NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



379 



limler of fine wire gauze into iin explosive mix- 

 ture, 1 saw the whole cylinJer become qiiietly 

 and gradually filled with flame ; the upper part 

 oi It soon appeaie(l- red hot, yet nu exptosion was 

 proJuced. 



■• It was easy, at once, to see that by increas- 

 ing the cooling surface in the top, or in any 

 ■vJier part of the lamp, the heat acquired by 

 It might be diminished to any extent ; and I 

 imnu'diatcly made a number of experiments to 

 jiiMfect this invcniion, which was evidently 

 tlic one to be adopted, as it excluded the ne- 

 Cl-■^sltv of using glass or any fusible or brittle 

 substance in the lamp, and not only deprived 

 tlio tire-damp of its explosive powers, but ren- 

 dered the (ire-damp itself an useful light.'' 

 •• It was tound that iron wire gauze, composed 

 of wires t'rom one fortieth to one sixtieth of an 

 inch in diameter, and containing twenty-eight 

 vires or seven hundred and eighty-four aper- 

 liires was safe under all circumstances ; and 

 his material Sir Humphrey Davy w.as there- 

 ore induced to adopt for the construction of 

 amps in coal mines. 



'• Twelve months after the adoption of this 



amp by the miners an important addition was 



nade to it, founded entirely on a new principle. 



iir Humphrey Davy having been told that the 



(erfect safety which attended the use of this 



amp, often induced the men to go into more 



splosive atmospheres than they otherwise 



k ould, and that this sometimes occasioned the 



ights to be extinguished, the genius of our 



hilosopher enabled him, by means of the 



letal called platinum, to obviate the inconve- 



i( ienco in the most complete manner possible. 



: I knowing that platinum has a small capacity 



■pr, and is a very slow conductor of heat, in 



'ihich respects it is not analogous to any of 



' le metals except palladium, it occurred to 



; im, that upon those properties of this metal 



i e might have found the improvement he was 



1 search of. Pursuing this idea he contrived 



I suspend a coil, or little cage of small plati- 



' lum wire, from one sixtieth to one seventieth 



I." an inch in thickness, over the flame of each 



; mp ; the effect of which is, that the moment 



ht is extinguished by an increased quan- 



f fire-damp in the atmosphere, the coil of 



num wire becomes of an intense red lieat ; 



I id this affords light enough to enable the men 



)j find their way through the different passages 



tt the entrance of the mine. This alone would 



ijue been an important improvement on the 



J-iginal safety lamp : — but this is not all; for 



) sooner has the workman arrived at a part 



' the mine in which the atmosphere is in a 



ite of greater purity, or whe're it contains less 



an one fourth of its volume of carburctted hy- 



ogen gas, than the heated platinum wire of 



elf re-lights the lamp, and the men are ena- 



ed to return to their work with perfect safety. 



' There is another advantage attendant on the 



e of the platinum, viz : that the red hot coil 



platinum wire consumes the fire-damp with- 



the lantern, and this without flame ; yielding 



ily a beautiful light by the ignition of the 



arcoal, which is one of its component parts. 



is eNso to be observed that a candle will burn 



one of these lanterns, made safe with metal- 



; gauze, as well as in the open air ; and that 



tienever the fire-damp is so mixed with the 



:ternal air, as to render it explosive, the light 



m the safe lantern will be extinguished, and ! 



-' nip T 



"1, le lig 

 "•Ilatini 



warning will thus be given to the miners to 

 withdraw from, and to ventilate that part of the 

 mine. Another important circumstance, con- 

 nected with the use of the safety lamp is, that 

 the men can never be in danger with respect to 

 respiration, so long as the platinum continues 

 ignited ; for eveu this phenomenon ceases when 

 (he foul air forms about two-tit"ths of the volume 

 of the atmosphere ; and before tliis it may be 

 breathed without injury. 



" At first the miners were apprehensive re- 

 specting the durability of the wire gauze ; but 

 time has increased the confidence of these 

 men in the apparatus, which has now been in 

 use about five or six years in the most danger- 

 ous mines in Britain, and exposed to all circum- 

 stances which the variety of explosive mix- 

 tures can occasion. And the idea of the wire 

 gauze burning out, is shown to be unfounded ; 

 for the carbonaceous matter, produced from the 

 decomposition of the oil, tends not only to pre- 

 vent the oxidation of the metal, but likewise 

 revives any oxide already formed; and this 

 coaly matter, when the fire-damp is burning in 

 the lamp, chokes the apertures of the cylinder, 

 and gradually diminishes the heat by diminish- 

 ing the quantity of gas consumed. 

 " The brass collar of the wire gauze cylinders 

 is secured to the bottoms of the lamps by locks 

 which can only be opened by the lamp-keeper; 

 so that the workmen cannot either by accident 

 or carelessness expose themselves to danger by 

 separating the wire gauze cylinders from the 

 bottoms of the lamps. 



"After finishing their day's work, the colliers 

 bring their Davys, as they call them, to the 

 lamp-keeper's cabin, who, unlocking them, 

 takes the bottoms into his own possession, and 

 allows the colliers to take the wire gauze cy- 

 linders home for the purpose of cleaning (hem 

 thoroughly. When the colliers return to work 

 the following morning, the lamp-keeper having 

 replenished the lamps with oil and cotton, 

 lights them and screws on their tops, and then 

 examines them with the utmost care, before he 

 delivers them for use ; but if (he least injury or 

 defect appears in the gauze, or in any other 

 part of the lamp, it is immediately set aside to 

 be repaired, and the person to whom it belong- 

 ed is supplied with a perfect one." 



We have gone somewhat at large into the 

 history and merits of this invention, although it 

 is foreign from the main objects of our publica- 

 tion. Our motive is to show that nc~js things 

 may be useful things, and that a philosopher in 

 his closet may contribute more to the benefit of 

 mankind, than a host of men who toil without 

 thought, and tread in a beaten track, merely 

 because it is beaten, without knowing or at- 

 tempting to ascertain whether they are'proceed- 

 ing it the most direct path to the objects of 

 their pursuit. Sir Humphrey Davy's talents 

 and perseverance have not only developed new 

 resources to Great Britain, provided bread for 

 thousands who must otherwise have swelled 

 the enormous pauper list of his country, but 

 saved the lives of multitudes, who in all human 

 probability, would have suffered by what has 

 been aptly denominated " one of the most dan- 

 gerous elements which human enterprize has 

 hitherto had to encounter." 



J. & |A Bluir & Co. of Greenock at present 

 [April 26, 1824] employ no fewer than 1100 



of the inhabitants of the Orkneys in the manu 

 facture of straw plat for Ladies' bonnets, ami 

 have recently turned their attention to an arti- 

 cle in imitation of Leghorn plat. After trying 

 various grasses, they have finally adopted ihf; 

 straw of rye, and liave this season laid di'ivn 

 several acres of that grain, for the purpgse of 

 prosecuting this enterprise. They have al- 

 ready prepared a sufficient quantity of Ihe plat 

 to commence a regular manufacture of bonnets, 

 and (he article they produce is equal to the 

 finest description of Leghorn bonnets. — London 



Farmcr^s Journal. j 



Custom of Trade. — An action was brought by 

 a man against an honest miller for exchanging 

 flour made from wheat sent him to be grounrt, 

 and sending back very interior instead. The 

 only defence that the miller could make was, 

 that it was the custom of the trade. — ibid. 



Astonishing Instance of Fecundity. — A ewe be- 

 tween the Norfolk and Leicester breed, be- 

 longing to Mr. Scaber, of Newmarket, lamb- 

 ed on Monday evening no fewer than five lambs, 

 three ewes and two rams. The ewe and pro- 

 duce are healthy and likely to do well. — ibid. 



White Flint Wheat. — A new species of wheat 

 under this designation, has been successfully 

 eultivated in Cayuga County, for some years 

 past. Its excellent properties are, its security 

 against Ihe Hessian Fly, the straw being solid 5 

 or 6 inches above the ground, were the 

 Fly lodges in other wheat, grows rank, ripens 

 soon, requires but 3 pecks of seed, and yields 

 from 25 to 40 bushels an acre, weighing from 

 60 to 64 lbs. a bushel. This account is given 

 by Mr. Ira Pookins, of Brutus : he thinks the 

 grain a native of the South of Spain, and uo- 

 questionably superior to any other species in 

 use in that part of the country. — JV. Y. Utates- 

 man. r^^^= 



Remedy for a Sore Mouth. — Hold in the mouth 

 a strong decoction of hemlock bark ; if the 

 soreness extends to the throat and stomach swal- 

 low a little of it. — It is presumed the tan ope- 

 rates on the gluten of the skin, the same as in 

 the first of the process of converting raw hide 

 into leather. — Communicated. 



Messrs. Field and Clark of Utica, N. Y. lately 



presented to Mr. Clinton a pair of pitchers and one 



dozen of plates of Staffordshire ware, with devices 



representing various scenes on the Erie canal, with 



the following inscriptions : (on one side) 



The 



Grand Erie Canal, 



A splendid monument of the 



Enterprise and Resources 



of the State of 



NEW-YORK, 



Indebted for its early commencement 



and rapid completion to the active 



Energies, pre-eminent talents 



and enlightened policy of 



DE WITT CLINTON, 



late governor of 



the State. 



(On the reverse) 



Utica, 



a village in the State of 



New-York, thirty years since 



a wilderness; now (1824) inferior to 



none in the western section of the 



State, 



In population, wealth, commercial 



enterprise, active industry 



and civil improvement. 



