NOTES AND QUERIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2810, 22 January 1908, Page 59

NOTES AND QUERIES.

> QxtuUont for reply in earning istut to h* rus\eeA m - ot tatir than UONDAYjiiaIU. ' -Botp.— The- New Zealand Clothing Factory inform us that the cost of a Highland suit ibT~»-ladof'vfi.ve years, with, all accessories, would -b& about .£s.~- •" * JtosLTO.— Mount ~Cargill ia 2233ift liigh, being slightly lower— 2lß7ft. - The higfiest tdwnsMp^in= Otago is Hills Cr«ek^- - iOOOfti-^aßeßy being -second highest with l?3ort.^ - -. " - " - : ' BntflHTiiowEß.— A little damp salt would re-'-move-* thei sfains , front'' ivory, or a Uttle -paraffin similarly applied. - - »~ - 3" - W " 'J:— Soientifia" "men consider that i tthe aHeged- p5-wt« of -the -rod -diviner j isV due- eithei'- to "consoiouß ' knavery or- *o- mote or"; less- , uneonscioua r delusion, the .whole phenomenon being due tc T-thV effect" of * strong impression on -the mind' acting through " the agency of . the - anusolea. -A few weeks ago "some expenp^r>t« yuaik jbied-in Queensland, aaa A

fair amount of success -attended "hese efforts, several artesian wells being located 1 . The rod is usually " a forked branch of hazel, but sometimes iron is used. Constant Reader.— (l) So far as we can ascertain there is no vessel of that name at present to the Australian Squadron, most of the vessels comprising the latter being now" on the New Zealand . coast. (2) No. Mines.— (l) About the only way to get tar off a boat is to scrape it off with a knife or scraper. (2) The bones of a moa are of no intrinsic value, and practically of no use except as mementoes or curios. P. T>. — (1) Dissolve an ounce r and a-quarter of, shellac in a fluid ounce of naphtha; put the shellac broken finely into a wide mouthed bottle, stir" it with a,, wire until dissolved, and keep corked. If thicker than cream add more naphtha. This will be always ready for use, and is perfectly waterproof. (2) Guncotton can be ordered from any of the local gunsmiths or ironmongers. , Header asks for a recipe for black currant vinegar: — For every -two cups of fruit put one cupful *of vinegar. -" Mash thoroughly together until all the fruit is broken. Let stand for three days, then strain. For every cupful of juice add a cup of sugar. Boil for about 10 minutes, and then bottle. J. G. D. — There are plenty of books published on electricity. To get a sound knowledge ,of . the production, .and. control of this knowledge one would need to -combine with .his study a course of practical work. EcONOita?.-^A<- good , cement jfor mending cracked' earthenware '-ah'd^pottery is' called .'"the ," B Mender." *• Secotine is also very use-, - ,-ful for together broken china, or - , "V . Thirty Yeabs Subscbibeb.— Mr D "R. waters, ..Otago School of Mines, kindly 1 replies^ to your queries: — (1) Samples 1, 2, and 3- do not indicate that gold will be "found in the vicinity, nor, any other metal ! of value. (2) None of "the samples sent indicate the presence of a gold-bearing reef. ; (3) No. i sample is fossiliferous limestone. No. 5 sample is clay. No. & sample is ; olay. These last two are clays similar to those in our coal measures. (4) Sample No. 4--does not indicate the presence, of reef gold, and has no bearing on the presence of alluvial gold-' either in the strata above or below it. The. small specks sent' for gold are- 'not gold; but ..small particles of mica of-" no value. . (5) "The stone- supposed to. contain gold is granite/ the yellowcoloured specks .showing being - mica. » J, T v W. — If it^is desired to "perpetuate thel J old*, landmark of - , the " Ghost Rock/ i - ".Kowh&tu -W«irua<" (the Ghost Bock) 'or I "Puke Wairua ". (Ghost Hill) would be | /appropriate.' If some 'mention of the river, i then "Puke Awa." (hill by the river), ! " A'wanui " (the , great river), or " Awateitei'' (the summit by the river), might be preferred. "Pukepito" is the hill at the -end or extremity. - - . | F. 8., Miller's Flat.— H. M. Davey, con- | suiting engineer, " 91a Princes street, reI plies:—A ccording' to Mblesworth's, rules,. if [ you "have "equal to two, floats immersed at I - aIL times— that is, say, one whole and" -two halves,, or such-like as you . may probably i - have," and if . the current is as you" say, you * should get 1 over 10 , b.h.p. This '• authority-suggests that, hollow floats- might -'- "be.more effectzve'th'an^fl^Vones/'said^floa-ta _, to" beV, shaped sbmewluft after Poncelot's /"'s'tyle. ,of< jxndershot'i'wheeL or feathering float* might also be .good. • It is, of course, quite . impossible for." anyone- tp'-sayjhow high sucK a wheel could lift water, seeing thai no quantity is mentioned, and a force pump will lift higher and higher," if- sufficient power be applied, till Something givesway. 'just .what- you do- want, and ■ a reply' can be given. ENonraEßjare' Student. — H. M. Davey, 915 Princes street, replies:— With regard to your question I placed it with Mr Bobert M'Lintock, of. 76 Union street, Dunedin, who kindly replies as under; and I may say, from my own knowledge and. from inquiries,' that he would be the best person to instruct you in what you ask about. Ho holds classes at the above address fox the- study of applied' mechanics . and steam, and also prepares students for passing as marine engineers and also for stationary drivers' examinations. Mr M'LiDtock Knsweis ; - The velocity with which steam at 1001b pressui c by gauge escapes into the atmosphere : The . -work done by a gas— and iteam is considered as of the nature of a gas— is given by the exprecsion— s

And, faking the mean of the two, we get— 1440-3 -h 148S _ = lieift per second. 2"'- ' ~ , I purposely did not put in the working. It would tab* up too much tpace, as the calculation ha rather long 'one. . ' . " •Mr Gr. M. Thorn-ion replies:— The fungus . sent is Aseroa rubra. The life history is not known, but^the sporing stage is the conspicuous crimson fungus,., shaped like a ,-sea anemone-, or star-fish,, which your correspondent has noticed. This arises, from ' the ground to the- neight of » couple of ; inches/ .and. when mature smells very., strongly of putrid "carrion. '- At the same ■ ' time the crimson gills deliquesce and ba--come more or less- covered with a brown > slimy" mass, which is largely made up" of spores. ■ It is extremely attractive to flies, - and no doubt the colour and smell serve to jbring them, and they -thus become the • active agents in distributing the species. , "Bjii JMr< ttag <W" so' u'BAi Jmhnwk AM ;

proba&e that they draw the spores TntoJ their alimentary canal, and -when they die these spores germinate (providSU the insect has died in a locality suitable for them), . and give rise to the mycelium of a n&s | fungus. This mycelium grows in the ground. This is a problematical explanation, but is a very likely one. >, Rupee. — Since 1898 the rupee has bfflen practically stable at Is id. This rate has" now a legal sanction, since an act of-. 1899 makes the British sovereign legal tender in India at the ratio of 15 rupees to the sovereign. Cuhious. — If you will communicate with' Mr F. O. Bridgeman, Consular Agent for the United" States, supplying full* .name of your relative, with particulars, of his ■ regiment and of the officers under whom' he 'served, inquiries will be made through the* American Consul-general,