The Sun.
London, England, 1852-10-05 00:00:00

GREAT GUNPOWDER BLAST.

A monster blast by gunpowder, fired by means of
a galvanic battery, took place on Wednesday last at
Furness quarry, on Lochfine, near Inverary. The
quarry rises perpendicularly above the margin of
Lochfine to a height of about 80 feet, and presents a
surface to the sea of 100 feet in length. Near the
centre of this face, and 30 feet inward or back from
the front, a vertical shaft was driven down through
the granite mountain to a depth of 60 feet from the
surface. It was 3 feet 6 inches square. From the
bottom of this shaft two galleries or tunnels, of equal
capacity with the main shaft, ran each 17 feet in
length, in a line or parallel with the quarry face. A I
the extremity of each of these little tunnels was
placed a box containing a ton and a half of the strongest
blasting powder, or, giving in separate divisions, a
total charge of three tons, or 4,500 pounds. The
great event on Lochfine was looked forward to
with various feelings by various groups—by some
with pleasurable excitement, and by others with sen-
timents of no small terror. The Condorrat band per-
ambulated the village to infuse a little pluck into the
hearts of the natives. But in the majority of cases
it failed ; for, about the hour mentioned, a very ex-
tensive emigration commenced from the district im-
mediately around Furness. The great mass of the
lower order of Highlanders had no faith in the great
blast which the big Sassenach was about to blow off
in the midst of their own country. In fact, not a few
of the old crones and gaffers conceived that the pros-
perity of Lochfine was to pass away with this mon-
strous explosion, and that the herrings would be seen
no more. Accordingly, the movement was extensive
—the young, the aged, and the bed-rid were carried
off. But the people were not content to carry away
their ancient kindred ; for not a few of them marched
off with as much of their goods and chattels as they
could carry. In fact, for miles around not a single
soul remained near Furness, with the exception of Mr.
Sins himself, his coadjutors. and a few courageous
friends. Some departed in boats ; but the great majo-
rity betook themselves to the tops of the distant hills,
where they stood in groups watching the outburst of
this Highland Vesuvius. But while the natives went
out, strangers poured in, and took up their stations in
the vicinity, some on the land and some on the loch.
When the signal gun was fired, nearly all took to the
boats, and went to a wary distance on the bosom of
the loch, while some of the extremely cautious sort
went right across the loch, and landed on the opposite
shore of Stratchur. About a quarter-past four
o'clock the last signal gun was fired, announcing the
charging of the battery. But this first attempt to fire
the mine failed, from the battery not being of sufl
cient strength to carry the electric power along such
a length of wire. The line was then shortened, and
the battery carried to a spot within sixty. feet of
the mouth of the shaft. From this point the
battery was charged, and the stroke or explosion
was most effectual. By those on shore the great mass
was seen to rise suddenly, and then subside, accom-
panied with a dull noise like the growl of distant
thunder. Those on the boats in Lochfine witnessed
the explosion to much more advantage. They saw
the whole of the lower part of the rock, on a line
with the bottom of the shaft, belch forth a sheet of
flame, and instantaneously the mountain rose, and
settled down in broken masses. Clouds of smoke, the
pent-up refuse of 4,500 P ounds of gunpowder, rushed
up from every disrupted crevice, and floated calmly
away on the bosom of Lochfine. Those close at hand
heard the sound produced by the innumerable masses
of granite rock falling into the quarry below. The
blast, therefore, has been of the:most successful cha-
racter. It is computed that from 7,000 to 8,000 tons
of granite have been torn up, varying in size from five
tons downwards.—Glasgow Herald.

A PROFESSIONAL DESCRIPTION OF A HORSE: In
a horse case tried at Leicester, Sir B. Sutton's steward gave
the following evidence :—" The mare in question was a bad
goer altogether. lie could make neither end or sides of her.
She had no sort of hind legs at all. She had very bad ones.
She never had a mouth fit for anybody to ride on '
THE PALACE OF HOLTROOD..--A memorial for the
restoration of the Palace of llolyrood to her Majesty's use
was dispatched on Saturday by the Lord Provost, ma-
gistrates, and council, to the Treasury and the Board of
Work.