Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 39, Number 41, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 January 1907 — Bacteria as Engineers. [ARTICLE]

Bacteria as Engineers.

Improbable as it may seem, states aTscTentist In Hie government employ, it appears to be a fact that bacteria are able to cause the breaking down of stone walls. Recent investigations have shown that nitrifying bacteria swarm in the mud forced by the disintegration of cement in reservoirs, and it is believed that the decay of the cement results from the action of nitrous acid produced- by the bacteria. Yet these same microscopic engineers, whose myriads undermine solid walls of masonry, are nevertheless of immense use to man, because they are chief agents in the purification of water. —Philadelphia Record. Nearly all the safety matches, which are Safe against friction on sandpaper, stone, wood or brick, ignite readily from a quick rub on glass. .