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About Schley County news. (Ellaville, Ga.) 1889-1939 | View Entire Issue (Sept. 7, 1893)
MARVELOUS LIGHTS. ) ! Illuminating • Power Equal to 46, 000,000 Candles. To Be Used in the Largest Light house In the World. Some months ago there was describ ed the completion of the most power ful lightheuse which up to that time had been constructed. It is at the Cape of La Heve, less than three miles from Havre, and marks the northern entrance of the estuary of the Seine. Its illuminating power is 23,000,000 candles, and its light is visible at a distance of 230 kilometers in clear weather, 94 kilometers in average weather and 37 kilometers in foggy weather. The French light house service is not content with its great intensity of light. It is not considered sufficient. M. Bourdelles, engineer-in-chief of the servioe, has just completed the drawings for a new lighthouse, of which the illuminating intensity will be double that of La Heve, or equal to 46,000,000 candles. The new lighthouse will not send its light ray much farther than that of La Heve, since the maximum will be 248 kilometers in clear weather, 100 kilometers in average weather, and 40 kilometers in foggy weather; but the intensity of the pencil of rays being doubled the amount of light at the same distance is likewise doubled. Moreover, this enormons increase of -power is obtained without the slightest increase in expense. In the Department of Finistere, which forms the northwest angle -of France, some ten miles from Quim per, the capital of the Department, there projects into the Atlantic a head land which bears the name of t*en marck. On this. headland will be ereoted the new lighthouse which will be by far the most powerful lighthouse in the world, How is this marvelous intensity of light produced? In a * * v very simple] manner. Every one who knows what the optical part of a light house consists of since Fresnel invent ed the system of lenses in steps (eche lons) : Around a lamp are.arranged, so as to constitute a sort of drum, rectangular panels. constituted (1) of lenses in steps placed in such a manner that the lamp occupies the principal focus of each of them; consequently, the rays '.emanating from the lamp form, on issuing from this part of the apparatus, which is ealled the diop tric system, a parallel horizontal pencil; (2) of prisms of total reflec tion, constituting the catadiojftric system, placed around the lenses and which refract horizontally those rays from tlio lamp which do not fall on the lens. The apparatus employed up to the present time has been composed of a considerable number of panels, twelve at least. Each of them thus received the twelfth part of the light of the lamp. If you reduce the number of panels to four—which is the case at the La Heve—the quantity of light received by each of them is equal to ©ne-foflrth of the total light emitted by the-lamp—that is, triple the amount received in the apparatus with twelve panels. It results from this that the luminous bundle of rays furnished by each lens has a triple power. If you reduce the number "of panels to two, each of them, occupying a half sphere, will receive, half of the**total light emitted by the lamp, and consequently will emit a pencil of rays of a power double that fur malted at La Heve. Plants that Act Like Animals. Some flowers, as we know, secrete nectar for the express purpose of feed ing the insects they attract by their colors and perfumes. Others attract, but provide nothing, yet the blunder ing insect still fertilizes it in his search for what is not there. When boys jday similar tricks, we call them prac tical jokers. Has the plant done this either accidentally or mechanically? Some go so far as to provide traps by which insects are caught and utilized. Are these contrivances also due to •hance? In the Coryanthes we have a mar vellous collection of means to a partic ular end, i. e., the fertilization of its flower. By means of its perfume and color it attracts bees, only to give them a bath from which they can es cape by doing its work. If a man . »< does something of u similar kind we consider him rather clever, though, perhaps not very honest. It is now generally conceded that animals are reasonable beings; to go a step f#rt[ier and allow the same to plants is almost as necessary. It does not follow that because a dumb man cannot explain his thoughts therefore ho has none. When the strong man hears pain without flinch ing, is it because he feels less than the baby who cries out at t.)ie top of his voice? It In a matter of common ob servation that ifdants show their likes aiul dislikes, suffer and languish when sick, brighten up and look robust in congenial positions, and have to a cer tain extent most of the faculties com mon to man and the lower animals.. True, they cannot see or hear, but their sense of feeling is very acute, and we may conclude that even taste is not wanting. A Boy’s Steady Nerve. B. H. Burke this morning brought in the skin of a puma, American tiger or California mountain lion, as the lion is variously called, which was kill ed a short time ago by his son, Byron H. Burke, near Foster’s Station. The skin is by far the largest ever exhibit ed here, and Mr. Burke eay» the animal when killed weighed 250 pounds. Tracks of three lions had been seen, two large ones and a cub. They had killed a colt, and young Burke went hunting for them with his Winchester. , He tracked them through some Very high and thick chapparal and was fol lowing a narrow trail made by animals in the brush when,by stooping down, the hunter saw, twenty yards ahead of him and standing in' the turn of the road,' this mountain lion. The boy was on ly fifteen years of age, but his head was cool. He dropped down on one knee and raised the gun. The lion had been watching the hunter and raised to a full height, by standing on its hind"feet, to make a spring. Just then the' boy -fired and the bullet struck the lion in the neck just under the jaw.: - The lion fell over, but rais ed again to make an attack, when the boy fired again'and hit the lion within two inches of the first shot. That settled thb aniriial. The she-lion and her cubs in the meantime escaped. . The skin .will be on exhibition in the chamber of commerce for a time.—[San Diego, Cal., Sun. . “ You Bon’t Get the Clock. • An old custom once prevailed in a remote place of giving a clock'to any one who/would truthfully swear he had minded his own business alone for a year ami a day, and *had not meddled with his neighbors. Many came, but few, if any, gained the prize, which was more difficult to win than the Dunmow flitch of bacon. Though they swore on the four Gospels, and held, out their hands in certain hope, some hitch was sure to be found some where ; and for all their asseverations the dock remained stationary on its shelf, no one being able to prove his absolute immunity from uncalled-for interference in things not in any way concerning himself. At last a young man esme with a perfectly clean re cord, and the clock seemed as if it was at last about to change owners. Then said the custodian, “Oh! a yoting man was here yesterday, and made mighty sure he was going to have the clock, but he didn’t.” Said the young man seekiug the prize. “ And why didn’t he get it?” “ What’s that to you?” snapped out the custodian; “that’s not your business, and, — you don’t get the clock. ” — [New York Dis patch. A Fine House Cat. From the Pioneer Mail we learn that Mrs, J. S., Mackay has a superb sHow leopard at Kulu, in the Punjab. Though the animal is nearly full grown, he is practically free and lies about the house all day like a huge cat, or romps with his mistress, fiis ultimate desti nation is the Zoological Gardens of London. Should he be brought over alive he will be the only animal of his kind in Europe.—[Nature. Those Dear Girls. Anne—Do you know, Mabel, I had two offers of marriage, last week? Mabel—My darling Anne! I am so delighted ! Then it is really true that your uncle left 'you all His money?— f Buffalo Express. SCHLEY COI N i’Y NEWS COLUMBUS RELICS. Contents of the Convent of La Rab ida at the Fair. . Mementoes of the Great Discover • er' on Exhibition. .vv In the southeastern part of the Fair Grounds, on the shore of Lake Michi gan and in a comparatively isolated spot, stands the convent of La Iiahida. This quaint and old-fashioned build ing is a facsimile of the original mon astery erected n^ar -P^los,- Spain, about the Second Century. It was within the kindly protecting walls of this convent that Coltfmbus, discour aged and disappointed with the people who gave to his ideas 'such little cre dence, sought seclusion and retirement from the world; and it was from this monastery that there came the good priest Father dt> Marchena, who, be coming interested in the progressiye ideas of the would-he . discoverer-..of new worlds, used his- influence'with QueCn Isabella ip behalf of his poor guest. The result of this influence the whole world knows. • ■*. ’,.r; Within this convent of La Iiahida are to be found some of the most in teresting and valuable relics of Colum bus in existence. These have been gathered from every quarter of the globe. Among the most ; valuable are original manuscripts or commissions given to Columbus in 1492-by Ferdi nand and ’ Isabella appointing him Grand Admiralof the ocean seas', Vice King and Governor General of all the lands he should discover. This docu ment is dated Granada, April 30, 1492, and is signed “I the King” and “I Queen,” and shows that they must have given more than ordinary cre dence to •Columbus’ ideas - of a new world. To the student of history who loveh to scan and learn from that m'bst closely connected with the individual ity of the man himself, the letters and will of Columbus, to which are at tached his signatures, are perhaps the most interesting. There are in all over 125 of these manuscripts, some of which bear translations and others of which no translations are given. The manuscripts and other relics are carefully guarded by a body of Uncle Sam’s infantry, whose watchful ness and care as well as their politeness and affability are noticeable, in marked contrast to the' civilian or Columbian Guard in the other build ings. Autograph letters written-by Colum bus to his son "Diego and to Rev. Father Don Gaspar de las Cuevas, in some of which the great explorer ex presses a dissatisfied ambition, form interesting reading. The autographic statement by Columbus of gold brought from,the new country and sold .by him in Castile is also shown. In this same building are to he seen the Vatican exhibits of relics loaned by Pope Leo. Among this collection a letter from Pope Nicholas V./dated at Rome, September . 20, 1448, ad dressed to the Irish Bishops of Skah lolt and Holar, containing reference to the church in- Greenland, is perhaps the most interesting. The bull of Alexander V., to the soverigns Ferdi nand and Isabella, dated May 3,-1493, which relates to the rivalries between Spain and "• Portugal regarding their voyages of discovery, is another inter esting and time worn document. Numerous early maps of the new country, -sketches of its inhabitants, along with an endless number of pic tures and -paintings of Columbus, a * Cosmographia; copy of Ptolemy’s 1475* edition Used by Columbus on his first voyage; the bolt to which Cblum bus was chained in the- .dungeon at Santo Domingo; stopes from the ruins of the first city of the* New , World; old doors from the hrntfK) in which Columbus lived ; an andhov which, was found at Santo Domingd'ahd' supposed to he the one lost "by the "discoverer; two - old .jbeHfr, the first. which rang their anthems in the new,world, are among the 1,667 relics exhibited in the Imildi’rig La Rabida.—’[St. Louis Republic.] A Substitute for Leather. Leather possesses .suph . excellent qualities for the many pur poses to which it is put that it would seem idle to seek a 'substitue. Nevertheless, th«re are many persons who, while they find that leather serves as an ef fectual protective covering for the foot, find also that it is often obstinate in adapting itself to the requirements of individual feet, or to the more or less physical abnormalities to which so many are subject. Iu such cases, if comfort is to be expected, only tlio most supple and yielding quality should be worn. .At the same time, of course, it should-be waterproof durable. These qualities so far as we have been able to judge, belong in a satisfactory degree to an interesting and new material called “flexus fibra.” It appears to be a flax-derived ma terial, suitably prepared and oiled, so that to all appearance. it is leather. It is particularly supple and flexible and takes a polish equally well with the best kinds of calf. We have reoently had occasion to wear a boot of which the “vamp,” or cut-front section consists, entirely of flexus fibra, and have purposely sub mitted it to somewhat undue strain, in' spite of which no cracking of the ma terial was perceived, while the sense of comfoTt to the foot was very evident. Flexus fibra, being a material of vege table Origifi, ' is calculated always to facilitate Wee ventilation and thereby to o'bviate’the discomfort arising from what "is called “drawing” the . feet. Tests w;ith a yiqw to prove its damp resisting -power were made with the material by placing a small section over an open* glass tube with true ends, so -that f>n applying pressure at the other'end of the tube it was found to be'practically air tight. ’ ’ This hav ing been ascertained, a little water was placed in the tube resting on the flexus fibra,. and pressure once more applied. After some time traces only of liquid had oozed through; but of course this was an exaggerated state of things, as a matter of fact, no 1 oozing of water: took place at all when it was simply allowed to rest on the material for several hours. The structure of flexus fibra is better seen when the oil in it is removed with ether, to which it imparts distinct, fluorescence, and when the black dye is washed out, (being at the same time changed to red) by hydrochloric acid.—[Lancet. — A Wonderful Indian Mound. Much is being said and written con cerning the large Indian Mound, or burying ground, on the plantation of H. S. Cornell, in the* Fourth Distriot of Montgomery County, near Jordan Springs, Tenn. Cornell states that the mound covers over four acre*‘of ground, and shows evident signs that it was beautifully laid off in streets now covered with soil. The payements built by the aborigines are composed of four strata, charcoal, burnt bone, burnt clay and limestone, are smoothly • pol - lished, and at intervals there are large basins lined with something like ce ment, of abont thirty gallons capacity each. Cornell has procured many relics from the mound, and continues to search for curiosities. He has re cently found a jug shaped like a bear, which will contain one gallon, "and sev eral Bmall jugs, tomahawks, pipes, and numbers of skulls in perfect preserva tion. In a small grave two baby skel etons, a nursing jug, a string of 127 beads, a pair of earrings, and a breast pin made of shells were found.—[St. Louis Republic. •' a. «■ --- ; ■ r T 't l V -- . , The, Best Oil for Waves. Doctor Koppen, of the Hanlburg Marine Observatory, has been carrying on a series of experiments for the pur pose of determining the relative value of different sorts of oil in stilling the waves. In his just publised report he says that petroleum, or parnfin, is of no use whatever, and olive oil is- not much better. On the other hand, he says tljat rapeseedjoil and oil of tur pe;4ine v >hav.e considerable effect, but the. ijnost, effective of all oils is train oil. , ; Jiot satisfied with these experi pioiipftjhe then set to work with other fatty- materials, and reports that he found a solution of soap to be far su perior as a wave-stiller to any kind of oil. He says that only a very thin so lution of soap is required, about one part of soap to a thousand parts of water. The hint about soap and water sounds as if it might be valuable.— [Picayune. Dim and Painful Recollections. Customer—Have you felt slippers? Clerk—Yes, -ma’am, hut not fora 4ong time now.—Yankee Blade. • Vespers and Matins. Soft and slow, Faint and low, Sings the hermit thrush its evening lullaby; On a birch twig swinging, To its loyed onos singing. Swinging, Singing, Softer yet slower, Fainter yet lower fling the bell-like notes till all the echoes die, Till the hush of slumbers Drowns the drowsy numbers, Till the sleep of sacred silence seals tho weary watcher’s eye. •• Boon as tight Follows night, Coursing all the lands and waters o’er, With the days ilrst breaking, From their slumbers waking— Cheep, eheep; Peep, peep,— In a burst of gladneas, Of ecstatic madness, Ali the birds together their songs of greeting pour, Four their souls in singing Till the woods are ringing As. if on . eastern borders day had never dawned before*. —Isaac Bassett Choate. -HUMOROUS. Bad habits—prison garb. Some limbs of the law never branch - out. „ . , . A ‘,‘fine”. writer—The clerk of a court. No difference how you play the game of life, you are sure to lose. The reputation of being a good fel low never helped a man at a bank. . It ought to give promise of rest to a standing army to be ordered to the seat of war. * • He—“On land the dudes make me tired.” She—“And at sea the swells make me sick.” “Has Jones new quarters recently!” “Oh, yes; he borrowed several from Miggs last night.” After the honeymoon. She (sweetly) —“What would living be without me?” He (gloomily)—“Cheaper.” Boodle—“A dollar doesn’t go nearly ®P ^ ar as it used to.” Noodle—“No, but then it goes much faster. ” As a rule thoroughness is desirable. But many a grocer has succeeded through his halfweigh methods. - Mrs. Neighbob—“Why do you call Jack ‘The Fisherman?’ Jess—“Be cause he never goes awav without a smack.” There is nothing that so increases a man’s desire to work in the garden as the discoverey that his wife has mis* pI at ‘‘H the rake, “Time is money,’' said the youth, “I know it to my gain.” Then, having realized the truth, He pawned his watch and chain. • Miss Finical—“Mr. Greatwit en qoyed .himself'very much last night.” Miss Cynical-*- “Yes, that’s what he en joys more than anything else.” “What, in your opinion, is the best thiilg about early rising?” asked tho athlbtic young man. “Hearing some fellow describe .it,” was the re p(y After an inexperienced man lias rowed a boat for about three-quarter® of an hour almost atfy kind of scenery is good-enough for him to stop and admire. Maud—“How Tip you like the new way I do my hair!” Frank (wanting to say something. particularly nice)— “Why you. look at least thirty years younger.” '“Really’ sir, I’ll pay you in time,” said the young man. ‘Excuse me,” replied the impatient creditor, “but if it’s all the same I’d rather you’d pay me in money.” Penelope—“What is his pet name for you?” Perdita—“He calls me his ‘doe, ’ because I am so sweet and gentle.” Penelope—“And what do you call him?” Perdita—“I call him my “dough,” because he is so soft.” ’’That young woman who ordered ice cream has fainted,” said the waiter. “Well, don’t you know enough to bring her to?” asked the proprietor. And the waiter went hack to the hole in the wall and yelled, “Make it two!” He: I don’t believe your father ever does as he agrees to do. She: Why, Cha/Tie,. how moan of you! Papa always does just as he says he will. Three,days in succession I have asked him for $10, and- he said he wouldn’t give it to me, and he didn’t —so there 1
