NOTES AND QUERIES.

Otago Witness, Issue 956, 16 May 1889, Page 20

NOTES AND QUERIES.

Inquirer, Glenkenich.— (l) Possibly yon are thinking of copperas, by means of which a -writer in the Scientific American said he oleared- bis premißW of ruts. Hlb method was to make whitewMß yellow with copperas, and cover the stones anil woodwork with the mixture, also putting a crystal of the copperas into every crevice and scattering : the powder in every corner. If that, doe* not &0t try poisoning. Mix loa arsenic with loz lard an 9 oatmeal enough to make a stiff doughy and then put plates of water in the vicinity of the poison. (2) In using skim milk for paintinK wooden building mix with hydraulic cement. The cement Is phew in a bucket, and sweet skim milk stirred in till tw mixture i& of the consistency of cream. The pro* portions are about a quart of cement to a gallon « milk It is said that ordinary lime wash with lib of sugar to 16gal of water will make the wash W here splendidly and stick line enamel. - Alpha.— (l) You will require to send further par ticulars before a reply can be furnished you, espfr ciallyas to what position tbechaffoutter willoccupy to the water-wheel, &c. (2) Mr Beverly repliei iTne best way. is to lay off &• dead lew line from the surface of the water where it entert the race, and, allow for fall afterwards. This " of eight' is at the water surface at the head of tba race, and an uninterrupted view of the hillsW can be had as far along the race as possible. Tn«" insert pegs iv the line of sight at convenient m tancea along the visible range;. The level maj then be shifted, and the operation re> eated. starting from the last peg. In the absence of a dump? level or theodolite, a carpenter's level with signw mounted on a Btaff with adjusting -screw ' wW answer fairly well. An inch of fall every 40ft of 50ft will be req»ired for a moderate-sized i*o* The relation between velocity, fall, and dimensions is given by the simple formula v* * 3000 FB. inwhioh'Vis the mean' velocity in ««» per minute, F the' fall in feet per mile, and B tw hydraulic radite, which is found by dividing taw sectional area of the stream in square feet pf "» wet perimeter, or width of bottom and «k>P"2 aides together, in feet. Thuß, if Lhe sectional are» be 2 square feet and the wet perimeter 4ft, a w« be £. Suppose the fall is Bft per mile, then '"-I 4, and V s is 12,000, ; and V is' lo9Jft per minute. *" ' ' ' * AMATKtiB Botanist.-" The Indigenous GraHeioi , New Zealand," by John .Buchanan, F,.0.».i w ' posted, 7s"; at Alex. SllgoV/Cteoige street. , J. M. -The letter wasbeiiiK.printedwhenyour"!^: ation came to hand, that portion, of the psp" having to go to press early, in the week. T. P., Lee Stream.— There are no Bft drums wor king in New Zealand, but, several 6ft 6in of 2 h^T^t Shuttleworth's make are at work in different w of the colony, G. G.— See last issue. • • a Ig.-(i) A twopenny stamp will do equally as me» as a penny one. (3) Up to £20. , A.M'G.B./asks:-Oan you tell if there are wr miners' aasociationa established at the West com* and if so, at what places. — 'Wo fcnoy not. dw perhaps sonic Coast subscriber will kindly MPV . more definitely.^ W. A. T.— See reply given above. . J. 8,, BiveMdale.-Walter Bull, George ■twJJ* Melville, Princes street ; Mrs Boss, *««» •*£& William Stewarfei Princes street; B. »«w " George street ;- Charles' Georgeson. George str« George Fuller, Georgestreet ; Charles Puecheq^ George street. * There are of others, inw ing several Chinese, but probably this *M w"" sufficient for your purpose. Constant Bbapbb. Temuba.-It is a oompiwa^ process for whicH special maohinerv is reqni^ §bis is supplied, by Mr;J-/H ' Aa^ry/C«tfo«trg who will fumisti'you with all necessary Pl"*^3l^P I "*^ 3l^ on application, 4 new process it, however, »

Voting-some attention at Home. It is. the nj&ntiijngture of what is termed jpowdetttd milk. Fresh G5W&* Milk hiving befen treated for the removal of & hortlon of its dream, is placed in a vacuum pan, Surrounded by a water-jacket or outer vessel charged with hot water. The milk ia gradually reduced to a viscid substance of tbß cdnilsfcericyot ordinary condensed tollk. d-ranulated white sugar is now added to render the mass Bufqoi6ntly friable, and thtt t&raperature Is lowered some 20deg or 30deg to prevent any discolouration or loss of flavour in, *j', ie powdered milk. Nothing [urtner" refrains but.the removal pi the, cont&nfcs emjtti ,£he Vacuum pap, which 'call either, be, diswlbutM ip tjje., form l qf lumps or rb a gr,anula£ed t V&wdek after grinding .In. a revolving- burrstone aiiij. . F.he apparatus employed consists es«ent|ally i of .a copper, vacuum pan connected with atfcair pump capable of producing the requisite vabuum ; a water jack«^ surrounds the vacuum chamber, 'A "*fiifi c i furnished with a stop-cock to regulate' the auapl?. delivers the fresh milk direct into the I 'vacuum pan, whilst an airtight door Is provided for the removal of the solidified material. A circular shaft running through the pan is 'furnished with stirring arms and scrapers for actuating; and mixing the visold milk, and is driven by suitable belting or gearing. The watertight jacket Isifurulßhed'wJth thrpe.plpei,. giving admisiiontooold Jtyatprj ftdt'wAter,,and at6»m respectively, ao that jfcbe requisite heat call be maintained and regulated with tfie greatest nicety: ':An overflow pipe is also provided. ' It is claimed that powdered milk poseeseet excellent keeping 1 qualities, and that stimnles exposed to moist air at a temtJefntiirS ttt 120deg Jfrhr.have aftef 1 'manfr fbohths been' found |unftfifected eJShjjr.iii regards flayour.or appearance. . NOVICB.— O> Draining h. hilhide through stiff c)ay : Yoa will find the width of drain at top— viz, lrf f insufficient for' the proposed depth of 3ft -with a Harrow cut 9ln to 12in deeper for the tiles. The first spit should be 2ft wide at least, so as to give the men room to work. 1!wo furrows by the plough thrown right and left will facilitate and chf ivpen the work ; the lower work by spade being gradually narrowed, it must be understood that ttt the depth you propose the drains may be wider ifofkrb th^n 1 - in fthauow drainage, but to ehsureeffittfency, the land should be subsoiled, and which raav be effected by a single furiow plough followed by another with a strong disturbing tine, or by a double furrow plough with a tine in place of the first mould plate. (2) Brush will answer the purpo.e If put in carafully and firmly, although stones would be better. They, however, again would require sod or brush covering. Very little stone, Bay Bin or 4in In depth, over the tiles would be needed* Bear in mind that for thorough and permanent efficiency subsolling is an indispensable accessory, Especially in a stiff clay subsoil. (Jentlb AimiK.— (l) Our correspondent writes :— For sore teats or sore hands we have proved that there Is nothing better than glycerine and water, about half and ha*f , or two-thirds glycerine to onethird water. This mixture is not so sticky as pure glycerine, and is a sure cure, and much better than any kind' of grease, as It drys in and does not require to be washed off . 'For Inflamed udders an excellent and simple remedy is repeated bathing with warm water in which marsh mallows has been simmering. Dairy fnrmeßS In the Mother Country have always mallows in their gardens grown for the ptlrposb; add a favourite ointment used for Borne udders and teats is " marsh mallows ointment," which is composed of hogslardand mallows simmered to a pulp. (2) In milking, the milk flows more freely when the teats are slightly moistened but not sloppy. Milkers who are cleanly disposed moisten the teats before placing the pail under the udder. By far thebest plan is, however, to wasb'and rub each cow's udder immediately before ihtlklng, using slightly warm water in winter. Cows accustomed to the treatment are arateful for it, and the time occupied is, saved in tne ready and kindly flow of milk. A bucket of water and two largo cloths, one wet to clean 1 the udder and the other tddry and promote the circulation, are required, and the time occupied is about a minute. The practice ensures cleanliness of the milker's hands. R. C-, St. Bathans.— For removing kerosene stains from wood, scrub the stained portion with a hard brush dipped in benzoline, then wipo with a dry flannel. Make a strong solution of common washing soda in hot water, place a little unßlaked lime, broken Into coarse powder, over the stain, and pour on It sufficient of the solution of soda to wet the lime thoroughly. Leave this on for a short time, then scrub hard with plenty of clean hot water, and wipe dry with a clean flannel. Obliged.— Though in force in other parts of America, we have only-been able to obtain reliable information as to the First Offenders Probation Act in one place— Boston. We do not know whether the act is in force in Canada or not. In 1882 out of 540 persons brought undar the operation of the act in Boston 462, or about 85 per cent., «0 conducted themselves as to merit the approbation of the court before which they were convicted, were honourably discharged, and subsequently conducted themselves well. With reference to the operation of the' act in New Zealand, Oaplain Hume, In his annual report for 1888, gives Borne interesting particulars. Since the act came into force (October 1, 1886) 121 persons bad been placed on probation, Of these 58 had been discharged on satisfactorily completing the conditions of their licenses, 53 were still on probation when the report was written, nine had ,been rearre&ted and brought before magistrates, and one had escaped. SUBSCRIBES, Taieri Beach.— To dye sheepskins dark green, select skins with the finest wool, wash the wool with aoftnoap till all grease and fatty matter are removed ; then give two warm water rinses to extract the soap. The skins aie then ready for dyeing. Dissolve in boiling water ilb of paste blue (extract of indigo) to each skin. To this liquid add Joz petric acid, and Jib ground logwood. Pour the whole into a large tub of warm water, then mix half a wineglassful of common vitriol with cold water, and pour into the tub of dye. pV. in the skins,. stir them about with a stick for 20 minutes, pass through one cold water rinse, and dry in^the shade.