The weekly Iberian. (New Iberia, La.) 1894-1946, 1902-11-22
HATHAMITE.

Hathamite the newest dAu "n"o
8 claimed to be the most powerful
lnown explosive is the invention
# Mr.. G. NJ. Hathaway, OF Wells
,oro. Pa, a scientist who has de-
voted years of experiment to the
solution of the problems lnvolV-
I'd in the manufacture Of this new
SQUIRE of energy. Hathamite' when
has, Of course, been named for the
inventor, is coarse powder OF
bluish-gray tint. The impumty
with which the explosive may De
handled ander ordinary conditions
one of its most remark
able characteristics.
Lighted matches may be thrown
into it without producing any
effect and a handful OF the ex-
plosive be laid on an anvil ana
pounded into impalpable powder
with a sledge. Similarly, shell
may be exploded near a quantity
of hathamite without inducing dis
astrous result, and finally rifle balls
fred into small masses Of it are
likewise without influence. Tails
latter is, in a way, the most severe
test to which an explosive may be
subjected, and consequently no
little surprise was created when,
at the recent initial demonstration
of the properties Of hathamite, the
inventor filed a tin box with the
explosive and fred rife balls
through it at y speed of 1,S5W
feet a second.
| Once subjected, however, to the
combination of fame and concus-
sion supplied by a percussion cup,
hathamite generates greater ex-
plosive energy. However, the
powder can only be exploded when
a dynamite percussion cap OF large
size is used. The cap itself must
be powerful. To illustrate this
percussion caps were, IN a recent
test. placed in two ounces OF
hathamite and fred without ex.
ploding the material.
Thus far the only demOnstra'
ton of the capabilities of hath
amite has been made in test of q
tpurely experimental character. In
one Of these a small charge of The
mixture. when exploded upon
sheet of one-quarter inch boiler
plate, cut a hole in the steel al
clearly as it could have been &C
, complished by means of q machine
On another occasion a small
charge of hathamite was place.
between two large cakes of ice
D each weighing in excess Of on
! hundred and fifty pounds. Tn
, powder was allowed to remain be
tween the ice cakes for nearly Al
!. hour and was then exploded b,
, means of caps. All that remaine'
7 of the ice cakes after the explosion
was a small pile of snow-not fir
" crushed ice, but snow Of the OF
binary character. This test
particularly interesting as evident
. ing the possession by the e1plt
q sive of properties which viii allo'
of its use in mining operations i
Alaska during the winter.
In a second test in which eli
ocular piece two inches in dimets
were blown from one.quarter inc
boiler plate cutting the plate 9
% clean as q die, one and q half oul
le ces Of hathamite formed a charg,
0. and in each case was simply place
,r upon the plate and detonated
d the open air. A collar of ste
I placed under the boiler plate
one instance served as a b<
: against which the steel was G,
ct clean. In the test mentioned Il
heavy steel collar three inch
deep and made of toughest stee
Twas broken into several pieces
the force Of the explosion. c
10 one occasion about one oun
e Of hathamite was exploded in
ct regulation United States Cover
in ment one pound steel shell, al
very through Reorganization of Il
az she'll occurred, A similar resi-
~ followed the explosion Of two 81
Of pound shells ina heavy steel cha
u