Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 89.djvu/871

 Popular Science Monthly

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��Things Weigh. Then Why Not Let Them Drop Where They Are Wanted?

THE priiuiple of potential power which Newton in\"estigatcd and which the baggage-man puts into practice with your trunks, is being utilized in a recently per- fected gravit\-rollcr conve>-cr in ware- houses, factories and other industrial establishments where man\- large packages are handled. In other words, because things weigh, why not let them drop to their destination?

The contrivance consists of a runway of successive rollers on an inclined plane. The great advantages of the gravity method of transportation are that it requires little attention and is extremeh' tlcxible. There are switches and other appliances, by means of which the goods may be diverted around corners or shunted wherever desired.

Besides its cheapness of construction and maintenance, it is always ready to accom- modate a load and to handle goods as rap- idly as they can be put on the runwa>-. Also, breakage is reduced considerably in comparison with hand-trucking.

��The gravity conveyer re- verses the conditions of the bicycle traveling down a smooth road; it contains within itself the wheels

��One of these gra\it>--conveyer systems is in operation in a Boston warehouse, where it transports goods of any regular shape from the third floor to an elevator on

the second.

Corns — What They Are and Why They Hurt

CORNS, like corsets, boarding-houses and late hours, are a menace to one's sweet disposition.

Corns are hard growths which occur on the toes or some other part of the feet. They are generally the result of wearing a shoe too small for the foot. They are thickenings of the outer layer of the skin in the center of which is a nail-like peg which projects downward and hurts when pressed upon. Soft corns form between the toes and are onh" different from others in that they are soaked with perspiration all the time. The corn itself is composed of a lump of the outer part of the skin which is caused by the pressure of the shoe at that spot. Howe\-er, the corn v^ould not result unless the pressure were taken off at inter- vals, and this, of course, is done when you take the shoe off. It stands to reason that if the pressure were con- tinuously applied to this spot, the skin, instead of overgrowing at that precise point, would waste away. The overgrowth of the skin is due to the irritation produced by the pres- sure.

Shoes play an important "part in the comfort of feet and consequently in contributing to the health and genera' happiness of the iiidi\idual.

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