HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Brussels Post, 1916-9-28, Page 371
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Canning and Preserving Fruits, minutes, bottle and seal. This is
There are two distinct general much richer than the juice made with
methods of treating fruit so that it
will not change or be changed though
hold for a time ranging from a few
weeks to three or four years. These
methodsare termed Banning and pre-
serving. Many people do not realize
the difference. We find, however,
that canned fruit depends for its keep-
ing qualities upon heating and per-
fect sealing, whereas preserves need
not be sealed because their high sugar
content prevents micro organism from
acting upon the fruit.
Strictly speaking canned fruity, and
preserves should keep the fruit in its
exact original condition. This, how-
ever, is an ideal which is never re-
alized. If fruit is sealed in tin cans
and then cooked long enough to kill
all the minute forms of life within the
can there are still several changes
which may occur. Red fruits—
strawberries, raspberries, and cherries
—are high in acid. The acid at-
tacks the tin, forming salts of tin,
and the latter quickly destroy the co-
lor of the fruit. Such a change has
little effect on flavor and digestibility.
Canners have largely overcome this
difficulty by obtaining a special kind
of tin plate and by 'covering this tin
with gold colored enamel.
Fruit canned in glass jars cannot
lose color through tin salts. There is
sometimes a change in color due to
light. Here again the red fruits suf-
fer most severely.
Probably the most important fact
to remember regarding canned fruits
is that changes such as fermentation
due to micro organisms are not pre-
vented by the sugar added. The
sugar used is for flavoring. Heating
and sealing kill the harmful molds
and yeast and then keep others from
coming into the conbainer.
There are two away in canning
fruit. Some people cook the fruit
before placing it in the jars or cans,
bhe tame grapes.
Earth Peach Preserve. -Procure
fresh peaches, free from bruises, ands
peel. Secure a large old-fashioned
stone jar, the sort that comes with a
closely fitted stone cover, something
on the fashion of the old-style churns.
Place in this alternate layers of fresh-
ly peeled peaches and granulated su-
gar, using about pound for pound, of
sugar and fruit. Place the stone cov-
er tightly in place—seal around with
sealing wax and bury in 'the earth,
leaving the jar low enough in the
earth to prevent freezing or mound
enough earth over it to prevent freez-
ing, just as one does when burying
cabbages or apples. Do not disturb
bhese for three month%, and five is
better. When opened you will find
the most delicious preserves that can
be imagined—better in flavor and dif-
ferent than from any other method.
Something of the flavor of brandied
peaches, rich and smooth and better
than by any other process.
Chipped Gingered Pear.—Use
eight pounds of pears, eight pounds
granulated sugar, one pound candied
ginger root and four lemons. Chip
or slice the pears fine, simply coring
and not peeling them. Slice the gin-
ger root and boil with the sugar and
pear, and four tablespoonfuls of wa-
ter for one hour. Boil the lemons
whole in a little water till bender, then
cut them up in small bits, removing
the seeds, and add to the pears and
boil one hour longer. Can in jelly
jars or large topped cans,
Peach Mangoes.—Use the large
free :tone peaches, pare with silver
knife as thin a peeling as possible.
Cut in halves and remove the seed.
Fill the cavity with the following mix- a bearer of despatches in wartime,
tore : Cut one cup of preserved is being tried as a supplement to muni -
ginger into thin slices; add one tea- cipal fire -fighting. A machine of the
spoon grated horseradish, one table- side car type is equipped with racks
spoon each of black and white mus- for chemicals, axes, and other light
fire -fighting apparatus and manned by
a crew of two men. It thus provides
a light, speedy mobile unit which can
make fast time to the scene of a fire,
and may be able to check a serious
blaze in its inception by virtue of sheer
speed.
Before polishing furniture, wipe
over with a "cloth dipped in hot water
and wrung out, If this is done, fine
ger-marks will not show.
If furnitu;;e is washed with luke-
warm vinegar and whter before polish
is applied, very little will be required
and a great saving in labor effected,.
A use for old velveteen—Take a
piece the size of e duster and do it
over the head of a broom used for
wiping down walls, It cleans them
beautifully,
To shine shoes quickly do not
blacken but rub on a piece of orange
and let the juice dry in, then polish
with a soft brush and then they will
shine like a mirror.
If clothes are to be ironed soon af-
ter they are dry' use hob water fon
sprinkling them. They will dampen
more quickly and evenly than if cold
water is used.
When madras curtains are launder-
ed they can be easily dried by hanging
them on their own curtain rod and
patting a heavy rod in the bottom
hem to hold them steady.
When reheabing meat place some
gravy in a deep frying pan, season it
and make quite ho:, put in the meat
and simmer gently', but do not snow
to boil, as boiling makes the meat
touch.
To clean dark varnished front doom,
rub over, after dusting, with a little
brown shoe polish on a piece of cloth;
polish with a dry duster, and the door
will look ea if newly painted,
To remove the shine from serge,
sponge the dress or suit with hot vine-
gar and press in the usual manner and
all shine will disappear. The vine-
gar leaven no stain.
A small sponge the size of an
orange will be found very practical to
have to wash the little ones with, and
more satisfactory than a cloth. Tie
on a string so it can be hung up to
dry after using.,
MOTORCYCLE FIRE ENGINES,
Carries Apparatus and a Crew of Two
Fire -Fighters.
The motorcycle, which has distin-
guished itself as a family vehicle and
tard reed, one teaspoon celery seed
others pack the raw fruit, cover ib .and one-half teaspoon black pepper
with hot sugar syrup, seal or partly 'reed. Tie the halves together care -
seal, cook and then seal if sealing has , fully and drop into a syrup made as
not been done first. If the fruit is follows : To one quart of vinegar
cooked before placing in the contain- add three pints of sugar, two Runces
er the latter must be thoroughly steri- each cloves and cinnamon bark, pub
lized first. In the second case the spices in a muslin bag and drop in
container need only be washed. the syrup. Let the fruit cook very
Preserves include jam, jellies and gently in the syrup until tender, then
marmalades. If a fruit product con- lift from the syrup and place in the
tains 70 per cent. of sugar, by weight, jars. Cook the syrup until slightly
molds and yeast cannot live in ib. thick, then pour over the peaches and
Hence, if a person lalows the weight seal.
of the ingredients put in a preserve
as well as the yields of the preserve
one can usually predict whether the
product will keep. Take the follow-
ing case:—
Weight of fruit 10 Ibs•
Weight of sugar 10 lbs.
Total ingredients 20 lbs.
Yield of jam 14.5 lbs.
Loss in evaporation 6.5 lbs.
Thus 14.5. lbs, of jam contains 10
lbs. of sugar or 68.9 per cent:
To this may be 'added 8 per cent.
for the sugar naturally contained in
the fruit, making 71.9 per cent. sugar
This should keep.
A drop of water on the surface of a
preserve dilutes it at that point and
Will likely start mad growth. Hence
jars to be filled with jam or jelly
should not be covered until cold be-
cause the'steam rising from the warm
or hot product will condense on the
cover and have the same effect as an
added drop of water. It is is desir-
ed to cdver preserves while they are
hot, sterilize the top, seal perfectly
while hot and turn the jar upside
down. By this meth* molds are
eliminated to begin with and as with
canned fruits prevented from enter-
ing afterwards.
Preserves also lose color through
the action of light.
In ease of jam and marmalade mod-
erate firmness is desired. Jollies re-
quire to be quite solid. In all cases
the solidifying is due to the combina-
tion of sugar with a substance in the
fruit called pectin. The jellying or
solidifying only takes place when bhe
preserve is condensed to a certain ex-
tent by evaporation. Some fruits
are low in pectin and will not properly.
solidify no matter how much condens-
ed. A. viscous, sticky syrup results.
In any case the preserve is improved
if a juice such as crab apple or cur-
rant juice is added. This juice is
rich in pectin, By using it more
sugar may be used, say 10 of sugar
to 8 of fruit. Thus the time .:of
cooking is reduced, color and flavor
are retained, the yield is increased.
and solidifying results.
Ib will be seen that canning and
preserving depend upon fixed laws.
One should always try to explain why
an operation or proportion is required.
A good set of scales might mean a
saving of material to many a house-
wife.—Ontario Department of Agri-
culture,
Baking Soda Uses.
There are numerous uses to which
baking soda can be put, apart from
the accustomed and legitimate ones of
cake and bread making. First of all,
it is an excellent family remedy for
scalds. When milk is on the point of
turning sour -a pinch of baking soda
dropped in it will restore it to its na-
tural sweetness,
A -thick paste mane of. soda and wa-
ter is excellent for cleaning glasses in
which milk, ice cream or other greasy
substance has been standing, or even
when there is no time to make a
paste, if bhe fingers are dipped in wee
ter, then in dry soda, and the greasy
part of the glans is rubbed around
with them, the marks will quickly dis-
appear and the glass become bright,
Lamp chimneys treated in the same
way will shine like crystal, while if a
lamp burner is boiled, for half an
hour in soda and water it will cause
the Tamp to burn with renewed bril-
liancy. Soda is aim excellent to
clean silverware. Make it into a
thin pasbe and rub briskly, then wash
in hot water.
Things Worth Remembering.
To remove paint from glass rvii
with hot vinegar.
Ether is good for removing grease
stains from clothing.
To prevent accidents, painb the bot-
tom cellar steps white,
All suet puddings should be cooked
a long time to make them digestible.
Add a teaspoonful of salt bo starch,
when making, if a'gloss is desired on
linen;
Drive six brass -headed tacks in the
ironing board to talcs the place of a
flat -iron stand.
It is wise to put a little salt in the
water in which vegetables are wash-
ed. It will destroy insects.
Allow two level teaspoonsfuls of
baking powder to each cup of flour
when no eggs are used.
To cut butter in, small even squares
for the table, use a coarse wet thread
as this leave no ragged edges.
The small pin feathers that are so
hard to clean from very young chick-
ens can be wiped off with a dampcloth
in much loss bime.
Cold water closes the pores of the
skin and makes It firm. A little vino -
gar or cologne added to the water also
assets in the hardening,
When boiling meat which is inclin-
Scasonable Reoipe& od to be tough add one teaspoonful of
Wild Grape Juice,—Pick over wild vinegar. This makes it tender, and
grapes and almost cover with cold gives a good flavor,
water; bring slowly to a boil, When When no suet is at hand, and a ht-
all juice veems teem strain through a tle is required for puddings, ets.,: chop
jelly bag. For with quart of juice sot le dripping finely and use, It will
allow one tea Cup sugar; boil five answer the purpose quite well,
Costs More.
"I've tried to teach my boy the
value of money."
"Good thing!"
"Well, I don't know. Ho used to
behave for ten cents, bub now he
wants a quarter,"
THE DISABLED HERO.
No Effort Too Great to Restore His
Ability,
There are already about 1,700 die-
abled soldiers now under treatment
in Canada, and almost every week
sees more of them arriving from the
front.
Some of them, of course, are so
seriously disabled that it is impossible
for them to take up again their' form-
er occupations, or, at all events, to
take them up again without the aid
of artificial appliances and training
in their nee.
They are heroes, we say; but the
glamor of heroism will not content
them long, The same quality of self-
respect that made them freely en-
list, will make them as eager to re-
enlist in the peaceful work of the
community that they have helped to
preserve. The pensions that are due
them will be an assistance but never
a substitute for honest livelihood in
the days that lie before them.
Do we quite realize that our coun-
try, till lately, had no organized sys-
tem established for fitting these men
to turn to civil life?
And do we realize the waste of
good human material and ability that
the country would suffer from, if
they were left, untrained and unaid-
ed, to remain idle or to pick up any
casual or temporary job they might
happen to come across?
In France, skilled scientists are set
apart by the Government to devote
their whole time to directing and
training the permanently disabled so
that they may do the best for them-
selves. The same problems in Canada
are being met by the same wise con-
trol, and will be solved, we have every
reason to hope, under the guidance of
the Military Hospitals Commission.
It is the business of every true;
Canadian to help the Commission and
its Provincial auxiliaries by backing
up its efforts to restore these men's
capacity, and by helping to get them ,
work they can do with profit to them-
selves and to the country.
Strong Point.
"Why have you never married,
colonel?"
"Because I feel that a man cannot
be a good husband and at the same
time a good warrior."
"You overlook the advantage of be-
ing always in training."
Times Changed.
Newcomer (at resort)—"Is this a
restful place?"
Native—"Well, it used ter be until
folks began comin' here for to rest."
Girls who want to marry are always
looking in shop windows for new
brands of bait.
Avoiding Tire Troubles,
The most expensive machine on the
farm for upkeep is the automobile,
and the most expensive part of the
automobile for repairs is the tires,
This is not hard to understand when
we realise that all the weight of the
car comes on them, that the full driv-
ing power of the engines is delivered
through them, and that they come in
direct contact, at speeds varying from
10 to 40 miles an hour, with the hard
lumpy surface of ordinary cdlntry
roads. , Under these conditions it
seems a wonder that tires last as well
as they 'do. With the bete of care
they will, of course, eventually give
way, but the life of tires can be great-
ly prolonged by the exercise of care
in avoiding the commonest causes of
hire troubles.
Chafed sides, in which the rubber is
worn off the sides of the tires leav-
ing the fabric bare, is due almost in-
variably to running in ruts on coun-
try roads, or rubbing them against
curbs when in town. When this con-
dition sets in they soon get beyond
repair if not attended to. Chafing
can be prevented by keeping out of
the ruts and away from curbs. As
soon as chafed sides are noticed the
tire shoa]d be repaired. Scuffing
maybe due to several causes, such as
improperly adjusted brakes, or quick
stopping, in which case the car ski+!
along, wearing the rubber off on the
hard surface of the road and leaving
the fabric bare. Quick starting may
have the same effect. Driving around
corners at high speed, so that the car
skids, or allowing the wheels to get
out of alignment, so that the tire is
rubjected to a zig-zag motion while
in contact with the road, are also pro-
lific causes of scuffing. To prevent
this condition care should be taken to
have the wheels in al'gnment, to have
the brakes and steering gear properly
adjusted, to slaw up while rounding
corners, and to avoid using the clatch
in a jerky manner.
Cuts and Bruises.
Unless,cenall deep cuts are attended
to as soon: as they are inflicted on
the tires, sand and dirt and water
work their way into the wound. With
every revolution the cut is expanded,
the foreign matter sucked in, and a
grinding motion is set up which h=
the tires to pieces. This trouble is
known as disintegration, and is pro-
vided against by examining the tires
for cuts and having them closed with
materials which are manufactured for
the purpose as soon as they appear.
When tires are insufficiently inflated
and a blunt object is struck at a high
rate of speed, the result 10 that the
inner plies of the fabric may be brok-
en. No effect may be visible from the
outside, bub the broken ends of the
fabric wear against one another and
become weakened, and eventually a
blowout results. Careful driving
over rough or stony ground and pro-
per inflation will provide against this
trouble.
Running on a punctured tire, rusty
or bent rims and insufficient air pres-
sure are the common causes of rim
cutting. The cause of the trouble
sugge'ts its prevention. In case a
tire pencbures while on the road, it
is better to remove it and run on the
rim then to run cn the tire. This
can be done for a short distance with-
out seriously ,injuring the rim, though
afterward it is best to carefully ex-
amine it and see that ib is not bent, as
this may again result in rim cutting.
Chain cutting results more frequently
in easel where the chains are bight
They should be left slightly loose, so
that they will move around to some
extent and i,i'event the strain which
bhe tire suffers when passing cern
them from always coming in exactly
the sane place.
Blowouts if the tiro ie in good con-
dition, ere always due to overloading.
They also result from inattention to
c it , which allow the access of sand,
so that the fabric is damaged until the
tire cannot stand ordinary air pres-
sure. Blowouts also result some-
times from insufficient inflation, and
from damaged tubes which may have
become slightly worn by being kept
loose in a box before being used.
The most common cause of tire
trouble in under -inflation. It is wise
economy to purchase a press
ure
gauge. The following pressures
are recommended for the different
sizes of tires: Three-inch tire, 60
lbs.; three and one-half inch 70 lbs.;
four -inch, 80 lbs.; fear and one-half
inch, 90 lbs., and five -inch, 100 lbs..
Lack of attention to small injaies
when they first appear, together with
reckless driving over rough reads,
are also prolific causes of tire trouble.
—Farm and Dairy.
For every million tons et coal mined cyesg L
four or five men are killed and from ! HE SUNDAY H$ Y
550 to 600 injured,
Road Construction and Maintenance
The Part Played by Refired Tars in Modern Road Building.
By J. RANDALL
It is a well recognized fact among
highway engineers that one great
cause of the disintegration of water -
bound macadam and gravel macadam
roads is "internal attrition."
When a heavy motor truck or auto-
mobile is travelling up a ,grade or
even along the level, there is a strong
thrust developed under the driving
wheels, which, while propelling the
vehicle forward, fends to push the
upper part of the road backsvard. The
same is also true in the case of horse-
drawn vehicles, only here the "thrust"
is under the horses feet. This
"thrust" causes a slight rubbing of
one stone on another in the wearing
course of plain macadam roads,
which in a comparatively short time
causes internal wear, and results in
the formation of depressions and hof-'
lows, even though the foundation may
be still firm and unyielding.
To overcome this difficulty, dense,
heavy, refined tars have been used as
a "binder" for many years in Eng-
land and France,' and for about twelve
years on this continent. Abroad, the
Method followed has been to mix the
crushed stone or slag with the heavy
refined tar (at boiling temperature)
and place the mixture on the prepar-
ed foundation, consolidating the whole
with a suitable roller. This method
has beets followed on this continent to
some extent, but the greater percent-
age of "tar macadam" is built by the
penetration method. In this case, the
layer of stone is placed upon the pre-
pared foundation to the desired thick-
ness, and then "grouted" with /she
heavy refined tar, at approximately
boiling temperature. The road is then
finished by covering this course with
smaller stone, sealing same with ad-
ditional refined tar, and then covering
with sand of screenings and rolling.
There are several refined tars on the
market, one of the best known being
tarvia. A tarvia "X" macadam road
corresponds very closely to the stand-
and English practice in new construc-
tion.
Tar macadam is an especially suit-
able type of road for trunk line high-
ways, whoreetho traffic is fast and
heavy, on account of its durability and
low cost of maintenance. In the vil-
lages and towns, tar macadam is also
very satisfactory, on account of its
dustlessness, as well as durability and
low maintenance cost. Under ordin-
ary conditions, this type of road costs
between sixteen hundred and twenty-
five jsmsdrecl dollars per mile more
ROBERTS, B. Sc.
than the corresponding plain mac-
adam, depending on length of haul of
material, width of roadway, etc. In
considering the question of road cost
on a five-year basis, or longer, which
is really the proper method, it has
been proven many times that this ex-
tra initial outlay is more than justi-
fied.
The consideration of road costa over
an extended period brings up the
question of maintenance, the import-
ance of which is only just beginning
to be recognized by the average muni-
cipal official. Tar macadam should
be watched closely during the first
year of its life, as this is the most
critical period. Any weaknesses
which develop, such as formation of
depressions, or buckets, due to poor
foundretion, or lack of sufficient
"binder," should be repaired at once,
so that the whole road will wear unt-
formly. Under a comparatively
heavy mixed traffic, composed of both
horse-drawn and motor driven vehi-
cles, light annual applications of light
refined tar (cold application) with
sand covering, give the most econo-
mical maintenance. The use of refin-
ed tar in both construction and main -1
tenants prevents in greater measure;
the formation of dust from the road I
itself, which helps the , maintenance
thereby, owing to the retention of
the road material in place, eliminates
the cost of water sprinkling where
such would otherwise be necessary,
and also prevents the formation of
mud in wet'weather.
It night be thought to be more
economical to build a plain macadam
road and maintain it by surface treat-
ments of refined tar, than to build
the road as a tar bound macadam in
the first place. This might be true
under very light traffic conditions,
but it is generally conceded, where
the choice lies between the two, that
for practically all locations where
these types of road are warranted, it
is cheaper and more economical in
the long run to build the tar bound
macadam. However, both tar bound
Mid tar surfaced macadans are far
superior to a plain water bound mac-
adam road no matter how well built
this may {se, as the well-known de-
fects of ravelling, results d frost se-'
tion, and of internal wear, also ex-
cessive dust, which are common to a
water bound, are practically eliminat-
ed ie a tar bound, and overcome, to a
great extent, in a tar surfaced mac-
adam road.
INTERNATIONAL LESSON
OCTOBER 1.
Lesson I.— A Plot That Failed—Acts
23. Golden Text.
Jer. 1. 19.
Verse II. Chief prie'.ts—More ex-
actly, high priests, a close oligarchy
including, besides the acting pontiff
living, ex -high priests and priests be-
longing to the two or three families
from whom the government selected
the new one. Of course in Jewish
eyes the office was for life, but they
had to be content with keeping it in
the families which had held it since
the Maccabees. Curse—Greeny, ana-
thema; the formula would be, "God
do so to me, and more also if I eat or
drink before we have killed Paul."
15. With the council—The 'Sanhe-
drin, which contained many well dis-
posed to Paul, was only to be asked;
to pass a resoultion requesting Lysias
to give them a further opportunity of
examining the case, Signify—Rabh-
er- too peremptory a word; it only im-
plies putting a suggestion before the
officer, who, of course, could grant ib
or refuse it es he pleased. Comes
near—Tho Sanhedrin therefore would
not be suspected of complicity.
16, Paul's nephew is the only•rrela-
tive of whom we hear•. He must
have been deeply interested in his
uncle, and employed great sluewdness
in getting this information: a rela-
tive of Paul's was the last person to
pick it up casually. The case with
which he secured access to Paul shows
that the apostle was no longer in rig-
orous confinement.
17. Young man—The term used in
verses 18 and 22 is slightly different.
Paul speaks of his nephew to the cen-
turion with las familiar tone.
19. Lysias's interest in Paul, and his
determination to see fair play, be-
comes apparent.
20. As though thou wouldest—It is
better to follow one of the two great-
est MSS., and by altering one letter
read as though it (the Sanhedrin)
would, etc, This agrees ivitlr verse
15, Lysias would nob take Paul
down to the Sanhedrin because lie
wanted to get more exact knowledge;
he would goer tiorr hini'in the barracks,
21. The information of their ami -
23. A very large escort for one pri-
soners, but Lysias was determined that
a Roman citizen should not be mur-
dered by these hated sectaries. A
Ronan cohort would include a con-
tingent of all kinds of troops—regul-
ar infantry, cavalry, and miscellane-
ous native troops. The exact mean-
ing of the word rendered spearmen is
not known. Caesarea, on the coast,
was the seat of government.
24. Felix—Antonius Felix, procura-
tor of Judaea from about A. D. 52.
He and his powerful brother Pallas
were freedmen. Tacitus says bhat he
"wielded royal power with the spirit
of a slave, with unbounded cruelty and
lust."
QUAINT OLD WALLS.
Furnish One of the Charms of Eng-
lish Countryside.
The stone walls of the Cotswolds,
in England, one of their most per-
sonal charms, are called "mounds."
As in New England, they border the
roads everywhere.
The conventional hedgerows are
still planted, in this part of the coun-
try, only to divide field from field.
But New England farm folk never
knew how to build a "dry" wall like
this.
It is of fairly even stones, laid
without mortar—in fact, with hardly
a chink 'where mortar could be in-
serted. Some surfaces are marked
by a sort of rough string course, and
for coping the top stones are set up
on end close together.
It must be admitted that a shelf
of asphalt occasionally replaces them,
and is not beautiful.
But far more often you get, by way
of variety, a primitive battlement of
mud, in which seeds find lodgment
and where they begin at once to
weave a curtain of falling verdure
and moss and to fill all the crannies
with green as years go by, so that
the "mound" becomes really what it
is called, and is hardly distinguish-
able from the massive granite and
earthenetork walls of the Cornish
roadsides.
yw --
BREATH E
—BREATHE UNDER WATER,
Apparatus Makes a Life Preserver
Doubly Useful.
A novel life preserver has been de-
vised to supplement the ordinary cork
jacket in rough water. By its use the
person in distress is able to breathe,
even when the waves sweep over his
head, The appliance adds to the cork
jacket a light metal chamber which
floats high, a spout leading from it
rising two or three feet above the
able intentions no doubhb cost these water level. A tube, leads from this
forty zealots some delay in getting chamber to a face mask, through
their dinner, But there were case- whichthe wearer of the jacket
tete ready to extricate them from n breathes. Even if the water sweeps
over his bead the spout Lor the air
vow so praiseworthy when it failed of chamber is still clear and the aft sup-
ats mut. ply unlmpared.
MAJOR S. L. ► G ELLER
BUILDER OF CANALS
CONTRACTOR IN CHARGE OF NSW
WELLAND CANAL,
Was Member of dIsley Team in 1896
and Served In North-West
Rebellion.
Maj. .1, L, Weller, on whose siioul-
dere rests the main burden of the
mammoth construction work ,now in
progress on the new Welland Ship
Canal, is a native of Ontario, having
been born at Cobourg in this Province,.
5030e 66 years ago. He was graduated
from the Royal Military College with
honors In 1888, taking the first prize
in civil engineering, physics, and artil-
lery. lie has been constantly in the
employment of the Department of
Railways and Canals of Canada from
1888 to the present date, being con-
nected with the construction of the
Trent, Murray, and St. Lawrence
Canals, las was superintending en-
gineers of the Welland Canal from
1900 to 1912, and at present is engin-
eer -in -charge of the survey, design
and construction .of the proposed
Welland Ship Canal, which is esti-
i mated to cost $50,000,000,
I He has had a varied experience
both as a soldier and as an engineer.
He served in the North-West Rebel-
, lion in 1885, as lieutenant in the Mid-
land Battalion, and as staff adjutant
at the base under Major-General J. W.
Laurie. Later he served as captain
j and adjutant in the 59th Stormont and
Glengarry Regiment, retiring when
senior major on moving out of the
district, He was a member of the Bis -
I ley team of 1890, winning many prizes,
among others the 12150 Commissioner's
Cup. He was also a_ member of the
lcolapore Cup team of that year, which
was successful in winning the cup.
Major J. L. Weller.
He was placed in charge of the re-
pairs of the disastrous break in the
Cornwall Canal bank in 1908, which
was repaired by butidding a timber crib
dam 428 feet long by 20 feet wide and
20 feet high around the washout, in
ten days, and the canal was in opera-
tion in less than three weeks after-
wards. Among his other claims to
distinction may be mentioned the fact
that he was the original inventor of
reinforced concrete poles for electric
lines.
His Great Daring.
Major Weller's great daring and re-
sourcefulness have won hien a reputa-
tion. Some years ago lie accompanied
a party of Government officials on a
trip of inspection from Port Colborne
to Port Stanley, on Lake Erie. The
party travelled on a tug boat and the
trip was made in November, when the
weather is usually cold and the lake
rough. 4. se1ff was being towed be-
hind the tug, and 041 the way to Port
Stanley the tow line became fouled in
the screw of the propeller of the tug.
Efforts to free it were unavailing and
navigation of the boat was rendered
impossible. The only solution was for
one of the party to go down under the
water and cut the rope away—not a
every inviting prospect in the ice cold
:waters of the lance, and with a fair gale
blowing, Major Weller volunteered
;for the service, and, after stripping off
his outer garineuts, was lowered down
behind.
Owing to the coldness of the water
Ire woe unable to accomplish the task
at once, and was raised to the boat
again. In a short time he again went
I down and succeeded in partially fros-
ting
ros-Iing the propeller, but not sufficiently
to enable it to be operated, It was
necessary for him to be raised and
lowered five times before the task was
completed, and by that time he was
completely exhausted and indifferent
' as to the state of the elements. With
careful attention, however, and, thanks
to his robust constitution, he was grad-
ually brought back to normal, but not
without serious cogitation on hie part
as to the possible consequences of such
exposure. By next day he was himself
again, and had added another instance
to the many where his daring has
overcome difficult situations.
His Fine Marksmanship.
Major Weller was a splendid marks-
man, having been, as mentioned above,
a member of the Bisley Team of 1896,
from which he brought back many tro-
phies, and on such trips as the one
'just mentioned, he would often enter-
tain the party by shooting pennies
from between tbs fingers of hie come
pentons, who Lied such confidence in
his aim that they were not at all dif-
fident about offering a mark of this
ldnd for his revolver,
Major Wslier in 1885 married Miss
Whitehead of Kingston, He has ono
son and two daughters. The son is
Mr. W. H. Welter, general ooutraothtg
engineer, who also graduated from
the Royal Military College.