53 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL. 



[February, 



fiitliDiiis, or live furlongs. The second sonnet conld not, therefore, have been 

 the echo of the first ; anil this was proved, on the following day, by repeating 

 (he experiment in fonr fathoms water, when the double sound was heard as 

 before, and with the same interval. 



The conclusion from these experiments is, either that an echo cannot be 

 heard from the bottom of the sea, or that some more effectual means of pro- 

 (hicing it mnst be eni])loyed. 



Dr. Hare snggosted the expediency of employing the Galvanic fluid to fire 

 gunpowder Ijelow the surface of water, in experiments similar to those of 

 I'lofessor Boiinycastle. — Franklin Journal. 



THE SAFETY L.\MP. 



.\t a late meeting of the Geological and Polytechnic Society of the West 

 Riding of Yorkshire, ilr. Charles Morton ])laced on the table a variety of 

 safety lamps, and proceeded to make some observations and cxjieriments 

 upon them. He called to the recollection of the members the attendance of 

 Mr. Fletcher, of Bromsgrove, at one of the former meetings, when that gen- 

 tleman produced ami described a safety lamp constructed on an imjiroved 

 lirincijilc. Mr. Fletcher had since modified his lamp in accordance with the 

 suggestions thrown out at that meeting, and the lamp which Mr. Morton 

 exhibited had been sent to him by the inventor for trial in the coal mines. 

 T)ie novelty of the apparatus consists in a door or damper at the top, which 

 s held op by a string tied fast to the lower part of the lamp. If this stiing 

 be cut or burnt, the damper drops down and extinguishes the light, in the 

 same way as the shutting of the damper on the top of a furnace chimney 

 puts cot the fire beneath. When, therefore, the lamp is introduced into an 

 inllammablc atmosi)herc, the combustion of the fire-damp inside burns the 

 thread, and the damper dropping down destroys the flame. Mr. Morton 

 tliought the damper would give rise to so much trouble, that the coUiers 

 wdidd not use it. Tlie string is not very readily adjusted, and it passes so 

 near to the wick, that a slight inclination of the lamp, or waving of the 

 flame, liurns the string, and the falling of the damper leaves the collier in 

 darkness when he neither expects nor desires such a result ; and to get rid 

 of this annoyance he would prop up the damjjer, and effectually prevent its 

 falling, even when it was desirable that it shoidd do so, i. e. when it happened 

 to lie in a fiei-y part of the mine. In other respects, this lamp is much like 

 the one invented by Upton and Roberts. The air for feeding the flame 

 enters through the holes beneath, and is brought into immediate contact 

 ^^ith tlie wick by means of a brass cup. The sides of the lamp are partly 

 glass and partly brass, fitted together so as to prevent the admission of air. 

 In Upton's lamp there is a wire gauze cylinder inside the glass, but in Mr. 

 Fletcher's there is none. By this omission the light jiroduced is much 

 stronger, but the safety is materially lessened ; for if the glass of Mr. F.'s 

 l.impwere accidentally broken, the naked flame would be exposed to the fire- 

 damp, and an explosion would ensue. Mr. Morton stated that he had sub- 

 mitted this new lamp to a variety of experiments, both in and out of the coal 

 mines, and he considered it deserving the attention of this society. He 

 tliought the inveiit'jon was still capable of considerable improvement, and 

 boped that Mr. Fletcher (though a gentleman entirely unconnected with 

 mining inirsuits,) would devote more of his time and talents to the perfection 

 of an ajiparatns, the ingenuity of which had already entitled liim to tlie 

 thanks of the public. Mr. Morton remarked that the necessity of attempting 

 to improve the safety lamp would become more generally manifest, if it were 

 universally known that Davy's lamp is no/ safe under certain circumstances. 

 When " the Davy" is introduced into an inflammable atmosphere, al rest, it 

 may be said to be safe ; but if the lamp lie in motion, or if a current of fire 

 daraj) be directed upon it, there is great danger of explosion. By means of a 

 gas jet on the lecture table, Mr. Morton caused the flame of "the Davy" to 

 pass from the inside (o the outside of the wire gauze cage; and he contended 

 that, under similar circumstances, an explosion must inevitably ensue in a 

 fiery coal mine ; and he had no doubt some of the dreadful catastrophes that 

 have occurred in the pits were occasioned in this manner. Mr. Morton said 

 that the over zealous admirers of Davy bad attributed a quality of infallible 

 safety to an instrument which its illustrious discoverer never ventured to 

 claim for it. On the contrary, this distinguished philosopher, in a treatise 

 wliieli be published more than twenty years ago on the subject of the safety 

 lamp, distinctly points out its nnsqfety \\lien introduced into an inflammalile 

 atmosiibcrc in rapid motion ; and he warns his readers against using " the 

 Davy " under such circumstances. Mr. Morton was of opinion that if the 

 notion which generally ju'cvails about the absolute and certain safety of " the 

 Davy " were dispelled, it would have a tendency to produce greater care 

 and caution among miners. Mr. Morton, in conclusion, directed attention 

 to an apparatus contrived by Mr. W. S. Ward, of Leeds, which lie thought 

 might be used for giving light to fiery mines, or in operations with the diving 

 bell. The a|iparatiis consists of a small gas-hohler, containing a compressed 

 mixture of coal gas and oxygen. To this is attached one of Ilemming's safety 

 tubes and a common jet, at the point of which is placed a ball of (juick lime. 

 The kindled flame of gas being directed upon the lime ball, a brilliant light 

 is produced, and as the light is covered with a glass jar, the flame is rendeied 

 safe by being completely insulated or cut off from the external atmosphere.— 

 Midland Counties Herald, 



Wi.NDsoR Castle. — .\bout five or six weeks since a fissure was observed 

 in the wall at the north-western extremity of the North Terrace, close to the 

 Winchester Tower, the residence of Sir Jeffrey WyattviUc. The opening on 

 the northern side extended from the top of the wall to the surface of the 

 earth on the outer side, a distance of some 20 or 30 feet ; and on the western 

 side, from the tmTcts down to the archway entrance to the vaults bcneatli, 

 which extend under the whole length of the terrace. As soon as the fissure 

 was discovered, workmen were employed to fill up the interstices (or " point" 

 them) with mortar, in order to ascertain if the cracks would go on increasing. 

 M'ithin a very short period after this had been done, the opening not only 

 widened, but extended along the lower pathway, parallel with the Winchester 

 Tower, to a distance of 14 OJ 15 yards. The fissure now extends to a dis- 

 tance of upwards of 25 yards. Air. Whitman, the clerk of the works, upon 

 perceiving the dangerous state of the wall, lost no time in communicating 

 with Sir Jeffrey Wyattville, who was then in London, on the subject, by whom 

 the necessary instructions to proceed in such an emergency were inimediately 

 forwarded. Upon entering the vaults underneath the teiTace, two large 

 cracks were observable commencing from the bottom of the wall on the north 

 side, extending completely across the arch, and terminating at the commence- 

 ment of the outer wall of the Castle. These fissures were ordered to be 

 " pointed" in the same manner as those on the outer wall, and with the same 

 results ; for after a few days the openings were found to be considerably en- 

 larged. The first step determined upon was to ascertain how far from the 

 foundation of the wall the injury extended, and workmen are now employed 

 in digging a shaft within the arched vaults on the' northern side for this pur- 

 pose. As far as they have yet jiroceeded, so far extends the opening. It is 

 feared, unless some plan be devised before the breaking up of the frost, to 

 secure the immense mass of stonework which is now in so threatening and 

 dangerous a state, that not only will a large portion of the terrace fall down 

 the steep slope by which it is bounded on the north side, but that it will 

 can7 with it some thousands of tons of earth into the vale beneath, where is 

 situateil some stabling belonging to the canons of Windsor, and close to which 

 is the extensive brewery of Messrs. Reid and Co., late Mr. Ramsbottom's. 

 Some 12 months ago a deep trench or ditch was dug close to the New Ter- 

 race-wall, by order of the dean and canons of Winder, (to whom the slopes 

 and a large piece of land on this side belong), for the purpose of receiving 

 the water which runs off the terrace (after rains, &c.) through small gratings, 

 and which, previously to this being dug, ran down the slopes upon their land 

 below. The trench was intended to have turned the course of tliis water in 

 another direction; but, instead of doing so, it remained in the ditch, where 

 soaked into the earth, and thus, as it is generally supposed, sapped the very 

 foundation of the wall itself, and thence the dangerous state of this part of 

 the terrace, which was erected as long since as the reign of Charles II., who 

 extended it westward upwards of 100 yards. — Daily papers. 



Adams's Vertebrated Carriage. — On Monday, 10th December last, 

 a vertebrated carriage, constructed according to the patent plan of Mr. 

 Adams, with bow-spring bearers and buffers, for the Birmingham and Glou- 

 cester liaihvay Company, left the station at Euston Square with one of the 

 trains for Birmingham. Much speculation had existed as to its action on the 

 rails, owing to the various peculiarities of its construction, and especially 

 from the circumstance that all four wheels were loose on the axles, in adcUtion 

 to the axles running as usual in the ordinary bearings. It has been hitherto 

 found that carriages with loose wheels are apt to run off the rails at slight 

 curves, but such proved not to be the case with the vertebrated carriage, 

 which adapted itself to all curves with the greatest facility. In fact, it seemed 

 almost impossible for the wheels to run off the rails, as the axles always dis- 

 posed themselves at right angles to the hue of traction, and the lateral yield- 

 ing of the springs prevented any friction against the flanges of the wheels. 

 Another objection which had been raised against the carriage, by persons 

 connected with railways, was, that though it might be drawn forwards in a 

 train, it conld not be propelled, as the joi*it would yield, and the wheels go 

 off the rails by an angular thrust. This opinion also proved fallacious, as the 

 carriage was found to go equally well either VTay. The facility of draught 

 was found far greater than that of carriages on the ordinary plan, though 

 much larger than common, consisting of four bodies instead of three. The 

 facility of its movement was strikingly illustrated at the Euston Station, 

 where two of the wheels got off the turn-table, and escaped from the rails. 

 The usual course in such cases is to raise a common carriage by means of 

 screw-jacks, but owing to the action of the joint, and the free movement of 

 the wheels, the vertebrated carriage was rolled upwards by the labourers with 

 little ajiparent difficulty, without resorting to mechanical aid. We under- 

 stand that it is intended to run the carriage between London and Birminghani, 

 previous to the opening of the Gloucester Railway, and judging from its satis- 

 factory performance in remedying various railway evils, there seems to be 

 little doubt that this plan of carriage will come into general use. We uinler- 

 staiid that another improvement by Mr. Adams will shortly be brought for- 

 ward, consisting of a more perfect lubrication of the axles by means of oil 

 instead of grease, and without the usual waste, so that a carriage will proba- 

 bly run a week with only once oiling. We apprehend that the saving of 

 friction on the wheels, owing to the free revolution independent of each 

 other, will materially increase their durability.— yjaiftfoy Times. 



