Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1902-04-17
DYNAMITE AND INTERCOLLEGIATE
Some PecuIiarities of These Danger
Gus Explosives.

| Dynamite is so little understood by
the general public that it may be per
|tiDent. in view of recent events in
New York, 10 say that it is a mechani-
ca mixture of a high explosive, nitro
| gIycerine, and a transporting medium,
such as a siliceous infusOrial earth.
INitroglercine was found to be too
highly explosive for general practi-
! cal use, and it's discoverer, Nobel, in
! vented dynamite as a safer form.
| Dynamite has many peculiar quail
! ties. Exposed to the air, it will, il
ligrfted. burn slowly. If, however,
confined. it will, if heated. explode
with great force. Again, if confined
III paper cartridges, the paper is liable
| to become saturated with the nitro
| glycerine and rendered dangerous.
| At low temperatures dynamite does
| net easily explode. While frozen it
viii not explode at all. Another pecu-
| IiaIity OF dynamite that must be
| horne in mind is that it eXerts its
greatest force along the line of great
est resistance, thus differing from
everything else of it's kind. If eXplod-
| cd on a rock, it will not waste its
power in the vacant air. but will rend
the rock in most thorough and bus
iresslike way. It is this popularity
which makes it so useful for blasting
purposes. For a long time nitrogly-
Ccrinc was extensively employed he
| fore the invention Of dynamite became
| generally known. It is about five
times as treacherous as dynamite.
Even when surrounded by every pre-
caution. it will explode without warn,
ling.
The method Of using it in iron
mines and quarries was interesting.
Tho charge would be inclosed in a
small rubber bag, and when the hole
was complete, this would be lowered
into it by a string, very carefully. No
illuminate is needed to detOnate nitro
| glycerine, SO all that the operator
needed to do was to sever the string
and let the charge drop to the bottom
IOf the hole. This he accomplished by
lighting a piece Of fuse bound around
tn" string, which had been fastened
to some stationary object.
| Sometimes, too often, in fact the
Ibag dropped prematurely, and thceo
would be two or three men the less
elaborate. nor, indeed, at all general
after such happenings. In case that
came under the notice of the writer
81 that was found of 200-pOund man
wfO got mixed up with a charge OF
ITitroglyccrinc was one thumb, which
Twas found hanging like a plum from
q nearby tree. The rest seemed tC
have been dissipated into the organic
lei ment:
j Another instance happened right
here in New York city, on SedgwicE
avenue. While the new aqueduct was
building there was a magazine con.
Itaining an immense store Of nitro
land dynamite. The neighbOrhOod was
not thickly populated, and little ap
Iprehension was felt Of any mishap
Still, careful Waterman was selected
to guard the magazine night and day
He slept in a small Outbmiding, and
made frequent rounds at night tC
drive away intruders. Afterward the
lneighbors said that he used to smoke
while on duty. Perhaps so-at al
icvents. one fine. cold January mid
night. when the ground was white
with snow, the countryside for mTHGz
around was reused by the dull roar
4 that preCedes the crash Of dynamite
in action. Then followed broker
windows and shattered ceilings. TIL
magazine had gone up" Up? No
not up but rather down. for where i
had stod yawned great chasm il
the ground. Not a stick of timber re
manned of the fabric.
As for the Waterman, nobody ha,
seen trace of him to this hour. There
, was not even a drop Of blood on tn,
SNOWY ground to tell his fate, Their,
is no running away from dynamite
= when it gets started, for it transmit.
decoration at rate of 2t.000 feet pc
, second
: The action of both nitro and dyna
mite is very freakish and uneven. II
= cue case a nitro" explosion hOisted
nan 20 feet in the air. keeping hin
erect. and dropped him. still. erect
, Just where he had stood. The onI7
, harm that came to him was a fractur
OF both heel bones when he landed.
This mans mate, who stood besid,
! him, was blown literally clear through
, IN FAILING fence and instantly killed
, One man was blown into the air ant
tho other blown along the surface -
the ground. So far as observation
went. both were exposed to exactI,
tn" same force. exerted in the sam
mannec.-New York Times.