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TEE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



among neighboring farms through the ex- 

 change of eggs by the farmers ; if nothing 

 interrupts its progressive increase, it prom- 

 ises ere long to be predominant. The pecu- 

 liarity was not so perfect at first as it is 

 now; the modification has been going on 

 progressively. 



A square metre of the wall of a surgi- 

 cal ward in the Paris Hospital la Pitie was 

 washed an operation that had not been 

 performed during two years previously 

 and the liquid wrung out of the sponge was 

 immediately examined. It contained micro- 

 cocci in abundance, some micro-bacteria, 

 epithelial cells, pus-globules, and ovoid bod- 

 ies of unknown nature. The sponge used 

 was new, and had been washed in distilled 

 water. 



Ernst Haeberlein, to whom the world 

 of science is indebted for the discovery of 

 the first Archaeopteryx, has now discovered 

 another and more perfect specimen of the 

 same curious reptile-like bird. As we learn 

 from Die Natur, the new Archaeopteryx 

 has a head, which was wanting in the first 

 individual discovered. Hence the hitherto 

 undecided point whether the animal had 

 the head of a bird or of a reptile can now 

 be determined. 



A Norwegian engineer, Meinerk, has 

 invented an ice-breaker for keeping far 

 northern harbors open through the winter. 

 The machine, as briefly described in the 

 Moniieur Industriel Beige, is in form like a 

 ploughshare, and is driven by two engines. 

 Two centrifugal pumps throw a stream of 

 water on the fragments of ice as they re- 

 treat behind the vessel, and drive them back 

 into the channel made by the plough. In 

 summer the plough may be converted into 

 a powerful dredge. 



In a case of poisoning by colored stock- 

 ings which is recorded in the Lancet, the 

 patient suffered a severe itching of the feet 

 with great pain, " like penkniyes darting 

 into the feet and legs." The cuticle was 

 raised in several places on the soles and 

 sides of the feet, and there was a discharge 

 of fetid pus. Chemical analysis proved that 

 the stockings worn by the patient had been 

 colored with coralline, which is known to 

 produce poisonous effects on the skin. 



The following " death-notice " is trans- 

 lated literally from a Zurich newspaper: 



"I communicate to all my friends and 

 acquaintances the sad news that at 3 p. m. 

 to-morrow I shall incinerate, according to 

 all the rules of art, my late mother-in-law, 

 who has fallen asleep with faith in her Lord. 

 The funeral-urn will be placed near the fur- 

 nace. 



" The profoundly afflicted son-in-law, 

 " Prandolf-Lichtler. 

 "Zurich. August 3</." 



A new malady of the grape-vine has 

 made its appearance in Switzerland, where 

 it has already done considerable damage in 

 the vineyards. It is known as blanc de la 

 viffne, or white-sickness of the vine, and is 

 caused by the development of a mycelium 

 which overspreads every part of the dis- 

 eased vine. Recent researches, says La 

 Nature, show that the cause of this infec- 

 tion resides in the props used for support- 

 ing the vines ; the germs of the parasite 

 find a shelter in the cracks of the wood. 

 They may be destroyed by saturating the 

 props with a solution of copper sulphate. 



In presenting to Mr. Walter Weldon the 

 Lavoisier medal of the French Society for 

 encouraging National Industry, Prof. Lamy 

 stated that, at the date of the introduction 

 of Mr. Weldon's invention seven or eight 

 years ago, the total bleaching-powder made 

 in the world was only 55,000 tons per an- 

 num, whereas now it is over 150,000 tons ; 

 and of this fully 90 per cent, is made by 

 the Weldon process. Py this process every 

 sheet of white paper and every yard of calico 

 made in the world have been cheapened. 



The city of Dunkirk, New York, pos- 

 sesses a Microscopical Society which, with 

 a small membership and very slender re- 

 sources, has already earned a name in the 

 world of science. At a meeting of this so- 

 ciety held jn the early part of summer, Dr. 

 George E. Elackham and Dr. C. P. Ailing 

 were reelected respectively president and 

 secretary of the society. 



The gorilla of the Perl in Aquarium is 

 now at the Westminster Aquarium, Lon- 

 don, " on a visit." His face is by Mr. 

 Puckland pronounced tb be very human, 

 but as black as ebony; the nose is snub, 

 the lips thick and heavy. During sleep, 

 as we are informed by Mr. Puckland, " a 

 pleasant smile every now and then lights 

 up the countenance " of the animal. 



Prof. Parlatore, the eminent botanist, 

 and for some time Director of the Museum 

 of Natural History at Florence, died sud- 

 denly on Sunday, September 9th. 



A new use has been found for dynamite, 

 in the slaughter-house. Experiments made 

 at Dudley, England, show that a small quan- 

 tity of dynamite a thimbleful placed on 

 the forehead of an animal and exploded, in- 

 stantly causes death. In one experiment, 

 two large horses and a donkey, unfit for 

 work, were placed in a line about half a 

 yard apart, the donkey being in the middle. 

 A small primer of dynamite, with electric 

 fuse attached, was placed on the forehead 

 of each, and fastened by a string under the 

 jaw. The wires were then coupled in cir- 

 cuit and attached to the electric machine. 

 The three charges were exploded simulta- 

 neously, the animals falling dead instantly 

 without a struggle. 



