The Family Circle

New Zealand Tablet, 1 June 1916, Page 53

The Family Circle

THE TONGUE. V‘ The boneless tongue', so small and weak, Can crush and kill,’ declared the Greek. ‘ The tongue destroys a greater horde,’ The Turk asserts, ‘ than does the sword.’ The Persian proverb wisely saith : A lengthy tongue, an early, death.’ Or, sometimes, takes this form instead: • ‘ Don’t let your tongue cut off your head.’ ‘ The tongue can speak a word whose speed,’ The Chinese say, ‘ outstrips the steed.’ While Arab sages this impart : ' * The tongue’s great storehouse is the heart.’ From Hebrew wit this maxim sprung: ‘ Though feet should slip, ne’er let the tongue.’ The sacred writer crowns' the whole : ‘ Who keeps his tongue doth keep his soul.’ . WHAT BECOMES OF THEM. ‘What becomes of old sardine boxes, tomato tins, meat tins, fruit tins; and tins of all kinds ? In this country they are usually tumbled on to some waste land, where they are left in unsightly heaps. But the people do better in France, where nothing is allowed to go to waste. They gather them up, and use them—to cut, into tin soldiers. The making of tin soldiers is not an insignificant or unimportant busi- ■ ness, by any means. There was published before the war an item saying that the manufacture had reached 1 great artistic excellence,’ and that ‘ a certain eminent German officer has found it possible to represent military operations on a large scale by their means. He has thirty-five thousand tin soldiers,’ foot soldiers, horsemen, and artillerymen, with all necessary equipments, and toy scenery ; and with them he goes through evolutions, and works out interesting problems of military tactics.’ • In France, too, the old boots and shoes are col- , lected, and every part is used over again. The work is mostly done by convicts in prisons. They take the boots and shoes to pieces and soak them; then the uppers are cut over into children’s shoes, or, if they are too far gone for that, a peculiar kind of pressed leather is made by some chemical action. The nails are saved and sold, and the scraps go to the farmers to fertilise the soil.

Who would have thought it possible to make anything out of old saws? Yet it is said that many of the finest surgical instruments, and some of those used by engineers, are manufactured from the steel that first did duty in saws. The steel of saws is of the very best quality and finest temper ; and since it is good in the first place, it is always good. After that it is easy to believe that there is a place in Canada where they make .paper from sawdust. It is a kind of paper pulp, rolled out in great sheets, for the purpose of sheathing; that is, for using on buildings before the clapboards are put on. Wood pulp, made of poplar and spruce, has long been used, mixed with the rags in the paper mills, in the process of manufacture ; but it is a new thing to convert sawdust into paper Where the largest quantity of lead pencils is made, the sawdust of the cedar wood is saved and distilled. j * A valuable oil is extracted, every ounce of which is J - sold at good figures.’ , So an old sardine box, a tomato tin, a cast-off ■ shoe, and a rusty pruning saw may be made over into something entirely new; and a heap of sawdust and the waste from a lead-pencil manufactory may furnish employment and be of actual use in the world. LINOLEUM’S STORY. Do you know that the linoleum you walk over each day represents products from all the continents

We.will begin with cork, which largely comes from North Africa. Here the bark is stripped from the trunk, and the. larger branches of the cork-tree when they attain the age of 25 years. The cork is conveyed from the forest to the nearest boiling-station to be boiled in huge vats until the rough, woody part can be scraped off and the, bark rendered pliable. It is next shipped to Spain, and trimmed there into a dozen grades or more, rebaled, and sent to linoleum factories. Linseed oil, from which linoleum derives its name, is obtained from flaxseed largely grown in Russia and Argentina. The flax is threshed similarly to wheat when the crop is ripe. The seed is sent to an oil-crush-ing centre, cleansed, and the oil extracted by means of crushing the seed between corrugated steel rollers. Then it is filtered, tanked, and sent to the linoleum factories. Burlap, which acts as a cohesive power to the other ingredients of linoleum, is derived from jute, in India. Packed in bales, it is shipped to Dundee to be further treated into burlap, and then to the factories for the purpose of backing the linoleum. ' CROCODILES AND ALIGATORS. Crocodiles and alligators are similar in shape, and almost identical in their mode of life. There are, however, several distinctions between them. The principal difference is in the structure of the jaws. In the crocodiles there is a notch on the sides of the upper jaw, into which the canine teeth of the lower jaw are received, whereas in the alligators there is no notch, the canine teeth being received into a hollow or pit: The alligators inhabit the New World. The crocodiles and alligators are to the reptiles what the lion and tiger are to the cat tribe. They are voracious, feeding on living prey, and catching that prey by stealth. They are all aquatic ■ creatures, and. though they pass some of their time on land, live almost entirely in the water. Their bodies are clothed with a tough skin covered with hard, horny plates strong enough to resist almost any weapon except the best fire-arms. Their jaws are very long, and are armed with sharply-pointed, conical teeth. The teeth are not permanent, but are regularly renewed as they are worn out. For this jmrpose each tooth is hollow at the base, so as to receive the point of, its successor. • Several teeth in different stages of progress can be taken from the same socket, each fitting into the base of the, tooth immediately in front of it. The mode of attack employed by these reptiles is rather a curious one. Lurking under the shadow of the bank, they watch for any animal that may come to the riverside. When it is near enough they sweep it into the water by a blow of the tail, seize it in their jaws, and drown it. The form and color of the body enable the creature to conceal itself in a wonderfully perfect, manner. Just as the tawny skin of , the lion resembles the sand on which it crouches, as the striped fur of the tiger mimics the blades of the jungle-grass through which it creeps, and the spots of the leopard simulate the irregular light and shade of the foliage in which it hides, so do the bodies of the crocodiles and alligators resemble tree-trunks and logs floating in the water. It might be imagined that the reptile would itself be drowned while destroying its prey, as its mouth must be kept.open, so that the water would flow into its lungs. The jaws and mouth, however, are so constructed that the creature can hold its prey under the surface, and yet can breathe freely, though no water can run down its throat. ‘ A NICE DAY FOR DUCKS.’ One rainy day Jack sat by the window where he could look into the poultry-yard and watch the ducks. They were the only creatures that seemed to enjoy the rain. ' • Why is it, grandmother,’ Jack asked, ‘that the chickens have to keep out of the rain, and the ducks stay in the wet and keep dry and- have such a jolly

time No, you never see a wet duck,’ grandmother replied. ‘Not even the wild duck, that spends most of his time swimming in ponds. You can watch him dive for food, and come up dry as a bone.' ‘But why?’ Jack insisted. They have feathers like chickens.’ .

‘ The secret of the difference is that the duck’s feathers are oiled,’ grandmother said. ‘ What oils them Jack questioned. ‘lt is one of nature’s provisions, dear/ grandmother continued. ‘ God made the ducks to live on water, and, of course, prepared them for that life. There is an oil-making gland on the duck’s back, near the tail. The duck with his bill spreads a film of thin oil over his feathers. Now, oil and water will not mix, so the water can not get through this oil to wet the duck’s feather's.’ ‘I knew oil and water will not mix,’ Jack said, but I didn’t know that ducks carried their oil around with them.’ -■> „ ‘ And this oil makes it easier to swim, too/ grandmother added., The chickens do not have their feathers so well oiled, and that is why they seek shelter when it rains, and the ducks seek shelter when it showers. JUST OATMEAL. A lawyer was examining a Scottish farmer. £ You affirm that when this happened you were going home to a meal. Let us be quite certain on this point, because it is a very important one. Be good enough to tell me, sir, with as little prevarication as possible, what meal it was you were going home to.’ ‘ You would like to know what meal it was?’ said the Scotsman. ‘ Yes, sir, I should like to know,’ replied the counsel, sternly and impressively. ‘Be sure you tell the truth,’ ‘ Weel, then, it was just oatmeal!’ HOW, BEES KEEP WARM. The bee upholds his . reputation for industry throughout the winter months as well as during the summer. Being susceptible to cold, the bee must turn to his colony for warmth. Communism, which in bees is so highly developed in the storing of food and caring for the young, is also the basis for the heating system. It was found by experiment that only the shell of the cluster made by the bees in cold weather is compact. This is formed by one to 'several layers of bees all solidly arranged with their heads inward, their hairs interlacing. This arrangement is perfect for conservation of the heat within. ' Except for an occasional shifting of position the bees forming the shell are quiet. But within the shell strange things are going on.. It is here that the heat is generated. And the antics are not unlike our own when we are cold. The bees are packed loosely within the shell so that there is plenty of space for many bees to be exercising at a time. Rapid fanning of the wings, shaking the body from side to side, rapid breathing, and other movements are all part of the scheme for raising the temperature. In one particular instance, when a bee had been rapidly fanning with his wings for seven and a-half minutes, the thermometer nearest him rose half a degree Fahrenheit. * DOUBTFUL COMPLIMENTS. A Buckinghamshire farmer once wrote to a distinguished scientific agriculturist to whom he felt under obligation, for introducing a variety of swine ‘ Respected Sir, —I went yesterday to the fair at A— . I found several pigs of your species. There was a great variety 'of beasts.; and I was greatly astonished at not seeing you there.’ Another farmer, wishing to enter some animals at an agricultural exhibition, wrote as follows to the secretary of the society:

Dear Sir, —Enter me also for a mule.’ The director of the Zoological Gardena- was on his holiday. He received a note from his chief assistant, which closed thus:••■■■ ‘ The chimpanzee seems to be pining for a companion. What shall we do until you return?' A NATURAL LIFEBUOY. The boatman had been angered by the asinine behaviour of a young fellow among the party which he had taken for a sail. 1 When the boat sprang a leak far out from the shore the boatman somewhat allayed the alarm of the rest of the party by serving out lifebelts, but he gave no belt to the would-be wit. ‘ Where’s mine said the terrified youth. ‘Don’t you worry, my- lad,’ said the boatman, with a vindictive smile. ‘ You don’t need no lifebelt. You’ll never be drowned. A feller with an ’ead as ’oiler as your’n can’t sink. given you a nat-ral lifebuoy.’ A NATIONAL QUESTION. All this talk of hyphenated citizenship has evidently had its effect upon a San Francisco youngster. American-born, who recently rebelled fiercely when his Italian father whipped him for some misdemeanour. ‘ But, Tomasso, your father has a right to whip you when you are bad/ some one of the family said. _ Tomasso’s eyes flashed. ‘ I am a citizen of the United States,’ he declared. ‘Do you think I am going to let any foreigner lick me?’ BET YEH ! The lusty-lunged itinerant auctioneer was holding forth in the market place. Taking up a box of cigars, he shouted at the top of his voice: You can’t get better, gentlemen ! I don’t care where you go, you can’t get better!’ ‘ No,’ came a cynical voice from the crowd, you can’t. I smoked one last week and I’m not better yet.’

TIME, AT LAST.

When a certain darky of Mobile, Ala.,' announced his engagement to the dusky one of his choice the congratulations that were showered upon him included a note of wonder.

‘Joe,’ said one of those friends, ‘ I shore is surprised. We all never thought you’d speak up. It’s going on two years since you begun to call to see Miss Violet.’

‘ Dat’s true,’ said Joe; ‘but the fact is, old, man, I didn’t lose my job until last night.’

THE WAY OF THE HORSE-DEALER

A man in Sussex who owns a number of horses has a great reputation for skill in the treatment of them. One day a farmer who wanted some valuable information approached the horse-owner’s little boy, and said:

* Look here, my little man, when one of your father’s horses is ill, what does he do?’ Do you mean slightly ill or seriously ill?’ asked . the boy, cautiously. ‘ Oh, seriously ill/ said the farmer. * Because/ said the child, ‘if a horse is only slightly V* ill, he gives it medicine but if it is seriously ill, he sells it.’