Erika Seitz and Kathryn Myers (our VP of Activities & Events and VP respectively) are graduating this December. Congratulations to both of them!

Seitz Photography- beyond the ordinary $150.00 credit in photo sitting and prints (4 of them)

Peter Schlömer stellt freundlicherweise eine Umbaubeschreibung und Fotos zu Verfügung. Herzlichen Dank!
“Nach der Frage, wie können 3 – 4 Hunde und 2 Fahrräder in einem nur 2,07 m breiten Wohnmobil untergebracht werden, kam die Idee eines der 2 Betten von 1,99 x 1,60 m zu entfernen und eine „Doppelgarage“ zu bauen.
Das obere Bett wurde höher gesetzt, beim unteren Bett bis auf die vordere Leiste alle Teile inkl. der kleinen Schiebetür mit Zwischenwand zum ehemaligen Stauraum entfernt. Der Freiraum unter dem verbleibenden Bett wurde unterteilt. Im vorderen Teil wurde mit mehrfachverleimten Holzplatten eine Kiste eingebaut, die durch einen mit Klavierband klappbaren Boden oberhalb der Radkästen einen zusätzlichen Stauraum bietet. Der Deckel der Kiste wurde mit der vorderen Bettleiste verbunden und bietet somit einen festen Ablageplatz für Tisch und Stühle. Zur Sicherung zum Wohnraum hin wurden Alu-Vierkantleisten mit Bohrungen versehen und mit Alurundstäben variabel „verschließbar“ gemacht.
Im hinteren Teil wurde ein Fahrradträger an der Rückwand und mit dem Fahrzeugboden fest verschraubt und durch eine EFOY Brennstoffzelle ergänzt.
Durch Entfernen der Matratzen, des Lattenrostes und der hinteren Bettleiste und Einbau der zusätzlichen Holzteile für die Hundebox ergab sich keine Veränderung des Leergewichts bzw. der Zuladung.
So entstand eine funktionelle Doppelgarage für Fahrräder mit Hundebox, jeweils 1,99 x 0,80 m.”

In occasione della IV Benedizione di camper a Dova, durante un violento temporale notturno, con forte vento, ho scoperto di avere un’infiltrazione di acqua, attraverso la finestra seitz di sinistra.

La goccia.

A pensarci bene, è molto probabile che la pendenza ed il vento possano avere contribuito all’improvviso inconveniente; è vero che c’è sempre una prima volta, ma in questo anno, abbiamo preso tantissima pioggia ed un effetto di questa entità, non si è mai visto, mentre di solito dovrebbe iniziare poco alla volta.

Ma non importa, visto che questo WE dovremo andare a Lione e che è anche prevista della pioggia, ho deciso di intervenire con prontezza ed efficacia.

Ho preso un tubo di silicone bianco acetato, per uso esterno nautico, anti UV, ho provato presso un negozio specializzato, ma non sono riusciti a convincermi, non vorrei mai che diventasse giallo con il sole.

Così l’ho acquistato da un famoso grande concessionario di Monza, più che altro mi era di strada; questo è il silicone che usano loro per gli interventi sui loro mezzi, quindi dovrebbe essere quello giusto.

La fessura preesistente.

Ho iniziato alle 17,35, giusto il tempo di arrivare dal lavoro; guardando bene, si vede all’interno della finestra la siliconatura in nero, ma è probabile che con il tempo sia diventata insufficiente.

Ho provveduto a lavare bene tutto il contorno, usando uno sgrassante generico ed una spugnetta bagnata, lasciando poi asciugare, mentre provvedevo a lavare le altre finestre.

Poi ho iniziato a passare il silicone con l’apposito dosatore che preme la siringa; il foro dell’ugello è piccolo, così ne esce poco.

La fessura laterale.

Con un dito bagnato sono passato sopra al silicone, in modo da farlo ben aderire e fare un tutt’uno, tra la finestra e la parete.

Devo riconoscere che se avessi avuto più tempo, avrei comprato anche del nastro di carta adesivo, quello da carrozziere, in modo da proteggere meglio le inevitabili sbavature sulla parete.

Finito di spalmare il silicone, ho provveduto a passare con un foglio di carta da cucina sulla parete, in modo da togliere il più grosso.

Ho ricoperto il lato superiore ed i due lati laterali della finestra, il lato inferiore, tranne gli angoli, l’ho lasciato aperto, in modo da far respirare la cornice e far uscire l’eventuale umidità, tanto all’interno c’è ugualmente del silicone nero.

Il lavoro finito a sinistra.

Questo lavoro l’ho ripetuto per le 6 finestre attorno al camper:

• sinistra seitz grande
• sinistra 2 piccole seitz dei letti a castello
• destra scorrevole grande
• destra scorrevole cucina
• posteriore seitz del bagno

Mi sono rimaste fuori solo le 2 finestrine della mansarda, ho una scala troppo piccola per arrivare bene e non vorrei cadere, non per me, io mi aggiusto da solo, ma non vorrei rovinare qualcosa sul camper.

L'altro lato.

Alle ore 19,15 ho finito, era sicuramente meglio aver potuto lavare il camper prima di tutto il lavoro, ma siamo sempre sulla questione del poco tempo che ho a disposizione, devo riconoscere che è uscito un buon lavoro, anche se poteva essere un pò meglio.

Ancora sul fianco destro.

Adesso sono un pò più tranquillo, già domani è prevista della pioggia, non tanto per l’infiltrazione interna, ma non avrei potuto eseguire il lavoro fuori.

Bye 

“Der Reisemobilhersteller Seitz aus dem baden-württembergischen Kleinaspach hat infolge der Absatzkrise die Produktion der Tikro-Fahrzeuge eingestellt und den Betrieb stillgelegt. Die Garantieleistungen für die Kunden sollen in vollem Umfang erfolgen, teilte Seitz mit. Vom 25. bis 27. Juni findet ein Räumungsverkauf von Lagerfahrzeugen und Zubehör statt. Info: Telefon 07148/3653, www.tikro.info”

Es ist sehr merkwürdig, dass wir als Kunde bisher von der Firma Seitz nicht über die Modalitäten der Garantieleistungen nach erfolgter Betriebsstilllegung informiert wurden. Auch hätten wir uns gewünscht nicht erst durch die Presse von der Betriebsstilllegung zu erfahren.
Mit einem Infobrief mit allen relevanten Daten z.B. auch mit dem Termin für den Räumungsverkauf von Zubehör, hätte die Fa. Seitz Stil gezeigt.

For those of you that have interest in Canonical Theology and related disciplines, you might appreciate this ‘heads up.’ Christopher Seitz of the Wycliffe College at University of Toronto has three forthcoming publications (well really more than that, but there are three that are very imminent.).

First, (and I didn’t help him on this one) is his forthcoming book being put out by Baker Academic entitled ‘The Goodly Fellowship.’ I haven’t probed too much to figure out exactly what this will be about, but I get the sense that it deals with matters related to the Apocrypha, Old Testament, and Canon.

Second, he is presenting a paper at a conference in Notre Dame on ‘Canon and Conquest’ (i.e. herem) which will later be published by Oxford Press along with the other papers presented on this topic at the conference.

And third, an essay on ‘19th Century Prophecy’ will be included in the up-and-coming Hebrew Bible / Old Testament series (edited by Saebo; for those of you who aren’t familiar with this title, it is similar to the Cambridge ‘History of the Bible’ only better).

Herr Becker von der Fa. Syro, der uns den Tikro verkauft hat, bestätigte heute, dass die Fa. Seitz Ende Mai die Produktion der Tikro Fahrzeuge einstellt. Weiterhin teilte er mit: “Ihre Garantieansprüche incl. der Dichtheitsgarantie von 6 Jahren bleibt bestehen! ”

Näheres zur “Betriebsstilllegung aus wirtschaftlichen Gründen” ist unter folgendem Link zu lesen.

As “The Age” points out below, the issues at Brimbank are not in the past and not contained to Brimbank. Four of the previous councillors are still there, George Seitz’ neice is on council, and the same MPs are sticking their nose into council business. On top of that, the administration at Brimbank which appeared to stand and watch while the ship sank, is basically the same.

Brumby must put party politics aside and sack the council immediately.

from “The Age”

Labor needs to flush out the stables at Brimbank

• Editorial
• May 8, 2009

Reprimands to Brimbank councillors won’t end the sway of factional bosses.

VICTORIA’S Attorney-General, Rob Hulls, at least found the right phrase for it. The misconduct and conflicts of interest at Brimbank Council, revealed in a report submitted to State Parliament yesterday by Ombudsman George Brouwer, were “nothing short of a bloody disgrace”, Mr Hulls said. To expunge that disgrace, the Government is quite properly implementing one of Mr Brouwer’s principal recommendations. Later this year it will introduce legislation prohibiting councillors from working for MPs, to prevent undue influence being exerted over council deliberations. The Government’s other responses to the Brimbank shenanigans, however, seem half-hearted by comparison. Instead of sacking the council and appointing an administrator, a municipal inspector will be appointed to ensure that Mr Brouwer’s recommendations are carried out. As for the Labor MPs identified in the report — a roll call of names already contentious in other contexts, including Theo Theophanous, George Seitz and Telmo Languiller — they are threatened with a reprimand, which sounds suspiciously like a slap on the wrist.

Why the Government should be so restrained in almost everything except the Attorney-General’s rhetoric is a mystery. In the circumstances, Victorians will be tempted to see the refusal to sack Brimbank Council as a partisan one, and perhaps as an admission of defeat. The misconduct and the networks of influence described by the Ombudsman are not to be understood as the isolated actions of a few councillors in Melbourne’s west, but as part of a culture of influence peddling that has deep roots in the ALP. When a government talks tough but treads softly in dealing with manifestations of that culture, the implicit message to citizens is that the peddlers will still wield influence, no matter how much they and the party have been shamed by a report such as Mr Brouwer’s.

Former Labor powerbroker Robert Ray once remarked that there are really only two factions in the ALP, the ins and the outs. And so it seems to have been in Brimbank, where the battle was not between Right and Left but between sub-factions — cliques might be a better term — of the Right. Ethnic differences sometimes intensified the successive ascendancies of those who at different times comprised the “ruling faction” or the minority on the council, but the story uncovered by Mr Brouwer’s investigation is ultimately a sordid series of favours sought and obtained — or of revenge taken for favours denied.

As Mr Brouwer notes, “councillors are mandated to represent the interests of the community and to faithfully and impartially carry out their functions to the best of their skill and judgement”. That, at least, is what the Local Government Act prescribes as a councillor’s role. It is extremely difficult to fulfil that role when a councillor is employed by an MP, however, for it may generate a conflict between duties to the municipality and duties to the MP. Yet in Brimbank, former mayor Natalie Suleyman worked for former police minister Andre Haermeyer during her tenure of the mayoralty, and Cr Costas Socratous worked for the former trade and industry minister and continuing Labor MP, Theo Theophanous.

Different but overlapping trails of influence connected the competing council factions with Mr Theophanous’ brother Andrew, whose wife Kathryn Eriksson was a councillor; with Ms Suleyman’s father, ALP factional heavyweight Hakki Suleyman; and with long-serving Labor MP and branch-stacker George Seitz, whose niece Heidi is a councillor. The mushrooming conflicts of interest were not only about some councillors being directly employed by politicians in another tier of government, but by the fact that non-elected people such as Mr Suleyman and Andrew Theophanous appeared to be able to influence council decisions.

Because of the influence of outside parties, those decisions of the council were not always made in “the interests of the community”. In the most vindictive instance set out in the Ombudsman’s report, Mr Suleyman and his daughter made a deal with Mr Seitz and Mr Languiller, under which the council would fund works on the Keilor Lodge Reserve in return for Mr Seitz supporting Ms Suleyman’s attempt to win ALP preselection for the Legislative Assembly seat of Kororoit. When Mr Seitz reneged on the deal, Ms Suleyman tried to halt the development work at the reserve. That is not how Ms Suleyman explains her actions, and Mr Seitz denies there was a deal. Mr Brouwer, however, is not persuaded by either of them. His meticulous investigation deserves a far stronger response from the Government than a timid promise of reprimands.

http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/editorial/labor-needs-to-flush-out-the-stables-at-brimbank-20090507-awka.html?page=-1

“Doubt is our product,” stated a now-infamous internal memo of the tobacco industry in 1969. And it was—the tobacco industry made a business of manufacturing and selling uncertainty to combat a growing body of evidence that linked smoking to cancer.

At the forefront was Frederick Seitz, an ageing physicist who served as the principal scientific advisor to the RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company’s $45 million medical research program. The goal of the research was not to look at the health effects of smoking cigarettes, but to confuse the existing science. Seitz was ultimately let go because he was “quite elderly and not sufficiently rational to offer advice,” according to a 1989 internal memo.

But Frederick Seitz was not about to retire. In 1998 Seitz organized the Oregon Petition in conjunction with the Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine to challenge the scientific consensus on man-made global warming.

So who was Seitz working for now? I’ll give you a hint: this company posted profits of $40 billion in 2008, the largest ever recorded by any company.

It was ExxonMobil.

Between 1998 and 2004, ExxonMobil contributed $16 million to organizations that deny or minimize the effect of humans on global warming, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists. Seitz’s own organization, the George C. Marshall Institute, received $630,000 between 1998 and 2005. That’s about 20 percent of its entire budget.

ExxonMobil has developed a network of ostensibly independent non-profit organizations like the Marshall Institute through which it can launder information to the public. Together they promulgate the non-peer-reviewed and often discredited research of a handful of global warming skeptics. Many of the individuals in these groups are associated with more than one organization, sometimes up to eight. In effect, ExxonMobil is leveraging dissent, making it seem as if there is less consensus within the scientific community than there actually is.

ExxonMobil isn’t the only player in this game. The U.S. Republican Party, which receives three times more money from the oil industry than Democrats, realizes that it is “vulnerable” on issues like global warming, as expressed in a memo by top political consultant Frank Luntz. In that same memo, Luntz went on to assert “the scientific debate is closing [against us] but not yet closed. There is still a window of opportunity to challenge the science.”

The media seems complicit in this disinformation campaign, often neglecting the sometimes complicated science behind global warming and instead presenting only the politicized debate surrounding the issue. In an effort to be fair, they provide a platform for oil and coal-funded propaganda without distinguishing it from reputable peer-reviewed research. (You also may have noticed that CNN suspiciously forgot to include questions on global warming during its two presidential debates, which were prominently sponsored by the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, a $35 million coal industry campaign.)

This isn’t a huge conspiracy—it’s just business as usual. It’s not even something we haven’t seen before. The tobacco industry was forced by a lawsuit to share the internal documents which exposed their massive campaign to intentionally deceive the public. Should that happen to ExxonMobil, we’ll probably see more of the same. Manufacturing doubt has become a multi-million dollar industry in this country.

This is a tale of caution. While dissent is an essential part of informed debate, be wary of where you get your information. Legitimate dissent is not industry-funded propaganda. If you are truly doubtful of man-made global warming, base your opinion on reputable scientists’ research. However, if you just want to be contrarian, maybe you could be getting paid to be an industry hack too.

Read on:

Desmogblog.com: More information on the disinformation campaign
—A PR professionals view
—On Frederick Seitz and the Oregon Petition

See the Oregon Petition

Sourcewatch.org: background information on the Oregon Institute and the Oregon Petition

The National Academy of Sciences reaction to the Oregon Petition

British scientists ask ExxonMobil to stop

Opensecrets.org: a summary of political contributions from the oil and gas industry

Center for Public Integrity: There are four global warming lobbyists to every one lawmaker in Washington. Find out who they are and what they’re saying

RealClimate.org: arguing for global warming
—A critique of William Gray’s position

TCSDaily.com: arguing against global warming

For a more lengthy overview of the global warming debate which highlights William Gray, I highly suggest this article in the Washington Post

Book: The Heat is On by Ross Gelbspan

Update!
The discovery process of a disinformation campaign has begun. A memo from oil and coal industry scientists to industry lobbyists was found which showed industry scientists supported the theory of global warming. Part of the memo was suppressed by industry leaders.

Clear Creek

The first part of Josiah’s correspondence is a bit wordy, but I do like how he passes on some of the “local” nomenclature to the folks back home. Further down, he relates an incident which shouldn’t be missed!

For the Huron Reflector
Interesting Letters from California.

We are permitted to publish the following letters from Josiah Roop, of Republic, Seneca county, now in California:

CLEAR CREEK, TRINITY MOUNTAINS,
CALIFORNIA, May 5, 1850.

My Dear Friend:
Here way up in the very northern part of California, near the Oregon line, placers as rich as ever were discovered, are daily coming to light. — Less than a year ago, nought but the poor, miserable Indian and the wild beasts of the forests traversed these rugged mountains, some of whose peaks are covered with everlasting snow. Now the white man, by hundreds and by thousands, are following up every river, creek, streamlet and gulley (or “gulch” as the miners term it) to their very source amidst these snow-capped hills “prospecting,” which being interpreted signifies, “hunting for a good place to dig.” This “prospecting” is an exciting business.

A company varying in number from three to a dozen, start out with their knapsack of provisions sufficient for a week’s subsistence — their blankets, shovels, picks and pans, not forgetting that most faithful of mountain friends, the deadly rifle, without which no prospector ever thinks of going, with the necessary amunition and the sharp butcher or bowie knife belted to their side. Thus equipped, they leave some trading post on a prospecting tour — gulches and rivulets are passed by, by those who have the vanity to believe that they know the unerring characteristics of a rich placer, while those who take things more deliberately, halt and prospect the very spot thus passed over by their comrades, commence digging, and filling their pans and washing the soil or “dirt,” as it is universally called here, soon the “oro” (Spanish for gold) glitters most charmingly in the bottom of their pans. Those in advance being informed of the luck of their more tardy companions, return, and not unfrequently wash out several pans of dirt without scarcely getting a single particle.

Discouraged at their ill success compared with their more fortunate neighbor, whose every pan adds from twenty-five cents to a dollar to their pile, they damn the diggings and themselves, and try their luck somewhere else, frequently taking out more than a dollar to the pan full. Such is the luck of the prospector. Night with her sable mantle, eventually overtakes them. Their simple, rough and coarse fare is partaken of with a relish not known to your city gents; and soon under some large tree, with his blanket wrapped round him, and his rifle at his side, lies the prospector fast asleep, dreaming pleasantly about those near and dear whom we have all left behind us. The fiery, impatient seeker after fortune will wash but a pan or two, not more than three at most without getting a good pan, before they will abandon the prospect for another, and thus from spot to spot and from place to place they travel, until there is not a river in California which they have not prospected. I have known many who have been prospecting for more than a year, and have not yet found a good place to dig. — Others equally anxious to get gold, but not so persevering, will try prospecting a week or two, swear that the mines are worth nothing, abandon the mines, hire out, get money enough to return, and go home cursing the country, while the steady, persevering, untiring workman, is sure eventually, to strike a rich lead, and at the expiration of the month he will have averaged his ounce a day, and may have made his pile in the course of a single month, as is sometimes the case.

Three men left here for their homes in Richland county, Ohio, a few days ago, with over $3,000 apiece, having dug it out of a gulch close by. Mining, to ensure success, like all other business, requires steady, persevering, unremitting labor, and that of the severest and most toilsome sort too. True, some miners are more lucky than the rest, and indeed more so than the great majority of them, and have made big fortunes in a very short time. But as a general rule, the steady laborer will average his ounce a day, and this is about a safe estimate of the fruits of the labor of those who work hard and regularly all day. Many do not average even half an ounce, owing principally to their unsteady, roaming, restless, changing disposition.

And as regards the comparative quality of the different mines, I am decidedly of the opinion that one river in California is as rich as another, and as a general rule to ensure success, I advise the miner to stick to one placer until he makes his pile.

Image from http://static.howstuffworks.com

MUST READ! Below is Josiah’s personal account of what must have been a terribly heartbreaking (and wallet breaking) setback he and his friends and/or partners experienced.

Mining is emphatically hard work; I speak what I do know, having tested it myself. I have labored forty days (and forty nights I had almost added) upon a canal and dam on Rose’s Bar on Yuba River. Yes, my dear sir, fifty of us poor devils wrought, like men never wrought before, on that dam and upon that canal. Never did the southern slaves work half as hard. Long before the dawn of day, from the middle of September to the first of November, could be seen the camp-fires of the dam company blazing high around our camp-kettles, and at sunrise every man who failed to answer to his name at roll-call was fined three dollars, and if he were not on the ground within one hour after that time he was dockt one half a day. One hour was given us at noon, and the same rigid law applied to us at roll call, as in the morning, our daily labors ceased only when the sun had disappeared behind the western horizon, and by the time we returned to camp, built our fires, baked our pan-cakes, fried our pork and ate our luxurious supper, our soft, downy bed on the rocky ground was of all luxuries, I assure you the most luxuriant, and with one blanket wrapt around us we would soon be sleeping, and oh how sweetly! Verily, “sweet is the sleep of the laborer.”

On the Monday preceding the 1st of November, the drain being completed, and every thing ready for the setting of the machines, I concluded to hire a substitute, as I wished to go to Johnson’s Ranch on Bear river some fifteen miles distant to look after some cattle I had there. Previous to leaving, I was offered a thousand dollars cash down for my interest in the dam, but my expectations of a big raise were decidedly in the ascendant, caused no doubt by seeing Dr. Shelby (formerly of Maryland, but now of Louisiana?) wash seventeen dollars out of a single pan-full of the dirt procured in the bed of the old channel which had been drained.

Thursday, the 1st of November, came, and with it came rain, and it continued to rain day and night and beat upon that dam, and notwithstanding it was built upon a rock and built with rocks, it fell, and with it fell all our hopes of future greatness — and great was the fall thereof. Sufficient work was done with the machines previous to the breaking of the dame to test the extraordinary richness of the bed of the river — one single quicksilver machine having taken out over $1,000 on Wednesday. — But there was not enough taken out to liquidate the damages assessed against us by those whose claims on the bar we had injured in consequence of changing the channel.

Our company was therefore flat broke. Our whole stock, consisting of quicksilver, machines, quicksilver tools, &c., were sold at public auction. machines worth $500 sold for $100; quicksilver, which cost us $10 per pound, sold for $4 and $5. On receiving this direful intelligence, I swore vengeance against all dams — and especially against all hard work. — I have never been on Rose’s Bar* since, neither have I struck a lick in the mines since I left that dam.

*The site I linked to, South River Park Adventures, has wonderful pictures and maps of the area. There is one mention that I found of “Rose’s Bar,” and it says that it is “15 miles downstream from Bridgeport.”

I went to trading in provisions and miner’s tools, and have been thus engaged ever since, and have thus far been successful. You may recollect of my prediction about the speculation in cattle, made in a letter written you last Fall. I purchased six yoke of oxen, four yoke from our own mess, and the others from Sietz and his mess, for which I paid $50 a yoke. I succeeded in finding but four yoke, which I sold in December for $600, thus doubling the investment in about three months, after losing one-third of the stock. Next August, September and October will the same speculation be presented to those who choose to go into it.

Of the Republic boys who had a share in that celebrated dam, were my friends Amsden, Stickney, McClung, McArdle, Seitz, Cloud, Holmes, Hease, and this “hombre,” (Spanish for “man,” or “individual.”) Parks traded his interest to Cloud for his interest in his bakery, and by this transaction was the lucky hombre. — Stickney, Parks, Amsden, Sayre, Gardiner and Wagner are now at one of the richest bars on Yuba river, not doing much not it is true. on account of the high stage of water, but as soon as the waters subside, they are sure to make their fortunes by next Fall.

In a letter dated May 14th, Mr. Roop says:

Coming up the Sacramento not long since, the steamer which I was in accidentally upset a whale boat, in which were 4 men; one of whom drowned. Enquiry was made of his rescued comrades; who he was — they were unable even to give his name — they had employed him that morning to work his passage up to Marysville; he had told them that he wished to go to the mines. He had a family at home and was out of money, that was all they knew about him. They said he was a well dressed, resectable looking man. His body was recovered. Thus his family, like many others, will never know what has been the fate of those they hold most dear.

Taking them altogether; I am free to say that the Republicans will render as good an average account of themselves as any other company who have left the States. Their health has generally been good — no one died save old Mr. Kline, whose infirmities should have admonished him never to have started. They all got in, in good time and the prospects of all now are A. No. 1. I do not think that any of the Seneca Tribe will make a big fortune — that is fifty thousand — always excepting our mutual friend, Brewster, who is in a fair way to make his half million. He now is one-third proprietor of one of the largest houses in San Francisco, the firm of which is “Plummer, Keith, & Co.”

You need not to look for any one else of the Seneca tribe coming home very rich next winter. But then there will no one have less than three hundred ounces of he dust, unless disease, death, or some untoward event should transpire.

Marysville, California 1850

I have alluded to Marysville a couple of time in this communication. For your information I will just tell you where it is. Marysville is situated in the forks and at the junction of the Yuba, with Feather River. It is beautifully located; high above Sacramento city. It is the county seat of Yuba county, and contains some 2,000 inhabitants, although four months ago it was not even surveyed. Steam boats arrive and depart daily from Sacramento city. Sacramento city is the point where the largest class of steamers stop; and Marysville where the smaller steamers stop. Hitherto no steamers have gone up any further. But recently, both the Yuba and Feather, have been gone up several miles by steamers, and towns have been laid out on both rivers, and they will become settled too. But after all, Marysville is destined to be one of the largest towns of California. Its proximity to the richest mines, (being only some 10 miles to the first rich diggings,) and its situation at the confluence of those tow rich rivers, its high and dry site, must make it a large city. I went there in January, and if I had had sufficient nerve to have bought some 20 lots on credit of 60 and 120 days, as they were offered me, I should have been amongst you ere this letter reaches you, with my “pockets full of rocks.” But I was fearful — I was too cautious. I rented a lot at a hundred dollars a month, for twelve months. I soon sub-let it for $300 a month, payable in advance. Thus realizing a profit of $200 a month. This is small business, to be sure; but then it is an item, whereby you can judge of the increase of the value of property in Marysville.
JOSIAH ROOP.

Huron Reflector (Norwalk, Ohio) Aug 13, 1850

In case you missed Josiah’s previous correspondence, you can find it HERE.

You can also click on my Gold Rush category for more from his friends.

I have recently started Prophecy and Hermeneutics: Toward a New Introduction to the Prophet the insights from which I hope to apply to the Psalms here.

Read a review here.

Une acquisition originale et pleine de sens pour le Musée

Seitz Phototechnik AG, établie à Lustdorf, est l’une des dernières entreprises suisses à fabriquer du matériel photographique et s’est spécialisée depuis une cinquantaine d’années dans la production d’appareils panoramiques pour prises de vues à 360° et fabrique également les appareils ALPA depuis la renaissance de la marque.

Le Musée se doit donc de suivre de près l’activité haut de gamme de cette petite manufacture familiale et la porte aujourd’hui à la connaissance de son public par une installation très originale et fort attractive utilisant un produit de pointe de Seitz Phototechnik AG : une web camera panoramique de haute performance fixée sur le toit du bâtiment côté Grande Place (visible depuis la passerelle reliant les deux bâtiments), photographiant en permanence le magnifique panorama de Vevey et sa vieille ville, du lac et des « hauts » et transmettant instantanément ces images de 360° associées à la météo du moment par internet sur divers sites : le Musée, la ville de Vevey, Seitz Phototechnik AG. Le panorama veveysan est visible également en direct sur grand écran dans le Musée, offrant à ses visiteurs une animation supplémentaire utilisant une technologie d’aujourd’hui.

LA ROUNDSHOT WEATHERCAM 360° DE SEITZ PHOTOTECHNIK AG

La principale différence entre une webcam conventionnelle et la Roundshot Weathercam est qu’elle permet d’obtenir une superbe qualité d’image avec des panoramas en haute résolution, continus (sans assemblage numérique), et ce jusqu’à 360°. La haute résolution invite le visiteur à explorer les détails de l’image. Puisque le panorama est en rotation continue, la page internet est constamment en mouvement et renouvelée en permanence. Contrairement à une webcam traditionnelle qui utilise une technique vidéo à basse résolution, la caméra Roundshot est basée sur la technologie de la photographie numérique. L’image est créée grâce à un balayage, ce qui permet la capture de panoramas en 25 millions de pixels, soit à une résolution qui est 20 fois supérieure à celle d’une bonne webcam vidéo standard.

La Roundshot Weathercam utilise un logiciel pour la commande de la caméra, le contrôle de l’image, la gestion des bases de données et la publication sur internet. Les paramètres de l’image peuvent être ajustés individuellement, par exemple pour masquer certaines parties de l’image afin de garantir le respect de la sphère privée.

La combinaison d’un panorama 360° avec les données météo en temps réel permettent d’avoir une vue d’ensemble immédiate de la situation météo. L’innovation supplémentaire consiste dans la base de données météo qui permet d’accéder aux données météo d’une journée et heure particulière et en même temps y afficher le panorama 360° correspondant.

La caméra est installée au sommet de la cheminée du bâtiment côté Grande Place, actuellement désaffectée.

L’entreprise

Depuis 50 ans, Seitz Phototechnik AG est leader sur le marché de l’équipement panoramique 360° et occupe le secteur haut de gamme du marché professionnel. Seitz est aussi partenaire depuis 1996 de ALPA of Switzerland – fabricant d’un des appareils moyen format le plus prestigieux du marché.

Hermann Seitz (1927-1996), fondateur de l’entreprise, suivit une formation de mécanicien de précision en Allemagne. Son père, passionné d’aviation, construisait des avions dans les années 1920-1930…
Hermann Seitz est engagé chez les Koch à Schaffhouse dès le début de la production de la chambre professionnelle Sinar (fin des années 1940). Il travaille également avec un autre fabricant suisse de matériel photographique, Oschwald. Il fait aussi des prototypes d’appareils panoramiques avec Arca Swiss, jamais commercialisés.
Il s’installe à Berne comme réparateur de matériel photographique et s’intéresse déjà beaucoup à la photographie panoramique.
Après un bref passage à Zürich, Hermann Seitz et sa famille déménagent alors à Lustdorf en Thurgovie.
L’idée de produire des appareils panoramiques est née vers 1955 après les essais chez Arca : installation pour les vacances en Toscane sur le toit de la voiture familiale d’un appareil avec film de 16 mm, essais concluants !

Deux des fils d’Hermann, Peter et Werner, continuent dans l’entreprise. Peter a travaillé avec son père dès l’âge de 16 ans.

La maison se spécialise dans la production d’appareils pour films de divers formats.
« Durant plus de 40 ans, nous avons construit plus de 50 caméras différentes – d’abord pour nous-mêmes, puis pour nos amis et proches puis finalement pour les photographes professionnels et amateurs ambitieux dans le monde. C’est une curiosité et une passion pour la photographie qui nous guide. Il n’est donc pas surprenant que, chaque année, nous investissions plus de 10% de nos revenus dans le développement des produits et des projets d’amélioration. »
Les premiers pas de Seitz dans le domaine numérique ont eu lieu en collaboration avec une entreprise allemande pour la production d’appareils pour le contrôle de l’étanchéité des tuyaux: appareil tournant équipé d’une barrette de scanner fixe comme capteur. Pour obtenir une bonne qualité, la rotation doit être lente, jusqu’à 10 fois plus lente que pour un appareil avec support film. La maison conçoit un appareil panoramique digital pour l’extérieur dès début 2000.

Chaque appareil est usiné dans un bloc d’aluminium par des machines CNC à la pointe de la technologie et permettant une haute précision (1/1000 mm) à partir des plans numériques transférés directement sur la machine.

8 employés travaillent actuellement dans les centres de production en Suisse et en République Slovaque.

Le fonctionnement de l’appareil

L’appareil panoramique et son boîtier de protection ont été installés sur le toit du bâtiment côté Grande Place, solidement arrimés sur une cheminée hors d’usage. Il est parfaitement perceptible depuis la passerelle reliant les deux bâtiments.

La connexion entre l’appareil et son serveur, situé dans cette salle, a été faite par l’ancien canal de la cheminée.
Toutes les cinq minutes, l’appareil entre en rotation pour effectuer un scanning du paysage sur 360° , son mouvement est lui aussi parfaitement visible depuis la passerelle.

L’image directe de la web camera panoramique et de son serveur est visible sur cet écran. Elle est associée à diverses fonctionnalités :
- archives permettant de visualiser d’anciennes vues
- films montrant l’ensemble des vues sur 24h, date au choix
- possibilité de zoomer dans l’image
- station météo dont les données sont réactualisées toutes les 10 minutes, donnant la température, le taux d’humidité, la force du vent, la pression de l’air, ainsi que la pluviométrie.

Venez voir le résultat et tester le système en cliquant ici!

Cette opération a été réalisée grâce au soutien de la Ville de Vevey, de Montreux-Vevey Tourisme, de Nestlé et de Seitz made in Switzerland.

Seitz has created a monster. This 160-megapixel 6 x 17 inch camera might be slightly, well who are we kidding, MUCH bigger than your average point and shoot, but at 160 MP, it could create prints the size of Mars. The camera itself looks like it takes an effort to lift. You have to figure it must be pretty heavy.

One full res image taken with this Seitz camera will take up 900 MB of storage! That means that the memory for this camera needs the help of an entire Mac Mini, just to provide some room for the giant size. And even that can hold a pretty limited amount of photos. The high-end model of the Seitz camera costs a whopping $44,414. Be prepared to sell any small countries you own if you want it. — Andrew Dobrow

Tuesday Tools
The Horia Jeweling Tool

What is a jeweling tool? Jewels in wristwatches serve as bearing surfaces for pivots. Essentially a gear (wheel) has an axle and the axle rides between two jewels. The axle needs to have some freedom of movement (or endshake) to allow it to rotate freely but not so much as to keep it from lining up with the next wheel when the watch changes position. In most watches the average endshakes range from .01mm to .05mm. In order to adjust the endshake for a particular wheel we move the jewel up and down in the plate. The jewels in modern watches are held into place by friction and can be moved up or down. (This wasn’t the case in older watches.) A jeweling tool is used for installing frictioned jewels and for adjusting the endshake.

There are several different jeweling tools. The most common is probably the Seitz jeweling tool. It is a levered press and takes some getting used to. The Horia tool is (in my opinion) far superior.

The pushers and stumps are fit to the tool to match the size of the jewel. To move the jewel you turn the micrometric feed on the top. Each mark on the dial represents approximately 0.02mm of vertical movement. It’s a beautiful tool. It can also be used for removing and installing pallet staffs and adjusting tension on traditional style cannon pinions. I’m sure there are more uses, if you know of any add a comment.

One advantage to the Seitz tool is the ability to raise the lever out of the way and use the reamers for opening (or forming) jewel holes. A good staking set will supply you with this functionality as well.

The Horia company is a very small company which specializes in watchmaker’s tools. They make some of the finest 8mm watchmaker’s lathes, jeweling tools, Jacot Tools, and Automatic Burnshers available today. They’re not cheap but they are quality precision tools.

Note: There are two versions of this tool, one where the stumps and pushers are different diameters, and one where they are the same. I have the one where they are different. I recommend you get the one where they are the same, it will then be comaptible with all of the Seitz stumps and pushers as well as the specialized stumps made for Incabloc shock settings. I had to modify a set of Incabloc pushers so I could use them in my tool.

La Seitz 6×17 es considerada la cámara digital de mayor resolución del mundo. Fue revelada por la compañía Swiza; Seitz Phototechnik. Más que una cámara; es un scanner 6×17 extremadamente rápido. Esto es posible gracias a una muy alta velocidad de lectura de 300 MB por segundo – 100 veces más rápido que la de cualquier scanner existente.

Con una resolución de 7500 píxeles vertical y 21250 píxeles horizontal la cámara crea una imagen de 160 millones de píxeles.Esta importante resolución hace posible la creación de reproducciones de alta calidad. Y la posibilidad de una gran variedad de formatos diferentes: 6×6, 6×9, 6×15 o 6×17.

Con esta cámara no hay límites para la fotografía de alta definición.

Vía barrapunto

It is JUNE 1st, time for the FIRST Day Blog Tour! (Join our alliance! Click the button!) The FIRST day of every month we will feature an author and his/her latest book’s FIRST chapter!

Rebeca Seitz

and her book:

PRINTS CHARMING

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Rebeca Seitz is Founder and President of Glass Road Public Relations. An author for several years, Rebeca cut her publicity teeth as the first dedicated publicist for the fiction division of Thomas Nelson Publishers. In 2005, Rebeca resigned from WestBow and opened the doors of GRPR, the only publicity firm of its kind in the country dedicated solely to representing novelists writing from a Christian worldview. Rebeca has worked with such esteemed authors as Robin Jones Gunn, Ted Dekker, Frank Peretti, Walter Wangerin, Jr., DiAnn Mills, Brandilyn Collins, Colleen Coble, Melody Carlson, and numerous others. She has secured coverage for novelists in a variety of media outlets, including The Today Show, USA Today, Chicago Sun-Times, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Publishers Weekly, Christian Retailing, Aspiring Retail, Southern Living, Daystar Television, HarvestTV, WAY-FM, K-LOVE, and others. Rebeca makes her home in Kentucky with her husband, Charles, and their son, Anderson.

Chapter One

“Girl, where are you?” Lydia tightened her grip on the cell phone as she wondered anew how any woman could be late to every single thing in her life. She had thought Jane might’ve changed in the two years they’d been apart, but Jane was evidently still living up to her old high school nickname of Late Jane. The woman would get to her own funeral about an hour after they started the music.

“I’m coming, I’m coming.” Jane kept one hand on the steering wheel while frantically sifting through the things in the passenger seat of her Blazer. There was a brush somewhere, she just knew it, but finding anything at seven in the morning was difficult at best. Why in the world she’d allowed herself to be talked into attending a sale that started at seven a.m. was beyond her ability to fathom. Finding her shoes had been a reason for cheering. A brush might just be asking too much.

“Do I need to grab anything for you? This stuff is going fast.” Lydia watched a woman stretch for the last package of Times-style foam alphabet letters and readjusted her own heavy shopping basket. In the five minutes she’d been in the store, it had already begun biting into the skin on her arm.

“Nope, I don’t think so. I’ll be there in about two minutes,” Jane said, still searching for the brush while trying not to drop the cell phone from her shoulder.

“Okay, but hurry. I’ll be over in the baby girl section. I need to find something for Olivia’s first bath pages and get ribbon for Mac.”

“Got it. Baby girl. Be there in a flash.”

***

Jane snapped the phone together and slammed to a stop at the red light. Turning her attention to her still searching hand, she finally grasped the elusive hairbrush and quickly raked it through her long black hair. She had been looking forward to this sale all week but, of course, Mr. Wonderful had chosen to make his appearance a mere thirty minutes before she walked out the door. They had fought over Wilson. Again. When would the man get it through his head that Wilson was in her life forever?

She pushed thoughts of her soon-to-be ex-husband out of her mind as the green arrow finally appeared. Squealing her tires, she tore into the parking lot of The Savvy Scrapper. Tossing the hairbrush back into the passenger seat, she threw the car into Park, grabbed her purse, and flung open the door.

“Ouch!”

Jane looked up just as her door collided with the midsection of one very tall man.

“Ohmigosh. I am so, so sorry. I’m just in a rush. The sale is happening and I’m late and—”

“It’s okay.”
Mr. Tall held his hands up as if to ward off any other car doors she might be hiding somewhere and she noticed the coffee cup in one hand and bagel bag in the other. Bagels would be so heavenly right now.

“I’m fine, really.” He set the bag down on the ground and brushed the dust off of his olive-green sweater, then looked at her. “I know how women can be when there’s a sale involved.” He grinned as he knelt to pick the bag back up.

She tried hard to ignore his sexist statement and not remind him of how many guys camp out at golf stores before a sale or sleep in the parking lot to get tickets to a concert.

“Are you sure you’re okay? I mean, I have insurance and we can call somebody.” Jane forcefully tucked her hair behind her ears, willing herself to focus on the problem at hand rather than the sale happening about ten yards away or the way her stomach was now grumbling for coffee and a bagel.

“Really, go ahead. I’m fine.”

“Okay, thanks.” She turned and made her way around the back of the car. “Really, I appreciate this. It’s just that this only happens once a year and my friend is waiting . . .” She stopped on the far side of the car and looked at him. He could sue if he was really hurt and her luck with men right now meant he would definitely sue and she would surely lose. “You’re absolutely fine?”

“Go.” He made a shooing motion with the bag. “Happy shopping.”

Her mother always said to never look a gift horse in the mouth and this was one time Jane would be obeying Elizabeth rather than giving in to her own desire to argue. She practically sprinted to the front door of The Savvy Scrapper, yanked it open, and burst inside.

***

“Jane!” Lydia was in the front corner of the store, surrounded by pink, yellow, blue, lilac, and pale green. She waved a die-cut of a bathtub and bubbles above her head. “I found the perfect stuff for Olivia and Oliver’s First Bath page.”

“Great.” Jane joined her, looking a bit frazzled but otherwise okay.

“Okay, here’s the deal.” Lydia turned toward the back of the store and pointed. “All the Times letters are gone, the vellum is quickly going, and the dog section is getting riffled through as we speak. Where do you want to start?”

“Dog section, definitely.” Jane stuffed her keys into her purse. “I took great pictures of the ex this morning picking up Wilson’s poop while stepping in another pile.”

“You are so gross. What was he doing there?”

“Trying to get me to give him Wilson again.” Jane scanned the rest of the store, making a quick plan to get the most stuff. “He’ll get the picture one day, just not today. He’s insane if he thinks I’m letting my puppy come live with him while he’s spending all hours online with his e-mistress.”

“Okay, that still sounds so weird.” Lydia’s eyebrows rose as she gave Jane a disbelieving look. “E-mistress? Really? That’s what we’re calling her?”

“E-mistress is the only thing I could think of that’s fit for public consumption.” Jane grimaced. “Anyway, forget her and him. I’m here to shop, honey.”

“Right. Go on over to the dog section. I’ll come over there when I’m finished here. Can you grab me that new paper with the red stripes and dark-brown bones? I’ve got some pictures of Otis with Olivia and Oliver from last week.”

“Dale let that pug get near his precious twins? I thought you said the only thing he cared more about than SportsCenter was those babies.”

“Dale hasn’t seen the pictures yet. He never comes in my scrapbook studio. Says it’s my workspace and that I spend too much money on all this junk as it is.” Lydia waved her hand to encompass the store. “He’s probably right.”

“Oh, please. Men are never right,” Jane said and turned toward the dog section. “Dogs, on the other hand, are absolutely wonderful companions who never cheat and can’t even turn a computer on.”

Lydia laughed and turned back to the wall of baby-themed paper in front of her, leaving Jane to take care of the dog paper. Stripes or flowers? She didn’t want to make the scrapbook too babyish, but she also didn’t want it to look too grownup. The papers were all on sale, so maybe she would just get both. Dale would never know since he didn’t come into her studio anyway, and she could give some of it to Mac for Kesa’s baby book. She took two sheets of the pink-and-lime-green-striped paper, then two of the blue rosebud ones.

“Men are never right,” she muttered under her breath. Maybe Jane had a good point.