Chapter 5

ACCORDING TO the return published by the Minister of Agriculture, the consumption of horseflesh in Paris has decreased slightly in the last year, being only 4,472 tons, as against 4,664 tons for 1895-96. This was the meat derived from 20,878 horses, 53 mules and 232 donkeys slaughtered during the twelve months; but a very strict supervision is exercised, and 575 of these animals were condemned as unfit for human food. The flesh of the remainder was sold at 190 stalls or shops, and, although the fillet and undercut made as much as 9d. a pound, the inferior parts sold for 2d. or less, and most of the meat was used for making sausages.

ACCORDING TO La Propriété Industrielle, 5,372 Austrian patents were granted in 1896 (5,215 in 1895). Of these, residents of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy received 2,070 (2,031 in 1895), Austrians coming first with 1,813 (1,683 in 1895), Hungarians second with 254 (347 in 1895), while residents of Bosnia and Herzegovina secured 3 patents (1 in 1895). Among foreigners the following show an increase over 1895: United States, 394 (335); Great Britain, 355 (313); France, 244 (243); Switzerland, 94 (79); Belgium, 66 (48); Sweden and Norway, 60 (40); Italy, 50 (45); Russia, 47 (40); Australia, 32 (10); and Netherlands, 26 (18). A decrease is shown by Germany, 1,887 (1,950); Denmark, 10 (17); Canada, 7 (14); and Spain, 6 (10). The total number of Austrian patents granted to foreigners in 1896 was 3,302, as against 3,184 in 1895.

ENGLISH AND FRENCH LIGHTHOUSES.--An English engineer named Purves has just made a comparison in regard to the intensity of light of the lighthouses on the English coasts and those which illuminate the shores of France. The comparison shows results which are altogether favorable to France. The average illumination intensity of eighty-six English lighthouses of the first class is 20,680 candle power, while thirty-six first class French lighthouses give an average of 34,166 candle power. The difference is more striking if the lighthouses constructed within the last ten years be considered. Since 1886 France has built eleven lighthouses, whose average intensity of light is 8,200,000 candle power; the new lighthouse of Eckmühl gives 40,000,000. According to Mr. Purves, the superior intensity of light of the French lighthouse lies in the use of the flashing rays, which have not yet found favor in England.

IN AN address by Thomas Morris, before the Staffordshire, England, iron and steel works managers on the remarkable achievements that have been reached in the manufacture of fine wire, the interesting fact was mentioned that the lecturer had been presented by Warrington, the wire manufacturer, with specimens for which some $4.32 per pound were paid, or more than $8,600 per ton--drawn wire, largely used in the construction of piano and other musical and mechanical instruments. Among these specimens also was pinion wire, at a market price of $21.60 per pound, or $43,200 per ton. It took 754 hairsprings to weigh an ounce of 437½ grains; 27,000,000 of these were required to make a ton, and, taking one to be worth 1½ cents, the value of a ton of these cheap little things ran up to over $400,000. The barbed instruments used by dentists for extracting nerves from teeth were even more expensive, representing some $2,150,000 per ton.

AT A fête in the Elysée Palace the other day one of the features prepared for the entertainment of the guests was a cinematograph, which contained views taken during President Faure's visit to St. Petersburg. One of the pictures settled for the President a question which had been troubling him considerably. Several months ago a German paper printed an interview with Bismarck, in which the ex-chancellor commented on M. Faure's visit to St. Petersburg, saying that the Frenchman had conducted himself according to etiquette except on one occasion, when, on his arrival in the Russian capital he had been saluted by the Cossack guard of honor, he had returned the salute with the hand, not with the hat. M. Faure being a civilian, this was a serious breach of etiquette, Bismarck said. The interview was reprinted in the French papers and caught the President's eye. He was much concerned about the matter and asked several friends who had been present if he had actually committed the breach. No one could remember. Then came the cinematograph show. As the small audience gazed upon the screen they saw the President's image advance with slow, dignified step before the Cossacks, then all at once raise his hand to his hat, which he lifted with the quick motion so familiar to Parisians. The guests burst into applause and the President smiled. Bismarck was mistaken.

"WE HEAR a great deal regarding the decline of our shipping interests, and so far as our shipping in the foreign trade is concerned it is unfortunately true," says The Boston Commercial Bulletin. "But few people realize the immensity of our coastwise commerce. The Custom House figures on the shipping of the port of New York for 1897 show that there were 4,614 arrivals of vessels from foreign ports, 7,095 from Eastern domestic ports, and 3,798 from Southern domestic ports. Of the foreign, 2,313 were British, of which 1,667 were steamships; 952 were American, of which 323 were steamships, and 517 were German of which 444 were steamships. This statement shows that the arrivals from American ports were nearly three times those from foreign countries, though of course this proportion is not borne out in tonnage, vessels on the deep sea trade averaging larger. But it will be doubtless a surprise that of the shipping from foreign ports more than one-fifth were American. At other Atlantic and Gulf ports this proportion undoubtedly does not hold true, but these figures show a less doleful condition of the American marine than some people have been led to expect. When it is remembered that the coastwise fleet numbers many steamers of 2,000 to 3,000 tons and many sailing craft of 1,000 tons and upward, it will be seen that we are yet a sea power of the first class, in fact exceeded only by England."

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SELECTED FORMULÆ.

ESSENCE OF PEPSIN.--

1. Pepsin (pure) 128 grains. Dilute muriatic acid 5 drops. Simple elixir 3 fl. ounces. Glycerin 1 " Water 16 " Angelica wine 6 "

Dissolve by agitation and filter through purified talcum.

2. Glycerole of pepsin 3 parts. Sherry wine 5 " Glycerin 1 " Simple elixir, to make 16 "

3. Pepsin in scales 64 grains. Glycerin 1 fl. ounce. Elixir taraxacum compound 1 " Alcohol 2 " Oil of cloves 1 drop. Sirup 2 fl. ounces. Dilute hydrochloric acid 1 fl. drachm. Water, to make 16 fl. ounces.

--Pharmaceutical Era.

APPLICATIONS TO INSECT BITES.--Brocq and Jacquet (Indépendance médicale, October 20) recommend the following for the bites of bugs, fleas and gnats:

1. Camphorated oil of chamomile 100 parts. Liquid storax 20 " Essence of peppermint 5 " M. 2. Olive oil 20 parts. Storax ointment 25 " Balsam of Peru 5 " M. 3. Naphthol 5 to 10 parts. Ether, enough to dissolve it. Menthol ¼ to 1 part. Vaseline 100 parts.

BEAD FOR LIQUORS.--In the liquor trade, anything added to liquors to cause them to carry a "bead" and to hang in pearly drops about the side of the glass or bottle when poured out or shaken is called "beading," the popular notion being that liquor is strong in alcohol in proportion as it "beads." The object of adding a so-called "bead oil" is to impart this quality to a low-proof liquor, so that it may appear to the eye to be of the proper strength. The following formulas for "bead oil" are given:

1. Sweet almond oil 1 fl. ounce. Sulphuric acid, concentrated 1 " Sugar, lump, crushed 1 ounce. Alcohol, sufficient.

Triturate the oil and acid very carefully together in a glass, Wedgwood or porcelain mortar or other suitable vessel; add by degrees the sugar, continue trituration until the mixture becomes pasty, and then gradually add enough alcohol to render the whole perfectly fluid. Transfer to a quart bottle and wash out the mortar twice or oftener with strong alcohol until about 20 fluid ounces in all of the latter has been used, the washings to be added to the mixture in the bottle. Cautiously agitate the bottle, loosely corked, until admixture appears complete, and set aside in a cool place. This quantity of "oil" is supposed to be sufficient for 100 gallons of liquor, but is more commonly used for about 80 or 85 gallons. The liquor treated with this "oil" is usually allowed to become clearer by simple repose.

2. Soapwort, coarsely ground 13 ounces. Diluted alcohol, enough to make 1 gallon.

Extract the soapwort by maceration or percolation.

This is also intended for 80 gallons of liquor, preferably adding to the latter one-half gallon of simple sirup.

The ingredients of the above formulas, according to the "Manual of Beverages," are not injurious--not at least in the quantities required for "beading." It is said that beyond a certain degree of dilution of the liquor with water, these preparations fail to produce the intended effect. The addition of sugar or sirup increases their efficacy. --Pharmaceutical Era.

QUININE HAIR TONIC.--

1. Quinine sulphate 1 part. Tincture cantharides 10 " Glycerin 75 " Alcohol 500 " Tincture rhatany 20 " Spirit lavender 50 "

2. Tincture cinchona 50 " Tincture cantharides 25 " Peru balsam 20 " Tincture soap 150 " Cologne water 250 " Cognac 2,000 " Oil bergamot 10 " Oil sweet orange 10 " Oil rose geranium 3 "

3. Bisulphate of quinine ½ ounce. Vinegar of cantharides 2½ " Spirit of rosemary 18 " Lavender water 8 " Glycerite of borax 1 " Glycerin 14 " Distilled water 80 " Caramel, sufficient to color.

--Pharmaceutical Era.

SOAP FOR REMOVING RUST.-- Parts by Weight. Whiting 9 Oil soap 6 Cyanide of potassium 5 Water 60

Dissolve the soap in water over the fire and add the cyanide, then little by little the whiting. If the compound is too thick, which may be due either to the whiting or the soap employed, add a little water until a paste is made which can be run into an iron or wooden mould. This will remove rust from steel and give it a good polish.--Oils, Colors and Drysalteries.

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THE NEWFOUNDLAND AND NOVA SCOTIA PASSENGER STEAMER "BRUCE."

Messrs A. & J. Inglis, shipbuilders and engineers, of Pointhouse, Glasgow, have recently built a somewhat unique and certainly interesting steamer, for the conveyance of passengers between Port an Basque, in Newfoundland, and Sydney, Cape Breton, in connection with the Newfoundland and Canadian systems of railways. The distance from port to port is about one hundred miles, and the vessel has been designed to make the run in six hours. Messrs. Reid, of Newfoundland, who have founded the line of steamers to perform this service, intrusted to Messrs. Inglis the task of producing a vessel in all respects suitable for the work to be accomplished. The steamer "Bruce," the pioneer steamer, an illustration of which we are enabled to produce, is the result. The navigation of the waters in which this vessel will be employed is attended with some difficulties. Not only are storms of frequent occurrence, but in the months of winter and spring large quantities of drift ice are commonly encountered.

To obtain the necessary speed and carry all that was required on a suitable draught of water, it was essential that the "Bruce" should be built of steel, but in view of the severe structural and local stresses to which she must inevitably be subjected when at sea, it was necessary to afford adequate stiffening and means for preventing penetration or abrasion by ice. Hence the frames are more closely spaced than is usual in vessels of her size, numerous web frames associated with arched supports at the main deck and adjacent to the waterline are fitted throughout her entire length, and a belt of 3-inch greenheart planking, with a steel sheathing over it at the fore part of the vessel, is further provided. Indeed, throughout the vessel, every precaution has been taken with a view to insure her efficiency and safety when running swiftly from port to port, while at the same time the materials employed have been most wisely, judiciously and economically distributed.

The dimensions of the "Bruce" are 230 feet long, 32 feet 6 inches broad, and 22 feet deep, her gross tonnage being 1250 tons. She has been built with very fine lines, a considerable rise of floor, and with a graceful outline, which gives her the appearance of a large yacht. Our illustration shows the "Bruce" when running at a speed of upward of 15 knots on the measured mile at Wemyss Bay. Not only has the structure of the vessel been skillfully designed, but her internal fittings are admirably arranged. It is really most interesting to note with what ingenuity passenger accommodation of a somewhat extensive character has been provided in so small a vessel. The "Bruce" has berths for seventy first-class and one hundred second class passengers, and the accommodation is of a very luxurious kind. The berths are between the awning and main decks, where there is also a special apartment set apart for ladies, and at the fore end for the officers' quarters. Besides these a large and handsome dining saloon is situated on the main deck, richly upholstered and fitted with unique little window recesses, which besides adding to the appearance of the apartment, furnishes additional dining accommodation. It is done up in dark mahogany panels, fringed with gold. The chairs are upholstered in blue morocco, and the floor is laid with a Turkey carpet. All the other rooms are in dark polished oak. A large smoking room is also provided on the main deck.

The "Bruce" is further fitted with a complete installation of electric lighting, together with an electric search light; has Lord Kelvin's deep sea sounding apparatus and compasses, also Caldwell's steam steering gear and winches, Weir's evaporators and pumps. Alley and McLellan's feed water filters, and Howden's forced draught. She is steam heated throughout, and in every detail of the sanitary arrangements the health and comfort of the passengers have been attended to. Six lifeboats, having accommodation for 250 people, are hung in davits. When fully laden she carries 350 tons of cargo in her holds and 250 tons of coal in her bunkers.

The contract speed for the "Bruce" was 15 knots--and to obtain this Messrs. Inglis fitted her with triple-expansion engines, which we shall illustrate in another impression, having cylinders 26 inches, 42 inches and 65 inches in diameter, with a 42 inch stroke. Steam is supplied from four boilers loaded to a pressure of 160 pounds per square inch. When on the measured mile a mean speed of about 15¼ knots was obtained with an indicated horse power of 2200, the engines running at 90 revolutions per minute.

The vessel has arrived safely at Newfoundland, having performed the voyage at a mean speed of very little under 15 knots, a most satisfactory performance. She has been running some little time on her route and been giving most satisfactory results.--We are indebted to London Engineer for the cut and description.

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HEAT IN GREAT TUNNELS.

One phase of the construction of tunnels through the Alps was recently discussed by M. Brandicourt, secretary of the Linnæan Society of the North of France, in the columns of La Nature. He showed that only a few thousand feet below the eternal snows of that region so high a temperature may be found that workmen can scarcely live in it. Nearly all of the other difficulties encountered in those enterprises had been foreseen. This one was a great surprise. It shows how the interior heat of the earth extends above sea level into all great mountainous uplifts on the earth's surface.

During the tunneling of Mont Cenis, says M. Brandicourt, the temperature of the rock was found to be 27.5 degrees C. (81.5 degrees F.) at about 5,000 meters (16,000 feet) from the entrance. It reached 29.5 degrees (86 degrees F.) in the last 500 meters (1,600 feet) of the central part. The workmen were then about 1,600 meters (5,100 feet) below the Alpine summit, whose mean temperature is 3 degrees below zero (27 degrees F.) Thus there was a difference of 32.5 degrees: that is, one "geothermic" degree corresponded to about 50 meters.

This elevation of temperature was not at first regarded with anxiety. Soon a draught would be produced and would ameliorate the situation. It was time, for the disease known as "miner's anæmia" had begun to claim its victims.

The situation at St. Gothard was much more serious. As at Mont Cenis, a temperature of 29 degrees C. (85 degrees F.) was found about 5,000 meters from the portals of the tunnel. But there remained yet 5,000 meters of rock to pierce. In the center of the tunnel there was observed for several days a temperature of 35 degrees (95 degrees F.) Generally it did not vary much from 32.5 degrees (90.5 degrees F.), a sufficiently high degree, if we remember that the men's perspiration was transformed into water vapor, and that the air was nearly saturated with humidity. In these conditions work was very difficult, and the horses employed to remove the debris almost all succumbed.

Man can bear more than animals. In an absolutely dry air he can endure a temperature of 50 degrees (122 degrees F.) But in an atmosphere saturated with water, underground, where the breath of the workmen fills the narrow space with poisonous vapors, a temperature of even 30 degrees (86 degrees F.) entails serious consequences. In a large number of workmen the bodily heat rose to 40 degrees (104 degrees F.) and the pulse to 140 and even 150 a minute. The most robust were obliged to lay off one day out of three, and even the working day was itself reduced to five hours, instead of seven or eight.

According to Dr. Giaconni, who for ten years attended the workmen at Mont Cenis and St. Gothard, the proportion of invalids was as large as 60 to the 100.

More strange yet, the report of the physicians who dwelt at the works notes the presence among the workmen of the intestinal parasites called "ankylostomes," which have been observed in Egypt and other tropical countries, and which are the cause of what scientists call "Egyptian chlorosis" or "intertropical hyperæmia." This pathologic state is observed only in the hottest regions of the earth. The victim becomes thin, pale and dark. He is bathed in continual sweat, devoured by inextinguishable thirst, and the prey of continual fever. And thus, adds Mr. Lentherie, "the most robust mountaineer had only to pass a few months in the depths of the Alps to contract the germs of a tropical disease. Under the thick layer of snow and ice that enveloped him he had to work naked like a tropical negro or an Indian stoker on a Red Sea steamer; and in this Alpine world, where everything outside reminds one of the polar climate, he sweltered as in a caldron and often died of heat."

The bad conditions found at St. Gothard will be met also, very probably, in the new Alpine tunnels that have been projected in recent years--those at the Simplon, St. Bernard and Mont Blanc. It can be predicted that for Mont Blanc in particular the temperature of 40 degrees (104 degrees F.) will be far exceeded. M. de Lapparent even considers that the figure of 55 degrees (131 degrees F.) proposed by some geologists is moderate, and errs by defect rather than by excess.

The engineer Stockalpa, who for four years has directed one of the workshops at St. Gothard, and has made a profound study of this temperature question, does not hesitate to say that under Mont Blanc the temperature will be 33 degrees (91 degrees F.) at three kilometers from the entrance, that it will reach 50 degrees (122 degrees F.) under the Saussure Pass, and 53.5 degrees (128 degrees F.) under the Tacul Peak, falling again to 31 degrees (88 degrees F.) under the White Valley.

These are only probabilities, but they are founded on facts, and we may imagine all the preventive measures that they will render imperative.

The experience that has been acquired in these latter years has indicated the best methods of ventilation and cooling. The compressed air used in the workings produces by its escape a very sensible lowering of the temperature, which can be made still lower by using saline solutions whose freezing point is as low as -20 degrees (4 degrees F.), and which will circulate through pipes along the tunnel. The removal of the debris can be effected by electric locomotives; thus the horses, which use up the precious air, can be done away with. The electric light, which can be operated without contamination or consuming the air, will also render great service; these improvements can all be carried out with ease. Together with the preceding, they will form a group of processes that will enable us to gain the victory over the interior heat of the great Alpine tunnels.

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AN ENGLISH STEAM FIRE ENGINE.