Daily tobacco leaf-chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1890-1895, 1892-03-21

Come up to the factory some day, and
I'll show you how we make pitrog glycerin, T"
was the invitation | received one afternoon
in the oil country from an extensive manu-
facturer of the terrible explosive
The invitation was a very cordial one,
but there were considerations which made
me somewhat slow in accepting 1t. we
have about seven tons Of dynamite in one
magazine, and two tons Of glycerin in an
other' said my would be host. These
were among the considerations which de-
tered me.
But" he added, there's no particular
danger In looking at the dynamite unless
the building catches fire. You can play
baseball with the cartridges. and they will
never strike back, or you can pour the
dynamite out on the ground and set fire
to It without being injured. Unconfined
the explosive will burn harmlessly, but
should not advise you to touch match to
loaded cartridge. When the gases ex-
pand they do SO in extreme haste, and II
anything tries to restrain them 1t breaks,
and some one gets hurt"
The nitroglycerin man laughed rather
grimly Then, apparently thinking that
he had not made his invitation quite allur-
ing enough, he continues "But it's diff
ferent with nitroglycerin. Baseball and
fireworks are strictly prohibited Glycefin
is easily offended and when it resents an
aifront the world hears about it. but the
object OF It's displeasure never does.
"Glycerin is rs fckle and changeable,
too, as the wind One day slight shock
will explode 1t, and the next you may hit
n can with hammer and live to tell the
story
"The glycerin's readiness or reluctance
TO explode doubtless depends upon its qual-
ity One run of stock may be we'll washed
and clean, and another may be full of inn
purities II can is filled to the very
corks. too, NO that the substance within
has no opportunity to wash against the
sides, do not think it will explode so eas
lily rs one which is three-quarters or seven
eighths full"
TONS or DYNAMITE.
found the dynamite and nitroglycerin
factories at opposite ends of picturesque
little valley several miles from the town.
Both structures were Of very crude archi-
lecture and resembled ordinary sheds or
barns But from the moment we rode
down into the narrow gulch the air seemed
filed with whispers of death.
When we entered the dynamite factory
and the glycerin man pointed out the big
boxes full of loaded cartridges, explaining
that the dynamite made here was merely
wood pulp saturated with nitroglycerin,
hardly heard what he said, but watched
him with hawklike vigilance.
He picked up slender brown paper tube
that looked like n Roman candle, and
which he said was a dynamite cartridge.
| held my breath until the tube was safely
deposited upon the table again. He poured
some of the dynamite, which closely re-
sembled sawdust, into shell and rammed
II down with round stick as one would
load n musket.
Nothing Of an alarming character hap.
pened, and began to breathe with more
regularity | was more at ease as we left
the seven tons Of dynamite behind, but the
same horrible feeling Of suffocation and
coldness came over me again as we mp
preached the more dangerous nitrogly
cerin mandatory.
This building contained several huge
wooden vats, IA few pals and barrels, an en-
gine and great iron, kettlelike re-
ceptacle.
The iron receptacle was called an "agi-
tator." and, simply described, consisted OF
small kettle within large one. The
space between the two was constantly filed
with a stream OF cold water from tank
on the hillside. The inner kettle was fitted
with several paddles. which were turned
BY a crank
About 1900 pounds Of acids, sulphuric
and nitric mixed, were poured into the
smaller kettle. A thin but continuous
stream Of glycerin slowly followed, the
engine began TO pant the crank revolved,
the paddles churned the glycerin and
acids, and the manufacture of nitroglyc
erin was going on before my eyes.
MAKING THg DEADLY LIQUID
NY host controlled the flow Of glycerin
by means OF a stopcock, and watched the
agitator and the thermometer which reg
istered the heat Of the perilous mixture
with unremitting vigilance.
"Nitroglycerin," my friend said, sis
formed by the action Of nitric and sui
phuric acids upon glycerin. When those
red tunes come up, the greatest caution
must be observed They Indicate that the
oil Is ON fire, and If the mixture gets warm
enough an explosion will follow
"Do you see that thermometerf The
mercury registered 65 degs. centigrade q
minute ago, but 1t Is 20 degs. now and still
climbing higher. We must stop this ut
once, Hallooi More steam therep'
He shut off the oil as he spoke, and a sec
oral later the paddles in the agitator were
churning the mixture more rapidly. l
began TO edge toward the door, but the
giycerin man called me back
i've got il under control now" he said.
"The paddles have whipped the oil under
the acids and extinguished the fire. The
mercury is falling, and can turn on the
fufx n..ft ksA