* $ '
as to the course of events in the west
prior to the 40's. Even well-read men
may admit this without shame , by rea
son of the great lack of available pub
lished information touching that period.
It is known that Captains Lewis and
Olark were sent northwest to visit the
British domain and Captain Pike south
west to the Spanish territory , immedi
ately after the Louisiana purchase ; but
how many will claim to know what was
passing in the west between the dates of
their return and 1842 ? After that year ,
indeed , the curtain which had been al
lowed to fall back over this mysterious
domain was thrown open wide , and
Fremont's , Emory's , Salisbury's and
Marcey's official explorations ; the Mex
ican War ; the Oregon and Mormon im-
igratious , and the discovery of gold in
California , laid the hidden west bare to
the daylight.
It is this intervening space that Cap
tain Chittenden covers in his new work.
It is rather a large book , being in three
volumes. It is published by Francis
P. Harper , in a style uniform with his
edition of Dr. Coues' Lewis and Olark ,
Pike , Thompson-Henry and others , and
shows the mechanical and typograph
ical perfection of those works. It covers
a great deal of gnniud , as may be seen
from a rapid survey of the contents. It
begins with eight chapters on the fur
trade in general , the methods employed ,
relations with Indians , liquor traffic ,
trading posts and the life of the trappers.
Next follows the main substance of
the book , the narrative proper. Be
ginning with the Louisiana Purchase
and the settlement of St. Loiiis , it takes
up in succession the origin of the fur
trade , the careers of Manuel Lisa and
his associates , the Astoria venture and
the overland journeys in connection
with it , General Ashley and the Rocky
Mountain Fur Co. , Jedediah Smith ,
Captain Bonneville , Nathaniel J.
Wyeth , the Oregon Trail and the Santa
Fe Trade. Part Three deals with con
temporary matters : the war of 1812 ,
the Aricara campaign of 1828 , the Yel
lowstone expeditions of 1819 and 1825 ,
the smallpox scourge , and militaryscien
tific and missionary affairs in general.
Part Four consists largely of personal
, , . adventure , Jim Beckwourth , Alexander
if Harvey , Hugh Glass , John Colter and
men of their type , and a survey of the
region , its animals , plants and native
tribes concludes the book.
All this is told in a pleasant narrative
style , something like that of the late
JohnPiske ; not too greatly disfigured
by notes , but amply backed by first
hand authorities , some of them now
printed for the first time from long-hid
den documents. Letters and diaries are
given , some in facsimile ; autograph
manuscripts and signatures ; several
plates are reproduced from the inaccessible -
siblo journal of Prince Maximilian ; and
Tfe
a large folding map is added , which ev
idently embodies an enormous amount
of research and labor , and will be of the
greatest assistance to any student of
western history.
Besides adding to our knowledge ,
Captain Chittenden demolishes some of
our errors , and deals hardly with Mar
cus Whitmanthe famous Flathead dele
gation and some of George Catlin's
statements among the number.A. .
A. T. B.
SCIENTIFIC MISCELLANY.
Common salt , snuffed up the nose in
doses of four grains , has been reported
by Dr. George Leslie to have remarkable
effects upon the nerves of the face. In
thirty or forty cases of toothache , facial
and other neuralgia , the pain disap
peared almost instantly , and only two
cases failed to yield to the treatment.
While smokeless powder has been ex
pected to give battle scenes in the future
a greatly changed appearance , a new
German shell is intended to reverse
them. The powder charge of this pro
jectile contains amorphous phosphorus ,
and when the shell bursts it emits a
thick white smoke that shows the gun
ner even at a great distance , how ac
curate has been his aim. The smoke
also tends to obstruct the enemy's
view.
The protective vest of Jan Szozen-
panik , the Polish schoolmaster inventor ,
is most remarkable as a product of the
weaver's art. The fabric is undyed
silk , about as thick as the material of a
winter overcoat , and it is claimed that
the extraordinary thread combination ,
gradually worked out by weaving ex
periments , gives the elastic fiber the co
hesion and resistance that make it proof
against dagger-thrusts and revolver bul
lets fired at short range. The silk vest ,
fully covering the breast , weighs about
three pounds.
There are cases of thought transfer
and like effects that puzzle even scien
tific students. In a recent lecture , Sir
Thomas Lander Brunton pointed out
that particular senses in some persons
are extremely sensitive , and showed
that slight impressions may sometimes
transfer thought , and that impressions
made upon one sense may effect an
other. Visions have been brought about
by some defect in the eye , and voices
have been heard through some defect in
the ear , and it is probable that some de
fect in the nerve going from the eye to
the brain may cause hallucinations.
But there are other phenomena , im
possible to explain at present , that Sir
Thomas suggests may foreshadow the
discovery of brainwavessimiliar tothe
waves in Marconi's wireless tele
graphy.
Electricity , aided by chemical action ,
is looked upon by M. I. Skvortzow as
the chief molder of the earth , instead of
heat. The earth's heat , which has in
creased in importance as the earth has
taken a more material form , is attrib
uted to electric currents , which circu
late near the surface , the earth's inter
ior being possibly as cold as the greatest
depths of the ocean. Changes in the
aspect of the earth , as well as meteoro
logical phenomena , are supposed to bo
due to electric currents induced by solar
influence. The temperatures of differ
ent planets depend less on their dis
tance from the sun than on their re
serve of energy and on the currents in
duced by the sun through their axil and
orbital motions.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.
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charge , inquiries about investments.
Studies underlying causes of market
movements. Determines facts governing
orning values of securities. Criti
cises , analyses and reviews railroad
and industrial reports. Has complete
tables of earnings of properties.
Quotes active and inactive stocks and
bonds. Records the last sale of bonds
and the yield on investment at the
price.
One who daily consults The Wall
Street Journal is better qualified to
invest money safely and profitably and
to advise about investments than one
who does not do so.
Published daily by Dow , Jones &
Co. , 44 Broad street , N. Y. The old
est news agency of Wall street. $8 a
year , $1 a month.
STOPS THE COUGH AND WORKS OFF
THE COLD.
Laxative Bromo-Qniniuo Tablets cure
a cold in one day. No Cure , no Pay.
Price 25 cents.
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that is 'not benefited by the occasional use of
a R-rP'A'N'S Tabule. For sale by Druggists.
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occasion. The family bottle , CO cents , contains
a supply for a year.
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