572 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



by which the Chinese silk trade passed in 

 the middle ages, and had brought to light 

 the leading gold fields of northern Thibet. 



Weather and the Mind. The psycholo- 

 gy of the weather is suggested by Dr. T. D. 

 Crothers as a promising subject for study. 

 He says, in Science : " Very few persons rec- 

 ognize the sources of error that come direct- 

 ly from atmospheric conditions on experi- 

 menters and observers and others. In my 

 own case I have been amazed at the faulty 

 deductions and misconceptions which were 

 made in damp, foggy weather, or on days in 

 which the air was charged with electricity 

 and thunderstorms were impending. What 

 seemed clear to me at these times appeared 

 later to be filled with error. An actuary in 

 a large insurance company is obliged to stop 

 work at such times, finding that he makes so 

 many mistakes which he is only conscious of 

 later that his work is useless. In a large 

 factory from ten to twenty per cent less 

 work is brought out on damp days and days 

 of threatening storm. The superintendent, 

 in receiving orders to be delivered at a cer- 

 tain time, takes this factor into calculation. 

 There is a theory among many persons in the 

 fire-insurance business that in states of de- 

 pressing atmosphere greater carelessness ex- 

 ists and more fires follow. Engineers of 

 railway locomotives have some curious theo- 

 ries of trouble, accidents, and increased dan- 

 gers in such periods, attributing them to the 

 machinery." Dr. Crothers adds that the con- 

 viction prevails among many active brain 

 workers in his circle that some very power- 

 ful forces coming from what is popularly 

 called the weather control the work and its 

 success of each one. 



Seeking Perfection. The Rev. J. A. 



Wylie, describing his journey through cen- 

 tral Manchuria, speaks of a charming place, 

 the Lao Te Ling, near Ta Shin Ho, where, at 

 the summit of a hill, " there are several fine 

 temples,- including one, a large Buddhist 

 temple, in course of erection ; and in. con- 

 nection with this there is an interesting 

 story. In a little house with eight ieet by 

 six feet of accommodation, two thirds of 

 which is occupied by a small Kang, there 

 lives a Buddhist priest. His head is not 

 close-shaven, as the heads of other Buddhist 



priests are, for since taking up his residence 

 in these quarters, or rather in this sentry 

 box, he has allowed his locks to grow. For 

 four years has he already been here, and an- 

 other three years at least remain for him to 

 stay. He is seeking to attain perfection, 

 and he must finish what he has begun. Not 

 until the temple is finished buildmg will he 

 be at liberty to leave his post. The little 

 door of this priest's domicile is sealed up, so 

 he never even steps out into the open air ; 

 there is only a small opening in the door or 

 window for an attendant to hand in his 

 meals. These meals are scanty and few ; 

 only one meal a day at noon. He drinks 

 great quantities of tea, however ; he seems 

 to put no limit to his indulgence in that 

 beverage. In sleep he does not stretch him- 

 self out ; in fact, he never lies down, he only 

 half reclines, and, asleep or awake, he con- 

 stantly keeps pulling away at a rope which 

 connects with the temple bell, which must 

 never cease to ring. Travelers passing at 

 all hours may hear the bell sounding ; this 

 is part of his work of merit. While I was 

 with him, even although we spoke in such a 

 way that everything else might be forgotten, 

 he did not forget to pull the rope. How, 

 during sleep, he manages is to me the mys- 

 tery. He had heard long ago of the Chris- 

 tian religion ; some books I offered him he 

 refused, on the ground that before he had 

 purified himself by completing his task it 

 would be sacrilege to touch these books. 

 When I pressed him he accepted them, how- 

 ever. How earnest must this man be when 

 he thus denies himself ! Still it is merit, and 

 merit for himself, that he is endeavoring to 

 attain." 



Coal-dust Explosions. A strong confir- 

 mation of the theory that coal dust is a fre- 

 quent cause of explosions in coal mines is 

 given by the experiments made in the 

 White Moss Colliery, Skelmersdale, and re- 

 corded by Mr. Henry Hall, inspector of 

 mines. It appears from them that the flame 

 from a blowing-out gunpowder shot in the 

 presence of dry coal dust is always found to 

 ignite more or less such dust and to increase 

 the burning and charring effects of the shot. 

 When a large flame, such as that of a blow- 

 ing-out gunpowder shot, or the flame from 

 the ignition of a small quantity of fire damp, 



