NOTES AND QUERIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 1639, 21 April 1883, Page 17

NOTES AND QUERIES.

J. R. 8., Peninsula, writei :— 1 forward you hoiewith a specimen of metal I havo found in this distvict Can you tell mo what it is?— Common iron pjnteu. Iron pyrites is much used tor the manufac ure of Rulphuric acid, and sulphur is obtained from it by Bubiiniation. Ir. is also used for the manufacture of

alum, but is never used as an oro of iron. Pairpii^t, NgajMira, writes: — In your Notes and Queries ol 31*t March 1 obdurvo a paragraph by "Thresher," Ngapaia, in which ho givos a very unfavourable opinion of the , ineiifc- of tho Marshall mill. Ho says that 30 bags an hour is as much as the Marshall will do, and the farnior must not be too particular in looking at tho chaff, or ho ding his hat under tho elevators. That means, I suppose, that the mill is wasting grain. For "Thresher's" information I may stato that I have had over 10 years' practical experience with the Marshall mills, a d find they aro capable of putting throu.-h from 40 to 45 bugs of whea- per hour without any waste of grain, and also dressing it thoroughly. In my opinion •• Thresher ' muse be unacquainted with the captbilities of the Mai shall

mill with latest improvements, ol 5 o he would have made a more favourable comparihon. AMATEUR writes :— I have heard it Btated that a green c op of rapo ploughed in ia not only good lor x manure, but will kill all insect lifo for thv.eo years. Is this so? and if so, when should it be sown? Would you bow now, aiidturn under in spring, or plant cabbages now, and sow rapo in Bpnnjr, the ground being fairly manur d with rather raw manure ?— A crop of mustard ploughed in would be much mort> destructive to insect life ihan rape ; the lafcter would no doubt enrich the land, hue would be turned to muoli better account if fed off. If you have the plants ready, or can procure them cheaply, cabbages planted now wuuld giye you a valuable Crop in the early summer, cither fur sale or stock feed. Tho necessary tillage of these and the er.i>p to f >llow would aim >sfc to a ceitaiuty rid you land Of tho yesl.s. Neither rape nor musfcaid sjwn now would be fit for ploughing in until spring. One of the Temple of Scit^cu writ, s :— Mr Wi^hart va 1 * cho.-en at, the m at cuinpetent person to deuide the tontußt between tho Oauiaru and Inverctrgill brasa hamils. Judging by his method of descanting on the playing, and tho lucid manner in which ho doßcnbe tho vavuniij pa^s.gos, he uiu-t bo well up in v usical cnticibtrj. I tiavo asked bovoral skilful musicians why it is thai thero are major and minor uotoi in tho soven that constitute the gamut, aud as thoa > notos are rai-ed or lowered, eoina havo to be altered to fUts and fcharpß. H.id they all been full tones as tht-y rise in crude like tho 10 figures of arithmetic, each one of full \alue, thtn nsi. g or lowering a tuno, thoy would not requ. re flats and Bbarps, and It would be much easier for an amateur to play. •> But the law of acoustics t»u*t he complied with to produco harmony. In DaUd's time the Jew 3 were fond of

WriNMI RBADHR writes : — I am the owner of a q .arter-acre sect-on. The section next me was an educational rrsfrve when I fenced In myfl'Ction. O»n I Claim half the boundary fence now, seeinjr that the above-mentioned r serve has been sold by QoTernmont?-You are entitled to payment from the purchaser. B. S. 8. asks— lf a settlor havlnir a deferred-payment ■ectlon under the Act of 1877 disposes of it, can he apply for another under the pieaent Act?— We do not know what Act you refer to. W. 8., Gore, writes :-Plcai<e state whether or no rabbiting dogs are exempt from Town Board taxes. They are exempt. Miltoh asks :— ls a chemist forced to supply a person having a doctor's lino with medicine, without money ? (2) Aie private persons allowed to supply • man against whom a •' prohibition order has been issued, with strong drink r (8) Is any chemist forced to supply a person having no line from a doctor, with medicine at any hour whatever ?- (1) No. (8) Wa are not aware of anything to prevent it. (3) No. Isqutrbb. Athol, asks :- Can a person who occupies a deferred-payment agricultural escfcion take up a deferred pastoral section, and legally hold it before he put chases the former, or afterward* ?— Yes. Lotibim. Balclutha.— We have submitted your query to Mr Billa, George street, who re plie-* as follows :— In my opiuion the bird died from asthma which i-i cauied often by cold draugnts and damp. It begin-*, as "Lovebird" says, by a breaking sound In the throat, and it is very difficult to effect a cure The only treatment 1 can »ecommend is to give plenty of green food, putting in in drinking water fiom 15 to SO drops of tincture of coniutn for three days Alternately with the same quantity of compound tincture of gentian. Always use the best plain canary seed, not u.ix-d with rape or hemp, and keep the' bird warm. These birds, cmiug from Auntrftlia, naturally feel our winter months keenly and die off as a consequence. At a rule, however, they are the hardiest known of the paroquets, and are kept In » dry, open aviary during the coldest of the English w intern, although they live longer and thrive better If kept inside during the winter mouths.