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. . . . .... . .y'., SATLA~NTIC WFMOu~0CEAN fYJN SCOTIA 2?AOPoQZD c,,1,- C ARL2Zc'. 2?Q4V2$~~ SN MORE senses than one England and America are drawing nearer to each other. The latest phase of this approaching nearness iE foretold in a geographical sense by Sir Edward Morris, premier of New. foundland. His scheme is geographi cal because he proposes to cut off a whole day in transit between the two countries. The saving of a day, 24 hours of time, is the same thing as taking up the United Kingdom by its roots and planting it in the middle of the North Atlantic, at least a thousand miles nearer Canada and the United States. Sir Edward's proposition would be interesting merely as a theory, but the premier is in earnest about it. He proposes in brief to construct first a railway from Quebec to a point on Cape Sir Charles across the Strait of Belle Isle at its narrowest part oppo site Newfoundland. This railway will connect with two steamers of the Lusi tania and Mauretania type to run between Cape Sir Charles and Liver pool. The sea distance between the two points is only 1,656 miles, running between Ireland and Scotland and through the Irish sea. There will be a ferry across the straits to Newfound land. "This would be by far the shortest passage across the Atlantic, and with steamers of the Lusitania type the voyage from land to land could be ac complished with only three nights at sea," said the Newfoundland premier. "The route would be open all the year round--occasionally drift and floating ice would be met with, but nothing to obstruct properly built and equipped steamers. "From Cape Sir Charles to Quebec is about 1,000 miles, and with a line of standard gauge this could be covered at sixty miles an hour, which means that passengers could be landed in lower Canada and in the United States twenty-four hours earlier than by the Lusitania to New York today. "This can readily be seen when it is explained that the ocean passage would be 1,200 miles shorter and that the 1,000 miles will be covered on land at sixty miles an hour, which is nearly three times as fast as the Lusitania and the Mauretania travel." The Mauretania's best time is about thirty land miles an hour. The period of self-absorption of American capital in transportation schemes of a domestic nature still con tinuing, and his partial bridging of the North Atlantic having its terminals re spectively in the mother country and her colony, it is British capital, con sequently, which proposes to father this project, which sounds and looks so much like a dream. But Si: Edward, who has never been accused of being a dreamer, said that he had discussed the plan with a syn dicate of British capitalists in New York. "There are in New York at the present time," he said, "the represen tatives of a large and influential Eng lish syndicate who have acquired rights to a railway running out of Que bec and who have a charter to build a railway in the direction of Cape Sir Charles and Newfoundland, the width of the strait at that point being only, seven miles." So far as the steamers themselves are concerned, marine experts say that the only saving would lie in one day's steaming coal. an econonmy of $3,000 or $3:.500 a trip. The provisions saved on a three-day trip would not be count ed at all. The cost of running a great steam Philp such as the new \Vhite Star liner Olympic. pictured above, is tremen dous. To bring the Olympic from Southampton to New York and tie her safely to her pier costs inll the neigh borhood of $10it,000. 'his vast sum is made up principally by the pur chase of coal, the wages of the men on board and the buying of food for the passengers. The value of the coal consumed-- about b00 tons per day was only a trifle ltss than the cost of the food eaten by the passengers, This latter item was increased about $10,000 on the return voyage because the first and second cabins were filled when the leviathan departed. From a chief ste ard's viewpoint it is said the Olympic is a bad vessel foi an economizing head of the eating department, because the very steadi; ness of the vessel helps a passenger to eat three good meals per day, and maybe four, whereas if the chief stew ard could only rock her a bit, you know-well, quite a number of the hopefuls would be clutching the rail, gazing at the sea and thinking about a biblical expression that is quite apro pos. The principal items of expense in moving the Olympic from South ampton to New York are: Wages of employee................. 15,000 Laundry .............nd r ... . 2,000 Meals for first cabin passengers..... 17,000 Meals for second cabin passengers.. 4,420 Feeding the third cabin passengers.. 3,960 Feeding the employes................. 6,000 Eighteen tugs for docking........... 400 Transferring third class cabin to El lis Island .............................. 75 Transferring third cabin baggage.. 75 Here is a part of the list the chief steward made up to restock his larder before sailing again: Three thousand pounds of Philadelphia broilers, 3,000 pounds of Philadelphia roasters, 2,000 pounds of capons, 3,000 pounds of ducklings, celery fed; 2,000 pounds of fowl. 500 guinea chickens, 100 dozen squabs. 7,000 pounds of fish, 30,000 eggs, 7,000 pounds of butter, 35,000 pounds of beef, 10,000 pounds of mut ton, fifty spring lambs, 3,000 pounds of veal, 3,000 pounds of pork, thirty tons of potatoes, 1,500 quarts of ice cream, 100 Virginia hams, 100 dozen sweetbreads, 1,000 sheep kidneys, 500 ox kidneys, 200 corned ox tongues, 1,000 pounds of sausage, thirty bar rels of clams, 100 dozen soft shell crabs, 200 barrels of flour, 100 dozen asparagus, 500 dozen lettuce, twenty four boxes apricots, 100 boxes Newton pippin, 100 boxes cooking apples, fifty crates cantaloupe, 100 boxes grape fruit, fifty boxes lemons, 200 boxes oranges, fifty boxes peaches, 200 crates strawberries, fifty boxes peaches, 200 crates strawberries, fifty crates water mellons, twenty dozen crates pineap ples. The Olympic is the largest vessel ever constructed. It is 882% feet in length, 100 feet more than the world's tallest building, and has a width of 92 feet 6 inches. Its displacement is 66, 000 tons. From the bottom of the keel to the top of the captain's house is 105 feet and 7 inches, while from the bot tom of the keel to the top of the fun nel the hight is 175 feet. The vessel is supplied with electric elevators, Turkish bath and swim ming pool, a squash racquet court and hand-ball court, a golf course, palm court and sun parlor. It has a dining rogm with a capacity of 550 guests and a dance hall accommodating 200 couples. It can carry 2,500 passengers and crew of 860. It has 2,000 win dows and the number of its floors is 14. The Olympic was built in Belfast, Ireland, and cost approximately $10, 000,000. Nicknames of Papers. Nicknames for newspapers have gone out of favor. While the Times was forme:ly Granny and afterward the Thunderer, the Morning Post used to be known as Jeames, that generic name for flunkeys being attached to it in allusion to specialization on society news. When the Morning Herald and Standard had the same proprietor and to a large extent the same staff, and used to appeal to each other as independent authorities, they were familiarly known as Mrs. Harris and Mrs. Gamp. The Morning Advertiser, as the organ of trade, has at various times been dubbed the Barrel Organ, the Tap Tub and the Gin and Gospel Gazette. The Pink 'un scarcely counts as a nickname, being officially adopt ed as an alternative title for the Sporting Times.-London Chronicle. Golf and Kisses. "Seashore golf seldom amounts to much," said ii. Chandler Egan, the golf champion, on the Wheaton links. 'SSeashore golf always suggests to me the dialogue between Jack and Jill. "'Oh, Jack, dear, don't!' whl.pered Jill. 'The caddie will see us.' "'No he won't,' said Jack. 'He's too busy looking for the ball, and it's in my pooket.'" PLAIN REASONS WHY THE WINDI BLOW. Astronomers and other scientists have not yet succeeded in ascertain ing just how far the atmosphere o1 dur earth extends above the land and the sea on which it rests, but some oi them hope to some day soon. The Astronomer Royal of England, whc has completed his report for the fiscal year ending May 10. tells some very interesting things about the varying densities, altitudes and temperatures of the air cushions, air pockets and air currents surrounding the earth. In reference to air currents and the reasons why the wind blows, the report explains that air consists of gaseous particles, all trying to get away from one another, and that, un. der certain conditions, they can be compelled to come closer together by contraction, or forced to fly further apart by expansion. A quart bottle, for example, holds 22 grains of air at the temperature of 70 degrees. If the bottle be cooled by surrounding it with ice, the air inside contracts. When this occurs, more air rushes in through the bottle's neck. The quart of air now weighs more than 22 grains. If the bottle be heated, the air it con tains expands, its tiny particles fly further asunder, and many of them escape from the bottle altogether. There is still a quart of air, but it weighs much less than the original 22 grains. Now, consider the earth and the sea under the influence of varying degrees of the sun's heat. Where the heat is greatest, the air is made lighter and expands. Where the heat is least, the air is unexpanded and heavy. Both the hot and the cold 'air have weight, but the cold, being the heavier, is drawn more effectively down to the ground. In doing so it drives the light er air up out of its way, just as a lump of lead dropped into a pail of water forces some of the water upward. If the earth were equally warm at every part, and continued at a constant tem perature, wind could not exist. It "blows" because of heat and gravita tion. In other words, air moves from the place where its weight or pressure is most, toward the place where its weight or pressure is least. HORSES DECREASING IN PARIS. The number of horses in Paris steadily decreases under motor compe tition, and the horses that remain have to thank the automobile as well as the efforts of various societies for the better treatment they receive, for to survive in these days they must be fit. The army authorities take a cen sus of the number of horses, and the figures for 1911 show 72,488 in Paris, compared with 96,698 in 1901. This means that the number of horses has decreased 24,210 in ten years, or al most exactly a quarter. The military authorities are somewhat perturbed over this fact. It is true that for transport of war material and provis ions automobile traction saves the use of many horses, but there remain the needs of the cavalry and 'artillery. The old standby for trained horses, the omnibus companies, will soon be of no assistance, for autobuses are rapidly supplanting horse-drawn stages. BIRTHPLACES OF FRUITS The raspberry is native to temrn. perate Europe and America and cer tain parts of Asia. The apricot orig inated at China. The peach, too, was originally a Chinese fruit. The cher ry birthplace was near the Caspian Sea, and the plum comes from the Caucasus and Turkey. The pear is native in temperate Europe and West ern Asia. The quince came from Southeastern Europe, the Caucasus and the Caspian region. The apple is native all over Europe, in the Cau casus, round the Black Sea and in Persia. The fig seems to have origin ated in the lands bordering on the Mediterranean, particularly in Syria. The red current grows wild all over Europe, in the Caucasus, the Hima layas, Manchuria, Japan and Arctic America. The sweet orange origin ated in Southern China and Cochin China and the citron in India. THE USE OF THE COMMA. The point on which most writers are at odds with the compositor is the comma, says the London Chron icle. It is not that he misplaces it so outrageously, as in that sentence which was the cause of many tears in a Berlin newspaper office some years ago: "Prince Bismarck walked in on his head, the well-known cap on his feet, large, brightly polished top boots on his forehead, a dark cloud in his band, the inevitable walking stick in his eye, a menacing glance." No, but he is too fond of this par ticular pundtu$tion point. Hie takes a delight in breaking up the flow of sentences with his artificial pauses. We all say: "Why then did you do it ?" in one breath. It is the composite. who says, "Why, then, did you do it?" It is possible to be too hard on the comma. It has its undeniable uses. CHRONOLOGY OF INVENTIONS. Barometers were first mate by Tor, ricelli in 1842. Bombshells were first made in Holland in 1495. The lirst almanac was printed in Hungary in 1470. Iron pavements were first laid in London in 1817. Buckles were first made in 1680. Brandy was first made in France in 1310. Roller skates were invented by Plympton in 1863. Cov ered carriages were first used in Eng land in 1580. Alcohol was discovered in the thirteenth century. Stem wind ing watches were the invention of Noel in 1851. The first iron wire was drawn at Nuremburg in 1,351. CARING FQR SHEEP IN FALL Lambs Should Pe Weaned Just al Hot Weather Sets In-One Great Aid Is Plot of Grass. (Dy ELMER E. HIENDERSON.) At this season of the year it is very necessary that the sheep, both ewel and lambs should be given every pos sible opportunity to keep in the best of thrift. In traveling along the road one is impressed with the number of lambs that are allowed to suckle their mothers uritil almost the opening of the breeding season. Such a practice keeps the ewes unnecessarily thin and without any compen:,ating benefit to the lamb. It is coming more and more the practice for our best farmers to wean the lambs just as hot weather com mences, say about the first of June. There are many points of advantage in this. One is that the lambs are fully weaned and dependent upon themselves before hot weather gives the backset, as it almost invariably does. Another is that it gives the ewes a chance to recuperate and be in good strong condition for fall breeding, after being suckled thin by their young. Another advantage of the early weaning is that the ewes will breed considerably earlier and early lambs mean early sales and quick profit. To keep the lambs going well after they are weaned is sometimes a little difficult, but that does not excuse one from doing his best to keep them coming. One of the greatest aids to this we have is a nice plot of fresh grass, oats, rape or clover-all good, but to secure something succulent and fresh is the important thing. We like to have it in small lots. The lambs then graze off the plot in a few days and are turned to an other, thus havingO fresh pastures every few days. This grass is supplemented by a little grain, almost a pound a day be ing allowed each lamb. There is no better single food for lambs than oats. A little corn is not amiss, but care must be taken not to feed too much. Oil cake or oil meal makes a very good supplementary food. We should not think of trying to raise our lambs without some of this wonderful supplementary food. What we use and prepare is a mix ture of the three. About equal parts oats and corn and one part oil cake to four or five of those, .being our standard mixture. FARMERS MAKE OWN MEATS Concrete Smokehouse Eliminates Al Danger of Destruction by Fire Good for Storage. In these days of high prices o1 meats we farmers ougnt to remember that we can make our own meats both fresh and smoke, the same as our forefathers did in years gone by. Thf old smokehouses have gone on mans farms, and it is time the good, old arrangement was revived. A smokehouse made of wood, how ever, is a little dangerous, and ai lumber is getting high in price, and rather scarce, we must turn our atten tion to something else. The one thing which I conside, ideal and indestructible is concrete, says a writer in Farm Progress. A small house can be ,ullt of concrete, and there is no danger of it being burned. A good smokehoues can be made of concrete on a foundation of stone laid below the frost line, and besides being safe from fires, with the right kind of doors and locks there is no danger of any of our meat being stolen. Then, too, the smokehouse is not only suitable for the storage of meats, but other things as well. If it is made of concrete there is no worry about anything in it. If a suitable location can be had ii will be a good plan to dig a cellar un derneath the smokehouse, and by ex. tending the concrete, down to the bot. tom of all, and laying the proper drains, an ideal cellar can be made and not interfere with the storage above. I have one on my farm that has been in use for the last five years, with a cellar underneath, and it has given the very best of satisfaction. It is located on a south slope, and is naturally well drained; therefore, it has proven to be an Ideal building for the purpose. Best Egg Layers. "Chickens with short toenails are the best egg layers," Prof. J. E. Rice, Poultry expert of Cornell university, told students of the Agricultural col. lege of the University of Missouri. "Chickens have short toenails," he said, "by continually scratching for food. A chicken that is constantly scratching for food is sure to be in dustrious." The hen of the olden time, Professor Rice said, laid on an aver age only 16 eggs a year. The mod ern hen of pure breed will lay from 100 to 200 eggs annually. Noxious Weeds. Keep down noxious weeds and do not let them mature seed on the lawn. It is much easier to destroy the plant be. fore the seeds are ready for distribu tion than get rid of the young plants after the seeds have been scattered. Do not let the weeds get a start. Tuberculosis Among Fowls. Tuberculosis has its victims among animals and human beings where there is a scarcity or fresh air and sunlight. Roup ..nd kindred diseases attack fowls deprived of these essen. tals. POKEWEED USED AS A REMEDY FOR ITCH AND SKIN DISEASES Poisonous Plant Is Native of. United States and Found iu Rich, Moist Soils, From Maine and Northern Illinois to Florida and Westward to Texas, Eastern Kansas and Southern Minnesota. The Poke Weed. There is a large number of poison ous plants in the United States which on account of their limited area o: growth, and sometimes of the uncer tainty of our knowledge concerning their evil effects, are comparatively little known. All poisonous plants are not equally injurious to all persons nor to all forms of life. The United States Department of Agriculture has gathered information concerning those that are well known and widely spread in growth. The well known poke root has various local names, to-wit; Poke; poke root; garget; pigeon berry; co. cur; jalap; shoke; American night shade; crowberry; cancer root; chonp gras (La.); redweed; red-ink plant; pocan bush. Description and Where Found.-A smooth, rank, succulent, perennial, six to nine feet high, with a thick half-woody root, purplish stems, large alternate leaves, and numerous elon gated clusters of small greenish-white flowers, which blossom through the summer, and are followed in autumn by shining purple-black berries. The plant is native to the United States, and grows in rich, moist soils, espe cially as a weed in cultivated and waste grounds, from Maine and North ern Illinois to Florida, and westward to Texas, Eastern Kansas, and South ern Minnesota. Uses.-The poke weed has many household uses, but some chemical or mechanical manipulation seems neces sary to prevent ill effects when it is eaten. The root and the alcoholic ex tract of the fruit are quite commonly used as a household remedy for the itch and other skin diseases, and for rheumatism. The fresh shoots are rather widely esteemed as a substitute for asparagus, but in the preparation considerable care is exercised to re ject the root, for small quantities im part a bitter taste to the mess, and larger amounts will prove dangerous. The water in which the shoots are first boiled is also rejected on ac MEADOW FESCUE FOR STOCK Meadow fescue is of little value for temporary seeding since it takes about three years for the plants to get well established. On rich soils that do not count of the poisonous substance con tained in it. The flesh of the berries is eaten with impunity by some birds, but its use by human beings cannot be recommended. Poisonous Character.-Most in stances of poisoning arise from over doses when the plant has been used as a medicine, but there are also acci dental cases due to the eating of the root, which has been variously mis taken for that of the parsnip, arti choke, and horeradisB. A few fatal cases of poisoning of children have been attributed to the fruit, but whether death was really due to the seed or the pulp is uncertain. The evidence is chiefly against the seed, for it is known to contain a poisonous substance. Poke weed is a violent but slow act ing emetic, vomiting beginning only after about two hours. It also affects the nerves and muscles, producing retching, spasms, severe purging, and sometimes convulsions. Death is 'ap parently due to the paralysis of the respiratory organs. CALVES DRINK MUCH WATER Half Barrel Cleaned and Re. plenished Twice Daily Will Serve Nicely as a Drinking Trough. Calves, like other farm animals, get thirsty even though milk forms a large part of their ration. Calves three months of age will drink as much as five quarts of water daily per head. They like to drink often, sipping a little at a time. A half barrel cleaned and replen ished twice daily, will serve nicely as a water trough. Another good device is an automatic waterer which may be easily cleaned, situated a lit tle above the floor to keep out the litter. dry out it gives good results, the plants being relished tlr all farm stock. It should have a place in all permanent pasture mixtures.