Maryland free press., 1866-05-03
Giyccrine-What is Glyccr;nel

W Hlh some tcOlds are Worry ing OVrr possible
cholera, they had BETTER take care, srys the Ball
tn5rc Sen, ,ha, positive death in soue more
sudden -,ha Startling s1mpc tiurs not ovcrtake
them, irit he true that the Esrfillly pcrous COM
pound which Is named above isanything but
i :carcc in some of he northern cities. The trc-
m!ndous explosive energy vi this comparatively
new ana Eu, little known agency, is shown hy
its terrible dvugs u, .\spnwall. TO blow up
strong iron ship, tear To tatttrs sub tantial
wharf 4uU feet long, shake every hoas', and
shatter every pane Of glass in a pupulous Town,
is the work of uo common pvwer-a power which
may laugh g,mpowacr: or gun-cotton even, to
scorn.
The compound was first made about fifteen
years since, by VI. Pclouzc, of Paris, who thought
1t too dangerous for practical use. Subsequent.
Iva pupil of NJ. Pclouzc's discovered that glyccr-
inc when treated with nitric acid was conver-
ted into ahiglHs explosive substitute, which he
called nitro-glycrrift It is oily, heavier than
wafer, soluble in alcohol and either, and acts SO
powerfully on the nervous system that single
drop placed on the top of the tongue will cause
a violent headache. which will last for several
hours. A short time since, NJ. Alferd Nable,
Swedish chemist and engineer, succeeded in ap-
plying ii 10 very important branch Of his art
,-nnmcy busting. From apapcr addressed by
him to the fIenc,, Academy OF Sciences il appears
that the chcif advantage which this substance,
composed Of one ptrt Of glyccrne and three
of nitrcc acid, possesses, is that it requires a
much smaller hole or chamber than gunpowler
docs, the strength of the latter being scarcely
'onc-cnth of the former. lIclL,e, the minors
work, which, according TO the hardness of the
rock, represents some five to twenty times the
power OF the gunpowdcr used, is so short that
TINT the cost Of blasting is often reduced TO fifty
per cent. Cnlignnani' Messenger SAYS
'"0n the 9TH OfJune last, three experiments
were madcwi,h this new compound in the open
iIart of the tin'mincs of Alicnburg, in saxony
in one of these claaiber '6f thirtr-f1ur milc- |
metres in diameter was made pcrpendculary
in a dolonitc rock. sixty feet in lsugth, and at
,disianee ,of fourteen feet from Its extremity
which was vertical. At depth Of eight feet
vault filled with ebay was found in consequence
'utwhich the bottom Of the hole WIS tamped,
having depth efscren feet. One litre and u
half of 'nitro-glycerine was then poured in; il
applied, as stated and the mine sprung. The
effect was so enormous TO make fssure
fifty feet in length, and another twenty feet.'
" This compound has lately found its way in
large quantities to this country. Three hun
'drcd pounds of nitro elycerne arrscd in New |
York from Hamburg about q week ago At the
time the authorities were not aware oflhe dam
Ecrous nature of the article, and il was placed |
; in apublic stcrc. lis dangerous properties hav-
ing become known. Fire Marshal Baker, under !,
m order from the mayor, has commenced AN in
vcstigation ofal the warehouses TO see If they |
contain any ntro-gl lyccrinc, and he has discov-
'cred a considerable quantity already, which he
! has removed from the city limits. In future no
ntro-glyccrinc will be admitted 10 the public
stores.
Col. Otto Burstcnhindcr has been arrested in
New York on the charge of having shipped
case of ntro-glycerinc from that port on board
lthe steamship New York for Aspinwall through
the Wells & Fargo Express, without having it
marked in any way to indicate its dangerous
contents.
1t is stated that onr government has recently
issued orders from Washington to prohibits its
transportation on board of any passenger ship
or steamer after the lst May.