The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1893-12-13

8Ft town Of Santander, near
~ 6ao, on the north coast Of Spain,
vi Sthe scene Of a terrible disaster on
Ncy. 8, causing the loss of between
two and three hundred lives, with se-
rious injuries also to several hundred
other persons, and great destruction
of property, including damage to many
houses in the town. ASpanish coast
ing steamer, called the Machichago,
with cargo which consisted Of bar
rels Of spirits, petroleum and about
fifty tons Of dynamite, was unloading
at the mole. Some portion Of the
inhammable cargo took fire. Efforts
were made under the direction of the
town police, acting in the presence of
the governor, to remove Che dynamite
and the petroleum, while steam tug
was brought alongside the burning
ship, to tow her away from the quay,
which was crowded with people. At
half four in the afternoon, prob
ably from the concussion produced by
the sudden bursting Of the steam
boilers, the whole interior Of the yes
sci was shattered, its contents were
mingled together, and the dynamite
was ignited there was a series of tre-
mendous shocks. The ship and the
steam tug were blown to pieces, scat,
tered over the harbor and quay, and
at least sixty houses, as we'll as sew
eral vessels lying near, and train at
the railway station, were set on fire by
the blazing fragments. The gov
ernor Of the town and several other
official persons Of rank we're among the
killed.
Dynamite, as most of our readers
know, is preparation of nitroglycer-
inc, which latter is made by treat
ing glycerine with nitric and sulphu-
ric acids. Nitroglycerine is an oil
and possesses the remarkable quality
of violent explosion when subjected
to slight pressure. It is therefore
very dangerous to handle. To di-
minish this danger; and also to pre-
sent it in the form Of powder, an abb
sorbant substance is mixed with it,
which holds the liquid nitroglycerine
within its pores and acts as cushion
that prevents the nitroglycerine FROM
from exploding under light pressures,
such as handling.
Dynamite is the name given to nj
troglycerine when thus protected by
an absorbent. Porous microscopic
shells, known as infusorial earths,
form the best absorbent, and this ma
terial is used in the manufacture
Of dynamite. When dynamite is sub
jected to sufficient pressure, by con-
cussion, for example, when contained
in bomb which is allowed to fall
upon the ground from suitable
height, it explodes with terrific. force.
The explosive poweris eight times great
er ;than!thatof gunpowder, andin gem
eral, for ordinary use forblasting pur-
poses, it is cheaper and safer than
gunpowder; but for some kinds Of
blasting, particularly in coal mining,
specially prepared gunpowder is pre-
ferred.
: The most authentic history of gun
powder attributes its discovery to q
German chemist named Berthold
Schwarz, some time during the CEN
tury beginning with the year 1900
and this remained for more than five
hundred years the explosive most com.
monyl used, until the invention Of
gun cotton by Schronbein in 1846 and
Of .nitroglycerine by a French chemist,
A. Sobrero, in 1847, in the laboratory
Of PelouEe, Paris.
The action Of nitric acid to rem
der cotton and other substances
explosive was discovered by Pelouze
in 1888.