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proceeded with them to the Bay of Islands, 110 miles overland, with their arms, ammunition, and three days' provisions, crossing a country little known, through forests and rivers, where we embarked board of Her Majesty's ship Racehorse, after a most severe march of five days, during the most inclement weather; in addition to which various circumstances have transpired since the unfortunate wreck, a period of ten months: their conduct has been so exemplary that I feel it my duty to state it to this honourable court, eight months of which time they have been victualled at two-thirds allowance, agreeably to the Queen's regulations.

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These facts appearing clear, the court acquitted Captain Patten, the officers, and ship's company, from all blame, and pronounced that every exertion had been made to save the ship. The President returned Captain Patten his sword, with a speech.

highly complimentary

31. FIRE AT IRONGATE WHARF. -A very destructive fire occurred in the day-time at Irongate Wharf. These extensive premises were situated at the east end of the Tower, and opposite the south wall of St. Katherine's Docks; they extended more than 200 feet along the river, were of considerable depth, and were filled with valuable goods. Between three and four o'clock in the afternoon flames were discovered by the workmen ; attempts were made to extinguish them, but in vain, and the building was rapidly fired throughout. Assistance of all kinds-soldiers, policemen, dock-hands, and firemen-was soon obtained, but the wharf was utterly destroyed; and some vessels which were moored to it, the tide being low, were also more or less

damaged. The low tide was likewise unfavourable to the working of the engines, water being rather scarce. The destruction, however, was prevented from extending to the Tower buildings and the Docks, and a public-house adjoining the wharf was only partially injured. The firemen had two narrow escapes from the fall of the walls. The loss of property-hardly any of the contents of the wharf having been saved-has been estimated as high as 200,000l. The proprietor, Mr. Coleman, is insured to a considerable amount. The cause of the fire could not be ascertained, it being attributed generally to spontaneous combustion.

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THE WEATHER.-The cold weather, which had mitigated for a few days, set in again on the 24th instant with increased severity, the thermometer frequently indicating ten or twelve degrees of frost. The different waters in the Parks were again covered with ice, and crowded with skaters. Νο fatal accidents occurred in London, though the daily newspapers record many cases of drowning in the country. The sufferings of the poor were of course very great, and many distressing cases of death, produced by cold and destitution, were made known. Northumberland, two men were returning from their work, towards Bishop Auckland; when they got to the Etherley Lane bridge they heard a groaning, and on looking about under the bridge, they found a man lying on the north side of the line against the bank, in the snow, with his feet in the gutter. They tried to raise him up, but he could not stand, and was quite cold. He appeared to mutter something. One of them then took him up on his back, and

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proceeded towards the Auckland station with him. He carried him to the gas-house, but he was then quite dead. It appeared that the poor fellow had been drinking in Bishop Auckland on the Saturday night, and had probably been wandering about in the snow until morning, and from the intensity of the frost had been unable to walk any further.

A man named Arthur Monaghan, was employed near Helmington Row in cutting snow on the roads near that place. He had been drinking at Helmington Row, and he left to proceed homeward about eleven o'clock at night. He was then very tipsy. Not having returned home next morning, some persons went off in search of him, and found the poor man lying in a field, about 100 yards off the road, quite dead, among the snow. He appeared to have lain down on the spot where he was found, as there were no marks of his having wandered about.

GUN COTTON.-The interest of scientific men and of the public has been strongly excited by the discovery, by Professor Schönbein, of an explosive compound, appearing to possess many advantages over gunpowder, called "Gun Cot

ton.

The process by which the cotton is prepared is not yet divulged. It possesses many remarkable properties hitherto unknown. On the application of a spark, the solid mass is at once converted to a gaseous state, producing scare ly any smoke, and, if carefully prepared, leaving no residuum behind. It is not in jured by wet, as was proved by an experiment tried with some which had been steeped in water sixty hours, and dried by exposure to the air, and which ex

ploded with the greatest facility. The experiments in blasting, tried in the Cornish mines, were most satisfactory and conclusive; the almost entire absence of the smoke attendant upon an explosion when the common gunpowder is used, and which is so great an annoyance and injury to the workmen, being a most important improvement. Gun cotton explodes at 200° of heat, gunpowder at 600°; indeed, the difference of temperature and the rapidity of combustion are so great that gun cotton may be placed lightly upon gunpowder and exploded without the latter igniting. It will explode on being struck a smart blow with a hammer on an iron anvil, but only the part struck explodes; and it may be so prepared that the rapidity of combustion may be regulated at pleasure.

Professor Brande, at a lecture at the Royal Institution, on the 15th of January, described this important invention, and stated that, about fifteen years ago, Braconnot ascertained that sawdust, wood-shavings, starch, linen and cotton fabrics, when treated with concentrated nitric acid, produced a sort of gelatinous substance, which coagulated into a white mass on the addition of water: this substance, which he called " xyloidine, was highly inflammable. In the course of investigation of the changes thus produced, Professor Schönbein ascertained that this substance, prepared in a somewhat different manner, produced a compound, possessing extraordinary explosive properties-hence his discovery

of " gun cotton." The precise method used by Schönbein is yet unknown; but the preparation of a substance supposed to be iden

tical is as follows:-Cotton-wool, to be attended with the following having been first well cleaned and disadvantages:-Its effects are less carded, is immersed for a short regular than those of gunpowder; time in a mixture of two parts of it is more dangerous, being inflamsulphuric with one of nitric acid; mable at a lower temperature; it it is then taken out, well washed does not take fire when compresswith water, and carefully dried. ed in tubes, and burns slowly in The cotton remains to all appear- cartridges; and that the barrel of ance unchanged: it is an insula- the gun is moistened by the water tor of electricity, being powerfully produced during the combustion. negatively electrical; it is singu- On the other hand, its advantages larly hygrometric, catches fire at are:-Its extreme cleanliness, there 360°, and burns with far greater being no residuum after combusrapidity than gunpowder; yet the tion; its freedom from all bad smell; combustion of a train may be the facility and safety of its prestopped by strong pressure. The paration; its great explosive force; products of its combustion are- the absence of smoke; and that carbonic and nitric oxides, carbo- from its filamentary nature it can nic and oxalic acids, cyanogen, ni- be used over-head, and in other sitrogen and steam. With respect tuations which preclude the use of to its expansive power, it appears gunpowder. that half an ounce of gun cotton carried a 68 lb. shot 255 feet from an eight-inch mortar, while two ounces of gunpowder carried a shot of the same weight from the same gun only 152 feet. A rifle, A rifle, charged with 60 to 80 grains of gunpowder, carried a ball through three inch elm boards, while 30 grains of gun cotton carried a ball, under the same circumstances, through six inch boards. The use of gun cotton in fire arms is said

It is said that Professor Schönbein has disposed of his discovery for a large sum to Messrs. Hall and Co., the celebrated gunpowder manufacturers, and that preparations are in progress for making it upon a large scale. It will, there is no doubt, be extensively used for mining purposes, and in warfare for many engineering operations; but it seems doubtful whether it is adapted for the use of large or small guns.

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APPENDIX TO CHRONICLE.

The MINISTRY, as it stood at the period of Sir Robert Peel's

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The MINISTRY, as formed by the Right Hon. Lord John

Russell.

First Lord of the Treasury

Lord Chancellor

President of the Council
Privy Seal

Home Secretary

IN THE CABINET.

Foreign Secretary.
Colonial Secretary
Chancellor of the Exchequer
First Lord of the Admiralty
President of the Board of Control
President of the Board of Trade
Paymaster of the Forces
Chief Secretary for Ireland
Postmaster-General

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
Woods and Forests

Commander-in-Chief.

Right Hon. Lord John Russell.
Right Hon. Lord Cottenham.

Most Noble Marquis of Lansdowne.

Right Hon. Earl of Minto.

Right Hon. Sir George Grey.

Right Hon. Viscount Palmerston.

Right Hon. Earl Grey.

Right Hon. Charles Wood.

Right Hon. Earl of Auckland.

Right Hon. Sir John Cam Hobhouse.
Right Hon. Earl of Clarendon.
Right Hon. T. B. Macaulay.
Right Hon. H. Labouchere.
Most Noble Marquis of Clanricarde.
Right Hon. Lord Campbell.
Right Hon. Viscount Morpeth.

NOT IN THE CABINET.

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SCOTLAND.

Right Hon. Andrew Rutherfurd. Thomas Maitland, Esq.

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* Sir Thomas Wilde was appointed to the office of Attorney-General, but on the sudden death of Sir N. C. Tindal, became Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas ; upon which Mr. Jervis became Attorney-General, and was succeeded by Mr. Dundas as Solicitor-General.

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