It is a well known fact to medical men that there exists a great prejudice among a large number of people against taking quinine, the idea being very prevalent that a prolonged use of it not only affects the hearing, but (to use the common expression) that it "gets into the bones." As regards the former belief, Dr. Roosa, of New York, has recently been collecting and examining the evidence as far as possible, and has come to the conclusion that in some cases there really is a permanent nervous affection of the ear produced which justifies the opinion held by the laity. Hitherto physicians have generally disbelieved this, and ascribed the notion to prejudice. * * * * * THE MICROPHONE AS A THIEF CATCHER. The microphone as a thief catcher has proved very useful to an English resident in India, who found his store of oil rapidly and mysteriously diminishing. He fixed a microphone to the oil cans, carried the wire up to his bedroom, and, after the house had been closed for the night, sat up to await the result. Very shortly he heard the clinking of bottles, followed by the gurgling sound of liquid being poured out, and running downstairs he caught his bearer in the act of filling small bottles with oil for easy conveyance from the premises. * * * * * THE TALLEST TREE IN THE WORLD. The tallest accurately measured _Sequoia_ standing in the Calaveras Grove, near Stockton, California, measures 325 feet, and there is no positive evidence that any trees of this genus ever exceeded that height. Of late years, explorations in Gippsland, Victoria, have brought to light some marvelous specimens of _Eucalyptus_, and the State Surveyor of Forests measured a fallen tree on the banks of the Watts River, and found it to be 435 feet from the roots to the top of the trunk. The crest of this tree was broken off, but the trunk at the fracture was 9 feet in circumference, and the height of the tree when growing was estimated to have been more than 500 feet. This tree, however, was dead, though there is no doubt that it was far loftier than the tallest Sequoia. Near Fernshaw, in the Dandenong district, Victoria, there has recently been discovered a specimen of the "Almond Leaf Gum" (_Eucalyptus amygdalesia_), measuring 380 feet from the ground to the first branch, and 450 feet to the topmost wing. This tree would overtop the tallest living _Sequoia_ by 125 feet. Its girth is 80 feet, which is less than that of many Sequoias, but as far as height is concerned it must be considered the tallest living tree in the world. * * * * * THE ARGONAUT, OR PAPER NAUTILUS. [Illustration: ARGONAUT, OR PAPER NAUTILUS.]