The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-04-23
The AsP1NwALL DISASTER.
narrow Escapes-what is NItrO.GIyoe-
rtne9


Some narrow escapes from destruction bv the e,-
plosion at Aspinwall are reported One OF the most
remarkable was that OF tho American brig Kren1ha,
of the Boston Ice Company, winch lay not more
than one hundred Get astern or the European imme.
dately between her and the FREIGHT house, The brig
escaped almost unlnjured; her deck CABIN was
strained few inches out Of place, while the freight
house is q comp etc ruin
Fortunately, at the time of the accident only four
OF the clerks connected with the lreignt department
in Aspinwall were at their posts Two on the wharf
were instantly killed; the other two Mr.. Burnham
ana MIR. tOfman, were IN the reght house, but with
wonderful presence of mind, on seeirg the roof fall
ing, one climbed over o and sheltered himse IN
a window while the OF or stepped into doorway,
and both were saved. Inc remainder OF the clerks
III the neighbOrhoOd of the ticket office, seeing
the train start for Panama, which, by some good
Providence, had been detained nearly half an hour
behind time and thus saved the lives OF most of the
young men connected with tire freight offices. Had
they been in tne building many Of them must have
perished
WHAT is mTRoeLYCERNES
This compound more commonly known as blast
ing oil, is pale yellow oily liquid OF specific gra-
yty 9souDle IN % water IIodS ~ doSs M not exp explode 6y
cussIOn leaves no residue lt eXplOdes with great
rapIdity and ioIce and the dIscOyerer claims that
il can be kept an indefinite time without decOmpO.
elton A iew droIs on an anvil detouates under
tbe bow of hammer, but the explosion is not
nun Gated beyond the drop which receives the
b Ow, snd repeated blows are required TO detonate
the who quantity IL can be heated to 2l2 degrees
Fahrenheit without igniting but explodes at about
$50 deprees Fahrenheit 1t is poisonous, producing
violent but usually only Temporary headaches.
GlyceTine is the sweet principle of OIL and is ex.
tenslvelY used fOr purposes OF The toilet. In 1S47 a
puII OF M Peouze's, III. Sebrero, discovered tnat
giycCune, when treated with nitric acid, was con.
yerted INTO highly explosive substance, which he
called ntrO-g cerine. 1t is oily, heavier than
water soluble in alcohol and ether and acts pow
eIfuly on the nervous system tnat single droo
placed on the tip OF the tOngue will cause a violent
headache which Will last several hours.
M. Noble, Swedish engineer, has succeeded in
applying 1t to very important branch OF his arr,
namely blasting. From paper addressed by HIM
to the Academy OF Sciences we learn that the chef
advantage which tins substance, composed OF one
part Of gycerine and three parts of nitric acid pos
sesses is that 1t requires a much smaller hole or
chamber than gunpowder does, the strength OF the
latter being scarcely one-tenth OF the former Hence
the miners work, which, according to the hardness
Of the rock, represents five to twenty times tine
power OF the gunpowder used, is so short that the
cost OF blasting is often reduced bv fifty psr cent
The process is very IL the chamber of the
presents fssures it must be lined with clay to make
il watel-tight; this done, the nitro glycerine Is
poured in, the water after 1t, which, being the
lighter liquid, remains at the top. A slow match,
with well-charged percussion cap at one end, is
then introduced INTO the nitro. glycerne. The mine
may then lie sprung by lighting the match; there
being no need of tamplnR.
One volume of the oil produces, in combustion,
554 volumes of hydrogen, 469 volumes carbOnic acid
80 volumes oXy gen. 236 volumes nitrogen. One
volume thus suddenly expands to nearly one thou
sand three hundred times its original space, pro.
ducing an irresistible dlsruptive force. as the eX-
panslve force is greater than that OF gunpowder
smaller holes and fewer charges Will be required
The oil IS SIMPLY poured INTO the drill holes and
Watergh safety attached, and the hole stopped
with SAND or water IL IS often poured through
water INTO the holes, and as it does not like gyce
rlne mix with water, being heavy, it sinks to the
bottom and the water above serves as a plug. II the
blasting oil be frozen II must be handled with care
as an engineer in Germany found to his cost when
trying to break up some frozen pieces with his pick
II could be frozen IN TIN cases OF proper size and in
noduced IN the same manner that gun cotton Is
1he question whether nitro glycerine undergoes
spontaneous decomposition or not Is by no mean.
settled. 1t is well known that gun cotton If NOT
properly washed, ana if exposed even to dIffnsed
light underPoes spontan eOus decomposition and as
recent instances OF exp osOn In TINS city san Fran
CISCO, and now at Panama are attrlbute1 to nitro.
gyceTne it is necessary 10 be cautious about storing
quantities OF the oil IN cities until the matter IS suf,
GENTLY mvestgated-N Y. EOening Post.