HERE AND THERE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16452, 14 June 1921, Page 6

HERE AND THERE.

AIAD MULLAH DEAD. The Alad Mullah is dead at last. During the past few years his death has been reported at least a dozen times, but Alohommed bin Hassan had a habit of coming to life again, and this habit has been one of his main assets, causing the natives of Somaliland to look upon him as a superhuman leader. Now, however, news has been received in official circles in London that after a miraculous escape when his forces were routed by aeroplanes, he has died in Abyssinia. Operations against this giant leader of the dervishes in East Africa (he was 7ft in height and a Hercules tor strength) were first undertaken in 1901, says the “Daily Mail.” There was a second expedition against him in 1902, and a third in 1903. In June of the following year his forces suffered a severe defeat, and in March, 1905, peace was concluded. Three years later, however, there was further trouble, and several other expeditions were sent aginst him, and it was not until last year that he was finally crushed. During the fighting seven of his sons and seven close relatives were killed, while among those captured were six of his sons, five wives, and two sisters. The Atad Alullab. with liis eldest son, escaped into Abyssinian territory. After the last Somaliland battle it was stated in the House of Commons that thi6 “ little war had cost onlv £50.000 in all. and that as a result of its successful issue £30,000 a year would be saved to the Empire by a reduction in the local military requirements.” WEIGHING THE WEATHER. The amount of sunshine, rain, fog and other phases of the weather experienced during a given time can now be measured as accurately as a chemist weighs drugs. Everyone is familiar with the thermometer, but do you Know wliat a hygrometer is? This instrument records the amount of moisture there is in tho air. Briefly, a hygrometer consists of two carefully graduated thermometers, which register the amount of dampness in t.lie air. The speed of wind is calculated by the aid of an anemometer. The most common example of this instrument is one shaped liko r* small windmill, but with cups instead of sails. The wind revolves the cups, the speed at which they turn beins registered on a dial in the machine. The latest invention for recordinfi the thickness of fog is a clock-like machine, which punches a sample of the air on to a piece of white blotting-paper- The shade of this sample gives the amount in pounds of fog per cubic hundred yards of atmosphere. Rain is measured by means of a conical receiver which runs in a graduated glass. Th«-r© are various kinds of sun-recorders which tell us that. say. “ Hastings yesterday had seven hours four minutes sunshine.” The instruments are burning, photographic or electrical. The electrical ones are used most, and consist chiefly of a V-shaped 'tube containing mercury and a little ether. When the sun shine? the heat drives the mercury alonrr tho tube, causing one end to tip. and the action is then electrically recorded.

ECCENTRICITY IX EXCELSUS. A wealthy but eccentric inventor of Yonkers (tI.S.A.) left' 1 an estate of £50,000 to two women not related to him, and the nine relatives for whom he made no provision in his will are making an attempt in the Supreme Court in White Plains to prove that ho was of unsound mind when he made the will, says the “ Central News.” The evidence for the disappointed relatives alleged that— He kept three peanuts on his table for twenty-five years. He went about picking tip cigarette boxes, on which he set great valne. He picked up all bolts and nuts he could findHe carried opera glasses to see if a woman witness was with another man. Ho wore the nail of his little finger an inch long. He carried a faded umbrella every day, wet or fine. He told a woman who broke one of hiß peanuts that lie would like to ea» her up. ... , He carried marbles in his pocket, and asked a woman friend to play marbles. He filled his wardrejhie with new clothes, but wore old ones, because he thought new ones brought bad luck. DREAM CAUSES DUMBNESS. Mr H. M. Jessen, a fanner, of Onawa, in the State of lowa, has become a white-liaired mute following a dream in which he saw’ his wife and children crushed beneath an overturned motor-car. Mr Jessen had planned a motor trip with his family to Sioux City, but. being detained by work, pcr» mitted the car. driven by one of his children, ho leave without him, Mr Jessen travelling later by train. He arrived at his destination, however, before his family, and while waiting in the foyer of the \\ est Hotel dreumed of the fatal accident. When ho awoke ho frantically waved his arms hut could not speak- His family, when they arrived, found him still dumb. They told him that their car had “ stalled ” on a railway crossing, and that a train was brought to a stop j, few inches from it, so that the accident of which he had dreamed very nearly took place. The farmer appears to be" permanently dumb, anc| his hair has since turned white. SILVER FROM LEAD. A process brought out some time ago for extracting silver from lead by electrolysis was worked as follows: Tho lead was cast into thin plates having copper bars fused into them, to serve as electrodes for conveying the electrvcurrent to the plates, when put. into the electrolysing “ bath.*’ This was contained in vats lined with aspha.t, and consisted of a solution of sodium acetate mixed with dissolved lead phate. In this solution the lead plates, each enclosed in a muslin bag, were suspended, and the current from tho positive pole of an Edison dynamo was allowed to flow from the plates into the solution, and thence by the “cathodes.” or another series of plates, back to the negative pole of the dynamo. Scrapers were caused to pass between these two sets of plate* (the anodes and cathodes) in order to scrape off the lead deposited on them by the action of the current, and a constant circulation of the solution was kept up. When the lead was all deposited the muslin hags contained the residual silver, antimony, arsenic and other impurities. The silver was then separated from these by ordinary chemical methods. The. lead, which with a current of 1000 amperes was deposited at the rate of 101 b per hour per vat. was very pure, but required to l>e melted and re-cast, in order tc bo used for practical purpose*.

BACK POWDERING IN THEATRE. An amusing scene that called forth many smiles was enacted recently in the stalls of a West End theatre. During one of the intervals a young lady, who followed the fashion of wearing the scantiest amount of hack to the bodice of her evening dress, untied, the heart of a big chiffon rose tha* decorated th© centre of her longhandled screen fan, displaying an enormous powder puff sewn on to the fan. With this she calmly proceeded to powder her shoulders and back by the simple device of stretching the l° n g gilt handle over her one shoulder and then the other, after which she retied the petals of the rose into thenoriginal place, and continued to iso }io»* oovel uowder puff as a fan.