Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1895-04-10

hours the greatest amount of heat that
any burning building could give it.
The making of safe OF this KIND Is
a complicated and expensive operation.
All the steel used comes in the form OF
mates from the works. After having
the necessary screw-holes bored III
them they are heated to high temper
AZURE, and then tempered by suddenly
immersing them in water. When they
come out they are often little twisted
and warped and have to be rolled cold
and sometimes polished clean by
swiftly moving emery wheel. The
noise of this operation is ear-splitting
and SO rasping that man with ordi'
nary nerves can hardly endure it.
When the plate is perfectly level it is
transferred to another machine, where
it is clamped tight. and an emery
wheel shaves off the edges.
The plates are now put together. first
one of hard steel. then one OF wrought
iron or soft steel, and SO on until the
necessary thickness is attained. From
the iron the safe receives its tenacious
oualities-it cannot be cracked or
broken as easily as steel, and the steel
imparts hardness which defies the
burglars drill. The screws are also
made of combined steel and iron.
Each of them is only long enough to
reach through two plates. and the
screws which join the third, fourth
and fifth plates to the first ones are
never directly under any other screws,
so that there is no chance for bur-
glar to bore down through row of
screws. The plates are also drawn
very close together. for if any space
was left between them safeblower
might succeed in getting his dynamite
into it. Between the interior and ex
terror walls Of the safe large amount
of hydraulic cement, combined with
other Ingredients, usually according to
secret recipe, is packed solidly.
In case of fire the theory is that the
water in the cement-about 43 per
cent-will, owing to the heat of the
outside covering, become steam, par
TALLY at least, and be driven close to
the inner wall. Here it will remain
and furnish blanket impervious to
heat. All the bolts are cylindrical
and from an inch up to two inches IN
diameter. Combination locks are now
used exclusively. The mechanism of
most of them is extremely simple. In
one lock there are a number of round
brass disks or "tumblers. each pivoted
at the center ON a small shaft which
runs through the safe door and connects
with the lock knob. Each tumbler has
slit in it just the size of the steel
arm which controls the bolts and reach
ing nearly back to the center. When
all these Sits are together and pointing
in exactly the right direction the arm
slips into them and the bolts can be
thrown. But if the slit in a single
one of the tumblers is even thous
andth of an inch out of line the arm
will not slip back The disks are set a
short distance apart and small screws
with big heads are fastened at random
over them. AS these strike together in
turning the tumblers whirl, and man
might turn the lock-knob thousand
years without once getting the Sits in
all the tumblers together. But the
man no knows just how far to turn one
way and then how far back again &C.
cording to the combination numbers
has no trouble at all
The combination and numbers are
easily changed by changing the screws
| in fha Iiclr MANY Of hn bac 20
and vaults are now provided with time
locks Two and sometimes three clocks
are inclosed in glass cases just inside
of the safe door. When the door is
locked no one can open it again until
the clock hands have travelled the set
distance around the dial and touched
little trigger which releases the bolts.
More than one clock is used so that if
one runs down the others will go on
and perform their duty. In the big
banks the vaults are closed about 5
O'Clock in the evening and set to open
little before 8 O'Clock in the morning.
1t is general impr ession that an ex-
pert burglar can open a combination
lock by listening to the clicking sounds,
but dealers say that it is not possible
for any one to do it. If safe-owner
forgets his combination the safe has to
be bored into-there is no other way of
opening it.
Nearly all of the great modern build
ings have vault on every floor, some-
times several. They are usually built
of double brick walls with an air space
between, or of tile, and they are rested
on the steel girders. The only effort
of the proprietors of the buildings is to
make the vaults fire-proof, because the
expense of burglar proofing would be
enormous and the extra weight of
materials to be used would be an ele-