MOORE’S RURAL NEW-YORKER: AN AGRICULTURAL AND FAMILY JOURNAL 
ANIKAL HEAT. 
Animal heat is the natural warmth 
which animals possess, independently of sur¬ 
rounding objects, and which is g-enerated in 
their own systems. The avarage tempera¬ 
ture of man’s body, in health, is about 89 
degs. F. That of the arctic fox is 107 ® ; 
of the snow bunting 111 , and that of 
Sshes and reptiles so low as to produce the 
sensation of cold to our touch: they are 
hence called cold blooded, although they 
maintain a temperature about two degrees 
above the water in v hich they live. Plants 
and all organised beings maintain constant¬ 
ly a higher temperature than inorganic bodies 
in their -^-icinity. Animal bodies in paidicu- 
lar have the power of maintaining a unifonu 
temperature in an atmo.sphere many degreeSj 
colder than their bodies; they also rcisist a 
temperature many degrees warmer, without 
changing their own. 
If the temperature of man’s body be re¬ 
duced 20 below the natural standard, that 
is, to 78 death ensues. Men in health 
have endured a unnporature in the arctic 
regions 50 ^ loGO*^ below freezing: men 
have also remained for a considerable time 
in rooms heated to 000 ", —and fish are 
found in -springs, in volcanic districts, hot 
enough to boil them when dead. Many in¬ 
genious the<.iries ha\'e been framed to ex¬ 
plain the cause of animal heat 
This function has been ascribed to the brain, 
lungs, liver, stomach, and other parts: each 
in its turn has by philosophers been supposed 
to be the centre of life and the generator 
of heat Heat was once thought to be the 
cause of, and indentical with animal life.— 
The ex'pla.nation proposed by Lieiiio, a Ger¬ 
man chemist, is now generally received as 
the most satisfactory. He says, it depends 
upon “the mutual action between the ele¬ 
ments of the food and resphed oxygen.”— 
Oxygen is taken into the arterial blood from 
the air in the lungs during re.spiration: an 
ordinary man takes into his system in this * 
w^ay, about thirty-two <mnces a day. The 
venous blood, (or the dark red blood of the 
veins,) contains carbon, which it has obtain¬ 
ed from the food. Now the two sets of A'es- 
sels, viz: the arteries and veins, meet at 
their extremities, and anj connected by a 
third set called capillaries: ivhen the arte¬ 
rial blood containing an excess of oxvgen, 
meets in these small vessels M-ith the venous 
blood containing an excess of carbdlf a 
chemical action takes place* between them 
precisely similar to that of a common wood 
fire. This combustion is less rapid, but 
produces the same quantity of heat as the 
same elements would produce if burned in 
the open air. The carbon, as in all other 
cases is the combustible and the oxygen the 
supportei' of combustion. We see then that 
a part of the carbon of ihe food is actuallv 
burnt within our bodies to keep us warm. 
Food which contains the most carbon, pro¬ 
duces the most animal heat,—-all fat and 
oily substances produce more heat than lean 
flesh and vegetables, because they contain 
more carbon. When from disease or other 
cause, the sup])ly of food is cut ofti the fat 
of the body is consumed as fuel for com¬ 
bustion ; the marrow of the bones is next at¬ 
tacked, then the brain, mid all parts contain¬ 
ing fat are consumed in succession,— and 
when the supply finally fails, the animal 
temperature gradually diminishes and death 
ensues. Thus a starving man literall)^ freezes 
to death. 
We see now the beautiful connexion be¬ 
tween this element of the food and the heat 
of the body. Excess of animal - food is in¬ 
compatible with a deficient supply of oxygen. 
Whenever more oily food is supplied than 
is required to supply the waste from excre¬ 
tions and keep up the heat of the body, an 
accumulation of fat takes place. Any cause 
which tends to diminish the heat, expend 
muscidar pow'er, or quicken the circulation 
and respiration, must exhaust the fuel and 
render more food necessary. Cold air, cold 
bathuig and cold drinks, all have this effect, 
•—hence,-in high latitudes animal heat is 
rapidly dissipated,—oxygen is supplied in 
larger quantity and consumed more rapidly, 
—hence, also, the rapidity of digestion, and 
the appetite and necessity for a large sup¬ 
ply of oily food. Musculai' exercise, mental 
action, inflaimnatory diseases and fevens, all 
make large demands on the system for its 
heat, and hasten the consumption of the fat 
of the food, or the system itself:—hence, 
when digestion is from miy cause suspended 
so that the carbon cannot be supplied from I 
without tlirough the medium of the food. 
rapid emaciation is the result. We see that 
waim Aveather, clothing, rest and sIoav res¬ 
piration and circulation, all diminish the 
amount of carbon necessary, and are equiv¬ 
alent to a certain quantity of food. The cir¬ 
culation in reptiles and fishes is sIoav and 
languid,—and this accounts for their low 
temperature and ability to sustain life a long 
time at low temperatures Avithout food.— 
The rapid micscular action of some birds in 
their ptissage through the air, together AA'itli 
their (piick circulation, account.s for then- 
liigh tcmperatiux*. The elements of food 
are diAided into those of respiration and those 
ol’ nutrition: those of nutrition, or AA'liich 
supply the nutrition to the body, are Axge- 
table fibrine, albmnen and caseinc, and ani¬ 
mal flesh and blood: those Avhich supply 
fuel for animal heat are hit, starch, gum, 
sugar, mucilage, and alcoholic spirits. Most 
of these substances subserve to some extent 
both purposes,—but alcohol in any form, Ls 
exclusively an element of respiration and 
does not afford the smallest amount of prop¬ 
er nutrition to the system. 
M. PiOUGEKS. 
Rochester, February, 1850. 
MANAGEMENT OF SHEEP. 
These storms put us in mind of the sheep. 
If our vieAvs .shall not correspond Avith yours, 
they may excite thought, and produce ben¬ 
efit. Our fimt remark is, and it is one 
Avhich should be in large letters on eveiy- 
sheep shed—“Let no sheep become poor.” 
The A'alue of the fleece depends much on 
the state of the sheep. If fat, the avooI 
gTOAVs rapidly, and is full of oil. Let the 
sheep become poor, the avooI stops gTOAving, 
the tibei-s become shriveled, and almost 
dead. If the sheep recruits, and again be¬ 
comes fleshy, another start is given to the 
groAvth of the avooI, and at shearing, the 
staple AA'ill be any thing but smooth and 
even. There Avill be increased AA'aste in 
manufacturing, and loss, to some one, in CA^e- 
ly -part of the transaction. A sheep of or¬ 
dinary size and grade, that is kept in good 
condition through the entire year, AA'ill shear 
from one to tAvo pounds more of Avool than 
one that is but half kept—and at 4 years 
old, AA'ill be one third heavier. It is very 
doubtful W'hether it costs any more, by the 
year, to keep the animal in high order, than 
in loAv flesh. But here a verj" important 
question arises. Hoav shall Ave do this ?— 
We say by the same coui'se that all tilings 
A'aluable are accomplished—by eflbrt, aaxII 
directed, and constantly and steadily pur- | 
sued. If a flock of sheep shoAv indications 
of falling oil’ a little in flesh imder certain 
management, a verj' little change in the care 
or the feed, AA'ill turn the scale. If certain 
individuals do not, as the farmers say, hold 
their OAvn, they should be immediately sepa¬ 
rated from the othem. Sheep require con¬ 
stant care; if they are Ioav in flesh, they re¬ 
quire very careful feeding. If an attempt 
is made to recruit theiu rapidly by giA'ing 
grain freely, they are almo.st certainly injur¬ 
ed, if not killed. They Avill groAv Aveak 
rather than strong. Indeed, it is extremely 
difficidt to carry a sheep through the Avin- 
ter that is thin in flesh at this season. It 
must be done by great care in all parts of 
the management. 
The subject of .shelter and confinement, 
is one of great difficult}'. In clear, cold 
weathcT, it matters but little, AAith fleshy, 
healthy sheep. But in Avarm days in Avin- 
ter, and xcry especially in AA'inter rains, it is 
difficult to knoAv how to manage. If you 
shut them under shelter, they suffer from 
bad air and heat, lose their appetite, and 
look sickly. If -you let them out, they Avill 
get Avet; the process of diydng Avill, of itself, 
cany off much heat from the body, and as 
the Avind changes to the north, and the air be¬ 
comes cold, the back bone becomes a half ch- 
cle, and their feet are brought together into a 
single track. If they have sheds or stables in¬ 
to which they can go AA'hen they please, and 
out at their pleasure, they Avill be out when 
it is Avarm, Avhether it rains or not; and if 
they feed out when it is cold, they AA'ill eat 
a little to satisfy present Avants, and go to 
their stable or shed. We belieA'e the better 
Avay is to give them open sheds, to feed m 
storms, under those sheds, and confine the 
sheep there. In fair AA'eather there is no 
loss in feeding in the open yard, and shut¬ 
ting the animal during the day from the 
sheds. We believe they eat better, and are 
more healthy. 
If grain is given, it should be so mixed 
with the hay that it cannot be sepai’atcd.— 
The hay shoiUd be cut and the grain ground. 
Or if given alone, Ave Avould make it a dis¬ 
tinct meal at about 11 o’clock. Half after 
3 or 4 o’clock, P. M., is late enough for feed¬ 
ing the last time. The sheep will then sat¬ 
isfy themselves before dark, and use the 
night for rest, the de.sign for Avhich it Avas 
created.— Berkshire Culturist. 
Useful Hints.— Accoimt should be kept 
detailing the expenses and product of each 
field. 
Wlien an implement is no longer Avanted 
for the season, lay it carefully aside, but 
first let it be avcII cleaned. 
GROUND FOOD FOR STOCK. 
Feav persons seem to be aAvare of the 
importance of grinding every A'ariety of 
grain, before feeding it to animals. In fat¬ 
tening any kind of animal, it is all important. 
There is no animal stomach that can digest 
any variety of grain AA'ith a cortical cov- 
eiing. All animals that SAA'alloAV a single 
kernel Avithout crushing, void it Avholc; and 
Avhat is singular, after passing the ordeal of 
the gastric juice, and the heat and diges¬ 
tive organs of the stomach, and the Avhole 
intestinal canal, the seed Avill still germinate 
and gi’OAv. Horned cattle are not careful 
chewers of their food, as they depend upon 
rimiination to comminute their food proper¬ 
ly, in which grain, meal, and roots, are nev¬ 
er brought up to undergo that process.— 
The hog is a notorious gormandizer, and 
scarely chcAvs at all; and it is said that three 
hogs confined in a narroAV stall, and. only 
the first one fed Avhat corn he can eat, the 
middle one Avill fatten fastest, and the last 
one keep in good Avinter order. The hoi'se 
masticates better, but age and hard fare oft¬ 
en disable liim from performing that duty 
as is required to render his food fit to .pro¬ 
duce the nutriment it contains. 
The stomach is a macerating vessel, where 
aU the food is intended to be dissolved, and 
its nutritious parts to be taken up and car¬ 
ried to the blood, to be distributed and de¬ 
posited on all the tissues. The period that 
all particles take in dissolving, is exactly in 
proportion to their bulk. A cube of salt or 
of loaf sugar, if divided in tAA'o, AviU dissolve 
in water in half the time it AV'ould Avhole; 
as AA'ill metals in acids, or ice in the sun. 
In every point of A'iew, therefore, either 
for j)rofitiible expenditure or the speedy 
fattening of animals, the grinding and com¬ 
minuting the food has nearly one half the 
advantage over the ordinary process; and, 
if cooked, saA^es the stomach and its com- 
pheated organs and nerves, the exertion of 
cooking it there—^as cooked it lias to be, 
before digestion. It is the opinion of close 
obserA'ers that fully one half the expense of 
sustauiing and fattening is saved. 
In feeding horses or cattle, for simply car¬ 
rying them through the Avinter, if Avhat 
grain they are entitled to Avas ground and 
then- hay or straAV cut, mixed and properly 
moistened, the saA'ing Avoidd amount to 
quite an itena-^— every inch of hay or straAV' 
AA'Ould be eaten, and nothing lost. Tavo- 
thirds the quantity noAv fed in racks for the 
horses to pull under their feet, and that fed 
to cattle on the ground, and trodden doAAm 
and spoiled, Avould suffice to carry a stock 
through the Avinter. But habit is every¬ 
thing ; it is stronger than the ties of family 
affection — the good Avill and confidence of 
the AA’orld, or the hopes of salvation, as is 
evidenced by the inebriate—and it holds 
good in all the duties end cictions of life.— 
If Ave had been habituated from youth to 
cut, cook and prepare food for our valuable 
animals, the most beneficent gifts of the 
Creator, should Ave not look Avith astonish¬ 
ment at the practice of Avaste and misman¬ 
agement noAv in general use ? 
In England, AA'here necessity teaches peo¬ 
ple Avisdom—Avhere ten to tAventy dollars 
rent is paid for an acre of land — and where 
every ton of hay is Avorth tAA^enty or thirty 
dollars, and eveiy bushel of gKiin in pro¬ 
portion, they manage things differently.— 
In that country where the best Avork horses 
in the AAwld are kept, and the fattest ani¬ 
mals sent to market, every particle of food 
is cut and ground; and horses’ food often 
baked into loaves. Their experience has 
settled the most economical process, and ne¬ 
cessity enforces it. Our Avhole system of 
fee din g is Avrong. The under-cover stall 
feeding is the only true one, both as res¬ 
pects the saAung of provender, the comfort 
of the animal, and the value of the manure. 
Wire-Worm. —An intelligent farmer, ob¬ 
serving that the AA'ire-AVorm, at the usual 
time of ploAving for corn, Avas near the sur- 
I face among the grass roots, plowed deeply 
AA'ith a sti'ong team, laying the fmaow-slices 
Avell over, and then rolhng. His soil being 
rather heavy, formed a compact stratum of 
earth, several inches above the inverted 
Avorms, and they Avere unable to ascend to 
the surface, and finally died. By tliis treat¬ 
ment his crop Avas Avholly sav^ed, where it 
Avas before nearly lost. 
A LARGE bed or lake of salt has been 
discovered in Texas, ninety miles from Aus¬ 
tin. The salt is remarkably pure. Thirty 
kettles and salt pans are already ordered 
' for drAdng and chrv'stalizing the salt. 
THE MERCHANT AND THE FARMER; 
OR LUCK AND NO LUCK. 
“ Good morning, friend Hoehandle.” 
“Ah! Yardstick, I am glad to see you. 
Come out to smell the fresh air and hear 
the birds sing, I suppose ? Well, I am glad 
to see you, Avalk into the house, Mrs'. Hoe- 
handle Avill be most happy to see a city 
friend; that is if you Avill not quiz our style 
of living. We plain country folks are not 
quite up to fashion; and well avc are not, 
for We could not afford it if Ave Avere. Ah! 
Yardstick, you are a lucky dog—here Ave 
arc, about fifty years old, each of us, and—” 
“ Good gracious! Hoehandle. WhyAA'hat 
can you mean ? Why, I am but forty, or 
say a trifle over, and quite young looking 
— so they say—at that.” 
“Ha! ha! ha! Yardstick, it Avon’t do. 
Still |)laying the beau I see, but no matter. 
As I Avas saying, here Ave are. You, a rich 
merchant, never did any Avork in your life, 
and I, a poor farmer, AA'orked hard all my 
days—boys together—started on nothing 
—and noAA', see the difference^— ah! Yard¬ 
stick— everything in luck, eA'er}Thing in 
luck.” 
“ Well, Avell, Hoehandle, you are a mod¬ 
est man, I Avon’t yet go into an argument 
with you on oiu* comparative positions in 
the Avorld; that is, I AA'ill get through an¬ 
other matter first I AV'ant a thousand dol¬ 
lars for thirty days, if you have it over.” 
“Have it OA’cr!—over AV'hat, Yardstick.” 
“ I mean, hiend Hoehandle, that if you 
arc not short, I should like to ■— the fact is 
I am out on a shinning expedition, and must 
raise some money.” 
“Ah! I see, have it ov'cr,—short,—shin¬ 
ning,— means that you Avant to borrovA', and 
that I must lend you,— all right, sir. I 
have it, I hav'C it, and Yardstick, I am proud 
to be able to lend you. Want a thousand 
—well, hold, let us get through this matter 
now before my good VA'ife comes in —these 
Avomen ahvays want to know all that’s go¬ 
ing on, and she AA'ill inquhe if I am indebt¬ 
ed to yoiL Indebted, ha! ha! she Avould 
be astonished if John Hoehandle should 
owe a man a thousand dollars — hillo! don’t 
sigh so man,— Avhat’s the matter? Pay 
Tape, Yardstick & Co. There you are sir, 
here is the check.” 
“ Thank you, Hoehandle, here is our note; 
had it ready before I left home, kncAv you 
would oblige me.” 
“As I was observing, Yardstick, you city 
merchants do have an easy time of it Go 
to Hew York, buy your stock, sell at a prof¬ 
it, buy again, sell again, roll up your hun- 
di'ed thousand in a fcAV years; and poor 
Jack Hoehandle Avorks like a slave six 
months out of twelve, up in the morning at 
dayhght, and Avorks at least four hours be¬ 
fore dinner, and sometimes tAvo hours after 
dinner, and in harvest time from suniise to 
sunset. Yes sir, it is a fiict, and Avhat have 
Ave got to show for it ? What have I got 
to show for it? Why, after thirty years 
toil, sir, I have only this farm of three hun¬ 
dred acres, AVorth, perhaps, thirty dollars an 
acre, and perhaps a little bank stock, j)ur- 
chased Avith its yearly profits.” 
“And pray my good friend, what have 
you averaged per year, clear profits, over 
all expenditures, for all this terrible labor 
for thirty years.” 
“ Not over tAvo thousand dollars a year 
Yardstick, Avhile you make ton.” 
“'Let me see, farm worth nine thousand, 
— thirty year’s profit,—sixty-nine thousand, 
and a large yearly income beside; poor 
feUoAv — Avhy you are to be pitied.” 
“I knoAV it, I knoAV it,— all in luck, all in 
luck. Ah! if I had only been a merchant” 
“ Let me ask, Hoehandle, your products 
are all sold for cash doAvn, I think. Never 
credit out, do you ?” 
“Credit! What, credit grain, Avheat? 
Credit my avooI? Credit my li\'e .stock? 
Excuse me, ha! ha! You do not knoAv 
AA'hat farming is, I see. Oh no, sir, our 
produce is cash. All Ave raise is cash, at 
my door. Why, I am plagued to death by i 
produce buyers, and purchasers of five 
stock; Avool buyers, and all the rest of them, 
Avho Avill gladly advance me eighty per 
cent on my produce here, and pay me the 
other tAventy in thirty days. Credit! I do 
not knoAv the Avord, sir. I don’t use it— 
But Yardstick, they tell me you arc getting 
rich.'” 
“Hoehandle, how will you exchange prop¬ 
erty with me, “unsight unseen;” as the boys 
say; you know hoAv—hoAv I stand—do you, 
Hoehandle ?” 
“ Stand, yes sir; Avhy the finn of Tape, 
Yardstick & Co. are good for tAvo hundred 
thousand at any moment. They say that 
you sold that amount last year alone.” 
“ True so Ave did, on paper, and aa'C are 
Avorth something handsome too, on paper; 
but sir,Ave cannot feed ourseh'es Avith paper, 
nor build houses AA'ith paper.” 
“Well, Avell, I see, I see—all gammon, 
you dog you. You are rich, you knoAV you 
are. I am sorry that. thirty-five years ago 
I did not make myself a dry goods clerk; 
but here I am, toiling, toiling, year after 
year, and shoAv but little for it, Avhile you 
sit at your desk and count up your Aveekly 
receipts as they rain doAvn — yes, fairly rain 
doAvn upon you. Ah me, nothing but a 
farmer, and not AA'orth much at that. Yard¬ 
stick, I’ll give my farm and all the balance 
of my property, for your share in your firm. 
and all your property, at a venture, — there.” 
“My good friend, arc you really envious 
of my luck, as you call it; be frank noAv, 
are you?” 
“ Yes, I am, Yardstick. I can’t help it, 
but so it is. Here, it is only dig—dig — 
dig. I want, before I die to be a merchant.” 
“And before I die, I Avant to be a farm¬ 
er ; so if Ave do not exchange property, mind 
you my good friend, it Avill be your fault— 
Nay! dont stare so.” 
“What! AA'hat! Yardstick, you astonish 
me. You AA'ant to be a farmer, ha! ha! a 
man good for a hundred thousand before 
he dies, in a splendid business, rolling up 
his pile, to throAV aAvay his prospects and 
take hold of thd'dirty ploAv handle — good 
joke — ha! ha! You take my offer then, 
do you?” 
“Hoehandle, my friend, a sober Avord or 
tAA'o Avith you. I have done business thir¬ 
ty years. Have sold millions of dollar’s 
AA'orth of goods. Have made and lost much 
money. Have credited large stocks of goods 
out, Avhich I myself bought on credit and 
have stood year after year over the brink of 
a pent-up A'olcano, expecting that those Avho 
OAved me Avould explode and bloAV me to 
atoms. Sleepless nights — weary days.— 
Head-aches and heart-aches. Constant fear 
that I could not keep my chin above Avater. 
Obliged to raise money at high, exorbitant 
rates of interest to take up my paper Avith, 
because my debtoi*s Avere so long Avinded 
in their payments to me. Stocks deprecia¬ 
ting in A'alue. Fashions changing. Dishon¬ 
est clerks peculating from my money draAv- 
er. Ah, my friend, I do not AA'onder you 
stare Avith astonishment. Let me hear your 
laugh, it has a charm for me. Sunshine, 
sir, a merchant’s heart, if he cares for his 
reputation and his credit Avhen embarked in 
such a hazardous business as a Avholesaler, 
has no sunshine. He don’t know the feel¬ 
ing, sir. Care, corroding care, eats up his 
heart: AA'eighs him doAvn: turns day into 
night; he can’t shake it off; it is a honible 
night-mare. He goes to New York, sir; he 
buys fifty thousand dollars AV'orth of goods 
on time, and g-iv'es notes. Oh! those bank 
notes — fearful Avords to a man Avho has a 
credit at stake, and relies upon his custom¬ 
ers to pay their notes by Avhich he may be 
able to meet his oAvn. See him, sir, fairly 
embarked like a ship at sea, and this ship is 
surrounded on all sides by huge icebergs, 
perfect mountaius,— no chance of escape: 
bye and bye he sees they are coming down 
upon him; he is hemmed in; sloAvly and 
quietly those huge piles advance; steadily 
they come; the ship Avill surely be crushedL 
Aye not a chip left of her — doAvn — doAvn 
they come. Hold! a little blue sky is seen, 
she escapes, she gets into the open .sea once 
more.” 
“The ship is the merchant; the moun¬ 
tains of ice, the bank notes — the bills pay¬ 
able ; the blue sky, the bills receivable.— 
But sometimes the bills receivable are not 
met, and the ship is crushed to atoms.” 
“ Hoav do you like the picture my friend ? 
So much for a merchant’s life. We are not 
Avhat AVC seem. Our extensive business is 
all on paper—•mere trash; the great noise 
Ave make is produced from the emptiness of 
our pretensions. Noaa', sir, Avill.you take 
your place at the desk, and let the cash rain 
doAvn upon you ? Nay, you are too sensi¬ 
ble a man. Stick to the fai-m; you arc a 
lord, aye, a king; independent; OAA'ing no 
man, Avhile the poor merchant must cringe 
and faAvn upon banks and money lenders. 
Yes, sir, go doAvn on his knees to get mon¬ 
ey to save his credit. Sir, producei-s can 
say, Ave ask nothing of the banlcs, nothing of 
the merchants; both ask eA'erything, that 
constitutes the Avhole comforts of life from 
us. Give me noAV your property for mine, 
AA'ith my kind of life Avith it! Nay, Avhen 
I tell you that one single disastrous year 
Avith the kind of business I am doing, Avould 
SAveep aAvay all 1 am Avorth—Avill you ex¬ 
change situations Avith me ?” 
“Friend Yardstick, I thank you; but 
i Avhat a picture you have set before me.— 
I’ll never despise the old farmer again, nev¬ 
er. Let Its join Mrs. Hoehandle in the di¬ 
ning room, and as Ave take a quiet lunch, 
Avith a thankful heart, Ave Avijl drink in a 
glass of domestic catawba, this toast; ‘The 
farmer, the luckiest mortal on earth.’ ”—' 
Peters’ Wool Grower. 
The Farmer’s Creed.— We belieA'e in 
small farms and thorough cultivation. 
We believe in large crops, which leave 
the land better than they found it. 
We believe in going to the bottom of thing.s, 
and therefore in deep ploAA'ing. . 
We believe that the best fertihzer of the 
foil is the spirit of industry, entei-prise and 
intelligence. Without this, lime, marl, plas¬ 
ter, bones and green tUanure Avill be of lit¬ 
tle use._ _ _ 
Incombustible Cloth.— At a meeting of 
the British Association, Sir David Brewster 
read a paper “ On a specimen of incombus¬ 
tible cloth, for the dresses of ladies and chil¬ 
dren, manufactured in Dundee, by Mr. 
Latts.” This cjoth is printed calico, of 
AA'hich several specimens Avere prepared by 
immersion in phosphate of magnesia.— 
When inflamed it soon Avent out Avithout 
the flame spreading, and Sir DaA'id stated 
that a spark of red coal Avould not ignite it. 
— Str.ii’iiti/ir A mar lean. 
