Sept. 21, 1883.] 



♦ KNOWLEDGE ♦ 



191 



these annoyances. I myself have shared in the effects of his 

 mystic powers. The number of warts were given and faithfully 

 counted by liim in cntting notches on a stick. In strict secresy 

 this stick was buried in the garden, [tlio gardener] uttering over 

 it some charmed sentence, which no one was allowed to hear. 

 The warts quickly vanished. A visitor in our family underwent 

 the same treatment, ^vith the same happy result. The warts were 

 neither touched with saliva, or even looked at. 



A Co.N'STA.NT Header of " Knowledge." 



[936] — As a subscriber to your excellent paper, Knowledge, I 

 saw (in No. 81, for May 18, 1883, amongst " Letters to the Editor") 

 a very interesting article under the heading of " Wart Charming." 

 If you will kindly allow me, I will offer an experience of my own 

 with regard to warts, which you are at liberty to insert in your 

 paper if you think it of any interest. 



When I was a boy of about fourteen years of age I happened to 

 have upon the back of my right hand three to four warts. One 

 day a friend, happening to notice them, said that he would soon 

 drive them away, and there and then told me what to do. Said he, 

 "Next time you see a female dog, put something sweet over the 

 warts and make the dog lick them, as long as you can over five 

 minutes. I laughed, as I had a suspicion that the gentleman was 

 making fun of me. 



However, I thought I would prove the gentleman's method any 

 way. So for three days after was on the look-out, when at last I 

 fell in with an old schoolmate who had a little bitch along with him. 

 Immediately I made friends witli her and patted the animal on the 

 head kindly; then I placed a few crumbs of biscuit (1 happened to 

 be munching at the time) upon the warts, and offered them to the 

 dog. She ate them up greedily and licked the place over and over 

 again, when I would put more crumbs on the warts ; this kept her 

 licking long over five minutes. Then I went home soon after and 

 forgot all about the occun*enee, when, lo ! a few days after I was 

 suddenly amazed to find the warts gone, but the place where they 

 had been was visible for a little time after and then disappeared 

 also. I can answer for the truth of this, and, as far I am able to 

 understand it, it is, as you say, in some way influenced by the mind 

 over the body, the attention being called towards them. 



Yokohama, July 12, 1883. Henby A. Vincent. 



[The case illustrates " Mephisto's " theory, which no doubt has 

 an element of truth in it, though the mind influence theory is not 

 overthrown or even shaken by it. — K. P.] 



DEAF CATS. 



[937]— R. S. T. (850) writes of a family of deaf cats, whose deaf- 

 ness he attributes to in-and-in breeding. I, too, have some 

 acquaintance with deaf cats. The first I met was given to me as a 

 very small kitten, in Syria, by a gentleman who told me it would 

 grow up deaf, adding as a fact in natural history, that all white cats 

 with blue eyes are deaf. I took my kitteu to Malta, when in due 

 time ho developed into a deaf cat. At Malta I lodged in a house 

 where my landlady possessed a family of three wliite Persian cats, 

 all of whom were deaf; of course, for anything I knew to the con- 

 trary, in-and-in breeding may have been the cause in both cases, 

 tliough certainly independently of each other, for my cat is not a 

 Persian, and is like those belonging to my landlady only in colour. 

 I may mention that my landlady is also acquainted with the quasi- 

 jihysiological fact that white cats with blue eyes are invariably 

 deaf. 



I can answer for these animals not being deaf mutes, liowever. 

 What a comfort it would be if this could be achieved by iu-aud-in 

 breeding or any other means. 



LETTERS RECEIVED, AND SHORT ANSWERS. 



C. W. B. Yes ; though your account is inexact, and your 

 drawing, as you say, exaggerated. From the centre of whatever 

 hemisphere of the earth is turned moonwards, a certain hemisphere 

 of the moon is visible at any given moment ; from points round 

 tho edge of that hemisphere of the earth, an observer can see a 

 certain small distance beyond this hemisphere of the moon. The 

 fringe of the moon's farther heuiisphere thus brought into view, 

 is about one degree of are in breadth. — W. H. Bangall, B.A. Tho 

 subject is excellent and Mr. Alien would treat it admirably ; but 

 so many subjects are excellent, and he is admirably treating 

 subjects of his own choosing. — J. A. R. Of course tho principle 

 of such tricks is obvious; yet they interest many. — H. F. F. IF. 

 I do not know how rain-water may be kept sweet in a large wine 

 cask. — James Bukn. It is sad that none of tho seientilie con- 

 tributors of the Newcastle Weeld]/ Chrnnidc noticed vour 



theory about tho way in which the earth receives her 

 heat. You have " formed the opinion that the rays of light 

 when coming in contact with the atmosphere, after having passed 

 through the frigid zone which encircles the globe either by an 

 electrical or chemical action, lets loose the latent fire which the 

 region of the air holds, as it were, in solution : by this means the 

 earth will always have a suificient supply of heat, and when it has 

 done its duty it will again retm-n to its aeral home." I have formed 

 the opinion that I know no more than you do yourself what you 

 mean. Try this theory : — The molecules of aqueous vapour super- 

 saturated (as it were) with carbonic acid pass either by polar or 

 magnetic action (so to speak) athwart the torrid zone which 

 encircles tho globe, and there bind the miasmatic emanations, 

 which would otherwise pass away into the interplanetary a;ther ; 

 thus there is no waste, but (as one might say) a constant 

 regeneration of (what may be called) the mundane heat fuel. 

 " I trust I make myself understood." — H. Price. Whether, 

 your eyesight being such as you describe it, at present, 

 you vrill be able twenty years hence to see as well, — your 

 age being now 30 — I find myself unable to divine. I see 

 as well now as I ever did in my life ; but whether I shall be 

 able to do so when I am fifty, I cannot say. How then can I tell 

 you what your eyesight will be like a score of years hence. — Ed. 

 Sheppard. You take three digits, selected by A, B, and C, multiply 

 A's, by 20 and add twice B's, then midtiply the sum by 30 and add 

 6 times C's ; dividing the sum by G you have the three digits. Well 

 this is not very surprising. Your process gives you, — 1°, six times 

 C's digit; 2°, twice B's multiplied by 30, or 60 times B's ; and 3°, 

 20 times A's multiplied by 30, i.e., 600 times A's : therefore 

 naturally, dividing by six, you have C's digit, 10 times B's, and 100 

 times A's ; i.e., A's in the hundreds' place, B's in the tens' place ; 

 and A C's in the units' place. — Phonos. Know of no work that 

 explains and teaches the thousand and one games that can bo 

 played with a pack of cards. 



Erratum.— In the last line of Letter 926 (p. 173) 17-8" E. of 

 Greenwich should be 17'8 sees, (of time) E. of Greenwich. 



&nt Cbrss Column. 



By Mephisto, 



SOLUTION. 

 Problem No. 96, by J. Berger, p. 160. 



1. Q to R5 1. K to Kt4 



2. B to Kt6 2. K moves 



3. Q mates accordingly 



If 1. K to K6, 2. Q to K 8i (eh), anl 3. Q to Q2 mate; or >i 

 1. P to K5, 2. Kt to Kt6 (eh), and 3. Q to K sq mate. 



PROBLEM No. 99. 



Fourth Prize Three-mover in the Nuremberg Problem 



Tocknament. 



By J. Berger, Graz. 



Black. 



White to play and mate in three moves. 

 (We shall be pleased if our solvers will institute a comparison 

 between this problem and the lirst-prize three-mover in Knowledge, 



