Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 8.djvu/135

Rh snow actually falling and that raised from the ground by the storm. It was remarkable, however, that during the first winter the quantity of snow was small compared with that of the second winter, when the snow almost completely buried the ship. The same proportion was repeated in the quantity of rain during the first and second summer; in the first only a little rain fell and that late in the year, while in July, 1874, it rained in torrents for days.

Life in Elevated Areas.—The general belief in the invigorating effect of mountain-air is not absolutely justified by facts: at least there are some elevated regions the inhabitants of which show none of the vigor and élan which we should expect to find, were the common opinion correct. Dr. Jourdanet, of Paris, writes of the inhabitants of the table-land of Anahuac, Mexico, that they appear quite languid, with pale complexion, ill-developed muscles, and feeble circulation. The mortality of infants is 30 per cent. in the first year after birth. Dr. Jourdanet is satisfied that, while the proportion of red corpuscles in the blood is normal, there is a diminution of oxygen, the result of insufficient condensation of that gas under the slight pressure of the air. For this condition of the blood he proposes the name of anoxyhæmia. In Mexico, at the height of about 2,300 metres (7,500 feet) above the sea, the debilitating effects of the rarefied air are manifest. This is noticeable in brutes as well as in men. Again, the annual growth of population is scarcely ever more than three per 1,000 on the uplands, while nearer the sea-level it is six or seven. Dr. Jourdanet asserts his belief that, in countries where cold is not of itself an obstacle to life, rarefaction of the air will prevent the founding of durable states at a level higher than 4,000 metres.

Chinese Wheelbarrows.—In commenting on an improved style of wheelbarrow, a correspondent of the Gardener's Chronicle praises the Chinese for the ingenuity they display in diminishing to the last degree the labor of the man who propels the barrow. The Chinese barrow has but one wheel, but it is large, and placed in the centre of the bed of the vehicle; the entire load rests on this central wheel. In Shanghai, thousands of these vehicles ply for hire in the streets, the usual load being two persons, who sit on a wooden platform on each side of the wheel, resting one arm on a framework which rises above the top of the wheel, and planting one foot in a stirrup made of rope. "It is by no means uncommon, however," he adds, "to see as many as four persons conveyed without any particular effort (the ground being level) by a stalwart coolie;" garden and farm produce is transported in the same way, and even live-stock: the Chinese farmer being too sensible to attempt to drive his pigs to market, the barrow is often seen laden with a live fat hog on each side of the wheel.

Cave-Habitations in Kentucky.—That some of the great caves of Kentucky were, temporarily at least, used as places of human habitation, is conclusively shown by Prof. Putnam's exploration of Salt Cave. This cave, says Prof. Putnam, approaches the Mammoth Cave in the size of its avenues and chambers. Throughout one of the principal avenues, for several miles, were to be traced the ancient fireplaces both for hearths and lights. Bundles of fagots were found in several places in the cave. But the most important discovery was made in a small chamber, about three miles from the entrance. On the dry soil of the floor were to be seen the imprints of the sandaled feet of the former race who had inhabited the cave, while a large number of cast-off sandals were found, neatly made of finely-braided and twisted rushes.

The Use of Bushy Tails.—It is easy to see the usefulness to the opossum, monkey, and other animals, of their prehensile tails. So, too, we can recognize the value to the horse and the ox of the switches by means of which these animals repel the attacks of insects. But there are other forms of the tail the uses of which are less evident, for instance, the bushy tail seen in the fox, dog, wolf, cat, etc. Mr. Lawson Tait holds that the use of this bushy appendage is completely analogous to that of the respirator worn by persons troubled with lung-complaints, the object being to abstract from the expired air, by means of fur in the one