The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-08-25
MAKING OF DYNAMITE
Visit to the Factories i'm South
ern New Jersey.
STORING THE THuNDERsoLT.
Mixing the Constituents and Filling the
Cartridges-why Does the Com
pound Explode?


sey, far from any human babitation. there
are several dynamite factories. Harmless
looking places they are, with scattered
frame buildings mostly one-story high.
seldom more than one or two visible from
any one point of view: showing few. ii any.
signs of industry, save streak OF smoke
rising over the pine tops or feecy tuft Of
steam: with no sound to break the monot-
onous and somewhat mournful soughing
OF the wind through the pines, except, at
long intervals, the dull rumble of mil or
the low consumpiive coughing OF q high
pressure engine. or. perhaps. snatch OF
song that seems TO come from nowhere IN
particular, but, on the contrary, some
times murmurs overhead and sometimes
under ground"
No sounding Of wheels, no thunder OF
machinery. No energy more obstructive
than the vegetative energy of nature as ex-
hibited in stunted pines and shrub oaks.
with huekieberry and bay bushes growing
plentifuiiy between. No suggestion of the
tremendous forces compounded and con-
centrared under one or two squat roofs
barely visible through the encompassing
vsrdure. Not hint TO the casual observer
that death and destruction Turk side by
side so close ar hand.
Eight years ago the Volney Chemical
Company established one of these factories
near Toms river. Three years of expert
ence suIEiced 10 wind the company up.
Several lives and about $40. 600 paid for the
experiments. In 1855 il was leased by the
United states Dynamite Company OF this
city, which aftervard purchased il and has
been operating is ever since. all of the
buildings, and there are from fifteen
TO twenty of them, are within
100 yards OF the Toms Yiyer
branch of the New Jersey Central
railroad, bat not one passenger in hun
dred would ever notice more than one be-
neat twO-sIory cottage with q DIT OF
fower-garden IN front OF ii. The luxu-
rance of the dahlias and carnations is in
strong contrast with the apparent sterIlity
of the sou, and these, catching the eye OF
the passenger as the train rushes oy. move
him 10 woI der why anybody should have
chosen so lonely and desoiate spot for
a habltation.
The building behind the flower garden is
the Office of the factory. It's only tenant
or day is The superintendent. Mr.. Yates,
and 6y night solitary Harchman. some
times fsslow-workman remains over night
TO keep the Waterman company. but other
wise he is all alone in the silent wilderness,
lor nobody lives there. The surroundings
are not bomeike, and IN q thunderstorm
they are uncomfortable.
Upto the last April there was another
building within a hundred feet OF this.
Now IT. site is marked by half dozen low
brick pillars and a mass of charred emoers
1t was q srorehouse for gun cotton used in
the manufacture of dynamite. One night
in April in the course OF a thunderstorm
n he hi wa Str hv lSohtpfru One
side of the roof was found some distance
away next morning. Eight hundred
pounds OF gun cotton went OF at the
touch of the thunderbolt. and what
was left OF the builuing was burned
~. What will seem strange TO the aver
age reader is that at least 500 pounds more
OF the gun-cotton stored IN the building
neither burned nor exploded. II was wet
and packed in bsrrels. When wet II will
not burn or expiOde. The section OF roof
that was found is now propped MP on poles
alongside the site of the burned building
and beneath are several broad, shallow iron
pans containing gun-cotton spread out to
dry It looks ike soiled cotton waste with
a slightly yellowish hue. Gun-cotton is
cotton waste STEPPED in strong nitric acid
or q compound of nitric ana sulphuric
acid. After being stepped it is ground to
pieces between rollers in a trough filled
with water. The water is employed for the
double purpose of washing out the free
acid and preventing the cotton from heat
ing in the grinding. Gun-cotton is high
ly explosive compound, and peculiarly lis
bic to explosion by heat. If not carefully
prepared it is also liable 70 explosion by the
action light.
A Iimes reporter who visisted this fac
tory last week was very courteously shown
around by Superintendent Yates. Mr..
Yates is an Englishman, about 80 years
old. who has spent his Life since boy hood
in the manufacture of dynamite. Dyna-
mite is a compound OF nitro-gly cerine and
celluiose. and is sent 10 market in various
forms, in sticks that somewhat resemble
hard molesses candy in appear
ance, in a black lustreless powder
put up in cartridges, and in
brownisk powder similarly put up. Nitric
and suiphuric acid are mixed with giycer-
inc to produce nitro-glycerlne, and nitro
glycerine is mixed with ceilulose, treated
NIth nitrate OF soda to produce dynamite.
Ceiiulose, il may be mentioned, Is general
name for q variety of substances contain
ing large portion. OF carbon, as cotton
waste charcoal, peat-moss and sawdust.
Itwas mentioned at the outset that the
buildings in which the various proceSSee
are carried on are AL detached. They ars
placed at considerable distances. in some
ms ances several hundred .eet, from each
other. This arrangement is adopted 10 re-
duce the risk 10 q minimum, so that ii an
explosion occurs in one building the others
viii he affected as little as possible by il.
The buildings in which the most dangerous
processes, those of mixing the nitro-givcer-
inc and ceIlulose together, are carried on
are built in excavations so that only the
roofs are visible above the surface OF the
ground, and the earth Is cleared away for
several feet on ali SIDES. describing the
buildings and processes carried on IN them
- ha N follow
the order in which they were shown to the
reporter BY Superintendent Yates.
The engine-house contains stationary
engine of eight to ten horsepower, two
bsiIers. tank for preparing solution OF
soda which is used III the preparation OF
gun-coslon. and a mill for grinding nitrate
of soda One of the boilers supplies steam
TO the engine, the other TO the pans in
which the nitro-glycerine is mixed with the
celIuiose (which is in house about 100
wards disian,), and hot water 10 the tank
above referred TO- In front OF the engine
house and without any shed over it is the
trough mill in which the .n-cotton
Is ground. Over succession OF
elevated pulleys wire cable runs from
the engine house to q building more than
100 feet distant, where the nitro-giycerlne
is made. This pulley turns the mixer IN
which the acids and glycerine are COM
pounded. AT short distance from the
western gable of the engine house IS
small building containing furnace and
broad iron pans in which the nitrate OF
soda is dried. The drying Is necessary To
take the moisture out of ii. as In Its ordin-
ary condition il contains large percent
age OF water When dried it is pulverized
TO a fine powder in the mill before spoken
of and is then ready for mixing with the
cellulose.
The house. a mere shed. in which the