The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1879-02-04
EXPLOSION OF ILLUMINATE.
BLOHING 4 WOODEN BUILDING IN
HIRLEM TO SPLINTERS
Two Boys Employed to Handle "a Powerful
Explosive Saved by n Cask when the Roof
FelI-Mindows Acros. the Harlem Broken.

Fell Windows Across the Harlem broken. /
The ordinary method Of exploding a blast
is to insert the end of a fuse into n small copper
| tube about one inch long closed at one end and
loaded with illuminate OF mercury. The fuse
thus armed is dropped into the drill hole in the
rock until the tube or cartridge shell is in con-
tact with the charge at the bottom The fro
that creeps down the fuse igntes the illuminate.
This blows the copper shell to atoms and fires
| the charge. II is much stronger than gun
powder. The work OF loading such shells
with illuminate Of mercury was until yester-
day morning carried on in small one
story wooden building standing alone on
tho south side OF 10th street, between First
avenue and the East River. by Charles Ham
macher. He had to assist him two boys.
Bernard Dunn aud William Mailer. Ham
mRcher made the illuminate in rear room.
His method was to dissolve mercury In nitric
acid. and then mix 1t with what is called 10y
workmen in that business cyan salts. When
ammonia is poured into this mixture. there re-
suits a whitsh. muddy liquid. The settings
are dried into the consistency OF soft putty by
exposure to the air That is the illuminate. II
is maintained that Hammacher never kept
more than Ave or six pounds OF 1t in the build
ing at one time. 1t was the work Of Bernard
Dunn to separate this putty into equal pellets
OF about fifteen grains each. and TO press them
down into the shells with soft ramrod. That
was done in the main room. Mailer was paid
$3.50 week for setting the empty shells in
small racks. and after they had been filled. put
ting them in tin cases. carrying them to the
drying room. whore the illuminate hardened.
Ho Is il years Of age and Dunn is IS. There
was a stove in the drying room but Mailer had
accidentally broken It on saturday. and yester-
day morning Hummucuer left the two boys ut
work while he went out to purchase a new stove.
| The drying room was on the east side Of the
| Inn IA rtlrt min. fr.,t, l4r.aa
stove in the middle of the main room. The
boys were At work in the northeast corner. TIE
building had no plast"rlng and Dunn. feeling
cold. quit his work after hlline One rack aud
went to the stove. Mailer put the rack oi
twenty five newly loaded cartridges into their
tin case and carried them into the drying room.
Then he also went and stool hy the stove.
Dunn stood on the north side and Mailer on
ne west side OF the stove. They did not str w
the frr in the stove and wrrc not skylArking.
Everything was quiet aud Just rs q usually was.
Mailer told Dunn mat his mother was going 10
Keep all his wages Tor two weeks-this week
and next week
clothes baph frS }Ss astd s2lnS 10 OuY with them
MAILER was lust shaping his mouth to say
yes, Mh"L an explosion occurred. The windows
Of the public buildings ON Ran halls Island ilt.
teen blocks nQrthward aud actuss the mouth of
tue Harlem hiNer. ratified IN their cases. Tho
house. one block away occupied 10y Joseph
lawler. had ts uup.r sashcs nll broken and
the back yard sprink!ed with bricks mortar
and bits Of timber Numerous window panes
in the front ~ a row of brick houses On the
: west side Of First avenue. between lu9th and
10th streets were smashed. ana the ceilings OF
several OF them tell to the hoor Those who
ran to the windows saw Hat cloud of dense
: | black smoke standing. as IL appeared to them.
quite silll over the place where the illuminate
/ A daughter Of Capt. William Miner Of the
+ Warl's Island ferry was sewing at a front WIN
$ She says the house rocked like boat when a
% lar down as Fl,htl.th street nnd ns far north
a. the Harlem River at Thirdavenue and prob
D ! ably further. Fifty or sixty men employed Ia
4 ne Harlem Gaslight Company works. a'ross
- % ntfNI tt-lt4f fhnf IA
. gas tank had exp oded aud ran out Of Il build
:, ng where they wore into the yard.
OF the explosion hy a sond brick wall twelve feet
high. Charles Klamiuss. employed IN thr gns
10 glanced when be hcnrd the noise. lie IT. sure
the Hat roof ~ the factory Jill not rIso more
r coal tar and white gravel. hut most OF II held
0 | together When u descended. however the
O building had no side walls. aud II fell fiat upon
n Mahlcr felt strong wind coming out OF the
. rear room whore Hammachcr was accustomed
. 10 makr thr illuminate hnd ~ the same time
e something like the end IT pi,ce of timber
I struck him on the lrft knee HIS head was also
hhrt- lie saw ~" rNol coming down u- he lay
! on the floor There came INTO bis mind a pi,,Ue
! ~ advice which Fammncher had often given
MN. 10 run out "i ln' building 10 the FIRST sign
= oi anything being wrong. uud never. uni"r any
y consideration, tag" the CHANGE OK second eN-
e piosion, 50 le shouted 10 Dunn, Run cut Of
. The stove was between Dunn and Ham
D mAchers workrolm. On IL was "a kettle Of hot
water. The stove icll against him aud knOcSed
him down. hut 70 did not fall on linn. Some of
u the water IN The kettle scaldrd his left hHnd.
% something struck him on the leit side Of the
: head and half stunned him, whilc something
= else made two deep inoisions In his eit lex. Ho
l. heard Mahlers shout To him. and saw an opru-
! ing through the debris. Between the stove and
\ the door there happened to stand u very stout
the boys lives. Although broken itself by the
explosion most of liz stout stay keptiheir up
= right position ana supported the weight OF the
4 when the boys fell they lay nearly hy IL side
e ] a - lst N. In hoy
i " l. there anybody else left in the building?"
!! "Ao. we're all. but look out There's more
d stun Mailer shouted
khmiuss sprnng back as the two boys. each
. with blood streaming down his iac' ran like
: deers ~ toward First avenue. They dd not
then know That they We're very badly. though
not fatally hurt. kantuss at the suggestion ot
= Superintendent Bhrnorr y lt out the gas works
= hose and put stream on the ruins 10 prevent q
coniiagraton. Tho wnil- were shattered into
pieces varying from spilntcrs OF tne s.1' of
toothpicks to whole weather hlHrls MHhler
says ihnt whilr h" lay on the iioor ne heard TWO
r distinct rNpl9si iousi mghnE thrr" N al, After
sion OF one Of the shells. His idea ~ calling ont
y 70 hlamiuss that there Na- more stun was that
5 he knew certainly that there was more.
r. The police were soon on the spot. aud an en-
- dcayor was madr TO- krop the hoys In the noish-
70 horhood from, stealing the copl"r shells which
= We're scattered all about Nevertheless, John
70 Page aged l6. succeeded in getting hold nj ono
q 81 them, at the bottom Of which he is,ovrred
y n thin white crust, lie took "a pin 20 dig TINS
r out, nut whep lac began, TO scratch II. the shru
: exploded in his left hand. The thumb and se'-
y ond iuggr hnd to he Hmputnt"li and IL IL l"urcd
J. that the first lnEcrwlll also have To- b" taken of
could not be- found Dunn says that on the wall
: Of the bulli NJ was a hr,use for the manuiac-
k occupied by Leonard d Robinson. Aiterwnrd
n they dissolved partnership. and llnmmarh"r
q ngo ironari with'lr,w from tho nrm' and wa.
- employed as a workman 10y llamWl'hrr II ls
n said thrt three months ago thur.' llahus, aged
al a "A uNtHp f ! g.. lrtil