Page 8 Advertisements Column 1

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16519, 20 October 1915, Page 8

Some interesting 1 ; facts;; concerning the value of,the" bog moss (sphagnum cymbifolium) aa a surgical''dressing 'have been brought -to light in connection with, the war. 'The moss is permeated .with minute tubes which in its natural state hold water eight or nine times the.weight.of the plant, so that when it is dry it is one of the most absorbent materials.--known. It is tantiputresceht, very soft, light, and -cool, and aa very' little preparation is necessary before .use. if it is- carefully it has only' to be sterilised and-/placed in flannel bags—it i«-a very economical dressing For some- time-.it'has been; used in British hospitals, and before the war was supplied from Germany! This is yet another of the Old Country's neglected industrial • opportunities, for there is an unlimited amount growing on the English fells and moors. In German towns it is a common sight to sec country women with big. baskets of plants and herbs going into chemists' shops to sell or- exchange their goods. Such a sight is unknown in England, and it is evident from a, pamphlet lately circulated by the Board of Agriculture: that' Germany 'has been'supplying raw material in tho of plants and'herbs for most -of-the'''British' drugs.

-■ —In India tho lowest classes wear, as slioes, a flat block with a large knob, which slips between the- first and second toes. They are,so skilled in wearing'these that they- are able to'-keep :them-'on and-walli or ran with great speed.