ILLUSTRATED SCRAPS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVI, Issue 33, 8 February 1905, Page 9

ILLUSTRATED SCRAPS.

! 'CITE | "->[. Bibendum" is a personage who i is as much in everybody's mouth in! France as --Bill Bailey"' is in England, i It is a scicntilie toy in tho shape of a balloon, by which a big pneumatic tyre) manufacturer shows how the indiarub-j ber inflated wheel-cover "drinks up ob- j stac-les." Hence the name M. Bibendum. j The Latter has appeared to the Parisian J in various forms, and now takes the fig-! ure of a man. ringed round with tyres. I -onslructed of goldbeaters' skin, and inj listed with hydrogen. Thus inflated, he ; |is allowed to ascend, travel whichever | way the wind blows, and spread the fam»! |of Miclielln. the tyre-maker, to the four I corners of heaven. He carries in his I hand a free order for tyres, and the * lu«-ky person who finds him when he falte j Ito earth has i-,it!_\ to communicate with ! ! the inanufaclinvc to receive the reward. I j A number of these balloons were sent ur> a! tlu; recent motor-boat race, and our J illustration dhows "M. Bibendum"" in his I Litest garb. RECONSTRUCTING NOAH'S ARK. As reported a few works back, a Danish engineer. M. Vogt, has reconstructed ■ Noah's Ark as nearly as possible in ac- ' cordance with the description given in SEEING THROUGH TELEPHONES. Particulars of a long-sonant-for invention, whereby a person speaking through the telephone ran see the person at the other end of tho line, are given by the '"New York American." That journal states that a scientist of Portland. Oregon, has succeeded, after years cf labour, in perfecting the invention and incredulous visitors to his house ara able to see the featiires of the people thay are talking with by looking into a little arrangement just under the telephone mouthpiece, which looks like the front i end of a large camera. The invention is to be patented all j over the world, and unril this is done full details of rhi new telephone attachment will not be made pu'jHc. It has dow been demonstrated, says the journal, that the mirage rays which convey the reflection are operative fcr hundreds of miles. j The visible parts of tbe telephone now . in use by the inventor are very similar! to those in an ordinary telephone. The; only noticeable audition is a camera-like! attachment just like the front of a ko-j dak with a. magnifying lens in the centre, j This lens is about three inches above the telephone mouthpiece, so that a person j talking can see his reflection in the | lens. Above ihe lens there is a small incandescent light, which is only nsed wlii!" the person at the telephone is looking intently at the transmitting lens and getting hi* reflection into perfect focus. \ When he has done this he can turn out j the light, taking care, however, not co I sway or move from his position during I the ensuing conversation. If he does so j '.he reflection in the transmitting lens be- j comes hazy and appears so at the other j end. Huw the image i* conveyed is the j inventor's secret. [ I the Bible narrative. It is of 200 tons I burthen. The erst of building has been j defrayed by tho Carlberg -Naval Fund. I After consulting a number cf iHstinI guished Hebraist.*. M. Vogt followed the outlines of ih>* must ancient representation known of the Ark on an Apamean ] coin, dating from 300 8.C.. now the proi pcrty of the Stockholm Museum. He j made his model oOft in length. sft wide, , and 3ft in height, the entire dimensions ! a.vrraging about one-tenth the actual ; -izn of Noah.; Ark. Interpreting the Hej brew word "Zohnr" not a.* light, which is ! the usual meaning assigned to it. but ja- a smoke escape, the model was fur- [ (.her equipped with a chimney. A triai I trip of the Ark aroused much interest. and our sketch will give our readers I some idea of the shape of the new Ark.