ARE PLANTS POISONOUS

Tuapeka Times, Volume XII, Issue 506, 1 March 1879, Page 4

ARE PLANTS POISONOUS

The investigations of chemists denion-j strate that growing plants do inhale an almost imperceptible quantity of carbonic : h6i'd^gasJ-whichy,it\,very small proportions, ( is, n^e.ss.ary, in' the 'air we breathe. .They also 'show that the .quantity, pxhaled at night is -bub jthel one sixteenth part ofwhat the same 1 plants absorb from the atmosphere ■ during I ' the. day t , and convert into nearly ' its 1 own" Weight of oxygen, thus renderiug. a .poisonous gas, that' derives its origin from various sources, into one of the principal' elements! of pure air. If carbonic acid gas is emitted~from , -plants in dangerous.qi&uitities, i'(j certainly would exist largety in the night atmosphere of a close greenhouse heated t.i w tropical temperature, and crowded from, floor to rafter with rank vegetation," Yet, in my experience,' l have never known the slightest .ill effects to' be' realized 1 from liight work in, .giveuhouses, neither in -cases that have frequently occurred of workmen making the warm' greenhouses their sleeping quarters of a_ night, and even for an oil ire winter,' which, to my j satisfaction, affords practical proof that") the notion is a fallacy ; and the fact that' perhaps no healthier class; of' men" can be found than greenhouse operators, who work constantly iv an [atmosphere^ where - plants are growing, would prove instead, that living plants exert a beneficial influence upon the air we breathe. — t( Home •Florist.'" 1 ' '

...... MISCELLANEOUS. A rather extraordinary scene (writes the " Age) was witnessed in' one of the '.Dundee churches on a late' Sunday,forenoon. Just', before the opening of the serviced .respectably-dressed young man ■ took hjs, seat •in Ithe gallery, and almost immediattiy began whistling " The Last Rose of i Summer." The members of the congregation were astonished at the sing War behaviour of the performer, andfew could refrain from , laughing when he struck up/'JcannieY ßlack E'ee,"- walking backwards and forwards along the passage as he whistled: When the minister had given out. the opening psalm the musician suddenly stopped whistling and .began fumbling in his pockets.;. To the amazement 1 of Chose wlio were watching his movements, he pulled a meerschaum from his pocket, and striking a match on the wall, evidently intended sto have a smoke j This was too much. The minister ; observing what had taken place, asked someone to remove the disturber,, and this was accomplished without any further annoyance. - . „ ,j The',D'.uuedin correspondent of' the Ashburton "Mail" writes :— While long telegrams were appearing every day in the newspapers announcing the. varying- con,dition of body in which Mr Conyers lay r at Grore, and while expressions of regret ( at the sad accident which had befallen him were in every one's mouth, a short paragraph conveyed the intimation that, a railway guard had met with serious injuries on the line while in the pursuance of his duties. A day or two afterwards, the pnouncement of 'his ideath and no" further notice was taken of the { matter, >. I ; ,may <be allowed- tOiStatefthe sequel. A post mortem examination was made of the body, and then it was locked up in a hastily "constructed coffin, and followed to the'grave by three persons — the undertaker, the chaplain, and someone else. The deceased's fellow-workmen were'greately' dissatisfied at the hmried and mean way in which their comrade was buried, and their complaint of heartlessness and indifference on the part of the authorities is warmly endorsed by the public. The deceased had no friends in the colonp ; and the money which he has left behind, instead of being devoted to the decent interment . of his body, will find its way to' the Government coffers. The men assert, that if the funeral had been deferred till Sunday, they would 'have attended to the nuniber of 300,' and shown respect for the memory of their fellow- workman, by following his mortal remains to their final re3ting-place. The solicitude which the accident to the more prominent railway official evoked, and the unconcern with which the case of the humbler man was treated, are contrasted, and conclusions unfavorable to the powers that be are deduced.

A great scheme, which has been long under incubation, at last stands a fair chance of becoming an established success. This is the proposal to inaugurate accommodation for a class of ''paying patients," primarily at the great metropolitan hospitals, ; and eventually throughout the country. At a General Court of the Governors of St. Thomas' Hospital, held on the 20th November, the proposed scheme was fully discussed. Ex-Lord Mayor Stone presided, and in an able ad r dress set forth the main heads; lie said. " he. believed the Charity Commissioners would warmly sanction the idea. It was a melancholy • fact that, although' St. Thomas' had been built to accommodate COO in-patients, it could not take in more than 350 from wa.nt of funds, and out of 24' wards only 13 were open. These 13 were, however, completely fitted up, and could be used for paying patients, and. they were comprised in an isolated block of buildings, having on the west the Thames, on the east the park gardens of Lambeth, and had a separate entrance. [ It was proposed that these very suitable wards should be thrown open to patients who should pay two, three, and four guineas a week for the accommodation. It was believed that hundreds of the lower middle classes, especially those in lodgings, would only too gladly 'avail themselves of such arefuye when seriously ill, and at the same time the Hospital would obtain a large iucrease of income." No doubt this is a very good and beneficent conception. There are so many people who cannot afford ,to pay for the constant medic il attendance of first-rate men, or for skilled nurses,' or who are suffering from diseases, difficulty to diagonose at first sight, 'who would only be too delighted to exchange the discomfort and misery of slipshod nursing at their lodgings fdr the' perfect' and systematic regime an,d. oare oft an hospital. 'Thousands of such in London only will hail the new proposal most gratefully, and the medical profession will not grudge the action of the hospitals. The Court of Governors unanimously approved the resolution,' and we may expect, soon, to .seethe scheme in full working order. It is sure to be a great success.— "Daily Times." ' "Sir Wilfred ,Lawson, at an agricultural dinner iri Cumberland recently, told a good ; story illustrating the effect of hard times on farmers : — One Scotch farmer had determined, in spite of bad times, to pay his rent, if -it wejre hi B last shilling, and saying to- the factor who received it, "It, is my last'shil-' ling," he threw down a roll of notes. The factor counted them,' and said, '" There is '££>Q too,, much." "Odds, man;" said ; the farmer, ''Iput my hand ~in the wrong' pouch." ,