Cooley's Cyclopaedia of Practical Receipts Volume Ii Part 182

_White Chinese Fire._

Calibre. Saltpetre. Bruised Powder. Charcoal. Iron Sand.

3rd order.

12 to 16 lbs. 1 lb. 12 oz. 7 oz. 8 drms. 11 oz.

16 to 22 " 1 " 11 " 8 " 11 " 8 drms.

22 to 36 " 1 " 11 " 8 " 8 " 12 "

The iron sand is moistened with a little spirits of wine, and then mixed with the charcoal and saltpetre, which have been previously incorporated in another mortar.

SIMPLE STARS OR FIREb.a.l.l.s. These are generally used in combination with other arrangements, &c., and the composition of which they are made, consists of--saltpetre, 16 parts; sulphur, 8 parts; fine gunpowder, 3 parts.

These materials are mixed with gum and as little spirits of wine as will suffice to make a very stiff paste. This paste is cut up into small squares, which are rolled up into b.a.l.l.s on a board covered with gunpowder.

The gunpowder, which adheres, serves for the purpose of firing them. When perfectly dry, they are ready for use.

GERBES. These fireworks display themselves as luminous jets of fire somewhat resembling a water spout. Previously to putting in the brilliant composition, put two scoops of first firing or preparatory fire, for which the following will suit, in cases not larger than 1/4 lb. size:--16 oz.

meal powder, 6 oz. saltpetre, 3 oz. sulphur, 3 oz. fine coal. It is important to see that the interior of the cases are quite smooth and free from wrinkles.

GOLD RAIN. The larger rockets are filled with this material, which consists of small squares made in the same way as the simple stars. It is composed as follows:--

Ordinary. Chinese. Composition for immediate use.

Saltpetre parts 16 4 Saltpetre parts 4 Sulphur " 8 2 Sulphur " 2 Fine charcoal " 2 4 Fine small coals " 1 Pine soot " 2 -- Fine gunpowder " 8 Meal powder " 4 16 Coa.r.s.e cast iron " 4

A portion of the cotton is softened in linseed oil and the materials prepared in a mortar with water.

ROMAN CANDLES. These are made somewhat like gerbes and filled with the same materials, the only difference being that _stars_ are placed between the different layers of substances. The materials must not be too tightly rammed down or the stars will be destroyed.

SIMPLE STARS OR FIREb.a.l.l.s. Take of saltpetre 16 parts, sulphur 8 parts, fine gunpowder 3 parts; mix them with gum and only just enough spirits of wine to make a very stiff paste. Cut this up into small squares, and roll into b.a.l.l.s covered with gunpowder. When properly dry they are ready for use.

MARROONS. These are small cubical boxes filled with an explosive composition which explodes suddenly, making a loud report. They are generally used in combination with other fireworks. The boxes are made of pasteboard, the corners being made tight by pasting paper over them, but leaving the top open until they are filled. They are filled with coa.r.s.e gunpowder, when the top is closed with strong paper well cemented, and the whole box is wrapped round two or three times with lind cord dipped in strong glue. A hole is made in one of the corners, into which a quick-match is introduced, and the marroon is ready for action.

The reader who may be desirous of further information on the subject of Pyrotechny, cannot do better than consult the article on the subject in 'Knapp's Chemical Technology,' edited by Messrs. Richardson and Watts.[124]

[Footnote 124: Vol. 1, part 4, No. 1. Balliere & Co.]

To this work we are indebted for much of the material contained in the present papers. See COLOURED FIRES.

=PYROXYL'IC SPIRIT.= See SPIRIT (Pyroxylic).

=PYROX'YLIN.= _Syn._ FULMINATING COTTON, GUN-COTTON. A highly inflammable and explosive compound, discovered by Schonbein. It is obtained by the action of nitric acid on cotton (cellulin, C_{6}H_{10}O_{5}), in the presence of sulphuric acid.

By varying the strength of the nitric acid three kinds of gun-cotton may be obtained, called respectively mononitro-cellulin [C_{6}H_{9}(NO_{2})O_{5}], dinitro-cellulin [C_{6}H_{8}(NO_{2})_{2}O_{5}], and trinitro-cellulin [C_{6}H_{7}(NO_{2})_{3}O_{5}]. The first is but slightly explosive; the second is not sufficiently explosive to be used as a subst.i.tute for gunpowder, but is best adapted for the preparation of collodion; the third is highly explosive, and is the variety employed in mining and military operations, &c.

_Prep._ 1. (B. P., DINITRO-CELLULIN.) Cotton-wool, 1; sulphuric acid, 5; nitric acid, 5; mix the acids, immerse the cotton, and stir with a gla.s.s rod for three minutes, or until it is thoroughly wetted, then remove it, and thoroughly wash out the acid, so that the washings cease to produce a precipitate with chloride of barium. Drain on filtering paper, and dry in a water bath. Used in the preparation of COLLODION.

2. Concentrated nitric acid (sp. gr. 1500) and concentrated sulphuric acid (sp. gr. 1845) are mixed together in about equal measures; when the mixture has become cold it is poured into a gla.s.s or wedgwood-ware mortar or basin, and clean, dry carded cotton, in as loose a state as practicable, is immersed in it for 4 or 5 minutes, the action of the liquid being promoted by incessant stirring with a gla.s.s rod; the acid is next poured off, and the cotton, after being squeezed as dry as possible, by means of the gla.s.s stirrer, or between two plates of gla.s.s, is thrown into a large quant.i.ty of clean soft water, and again squeezed to free it from superfluous moisture; it is then washed in a stream of pure water until it becomes perfectly free from acid, and is, lastly, carefully dried by the heat of hot water or steam, at a temperature not higher than about 180 Fahr. 3. (Schonbein.) Nitric acid (145 to 150), 1 part; sulphuric acid (185), 3 parts (both by volume); proceed as above, but, after the cotton has been squeezed from the acid, allow it to remain in a covered vessel for an hour before washing it, and after washing it, dip it into a solution of carbonate of pota.s.sa, 1 oz., in pure water, 1 gall., then squeeze, and partially dry it; next dip it into a weak solution of nitre, and dry it in a room heated by hot air or steam to about 150 Fahr. (See Patent Specif.)

4. (Von Lenk.) The cotton, having been thoroughly cleansed and dried, is steeped, as above, in a mixture of nitric and sulphuric acids (the strongest obtainable in commerce), squeezed as dry as possible, and immersed in a fresh mixture of strong acids, being allowed to remain in this second mixture 48 hours. It is then washed in a stream of water for several weeks, and finally treated with a solution of silicate of pota.s.sa (soluble gla.s.s). This is the celebrated Austrian gun-cotton which was reported on so favorably by a committee of the British a.s.sociation in 1863. The treatment with silicate of pota.s.sa is adopted merely for the purpose of r.e.t.a.r.ding the combustion.

5. ('Bulletin de St Petersbourg,')--_a._ Take of powdered nitre, 20 parts; sulphuric acid (1830 to 1835), 31 parts; dissolve in a gla.s.s vessel, and, whilst the solution is still warm (122 Fahr.), add of dry carded cotton 1 part, and employ agitation until this last is well saturated; then cover over the vessel with a plate of gla.s.s, and let it stand, for 24 hours, at a temperature of about 86 Fahr.; next well wash the cotton, as above, first with cold and afterwards with boiling water, and dry it carefully at a very low temperature.

_b._ From sulphuric acid (containing 3 equiv. of water), 13 parts; nitric acid (monohydrated), 12 parts; carded cotton, 1 part; the immersion being limited to one hour at a temperature of from 104 to 122 Fahr. (See 'Pharm. Journ.,' vol. xiii, No. 2.)

_Prop., &c._ Pyroxylin explodes, with a very sudden flash, and the development of very little heat, without either smoke or residue, at a temperature of about 300 Fahr. (No. 3 at 277 Fahr.). Several modifications of pyroxylin are known, varying considerably in composition, though they all contain the elements of hyponitric acid, and are all explosive. Some are insoluble in a mixture of ether and alcohol, whilst others are readily dissolved, forming the glutinous solution which is used in surgery under the name of 'collodion,' and which is also extensively used in photography. The best gun-cotton (Von Lenk's) is of no use whatever for making collodion. The pyroxylin prepared by the formula 5, _a_ (_above_), is soluble in a mixture of 7 parts of ether and 1 part of alcohol; whilst the product of 5, _b_, if prepared by 2 hours' digestion instead of 1, is said to be even soluble in absolute alcohol.

_Obs._ General von Lenk has overcome all the difficulties which have hitherto prevented gun-cotton being used in place of gunpowder. By spinning the gun-cotton into thread or yarn, and weaving this into webs, he has succeeded in making cartridges which will produce the exact amount of force required. The time needed for the complete ignition of the cartridge can be diminished or increased at pleasure by varying the mechanical arrangement of the spun threads. Each gun and each kind of projectile requires a certain density of cartridge. In general, it is found that the proportion of 11 lbs. of gun-cotton occupying 1 cubic foot of s.p.a.ce produces a greater force than gunpowder of which from 50 to 60 lbs. occupies the same s.p.a.ce, and a force of the nature required for ordinary artillery. See COLLODION and XYLOIDIN; consult also Abel's researches in the 'Transactions of the Royal Society.'

=QUACK MED'ICINES.= See PATENT MEDICINES, OINTMENT, PILLS, &c.

=QUAIL.= The _Coturnix vulgaris_, a gallinaceous bird, allied to the partridge, but of smaller size. Its flesh is highly esteemed by epicures.

It is imported from Turkey, preserved in oil; and from Italy, potted with clarified b.u.t.ter.

=QUARANTINE.= The old laws of Quarantine, as the French derivation of the word indicates, compelled a vessel coming from the sh.o.r.es of a country liable to, or ravaged by, an infectious disease, such as plague, to those of a region free from contagion, to undergo forty days' isolation before it was unladen, or its pa.s.sengers were allowed to land at the healthy port.

In Europe these ancient enactments against the importation of infection are still more or less vexatiously enforced in Spain, Portugal, Greece and Turkey; and in a modified form at Malta and some of the French and Italian ports. In the Mediterranean ports, ships coming from countries which lie in the southern or eastern sh.o.r.es of that sea are usually subjected to a quarantine of from six to fifteen days, during which period the pa.s.sengers are confined in a sort of barrack called a 'lazaretto,' the merchandise, letters, &c., of the vessel being in the meantime frequently fumigated, or otherwise disinfected.

The inconveniences to commerce and the necessary intercourse between nations attending the too rigorous carrying out of quarantine have, within the last twelve years, led to a series of sanitary international conferences between the European Governments, with the object of divising some methods which, without weakening the safeguards to the public health, should as much as possible reduce the inconveniences attending the enforcement of quarantine to a minimum. At the last of these conferences, which was held at Vienna in 1873, the members were almost unanimous in advising the abolition of quarantine on European rivers.

Until within the last twenty years the old quarantine laws were pretty strictly enforced in this country. Since this time, however, they have been considerably relaxed, or, we should rather say, superseded by the following ordinances, which, upon the authority of an order in council of July 31st, 1871, can be enforced in the case of suspected vessels.

This ordinance declares that it is lawful for a sanitary authority, having reason to believe that any ship arriving in its district comes from a place infected with cholera, to visit and examine the ship before it enters the port.

Art. 3 provides that the master of a cholera-infected ship, or one that has even been exposed to the infection of cholera, is to moor, anchor, or place her in such a position as from time to time the sanitary authority shall direct.

Art. 4 provides that no person shall land from any such ship until after the examination.

Art. 5 provides for the proper examination of all persons on board by a legally-qualified pract.i.tioner, and permits those not suffering from cholera to land immediately.

Another order in council, dated August 3rd, 1874, empowers any custom-house officer, or other person having authority from the Commissioners or Board of Customs, at any time before the Nuisance Authority shall visit and examine the ship, to detain the ship.

"No person shall, after such detention, land from the ship, and the officer shall forthwith give notice of the detention, and of the cause thereof, to the proper nuisance (local) authority; and the detention shall cease as soon as the nuisance authority shall visit and examine the ship, or at the expiration of twelve hours after notice shall have been given to such nuisance authority."

Another order in council, dated August 5th, 1871, directs that the master of a vessel, in which cholera has existed, shall not be allowed to bring his vessel into port until he has destroyed the infected clothes and bedding.

Local Government Boards are also invested with considerable executive powers, by which they are enabled to enforce quarantine during the prevalence of any contagious disease in other countries. The main Act, however, relating to quarantine, is the 6th of Geo. IV., c. 78; and all vessels having on board any person or persons affected with a dangerous or infections disorder, are to be deemed as coming within its provisions (see 'Public Health Act,' Schedule v., part 3). There is a land, as well as a sea quarantine. Thus, for instance, in some countries, more particularly those of Eastern Europe, the former is still in force on the frontiers of contiguous States, to the great impediment of commerce and inconvenience of travellers.

The late outbreak of plague in Astrakan has led to its being established and very strictly carried out on the borders of Russia, Austria, Hungary, and Germany.

Hecker, writing on the probable origin of quarantine, remarks:--"The fortieth day, according to the most ancient notions, has always been regarded as the last of ardent diseases, and the limit of separation between these and those which are chronic. It was the custom to subject lying-in women for forty days to a more exact superintendence.

There was a good deal also said in medical works of forty days' epochs in the formation of the ftus, not to mention that the alchemists always expected more durable revolutions in forty days, which period they called the philosophical month. This period being generally held to prevail in natural processes, it appeared reasonable to a.s.sume and reasonably to establish it; as that required for the development of latent principles of contagion, since public regulations cannot dispense with decisions of this kind, even though they should not be wholly justified by the nature of the case. Great stress has also been laid on theological and legal grounds, which were certainly of greater weight in the fifteenth century than in modern times; such as the forty days' duration of the flood; the forty days' sojourn of Moses on Mount Sinai; our Saviour's fast for the same length of time in the wilderness; lastly, what is called the Saxon term, which lasts for forty days.

=QUAR'TAN.= Occurring every fourth day.

=QUARTA'TION.= The practice, among a.s.sayers, of alloying 1 part of gold with 3 parts of silver, before submitting it to the operation of 'parting,' in order that its particles may be too far separated to protect the copper, lead, palladium, silver, or other metals, with which it is contaminated, from the solvent action of the nitric or sulphuric acid, as the case may be. See a.s.sAYING.