311. What is the national emblematic flower of China and Japan?
The Chrysanthemum. It receives the most reverential care and attention, surpassing by far in devotion that accorded to the fleur-de-lis, lilies, roses, and thistles, the emblems of other countries. Each recurring year in November, in all the large cities in Japan, and in nearly every street, thousands of plants are sold, trained generally to one stem, with a solitary large flower of immense size, often ten to twelve inches across. A very ordinary flower of some six inches is sold for five cents, the very largest specimens being sold for twenty-five cents, pot included.
312. When and by whom was the first steamboat invented?
The first practical success in steam navigation was made by John Fitch, a native of Windsor, Conn., who had settled in New Jersey as a silversmith. The happy thought of propelling vessels by steam originated with him in 1784. He rapidly matured his plans, and in August, 1785, he petitioned Congress for aid in constructing his boat. The records of the American Philosophical Society of Philadelphia show that “a model, accompanied by a drawing and description of a machine for working a boat against a stream by means of a steam-engine, was laid before the society by John Fitch on Sept. 27, 1785.” With the pecuniary assistance of several gentlemen, he immediately undertook to build a steamboat. In the Columbia Magazine for December, 1786, he gave a description of this vessel and its machinery. A steam cylinder over three feet long and one foot in diameter was placed horizontally in the bottom of the boat; the steam was let in at each end of the cylinder alternately, and after moving a reciprocating piston was discharged into a condenser, which formed a vacuum in the cylinder behind the moving piston. The force of the piston was transmitted to cranks on each side of the boat; which by means of connecting bars, moved twelve paddles, three on each side being in the water and three out at the same time. On May 1, 1781, Fitch’s steamboat, “The Perseverance,” was put in motion on the Delaware River, and made three miles an hour. This speed did not satisfy Fitch, and various improvements were soon added. The boat, with its greatly increased power, was successfully tested in the fall of 1788. The late Dr. Thornton, long at the head of the United States Patent Office, and many other eminent men, certified that the steamer moved in dead water at the rate of eight miles an hour, or one mile in seven and a half minutes. With thirty passengers the boat left Philadelphia, and, moving against the current of the Delaware, reached Burlington, a distance of twenty miles, in three hours and ten minutes. Dr. Thornton stated that “The Perseverance” afterwards made eighty miles in one day. This speed will excite wonder when the difficulty of keeping the piston tight against the comparatively rough interior surface of the cylinder is taken into consideration. The steamboat was run for some time as a packet to Burlington, but after several mishaps it was burned in 1792. But more money was needed to introduce the invention, and the numerous stockholders could not be brought to respond to further assessments. Fitch himself was cramped for the necessaries of life. He repeatedly asserted that the passenger traffic of the great Western rivers would one day be carried on exclusively by steam, that ships of war and packet ships would navigate the Atlantic by steam, and that some one who came after him would reap fame and fortune from his invention. Fitch’s claim of invention was contested by James Rumsey, of Maryland, who, in 1786, drove a boat on the Potomac, near Sheppardstown, at the rate of four miles an hour by means of a water-jet forced out at the stern. But a careful examination of the evidence proves that the honor of bringing the invention to a successful completion belongs to Fitch. It may also be mentioned that a boat was propelled by steam on the Conestoga River in 1763 by William Henry, of Chester County, Penn., but this was only an experiment, although attended with flattering results, and had no permanent effect. It was from Fitch’s labors that Fulton first conceived the idea of steam navigation, which has made his name famous.
313. In what American city are burials made entirely above the ground?
One of the noted features of New Orleans is its cemeteries. Owing to the undrained condition of the subsoil, burials are made entirely above ground, in tombs of stuccoed brick and of granite and marble. Some of these are very elegant and costly, and many of the burial grounds, with their long alleys of these tombs of diverse designs deeply shaded by avenues of cedars and the Magnolia grandiflora, possess a severe but emphatic beauty.
314. Who were the “Three Kings of Cologne”?
This name is given to the three Magi who came from the East to offer gifts to the infant Jesus. Their names are commonly said to be Malchior, Gaspar, and Balthazar. Gaspar means “the white one”; Malchior, “king of light”; Balthazar, “lord of treasures.” The first offered gold, symbolic of kingship; the second, frankincense, symbolic of divinity; the third, myrrh, symbolic of death, myrrh being used in embalming the dead. Their bodies are said to have been brought by the Empress Helena from the East to Constantinople, whence they were transferred to Milan. Afterward, in 1164, on Milan being taken by the Emperor Frederick, they were presented by him to the Archbishop of Cologne, who placed them in the principal church of the city, where, says Cressy, “they are to this day celebrated with great veneration.” Another tradition gives their names as Apellius, Amerus, and Damascus; another as Magalath, Galgalath, and Sarasin; and still another as Ator, Sator, and Peratoras.
315. Which is the highest spot inhabited by human beings?
It is said to be the Buddhist cloister of Hanie, Thibet, where twenty-one priests live at an altitude of sixteen thousand feet.