The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1883-07-04
A%DANGEROUS OCCUPATION.
STARTLING ExPER1ENcEs OF A MI
TRo-GLYcERINE MAKER.
Tntnl nIisIinps and IInirbrcndth Escapes
from Dcnth--An Explosive Which Rarely
T0lcrptcs EoOling.

Fntnl nIisl,nps nnd HnIrbrcndth Escnpes
from Dcnth--An Explosive Which Rarely
Tolcrntcs Fooling.
A few days ago Il reporter, travelling
OIL the Pennsylvania railroad, met a
man whose appearance would not de-
note that he had passed through more
narrow escapes than ordinary men are
usually subject tn. lie was the pro-
pr:etor of a nitro-glycerine factory.
lie l%aughingly said that he was differ
cnt from most tradesmen, for he car
ricd no samples with him.
"Yc;. sir" he said, as the reporter
gradually drew linn into conversation,
IL have seen some pretty hard sights
in my time. [ think the worst,
though, was when I saw the remains
of four men sticking all over the
branch!s of a tree. The way it hap
p"ned was this: In II OF our tanks
We had stored Il small quantity of gly-
cerine that b long d to Il friend. We
were kcepinyit for him. We allowed it
10 remain there for some time, us there
was no ral for it. But Il day, on
coming to the tank, we found some
one had been talnpering with the lock,
and that it was inn oisihlc to get 1t
orcn. This was a fine fix Well, the
next day was Sunday, SO as there was
no busine IS on hand, the owner ot the
stuff II 0 ell his determination to
get that tank opcn, and three men
were induced to join him in the at
tempt. We tried to persuade him to
let it alone, but off he started. Well,
sir, it WASH long before we heard the
awfulest explosion you ever heard.
1t was frightful. We hurried up to
the place, and all we could find ofthose
men was to be seen on the trees, little
pieces of their bodies, parts of their
fingers, and so IN. We never knew
what caused the explosion, whether
they had tried to burst open the tank
and thus caused the glycerine inside to
20 off or how it was"
probably you get very careless in
working around the stuff : was re-
marked.
eyes, indeed" lie returned, eve
get SO that we think very little about
it---not any more than if it was so
much milk. In fact, it does look some
thing like milk. A great sport with
the boys is to touch Off the empty cans
with a fuse. One of our rhen was very
careful, and in consequence he was
made considerable fun of by the rest.
He always used a very long fuse. But
one day, in consequence Of the ridicule,
he said that he would try a short
enough fuse. So he took some empty
cans, made a fuse shorter than we aver
used, and touched it oil. He started
to run, but he had not gone far, when
he stumbled and fell, and as he did so
the cans went off. Well it was a
mighty lucky thing for him that he
fell, or he would have been blown to
pieces. AS it was lie was completely
riddled with tin. It was as though he
had on Il coat of mail-he was so
coated. He did not get over that for
many a month, and he always said
that he would never be such a fool
again, no matter how long it took to
touch off a can
GLOW high salaries do you pay
pretty good?"
81 can get all the men I want for
SIS a month";" he answered, land al
ways have more applications than
places
"Why do you ay in such ousi.
ness?" :.
"It's a good paying business and
needs but little help. l earned SlO,-
600 the first few months, and expectto
clear much more in the next few. 1
attend to the Looks and the business
now myself. but know every branch,
and can take hold at any time if our
help n short, and 60 to work my
self. l an o going on to see about
a contract we have for opening a tun-
mel in the east"
"Ilow do you get the stuff to them
by ra.lroad?'
"Oh, no; we don't send them the
fluid. We furnish only the solid-tlle
dynamite. That is harmless enough.
If you should put a little on the floor
there and touch it off it would merely
flash like powder. You see it won't
do to use the liquid around a railroad
where there are so many workmen,
many of them Ignorant of what IS
being done, 1t will do at the oil wells,
for there the men have got used to it
and know enough to get out of the
way when we are going to elbow in
III taking the glycerine around we
have to use wagons made especially
fer it. They arc made with compart-
m"nts und.r the seat lined with cot
ton, and in these the cans are placed.
l remember the first time ! rode on
one Of these wagons. The fellow who
drove ratified along as though we had
only u loal of cabbages. lie laughed
when l tried to get him to drive more
carefully. Ior fellow his time
came. lie was driving along one day
with a friend. In going by a bad
place in the road the wagon tipped.
Ills friend sprung out just in time, for
oyer the wagon went
"Well, were they hurt?"
"They never found anything of the
driver, horse or wagon he answered,
"but a few scraps. His friend, how
ever, wasn't hurt a bit"
Ibid you ever have to carry any of
the stuff Yourself"
"Well, l should say So" he replied.
"And | carrie | it in Il leaking can. l
CHANGED to look in the place where the
stuff was and found it was leaking for
al it was WORTH. About half had been
spilled. l looked beneath the wagon
and saw that the spring was completely
covered. l can tell you l drove + ighty
carefully the rest Of the way
The reporter remarked that it was a
dangerous experiment.
ooh, well, the stuff had to be deliv.
ercd," the man mod' silly replied. 81
remember once We had to deliver a
couple Of cans and there was no one to
do it. At last 1 got mad and sad |
would do it myself. So 1 shouldered
them and started off. 1t vas rather
slippery and l had to walk pretty care
fully. Notwithstanding this, however,
1 stepped on a piece of ice and felt
myself falling. Well, I don't believe |
ever tn ught quicker in my life. l
knew what the result would be If
those cans struck; so 1 just put all
my strength in my arms. and,
Strengthening them out, held the
cans over my head. 1
struck the ground, but the cans were
safe. Well, sir, l wasn't a bit scared.
Some way or Other l retained perfect
self-possession. But as soon as tho
danger was over l tainted dead away.
The horror of the whole thing and my
narrow escape flashed over me then"
1.-The temperature makes a differ
ence with the explosiveness of the
glycerine, doesn't it,"
"Oh, yes; if it can b, kept cool there
is little danger. But we try to keep
II oIoyn fifty or If will frnayn That