The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, March 13, 1904, Page 12

THE Blowing a Fuse — the the on an e greatest ch a dase ionally in of fuse some unex- It i t everyone Dg a panic. rable th expected t t the happen- indication of- s overloaded, it s work, although he f steam may P e e piston, and not cause er L e other hand, a ma- t h erloaded, tries its best (o éo tb wn upon It it can n speed it will run at wha it can. As the speed e . The ent through the ses, & the motor adjusts tee that speed at whith the turn- ing effort sufficient to cause roia- rk h will flow through is standing setill is in r in excess of that s designed to carry; well-designed motor us for the motor will the motor has been néeed, in a t dangerc r, if allowed to con- the windings to a dan- nd destroy the insula- it on fire; and it occurrence, whether due to careless handling of the car or nexpected that the fuses s simply a short f such size that it will be poss. setting s prevent this ses, a fuse means that one of the s on the car has operated motor. The the circuit from the m 1se is £ ed b which opens whenever the rea an electromagnet, current hes a certain dangerous value. This instalied in addition to the placed on the roof of ver the motorman's is easily reached, and it rate at a higher current because the cir- most instantane- tie time for the Now, a motor can two a current stroy it if applied for a The circuit-breaker, are of heavy overloads, otects the motor against currents which are dan- for a considerable cars ften tand for a second or lows there is generally f the metal of the fuse explosion. These explo- cause a report and some hen the circuit-breaker 1 draws an electric arc in king the circuit, and as in this arc sid it of energy is dis- tilizati slight sipated in heating the air, there may be here also something of an explosion; but neither case is there any danger 1o the passengers when the apparatus i nstalled. The fuse and the circuit-breaker are safety devices, the operation of which indicates, not that there is danger to those on the car, but properly that dange to the motors has been averted.—Electrical Review. S - — Odd Accident | ——— e — + A celebrated doctor in Rheims, while visiting 2 patient and listening to his troubles, put his hand in his pocket and mechanical rubbed together some pastils which were there. Suddenly a slight explosion took place and at the same time the doctor experienced a sharp pain in his hand. Upon examina- tion he found that the bottom of his pocket was burned out and that his under linen was much scorched, whilc one of his fingers was also injured. He remembered that he had carried in his pocket for some daye two pastils eontaining chicrate of potash and one pestil containing chlorate of sugar. The last named was broken into littie pieces, while of the potash pastils one was intact but no trace could be found of the other. It seems that the doctor had rubbed the chlorate of potash pastil ageainst the chlorate of sugar pastil and that at the point of contact a small quantity of explosive powder had been formed. This had ignited, with the re- sult that the chlorate of potash pastil bad been instantly decomposed. e Largest Pump I - b T 3 Without being crowded to the limit of ite capacity the largest pump in the world can deliver 2500000 gallons of water every hour in the twenty-four. Moreover, it will do the work without making as much noise as is made by the operation of the old style sewing machine. Outside the doors of the great building which houses it no sound is heard from within, and standing be- side the monster upon the brink of the pit connected with the lake from which the water is taken, aimost the only sound is the noise of the suction, as with every stroke more than a thou- sand gallons are lifted. It is a triple expansion pumping en- gine, with a capacity of 60,000,000 gal- lons, standing pearly 50 feet in height, end requiring 1500 horsepower for its operation. It has been proved by actual test that the nominal capacity can be easily maintained for an indefinite time without injury or strain, and that pushed to its full capacity the pump could handle approximately 75,000,000 gallons In twenty-four consecutive hours. The duty of the pump is to furhish water for the great stamp mills of the Calumet & Hecla Company, which has twenty-two steam pumps in continuous operation, daily pulverizing 5000 tons of conglomerate rock into sand so fine that it can be carried away by a stream of #wiftly running water. The pump is housed in a special buiiding near the shore of Torch Lake and below the mills, and it forces a steady stream of water to the upper portions of the mill, where innumerable small jets of water play upon the great slime tables and jigs. Here the specific gravity of the fine particles of copper contained in the rock separates the eral from the worthless sand, and the size and force of the streams of water are o nicely regulated as to wash away the sand and yet carry wity it the minimum of copper. 1 ' Costly Legacy ] In Italy it appears to be a somewhat expensive affair te inherit mopey, that if it be a small sum. Not long ago a young man died in the little town a who left one lire fifty-eight 34 cents. This which had been deposited in the Postcffice Savings Bank, became the property of the young man's father. As the amount was so small the father thought it unnecessary to make a dec- laration of the legacy as the law pre- scribes, especially as the stamped paper on which the declaration must be made woulé .est about 22 centesimi more than the money involved. Three months afterward he received a demand from the local State Treasury for the payment of 14 lire 48 centesimi— nearly $3. Thinking a mistake had been made, he took no potice of this demand, with the result that later an official called upon him and demanded the immediate payment of 18 lire—$3 50. The father had not sufficient money in hand, so the official took possession of the man’'s furniture. The cost of this seizure brought the total sum to 30 lire, which the poor man had to pay that same evening to avoid the sale of his gouods by auction. mi. or not quite % | Ancient Jewels — Some of the most remarkable Egyp- tian jewelry ever discovered has re- cently been unearthed. The date as- signed is as remote as 5000 B. C., but the workmanship in gold and jewels is marvelous. In exploring the tomb of King Zer it was found that the tomb had been entered for robbery at some remote period and that the plunderers had broken off the arm of the mummy queen and hidden it in a crevice in the wall—perhaps on being discovered or alarmed—and had never returned to re- move it. On taking off the wrappings Professor Petrie found four magnificent brace- lets of gold, with amethyst, turquoise and lapislazuli in varied and elegant adjustments. The gold work was pecu- liarly fine and delicate, though the metal was soft and pure, apparently with no hardening alloy. The stones were beautiful and very strikingly and peculiarly arranged. Several amethyst beads of the rich- est and deepest purple, about a quarter of an inch in dlameter, are in the pos- session of Edward Aver of Chicago. He obtained them from Dashone, Egypt, they being from the treasures in the tomb of Princess Merit, daughter of Amenhotep II of the Twelth Dy- nasty. N — e + | Egg¢ Riding There are no better horsemen in the world than the cavalry officers of the Italian army. To run an ordinary foot race is easy enough, but tosrun at full speed for several hundred yards holding in one hand a spoon on which rests an egg and to reach the goal without dropping the egg is a feat whi¢h must be prac- ticed carefully a long time before it can be performed successfully and as a result there are not many who can be sure of accomplishing it whenever they try. Great, therefore, was the surprise when an Italian officer mounted on horseback performed this difficult feat. Moreover, he selected a course in which there are two or three high fences, and these he cleared at full gallop without losing the egg. — ! Wind’s Mystery. p— The meteorologist is gradually divest- ing the wind of its mystery, and is able to explain convincingly how and when it originates. The study of a great number of observations taken simui- taneously all over the country, and in fact all over two continents, has en- abled the expert to foresee just when SAN FRANCISCO SUNDAY CALL. wind and storm will arrive at certain sections of the country. Of course, the physical topography of any neighborhood has its influence on the local storms, fogs and prevailing winds. The “mountain” and “valley” breezes that are so eagerly sought dur- ing the summer recreation or sojourn is an instance of the effect of moun- tains on local climate and weather con- ditions. As explained by W. S. Tower, assistant. in meteorology in Harvard University, because of active radiation carry it away done up, but put it right on and wear it away., And women come in and buy them for their men folks,” The paper vest comes from Chicago.— New York Sun. +* — Fish ;'—n Land o Many fish cut a much better figure out of water than we do in it, though We are accustomed to think of them as inhabitants of the water only. For in- stance, there is the ‘“stare-about,” a kind of goby that at ebbtide walks calmly up on the sand banks erect on two huge fore fins. With his gigantic goggle eyes he keeps a sharp lookout for crabs and such things as are left behind by the receding water. Then we all know that eels can wriggle, snakelike, miles across the meadows to other ponds and rivers. In Holland carp are kept all winter hung up in & net and sprinkled only oceasionally with water. The Indian “shake-head” is quite happy even when his native pond dries up, and lies torpid Huge Polar Bears Give wmean 25,000 young stock. However, the percentage of eggs hatched will no doubt run much higher than this, at least up to 75 per cemt, which would mean 37,500 young stock. A hen sets on from twelve to fifteen’ eggs, so that giving cach hen the latter number of eggs would mean that to equal the hatching capacity of this one incubator one would have to set no less than 2500 hens. L En S e, Emperor’s Pipe [ —_—— Emperor Willlam likes a cigar, but according to recent reports from Berlin, he has now learned that no cigar is comparable to good tobacco smoked in a good pipe. In his smoking room there are several pipes, but some he has never used, and there 1s only one which he constantly uses. A beauty it is, having been fashioned by the Kalser himself. The bowl, which is larger than usual, is of meerschaum; the stem, which is rather long and delicate, is of Turkish wood; a finely carved cluster of leaves ornaments the bowl and a large silver W, on which a silver -bird is perched, decorates the stem. In this pipe the Emperor smokes Havana to- bacco which is specially prepared for him. Flow of Rocks. p e e A hydraulic machine, capable of pro- ducing a pressure of 120 tons to the sguare inch, has recently been set up at the McGill University in Montreal for the purpose of investigating the so- called “flow of rocks.” For it is a fact that a rock.can flow, and it is of im- i a PinK Tea | Ny UITE new and dis- tinctive as a feat- ure in trained ani- mal life are the magnificent polar bears that will be exhibited at the St. Louis World’s Fair. These huge snow white cumbersome beasts have been taught to go through many feats, not the least amazing and S, ridiculous of which is an afternoon tea with their trainer. They will be shown in the great the- ater, seating 8000 persons, where a con- tinuous performance will be given daily, begiming at 9:30 a. m., and lasting un- il 10:30 p. m., without repeating any of the features. B A caged circular arena filling the en- tire prescenium arch of the theater separates the beasts from the orches- tra floor, sloping backward to the semi- circular rear of the auditorium. At the back the seats rise higher than a fover, following the curving wall of the theater. Sunk beneath the seats and facing the foyer along its entire swing around the' orchestra circle, will be dens of beasts. Catacombs leading from these dens to the stage and from the open alr panorama to the stage permits the safe transferral of the animals to the performing arena. The entire wild ani- mal show covers an area of 400 by 400 feet. at night the layers of air near the earth become cooled, and as cool air is heav- ier than warm air, a law of physics that is generally appreciated theoretically, but usually overlooked practically, this heavy air tends to move down the hillside. The tendency becomes after a time sufficiently pronounced to produce a general downhill movement, eventu- ally resulting in a perceptible breeze. That is what is commonly designated locally as ‘‘the mountain breeze,” and which from its origin is practically .in one constant direction, though the in- tervention of powerful storms may tem- porarily reverse the customary move- ment. Vice versa during the day the presence of warmer and therefore light- er air near the earth causes a move- ment of the atmosphere with an up- ward tendency, creating the so-called valley breezes. In certain favorably situated localities the appearance of the mountain or the valley breeze is as regular as clockwork, the transitional period being marked by a calm.—Phila- delphia Record. SESS e R + l - Paper Vests. R RS B S The paper vest, as it is called, a mod- ern device for protection from the cold, is made of ordinary cambric with an interlining of a tough, flexible paper suited to the purpose, that will not break or crack when bent or crumpled when the vest is wrapped around the body. It is made without buttons and buttonholes, being kept closed when worn by means of tapes which tie around the body. Made of such materials and in that simple form the paper vest is very In- expensive. It sells for 50 cents. It is commonly worn under the outer shirt, but it may be put on over the wearer's waistcoat if he chooses to wear it there. ““Who wears paper vests?” the sales- man id. “Why, people that are around much out of doors and exposed 1o the cald and on days such as we have been having this winter men not per- haps commonly much exposed who saw them in the window would come in and look them over and Buy one and not till the next rainy season. The flying gurnard will keep ahead of an ocean liner going at full speed, and fly for many minutes in quick successive flights of 300 yards or so at a time. S + Tattooing Fad l - E3 Tattooing is now very -popular in London and two or three men who have acquired considerable skill in this novel art are rapidly making a fortune. One of them claims to have already tattooed 15,000 persons, of whom 1500 Wwere women. un two of these women he has done his best work, reproducing on one With his needle the famous ‘Descent from the Cross” and on the other the “Ecce Homo.” He has also drawn numerous portraits of men and women and has inscribed many mottoes in the Abyssinian, Chinese and Arabic tongues. Moreover, he has tattooed marriage rings on the fingers of many women, who have desired in this way to give a proof of their eternal fidelity to their husbands. Automobiles being now in fashion, several persons who are fond of this new sport have lad their carriages tattooed on their arms, and it is even said that in some cases the name and address have been added, with the ob- jeet of providing adequate marks of identification in case of accidents. e e Y I Huge Incubators +* The largest incubator ever made is fifty-one feet long and a little over four feet wide. It has fifty compartments and in each of these there are two trays, or one hundred trays all told. Bach tray holds at least seventy-five eges, making the total incubating ca- pacity of this single machine 7500 eggs. It takes twenty-one days to hatch eggs, whether they are placed under a hen or in an incubator. Estimating that the hatching season opens March 1 and continues to August 1 this ma- chine would handle 50,000 eggs, and if 50 per cent of them hatched it would L portance to science to know how and why. Under such a pressure as this machine can exert, marble, limestone. granite and other solid rocks exhibit this queer phenomena, though the rate of motion is very slow, of course. The Carnegie Institute has just made a grant of $2000 for the purpose of this investigation. The shaping of the earth’s crust under the force of gravity 4 is the study to which the information thus obtained will be applied.—Phila- delphia Record. 3 Navajo Wrestler — Wrestling as a form of athletic ex- ercise seems to be common to all nations and throughout all history. Curiously the tribes in the interior of Africa have been found to be skillful wrestlers, as are the natives of India and the Indians of America. The rules governing wrestling matches among the Navajos, singularly enough, are very similar to those recognized among civilized people for centuries. s 3 > - | | 'Frosted Windows. i S A source of constant annoyance and Injury to storekeepers, especially retail~ ers, In extremely cold weather is the gathering of frost on their display win- dows. Various devices have been tried to remedy it, such as the application of glycerin and other chemicals, but these are generally of little avalil. In Northern Russia, where zerc weather is not an uncommon experi- ence, the owners of display windows employ as an effective protection against frost a three-inch space be- tween two panes of glass. The outer sash is rendered as nearly tight as pos- sible by calking and pasting strips over the crevices. A second sash is then fitted and inserted about three inches within the first. This double sash is saild to keep out moisture, and If the glass is kept clean and dry is said to be effective. At any rate, this plan is worth trying in these days, when win- dow dressing has become so important an art. The device involves sound sci- entific principles.—Boston Herald. L3 Trees in Chu‘rch‘ e Ross, Hertfordshire, can boast of a church where two fine elms are growing one on either side of a pew occupled by a member mamed John Kyrle, Mr. Kyrle was a great lover of trees, and especially of elms, of which he planted an avenue near the church. One of the irees of this avenue was cut down, and t is supposed that its offshoots have grown up inside of the church at each end of the pew. The parish church at Kempsey contains a chestnut tree which grows from the tomb of Sir Ed- ward Wilde. The school children of the village used to sit in the chancel, and i} is said oh one occasion their teacher found one of them eating a chestnut, and that he snatched it away and threw it behind the tomb, where it took root and has flourished. ‘g . — ] Squirting Music | + * A. E. Wheeler of Geneva, N.. Y., has recently invented a music squirting hose, which is capable of distributing music to any considerable distance. Al- ready twenty families are being enter- tained by his nightly concerts a hun- dred miles away, and all at the same time, every note reaching the ear dis- tinctly. There is about sixty feet of ordinary rubber tubing, one end being attached to the diaphragm of a phono- graph machine and the other end to the transmitter of the telephone. Mr. ‘Wheeler has succeeded in getting the sound into the' transmitter of the tele- phone in such a way that the harsh effect on the other end of the wire is entirely eliminated. % — \ Ice Bicycle — * All the pleasures of sleighing and of bicycling might have been combined in a curious freak ice wheel had it been wholly successful. The odd looking vehicle, which was contrived years ago, was mounted on runners which were in- tended to glide over the ice or snow swiftly and smoothly like an ordinary sleigh. The motive power was supplied by an ordinary velocipede or bicycle mechanism. The revolution of the wheel forced a series of sprockets to dig rapidly into the snow or ice, thus propelling the contrivance. 4 4 $40,000,000 Bag | -X*thsbly the shabbiest as well :-: the most interesting bag in New York City is that which has been used for the last twenty years to carry the money from the Postoffice to the United States Bank. In its best days it was a very ordinary affair of canvas and leather, but now, in its old age It seems hardly worth a glance to one not familiar with its story. 1f is calculated that each year this bag has held no Jess than $2,000,000, and that during the twenty years of its existence it has' held within its dingy cover a sum of $40,000,000. Semall as it is, it has often taxed the strength of two men to lift it with its precious burden. TSt B Sanaas Japanese Facts. - i + islands than Japan consists of four large and many 4223 in all. Its area is 1 miles, and yulation 44,2 of whom 5 are men a 630,681 a The country Is very mountainous, and not more than one-sixth is for cultivation. The soi eeming with all al products, among which are the « mphc tree paper mulberry, vegetable wax tree and lacquer tree, tobacco plant. tea shrub, potato, rice, W and oth r cereals. There is great abundance of fish on the coasts. The flowers are rich and beautiful and varied are plentiful. Agriculture fve the chief occupation. The principal industries are’conducted in factories for silk, cotton, cotton yard matches, paper, glass, japanned ware, porcelain and bronze and ship build- ing In the yards. Copper, iron and s phur abound. Agate, corpelian and rock crystal are also found. There are aiso coal, gold and silver mines. The chief imports are raw cotton from China, the United States and endia; plece goods, metals, woolens, wool, drugs, rails, locomotives and machinery from the United States and Europe. Sugar is largely import- ed from Hongkong, Austria, China, Formosa and Germany; indigo from Germany and British India; kerosene from the United States; beans, peas and pulse from China and Korea; rice principally from Korea and Brit- ish and French India. The chief ex- ports are silk, cotton yarns, rice, tea, fish, copper, matches, coal, camphor, straw plaits and marine products.— Detroft Tribune. li Public Schools P 3 - Hands off the public schools! They stand For what is highest in this land; And they must stand, as they have stood, The nation’s undivided good. *To Jew and ( ch and poor, They are the e must be, antee ghts of man To that condity 1f we expect safe gu ome theologic sham to take The place of what lu God's own make. In thronging cities, quiet towns, By wooded vales and meady The schoolhouse s - The shrine and = hose _truths, In unity fo And there th vary TBiggest Diamond T - - — The largest diamond in the still uncut and is in exactly in which it was found. The weighs 971 carats and {s valued at 000. It is a product of the Kimber mines and is not so perfect as many others, or its value would, of course, be much greater. Its form, besides, makes it necessary to sacrifice consid- erable of its bulk if ever perfectly dressed and cut. world is the T [ e e s ey Mabel’s Secret , | | ) | - When Mabel smiles she shows the world Two rows of teeth so dazzling white They almost rival Alpine sno Indeed, no words that I may write Will half portray the lovely eight. They are the envy of the girls, The charm which Who almast There's always one, and sometimes tem, Waiting for her to smile again. And though the praise to Mabel goes, And sll the admiration, yet 1. who am her dentist, find One satisfaction which I get— I know I made a lovely set! KENNETH F. LOCKWOOD. ———— The number of irrigating ditches and canals in operation in the United States exceeds 20,000 and their com- bined length is not less than 50,000 miles. —_—— Every woman thinks that all men except her husband should get up and give their seats In a car to ladies standing. HE cunning hand of the animal trainer has provided the most curious mount in the world for chil- dren. A bridle and bit fastened in the mouthr of the giant tortolse make him an obedient animal under the guiding fingers of a child seated on his monster | New Sport for Children at St. Louis shell. These strangest of all rides are frequently enjoyed by the grandchil- dren of Carl Hagenback on the spa- -+ cious lawn in front of his Z. Although of residence at as slow as the Aesop’s fables .2 running his race, the unwieldy animal is sure footed enmough to make this childish pleasure without danger to the merest baby. Losing the saddle from the back of a tortoise is nothing more than a sprawl from a height that camnot in- Jure the innocent rider. Mr. Hagen- Lick has brought some of his famous ridine turtles to the World's Fair.