Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1892-03-11
INTERCOLLEGIATE.
HOW SOME DEADLY EXPLOSIVES
ARE MANUFACTURED.

Some Remarkable Facts About Dyna-
mite and Its Parent. Nitroglycerin.
Stirring Sensitive Mixture.
'Come up to the factory some day, and
I'll show you how we make nitroglycerin, {"
was the Invitation received one afternoon
facturer of the terrible explosive
The invitation was very cordial one,
but there were considerations which made
me somewhat slow in accepting it. eve
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. Unconfned
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 if
anything tries to restrain them it 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 continued; But it's DIFF
ferent with nitroglycerin. Baseball and
fireworks are strictly prohibited. Glycerin
is easily offended, and when it resents an
affront the world hears about it, but the
object of it's displeasure never does.
"Glycerin is as tickle and changeable,
too. as the wind. One day slight shock
will explode it, and the next you may hit
a can with a hammer and live to tell the
story
''The glycerin's readiness or reluctance
to explode doubtless depends upon it's quail
ity. One run of stock may be well washed
and clean, and another may be full of inn
purities. If can is filled to the very
corks. too, so that the substance within
has no opportunity to wash against the
sides, do not think it will explode so cas-
lily as one which is three-quarters or seven
eighths full"
TONS OF 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, l
hardly heard what he said, but watched
him with hawklike vigilance.
He picked up slender brown paper tube
that looked like Roman CANDLE and
which he said was dynamite cartridge.
held my breath until the tube was safely
deposited upon the table again. He poured
some of the dynamite, which closely re-
sembied sawdust, into shell and ranlmed
it down with round stick as one would
load Il 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
GOODNESS came over me again as we APP
preached the more dangerous nitrogly-
cerin mandatory.
This building contained several huge
wooden watts, a few pals and barrels. an en-
CINE and a great iron. kettlelike re-
ceptacle.
The iron receptacle was called an "agi-
tator." and, simply described, consisted of
small kettle within a large one. The
space between the two was constantly filled
with stream of cold water from tank
on the hillside. The inner kettle was fitted
with several paddles, which were turned
by 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 nitrogiyc-
erin was going on before my eyes.
MAKING THE DEADLY LIQUID.
My host controlled the flow of .glycerin
by means of stopcock, and watched the
agitator and the thermometer which reg
istered the heat of the perilons mixture
with unremitting vigilance
'Nitroglycerin," my friend said, "is
formed by the action Of nitric and sui
phuric acids upon glycerin. When those
red fumes 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 thermometer? The
mercury registered Is degs centigrade a
minute ago, but it is 70 dogs. now and still
climbing higher. We must stop this at
once. Halloo! More steam therep'
He shut off the oil as he spoke, and Sec
ond later the paddles in the agitator.were
churning the mixture more rapidly.
began to edge toward the door, but the
civcerin man called me back
1--WE got it under control now" he said
1.-THE paddles have whipped the oil under
the acids and extinguished the fire The
mercury is falling, and can turn on the
oil again now with safety. But if had
not shut it off at once, and if the paddles
had not developed more speed, you and I
would have enjoyed a foot race together
down the valley. When the mercury gets
up to about 90 dogs. centigrade it is much
safer to be somewhere else than in it's vicin-
ity. This stream of cold water constantly
about the base of the agitator
keeps the mixture cool When the weather
becomes warmer we are obliged to use iee."
After 225 or $50 pounds of >glycerin had
been put in the agitator and stirred long
time, the mixture was emptied into the
drowning tank" Then it wastransferred
to the other tanks and carefully washed,
and at the end of about four hours the
milky, amber tinted nitEoglycerin was
poured into rectangular tin cans. These
cans were deposited in huge iron safe, and
the explosive was ready.-Earle H. Eaton
in Youths Companion.
Two Hills