Southwest-sentinel. [volume] (Silver City, N.M.) 1883-189?, 1895-07-09
THE MODERN SAFE.
an UP TO DATE FlREPRooF AND
BURGLAR PROOF DEPOSITORY.

shunfni Workmanship displayed In Tts
nlanuaoturo-Locks win simple Mech
anisn That Are Extremely Hard 20 Open
q Won Donr Know now.
Tho latest burglar proof safes end
vaults arc magnificent specimens Of
sldllful workmanship Although the
doors often weigh tons. they swing ~
easily ON their hinges o. awindow shut
Ter. After the first great door is thrown
back and displays iis glittering array Of
bright locks, its glass incased clocks
md its smooth steel bolts there is
other door almost a. strong, with bolts
and locks Of its own. When this is open
Il reveals three other doors The upper
two are If thin steel and have no locks
Only papers and books are 10 be kept in
the little pockets or pigOonholes which
they inclose.
Under them and shutting ia the cash
drawer there Is tho third door with it's
lock and bolts In this safe the
sire Of the cash repository bears about
the same relation 70 the size Of the
whole safe ns n pumpkin seed does to
the pumpkin And il S not only burglar
proof but freproof-warrantod in fact,
10 stand for at least 75 hours the great
est amount Of heat that any burning
building could give IT,
The making Of a safe Of this kind is
a complicated and expensive operation.
All the steel used comes I'm the form Of
plates from the works After having
the necessary screw holes bored in them
they are heated to a high temperature
and then tempered by suddenly immers-
ing them in water. When they come out
they 7 often q little twisted and
warped, and have TO be rolled cold and
sometimes polished clean by q swiftly
moving emery wheel The noise Of this
operation is ear splitting and so rasping
that q man with ordinary nerves can
hardly endure it. When the plate is per-
fectly level IL 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, aud so ON until the
necessary thickness is obtained. From
the iron tho safe receives its tenacious
qualities-it cannot be cracked or bro
ken as easily as steel, and the steel inn
parts a hardness that defes the burglars
drill The screws are also made of COM
bined steel and.iron- Each Of them is
only long enough to reach through two
plates, and tho screws which join the
third, fourth and fifth plates to the first
are never directly under any other
screws, so that there is no chance for a
burglar to bore down through a row Of
screwA The plates are also drawn very
close together, for If any space was left
between them a safe blower might sue
coed in getting his dynamite into it.
Between the interior and exterior
walls OF the safe a large amount Of by
draulic cement, combined with other in
gradients, usually according to q secret
recipe, .s packed solidly. In case of fire
the theory is that the water in the ce-
ment-Rbout IS per cent-will, owing
20 the heat Of the outside covering, be-
come steam, partially, at least, and be
0IANCA OND1G W Nut AuLEL wall ILtIB III
will remain and furnish a blanket inn
pervious 70 heat All the bolts are cylin-
drical and from an inch up to two inches
IN diameter.
Combination locks are now used ex-
clusively. The mechanism Of most Of
them is extremely simple. In lock
there are a number of round brass disks
or "tumblers, " each pivoted at the CEN
ter o a small shaft which runs through
the safe door and connects with the lock
knob Each tumbler has a slit in IL Just
the size Of the steel arm which controls
the bolts and reaching nearly back to
the center. When all these Sits are to-
Rether and pointing in exactly the same
direction the arm slips into them and
the bolts can be thrown. But if the slit
In = single M Of the tumblers is ever
q thousandth 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 to-
gether in turning the tumblers whirl,
and q man might turn the lock knob a
thousand years without once getting the
shts In all the tumblers together. But
the man who knows Just how far to
turn one way and then how far back
again according to the combination mum
bers has no trouble at all
The combination and numbers are cas-
lily changed by changing the screws in
the disk. Many Of the best safes and
vaults are now being provided with
time locks, Two and sometimes three
clocks are inolosed in glass cases just in
side Of the safe door. When the door is
locked, no one can open IL again until
the clock hands have travelled the set
distance around the dial and touched a
little trigger which releases the bolts.
More than a clock is used, so that II
one runs down tho others will go ON and
perform their duty. IN the big banks
the vaults are closed about 8 O'Clock in
the evening and set to open a little be,
fore Q O'Clock in the morning. 1t is q
general impression that an expert bur.
glar can open a combination lock by lis.
tening TO the clicking sounds, but deal
era say IL Is not possible for any one e
do H. IL a safe owner forgets his com
bination, the safe has to be bored into
There Is no other way Of opening it,
Chicago Record.
Tha N~wt m.~e Thl,-