as to retain the earth far more firmly than those of any
grass or grain. Although the double poppy is an annual, it sows itself
after the first year.

A Cheap Concrete.--A kind of concrete made without cement is composed
of 8 parts of sand, gravel and pebbles, 1 part of burnt and powdered
common earth, 1 part of pulverized clinkers and cinders, and 1-1/2
parts of unslacked hydraulic lime. These materials are thoroughly
incorporated while dry into a homogeneous mixture, which is then
wetted up and well beaten. The result of this is a hard and solid
mass, which sets almost immediately, becoming exceedingly strong after
a few days. It may be made still stronger by the addition of a small
proportion--say 1 part--of cement.

Marking Tools.--To mark tools, first coyer the article to be marked
with a thin coating of tallow or beeswax, and with a sharp instrument
write the name in the tallow. Clear with a feather, fill the letters
with nitric acid, let it remain from one to ten minutes, then dip
in water and run off, and the marks will be etched into the steel or
iron.

How to Prevent Chisel Handles Splitting.--All carpenters know how soon
the butt-end of chisel handles split when daily exposed to the blow
of a mallet or hammer. A remedy suggested by a Brooklyn man consists
simply of sawing or cutting off the round end of the handle so as to
make it flat, and attaching by a few nails on the top of it two discs
of sole leather, so that the end becomes similar to the heel of
the boot. The two thicknesses of leather will prevent all further
splitting, and if, in the course of time, they expand and overlap the
wood of the handle, they are simply trimmed off all around.

The Largest Wheel of Its Kind Ever Made in the World.--The greatest
wheel of its kind in the world, a very wonder in mechanism, was built
for the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company of Lake Superior, Mich., for
the purpose of lifting and discharging the "tailings," a waste from
the copper mines, into the lake. Its diameter is 54 feet; weight in
active operation, 200 tons. Its extreme dimensions are 54 feet in
diameter. Some idea of its enormous capacity can be formed from the
fact that it receives and elevates sufficient sand every twenty-four
hours to cover an acre of ground a foot deep. It is armed on its outer
edge with 432 teeth, 4.71 inches pitch and 18 inches face. The gear
segments, eighteen in number, are made of gun iron, and the teeth are
machine-cut, ep