Part 2
By another ingenious contrivance, Mr. Spalding rendered it possible for the divers to raise the bell with all its weights to the surface, or to stop at any particular depth, as they think proper; and thus they could be safe, even though the rope for pulling up the bell was broken. This was accomplished by affixing a second bell of smaller dimensions over the large one as shown at K, K; it contains twenty-five gallons. In the top of it is a cock, _d_, which can be opened by the diver to permit the air to escape from the upper bell. Its handle comes down into the great bell through the top at _d_. There is also another cock, _e_, in the top, which permits the air to pass out of the great bell, and rise into the small one. There is so much space left between the two bells, that the water has free entrance into the upper as well as into the lower bell. When the bell is first let down, the cock, _d_, in the top of the upper one is opened, and therefore the air escapes from it, and the water fills it. In this state the bell is lighter than an equal bulk of water without the balance weight, though, with the addition of it, it is heavier. Now if the divers wish to raise themselves, they turn the small cock, _e_, by which a communication is made between the bells. The consequence of this is, that a quantity of air from the lower immediately rushes into the upper bell, and forces out a quantity of the water contained there. The air which is thus let out from the lower bell must be immediately replaced from the air-barrel, and thus renders the bell lighter by the whole weight of water which is displaced. The air is to be let out slowly, otherwise the bell will rise to the top with so great violence, that the divers will be in danger of being shaken out of their seats. The quantity let into the upper bell will determine the rate of its ascent. Thus, if a certain quantity of air is admitted into the upper cavity, the bell with the balance weight will descend very slowly; if a greater quantity, it will neither ascend nor descend; and if a larger quantity of air is still admitted, it will rise to the top.
[Illustration: Spalding’s improved Diving-Bell, with the Air-Barrels.]
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FASCINATION OF SERPENTS.
[Illustration: Baltimore Oriel defending her nest from the Black Snake.]
There is a very general opinion, which has been adopted even by some eminent naturalists, that several species of serpents possess the power of fascinating birds and small quadrupeds, by fixing their eyes upon the animal, so that the poor victim is unable to escape from his formidable enemy. Dr. Barton, of Philadelphia, published, in 1796, a ‘Memoir concerning the fascinating faculty which has been ascribed to the Rattle-snake, and other American Serpents,’ in which he maintains that this supposed power of fascination does not exist, and offers some ingenious explanations of the origin of what he considers a popular mistake. Our readers will, we think, be interested by an extract or two from this work:--
“In conducting my inquiries into this curious subject I endeavoured to ascertain the two following points, viz. first, what species of birds are most frequently observed to be enchanted by the serpents? and, secondly, at what season of the year has any particular species been the most commonly under this wonderful influence? I supposed this would furnish me with a clue to a right explanation of the whole mystery.
“Birds have an almost uniform and determinate method of binding their nests, whether we consider the form of the nest, its materials, or the place in which it is fixed. Those birds which build their nests upon the ground, on the lower branches of trees, and on low bushes (especially on the sides of rivers, creeks, &c. that are frequented by different kinds of serpents,) have most frequently been observed to be under the enchanting faculty of the rattle-snake, &c. Indeed, the bewitching spirit of these serpents seems to be almost entirely limited to these kinds of birds. Hence we so frequently hear tales of the fascination of our cat-bird, which builds its nest in the low bushes, on the sides of creeks, and other waters, the most usual haunts of the black snake and other serpents. Hence, too, upon opening the stomachs of some of our serpents, if we often find that they contain birds, it is almost entirely those birds which build in the manner I have just mentioned.
“The rattle-snake seldom, if ever, climbs up a tree. He is frequently, however, found about their roots, especially in wet situations. It is said that it is often seen, curled round a tree, darting terrible glances at a squirrel, which after some time is so much influenced by these glances, or by some subtile emanation from the body of the serpent, that the poor animal falls into the jaws of its enemy. Is the animal’s fear and distress a matter of any wonder? Nature has taught different animals what animals are their enemies; and as the rattle-snake occasionally devours birds and squirrels, to these animals he must necessarily be an object of fear. Sometimes the squirrel drives away the serpent, but occasionally approaching too near his enemy, he is bitten or immediately devoured. These hostilities, however, are not common.
“In almost every instance I have found that the supposed fascinating faculty of the serpent was exerted upon the birds at the particular season of their laying their eggs, or of their hatching, or of their rearing their young, still tender and defenceless. I now began to suspect, that the cries and fears of birds supposed to be fascinated originated in an endeavour to protect their nest or young. My inquiries have convinced me that this is the case.
“I have already observed, that the rattle-snake does not climb up trees; but the black snake and some other species of the coluber do. When impelled by hunger and incapable of satisfying it by the capture of animals on the ground, they begin to glide up trees or bushes upon which a bird has its nest. The bird is not ignorant of the serpent’s object. She leaves her nest, whether it contains eggs or young ones, and endeavours to oppose the reptile’s progress. In doing this, she is actuated by the strength of her instinctive attachment to her eggs, or of affection to her young. Her cry is melancholy, her motions are tremulous. She exposes herself to the most imminent danger. Sometimes she approaches so near the reptile that he seizes her as his prey. But this is far from being universally the case. Often she compels the serpent to leave the tree, and then returns to her nest.
“It is a well-known fact, that among some species of birds, the female, at a certain period, is accustomed to compel the young ones to leave the nest; that is, when the young have acquired so much strength that they are no longer entitled to _all_ her care. But they still claim some of her care. Their flights are awkward, and soon broken by fatigue: they fall to the ground, when they are frequently exposed to the attacks of the serpent, which attempts to devour them. In this situation of affairs, the mother will place herself upon a branch of a tree, or bush, in the vicinity of the serpent. She will dart upon the serpent, in order to prevent the destruction of her young; but fear, the instinct of self-preservation, will compel her to retire. She leaves the serpent, however, but for a short time, and then returns again. Oftentimes she prevents the destruction of her young, attacking the snake with her wing, her beak, or her claws. Should the reptile succeed in capturing the young, the mother is exposed to less danger. For, whilst engaged in swallowing them, he has neither inclination nor power to seize upon the old one. But the appetite of the serpent tribe is great: the capacity of their stomachs is not less so. The danger of the mother is at hand when the young are devoured: the snake seizes upon her; and this is the catastrophe which crowns the tale of fascination!
“Some years since, Mr. Rittenhouse, an accurate observer, was induced to suppose, from the peculiar melancholy cry of a _red-winged maize-thief_, that a snake was at no great distance from it, and that the bird was in distress. He threw a stone at the place from which the cry proceeded, which had the effect of driving the bird away. The poor animal, however, immediately returned to the same spot. Mr. Rittenhouse now went to the place where the bird alighted, and, to his great astonishment, he found it perched upon the back of a large black snake, which it was pecking with its beak. At this very time the serpent was in the act of swallowing a young bird, and from the enlarged size of the reptile’s belly it was evident that it had already swallowed two or three other young birds. After the snake was killed the old bird flew away. Mr. R. says, that the cry and actions of this bird had been precisely similar to those of a bird which is said to be under the influence of a serpent. The maize-thief builds its nest in low bushes, the bottoms of which are the usual haunts of the black snake. The reptile found no difficulty in gliding up to the nest, from which most probably, in the absence of the mother, it had taken the young ones; or it had seized the young ones after they had been forced from the nest by the mother. In either case the mother had come to prevent them from being devoured.”
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NATURAL MAGIC.
In a former number we noticed a work on Natural Magic, in which the word Magic is applied to those phenomena which appear remarkable at first, but which can be satisfactorily explained. The first meaning of the word supposed a commerce with evil spirits; when this ceased to be believed by philosophers, some of them applied the term to everything wonderful in nature, or which they were not able to explain. In this sense is the word used in the ‘Natural Magic’ of Baptista Porta, from which we shall make a few extracts, that our readers may know how much the world has gained in the last two centuries. Let any man reflect for a moment on the fact, that the generation which swallowed the absurdities here quoted, considered itself so wise, that it made an erroneous opinion a capital offence.
John Baptista Porta was a Neapolitan philosopher of the sixteenth century, and died in 1615. He was a diligent inquirer into all the works of nature, and wrote treatises on various subjects. In his day it must not be supposed that natural philosophy was altogether such as it is in ours, in the manner of cultivating it. Hard words, with an extract from a Greek author, were considered as sufficient for the explanation of any fact. Baptista Porta’s celebrated work, Natural Magic, was written in Latin; but for the convenience of our readers, we take our extracts from an English translation, published in the year 1658. We give the spelling just as we find it, in order that many who have never read an old book may see how little their language has changed its orthography in nearly two centuries. By magic the author does not mean dealing with evil spirits; in his own words, “There are two sorts of magick; the one is infamous and unhappie, because it hath to do with foul spirits and consists of inchantments and wicked curiosity; and this is called Sorcery; an art which all learned and good men detest; neither is it able to yield any truth of reason or nature, but stands merely upon fancies and imaginations, such as vanish presently away, and leave nothing behinde them--the other magic is natural, which all excellent wise men do admit and embrace, and worship with great applause.” A magician must be “an exact and a very perfect philosopher”--a physician, a botanist, a mineralogist, a distiller, (we should now say a chemist,) a mathematician, and an astrologer (or astronomer.) “Lastly, the professor of this science must also be rich: for if we lack money, we shall hardly work in these cases: for it is not philosophy that can make us rich; we must first be rich that we may play the philosophers.” We shall now see how our author plays the philosopher. Many of his notions are borrowed from Pliny, Aristotle, Pythagoras, and others of the ancients.
“There is a wonderful enmity between cane and fern, so that, one of them destroyes the other. Hence it is, that a fern root powned, doth loose and shake out the darts from a wounded body, that were shot or cast out of canes.” “The ape of all other things cannot abide a snail: now the ape is a drunken beast, for they are wont to take an ape by making him drunk; and a snail well washed is a remedy against drunkennesse.” “The wolf is afraid of the urchin” or hedge-hog; “_thence_, if we wash our mouth and throats with urchines blood, it will make our voice shrill, though before it were hoarse and dull like a wolves voice.” “The hart and the serpent are at continual enmity: the serpent, as soon as he seeth the hart, gets him into his hole, but the hart draws him out again with the breath of his nostrils, and devours him: hence it is that the fat and the blood of harts, and the stones that grow in their eyes, are ministred as fit remedies against the stinging and biting of serpents.” “There is an antipathy between sheep and wolves, and it remains in all their parts; so that an instrument strung with sheep strings, mingled with strings made of a wolf’s guts, will make no musick, but jar and make all discords.” “The pomegranite will bring forth fruit just so many years, as many daies as the moon is old when you plant it.” “If we cut our hair, or pair our nailes before the new moon, they will grow again but slowly; if at or about the new moon, they will grow again quickly.” “Bears’ eyes are oft times dimned; and for that cause they desire honeycombs above all things, that the bees stinging their mouths, may thereby draw forth together with the blood, that dull and grosse humour; whence physicians learned to use letting blood, to cure the dimnesse of the eyes.” “If you would have a man become bold or impudent, let him carry about him the skin or eyes of a lion or a cock, and he will be fearlesse of his enemies; nay, he will be very terrible unto them. If you would have a man talkative, give him tongues, and seek out for him water frogs, wilde-geese and ducks, and other such creatures, notorious for their continual noisemaking.”
It must not, however, be presumed that our author believed every thing which he found in a book; he sometimes exercises a judicious discretion. Thus of one good story he says, “this was a kind of moon-calf,” and of the well-known story of the basilisk killing all who look upon him, he says boldly, “this is a stark lie.” The following is his account of the loadstone: “I think the loadstone is a mixture of stone and iron, as an iron stone, or a stone of iron. Yet do not think the stone is so changed into iron as to lose its own nature, nor that the iron is so drowned in the stone, but it preserves it self; and whilst one labours to get the victory of the other, the attraction is made by the combat between them. In that body there is more of the stone, then of iron; and therefore the iron, that it may not be subdued by the stone, desires the force and company of iron; that not being able to resist alone, it may be able by more help to defend itself. For all creatures defend their being; wherefore that it may enjoy friendly help, and not lose its own perfection, it willingly draws iron to it, or iron comes willingly to that.”
With this most ingenious explanation, we take our leave of Baptista Porta.
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THE ORNITHORHYNCHUS.
The following interesting fact in Natural History was communicated by Dr. Weatherhead to the Committee of Science of the Zoological Society at a recent meeting:--
For the last five and twenty years naturalists in Europe have been striving to obtain the carcass of the impregnated female _Ornithorhynchus Paradoxus_, for the purpose of ascertaining its mode of gestation, but without success; for it is by dissection alone that the hitherto doubtful and disputed point concerning the anomalous and paradoxical manner of bringing forth and rearing its young, can be satisfactorily demonstrated.
This long-sought-for desideratum is at length attained. Through the kindness of his friend, Lieutenant the Honourable Lauderdale Maule, of the 39th Regiment, Dr. Weatherhead, has had the bodies of several Ornithorhynchi transmitted to him from New Holland, in one of which the ova are preserved; establishing, along with other curious circumstances ascertained, the extraordinary fact that this animal, which combines the bird and quadruped together in its outward form, lays eggs and hatches them like the one, and rears and suckles them like the other.
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THE WEEK.