Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 40.djvu/296

284 author attributed the coin to P. Clodius Turrinus, who used the name Taurus or Taurianus as a phonetic equivalent of his own. A coin struck by Marius Aquillus, 94, has figured on it the first four stars of the constellation Aquila. They are shown in nearly the same relative positions they now occupy, and therefore contain the earliest known representation of a pan of the celestial vault.

Native Jade in Europe.—From the occurrence of articles of jade in ancient graves in Europe and America, while the only known quarries of that mineral were in Asia, archæologists have concluded that all the materials used by the prehistoric artisans must have had an Oriental origin. Prof. F. W. Rudler has shown that this conclusion is no longer necessary. Within the last few years Herr Traube, of Breslau, has discovered nephrite, or true jade, in places near Jordansmühl and near Reichenstein, in Silesia. Pebbles of nephrite have also been recently recorded by Dr. Berwerth from the valleys of two rivers in Styria. A pebble believed to be of jadeite has been found by if. Damour at Ouchy, on the Lake of Geneva, and the same mineral has been recorded from Monte Tiso, in Piedmont. Pr. G. M. Dawson has recorded the discovery of small bowlders of jade, partially worked, in the lower part of the Frazer River Valley; and Lieutenant Stoney has obtained the mineral in place at the Jade Mountains, in Alaska, 150 miles above the mouth of the river Kowak. The present aspect of the jade question is, therefore, different from that which it presented when the la:e Prof. Fischer and others favored the view that the jade implements of America and Europe were of exotic origin. It seems now probable that in both continents the material of the implements is indigenous,

Causes of Baldness.—The probable causes of baldness are summed up by Dr. Joseph Tyson as, in their order, insufficient exposure of the hair; influence of heredity; excessive mental work and great anxiety; venereal and alcoholic excesses; and constant washing and want of pomade. Preventive treatment is advised. Children should, as much as possible, do without caps, and their hats, when worn, should be of the lightest description. A stouter hat may be necessary during the hot season, for the prevention of sunstroke. Head-coverings should not be warn indoors, in trains, or in closed carriages. Straw hats are preferable in summer and in still weather; in winter, hats made of light felt, well ventilated and unlined. The ordinary tall hat, or stove-pipe, and the thick, heavy, unventilated top hat, can not be too strongly condemned. The second cause does not admit of practical treatment, while the course to be pursued with the third and fourth causes is obviously one of avoidance. Too constant washing of the hair is unnecessary as well as harmful. Once a week is enough for cleanliness and for maintaining the strength of the hair. Excessive brushing, especially with hard brushes, should be avoided. The author advises the application of some form of simple grease or oil, after the hair has been washed; and, when the head hair is becoming rapidly thinned, some stimulating material, such as ammonia and cantharides. applied to the oil, will increase its good effects.

The Mesopotamian Desert.—The Mesopotamian Desert, according to Dr. D. Moritz, comprises two thirds of the southern part of the country, forming an unbroken plain with little or no vegetation, except in the depressions where rain-water collects or the inundations penetrate. Piles of ruins, or débris—which the inhabitants designate by a name signifying "signs"—rise from these perfectly level plains from the height of a few yards to a hundred feet, and are sometimes several miles in diameter. Some of the walls and buildings still tower aloft, and, in more recent ruins, lines of streets can yet be traced; the dams of ancient canals are still visible, and are sometimes fifty feet high. The atmosphere is murky, so that the highest hills are obscured at a distance of a few miles. Dust-storms, for which abundant material is furnished by the old crumbled walls of brick, fill the air at times so that the sun is obscured; and in time they have changed the appearance of the country by blocking up the ancient canals and forming long, parallel lines.