not throw snowballs farther than the strongest, or longest-armed one, among them.

A trumpet sounding in the midst of a crowd of shouting men might not be heard near by, but might be heard beyond the sound limit for the men.

At the height of six and a half miles, Glaisher found the temperature to be twelve degrees below zero Fahrenheit.

The highest inhabited spot on the globe is the Buddhist cloister of Halne of Thibet, where at an elevation 16,500 feet, the good monks, having more than half the atmosphere below them, breathe air attenuated more than one-half of what the normal breath requires.

Cats die at an elevation of 13,000 feet, even if they do have “nine lives" at the surface, but dogs can follow their masters to the greatest accessible elevations. Birds and insects are better adapted to breathe "The difficult air of the iced-mountain top."

Dr. Arnott says the pressure of the air on the knee-joint is from 60 to 100 pounds, and is sufficient to hold it in place without ligaments. No wonder the joints are so sensitive to barometric changes. A man weighs less when the barometer is high, although the atmospheric pressure on him is more than when the barometer is low. As the pressure of air on an ordinary-sized man is about 15 tons, the rise of the mercury of the barometer from 29 to 31 inches adds about one ton to the load he has to carry. Fortunately the elasticity of the air in cells and cavities within him, corresponds to the pressure, so that a man in health is unconscious of his increased burden.

Were it not for the atmosphere there would be on the earth no whisky, or milk, or even water to dilute either, for the chemical compound known as water when liquid, ice when solid, and steam when gaseous, would not appear in its liquid state unless some chemist should bring it about by experiment as he liquefies carbonic acid.

In the receiver, as the glass bell is called which does not receive, with a vacuum of of the ordinary atmosphere, the boiling point would be as low as the freezing point. In melting, ice would flash into steam without the intermediate condition called water, as metallic arsenic jumps at once to an invisible gas without assuming a liquid state, when not under pressure.

If the moon has no atmosphere, it, ex officio, has no water, even if poets do call it the "watery moon." The "Man in the Moon" can neither smoke as earth-men smoke, nor drink tea, coffee, whisky, water, nor kerosene, unless above the 212 degree test.

The French gunners in Mexico, in 1864, found that formulæ for elevations of cannon for different ranges did not apply on the tableland of 6,000 feet elevation. They had been made for the denser atmosphere of the ocean level.

If a dry well could be dug 46 miles deep, the density of the air at

the bottom would be as great as quicksilver, according to the law of Marriotte. By the same law, a cubic inch of air taken from the surface of the earth to a height of the earth's radius, about 4,000 miles, would expand sufficiently to fill a sphere of the diameter of Saturn's orbit which is nearly 2,000,000,000 miles. Such air would be "too thin" for our use.

It is said that Leadville whiskey "gets in the head" quicker after it gets into the mouth at Leadville than elsewhere. Very likely, for the people up nearly two miles above the sea-level are pretty high when they drink the whisky which evaporates rapidly or "flies to the head" and "steals away their brains " quicker than it would near the salt water. At Leadville water boils at about 160 degrees, which makes it difficult to cook potatoes or beans by boiling. Saussure found he could not boil potatoes "done" on the top of Mount Blanc, nearly a mile higher than Leadville where water boiled at 180 degrees Fahrenheit. Taking advantage of the fact that the temperature of boiling water cannot (unless under pressure) be increased by increasing the fire under it, and that it varies with the pressure on it, and also of the fact that atmospheric pressure diminishes as the height above earth's surface increases, explorers have measured the height of mountains by boiling and a thermometer. Instruments have been made to show the difference between a floor and a writing-table in altitude. In this way Lieut. Herndon, U. S. Navy, brother-in-law of Admiral Maury and father-in-law of President Arthur, measured his altitude across the Andes.-Illustrated Christian Weekly.

BLIZZARD. The word blizzard is claimed to have been first used by those who first experienced it while settling the western plains. It is said to have found its way into print in the Northern Vindicator, of Estherville, Iowa, and the editor attributed it to a local George Francis Train, currently known as "Lightning Ellis," because of his amazing slowness. This anecdotal theory having been printed in The Times, the word came eastward into wider publicity. A correspondent of the latter paper says his best recollection is that the word originated in Wisconsin, in 1848.

SPELLING REFORM in Congress. The Lth Congress has considered Mr. Voorhees's bill on "an amended orthography," which provides for a simplification of spelling. The bill provides that it shall take effect upon all the schools of the Territories and those of the District of Columbia, and upon the military and naval academies and the Indian and colored schools in the Territories. The following twelve groups comprise the changes :

First-The silent è shall be dropped when phonetically useless, as in are, granite, eaten, rained, harken, and so forth. Write er for re,

as in theater, meter, saber, and so forth.

Second-Drop a from ea, having the sound of e, as in feather, leather, and so forth.

Third-Drop o from eo, having the sound of e, as in jeopardy, leopard, and so forth.

Foruth-For o having the sound of u, write u in above (abuv), dozen, (duzen), some (sum), tongue (tung), and the like.

Fifth-Drop o from ou, having the sound of u, as in journal, nourish, rough (ruf), trouble, tough (tuf), and the like.

Sixth-Drop silent u after g, before a and in native English words; drop final ue, as in guarantee, guard, guess, guest, guilt, and so forth; apologue, catalogue, and so forth; demagogue, pedagogue, and so forth; league, harangue, tongue (tung), and so forth. Seventh-Double constants shall be simplified.

Final b, d, g, n, r, t, f, l, z, as in ebb, add, egg, inn, purr, butt, baliff, dull, buzz, and so forth.

Medial before another consonant, as battle, ripple, written (writn), and so forth.

Initial unaccented prefixes, and other unaccented syllables as in abbreviate, accuse, affair, and so forth; curvetting, traveller, and so forth.

Eighth-Change d and ed, final, to t when so pronounced, as in crossed (crost), looked (lookt), and so forth, unless the e affects the preceding sound, as in chafed, chanced.

Ninth Change gh and ph to f when so pronounced, as in cough, philosophy, and so forth.

Tenth-Change s to z in distinctive words, as in abuse, house, verse; rise, and so forth.

Eleventh-Drop t in catch, witch, and so forth.

Twelfth-Change the spelling in the following words: Ake (ache), anker (anchor), beuty (beauty), coud (could), hole (whole), parlament (parliament), receit (receipt), rime (rhyme), sent (scent), sithe (scythe), wimen (women), yoman (yeoman); drop silent b in bomb, crumb, debt, doubt, dumb, lamb, limb, numb, plumb, subtile, succumb, thumb; change c back to s in cinder, expence, fierce, hence, once, pence, scarce, since, source, thence, tierce, whence; drop the h of ch in chamomile, choler, cholera, melancholy, school, stomach; drop h in feign, foreign, sovereign, aghast, burgh, ghost; drop gh in haughty; though (tho), through (thru); drop s in aisle, demesne, island.

Provided, That the foregoing rules shall not apply to proper names. And provided further, That where ambiguity would result from the use of the said rules the old form may be retained.

The bill was referred to the Committee on Education.

Mesmer's Code for Animal Magnetism.

A correspondent desires Mesmer's doctrines, or claims, for animal magnetism. These are best given by the discoverer himself, in what is called "Mesmer's Twenty-Seven Aphorisms."

I. There exists a reciprocal influence between the heavenly bodies, the earth, and all living beings.

2. A fluid which is everywhere, and which is so expanded that it admits of no vacuum, of a delicacy which can be compared to nothing beside itself, and which, through its nature, is enabled to receive movement, to spread and to participate in it, is the medium of this

movement.

3. This reciprocal activity is subject to the operation of mechanical laws, which until now, were quite unknown.

4. From this activity spring alternating operations, which may be compared to ebb and flow.

5. This ebb and flow is more or less general, more or less complex, according to the nature of the origin which has called them forth. 6. Through this active principle, which is far more universal than any other in nature, originates a relative activity between the heavenly bodies, the earth, and its component parts. 7. It immediately sets in movement since it directly enters into the substance of the nerves the properties of matter and of organized bodies, and the alternate operations of these active existences. 8. In human bodies are discovered properties which correspond with those of the magnet. Also, various opposite poles may be distinguished, which can be imparted, changed, disturbed, distributed, and strengthened.

9. The property of the animal body, which renders it susceptible to the influence of the heavenly bodies, and to the reciprocal operation of those bodies which surround it, verified by the magnet, has induced me to term this property Animal Magnetism.

10.

The power and operation thus designated as Animal Magnetism can be communicated to animate and inanimate bodies; both, however, are more or less susceptible.

II.

This power and operation can be increased and propagated through the instrumentality of these bodies.

12. Through experience it is observed that an efflux of matter occurs, the volatility of which enables it to penetrate all bodies without perceptibly losing any of its activity.

13. Its operation extends into the distance without the assistance of an intermediate body.

14.

It can be increased and thrown back again by means of a mirror, as well as by light.

15. It can be communicated, increased, and spread by means of sound.

16. This magnetic power can be accumulated, increased, and spread. 17. I have observed that animated bodies are not equally fitted to receive this magnetic power. There are also bodies, although comparatively few, which possess such opposite qualities that their presence destroys the operation of this magnetism in other bodies.

18. This opposing power permeates equally all bodies. It can also in the same manner be communicated, accumulated, and propagated; it streams back from the surface of mirrors, and can be spread by means of sound. This is not alone occasioned by a deprivation of power, but is caused by an opposing and positive power.

19. The natural and artificial magnet is equally, with other bodies, susceptible to animal magnetism, without, in either case, its operation upon iron or upon the needle suffering the slightest change.

20. This system will place in a clearer light the nature of fire, and of light, as well as the doctrine of attraction, of ebb and flow, of the magnet, and of electricity.

21. It will demonstrate that the magnet and artificial electricity, with regard to sicknesses, possess simple qualities possessed in common with other active forces afforded by nature; and that if any useful operation springs from their instrumentality, we have to thank animal magnetism for it.

22. From instances deduced from my firmly established and thoroughly proved rules, it will be easily perceived that this principle can immediately cure diseases of the nerves.

23. Through its assistance the physician receives much light regarding the application of medicaments, whereby he can improve their operation, call forth more beneficial crises, and conduct them in such wise as to be master of them.

24. Through this knowledge the physician will be enabled to judge of the origin, the progress, and the nature even of the most intricate diseases. He will be enabled to prevent the increase of disease, and bring about a cure without exposing his patient to dangerous effects or painful consequences, whatever be the age, sex, or temperament of the patient.

26. Women, during pregnancy, and in childbirth, receive advantage therefrom.

27.

The doctrine, will at length, place the physician in such a position that he will be able to judge the degree of health possessed by any man, and be able to protect him from any disease to which he may be exposed. The art of healing will by this means attain to its greatest height of perfection.