The morning call., 1893-11-04
A NEW EXPLOSIVE
Dangerous Coal From the
North.
1T BATTLES SCIENTISTS.
The Barracouta's Mishap Is
Duplicated.
POTENT, SECRET FORCE ExERTED
It Is Known That the Explosions
Were Not Caused by Gas or
Dynamite.

Despite the NEST careful Investigation
cause Of the explosion aboard the
cife Mail steamer Barracuda, which
naged that vessel and nearly caused
death of three men, is as much of a
stery to-day as on the night of the acei-
It.
rom an official in high station in the
,ific Mail service CALL reporter
rned Yesterday that when the Barra-
ia was discharging her coal here, every
ketful as it was taken ont was care
Y inspected. There was not the least
ticle Of evidence to support either of
Two theories advanced as TO the cause
le explosion, namely. gas or dynamite.
case of gas explosion all experience
proved that some part of the cargo
ays shows signs of having been heated
orally there is a mass Of cinders
ere these are lacking there is at least
rred coal. In the case of the Barra-
cOuta not a single piece OF coal showed
signs of having been heated. This settled
the gas theory, if, indeed, the very brief
space-less than three days-during which
the cargo lay in the hold had not COM
bated it.
The dynamite theory could not be estab-
lished. for the reason that no coal was
shattered. If giant powder had been used
a considerable quantity of the cargo would
have been reduced to fragments. and fine
dust. But so lar as the closest obServa-
ton made by experts. who watched every
bucketful, could discover there was no
evidence OF shattering. This disposed OF
the second and last theory.
However. discovery was made of the
presence of sulphur in the coal, and the
Pacific Mail Company has given it into the
hands Of geological and chemical experts
for eXaminat
Now comes similar explosion, which
presents the same mysterious features
which surrounded the mishapNto the Bar
racouta.
Last Monday the Pacific Improvement
Company's steamship San Mateo, which
had loaded at ComOx, B. c.. with coal
from the same mine zone recently opened)
as the Barracuda, having the coal in her
hold for the same brief period, met with
exactly the same sort of an explosion. in
the same unacc0untable manner and with
almost identically the same results.
In view of the second explosion the the
ory is now advanced by experts that the
coal from this mine contains potent,
secret force which 1t exerts in a manner
and under circumstances not known to
any other Goals Of commerce.
Coal explosions are all too common, as Is
evidenced by the narrow escape from
total destruction of the British ship Cedar
bank from Newcastle, n. S. W., and the
Norwegian ship Briedablik fir ON Glas-
gov, which arrived here recently, but in
both these vessels the cargo became
heated.
It will be remembered that the Brieda-
blk saved herself from destruction by the
use of steel rods, which had been sug-
gested 10 her captain by Stewart Menzes
of this city. These were driven into the
cargo from the matches and the fire located
with exactness. This done it was success
fully fought without loss of time, as no
effort was wasted in working where NO
fire existed.
On this subject a well-known mariner
who has spent years in the coal trade
offers The CALL a valuable hint whicn
is inexpensive and permits of tests with
out removing the matches and saves the
trouble of driving steel rods. Said he:
Take an ordinary piece of gaspiDe an
run 1t 1rOmtthe keelson TO the deck along
side the StanchiOns at the hatch way.
Then take the temperature with ther-
mometer. This test is more accurate than
with rod. ou can tell exactly how fast
the coal is heating from hour to hour or
from day to day and it can be done so
much quicker. With gaspipes at each
hatch you know every day the condition of
your cargo by simply lowering the ther-
mometer and holding it a few minutes.
The expense for ship would probably
not exceed 50.
''It would be still Better plan 10 have
a row of gaspipes. Say every fifteen feet,
from stem 10 stern, then you could test
every part of the cargo every day.
Repairs TO the Barracuda will be fin
ished in a few days. Her after house was
SO badly shattered that it was found
cheaper to build a new one than to repair
the old. The woodwork is Of Port Oxford
cedar. and the rich marble wainscoting in
the saloon has been omitted. On the
main deck the dOnble row of staterooms,
which were twisted out of shape, have
been removed and the space devoted to
freight. The fine companionway was not
restored. II the Bdrrae0uta had been re-
built as she was before the explosion the
expense would not have fallen within
S25, 900.