12 
POPULAR SC1EN"CE NEWS. 
[January, 1891. 
the northwest ; below it is Cassiopeia, and Cygnus 
is on the horizon. Andromeda is a little north of 
west, below Perseus, and Pegasus is just below 
. Andromeda. Pisces is just west of Pegasus ; 
above Pisces is Aries, and above Aries and near 
the zenith is Taurus, with the groups of the 
Pleiades and Hyades. Cetus is iu the southwest, 
and Eridanus a little west of south. M. 
Lake Forest, III., Dec. 2, 1889. 
©OPPesponderjJGe. 
Brief communicaii^ns upon subjects of scientific interest 
will be welcomed from any quarter. The editors do not 
necessarily indorse all viewt and statements presented by 
their correspondents. 
THE PHOEXICIANS IX BRITAIN. 
Editor of Popular Science Nevis : 
Dear Sir : In reference to tlie Phoenician occu- 
pation of Britain, which sultjeet was brouglit before 
us in your paper, in the May number, and again 
in October by the article from our friend Sir. 
Hems, I would lilce to call your attention to two 
passages in a boolv that recently came under my 
observation. The title is : "A Compendium of 
the History of Cornwall," by tlie Eev. J. .1. 
Uaniell; second edition; published at Truro, by 
Netliertou & Wortli, 7 Lemon street. On page 2 : 
"It is quite probable that the Phoenicians made 
permanent settlements iu Cornwall, and tliat from 
them many of the inhabitants of tlie western part 
of the county are descended." On page 321 : 
"The people of many of tlie parishes around Pen- 
zance ... liave large black eyes. 
T'hey have been supposed to be of eastern birth, 
descended from a colony of Plioenicians from 
Cadiz who settled in these parts. Hercules is a 
rather common name in the neigliborhood." 
This is interesting if true, although, of course, 
it lias nothing to do with the authenticity of the 
story about the particular family spolien of in tlie 
articles referred to. 
Very truly yours, 
>I. N. Chamberlin. 
Cheshire, Conn., Dec. 17, 1890. 
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. 
Letters of inquiry sliould enclose a two-cent 
stamp, as well as the name and address of the 
writer, which will not be published. 
Questions regarding the treatment of diseases 
cannot be answered in tliis column. 
A. S. G., Va. — Is there any preparation which 
will cause gray liair to resume its natural color, 
but which is not a dye? 
.4n«tcer.— There is nothing of the sort known. 
All the various "hair restoratives" are notliing 
but dyes, and are botli unwholesome and uncleanly. 
The loss of color of the hair depends upon consti- 
tutional causes, and it is rarely or never restored. 
B. G. N., Conn. — No planet has ever been dis- 
covered outside the orbit of Neptune, and no 
planet has been observed nearer the sun tlian Mer- 
cury, although tlie existence of the hypotlietical 
Vulcan has been strongly suspected. Neptune is 
about 2,850,000,000 miles distant from tlie sun, 
and makes a complete revolution around it in a 
little more than 164 years. 
E. W. S., Ohio. — A very bright star is visible 
every evening in the soutliwest, and it is said to 
be the reappearance of the Star of Bethleliem. Is 
it a new star or one formerly known? 
Answer. — Tlie star in question is only the planet 
Venus, wliicli is now ( November 1 ) at about its 
greatest brilliancy. It is at its greatest brilliancy 
as evening star once or twice every year, and as 
often as morning star, when it rises before the 
sun. Usually at such times it is bright enough to 
cast a distinct shadow, and can be seen in broad 
daylight. The planet has nothing to do whatever 
with the "Star of Bethlehem," but statements to 
that effect usually appear in the papers at every 
period of brilliancy. 
Subscriber. — About fifteen cubic feet of hydro- 
gen gas would be required to lift a balloon weigh- 
ing one pound. The si^eciflc gravity of coal gas 
varies, but, on an average, about twice as much 
would be required. Hot air has less lifting power 
than either, but its buoyancy depends entirely 
upon its temperature. 
K., Allegheny, Penn. — In a recent article in tlie 
News, it is said " if the ether is not matter then it 
has no existence." Space and time are not matter ; 
have they no existence? 
Answer. — The statement quoted above must be 
taken in its connection with the rest of the para- 
graph to be understood. In discussing the proba- 
ble existence of the hypothetical ether, it was 
only intended to show that it must be matter, as 
differentiated from energy, or, in other words, 
that the ether cannot be a force. Space and time 
are simply relative ideas, conditioned upon our 
own iierceptions, and, as a metaphysical specula- 
tion, the idea may be legitimately advanced, that 
without the existence of matter there would be no 
space, and without the existence of life, or mole- 
cular movement, no time. 
W. C, Phila. — Can 1 make use of a I^eyden jar 
for measuring the current of a dynamo, the jar 
being i)laced in the circuit and alternately charged 
and discharged. 
Answer. — As we understand your question, you 
cannot measure the current by such a method. 
Probably a voltmeter or ammeter, such as is sold 
by dealers in electrical apparatus, is what you 
need. A current of low tension can be converted 
into one of high tension electricity by means of an 
induction coil, but the current from the ordinary 
dynamo machines is too powerful to be passed 
through such a coil without destroying it. 
Subscriber. — In the majority of cases, lead 
pipes used for conveying water become covered 
with an insoluble coating of salts of lead, which 
protects them from further action, but for abso- 
lute safety, iron is the best material. The only 
objection to its use is that it sometimes rusts away 
quite rapidly, but in such cases the "rustless" 
iron pipes can be used. 
LITERARY NOTES. 
The fourth volume of The Century Dictionary is 
just issued, containing the letters M to P, inclu- 
sive, and forming a quarto of 1,323 pages, illus- 
trated by nearly 1,500 cuts. The present volume 
is the largest of the series yet published, and the 
richest in material, — how rich only a careful 
examination of its pages and a comparison of 
them with other works of the kind will show. 
With each successive installment of the dictionary 
it has become more and more clear that the origi- 
nal estimates were too small, both as regards the 
total of pages in the completed book and the 
wealth of words and other lexicographical mate- 
rial which it would contain. The fourth volume 
illustrates in a striking manner, also, the technical 
and scientific character of the dictionary. Begin- 
ning with the letter ilf one meets the prefix macro-, 
followed in quick succession by meso-, meta-, micro-, 
mono-, and many others of greater or less impor- 
tance, from which are formed groups of hundreds 
of technical terms, most of which have came into 
existence during the last ten or fifteen years. The 
same is true of the other letters, especially of P, 
which, indeed, owes its size very largely to this 
wealth of scientific material. The treatment of 
technical words, too, is on a broad scale iu this 
volume, as is well illusti'ated by the definitions of 
magnesia, magnet (and its derivatives), mammalia, 
man, etc. It also show s on a large scale what an 
immense amount of information about common 
words, neglected by other lexicographers, the 
editors of The Century Dictionary are bringing to 
light. The facts thus exhibited are strikingly 
shown by the word make, with 83 definitions, 1.59 
phrases, and 126 quotations, and by pass, with 72 
definitions, 30 phrases, and 127 quotations. 
A Treatise on Electro-Metallurgy, by Walter 
McMillan, F. C. S. Price $3.50. J. B. Lippincott 
Co., Philadelphia. 
With the introduction of the dynamo machine for 
cheaply producing currents of electricity, the old- 
fashioned methods of plating with gold, silver and - 
other metals have been entirely abandoned, and 
the capabilities of the art indefinitely extended. 
Professor McMillan's work on this important suti- 
ject is eminently practical, and designed for the 
use of those actually engaged in the trade, Init the 
electrical and chemical theories involved in the 
process have by no means been neglected, and the 
work as a whole can be confidently recommeniled 
to all interested in the subject. 
Harper^s Sixth Header, (90 cents), received from 
the American Book Co., of New York, is a good 
illustration of the great improvement in modern 
school books. The silly and worthless selections 
used to make up the "readers " of not many years 
ago, have, in this volume, been replaced "by ex- 
tracts from the best British authors, forming a 
book which it is a pleasure to peruse, aside from 
its educational value. 
The Physician^s Visiting List, from P. Blakiston, 
Son & Co., of Philadelphia, has made its annual 
appearance on our desk, and is, as usual, the most 
comprehensive and best adapted to its purpose of 
any similar list published. 
The extraordinary statements of the Hon. Igna- 
tius Donnelly, in the December number of the 
North American Beview, as to the cryptogram 
which he claims to have discovered in the \\ orks 
of Shakspeare, are to be answered in the .lanuary 
number by an article prepared by Professor V\^. J. 
Rolfe, the eminent Shakspearian scholar. Mr. 
Rolfe does not confine himself to Mr. Donnelly, 
however, but takes up various writers who have 
assailed the claims of the "divine William." 
By far the most valuable business calendar for 
1891, and entirely unique in design, is the Colum- 
bia Cycle Calendar and Stand, issued by the Pope 
Manufacturing Co., of Boston, Mass. The day of 
the week and the day of the year, together \vith 
the number of the days to come, are given, and 
each slip bears a short paragraph pertaining to 
cycling and kindred subjects. 
The American Naturalist was commenced twenty- 
four years ago, by an association of the studeuts 
of Professor Agassiz, at Cambridge. While it has 
followed the fortunes of its founders from com- 
parative youth to a vigorous maturity, it has gath- 
ered to its support most of the biologists and 
geologists of North America. Its constituenej' of 
authors now includes a majority of the men of 
this class in the country. Price §4.00 per year, or 
84.75 with Popular Science News. 
Pamphlets, etc., received: The Treatment of the 
Morphine Disease, by J. B. Mathews, JI. D., Brook- 
lyn, N. Y. ; The Relief of Headaches and Astheno- 
pia, Arising from Hyperopia, and Acute Glancoma, 
by A. B. Norton, M. D., New York; On Double 
Consciousness, by Alfred Binet, published by the 
Open Court Publishing Co,, Chicago; Sulletins oj 
the Laboratories of Natural History of the State Uni- 
versity of Iowa, und North American Fauna No. 3, 
publislied by the U. S. Department of Agriculture. 
Globular Lightning.— The pheuomon of glob- 
ular lightning was imitated by M. Plante, it will 
be remembered, with his secondary batteries. It 
has been shown by Herr von Lepel, aswe learn from 
Nature of October 16, that this can be done with so- 
called statical electricty, obtained from an influence 
niachiue. Two thin brass-wire points from the 
poles of a powerful machine being held at a cer- 
tain distance from the opposite sides of an insu- 
lated plate of mica, ebonite, glass or the like, there 
appear small red luminous balls, which move about, 
now quickly, now slowl}', and are sometimes still. 
Even better effects were had with a glass or paper 
disk which had been sprayed with parnttiue. 
Small particles of liquid or dust seem to be the 
carriers of the light. A slight air-current makes 
the spherules disappear with hissing noise. These 
spherules, the author remarks, are phenomena of 
weak tension : an increase of the tension gives a 
rose spark discharge. Various interesting analo- 
gies witli globular lightning are traced. 
