The Courier. (Genoa, Nev.) 1899-1904, 1903-05-22
LIABLE TO EXPLODE.
HARMLESS HOUSEHOLD GOODS THAT
ARE REALLY DANGEROUS.

At the premises or an EnSllSn coui
pany there occurred some time ago
disastrous fire which completely Quilted
an enormous building and caused losses
aegregating 100000. The IRE was at.
tributed to an explosion Of malt.
Any fine lndammable dust when
mixed with a certain proportion Of dry
air will explode. There was previous
similar accident In a New York cahdf
mandatory. \ terrific explosion
which wrecked the entire building was
discovered to be due 10 the faet mat
partlcles of fine icing sugar had been
allowed to invade the room where tha
furnaces were.
An eminent authority on explosive
declares that many of those accidents
in coal mines usually attributed to liz
damp have been caused BY cry coa
dnst suspended in the galleries having
been accidentally fired Even 50 appar
emily rs innocent substance as tatt
becomes fearfullg explosive WAea
mixed in suitable proportions with d.
| air
| Another substance that has proved T.
be extremely dangerous when stored I'll
large quantities is chlorate of potash
| 4 disaster some years ago in big Lon.
don factory proved the destructive
powers of this simple remedy for COLT.
Sugar aud chlorate of potash mixed
| form an explosive which has been tired
for blasting purposes. but 50 dangerous
n compound is it that any explosive
- Is lila
" to pass the government tests 10 this
country.
A good many years ago 1t was ais-
covered that cellulose soaked in strong
nitric acid changed from q substance
no more harmful than paper 10 fierce
explosive The number of materials on
which nitric acid viii work a similar
Transformation is almost endless
Wood. paper, straw. coal peat. pitch,
starch. sugar tea tan. phosphorus, iron,
zinc. copper and magnesium are only
few that could be named.
one of the best known and most ter.
rible of these mixtures IS nitroglycerin,
(which is simply nitric acid and COM
mon glycerin mixed together aud al.
lONtd " ihi AtAb a EAANtA+A' - f''NNN'f
Dynamite is nothing more than nitro
glycerin absorbed by some spongy sub
stance. Alum. asbestus, plaster Of par
is, sawdust. bran. meal. even dried and
pounded potatoes. have been employed
for this purpose, but the substance
most commonly employed Is what Is
known MS "kiesel guhr.' or spongy
earth. This is the kind Of clay formed
| of minute fossil shells. great beds Of
which are found in Germany aud 9th
er parts Of the world.
Guncotton. which was first made il
! 1915. is the form of nitro compound
usually employed in war. II Is manu-
featured from ordinary cotton waste
treated with n mixture Of nitric and
sulphurlc acids
There is one very curious point about
/ guncotton. II cannot be made from
raw cotton in the bale; waste cotton is
necessary for its manufacture. II seems
as If the bleaching 10 which manufac.
tured cotton has been subjected ha8
something to do with fitting The waste
for becoming explosive material Oily
waste IS. however. completely useless
for making guncotton. aud il even q
little IS carelessly used q whole butch
u the manufactured product may be
spoiled.
Gnucolton f. 10 extraordinarily sud
den in It's action thar a small quantity
las been exploded IN contact with
Aeap Of gnnpowder and bias failed 10
SET IRE 10 H.
TIE great advantage Which euneel
ton Possesses over al other explosives
Is llHt damp does not iuinre b. Ia
/ fact. wet guneoiton espIodos Wiih just
~ great violence Us dry bat a ~
course much harder to Gre C0use.
/ guenily b. Is one of the safest eApi0-
slfes 10 carry, as il can De thoroughly
weited before paeaius and tept wet
during transport lfor mining purposes
Or fof u-e 10 Har aHHeoiiaH b. usually
+ eampreased ini0 bard mhes.
9he csndlte which 90 na# used ID
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