NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



173 



beyond the grave. Time determines what shall be our 

 condition in that world. Every morning, when we 

 go forth, we lay the moulding hand on our destiny ; 

 and every evening, when we have done, we have left 

 a deathless impress upon our character. We touch 

 not a wire but vibrates in eternity — not a voice but 

 reports at the throne of God. Lot j'o.uth especially 

 think of these things, and let every one remember 

 that in this world, where character is in its foi'mation 

 state, it is a serious thing to think, to speak, to act. 



Cjmltf). 



For the IlE.vnAcnE. — Sage tea will often give 

 relief. It is stimulating, causing a rapid circulation 

 of blood in the veins, which relieves the brain from 

 a flow to that organ ; it also causes perspiration, 

 when taken freely. With food, sage tea is an excel- 

 lent substitute for tea or coffee, and by some persons 

 it is preferred as more palatable, without any regard 

 to its healthful effects. 



The following is generally a remedy for headache : 

 Open the hair on the patient's head, apply a little 

 fine salt ; then apply the palm of the hand, and rub it 

 hard and briskly for a short time ; then perform the 

 same operation on another part, passing over the 

 head, particularly that part which is the seat of pain. 

 The cheeks will soon be flushed with heat, and the 

 head relieved. Whether the effect is wholly owing 

 to the friction, that invites the blood outwardly, and 

 relieves the brain from pressure, or whether the salt 

 has a cooling and contractive effect in driving the 

 blood from the brain, we know not. Perhaps it has 

 a favorable effect in both ways. If there be no 

 efficacy in the chemical nature of the salt, sand or 

 sawdust would answer the same purpose of produc- 

 ing ii-ritation by friction. 



Champooing the head, as performed by barbers 

 to cleanse the hair and the head of dandruff, will 

 generally cure the headache. They apply some 

 cleansing liquid, — perhaps soap and water would 

 answer, — and then rub hard and thoroughly, and 

 continue the process twenty or thirty minutes ; after 

 which the head Is dried by rubbing with a towel. 



Showering with cold water is a good remedy. In 

 severe cases, lot a person ascend to the second or 

 third story of the house, and pour cold water from a 

 pitcher or coffee-pot steadily upon one point of the 

 patient's head. 



A teaspoonful of finely powdered charcoal, drank 

 in half a tumbler of water, will, in less than fifteen 

 minutes, give relief to the sick headache, when 

 caused by a superabundance of acid on the stomach. 



Dressixg Wounds. — Nine times out of ten, a 

 wound v.'ill heal quicker if done up in its own blood, 

 than in any other v/ay. As for a burn, whatever 

 will entirely exclude the air the quickest, is the best. 

 Cotton will do this ; so will oiled silk, if stuck down 

 at the edges by anj' kind of sticking salves. Put 

 nothing on a burn to heal it. Nature will soon do 

 that, when the air is excluded, and the pain will 

 almost immediately cease. 



iHecljanica' ^Department, ^rt0, $^c. 



Wettixg Bricks. — Few people, except builders, 

 are aware of the advantages of wetting bricks before 

 laying them. A wall twelve inches thick, built up 

 of good mortar, with brick well soaked, is stronger, 

 in every respect, than one sixteen inches thick built 

 dry. The reason of this is, that if the bricks are 

 saturated with watei-, they will not abstract from the 

 mortar the moisture which is necessary to its crys- 

 tallization, and, on the contrary, they will unite 

 chemically with the mortar, and become as solid as 

 a rock. On the other hand, if the bricks are put up 

 dr)', they immediately take all the moisture from the 

 mortar, leave it too dry to harden ; and the conse- 

 quence is, that when a building of this description 

 is taken down, or tumbles down of its own accord, 

 the mortar falls from it like so much sand. — New 

 York Sun. 



The Value of the Barometer. — Torricolli in- 

 vented, and Pascal perfected, this instrument : and it 

 is of great use, not only in foretelling the changes 

 of the weather, and thus saving the lives of naviga- 

 tors, and preventing the loss of millions of property 

 on the ocean, but also in enabling us readily to as- 

 certain the height of mountains, or any other sit- 

 uation to which it can be taken. 



In illustration of the use first mentioned, I am 

 going to tell you an anecdote which I have read of 

 Lord Collingwood, who succeeded Lord Nelson in 

 the command of the British fleet, after Nelson's 

 death, at the battle of Trafalgar, in 1803. Dr. Gray, 

 a surgeon in Lord CoUingwood's ship, was very fond 

 of observing the weather, and kept a regular register 

 of it. But his lordship had little or no faith in the 

 barometer, and used to laugh at the doctor for his 

 credulity. The fleet, at one time, was cruising off 

 Sicily, Syracuse, a little before sunset ; the weather 

 was very fine, and the sky gave no indications of a 

 change. Dr. Gray, on going to consult his glass, and 

 enter his observations, as usual, was surprised to find 

 that the mercury had fallen nearly an inch. This 

 alarmed him, and he mentioned the fact to Lord Col- 

 lingwood, who was greatly amused by his anxiety. 

 The doctor, however, urged that the fall was unusu- 

 ally great, and he had no doubt before midnight 

 they would have to encounter a gale, which, though 

 it might not be of long duration, would be extremely 

 heavy. He added, if in this case the glass deceived 

 him, he would admit that it was a false prophet. 

 "W^ell," said his lordship, smiling, "we will put 

 you on your trial, and you shall have the manage- 

 ment of the fleet for once." A signal was accord- 

 ingly made to prepare for bad weather. One of tho 

 captains told Dr. Gray, next day, they were quite at 

 a loss what to make of such an order, as the after- 

 noon was so fine, and the sky so settled. However, 

 before midnight, they all acknowledged the wise 

 foresight of the order, for it blew a hurricane for 

 several hours, which must, had they not been pre- 

 pared for it, have done them great damage. 



Another occasion offered, some time after, to scat- 

 ter his lordship's doubt. They had gone ashore, 

 and in the morning it blew a heavy gale, which 

 alarmed them greatly for tho safety of a little vessel, 

 in which was the son of one of their agents. For 

 some reason, it had been taken in tow by one of the 

 ships, and was in danger of being drawn under the 

 water. The poor father stood, therefore, on the 

 shore, almost distracted. Dr. Gray, however, find- 

 ing that the mercury in his barometer had risen con- 

 siderably and verv "quickly, comforted him, by tell- 

 ing hira that he had very little doubt, bat that, high 

 as the sea v.'as then, in an hour or two ho might go 



