AN IMPROVE- MENT IN THE MANUFACTURE OF AN EXPLOSIVE COMPOUND, AND A NEW MODE
Year: 1872

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John Horsley, of Cheltenham, in the County of
Gloucester, Analytical Chemist, for the Iuvention of "AN IMPROVE-
MENT IN THE MANUFACTURE OF AN EXPLOSIVE COMPOUND, AND A NEW MODE OF
Sealed the 3rd December 1872, and dated the 22nd June 1872..
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John Horsley at the
Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his Petition, on the
22nd June 1872.
I, JOHN HORSLEY, of Cheltenham, in the County of Gloucester,
Analytical Chemist, do hereby declare the nature of the said Invention
for "AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFACTURE OF AN EXPLOSIVE COMPOUND, AND A
NEW MODE OF FIRING EXPLOSIVE COMPOUNDS," to be as follows:-
In the Specification of my Patent, No. 1193, dated the 19th April
1869, for blasting powders or explosive compounds containing nitro-
glycerine, I mentioned among other explosive bases a mixture of
chlorate of potash and nut galls, each in very fine powder.

page_text: Now my present Invention consists in granulating this powder as
herein-after described, by which not only is it rendered more portable
and convenient for use, but stronger than in the ordinary form.
My Invention also consists in a new method of firing this or my other
explosive compound without the aid of fulminating mercury by simply
priming tin or other metallic or waterproof paper tubes closed at one
end, and an inch or two inches in length and about 1 inch in diameter,
with the aforesaid granulated powder, and inserting the same into the
base of the cartridge, but I do not confine myself to these dimensions, as
larger tubes can be used for the purpose when necessary. The tube is
first partly primed with this powder and a plug of gun cotton to keep it
in situ, when a plain fuse may be inserted and exploded equally as well
as by any ordinary percussion cap. The tube is fixed in the cartridge by
means of a piece of cork at the top and bottom.
The manner in which I granulate the powder is as follows:-I take say
1 pound of the base powder, consisting of ths finely powdered chlorate
of potash and th finely powdered nut galls. I put this compound into
a stoneware or wooden mortar, and sprinkle over it th part or there-
abouts of water, and thoroughly incorporate it to a more or less pasty
consistence. Should it be too pasty I work it up with more of the dry
powder, and disintegrate the mixture by rapid trituration till it is broken
up into small particles. After laying out the mixture to dry in a warm
room for one hour or two, by passing it through a sieve of from 20 to 30
meshes to the inch I obtain the compound in a more or less granulated
form, which hardens as it dries; and if it requires further drying, that is
accomplished by exposure in a drying closet or over a water bath heated
to 212° Fahrenheit. The proper time of exposure is known by the
hardness and crispness of the grain as well as by the rapidity of
its explosion on trial, the temperature at which it explodes being
430° Fahrenheit.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said John Horsley in the Great Seal Patent Office on
the 20th December 1872.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, JOHN
HORSLEY, of Cheltenham, in the County of Gloucester, Analytical
Chemist, send grecting.

page_text: WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-second day of June, in the year
of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two, in the thirty-
sixth year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give
and grant unto me, the said John Horsley, Her special licence that I, the
said John Horsley, my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such
others as I, the said John Horsley, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to
time and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might mako, use, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "AN IMPROVEMENT IN THE MANUFACTURE
OF AN EXPLOSIVE COMPOUND, AND A NEW MODE OF FIRING EXPLOSIVE COMPOUNDS,”
upon the condition (amongst others) that I, the said John Horsley, my
executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my, or
their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great
Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John Horsley, do hereby declare
the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the
following statement thereof, reference being had to the accompanying
Drawings, that is to say :-
In the Specification of my Patent, No. 1193, dated the 19th April
1869, for blasting powders or explosive compounds containing nitro-
glycerine, I mentioned among other explosive bases a mixture of
chlorate of potash and nut galls, each in very fine powder.
Now my present Invention consists in granulating this powder as
herein-after described, by which not only is it rendered more portable
and convenient for use, but stronger than in the ordinary form.
My Invention also consists in a new mode of firing this or other
explosives without the aid of fulminating mercury by simply priming
tin or other metallic or waterproof paper tubes closed at one end, and
an inch or two inches in length and about ½ inch diameter, with the
aforesaid granulated powder, and inserting the same into the base of the

page_text: cartridge, but I do not confine myself to these dimensions, as larger tubes
can be used for the purpose when necessary. The tube is first partly
primed with this powder and a plug of gun cotton to keep it in situ,
when a plain fuze may be inserted and exploded equally as well as
by any ordinary percussion cap. The tube is fixed in the cartridge by
means of a piece of cork at the top and bottom.
The manner in which I granulate the powder is as follows:-I take say
1 pound of the base powder, consisting of ths finely powdered chlorate
of potash and 4th finely powdered nut galls. I put this compound into
a stoneware or wooden mortar, and sprinkle over it th to ½th part or
thereabouts of water, and thoroughly incorporate it to a more or less
pasty consistence. Should it be too pasty I work it up with more of the
dry powder, and disintegrate the mixture by rapid trituration till it is
broken up into small particles. After laying out the mixture to dry in
a warm room for one hour or two, by passing it through a sieve of from
20 to 30 meshes to the inch I obtain the compound in a more or less
granulated form, which hardens as it dries; and if it requires further
drying, that is accomplished by exposure in a drying closet or over a
water bath heated to 212° Fahrenheit. The proper time of exposure is
known by the hardness and crispness of the grain. as well as by the
rapidity of its explosion on trial, the temperature at which it explodes
being 430° Fahrenheit, and its force 5 times that of gunpowder.
In the annexed Drawings Figure 1 is an external view, and Figure 2
a longitudinal section of a cartridge for mining purposes primed so as to
be fired or exploded in the manner herein-before explained.
a is the cartridge case filled with blasting powder or explosive b; c is
a tube made of tin or other suitable metal or of waterproof paper; this
tube is primed with the granulated powder d, hercin-before described, a
plug of gun cotton e being added to keep the powder in situ. A plain
fuze is then inserted. g, h, are pieces of cork or other suitable
material to fix the tube c in the cartridge, which may be made of card-
board or metal, as the case may be.
And having now described the nature of my said Invention, and in
what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that I claim,―
First. Granulating a mixture of chlorate of potash and nut galls, sub-
stantially in manner hercin-before described.

page_text: Second. The mode herein-before described of firing explosive com-
pounds without the use of fulminating mercury or percussion caps.
In witness whereof, I, the said John Horsley, have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this Eighteenth day of December, in the year of
our Lord One thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.