Chapter 1

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SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN SUPPLEMENT NO. 508

NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 26, 1885

Scientific American Supplement. Vol. XX., No. 508.

Scientific American established 1845

Scientific American Supplement, $5 a year.

Scientific American and Supplement, $7 a year.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE I. CHEMISTRY AND METALLURGY.--The Cowles Electric Smelting Process. 5 figures. 8113

On the Electrical Furnace and the Reduction of the Oxides of Boron, Silicon, Aluminum, and other Metals by Carbon.--By EUGENE H. COWLES, ALFRED H. COWLES, and CHARLES F. MABERY. 8112

Chemical Action of Light. 8117

Eutexia.--Cryohydrates.--Eutectic salt alloys and metal alloys. 8117

Chinoline. 8118

Method of Rapid Estimation of Urea. 1 figure. 8118

Assay of Earthenware Glaze. 8112

II. ENGINEERING AND MECHANICS.--Deep Shafts and Deep Mining. 8104

Sinking of the Quievrechain Working Shaft.--Numerous figures. 8108

On the Elementary Principles of the Gas Engine.--An interesting paper read before the Gas Institute by Mr. DENNY LANE, of Cork, and discussion following. 8109

M. MEIZEL'S Reciprocating Exhauster. 8112

Automatic Siphon for Irrigation. 1 figure. 8113

III. ELECTRICITY, TELEGRAPHY, ETC.--Optical Telegraphy.-- Cryptography.--Preservation of Telegrams.--The projector in optical telegraphy.--Use of balloons. 4 figures. 8114

A New Style of Submarine Telegraph. 4 figures. 8115

A New Circuit Cutter. 2 figures. 8115

New Micro Telephonic Apparatus. 5 figures. 8116

Messrs. Kapp and Crompton's Measuring Instruments. 5 figures. 8116

IV. GEOLOGY, ETC.--Permeability of Sand Rock.--By F.H. NEWELL. 8103

The Grotto of Gargas, in the Pyrenees.--Paleontological remains found therein. 2 engravings. 8103

Remarkable Wells and Caverns in Yucatan.--By ALICE D. LE PLONGEON. 8105

V. NATURAL HISTORY.--The Cabbage Butterfly and the Peacock Butterfly. 8105

VI. BOTANY AND HORTICULTURE.--The Bhotan Cypress (Cupressus torulosa).--With engraving. 8106

The Pitcher Plant. 8106

What is a Plant? 8106

Camellias.--Culture of the same. 8106

Arisæma Fimbriatum.--Leaf, spathe, and floral details.--With engraving. 8107

VII. MISCELLANEOUS.--Striking a Light with Bamboo. 8107

Experiments in Memory. 8107

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PERMEABILITY OF SAND ROCK.

By FREDERICK H. NEWELL, M.E.

Among oil producers, there has been much discussion as to whether the sand rock in which petroleum occurs is of necessity fissured or is still in its original unbroken condition.

The earliest and most natural theory, which for years was indisputed, and is still given by some textbooks, was, that oil wells reached a cavity filled with petroleum.

Within the past few years, however, the opinion has been gaining ground that the oil is stored in the sandrock itself in the minute spaces between the small grains of sand, not entirely filled by cementing material, and that crevices holding and conducting oil are rare, all fissures as a rule being confined to the upper fresh-water bearing rocks of the well. Mr. Carll, in III. Pennsylvania Second Geological Survey, has discussed this subject very fully, and has made estimates of the quantity of oil that the sand rock can hold and deliver into a well; also, T. Sterry Hunt, in his _Chemical and Geological Essays_, has made deductions as to the petroleum contained in the Niagara limestone that outcrops about Chicago.

While the experiments and conclusions of these geologists go to prove that these rocks are capable of holding the oil, there are on record no facts as to the phenomena of its flow, other than by capillarity, through the rock. To obtain some data of the flow of liquids under pressure through certain oil-bearing stones, series of tests on small pieces were made. These tests were carried on during this spring, and many results quite unlooked for were obtained. When crude oil, kerosene, or water (river or distilled) was forced through the specimens, the pressure being constant, the rate of flow was variable. At first, the amount flowing through was large, then fell off rapidly, and when the flow had diminished to about one-quarter of its original rate, the decrease was very slight, but still continued as long as measurements were made, in some cases for three weeks.

When using crude oil, this result was not surprising, for, as the oil men say, crude oil "paraffines up" a rock, that is, clogs the minute pores by depositing solid paraffine (?); but this so-called paraffining took place, not only with crude oil, but with refined oil, and even with distilled water.

The only explanation as yet is, that liquids flowing under pressure through rock on which they exert little or no dissolving effect, instead of washing out fine particles, tend to dislodge any minute grains of the stone that may not be firmly held by cement, and these block up extremely fine and crooked pores in which the fluid is passing.

Several tests indicated that this blocking up was largely near the surface into which the fluid was passing. When this surface was ground off, even 1/50 of an inch, the flow increased immediately nearly to the original rate.

Reversing the flow also had the effect of increasing the rate, even above that of any time previous.

With the moderate pressures used--from 2" to 80" of mercury--the results show that the rate of flow, other things being equal, is directly proportional to the pressure.

The porosity of rock is not always a criterion of its permeability; a very fine grained marble, containing about 0.6 per cent. cell space, transmitted water and oil more freely than a shale that would hold 4 per cent. of its bulk of water.

If the above conclusions hold on a large scale as on the small, they may aid in explaining the diminished flow of oil wells. Not only will the flow lessen from reduced gas pressure, but the passages in the rock become less able to allow the oil to flow through.

The increase in flow following the explosion of large shots in a sand rock may be due not only to fissuring of the rock, but to temporary reversal of the pressure, the force of the explosive tending to drive the oil back for an instant.

The large shots now used (up to 200 quarts, or say 660 pounds of nitroglycerine) must exert some influence of this kind, especially when held down by 500± feet of liquid tamping. In the course of these tests, it was noticed that fresh water has a more energetic disintegrating action on the shales and clay than on salt water.

This may furnish a reason for the fact, noticed by the oil men, that fresh water has a much more injurious effect than salt in clogging a well. No oil-bearing sand rock is free from laminæ of shale, and when fresh water gets down into the sand, the water must, as the experiments show, rapidly break up the shale, setting free fine particles, which soon are driven along into the minute interstices of the sand rock, plastering it up and injuring the well.--_Engineering and Mining Journal._

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THE GROTTO OF GARGAS.

The grotto of Gargas is located in Mount Tibiran about three hundred yards above the level of the valley, and about two miles southeast of the village of Aventignan. Access to it is easy, since a road made by Mr. Borderes in 1884 allows carriages to reach its entrance.

This grotto is one of the most beautiful in the Pyrenees, and presents to the visitor a succession of vast halls with roofs that are curved like a dome, or are in the form of an ogive, or are as flat as a ceiling. It is easy to explore these halls, for the floor is covered with a thick stalagmitic stratum, and is not irregular as in the majority of large caves.

Upon entering through the iron gate at the mouth of the grotto, one finds himself in Bear Hall, wherein a strange calcareous concretion offers the form of the carnivorous animal after which the room is named. This chamber is about 80 feet in width by 98 in length. We first descend a slope formed of earth and debris mostly derived from the outside. This slope, in which are cut several steps, rests upon a hard, compact, and crystalline stalagmitic floor. Upon turning to the right, we come to the Hall of Columns, the most beautiful of all. Here the floor bristles with stalagmites, which in several places are connected with the stalactites that depend from the ceiling. This room is about 50 feet square. After this we reach the Hall of Crevices, 80 feet square, and this leads to the great Hall of Gargas, which is about 328 feet in length by 80, 98, and 105 in width. In certain places enormous fissures in the vault rise to a great height. Some of these, shaped like great inverted funnels, are more than 60 yards in length. The grotto terminates in the Creeping Hall. As its name indicates, this part of the cave can only be traversed by lying flat upon the belly. It gives access to the upper grotto through a narrow and difficult passage that it would be possible to widen, and which would then allow visitors to make their exit by traversing the beautiful upper grotto, whose natural entrance is situated 150 yards above the present one. This latter was blasted out about thirty years ago.

Upon following the direction of the great crevices, we reach a small chamber, wherein are found the Oubliettes of Gargas--a vertical well 65 feet feet in depth. The aperture that gives access to this strange well (rendered important through the paleontological remains collected in it) is no more than two feet in diameter. Such is the general configuration of the grotto.

In 1865 Dr. Garrigou and Mr. De Chastaignier visited the grotto, and were the first to make excavations therein. These latter allowed these scientists to ascertain that the great chamber contained the remains of a quaternary fauna, and, near the declivity, a deposit of the reindeer age.

As soon as it was possible to obtain a permit from the Municipal Council of Aventignan to do so, I began the work of excavation, and the persistence with which I continued my explorations led me to discover one of the most important deposits that we possess in the chain of the Pyrenees. My first excavations in Bear Hall were made in 1873, and were particularly fruitful in an opening 29 feet long by 10 wide that terminates the hall, to the left. I have remarked that these sorts of retreats in grottoes are generally rich in bones. Currents of water rushing through the entrance to the grotto carry along the bones--entire, broken, or gnawed--that lie upon the ground. These remains are transported to the depths of the cave, and are often stopped along the walls, and lie buried in the chambers in argillaceous mud. Rounded flint stones are constantly associated with the bones, and the latter are always in great disorder. The species that I met with were as follows: the great cave bear, the little bear, the hyena, the great cat, the rhinoceros, the ox, the horse, and the stag.

The stalagmitic floor is 1½, 2, and 2¼ inches thick. The bones were either scattered or accumulated at certain points. They were generally broken, and often worn and rounded. They appeared to have been rolled with violence by the waters. The clay that contained them was from 3 to 6 feet in thickness, and rested upon a stratum of water-worn pebbles whose dimensions varied from the size of the fist to a grain of sand. A thick layer of very hard, crystalline stalagmite covers the Hall of Columns, and it was very difficult to excavate without destroying this part of the grotto.

I found that there anciently existed several apertures that are now sealed up, either by calcareous concretions or by earthy rubbish from the mountain. One of these was situated in the vicinity of the present mouth, and permitted of the access to Bear Hall of a host of carnivora that found therein a vast and convenient place of shelter.

These excavations revealed to me at this entrance, at the bottom of the declivity, a thick stratum of remains brought thither by primitive man. This deposit, which was formed of black earth mixed with charcoal and numerous remains of bones, calcined and broken longitudinally for the most part, contained rudely worked flint stones. I collected a few implements, one surface of which offered a clean fracture, while the other represented the cutting edge. According to Mr. De Mortillet, such instruments were not intended to have a handle. They were capable of serving as paring knives and saws, but they were especially designed for scraping bones and skins. The deposit was from 26 to 32 feet square and from 2 inches to 5 feet deep, and rested upon a bed of broken stones above the stalagmite. The animals found in it were the modern bear (rare), the aurochs, the ox, the horse, and the stag--the last four in abundance.

At the extremity of the grotto there is a well with vertical sides which is no less than 65 feet in depth. It is called the Gargas Oubilettes. Its mouth is from 15 to 24 inches in diameter, and scarcely gives passage to a man (Fig. 1). Mr. Borderes, in the hope of discovering a new grotto, was the first to descend into this well, which he did by means of a rope ladder, and collected a few bones that were a revelation to me. Despite the great difficulty and danger of excavating at this point, I proceeded, and found at the first blow of the pick that there was here a deposit of the highest importance, since all the bones that I met with were intact. The first thing collected was an entire skull of the great cave bear, with its maxillaries in place. From this moment I began a series of excavations that lasted two years.

The descent is effected through a narrow vertical passage 6½ feet in length. The cavity afterward imperceptibly widens, and, at a depth of 12 yards, reaches 6½ feet in diameter, and at 15 yards 10 feet. Finally, in the widest part (at a depth of 62 feet) it measures about 16 feet (Fig. 1).

A glance at the section of the well, which I have drawn as accurately as possible (not an easy thing to do when one is standing upon a rope ladder), will give an idea of the form of this strange pocket formed in the limestone of the mountain through the most complex dislocations and erosions. Two lateral pockets attracted my attention because of the enormous quantity of clay and bones that obstructed them. The first, to the left, was about 15 feet from the orifice. When we had entirely emptied it, we found that it communicated with the bottom of the well by a narrow passage. An entire skeleton of the great cave bear had stopped up this narrow passage, and of this, by the aid of a small ladder, we gathered the greater part of the skeleton, the state of preservation of which was remarkable.

The second pocket, which was almost completely filled with clay, and situated a little lower than the other, likewise communicated with a third cavity that reached the bottom of the well. The clay of these different pockets contained so large a quantity of bones that we could hardly use our picks, and the excavation had to be performed with very short hooks, and often by hand. In this way I was enabled to remove the bones without accident. The lower pocket was dug out first, and with extreme care, the bones being hoisted out by means of a basket attached to a rope. Three or four candles sufficed to give us light. The air was heavy and very warm, and, after staying in it for two hours, it was necessary to come to the surface to breathe. After extracting the bones from the lower pocket, and when no more clay remained, we successively dug out the upper ones and threw the earth to the bottom of the well.

On the 20th of December, 1884, my excavating was finished. To-day the Oubliettes of Gargas are obstructed with the clay that it was impossible to carry elsewhere. The animals that I thus collected in the well were the following: The great bear (in abundance), the little bear (a variety of the preceding), the hyena, and the wolf. The pockets contained nearly entire skeletons of these species. How had the animals been able to penetrate this well? It is difficult to admit that it was through the aperture that I have mentioned. I endeavored to ascertain whether there was not another communication with the Gargas grotto, and had the satisfaction of finding a fissure that ended in the cave, and that probably was wider at the epoch at which the place served as a lair for the bear and hyena.

Very old individuals and other adults, and very young animals, were living in the grotto, and, being surprised, without power to save themselves, by a sudden inundation, reached the bottom of the well that we have described. The entire remains of these animals were carried along by the water and deposited in the pockets in the rock. Once buried in the argillaceous mud, the bones no longer underwent the action of the running water, and their preservation was thence secured.--_F. Regnault, in La Nature._

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DEEP SHAFTS AND DEEP MINING.

A correspondent of the New York _Sun_, writing from Virginia City, Nevada, describes the progress of the work there on the Combination shaft of the Comstock lode, the deepest vertical shaft in America, and the second deepest in the world. It is being sunk by the Chollar Potosi, Hale & Norcross, and Savage mining companies; hence its name of the Combination shaft. This shaft has now reached a perpendicular depth of a little over 3,100 feet. There is only one deeper vertical shaft in the world--the Adalbent shaft of the silver-lead mines of Przibram, Bohemia, which at last accounts had reached a depth of 3,280 feet. The attainment of that depth was made the occasion of a festival, which continued three days, and was still further honored by the striking off of commemorative medals of the value of a florin each. There is no record of the beginning of work on this mine at Przibram, although its written history goes back to 1527.

Twenty years ago very few mining shafts in the world had reached a depth of 2,000 feet. The very deepest at that time was in a metalliferous mine in Hanover, which had been carried down 2,900 feet; but this was probably not a single perpendicular shaft. Two vertical shafts near Gilly, in Belgium, are sunk to the depth of 2,847 feet. At this point they are connected by a drift, from which an exploring shaft or winze is sunk to a further depth of 666 feet, and from that again was put down a bore hole 49 feet in depth, making the total depth reached 3,562 feet. As the bore hole did not reach the seam of coal sought for, they returned and resumed operations at the 2,847 level. In Europe it is thought worthy of particular note that there are vertical shafts of the following depths:

Feet. Eimkert's shaft of the Luganer Coal Mining Company, Saxony 2,653

Sampson shaft of the Oberhartz silver mine, near St. Andreasberg, Hanover. 2,437

The hoisting shaft of the Rosebridge Colliery, near Wigan, Lancashire, England. 2,458

Shaft of the coal mines of St. Luke, near St. Chaumont, France. 2,253

Amelia shaft, Shemnitz, Hungary. 1,782

The No. 1 Camphausen shaft, near Fishbach, in the department of the Saarbruck Collieries, Prussia. 1,650

Now, taking the mines of the Comstock for a distance of over a mile--from the Utah on the north to the Alto on the south--there is hardly a mine that is not down over 2,500 feet, and most of the shafts are deeper than those mentioned above; while the Union Consolidated shaft has a vertical depth of 2,900 feet, and the Yellow Jacket a depth of 3,030 feet. In his closing argument before the Congressional Committee on Mines and Mining in 1872, Adolph Sutro of the Sutro tunnel said: "The deepest hole dug by man since the world has existed is only 2,700 feet deep, and it remains for the youngest nation on earth to contribute more to science and geology by giving opportunities of studying the formation of mineral veins at a greater depth than has ever been accomplished by any other nation in the world." Mr. Sutro was of the opinion that the completion of his tunnel would enable our leading mining companies to reach a vertical depth of 5,000 feet.

This great depth has never yet been attained except in a bore hole or artesian well. The deepest points to which the crust of the earth has ever been penetrated have been by means of such borings in quest of salt, coal, or water. A bore hole for salt at Probst Jesar, near Lubtheen, for the Government of Mecklenberg-Schwerin, is down 3,315 feet, the size of which bore is twelve inches at the top and three inches at the bottom. A bore hole was put down for the Prussian Government to the depth of 4,183 feet. But in these bore holes the United States leads the world, as there is one near St. Louis, Mo., that is 5,500 feet in depth. Here on the Comstock, in the Union Consolidated mine, a depth of 3,300 feet has been attained, but not by means of a single vertical shaft. The vertical depth of the shaft is 2,900 feet; the remainder of the depth has been attained by means of winzes sunk from drifts. Several long drifts were run at this great depth without difficulty as regards ventilation or heat.

The combination shaft is situated much further east (in which direction the lode dips) than any other on the Comstock. It is 3,000 feet east of the point where the great vein crops out on the side of Mount Davidson; 2,200 feet east of the old Chollar-Potosi shaft, 1,800 ft. east of the old Hale & Norcross (or Fair) shaft, and 2,000 ft. east of the Savage shaft. Thus, it will be seen it is far out to the front in the country toward which the vein is going. The shaft is sunk in a very hard rock (andesite), every foot of which requires to be blasted. The opening is about thirty feet in length by ten feet in width. In timbering up this is divided into four different compartments, some for the hoisting and some for the pumping machinery, thus presenting the appearance at the top of four small shafts set in a row. Over the shaft stand several large buildings, all filled with ponderous machinery.