502 



APPARATUS FOR 



pass before it could issue from the under end. Up- 

 on exploding the powder as before, the flame issued 

 from the bent end of the tube. When this expe- 

 riment was tried with flannel, gunpowder, paper, 

 &c. at the bottom, several peculiar circumstances 

 presented themselves, which may induce me after- 

 wards to investigate more particularly the phe- 

 nomena. 



Experiment 5. — In order to ascertain whether 

 the apparatus were apt to clog up, or miss firing 

 from repeated use, it was discharged for 130 suc- 

 cessive times, and never failed to produce the pro- 

 per effect ; and still the apparatus did not require 

 to be cleaned for future use. 



Experiment 6. — As it appeared of importance 

 to know the temperature at which the new fulmi- 

 nating powder would spontaneously explode, a num- 

 ber of experiments were made with it for that pur- 

 pose. In one of these there were placed upon a 

 circular tin plate, at three situations, with 2 inches 

 intervening, forming, as it were, the points of an 

 equilatural triangle, sulphur, gunpowder, and the 

 fulminating mixture, one grain of each ; below the 

 centre of this triangle, there was a taper, the flame 

 of which was so near as to spread a little upon the 

 tin-plate. In one minute the sulphur began to 

 melt, and in 25 seconds more it was all melted ; 

 at the end of 10 minutes, neither of the powders 

 appeared to be altered, but nearly one-half of the 



