Lincoln County record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1900-1905, 1903-02-05
TIE 7ToHAos or EXPLOSIVES

The majority OF miners dspla,
carelessness ia the handling Of ex
plosives, apparently relying on III,
great safety Of the compound
Dynamite should be stored in cool
dry place Il freezes at 400 f., ant
begin to lose III strength at heat o.
90o f. Danpness will cause it tc
deteriorate very rapidly, and INNER.
sion in water causes the nitro give
crime to exude Whether the store
house is an excavation in rock a el We
or specially constructed house, lei
it be well away from all other build,
ings. Only one man should have
access to the magazine. Supply
underground is necessary. 1t should
be stored in a drive or chamber as
far as possible from the workings,
and protected by door, and not
more than six days supply should be
kept there. If the dynamite freezes,
don't thaw it out in cook stove oven
or in any fry pan over the blacksmith
FIRE, and don't plunge it in boiling
water. Better to have small
tlawing kettle which you can buy
FROM your dynamite dealer. The
primary object in using explosives is
to facilitate mining operations by
breaking rock into size sufficiently
small for removal, and care should
be exercised in the use of dynamite,
SO that waste may be avoided. Ex-
plosives are wastefully employed if
the rock is broken up too fine and
blow all over the place. In the case
of country rock it is not necessary,
and ore can be broken up more
cheaply and more effectively by
mechanical means outside of the
workings of the mines. Rules and
formulae are given in books for the
drilling and charging of holes, the
distance apart. the depth, position
and angle of the holes and even the
quantity of dynamite to be used; bu
these are only general, and miner
must use his own judgement, as so
much depends on the nature and
texture of the rock and the frequency
aud position of its seam, and expert
eDce alone will enable the miner TO
decide the amount of explosives to
be used.
Caps should always be stored away
from the explosives in in perfectly
dry place. AS dynamite does better
work when exploded without any
burning it is always best to use the
strongest cap, and in case of two or
more sticks being required to
hole, always put the cap on the top,
never between the plugs, as in the
latter case the upper plugs may be-
become fired by heat before the cap
explodes, thus causing incomplete
combustion. The cap should be
clinched to the fuse by "crimper;"
do not use knife or your teeth
In tamping a hole be careful not
to use small sharp rocks that may
cut the fuse. Partly dried clay or
drillings make good material. Use
a wooden rammer for tamping sticks;
never use steel or iron. la firing
two or more blasts at once a con
venient way is to make small tourch
from dry piece of old gunny; this
will be extinguished when the fuse
spurts, aud is blown into fame in II
second.
In cases of misfire, do not return
to tue hole for an hour and a halt
after the fuse is lighted. No
drill b lie should be continued in any
remaining portion of holein which
a charge of dynamite has been ex-
ploded. In a day hole, slit the
dynamite cartridge down the side so
that when rammed down the ex-
plosive will completely fill the hole.
In wet hole, the fuse should be
well covered with axle grease or soap.
Pacific Coast Miner.