Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-05-02
IN Engineer. April 18th.

from the LONDON Engineer, April 18th.
new peril now presents itself against
which the legislature has launched an act of
parliament, of which the urgency was 30 dis
tinctly felt that the bill was rushed through
both houses in a single night and received the
royal assent the next day. Fearfully violent
and dangerous within a limited sphere and
under certain conditions. nitrO-glycerne vet
fails to compass all the purposes which malice
would desire.
1t is worth while TO look calmly at this ter
rible foe to our present peace and see what is
the actual extent of the mischief it is calculated
to fntilct. pilot to Blow Up London" has
been announced; but London il more difficult
TO blow up than to burn. couple of hundred
weight OF ntrO-glycfrine il a fearful cargo. and
would cause tremendous damage. The noise
and confusion would strike terror into thou
sands, and many buildings not actually launched
into the air would be thrown into heap of
RUNS. A box OF GunpOwder would be far less
Terrible in its effects. and yet large proportion
of the energy Possessed by the nitro-glycerine
would be practically thrown away. That is to
Say. if all the forces appertainnG to the nitro
glycerlne were presented in the form of gun
powder, much greater ruin would be wrought
among surrounding buildings.
Considerable excitement was created in the
summer Of 1881 by tie discovery of sundry lin
fernal uaehines" concealed in the eargoes which
arrived at Liverpool from America Each ma
Chine was metallic box fitted with clock work
ARRANGEMENT, dnu containing about two rounds
of dynamite Col. Majendie and Major Ford in
their last annual report under the Explosives
act OF 1915. state that the experiments which
they aiterward conducted with one of these ma
chimes against masonry structure showed
that the machines were not nearly 30 destruc-
tive as was popularity supposed" The expert
ments conducted by Col Majendie and his col
league, as We'll as some OF earlier date by the
Royal Engineer Committee. We're considered to
prove that the effect of small charges of dyna-
lures is essentially local" The results would
necessarily vary according to the relation be-
tween the charge employed, the strength
of the building attacked, the. area pre-
scented by the structure and the position
selected Tor the charge. But" 1t was added,
ANY general, or even partial. destruction Of q
public building, or of substantial dwelling
mouse could not be accomplished except by the
use oil very much larger charges of dynamite
and similar substances that could usually he
brought TO bear without attracting observation:
and the effect OF a single Internal machine
containing few pounds of explosive. would be
structurally Insignificant" In the explosion at
the offices OF the local government board the
local effect was intense. the st0ae-wOrk close at
hand being pulrerized, while the general
structure OF the binding stood firm.
Sir Frederick 4. Abel observe, that the shat
ferinG and splitting effect 0f dynamite upon
rock is much greater than that of gunpowder:
IN qIHuryIu9, the rock Is not generally thrown
OIL 10y tnem 10 tar saIre extent as By the less
yiOicat agent. Dynamite las sometimes been
employed to ES~J,Te the rac< and afterward
iarg" quantities ~ @GnpoWdcT have been poured
Into The creyiGtS, by the explosion of which
enormous masses OF rock have been removed.
In submarine dtinOlitons il has in like manner
been found that when Hon-buiit ships nave
TO BE- destroyed. the Hitting effect of large
charges of gunpow,!er is advantageous in clear
ln@the frame woTS aid other parts which have
been shattered. but not actually removed by
lhe more violent class of explosives. 1t is
curious fact that even guupoW der can be made
10 approximate in its character to the nitro
ghccfine compounds, if it tie fired by means of q
powerful detOnating fuse. If this plan be
adopted 1t becomes no longer necessary for the
gunpnwder TO be closely confined. but it shares
win the dynamite class the property of display
Ing great force when placed merely In contact
with the material to he destroyed.
1t ~ this quality OF force, independent of con-
fneInent. which makes nitrO-c,ycerine COM
pounds So available for evil PURPOSES The
clockwork arrangement is also dispensed with
by the use OF acid which is set free to eat its
way through a few thicknesses of paper until
IL reaches Chemical compound which deto-
rates. ard starts the explosive in contact with
X. comparing dynamite and EuH-cOttOn with
SUEicaticr. We are told that in military opera-
t0i.s, Where greet ,lisplacing action is required.
suHpowder has the undoubted adyaptare
This is really what the dynamite army" would
desire IN carrying out their designs for the de.
struction of London. But as the conspirators
are obliged to act furtiyely. they have
resorted TO fiercer and less cumbruus
agent than gunp0wder. If the nitro-glycerine
seized by the police IN Southampton street was
intended to form the basis of one explosion.
and i, il was arranged that similar quantities
should 1T; fred IN Southwark and elsewhere the
effect must needs have been tremendous. sup
posing the fendiSh program to have been sue
cessiuliy carried out. The deafenin9 nature of
explosion would Itself constitute q moral effect
OF very Intense description. The smashing of
bTiCkHUrk and masonry, the crash of falling
buildings, and the general uproar and confu-
siOn, would create scene Of the most fearful
nature inevitably accompanied by an extensive
sacrifice OF human life. Yet even 200 weight Of
nitro-glyecrne, despite its terrible energy,
would fail to accomplish all the desolation
when writer's have generally predicted concern
Ing It.