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Enmnorm'rma Canvass. A writer in the Philadelphia Record de- Icribee the new process for preserving corpses by_e_loc_tro‘pleti2g as follows : L LL ,M-._..L|-. "Hutu”! mflh ll, Ulwusvrsuvuu â€"â€" -v--- .... . D The body is first thoroughly washed with alcohol or with a solution of caustic potash, followed by ver dilute nitric acid, in order to cleanse the y and remove all traces of oily or greasy exudations. Then the entire surface of the body, from which all hair must be entirely removed, is dusted over with finely powdered plumhago, care being taken to cover every portion of the surface. As the purpose of the plumbago is to furnish a conducting surface, any un- covered s t upon the cor so would cause a break in the plating. no Africanized remnant of humanity is then immersed in a bath of metallic solution containing a lump of the metal with whichgit is desired to coat the body. To the piece of metal is attached the positive pole of a strong galvanic battery or a powerful dynamo- electric machine, and the negative pole is connected with the body. The action of the werinl current of electricity im- mediate y commencea, covering the body witn a fine film of metal, which is deposited evenly over the entire surface. As long as the electrical current is uninterrupted the deposit of the metal continues. and the coating may thus be made of any desired thickness. In a len th of time proportion. ed to the strength 0 the electrical current the entire body may be enveloped in a metallic shroud an eight or a quarter of an inch in thickness, or even more if desired. By this impervious coat the remains are then perfectly protected from decay, and may be preserved for an indefinite number due can readil imagine the feelings of pride with whic the man of a hundred years hence wouldNIead his visitor into his mortuary chamber and point out each member of his silver-plated ancestry, beau- tifully polished and naturally grouped about the room. There would be in those days no need for an expensive burial-lot in a fashionable cemetery, and there would be no use for the costly and ostentatious funeral of today. In those days the under- taker would simply be an expert electio- plater, and instead of a roomful of sam 13 cofiins and caskets he would simply exhi it a few pieces of polished metal and inquire of his customer : “ How would you like to have the deceased finished, in copper, nickel, silver or gold 2” W. H. Murray, 3. oolportenr of the Na.- tional Bible Society of Scotland, has devised a system of raised characters by which the blind gre enabled to read. Says the Mis- sionary Herald : \Ve have recently received from Mine 0. F. Gordon Cumming, the well- known traveler, an interesting nocognt. of are over 500,000 blind persons in China.‘ Miss Cumming reports that Mr. Murray bo- gan life as a working sawmiller in the south of Scotland ; but, having by an accident lost one arm, he became a colporteur in Glasgow, and subsequently went to Pekin. His ity having been aroused for the innum erab e blind whom he met everywhere, he has given every spare moment for eight years to the study of a system by which they might be enabled to read. In place of the four thousand characters in ordinary use among the Chinese, he uses embossed dots representing some four hundred and twenty sounds; and his first experiment witn ablind beggar from the streets, who was enabled to read fluently within six weeks, showed that the system was practi- cable. A school Was opened at Pekin, and blind boys learned to read with great accur- aoy and rapidityâ€"indeed, very much more speedily t an their companions who had esight could learn to read the ordinary hinese characters. “new... --â€".â€" this effort tév-éeiéil vsrlarge Knd suffering class in China. Itris egtimated tpatflylgere Wood oil is made on a large scale in Swe- den from the refuse of timber cutting and forest clearings. and from stumps and roots; and, although it cannot well be burned in common lamps on account of the heavy proportion of carbon it contains, it furnishes a satisfactory light in lamps especiall made for it, and in its natural state is sai to be the cheapest of illuminating oils. Thirty factories produce about 40,000 litres of oil daily ; turpentine, creosote, acetic acid. charcoal, coal tar oil, and other useful sub- stances are also obtained from the same The Queen of Holland presented a remark- able gift to the king on his 70th birthday. The ladies in waiting carried in an immense bouquet which they placed before his ma- jesty. The king was grestl surprised when suddenly the top of the ouquet opened, and the head of his daughter peeped out of the flowers. material. The editor wroto "One thousand women in Iovm own and manage farms," and the perverse typos made them declare that “ One thousand women in Iowa own and manage farmers.” And the funny part of this story is that the paragraph pnntod is M true M " «mph written. Phldlu and Pork-loo. Tho-out and lloxwlu. Py nhun 3nd Pompfll And Sulp lo m1 hu lug And old pRomulus and Remus, Woodsman and Polyph emu, Abnhuu ud Trluuexbtul. Anuuom Ind hlu auteu- Thou. all lbeu. ad more than than, Won known to Ill 1: Boplmmln Penn. Pol «mud Alexander, mgoocl Auunmmd or. _Do_moorltuo. an“, "‘- 7 v Solon 5nd Theoorltm. lithddsm Ind 800nm. Dionyiiuu And Sulplclul, Conn and limudn, Cato. Alt-lbw!“â€" Theoo. all these, md more than the”. Wore known to Miss Sophronh Pena. lithenuuca. hydro-hue. Bun-duties sud pneumndoo. Conch )logy And gimp", Pdoonuiogy md geology. Ecol-l mu numismoucs, loouomy An astronomy. Genesis and Deuteronomy-â€" The”, oil then, and more than ihese, Were known to Mix» Sophronio Pom. Kitchen-sweeping and hem-keeping, Wuhinz dishes, cooking fishes, Bowing butt-nus, baking uiuitonl. Wielding ladies, locking 0 miles. Working tic-m. mixing firicwbno, lilting oovera, chormiug ioveu, Buoooluh or boiled potatoes, Bait, or soda, or uiemtus. The domestic cookery quesflon, Or the ethics oi digestionâ€"â€" These. nil these. and mote chm these, Wore Greek to Miss Bophronin Pew. Runmo Wrmou'r Ens. A Learned Woma- SCIENTI FIG. Concerning the early history of the Vio- torh. the Great White Diamond nometfimu called the Imfierlal, very little is known ;,in fact, where t 6 stone was found is onlyln. matter of conjectureâ€"a remukablo circum- Iunoo when we consider thut this in the lax-gent nrilliant in tpe world. I n I AL.A:L __-__IA.._.I ft is, however. believed that it was found by some one in one of the Kimberley mines, South Africa. The first intimation that any of the various mining companies had of its existence was when they heard of its safe arrival in London. It is generally supposed that in the month of June or July, 1884. the stone had been found by one of the suveil- lance officers of the Central Mining Com- any in the Kimberley mines. It being his uty to search others, he had the privtlege of not being searched himself, and sotne stone was ed through the searching house, and e was afterward supposed to have found means of communicating with four illicit diamond buyers. Owing to the stringency of the diamond laws of Griqus- land West, the trading in rough diamonds is forbidden any one not owuiug one of the “ patents" or " licenses,” as they are called, costing £200 and a guarantee of £500 All purchases made by them must also be on tered in a special registry, and are duly signed every week by the police authorities. £3,000 was the price paid toobtain the stone from thefirst possessor. To prepare them~ selves for the ordeal of transporting the stone out of the district, they assembled at night, commenced drinking, then gambling, and after a night‘s debauoh two of the party lost there share in the big stone. The other two reached Cape Towu in safety, where the diamond laws are not in force. and from a dealer there received £19,000 cashl for their stone. An outward duty of one- j half per cent is collected on all shipments of diamonds from Cape Colony; but this diamond is said to have been carried by one of the passengers of a mail steamer, and was hence undeclared. We next hear from it in London. causing considerable sensation at Hatton Garden, the great dia- mond market. After considerable time had been spent in trying to find a capitalist who could afi'ord to buy such a gem. it was at last arranged by a former resident of the Cape mines to form a company of ei ht per- sons, who bought the stone toget er for £45,000 cash, on condition that if they should dispose of it each should receive a ninth share in the eventual profits. _ Before cutting, it was estimated that the crystal would furnish either of the following gems : If cut as a briallette, 300 carats; as a drop, 230 to 240 carats; as a lozenge, 258 carats ; and as a mathematically perfect brilliant, 150 carats. If cut in the latter form, it would have furnished cleavages that would cut into one 4') carat, one20 carat stone. and 40 carats of smaller stones. It was finally decided to cut it into the largest possible brilliant, still preserving a good shape, and Amsterdam was selected as the place where the gem could bestlbecut. ‘ . It was accordingly sent to the polishing mills of Jacques Metz, who erected a special workshop (or the purpose. In order to bet- ter obtain the brilliant form of cutting. a piece was cleaved off which furnished a 19 carat diamond, and was sold to the King of Portugal for £4,000. The cutting oi the large stone, which was commenced on the 9th of April, in the presence of the Queen of Holland, took about twelve months, since, instead of being cut by abrasion with another diamond, as diamonds are usually cut, it was polished down on the scaif ; and a great amount of time was consumed by the cool- ing of the stone, as it heated after an hour’s running on the wheel. The cutter of the stone was M. B. Barends. The stone in its finished condition weighs 180 carats. and is a beautiful, perfect, steel blue diamond. and is the largest brilliant in the world. It is 39.5 mm.(l 9-16 inches) long, 30 mm. (1 11-64 inches) wide, and 23mm. (1546 of an inch) thick, being exceeded in size by one diamond only, the Orlofl‘, belonging to the Russian crown, which weighs 1942 carats, but is a large deep rose, and not a brilliant. The Victoria exceeds the Regent in weight by 441; carats. The Kobinoor weighs only 106 1-16 carats. The form of the Imperial is not entirely even. On one side of the girdle there is cite a flat place, a natural unpolished aur- ace, necessary in cutting, to preserve the large weight of the stone. It is, however, a. perfect 58 facet; brilliant. The original weight of the stone was 457,} carats, 3 1-60 ounces troy. Tile stone to- dgy is held by a London syndicate for £200.. The best livin sponge is found, usually, at a depth of eig t or ten fathoms of water, but is known to exist at great depths ; one variety has been found, in the Gulf of Maori, at a depth of a hundred and ei hty-five fath- oms. An inferior sponge is ound on the coasts of Florida and the West Indies ; two species of a better uality are brought from the Levant. The ’lurks and the inhabitants of the Bahama Islands do a large trade in sponge, and crews of between four and five thousand fishermen are attached to about six hundred boats. which are chiefly engag- ed in the sponge fishery along the coast of Syria, Candia and Barbary. The divers take down with them a stone of triangular shape, pierced and fastened to a rope at one angle ; the rope is attached to the rope above, and the diver, by. means of this stone and rope, mana es to reach the sponges, which he tears mm the rocks and places under his arms :when ready he signals to the men in the boat, by pulling on the rope, and they pull him up. This is the most effectual mode of obtaining sponge, al- though the Greeks of the Morea obtain it by means of a pronged instrument,which, how- ever, tears the sponges and reduces their value. A coarser kind of sponge is found about the Bahama and West India Islands, of which about two hundred and fifteen thousand unds are sent annually to Great Britain. here is a species of sponge famil- iar to British shores which is almost tree- like in form, with numerous branches. There is also a fresh water sponge which grows to the height of a foot and is divided into many branches, but its texture is so delicate that the slightest handling tears it s it is also of a foul odor, resembling that of stagnant dit- One of grandmother’s wise ways was to keep a cup of alum water always close at hand; it usually stood on the window-sill beside her work-basket. )ut fingers and bruises of all kinds, it wrap ed in cloth Wet with the alum water, heelo with a m idity that was truly Wonderful. this is no s mple a remedy that it is worth while to know about it. chea. A llllllon Dollar Diamond. Sponge-Fishing. The tobacco hnblb ot the people in the Una/ed States is A huge one. It is no vigou- mic that it requh'os ever Stine and Torri- mry in tho Union, uvu clot-ado. Wyoming, Montana, and Utuh. tolupport it. It. ex- huunta. as no ochor honest, 500,000 gem of land. uni in New \ork, alone, commands 20.900 persons. . -n L_‘;~,__ 9- AL- IY..:L-.I “:13; “35332:: of tobacco in the United Sutga in grqaper it“)? {hat of any country , A‘..,A ‘L- in the woorld. It is safe to so): that the United States furnishes one-half the tobecco that enters into general commerce. Accord- ing to nn_estimnte made some years ego. the annual product was two billion pounds This is a sum no one cenlcomprehond ; but place this tobacco out in eight and look at it. It is a. roll two inches in diameter, reach- ing around the world thirty times. ,IAA“. -Au_n,‘_ .L- _.......-I According to a later estimate. the annual cost of tobacco is $600,0t0.000. What is this sum? It would build a railroad, bond- ed at 825,000 a mile, around the world ; it would buy all the bread stuffs manufactured in the country in a year. It would pay for all the meat and woolen goods produced in the countr in twelve months. It is six times all t at is spent annually in the coun. try for pub‘ic instruction. It is millions more than all that was paid to all the wage receivers in the country in 1880. It is ‘ enough to build and equip 20,000 miles of ‘ railroad, and give to every idle man in the l country, employment for every working day in the year, and wages enough to support his family. It is enough to give every third head of a family in the 'country a homestead of one hundred acres, paid for and free from debt ; it is enough to build and equip 3,000 colleges every year; it is enough to build 2,500 homes for orphans, indigent, and poor, and endow them every year; it is enough to send 800,000 missionaries abroad and throughout our land every year; it is enough to give every man, woman, and child in the iland twr and a half barrels of extra fine “lour and stop the cry for bread. This is l the sum spent annually for the tobacco habit. on individuals. This grout sum is no less than an average of ten dollars to every man, woman, and child in the country. But not all the women and children, nor all the men, use tobacco If half the people of the oountry used it, the average cost would be seventy dollars. Suppose a young mechanic spends for tobacco five cents a day, $l8.‘25 a yearâ€"this is a su'aposition far below the average cost,â€"-â€"â€"at the end of ten years, with compound interest, the cost becomes $240.. 54; at the end of twenty, $617.30; at the end of thirty $1,442.77. This man may pity his neighbor whose roof is burned over his head, but he has slowly burned up a house for himself. He thinks it all wrong and cruel that some friend has no home for , himself in old age ; he has destroyed one 1 for himself, and perhaps, in addition, suffer- ; ed some of the physical consequences of this How much is the burden of tobacco on] villages 2 A Methodist minister states that his whole society spent in a year, for the support of its own church privileges and missions, $841, and sixty~seven church members spent $845 for tobacco. A \Vest~ ern town oxpended $2,712 for schools and churches and at the same time $4,098 for tobacco. A correspondent for a Southern paper affirms that in any Southern State where the negroes compose half the popula- tion. "The snuff which is sold amounts annually to more than the cost of all the farming implements of all kinds, including cotton-gins, cotton-presses, steam-engines for farm use, horse-powers, and all sorts of mechanical tools,” and ends: “ I stand pre- pared with Chalmer's challenge, ‘ Give me your pinch of snuff, and I will support the church.’ Give me your tobacco, ci are, and snuff, and I will support the whdle anthem Church, and do it handsomely? _ vt is well that good peole feel as much interest in this vice as they do ; may they take much more. Let the young man that is hesitating about this vice consider well, and save himself from its slavery. Let all unite to release this land, the poor, the bun ry, the homeless, from the enormous bur en of this tobnoco habit. --v wâ€"vvâ€" ~ w____.vi In the Queen’s kitchen there is chok- keeper to give orders to grocers, provision and other dealers ; four clerks to aid him in his work, a chief_ copy, four muster oooks, two yeomen of the kitchen, two assistant cooks, two roasting cooks, four scourers, three kitchen maids, a storelreeper, two "green office” men, two steam ap aratus men, first and second yeomen of con ection- ery, an apprentice, three female assistants, an errand man, a pastrycook, two female as- sistants, a baker and assistant and three coffee-room women. There is an extensive wine cellar, superintended by a man of large salary, and an army of officers engaged in various departments suggestive of eating and drinking. Plenty of servants to make work for each other, and doubtless many of them find plenty todo I But the w as the servants receive in the Royal househo (l are not lar e. We are told that even so gorgeous a cent e- man as a Queen’s footman has to begin with a modest $250 a year. which in course of time may expand to $400, but no further. l’erquisites, too, have been abolished or our- tailed. There is an allowance of six ineas and a half for hair powder, bag an stock- ings ; but each man has to find his own blacking and boot brushes, and to pay for his own washing. A suit of state livery is said to cost 8600. They are rare] used,and ofoaurse, rarely renwed. When t ey are re- newed, however, the old garments become the perquisites of the wearers, and the gold lace upon them is, of course, of considerable value. The Queen has fifteen footmen, and one sergeant-footman with a salary of $650 a year. Formerly the sergeant iootman or one of the six senior footmen was often pro- moted to the position of page-of-the-presence, or of a Queen’s messenger, either of which was worth 8|,500 or $2,! 00 a year. But this practice has one the way of most of the perquisites, am the position of a Royal {airma- is no lénger sought for as it u4 During a thunderstorm at Hezelton. Pm, lightning struck a penknife in the hande of High Sheriff Ziordt, who was bathing in a tub. When he recovered consciousness he found nothing but small splinters of the tub he had been bathing in and the Water it contained was equally distributed over the floor, as if done with a mop in the hands of e ecrnbwomen. The metal in the knife wee melted. No other evidence that the lightning had entered the room could be found. The Tobacco llubu. The Queen’s Kitchen. Tlle Inventor’s Work In Agrl' culture. The conditions ’of the welfare of countries huve undergone very great changes during the last fifty years. Up to a comparatively recent period, it was almost an axiom of po- litical economy that the farmers were the Producers of the true wealth of a region. They worked a mine that was inexhnuet‘ able if proper trentment wee awarded it. If the soil became spent. it was interpreted as a sign of faulty e rionlture. Properly treeted. the some inn could he need, year in 9nd you" out. and would yield 3 constant return for labor expended and capital in- vested. The coal miner Works out a deposit of goal and ahandonpthe region, n‘iter 025n- herln runny acres with hes}; ofoulm. The metal ur ist builds his furnace near the source 0? supplies, to be abandoned when these fail. But the farmer, by his perms nence of locstion, end by his improving, instead of exhausting, the land, seemed the founder of a country's prosperity. It is true that, in some instances, particularly where subjected to a. heavy drain upon its mineral constituents hy successive crops of cereuis or tobacco, land'becams exhausted. Modem science, with improved systems of fertilizing and prescription of rotation of crops, endea- vored. with much success, to overcome this trouble. The agricultnrist was thus advanced in his efforts by the chemint, and took a step forward toward a. more scientific treatment of his mnteriele. Coincident with, or “it“. tie in advance of, _this epoch, the mechan al inventor appeared on tile scene, and invent» ed machinery which enabled horses to do the work of men. From the reaping hook to the cradle was an important step. It multiplied greatly the labor of man. From the cradle to the reaper, from the pitohfork to the unloading machinery, froin- hand labor to the self-binder, from the flail to the threshing rnachine, were still greater oxide). human labor. These inyentions mark arre- \'o)ptiox} in farming: . . . n I L The farmer or his laborers to-de do not do one hundredth part the acme work. Steam or horse driven machinery are the agents. The farm is converted into ainetory. 1min is sowed and fertilizers aredietributed by machines. Improved cultivator: are used in treeting growing crops. After her- vesting by power, threshing machines are substituted for the old time finils. The farming of fifty years ago is becoming a lost art. To a great extent, the farmer is deposed from his posjtion as the Principle producer of a region’s wealth. This honor must be shared by others. The chemist has had his part in the change. but the inventor stands above all in this. To him the new condition is principally due. As- the result of his? work, the United States maintain numerous ‘ factories devoted entirely to the production of agricultural machinery. Every city and village have stores devoted to their sale. The farm directs the operations of the ma- chinery when completed, just as the engineer of a steamer superintends the running of the engine. It would be as truthful or logical to call the marine eneineer the developer of commerce as to claim for the farmer the title of sole producer. 'In his work he has part- ners. Without the great agricultural im- plement Works, he could donothing. They, as well as he, are agents in production. The inventor who directs and plans the factories’ work is also a phrtner, and is an actual pro- ducer. He may not make two blades of grass grow where formerly there was only one, but he has changed another ratio for the better. He has made the actual labor of man far more efficient than before. The soil may produce no more, but the labor of those tilling it is many times more produc- tiva. The future political economist ehould pay regard to the new order of things. The in- fluence of the inventor has been particularly reat in the field of agriculture. It has one away with the customs of many cen- turies; it has converted the farmer into a superintendent or engineer, and raised him from the dependency Que to unending toil. ur- The immense grain farms of the west are the outcome of such factors. Steam and horses are the motive power, and improved machinery is the direct performer of the work. The system by which they are run could no more exist without the inventor’s aid than the merchant navy could be profitably worked without compound engines and a l the latest deVices and inventions in steam machinery. The same applies to the small- er farms of the East. On them the work is done by machinery, and the farmer is being educated and developed into an engineer, capable of running and repairing complicat- ed machines.â€"Scientg’fic American. An Estate of over a Million Acres Thursday last. at the Mart, Tokenhouse Yard, Messrs. Wells and Read offered to public auction the freehold domains of an enormous estate situated in the Province of Vefsen. in Norway, and about 200 miles north of Trondhjem, lying between 65 ° and 06 ° north latitude; no portion of it reached beyond the temperate zone. It was describ- ed as occupying a fiftieth part of the whole country, the area being 1,200,000 acres, or 2,000 square miles, and the number of farms , _J-L :â€" u,vvv u-l«â€"- â€"..-_-_ w__ 7- was 168. It was also stated to be rich in timber and mineral productions, which were capable of very great develo ment. In one respect.” the auctioneer sai , it was unique, being the lar est estate that was ever offered for sale, an presented an exce tion to the custom_of the country, where the farmer is noun-vu- v- -â€"v ‘_â€"._v-', .7 enerally the owner of his occupation. ithin its boundaries was situated the Lake Ros Vand, one of the largest inland waters of Norway. The s orting rights, over 200 miles of river and is aware reserved, afford- ing some of the finest wild shootin and fish ing in the North of Europe. he estate was easy of access, as much so as the High- lands formerly were, and the climate in the summer months was exceedingly pleasant. There was no serious offer for it, for the small sum of £6,500 that was named, or about ld. per acre, could scarcely be so con- sidered, and the property was withdrawn.â€" [llondon Times. The London Lancet says 0 le can may protect themselves and the r c ildren from tho bites of nets and other insects by s aging the sign and hair with a weak solu- t on of csrbolic acid. It will drive away the whole tribe. 'The solution need not be more than six or seven per cent acid, and it may beadded to water till the letter smells strongly. It is perfectly safe. Horses and cattle could be protected from files in the same wny. The London Lancet gays 1 Kept Ills Money lu llis Boots. We were travelling from Sm Antonio to El Pesoâ€"an old and wealthy lrieml and myself. To suve ourselves in s uwasure, the usual tediousneu of the journey we en- gaged in a social game of curds, and to heighten rho inberesc had staked some small sums of money. Yu drawing same small change from his pocket, my frwud dropped a ml of greenbacks into the eisle. A neatly dressed young man on the oppobibe was picked it up and handed it to it owner wit the remark :â€" He had been a very social oompanion during the earlier part of the trip. and we had taken a likin to him. His only draw- back seemed to a want of knowledge concerning life in Western Texas. “Yes,” returned the old man; “but I hardly ex ect any more train robberies in Texas. \ ’hy, it’s been eight months since we’ve had one. Well, if they do get this little pile l‘m safe, anyhow. 1 v0 got twenty times that much moreâ€"and they wouldn’t knowzwhere I had it. I'm just a little too cute for ’em. They never think of lnsking amen pull ofi'bis Roots.” AL. H- “Rather a nlco llttle wad to have out if thgtrajn _ro_bbers should hapgep around.’_’ The yooung man. smiled. During the re- mainder cf the afternoon he stood on the gallery of the.coach, “tsking a. good look at the country; it was so different. fromr,Missouri. where he came from.” Some one éxclaimed : “Don't slxothl‘ Our young acquaintance stepped from the gallery into the car. “ What's the matter? What's the matter? ” queried my elder companion. “Oh, not much, not much," was the glow reply, “only I guess old fellow" (here he levelled a revolver at him), “I guess it‘s about time fox: you.to pull 06‘ you}: booty: “TB; éfi'fifiéh Viihrtin‘ned maxi. The usual prggyammp wasyuccessfully (fax-tied out. “ J A, AHA---‘ I" ‘0‘"“"" When theflt-r-éifi Was pegmitted to travel on I flung myself into the seat made vacant by the inpocgnt young Missourian} (?), pug mg hands into my empty pockets and m ditated until we reached our destination. My old friend lighted a cigar, propped his boots (those treasureless boots) on a. seat in front of him, and said he’d ho hanged it he’d say a word till he reached El Paso. He thought he had said enough for one day. A Rattlesnake Farm. Aoorrespondent of the Atlanta Constitu- tion describes afarm in Illinois, the pro- ducts of which are of a nature to make the flesh of any but enthusiastic naturalisss creep with horror. The farm is carried on for the purpose of propagating rattlesnakes, which are sold at a good round price. A certain firm is at present using rattlesnake oil in the manufacture of a remedy for rheumatism, and the blllinois farmer has agreed to furnish two hundred and fifty snakes for the laboratory during the season, no reptile being less than six years old, or measuring less than four feet in length. There are thirty-seven “mounds” on the farmâ€"slightly raised hillockuâ€"where the snakes burrow in winter, and live with their young in summer. On the south side of one mound, where they could get the full benefit of the mm, were to be seen, on the dav of the reporter’s visit. over fifty reptiles, which took not the slighest notiee of spectators. “ That mound,” said the furluer, “prob- ably contains a. dozen nests, and ewh neat at least ten eggs. I have seen nests holding eighteen young rattlera, the largest not over two inches in length. The eggs are about the size of those of a. partridge, but have a. soft shell.” 3; nu nnnnnnnnn under the stove containing twenty-seven rattlesnake eggs, which were almost at the point of hatching. After they have done so, the tiny reptiles would be fed upon flies, caught for them hy ting ghilglten. Several t snakes glide about the house. They are a aolutely harmlees, the poison sac having been removed from their mouths, and their fangs clipped with pincers, while they were under the influenee of coloroform. The reptiles have no equal as mice exter- minebora, end in the summer not only keep the place free from huge and files, but‘ from human intruders. Suddenly about dark the train ate pped. .m- “u __--|-:...._1 . uh....u-. .1. .m. I" Self-Support in Water. The utmost care and judgment should be exercised by those who 0 bathing. It is perfectly foolhardy to to e risks that may cost one's life. It is desirable at all times to be master of one's self, but never is presence of mind of more importance than when one is in the water. Many people are drowned because they exert themselves wildly when thrown into the water suddenly, forgettin completely 'in their fright the buoyanc o the water, which will sustain a body old by a slight support. Every person should. learn to float who exposes himself to the danger of drowuing. _ A recent writer says : “cit is. unfortunately, not generally known that a finger laid upon an ear, or the un- wale of an overturning boat, or a has , or almost an floating object, will sustain the human ha y in calm water. Persons who have been properly taught, and have ac- quired the habit of acting with self-posses- sion in the water when they are upset, do not attempt to climb upon the upturned boat, but simpl take hold of it and quietly support themse ves. A boat half filled with water, or complet ly overturned, will an - port as many pen; 3 as can get their hands upon the gnnwaie, if they behave quietly. In case of accident, a person who under- stands and acts in accordance with these facts would stand a better chance of being saved, even if he were a poor swimmer, than as. expert swimmer would have who should lose his presence of mind.” Professor Soxheit, of Munich, suggests the following plan for the ready detection of bog‘ns butter :-â€"He proposes to make a law t at malfi'bms butter must be mixed during the Nepali on with phenolphtelein, which is made out 6 one of the products of the dry distillation of tar, and one gramme of it will be enough for 100 kilogrammes of bogus butter. The butter can then be ofi'er- ed for sale, colored yellow, or uncolored, or in any way desired, and the phenol htelein will not be seen at all. But by odd ng a so- lution of soda, or ammonia and water, or even a teaspooniul of water and the ashes of a cigar, to a piece of the butter the size oi a bean the whole of the butter will become s. nice red if it he bogus butter or ii bogus butter be mixed with it. Fred Douglass, on hoing asked to describe his feelings when he heard people speak ’3" htlngly of his two, hesitated a moment “3 led. “I feel as if a {-910 had st- and led, "1 tea: as tempt» to kick me and To Detect Bogus Butter.