CURIOUS CALCULATIONS.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XI, Issue 99, 13 April 1876, Page 4

CURIOUS CALCULATIONS.

An amateur of original calculations has been applying his genius to ascertain what would be the rate at which men', lions, horses, and others of the larger animals would travel if they

could go about with leaps proportioned, in regard to their size," to those performed by the flea or the grasshopper, and has arrived fat results far from flattering to our powers^of locomotion, even with the aid of Bteftm. A grasshopper springs to a height two hundred times greater tfran the, length of its body. Applying. these proportions. to the average length of the human form, a man, to rival this insect, would have to make a leap of 320; metres, or a height of abou t v five times that of the towers of Notre Dame, sand this man instant of time, and all day ? long, without fatigue or need of resting. -To make the tour of the globe (provided there were no ocean to be crossed) would be a matter of a few days only to men gifted with this power of Spring; and that of the flea is, . in pro-, portion, to 1 its size, even greater than that of the grasshopper, while, in point of intelligence, the tormenting little creature so abhorred by housewives appears to be far ahead of the grasshopper, as it is susceptible of an education which the/ latter is incapable of acquiring. The art 6(1 educating a flea co as to make it perform the various [feats performed by.the troupes of learned fle,a% that are occasionally exhibited to the amazement of beholders, appears to be Carried on by means of a few very simple expedients.; The first difficulty to be met is that of getting a flea to give up springing, and to adopt the .habit of walking, like a reasonable creature. To cure it of this wild way of jumping, the flea is put into a little box, every leap it makes brings it into contact with the side of lhe box, against which it hurts itself at every spring; after, a few days of these vain attempts, it finds that it is no use lo rebel against fate, gives up leaping, and creeps gently about the ; box. This first step accomplished, the trainer passes a hair round its body, at the third joint of its coat of mail, and ties it firmly to a fixed point. The flea jthinkipg itself free tries; to spring, but finds it. cannot get away, and gives up the -attempt. When it has ceased its effort's to escape, * the trainer giveif it: a tiny bit of : raw meat, on which the hungry creature, throws itself eagerly.; Arrived at this stage of the training, the rest is ! only a matter of patience*--, and it is gradually made by Imeans of hair, to march in time, to trundle a little wheelbarrow, to turn a mill, to draw a little carriage. The trainer employs only the two grand means juat indicated, viz;, the terrible box, when his little pupil refuses to work, and the bits of raw flesh when it has . gone' well through' its ' lesson. The* famous English flea-trainer, Kitchingbam, gives ten hours a day to the exercising of bis pupils ; and when they have done their wotk, takes them paternally on the palm of his hand,' by ten at a time, and lets them feaet theii; jfill as they stand there. They sleep in little boxes lined with red flannel, and under a strip of white flannel. At 10 o'clock in .the morning he takes them out of theie. beds ; performs their toilet with -the aid of a minute feather-brush, so as to leave no little fibre of wool in their joints; which would impede their movements, and he then takes them through their exercises, on a table covered with while paper. The Belgian fleas are considered by Kitcbingham to be the most docile. Onef of them, named Hercules/draws a tiny ship, of ivory,, just one. thousand times heavier than -his little body 1 What could; men not accomplish if possessed of strength proportioned to that of this insect!