some races with compressed skulls as exceptionally stupid. It is more to the purpose that in modern France, medical observers, such as Foville and Lunier, have noticed among the insane an unusual proportion of patients with artificially distorted skulls, and have also remarked a prevalence of mental disease in those districts where the nurses still most persistently keep up the practice of skull-shaping. WHAT SHALL YOUNG MEN DO! Every good man is now interested in the future of young people. Toward young men especially many eyes are turned, and the question is asked-What shall they do? The number of persons out of employment alarms the more sagacious part of society. They see the beginning of an evil which may run to fearful lengths. Shall young men be taught trades, be educated, or left to work on farms and by the day? useful trades. These places are guarded and filled by the trades unions, and outside of their favor no boy can obtain a situation. A few may still learn the various trades, but the mass of young men cannot expect to make a living by them. It is well that every one who can get a place should learn some trade, even if he may afterward find no use for it. it properly belongs. This is the practice of deforming the skulls of infants. Within the last generation or so, medical observers have put on record its extensive prevalence in France, the custom of Normandy being for the nurses to give the baby's skull the approved sugar-loaf shape by means of bandages and a tight cap, while in Brittany the long shape of the new-born child's head is disapproved of, and pressure is applied to make it round. This latter appears to have been the old Swiss custom, to judge from a passage in the seventeenth century Hebammenbuchlien of Muralt: "As soon as the nurse has the child on her lap she looks it all over to see if it is well shaped, then gives its little head the round form, and puts on a scarlet fur and cap to preserve it." It is interesting to find the nurses not only shaping the babies' skulls, but shaping them to different types in different districts. One is reminded of the two contrasted portraits in Wilson's Prehistoric Man, representing heads from two tribes of Northwest AmerTrades are crippled by the wonderful ica, one (the Newattee), shaped into a cone, increase of machinery, and it is found that the other (the Chinook), with the head flat-only a few can find places at which to learn tened and broadened so that the unfortunate child looks in front like an aggravated case of water on the brain. So in New Caledonia some tribes prefer a long-head and others a flat-head type, and compel the infants' plastic little skulls to grow accordingly. This difference of opinion as to the desirable form of skull helps to explain the origin of the custom, as having arisen from the type of the dominant race being artificially produced or exaggerated. On this supposition we should expect to find, as we actually do, flat-headed or round-headed conquerors and nobles set up as models in different districts. Such a state of things is well shown among the Flathead Indians, who enslave the neighboring tribes with undistorted skulls; the children of these captives are not allowed to have their skulls bandaged in the cradle so as to imitate the badge of nobility, and even white men are despised for having round heads like slaves. Just as naturally the nurses in Turkey in the sixteenth century, as the famous surgeon Vesalius mentions, gave the children bullet-heads, and among the Asiatic population of Constantinople it seems to be done still. The motive popularly assigned is that a round head suits best for wearing a tur ban, but the real reason probably lies much deeper, in the imitation of the round skulls of the conquering Tartar race. The details which show how large a part of mankin have habitually practised deformation suggest the question whether any nations have been perceptibly injured by it. There are remarkable cases to the contrary, such as that of the Chinooks, whose inonstrous deformation is said not to increase the mortality of the children, or even to prevent their growing up fully to the savage level of strength, bravery and cleverness. On the other hand, travelers have set down Education is good; but as a way to earn a livelihood, the chances are turning against it very rapidly. The New York Tribune, in a recent editorial, said: Never before have there been so many educated men out of work, out of pocket, out of courage. The lower tiers of every profession and calling are overcrowded with workmen and idlers who have little to do, and have to fight hard to keep the wolf from the door. Valedictorians are becoming bar-tenders, and their class-mates are taking fares in the street-cars.' These remarks were made in reply to the question of a clergyman-"How can our young men find employment?" He spoke of a young collegiate who was willing to do anything, but could find no work that would give him bread. The chances at agriculture seem to be poor for a living, notwithstanding the fact that much of the land of our wide country is either uncultivated or poorly farmed. There must be some abuse or unnecessary trouble in this matter. There ought to be hope for the unemployed in our agricultural department. In a speech at the Frederick County (Maryland) Fair, which was attended by President Hayes and some of the Cabinet, Secretary McCrary said: "If I might utter a word of advice to the young men here assembled, it would be to ask them to turn their course toward the great agricultura sources of prosperity. There are broad acres of cheap and fertile lands to encourage industry; and when our surplus industry shall be turned in that direction, you will see fewer idle men roaming the country in search of work." The evil of this day in our country is the influence of the large cities. To them the unsophisticated young people of the rural districts go in crowds, expecting to make hasty fortunes or to enjoy the most delightful pleasures. They are soon drawn into vice and reckless habits, and become wrecks in every respect. The wholesome life and virtuous industry of the farm are foolishly despised by many who could through them make a living and enjoy the best pleasures of life. In a general way, young men need the habits of economy and industry, and the saving principles of Christianity, With this basis of character they can live and accumulate means all the while. They will be sought in every department of business, and work will never be wanting. The day is coming when young men will not obtain positions on account of a mere education, or profession, or trade; but solely on account of merit in character and efficiency in a line of business. "Civil service," in every department of life, will, after a while, be applied to every candidate for place or work. Weaklings in body or mind, sots, profligates and runabouts will not find much to do in the future. I TOO. "Let us spread the sail for purple islands, Has the whole of life ere it doth die. With thy full contentment thou dost coo; Nay! for something moves within-a spirit HOW FRENCH WORKMEN LIVE. The French laborer probably gets more for his wages than any other. His food is cheaper and more nourishing. His bouillon is the liquid essence of beef at a penny per bowl. His bread at the restaurant is thrown in without any charge, and is the best bread in the world. His hot coffee and milk is peddled about the streets in the morning at a sou per cup. It is coffee, not slops. His half bottle of claret is thrown in at a meal costing twelve cents. For a few cents he may enjoy an evening's amusement at one of the many minor theatres, with his coffee free. Sixpence pays for a nicely cushioned seat at the theatre. No gallery gods, no peanuts, pipe, smoke, drunkenness, yelling or howling. The Jardin des Plantes, the vast galleries and museums of the Louvre, Hotel Cluny, palace of the Luxembourg and Versailles, are free for him to enter. Art and science hold out to him their choicest treasures at small cost, or no cost at all. French economy and frugality do not mean that constant retrenchment and self-denial which would deprive life of everything which makes it worth living for. Economy in France means a utiliza tion of what America throws away, but it does not mean reducing life to a barren existence of work and bread and water. Thirsty waits beside the empty well- One full joy to catch where hundreds swell [Appleton's Journal. A PORCELAIN FIDDLE. Venice is considerably excited at present over a very unusual sort of a fiddle, the only one of its kind, probably, ever made. The manufacturer of this porcelain fiddle was formerly a workman in a Saxon porcelain manufactory. After his return, old and feeble, to his old home, he attempted to carry out a long cherished project for making a fiddle, the box of which should be of china With the aid of a boy, it is stated, he has in fact succeeded in producing a fiddle of this kind, which has a tone of rare purity and astonishing richness, combined with charming harmony and extraordinary power. The box part, or resonator, is exceedingly light, and the strings are made of metallic wires, while the bow, departing from the usual form, is curved, inaking almost a semi-circle. The success of this clever Venetian, who had enjoyed the advantages of the skill acquired in a German porcelain factory, may be the means of directing musicians to the advantages of the clear, ringing, but fragile china and glass, for various similar uses in acoustics. [From the Manufacturer and Builder.] WHY SOME PEOPLE CANNOT CON TROL THEIR TEMPERS. We find the following historical facts in a contemporary, and republish them, with our comments: "The Emperor of Nerva died of a violent excess of anger against a Senator who had offended him. Valentinian, the first Roman Emperor of that name, while reproaching, with great passion, the deputies from Quadi, a people of Germany, burst a blood-vessel, and suddenly fell lifeless to the ground. I have seen,' said Tourtello, a French medical writer, two women perish-the one in convulsions at the end of six hours, and the other suffocated in two days-from giving themselves up to the transports of fury.' The celebrated John Hunter fell a victim to a paroxysm of this passion. Mr. Hunter, as is familiar to medical readers, was a man of extraordinary genius, but the subject of violent anger, which, from the defect of early education, he had not learned to control. Suffering, during his latter years, under a complaint of the heart, his existence was in constant jeopardy from his ungovernable temper; and he has been heard to remark that his life was in the hands of any rascal who chose to annoy him.' Engaged one day in an unpleasant altercation with his colleagues in the Board Room at St. George's Hospital, London, he was by one of them peremptorily contradicted; he immediately ceased speaking, hurried into an adjoining apartment, and instantly fell dead. "When the fit of anger is of long continuance, or frequent occurrence, it often lays the foundation of some most serious and lasting afflictions; thus many cases of palsy, of epilepsy, of convulsions, and of madness may be traced to violent anger and ungovernable temper. Dr. Good cites the case of the unfortunate and insane Charles VI, of France, who, being violently incensed against the Duke of Bretagna, and burning with a spirit of malice and revenge, could neither eat, drink, nor sleep for many days together, and at length became furiously mad as he was riding on horseback, drawing his sword and striking promiscuously every one who approached him. Finally the insanity became chronic, fixed upon his intellect, and accompanied him to his death." Our comments on this are, that an uncontrollable temper is the fault of the parents, or of those who have in early years charge of the training of a child. If a child gets into an angry passion, no leniency should be exercised-much less indulgence in the child's wishes. If a child, when failing to have things its own way, becomes passionately angry, this anger should at once be whipped out, no matter how young the child is. A child old enough to become angry can bear corporal punishment, especially as it is impossible to reason with infants, they not having yet arrived at the age of reason. and only understand what they feel. We personally have whipped fits of passion out of our own children when they were scarcely one year old. Such passions-far from being objectionable in children--are desirable, proving as they do that there is spirit in them; only this lively spirit must be put under restraint; and, when this is properly accomplished, such children make the best men and women. Those very good children, with whom parents and teachers never have any trouble, do not amount to much intellectually, and seldom make their mark in after life. We noticed in school that the most troublesome boys, when well controlled, became the best students in college, and the men of mark afterward. could name several who are eminent men who were very mischievous boys at school, while most of the good boys have disappeared from public view. We Fits of passion are as contagious among boys as fainting fits are among girls; it is in this the same as with other bad examples. Hoping that the reader will pardon a reference to personal experience, we will relate the following: When about eight or nine years old, we remember very well having seen a few times a boy of our acquaintance, by falling into a fit of passion, similar to an attack of epilepsy, arouse the sympathy of his parents, who indulged him in what he wished, and what he got in a passion for. On a suitable occasion we did the same thingthrew ourselves back in our chair, screamed and yelled, etc. Our father, who did not understand such nonsense, at once gave us the soundest thrashing we ever received, and we never got in a fit of passion again, and have since been always able to control ourselves, even when the provocation was strong. We must confess that we remember this act of our father with much gratitude. When now we see any one exhibiting their anger and excitement in a ridiculous manner, we often say silently: "If you had had the benefit of the thrashing which we got when a little boy, you would have learned not to make a fool of yourself now." The importance of some European private kitchens may be judged from the size of a roasting jack lately built at Eaton Hall, a residence of the Duke of Westminster." It is 22 feet long and driven by a 4-foot water wheel, 5 inches wide. The spits which it turns can carry about a ton of meat. The whole arrangement is so completely under the control of the cook that he can vary the speed at will by merely turning a water valve. [From the St. Louis Dispatch.] body of wing than tip of wing (pinion) Ira H. Stout, of this city, is the inventor of the "Aerion," a machine devised for aerial navigation, by which Mr. Stout claims that the air can be navigated with "certainty and dispatch." The problem of traversing the air in all directions, even against opposing currents, had long occupied his mind. Two factors, and two only, were requisite for the achievement of this desideratum, attempted by many accomplished by none, viz: buoyancy, and in connection therewith the employment of a sufficient propulsive power; each of these singly found manifold illustrations in the domain of mechanics; but the mode of their harmonious and effective consideration was the difficulty to be surmounted, The mechanism of the bird's flight, the action of the wing as a whole, the relative agency of the body of the wing and the tips of the wing. He had carefully observed and studied nature, thus furnishing him with the key. These elementary factors seized upon and utilized as the type and model of the Aerion, he then reasoned, viz: The balloon furnished an example of buoyancy, but practically only one point of tension; a series of ballons arranged in a row, contigious to each, or if embodied in an elongated balloon, would furnish any desired number of points of tension or attachment. These points of tension united would furnish a fulcrum from which to work; connected therewith, it was only necessary and requisite to produce a mechanical action, simulating that of the bird's wing, in order to solve the question whether or not the air can be navigated with certainty and dispatch. Four years since he attempted to embody in a mechanical action the mechanical forms, bearings and results of the action of the bird's wing in the production of the phenomena of flight. In the investigation of the construction of the wings of the various birds, their mechanical peculiarities, forms, bearings and actions, he found great and distinctive differences to exist-differences established by nature, the great exemplar. The wings of the bird of rapid flight (e. q.), the quail, wild pigeon, prairie chicken, humming bird, partridge, wild duck, etc., had greater body of wing than tip of wing (pinion), and also that the quills of their wings were as continuous from tips of the wing (pinion) to the body of the wing and in the body of their wings; while on the other hand, the wings of the birds of slower flight, the crane, jay, owl, crow, etc., had greater tip of wing (pinion) in proportion to body of wing, and that the quills of their wings were not so continuous in the tips of their wing to and in the body of their wings as in the wings of birds of more rapid, and moreover that the wings of the bird family that had no flight of wing, the ostrich and cassawary, had greater The aerion may be described as follows, viz: It is an elongated balloon, lashed firmly between two hollow steel tubes, which in turn are joined by similar tubes of peculiar shape and bearings so as to furnish the desirable number of points of support; to these points of support is attached a frame, on which rest the shafts which carry the wheels armed with the fans and other machinery, and underneath is a tenon frame on which may be placed the engines, boilers, fuel, freight and passengers. Now for the propulsion of an "aerion" weighing 2,400 pounds (including machinery, etc., for propulsion), furnished with fans 10 feet long, 4 feet wide and 1-3 inch thick, of which eight are in bearing at a time (simultaneously), we have a superficial surface acting upon the air of eight fans, each fan having a surface of 10 feet by 4 feet, or its equivalent two fans, each being 40 feet long and 40 feet wide, and which same is equivalent to a bird's wing 80 feet long from tip to top by a spread of 32 feet broad. Again, the revolution of the wheels armed with the fans above described, 350 times in a minute would produce a locomotive energy equal to that produced by a bird's wing of cited size; or equivalent to one stroke per minute of a bird's wing, or fans having an extent from tip of wing to tip of wing of more than five miles in length, by a spread of more than two miles in breadth. There would thus be generated a power sufficient to elevate and propel an "aerion" and all its paraphernalia, having a weight of fifty tons, at the rate of one mile a minute through a calm atmosphere -a power amply sufficient, reliable and tractable for the transportation of freight and passengers. Machinists and scientific men concur in the opinion that the construction of this airtraversing vessel is free from complication; that the theory upon which its construction is based is in harmony with mechanical laws, and when fully developed cannot fail of yielding successful and practical re sults. [From The Galaxy.] THE BLUE GUM TREE. prevented. The trees really drain the ground, and it is from this action that good results are looked for in the tree-planting operations on the Roman campagna. Of the blue gum trees which are being introduced there such wonderful stories are told that it fairly rivals in value some of those tropical plants which are ingeniously made to furnish food, drink, shelter, medicine, twine, and tools to the natives. The wood is free from parasites, its ashes contain an extraordinary amount of potash (as much as 21 per cent, in some cases); its leaves have value as a febrifuge and may serve as an antiseptic dressing for wounds. These virtues are in addition to the tree's special power of draining the ground and its remarkably rapid growth. One drawback will prove a serious stumbling block in the way of its introduction in this country. It cannot bear frost. [From The Galaxy.] INVENTIONS AT AUCTION. An auction sale of inventions was lately held in New York, and the fact was then made apparent that invention is most profitable when it aids manufactures. Inventions for the farm, the house, the garden, and the individual were mostly slow of sale, but anything that promised to add to the efficiency of a machine, or that afforded a manufacturer a new way of making anything in the market, readily brought a respectable price. A dish washer brought $35, The wide extension of malarial diseases a combined filter and refrigerator, $200, an in this and other countries is continually adjuster for closing blinds without opening calling attention to the cause of these dis- the window, 890; so much for the house. eases, but with little result. In fact the The only article in this category that did knowledge on the subject is so indefinite well was a bolt for fastening both blinds at that it would be hard to get a good defini- once-price $425. As to the farm, a potato tion of what is ordinarily meant by the harvester sold for $200, a cotton and corn word "malaria." Nevertheless remedies planter, warranted to plant eight or ten for its removal are urgently recommended, acres a day, $50. A self-locking and extenand at present the planting of the Eucalyp- sion ladder may perhaps he put down as tus globulus, or blue gum tree, is in high the high-priced article of this class of infavor, and apparently with good grounds ventions. It brought $1,000 for the right in a favorable experience. It is now sug- of New York alone When we turn from gested that the function of trees is to main- these to articles useful to manufacturers tain a healthy circulation of the moisture, quite a change comes over the list of prices. which, if allowed to lie dormant, will en- An improvement in balancing piano keys courage decomposition and the production sold for $700; a device in lard presses, to of gases that may be unhealthy. The tree permit the ready removal of the pressed absorbs an enormous quantity of water cake, $700; a machine to sharpen slate penfrom the soil, assimilates the organic sub-cils, $1,000; a combination lock, $650; a mastances it may contain. and distils the pure chine for boring fence posts, $1,425; and water in the form of vapor from its leaves. the prize of the sale was an improvement It may be that this moisture is quickly re-in tanning which hastens the process, and deposited, so that the ground is kept wet, and the region is no drier for the tree than it would be without it. But the circulation established prevents stagnant fermentation, and the products of the slight decay that is continually going on are at once removed and resolidified in healthy form by the assimilating powers of the tree. The accumulation of water in the soil and the consequent noxious emanation of gases from it is increases the weight of the leather. For the right to New England $6,000 was bid, and $3,000 each for New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. These facts are of real importance to inventors There is always a field for their labors, and probably always a fair return for the labor if not for the genius they have spent. But that reward is not often obtained by sending the peddler round to kitchen doors. It is to be had of |