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The Clinton News Record, 1942-05-21, Page 6Vinyon Stockings May Be • Answer to Hose Problem A chemical fiber which may some- day become a rival of nylon is the rriaterial vinyon, a thermoplastic chemical substance which can be s .un into long, fine fibers. Vinyon '. elihes are on the market. They are Ilea Nth transparent water clear -eels of toes Y ,vinyon 000140 Wei+e wavers ex. p ewnnenlalllly two years ago but un- expected "bugs" have held up their commercial sale while nylon stole the show. Maybe the currentshort age of silk and nylon will spur fur- ther work on vinyon stockings. The shortage certainly has spurred nylon ' production for new plants are in the . making and it should be only a year at the most before nylon holds a much higher place in the nation's stocking- out- put. Last year some 43,000,000 pairs of hose were sold in the United States and 92 per cent of this' vast total were all silk, or silk leg with rayon or cotton tops. *Nylon sold 2,750,000 pairs which constitute a little over 6 per cent of the total. Doing a littlesubtract- ing you can see how small was the sale of rayon, cotton and wool hos- iery to women in 1940. Just about 2 per cent. But by the same token these fig- ures show that 98 per cent of all the stockings in the nation are in danger of being cut off by the pres, ent shortage. Cotton is leaping into this pic- ture strongly, and hosiery mills that cannot get silk or nylon fibers are turning to cotton yarns. Hosiery experts say the machines can be easily converted to the making of cotton stockings, Old -Fashioned Spinning Wheel Still Being Used The Hebrides, the name on the map by which you may identify the islands where Harris Tweeds origi- nate, is probably the last outpost of Europe where the old-fashioned spinning wheel is still employed commercially. Having inherited from long generations both their skill and the wheels at which they work, the women are able to impart to their hand -produced yarn an in- describable finish and character, though only the finer Harris Tweeds are spun in this manner. After the yarn is spun and woven, much of it by hand, the cloth has a loose open appearance and is very harsh to the touch. The web is closed and softened by g process known as waulking. This is a com- munal operation. After washing in hot water while the cloth is still damp parties of women beat and work the cloth with their hands until the loose, open fiber is closely felt- ed together. Waulking day is an ancient in- stitution on the islands. The day the web arrives from the weavers, after a sumptuous breakfast, a strong door is removed from its hinges. The web, saturated with soapy water, is loosely laid upon it and with bursts of Gaelic song the women toss and tumble the cloth. What, No Lynx? Corp. Lyle Clemons of the 76th Infantry battalion scoffed recently when Serg. Maj. Lawrence Mans- perger said: "I think I'll go shoot myself a lynx." "Might as well expect to get a cup of coffee for a nickel in San Miguel as hope to find any wild- cats in this territory," Clemons sneered. The other morning Clemons found a 40 -pound wildcat stretched across the top of his desk. One neat bullet - hole testified to the marksmanship of the hunter. Tied to one of the wildcat's furry ears was a note: "No wildcats around here, huh? I bagged this baby only 20 miles from camp. If you haven't any- thing on for tonight, come on over, You can help me skin this cat. Signed, Pipe Dreamer Mansperger." Thailand, Siam Thailand is the country formerly known as Siam, a corruption of the name Sayan, The Thai call their country "Prades Thai," which means "The Land of the Free." According to a bulletin from the Royal Thai legation at Washington, the new name (Thailand) is pre- ferred because ". • . it conveys the truism that the Thai race has been able to keep amity and peace with all the nations of the world and is always prepared to offer the utmost resistance if its sovereignty and proud name should in any way be jeopardized." Thai should not be pronounced "thigh." The "h" is silent. The correct pronunciation of Thai- land is: TIE -Pad. Hearing Dulled With Age Hearing is dulled a little from year to year after one reaches ma- turity. This dulling is greatest for high notes, especially the overtones which give the quality to a soprano voice. The soprano's voice has un- doubtedly improved, but her hear- ing is not as good. Every adult experiences this. The young person hears qualities in the artiste's voice which his parents, and even the artiste herself cannot hear. Music critics should be young people; the older critics, even with normal ears for their age, are missing a part of the performance. • 36;669 Bloods Donors • , (gave their blood' in -Red Cross • Clines across the Dominion last year. .You Roll Them Bette'rWi h FINE CUT OGDEN'S CIGARETTE TOBACCO Unreeling of Cocoons Most Tedious Silk Task In Japan, silkworm culture is a family undertaking, a part time job on some 2,000,000 farms. In the month and a half each spring when the worms are growing and spin- ning, the: entire family participates in their care. A large part of the house is given over to them, the family keeping only one or two. rooms. Similar enterprises in Amer- ica involved the building of sepa- rate sheds for the exclusive use of the worms. The most tedious of all the tasks connected with silk production is the unreeling of the cocoons. First the cocoon is put in hot water to soften the guinrny substance which binds the threads. Then the reeler, usually a girl, seeks out the loose ends by which the cocoon was at- tached to the branch. One thread is too thin alone, so she joins the threads of five or six cocoons, and. reels them as one. Reeled separate- ly, a thousand miles of silk fila- ment would be required to make a pound. To produce that weight of thread, 2,500 to 3,000 cocoons must be unrolled. Last year it was an- nounced that mechanical devices had been developed to triple the speed of reeling, but still the cost would be prohibitive at American wages. After reeling, the silk is inspected , and rewound into skeins of several ounces each. These are combined into "books" of five to ten pounds which, in turn, are packed in bales of 160 to 200 pounds for shipment. Each bale represents the life work• of some 500,000 hand -fed silkworms., Gold, Platinum Formed From Mercury Experiment Gold and platinum have been formed from mercury by bombard- ment of the liquid metal with high- speed neutrons in experiments at Harvard university by Dr. R, Sherr and Dr. K. T. Bainbridge. Ten dif- ferent isotopes of the three metals were found after the bombardment, There were three kinds of gold, four kinds of platinum and the remain- der were of mercury. One kind of gold isotope was half gone in 48 minutes, the second kind had a half-life of 65 hours and the third isotope 78 hours, The syn- thetic platinums also had brief half- life spans, 27 minutes, 85 minutes, 19 hours and two days. All of the isotopes were radio -active and broke down to other more stable forms of the same elements. The rate at which this happens is indi- cated by the half-life, which means that in the given period half of the rnaterial has broken down, and in a similar period half of the rest will do likewise, in a continuing process. Gold, platinum and mercury dif- fer but slightly in atomic weight. By shooting extra neutrons into the nucleus of the mercury atom, its atomic weight can be raised, but this also can result in other par- ticles being forced out of the nucleus. No Dummy Oil Well People who never saw a real oil well on a downtown street may be skeptical of this story, but east Tex- ans will not be surprised. There is one oil well in front of a tire company and others behind the building, all operated from a cen- tral pumping unit. Many persons believed that the well in front of the building was an advertisement for the gasoline station, Such persons were surprised re- cently when the well "blew out" its packing and ran wild for sev- eral minutes. Oil blew across the top of the building and covered two parked automobiles. Fire trucks rushed to the scene, because a care- less smoker could have started a disastrous fire. But the well was closed in, and the uninformed thought that the oil well was real and not a dummy. • Two Threads in Weaving In any form of weaving there are two kinds of thread—the wrap, which runs lengthwise of the fin- ished fabric, and the filing, which runs across at right angles with the warp. In the simplest form of weaving the filling goes over one warpthread, under the next, over the third, under the fourth and so on. Many fancy yarns are made, and are woven into intricate de- signs. The plain weave is an open weave, cooler for summer -wear garments, and is found in tropical worsteds, rayon fabrics and most washable cotton and linen fabrics. Twill weave is closer, warmer, and used for overcoats, suits, uniforms, and is more durable than the plain weave for heavier yarns. 4, Duster, Sprayer There are two pieces of equipment which every gardener must have. These are a duster, which can be one of the small hand types, and a sprayer that also might be one of the small one -quart outfits provided the problems encountered are `,Small. In `'the experience of most indi- viduals charged withthe responsi- bility of caring for an average -sized garden that one of, the two gallon, or larger, pneumatic pressure spray- ers is better. Such an outfit easily pumps up a head of air and. will do. considerable, spraying of even the hardest -to -distribute fluids for a long THE CLINTON NEWS -RECORD THU1 S.,1VjAY 21, 1942 he Repti'les Are Condemned Unjustly; Tame Easily The' snake has been in most in- stances the recipient of unjust con- demnation. In this country, the overwhelming majority of them are not only non-poisonous, but actually beneficial. Probably not one in , many hundreds will be the venom- ous type, and strange as it seems, most of'the folklore regarding the habits and doings of the species are wholly hearsay and disproved by science• and research. It is for the peace of mind and information of sportsmen that certain things about them should be debunked. There are but .two that can harm' the human seriously with their bites, or stabs, as both the copperhead and rattler inject their venom fo rn receding fangs and not their teeth. The fangs are like hypodermic nee- dles and when the snake strikes its mouth is wide open and the fangs pointed straight out. The force of the strike sinks the fangs into an object and the .venom is forced through the hollow cavity. As far as the strike is concerned, no snake can fling its body more than half its length and never more than a foot above the ground. This means that ordinary boots or hip boots are plenty of protection. Most injuries to humans from these two are the result of great carelessness, in reaching into places or throdding without looking. If one merely watches the next I step he is as safe as though walk- ing the streets of the City. And the chance of ever being struck is less than that of being struck by light- ning. Colored Lights Observed At Night; Red Strongest The night sky is filled with bril- liant colors.—red, green and yellow —but they are so diffused that the eye does not perceive them. They have been observed and studied at the McDonald observatory at Mt. Locke, Texas, operated jointly by the University of Texas and the Uni- versity of Chicago. The red light is strongest at the end of twilight, and is traced to the oxygen in the atmosphere. It di- minishes in intensity until midnight. The green light grows stronger aft- er sunset, and reaches its peak shortly after midnight. This light also has its origin in the oxygen of the atmosphere. The yellow light is more erratic in character. It is more like the aurora borealis, but is not confined to the northern sky. The daily variations in the red and green light link the changes to the day and night cycle of the earth. It is believed that the oxygen in the atmosphere gives out at night energy which it received during the day from sunlight, a phenomenon similar to phosphorescence. The yellow light has its origin in the sodium atoms in the atmosphere which appear to be activated by showers of neutral particles which may come from the, sun or stars. it Height Puzzle Why children between the ages of 9 and 14 are almost five inches tall- er than children of the same age a half century ago is still a puzzle to the Iowa Child Welfare station. Prof. Howard V, Meredith con- ducted a recent study concerning the increase in height and weight of children in the last two decades. He pointed out that there is about three-fourths of an inch difference in the average height of the children measured and studied during the years 1930 to 1937 over those young- sters studied and measured during the years 1920 to 1927. The aver- age weight increased about three pounds in the Last period of years. The Iowa psychologist said that the reasons for the increase in height and weight are still a mat- ter of speculation and inference, as well as being "a research frontier." Silk Worm The silk worm secretes the silk as a viscous fluid in two large glands in the lateral part of the body. These communicate by ducts with the spin - Bret on the under Iip. The silk from the two glands is united in a single thread, which quickly hardens. The worm spins or produces this thread and winds it about itself so as to form a covering or cocoon in which it passes the pupa stage. In the case of domesticated silk worms, much of the thread may be reeled off in a single piece after it has been softened and loosened from the co- coon by immersion in warm water. Raw silk contains 20 to 30 per cent of sericin, or silk glue, and is harsh and stiff. After this glue is removed by steeping and boiling, the silk is fine, soft and white. Ecru, or '"nat- ural" color 'silk, has only a portion of this glue removed. 4 Bright Tie Revitalizes Maybe the guys who wear the red neckties aren't so far wrong. Bright neckties will help cure persons who are depressed or have a "devital- ized personality," Dr. J. C. Button Jr., Newark, said recently. He spoke to physicians attending meetings of the:American College of Neuropsy. •ohiatrists at the Philadelphia Col- lege of Osteopathy. "Ask, order or cornmana your patient to Vo out and bur .the brightest necktie he can find,, and watch. the sparkle •:•in his eye when he returns. He may still have his bodily complaints, but time before, repumping is again'nee you have done something for hili.. essary; Such'an 'outfit is' also usefi.l• j You have changed' not merely ' his ,for small tree spraying jobs, tie, but : also his €attitridea' n General Scientists Study Newly Discovered Arizona Pits Strewn like giant shell holes across the sun -scorched Arizona plain, a score of newly discovered pits 40 miles southeast ,of Meteor crater are being studied by an ex- pedition which includes Dr. Harvey Nininger, curator of the Denver museum and president of the Soci- ety for Research on Meteorites, who heads the expedition which hopes to prove the craters were caused by meteorites. I1 so, they contain thousands of pounds of nickel now vitally needed for national defense metal produc- tion, the scientists pointed out. There is a strong possibility, the experts acknowledged, that the pits were caused by the tail of a comet which smashed to earth thousands of years ago, or by fragments of an exploding meteorite. There's a chance also, Dr. Nin- Inger inInger admitted, that the perfect cir- cle craters may prove to be sink holes caused by a large under- ground river. The pits, which average 300 feet in diameter and 150 feet in depth, will be studied with a magnetome- ter, radio sounding device, and also with special acids and other geo- physical equipment. The expe- dition also will carry drilling ap- paratus. Five hundred thousand, pounds of nickel valued at $300,000,000 are contained in the 10,000,000 -ton mete- orite located underground' just south of Meteor crater, government ge- ologists estimate. The Barringer family of Phila- delphia has spent $500,000 since 1909 in mining operations at the crater. Sun Floating in Thick Cloud, Claim Scientists Evidence "consistent with the hy- pothesis" that the sun is floating in a dust and gas layer thick enough to cause light to require 1,500 'years to travel through it has been found by three University of Wisconsin astronomers in observations at Mt. Wilson observatory, Los Angeles. This indicates that, but for the obscuring cloud, the sun's light would be many times more bril- liant than at present! The earth itself, however, is near the center of the all -enveloping ab- sorbing layer, it was said, and thus the light from a star outside of the clouds would be reduced about 15 per cent in reaching the earth. Also, being near the sun—astro- nomically, at least—the earth would not get the full effect of the obscura- tion of the sun's light. Distant stars, too, in many cases would appear many times brighter but for gas and dust clouds in near- by space, the savants said. Making the observations were Drs. Joel Stebbins, C. M. Huffer and A. E. Whitford. They used a photoelectric cell attached to tele- scopes here and at Madison, Wis., they reported in the current issue of the Astrophysical Journal, About 30 per cent of a star's light is absorbed as it passes through the clouds, they reported. Wool -Labeling Law It is reassuring to learn that the labels which are made mandatory by the new wool -labeling law must state both the kind of wool, the pro- portion of it, and the proportion of any added material or wool substi- tute. Here is the way some of these new labels read on clothing articles featuring a popular and fine qual- ity•of wool textile used in making coats and dresses: (1) XXXXX Woolen— Eighty-five per cent virgin wool; 15 per cent Angora rabbit hair. (2) Ninety-five per cent virgin wool; 5 per cent pure silk decora- tion. (3) Ninety-five per cent virgin wool; 5 per cent Angora rabbit hair. And so on with other mixtures and proportions. What! No Soap Did you ever dash into a rest -room to tidy up before a meal, to find to your dismay there wasn't any soap with which to remove the grime of your motor trip? Did you? Of course you did! And we can al- most hear your disheartened ex- pression, "No soap!" All of which brings us directly to the good news we have for you of new tissue thin disks that lather im- mediately in any kind of water. A good supply of disks is con- tained in a fiat case, no larger than a compact, so you can carry them in your handbag. They are the 'bright idea of a famous cosmetician and are a grand bon voyage re- membrance as well as a "must" for your own handbag. b Rubbing Hunchback A curious figure of a hunchback, carved from black basalt by some old cliff -dweller sculptor, was un- earthed in a prehistoric refuse - burial heap near Mesa Verde, Colo., not long ago. The "Hunchback of Mesa Verde" as this early example of Indian art has been named, stands a trifle less than six inches tall and the rough surface of his hump has been worn smooth from contact with hundreds of human hands. . Whether this resulted from .the "rubs" of America's first gamblers, or whether from being„ carried about as a ' talisman against, the primitive cliff -dwellers! particular form of the EvilE,ve; is, however, CU Dili dea OARD QUISLING! "Cupboard Quislings"! Is that too hard a name for people who selfishly lay in unnecessary stocks of clothes or food, or other goods for fear of shortages? No! The name is not too hard, even though it may be earned through thoughtlessness. For in reality, they are doing, in a petty, mean way, what the Quis, ling does in the open. Anyone who buys more than is necessary for current needs— Is breaking his country's law for personal advantage, Is betraying his loyal neighbours and those who ars not so well off as he. Is, in effect, depriving our fighting men of the munitions and supplies they must have to defend us, Is hindering our war effort and helping our enemies, Loyal citizens avoid putting unnecessary and abnormal strains on our -factories. In time of war, loyal citizens do not spend one dollar more on civilian goods than is absolutely necessary for current needs. The law provides for fines up to $5,000 and imprison- anent up to two years far hoarding; and hoarding is just another word for unnecessary selfish buying. In cases where it is advisable for you to buy in advance of your immediate requirements — such as your next season's coal supply — you will be encouraged to do so by direct statement from responsible officials. THEW.A RTi M f=. RA. OTTAWA, CANADA H3ve. Ford Army Trades School ( By Lieut, Bruce M. Pearce) This is a war on wheels and treads a war employing armoured fightin machines on a scale undreamed of few years ago. Canada already ha one complete Armoured Divisio overseas and another in the making as well as an Army Tank Brigade 1 Britain. Canada's industrial brains have al- ready given convincing proof of their ability to produce in quantity fighting machines of the highest calibre School principal, Mr. Frank Wales, we gleaned an insight into the import- , ant job which this School is doing. It is not a big school as schools go, sin fact it occupies only a tiny corner of the huge Ford organization, but n since its inception in the fall of 1940 n it has trained hundreds of Canadian soldier -tradesmen• in the skills re- quired for maintaining fighting mach- ines. The. course is of only two weeks' duration but in that time the men, who of course have had some pre- liminary experience in motor mech- anics and .allied subjects, are expec- ted to learn thoroughly the art of dis- mantling and re -assembling Universal carriers ,artillery tractors, trucks, lor- ries and ambulances. Alert, muscular young Canadian soldiers by the thousands are being rapidly trained to operate those mach- ines. Behind the men on the battle- field, however, must stand an army of skilled artisans who must know in- timately the intricate machinery of every vehicle and how to effect re- pairs in a hurry. Just recently the Hon. J. H. Ral- ston, Minister of National Defence, made this statement: "I do not know of any more important task in the modern army than the maintenance of vehicles." Mr. Victor Sifton, Master - General of Ordnance, said in a radio address that " the scientific employ- , ment of machines is the goal at which, we are aiming." The First Canadian Base Ordnance Workshop now being readied for overseas, wiII be "the world's largest garage and repair shop." Realizing the vital importance of training armies of expert workmen to maintain the huge fleets, of army ve- hicles -in the field, the Department of National Defence has established such schools as the Army Trades School at Hamilton, the Mechanic's Training Centre at London, and countless classes in ,scores of technical and vo- cational -schools right across the country. Private enterprise is assisting in a noteworthy way, as, exemplified by the Army Trades' School •operated by the .Foil .:Motor Company of Canada at Windsor •i;n cooperation with the Depaia tntent of National Defence We paid, vllst to this $shoo) lecentl,, and t1i?+ougli 'tlue ' courtesy, , q :tile_ The men come to Windsor from all parts of Canada. In the cloak -room you will see shoulder -badges of Mili- tary units representing just about every province in the Dominion. Their ranks include officers, N.C.O's and just palin soldiers. The School will accomodate about twoscore at one time, with one-half the men working on Universal Carriers and the others) on trucks and lorries. There are six instructors on they staff who supervise their pupils' work on parts, maintenance and repair, and who give lectures during the course.) P,.ecently some additional men over and above normal quota were taken on at the request •of the Department , of National Defence. Lantern slides depicting various parts of the mechanized vehicle ars, used liberally in. the lecture -room, During the last two days of the Ford course, the hien are taken to the proving ground where they learn to drive every type of army vehicles. At the end of two weeks they leave the Ford school and proceed to Chrysler and General Motors 'plants where similar schools are in operation for more specialized study. The soldiers then return to their units where they become specialists in the care of their unit's machines, while others will acll as instructors, Entire cost of the course at the Ford School is borne by the Ford Motor Company. While in Windsor the men are quartered at St. Luke's Barracks ,though the Ford. Company provides luncheon at the plant. The entire set-up is a striking demonstra, tion of the cooperative spirit as be. tween government and private enter. prise running all through Canada's war machine. v WRONG MAN The instructor was seeking recruits for the regimental band, and ap- proaching Private Brown inquired: "Do you play a musical Metro. ment? "Yes, replied Brown, "but only at home." ;Really," said the instructor, "and what instrument clo you play?" "Second fiddle," retorted Brown miserably. Spring Round Trip Fares to Western Canada FROM ALL STATIONS IN EASTERN CANADA Going Daily May 22 to 31, 1942, Inclusive RETURN LIMIT: 45 DAYS. TICKETS GOOD IN COACHES, in Tourist Sleeping Cars or in Standard Sleeping Gars at Special Reduced Rates for each class. Cost of accommodation in sleeping cars additional. BAGGAGE checked, Stopovers at All Points enroute. SIMILAR EXCURSIONS from WESTERN to EASTERN CANADA • DURING SAME PERIOD, "NOTE: GOVT. REVENUE TAX EXTRA. Tickets, Sleeping . Car Reservations mid All 14cformation' from any Agent. ASK 'FOR $I4.L Z�I�A