EXPLOSIVENESS OF NITRE. 5 



on their part, would have involved them in the baseness of falsehood, if not the 

 guilt of perjury.* 



8. To everybody the elucidation of the mystery was desirable, since, without a 

 correct knowledge of the causes, the proper means of guarding against a recur- 

 rence of such explosions could not be devised. It was interesting to men of 



* " The contents of the store, agreeably to the evidence of the clerk, whose business it was to keep an 

 account of them, were as follows : — 



In the cellar there were : 



58 hogsheads of sugar. 

 16 barrels of molasses. 



6 cases of indigo, four covered with gunny bags, two cases without gunny bags. 



8 cases of lac dye — one case open, and seven not open. 



First floor : — 



About 300 or 400 bags of saltpetre, in double gunny bags, one bag outside of the other. 

 About 8 casks of madder. 

 About 5 bales of hides. 



5 bales of safflour. 

 32 bags of mustard seed. 



3 ceroons of Guayaquil hats. 

 1-2 chaldron of Cannel coal (Liverpool). Weighing geer. 

 A small lot of loose kindling wood ; about half a load. 

 4 desks and contents. 



1 water-closet. 



Small bags containing samples of saltpetre. 

 Samples of shellac, and a lot of books. 



Second floor : — 



About 1000 bags of saltpetre, and another lot of sumac. 

 150 boxes of sugar. 

 21 bales of raw silk. 

 Between 8000 and 9000 cigars, in half boxes. 



2 casks of indigo. 



Third floor :— 



About 530 bags of saltpetre, in the same condition as that on the first floor. 

 Between 20 and 30 bales of gunny bags. 

 About 700 bags of coffee. 



Fourth floor : — 



Filled with coff'ee in bags. There was nothing else there. ] 



Fifth floor :— 



Y bales of gunny bags. 

 125 cases of shellac. 

 Some 15 or 20 pieces of fur. 



Garret^: — 



About 200 bags of cofi'ee." 

 The following summary, giving the weights, has been furnished to me by Messrs, Crocker and Warren. 



