36 
MINUTES OF PROCEEDINGS OF 
APPENDICES. 
Copy- 
Sir, 
A. 
29th July, 1872. 
I have the honour to report that I have for some time been making 
enquiries as to the most effectual means of securing the retail stocks of dealers in 
gunpowder against explosion, in the case of the burning of their shops or stores. 
I have been in communication with the heads of the different Fire Brigades on 
the subject; and Captain Shaw, Superintendent of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade, 
has been especially obliging in making suggestions. Some time ago, he referred 
me to Messrs. Milner & Son—the well-known safe makers, of Liverpool—and in 
May last those gentlemen communicated with me, by letter and personally, and I 
have since visited their works at Liverpool, in order to pursue my enquiries still 
further. The result of those enquiries, and of some experiments which Messrs. 
Milner have carried out, appears to be that a safe for storing gunpowder—a small 
domestic gunpowder magazine , in fact —may be made which will resist a fire for 
several hours, and the use of which would be attended with greatly increased 
safety in the storage of gunpowder in and near houses, warehouses, &c. 
Considering that, as the law at present stands, anyone who chooses to sell gun¬ 
powder (no license being required), may store as much as 200 lbs. anywhere and 
anyhow; considering that, as a matter of fact, this quantity of powder (and fre¬ 
quently, I have reason to believe, a larger quantity), is stored in dwelling-houses, 
shops, &c., without any protection whatever against fire; considering that such 
storage frequently takes place in densely-populated neighbourhoods; and con¬ 
sidering that a very much less quantity of powder than 200 lbs. is capable of 
doing immense destruction to life and property; it does appear to me that if a 
system of storing powder in fire-proof magazines could be introduced, substantial 
public benefit would result. Now, whether such a system can be introduced, 
depends upon two things : 
1. Can a really fire-proof gunpowder magazine (to contain small quantities of 
gunpowder) be made ? 
2. Would the cost of such a magazine be such as to render possible or probable 
its voluntary adoption by retail dealers ? 
With regard to the second of these points, I have reason to believe, from the 
enquiries which I have made of retail dealers, that many of them would gladly and 
gratefully adopt these safes, if they can be supplied at anything like a moderate 
cost; and I gather from Messrs. Milner that it would he practicable to supply 
them at a cost quite within the means of the more respectable retail dealers—at a 
cost, that is to say, of from about £10 to £15. 
One dealer told me that he would order one of these magazines by return of 
post, if he could be assured that it would really be an effectual protection against 
fire. And when it is recollected that the retail trade in powder is largely in the 
hands of gunmakers and iron-makers—generally persons in a considerable way of 
business—there can, I think, be little doubt that the expenditure of a few pounds 
