Science Up To Date

OR MANT YEARS chemistry and science have been working to the top of their bent to divide and subdivide and analyze various elementa in nature. It is but a natural sequence that they should after a while, attempt to unite ierent elements to form new compounds, or add to the ingredients of those already in existence. Some years ago, when Edison declared ttiat the day would come when food producía could be made in the laboratory, he was laughed at. That this is possible is already been proven; but as lt is in the chemist's power to make an egg, yet not one that will hatch. so it is possible to unite ingredients aecording to Chemical formula, but not to have them take the place of the time-honored brd and meat of the generatlon behn us. It would be, no doubt, a good thing if the common articles of food could be chemically prepared. Getting fresh from the laboratory, we might have a reasonable assuranee that they would be pure and clean; something that we can by no means be certain of at nresent. Thev could be so prepared as to be absolutely free from disease germs, and In proper shape to conduce to the best physical, mental and moral condltlons. But that day is unquestionably a long way off, and at present, enemista are contenting themselvea with making drugs and dye-stuffs and various substances used in mechanical arts. Dye stuffs, especiallv, are produced in quantity, coal-tar and petroleum furnishing an enormous number of valuable Chemicals. Madder originally came from a plant, but the red color obtained from coal-tar has practically driven it out of the market. Indigo is also made artiflcially, and as soon as cheaper processes can be brought into use, will destroy the Indias indust'ry altogether. Sugar, or thet vrhlch answers lts purpose, has been produced with great success. There are various chemical sugars that are not known in natural states, but these are too expensive because of the cost involved in their manufacture. From quinine to quartz crystals Chemical analysis Is on the alert, and only the price of the production keeps some of the new articles out of the market. Oíd Salt Factories. Salt is one of the" most ancier.t anieles of diet, and its manufacture has at all times been extremely interesting. A factory of very oíd date exists in a Mexican town in the state of Michoacan. The works are more than four thousand feet above the sea level. They are sltuated in a volcanic región, and salt water drops out through various crevices in the rock. The most primitive methods are employed for making the salt. They are little terraces built on the hillsides and these are covered with flat-topped stones. Over these clay is placed and formed in basin shape. In these hollows on the terrace the brine is put and' evaporated by the atmosphere It takes about four days to clear the water out of one of these little vessels. The salt is dirty and coarse, as might be supposed, but a really remarkable quantity is prepared in this fashion. An Improved Ink Well. The illustration represents, in per spectlve with a broken-out section, an ink well that is not easily tipped over, which is designed to prevent dipping the pen too deeply into the ink, and to hold the ink in the well proper always clean and free from sediment. The improvement has been patented by John Black, New Zealand. The main reservoir . has a raised bottom, In the front side of which is a depression with tapering inner and outer walls, adapted to receive a removable double-walled well, having perforations near its bottom through which the ink flows slowly from the reservoir. On the outside of the removable well is a vertical groove, admitting air to the reservoir, and by regulating the thickness of the top flange of the well, the height to which the ink rises in it may be determined. Above and back of the well is a recess to provide room for the flngers in dipping the pen, and in the top is a transverse groove to receive the pen when not in use. It is apparent that the removable well is kept supplied as long as any ink remains in the reservoir, and the point oL the pen is protected from settlings. A Ship's Buoy Among the interesting novelties in the way of inventions is a ship's buoy. It is arranged to be carried on the deck of the vessel and so attached that if the ship goes down it records the hour and minute of the disaster. Automatic maohinery is set in motion, when the buoy shows a lamp, burns blue lights, rings a bell and fires rockets. An Electric Submarine Torpedo ltoat. Mr. Allen, a resident of Melbourne, has invented an electrical submarine torpedo boat, which he claims, can be sunk to any depth and can be run as fast as a surface boat. It can be kept submerged, he says, for three days. A successful experiment with Allan's model was made lately in the presence of the Earl of Popetoun and many nava and military offlcers. After seeing the experiments Rear Admiral Bowden .. th" n] nton that the boat 3 . " that Mr. Alian elaimecl, and i revolutionize naval war'are. A Refraetory Mixture, ïi". Debols, of Reuleaux, France, has patented a mixture which, accordlng to the Moniteur Industriel when burned will withstand the highest temperatures. The mixture is composed of quartz, or flint and sulphate of barium. The proportions are varied according to the needed resistance of the material, in some cases ground. Pudding stone is also added to the "mix." The mass when moistened will take any sbape like ordinary fire clay, and is dried and burned in the same manner. New Use for Alumlnnm. One of the improvements made In the accoutrements of the Prussian soldiers is in the boots. The old-fashioned steel nails have been displaced by nails from aluminum, which is much lighter and more durable. The extra weight under the sole of the foot imposed by the heavy nails formerly worn, and the added weight consequent upon the cloggn:?T mud in nasty weather, made an extra amount of muscular expenditure necessary. A Kaisin Seeder. We take pleasure in presenting to our lady readers the accompanying cut of a raisin-seeder. It is the flrst implement designed for this purpose that has proven practical ind satisfaetory. It seeds raisins without waste of pulp, and does the work speedily. It is certainly a boon to the housewife, and it wlll become an indespensable kitchen requisite. Purifying TVater. White the importance of pure water is universally admitted, and ways of obtaining it are said to be many and certainly are eomplicated, it is a consolation to find some simple formula that will purify ordinary water, especially in reservoirs and filtering basins. The preparation is composed of calcium permanganate, one part; aluminium sulphate, ten parts; fine clay, thirty parts. These arethoroughly mixed and one part is added to about ten thousand part s of water. It is said that even sewer drainage is almost completely purified by this mixture. It precipitates all of the impurities and living organisms, and the clear portion may be drawn off and used with perfect safety. This is simple and surely of great value, especially (vhere malarial conditions prevail in water. Scientiflc Theories. It is amazing what queer thlngs people wül believe if they are only marked science. Some years ago Schiapareili declared that he had observed artificial waterways or canals on the surface of Mars. The conclusión was that Mars was inhabitated. Some months ago an eminent professor of science announced that certain lights on Mars were electric flashlights, and that they were signáis to the scientiflc people of this world. And now we have from another professor a voluminous book explaining the high state of civilization among the Maronians. But now Prof. Campbell of Lick Observatory, the best-equipped in the world, says that Mars has no atmosphere. Popular Science. Mountains are climbed in Central Afrlca by the aid of a long loop of calicó called a "Machila." The climber leans back at one end, while six or eight strong men pull at the other. Sir Robert Ball, the astronomer royal for Ireland, is said to believe that the time is approaching when posterity will be able to construct machinery that wil] be operated with heat obtained by the direct action of the sun's raya. "The unprecedented death rate in Kngland, largely due to influenza, and especially severe upon oíd people," says the Medical News, "has of late in London reached so high a figrure as 38.5, and in Liverpool the frightful rate of 55.5 has been recorded." The waters of North America, which means the Gulf of Mexico, the two great oceans and the rivers, ereeks and lakes, are stocked with 1,800 different varieties of flsh. Of the above number 500 are peculiar to the Pacific and 600 to the rivers, creeks and lakes. Dr. A. E. Bridger expresses the opinon in the British Medical Journal that n the act of kissing we encounter only beneficent organisms. He says that "The advantages of kissing outweigh :ts infinitesimal risk, for it provides us with microbes useful for digestión." This will be a popular verdict. In a recent balloon ascent of six miles, Dr. A. Berson of Berlin states that the thermometer registered eighty-four degrees of frost F., and that he took an occasional sip at an oxygen cylinder which was part of his equipment, but that he suffered no serious inconvenience. This is so unprecedented that it would be interesting, and perhaps more eatisfactory, to know whether the accuracy of the instruments used had been properly verifled.