THE YOUNG FOLK

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 3630, 29 March 1906, Page 4

THE YOUNG FOLK

THE EAGLE AS AM EMBLEM. K»« Bird of dove 51. w lb < n a ravwltc t;VVA. <-i i’i);t:t in . ;.=Oj Tu rjirkut mTt'mkmv : ;•. - ;v-tw vw tvlieved to carry tho mob (..t toe dyine tfeir Windy oh W.olmt Olympus uM v.... called the bird of .K-ve. The eagle win first taken as a symbol of royal power bj the ancient Etruscans, who boro Us inutgc npOii their standards. 1 n tho year 87 B (f, a silver (.'agio, with expanded wings, poised on tho top of a spear, with a thunderbolt held in Its claws, was adopted aa the military standard to bo home at the head of their legions by the Romans, At the time of Hadrian a golden eagle was substituted lot- the stive* MIS. A two headed eagle was adopted lw the Byzantine emperors as a symbol of their control of both the cast and the vest. The double headed eagle of Russia wm adopt.el on the marriar • »-f Ivan I with Grecian pi luecss of me eastern empa That of Austria was ilf.it used when tin emperor of Germany took the title of tin Roman emperor. Tho national standard Of Prussia bears a black eagle; that of Po land a whito one. Napoleon 1 took a golden eagle for his standard, modeled of pure gold and bearing a thunderbolt, after the pattern of tho eagle of tho Homans. ’1 lib standard was disused under tho Bourbons, but was restored by a deerco of Louis Napoleon in 1853. Thome states that tho eagle was first used on American coins In 1788, on cents and half cents issued from tho Massachusetts mint. It was adopted In tho plan of a national coinage as a design tipon all gold coins and on the silver dollar, half dollar and quarter dollar. Tho design of an eagle was at ono time suggested for the national flag. Modern Whaling Weapon. Tho whaling steamers of a well known Norwegian whale fisher are short, about 00 feet iu length, but comparatively broad. They aro propelled by screws, attain a speed of from eight to nine knots an hour and turn with great rapidity. in tho stem stands the gun for throwing tho harpoon. This gun Is in reality only a long Iron tube, resting on a fixed platform, in this tube tho harpoon is inserted after loading with powder. Tho harpoon la about 4 feet in length. Tho end of it which touches tho charge consists of a solid iron cylinder, fitting exactly in the tube. Then comes a portion, 8 feet long, consisting of two flat ribs of iron, with an opening In the middle like tho eye »f a needle. In this eye runs a movabl*

A HARPOON GUN. iron ring, to which the rope of the Jmi-poou ia attached. At the top of tho eye are fixed four projecting hooks, tied down with a string. When the harpoon enters the ribs of the whale, these hooks spring into position by tho tightening of tlio rop|’, and the harpoon thus becomes imbedded m the animal. Tho further contrivances of this remarkable wor.nan aro that at the point where tho Imo&t MO lined riit-i vwo iron ribs run into a srajjli, follow iron rod, and in this a glass tr.bo with oHroglvecrin is Inserted, and as the Looks spring into py\ pilic-il, this lube I* smashed and the grenade in the harpoon exploded. Tbß troll rod brushes in a triangular point, so ih-at it may penetrate the flesh more easily, \\lien tho wounded whale pulls, the rope tarns out to its end, which is, of com*se, well secured, and when killed tho rope and tho whale arc hauled in by a steam winch.

'the Tailor Made Woman In History,

There exiais a common do! usionthat the tailor made woman is a product of (lie nineteenth century, v.b.-reas a more or less erious consideration of the subject would at once prove that ia the olden days of tin* fificenth and Msteomh centuries ad the wooien wore tailor made clothes. Have we not authentic evidence in the records of i fancy VlU’s expenses of payments made to the tailor, John Malt, for Anne Buieyn, and has It not. been chronicled that when specially leased with her servant “Jane the fool” the Queen Mary wi mid order her to he shaved by the beadier and supplied with a new suit from the tailor" And eau we not oven eito as a further proof the existence of that luckless tailor of Katherine's on whom Petruchio exercises such unmanly pranks, (kidding the fashions this most amiable woman was so anxious to contemplate? Not alone had this enterprising tradesman the gowns of the fair lady under his care, but ho was also her milliner, ns the text of tho Immortal “Taming of tho Shrew” will show. Did he not make that paltry cap which Petruchio likens eo unsympathetically to *‘a custard coffin, a bauble, a silken pie?” The Secrets of the Freemasons. Curiosity has always found a peculiar attraction In the Freemasons. What Is this great secret of theirs that no woman knows, and which they guard with such fascinating care? That excellent antiquary, tho Rev. Dr. Stukeley, F. R. S., thought It might he some vestiges of the “mysteries of the ancients” and Joined the society at tho Salutation Tavern in a scientific spirit. At that time (1720) Freemasonry was at a low ebb, but the learned doctor brought it into vogue again. “With difficulty a number sufficient for his initiation Was to he found in nil London. After this It became a public fashion, and not only spread over Britain and Ireland, but all Europe.” But whatever it was they told him ho kept to himself. This silence of Btukoley, however, is a small thing beside that of tho lady Mason, whoso story has been often told, who, being caught eavesdropping, was incontinently captured, hauled In ami initiated and r.epc shu secret nevertheless to the end. The Weight of the Earth, Tho weight of tho earth has been six times computed with slightly varying results. The average, according to The Educational World, is a mean density of 5,44 as compared with water. The average density of all materials of 10 miles of the earth’s crust ns well ns volcanic matter thrown out from an estimated depth of 800 miles is less than one half the mean density. Tho average mass below volcanic action Is estimated to be 10 times heavier than water.