'll do.it, sir; we'll do it!" Mr. McSweeny instantly stopped and .sat down. 'Fhe jury brought in 2 verdict of acquittal, without Ieaving t.eir seats. The prisoner, with tears streaming down his cheeks, - wrung his couasel’s hdnds and thanked him aggiu and -again. But between his sobs he:managed to say: *No other man in the world could have done that. Wiy, sir; I have no wife or children. I never even was married, you koow.”—Tit-Bits. China took its name from Tsin, an emperor who founded a dynasty three hundred years before the Christian era. He was the monarch who built the Great ‘Walland accomplished many otber works of utility to the empire. {tisalso called the “Celestial Empire” because most of exclaimed, in a tone which startled the means cumbersomé and possesses the whole courtroom : its rulers claimed to be of heavenly descent.